Silence.
No one spoke. No one gasped.
The entire Kirigakure had fallen into a deathly stillness.
Everyone simply stared blankly at the fallen figure of Numako—who had reverted back to his human form—and at Hoshiyomi, who was still floating high in the sky. For a moment, no one even knew what to say.
It was as though thunder exploded inside their minds. The sheer impact of what they had just witnessed had torn their reason to shreds, leaving behind only unending shock.
The Tailed Beast Bomb… had been destroyed.
Not only that—it had been pushed back into the Six-Tails' body and detonated inside it?!
If anyone had told them that beforehand, they would have spat in his face and snapped, "Don't talk nonsense."
After all, in their understanding, the Tailed Beast Bomb was something impossible to destroy.
But now, Hoshiyomi had proven with his own hands that the impossible could be done.
A mortal body had shattered a Tailed Beast Bomb.
No—wait. Was Gekko Hoshiyomi even human?
As the Kirigakure shinobi stood frozen in stunned silence, the old, raspy voice of Elder Genji broke the stillness:
"You fools actually tried to forcibly hold him here, relying on sheer numbers... Truly idiotic."
Hearing this, the Kirigakure shinobi snapped out of their daze as if waking from a dream. They looked at each other, their knees trembling like noodles.
If Elder Genji hadn't stopped them earlier, and they had really tried to join forces with the Six-Tails to take on Hoshiyomi…
Just imagining that outcome made their skin crawl. The scene would have been too bloody to even picture.
Genji sighed deeply as he looked at their terrified faces.
With Yagura and the Seven Ninja Swordsmen dead, and Numako's fate uncertain, only this trembling rabble remained.
How was he supposed to clean up this mess?
While Genji was lamenting the Kirigakure's uncertain future, Hoshiyomi's voice drifted through the air:
"Hey, hey, stop staring. Time to go back."
He was talking to Pakura and the others, but the words also caught Genji's attention. When he saw Hoshiyomi approaching, Genji hurriedly said:
"Konoha's Silver Moon, the kindness you have shown in helping Kirigakure seal the Six-Tails is something this old man will never forget. This old man is willing to represent the entire Kirigakure and assure you that our previous grievances are settled here and now!"
Hoshiyomi nodded with satisfaction.
"I hope Elder Genji will keep that promise. In return, I can guarantee this—
as long as the Kirigakure refrains from its little schemes, Konoha won't act against you either."
As he spoke, the three Hyūga shinobi and Pakura had silently returned to stand behind Hoshiyomi. The group of five prepared to leave, and of course, no one on Kirigakure's side dared to block their path.
To show his sincerity, Elder Genji even hobbled forward on his cane, personally escorting Starry Night and his group out of the village.
That only made Hoshiyomi more certain—this old man truly was a wise one.
Watching Genji following him step for step, Hoshiyomi thought for a moment, then decided it was time to toss him one last "sweet fruit."
"Elder Genji, there's no need to see us off. You should go check on your Fourth Mizukage instead.
He's still alive—and he's a fine shinobi, more than worthy of the title of Mizukage."
Genji froze.
Yagura… is alive?
The old man's cloudy eyes locked onto Hoshiyomi's calm, deep gaze, and for a moment, he couldn't see through this young man at all.
He had invaded the Kirigakure out of vengeance—
yet he hadn't slaughtered a single innocent.
Was he acting out of arrogance, looking down on them from the height of his power?
Or did he, like Hashirama once did, truly possess the heart of a pure child?
Genji couldn't find the answer.
But he did understand one thing clearly—
this young man before him, and by extension, the village of Konoha itself… were not to be trifled with.
With that realization, Genji did something completely unexpected.
Right there, in front of everyone, he leaned heavily on his cane and bowed deeply toward Hoshiyomi.
"In the name of the Kirigakure, I, Genji, will temporarily assume the post of acting Mizukage—and on behalf of the village, I hereby propose an alliance with Konoha.
From this day forward, may our two villages stand together as friends and allies."
"From this day forward, the Kirigakure will never again take any hostile action against the Konoha!
As a gesture of sincerity, we are willing to allow Konoha to station a small unit of no more than one hundred shinobi at our Kirigakure port, so that they may immediately observe all of our military movements during wartime!"
The shocking declaration from Elder Genji left every Kirigakure shinobi utterly stunned.
What was going on?!
They had just been fighting to the death minutes ago, and now the elder wanted to form an alliance with the very people who had slaughtered nearly everyone in the Mizukage Building?
And allowing Konoha to station troops inside the Kirigakure?
That was practically surrender! A total humiliation!
For a moment, the Kirigakure shinobi even began to suspect that Elder Genji had been brainwashed or hexed by that terrifying man, Gekko Hoshiyomi.
While the Kirigakure side was still reeling from Genji's bombshell, Hoshiyomi's thoughts were completely different—
This old man knows exactly what he's doing.
By humbling himself so completely and taking the initiative to propose an alliance, Genji was performing the perfect political maneuver: "Let bygones be bygones."
With the Kirigakure now hugging Konoha's thigh so decisively, even if Konoha ever wanted to strike at them again, it would have to carefully consider the political consequences first.
And once an alliance was in place, trade between the two villages would naturally follow. With Konoha's resources supporting them, the Kirigakure's recovery and rise to power would be just around the corner.
Facing Genji's request to form an alliance, Hoshiyomi of course agreed without hesitation.
Although the finer details would need to be discussed later, Genji's verbal commitment was enough to put Hoshiyomi completely at ease.
During the upcoming Third Great Ninja War, he no longer had to worry about the Kirigakure's actions.
With Konoha's right to station troops in the Kirigakure secured, the entire village would effectively become transparent to him.
By having access to real-time intelligence, he could prevent the original story's tragedy—where Obito was manipulated and Rin was captured by Kirigakure shinobi.
That meant Rin's death would never happen, Obito would never descend into darkness, and Kakashi… would finally have the peaceful future he deserved.
All things considered, Hoshiyomi's mission to the Kirigakure had been a complete—and overwhelming—success.
...
Three days later – Hokage's Office
"With this new troop-stationing agreement, we won't have to worry about the Kirigakure playing any tricks behind our backs again.
So? Isn't your husband amazing?"
Hoshiyomi arched an eyebrow smugly at Tsunade, his expression practically spelling out: "Come on, praise me already."
But Tsunade's attention was elsewhere.
Her golden eyes narrowed slightly as she stared at him and said in a very deliberate tone:
"So… Pakura of the Sunagakure—the Scorch Release user. I've heard she's quite the hero of Sunagakure.
How exactly did you manage to get her to join Konoha just by saying a few words?"
A cold bead of sweat instantly rolled down Hoshiyomi's back. He hurriedly waved his hands.
"What do you mean 'a few words'? I convinced her with logic and emotion, that's all! And for the record, I don't care about her looks—I only value her kekkei genkai and her loyalty."
Tsunade's voice dropped lower, teasingly dangerous:
"Oh? You're sure it's because of her skills and loyalty… and not because she happens to be an exceptionally beautiful woman?"
"Beautiful? I didn't even notice! The only beauty I see is right in front of me.
Besides, if I had been attracted to her, would I really have made her your personal bodyguard?"
Tsunade raised an eyebrow, her expression playful and sharp at once.
"Mm-hm… Funny, because I've heard there's a saying—
'The most dangerous place is often the safest one.'"