After Naruto left, Fujimoto Tōma remained where he was, hands in his pockets, eyes unfocused. His thoughts slid inward, quietly lining themselves up.
He remembered Naruto's strength clearly now.
In that strange fusion state Naruto had reached, drawing on the Nine-Tails while standing in sage balance, his power already surpassed Obito's flawed Six Paths form. Still, it fell short of Madara at his peak.
If Tōma counted everything he could bring to bear, he was confident he could defeat that version of Naruto with effort. Not easily, but decisively.
That didn't mean he could stand shoulder to shoulder with Madara.
Madara wasn't a single benchmark. There was one-eyed Madara, fully restored Madara, and the version who had absorbed the Divine Tree. Each step was a different wall.
Even so, Tōma felt satisfied.
Until recently, he'd had no real way to measure himself. He'd simply grown stronger and stronger, with no one around who could force him to show his limits. Nagato had been the last real comparison, and that fight had ended far too quickly.
Now, thanks to Naruto, the picture was clearer.
He stood at the very peak of Kage-level shinobi. One step further, and he would be brushing against the realm of legends.
Obito's so-called Six Paths power had always been incomplete. Without the full Ten-Tails, it never truly crossed that threshold. Tōma understood that now.
What surprised him most was himself.
When he was younger, his goal had been modest. If he could reach the level above the Kage, that would have been enough. Enough to survive the Fourth Shinobi War. Enough to stay alive in the chaos.
He hadn't planned on becoming Hokage at all. If he'd lacked the strength, he would have stayed hidden, a capable jōnin among many. That kind of life was survivable.
Instead, without really noticing, he'd walked to the edge of the Six Paths domain.
At his current level, he could already influence the course of the entire war. And he wasn't finished growing.
When he completed the paths he already understood, another transformation awaited him. How far that would take him, even Tōma couldn't say.
The thought made him smile.
He stretched, joints popping softly.
Then he turned back to training.
There were still names ahead of him. Madara. Naruto. Legends spoken of like myths. Figures that once felt unreachable now sat within the realm of possibility.
And Naruto was closing in fast.
Tōma didn't have the Nine-Tails. He didn't have Six Paths chakra handed to him by fate.
But everything he had built, he had built himself.
That was his advantage.
The next morning, in the Hokage's office, Uchiha Sasuke stood before the desk, delivering his report.
"Karin sensed a massive chakra surge last night," he said. "Brief, but overwhelming."
Tōma listened without interrupting.
After a pause, Sasuke added, "According to her, it was even stronger than yours."
At first, Sasuke had assumed Tōma had broken through again. Karin had quickly denied that. The chakra felt similar to Naruto's, yet distinctly different. So different that even she doubted her own perception. The presence vanished soon after.
No battle followed. No alarms. No destruction.
That was why Sasuke was here now.
As head of ANBU, he had to report it. As a shinobi, he wanted answers.
Tōma's expression twitched slightly. If Sasuke knew the truth, he'd probably react the same way Naruto once had. Restless. Driven.
Unlike Naruto, Sasuke didn't have an endless well of borrowed power. Until awakening higher forces, his options were limited.
Still, Tōma didn't hide anything.
He explained Naruto's reconciliation with the Nine-Tails. The fusion of chakra and sage energy. The scale of power it created.
And he made one thing clear.
"In some areas," Tōma said calmly, "Naruto has already surpassed me."
Sasuke froze.
"Kurama's chakra… combined with Sage Mode?" he repeated.
Even prepared, the words hit hard.
If Naruto had truly overtaken Tōma in multiple aspects, then Sasuke's own position felt uncomfortably distant. He couldn't even see Tōma's back anymore, and Naruto had already passed him.
So much for growing together.
At this rate, competing for the Hokage seat would feel meaningless.
Strength wasn't everything. But the Hokage couldn't be weak either. At minimum, they had to stand near the top.
Unless Naruto took the position first.
Sasuke exhaled slowly, then looked straight at Tōma.
"I've decided," he said. "Implant the First Hokage's cells. And Itachi's eyes."
Tōma raised an eyebrow. "You're sure?"
"I can't fall that far behind," Sasuke said. "Power is just power. It doesn't have a morality of its own."
Tōma nodded, then added bluntly, "Even with those, you still won't beat Naruto. You'll only get closer."
It wasn't meant as cruelty. It was a warning.
If Sasuke crossed that line and still came up short, regret would come too late.
"What if I master perfect Sage Mode?" Sasuke asked, eyes burning.
That stopped Tōma.
In the original history, Sasuke had relied on borrowed sage power. True mastery was another matter entirely. With First Hokage cells, it might actually be possible.
"I don't know," Tōma admitted. "Perfect Sage Mode isn't easy."
"I'll succeed," Sasuke said without hesitation.
After a moment, Tōma nodded. "Then I agree."
Sasuke frowned. "Who else needs to?"
"Lady Tsunade," Tōma replied. "It's her grandfather's legacy. You should hear it from her."
Silence followed.
Eventually, Sasuke nodded. "I understand."
Tsunade received him with mild surprise.
After hearing everything, she set down her tea.
"So you want my grandfather's cells," she said, "and you want me to implant your brother's eyes."
"Yes."
She considered him quietly, then laughed.
"If Tōma approved your path, I won't stand in the way."
Sasuke stared.
"Surprised?" she asked.
"The Senju and Uchiha—"
"That's old dust," Tsunade waved it away. "Both clans are gone. What's left is the village."
She paused, then added, "If more Uchiha had been like you, Danzo would've had nothing to cling to."
Sasuke didn't argue.
Some things couldn't be undone.
"When do you want the procedure?" Tsunade asked.
"As soon as possible."
"Then follow me. We'll run tests today."
Two days later, the surgery was complete.
It was a success.
Sasuke, however, ignored medical orders and vanished from the hospital almost immediately.
Tsunade complained about it in the Hokage's office.
"He ran off to train while his eyes are still stabilizing."
Tōma nodded. "I figured."
"You're not worried?"
"He'll be fine."
She sighed. "You people are all the same."
"Because we don't want regrets," Tōma said, smiling.
Tsunade didn't press further.
Some reasons were better left unspoken.
As she left, Tōma leaned back in his chair, thoughts drifting.
There were many reasons to grow stronger.
Some of them belonged only to him.