Following the start of the negotiations between the four Kage, the Konoha shinobi began their phased withdrawal. As one of the village's primary deterrents, Aburame Tetsumaru was kept back as part of the very last wave.
Shortly after his departure, Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo Shimura held a private conversation regarding the young man's fate and his place within Konoha.
"Aburame Tetsumaru is too dangerous," Danzo stated flatly. "We cannot allow him to move about with such freedom."
Hiruzen puffed on his pipe. "Dangerous? In what way?"
"The Mountain Giant, the Daikokuten Bug, and those massive swarms that far exceed any reasonable production numbers," Danzo listed, his voice growing cold. "He is keeping far too many secrets from the village. He is disloyal!"
Taking a sharp breath, Danzo leaned forward with a request. "Hand him over to me. I will turn him into a sharp blade, loyal only to the village."
Hiruzen observed his old comrade for a long moment before sighing and shifting the topic. "Danzo... as for power and secrets kept from the village, are you not the same?"
"I have no secrets from the village," Danzo snapped.
"There are plenty of secrets in Root that even I am not privy to," Hiruzen countered. "How can you claim you aren't keeping anything from the village?"
An awkward, heavy silence settled between them. Finally, Danzo stood up and pulled back the tent flap to leave.
"You will regret this, Hiruzen," Danzo cursed, his voice thick with resentment.
"I am the Hokage, Danzo," Hiruzen replied tonelessly.
Once Danzo had stormed off, Hiruzen lit a fresh bowl of tobacco. He smoked it in silence until it was finished, then let out a heavy, weary sigh. "How can you be so stupid?"
Was Aburame Tetsumaru even someone they could "handle"?
It was a joke. Tetsumaru had officially become untouchable. The reasons were exactly what Danzo had just listed: the Mountain Giant, the Daikokuten Bug, the massive swarms, and an unknown, completely uncontrolled capacity for biological production.
Yet, that fool Danzo had let greed cloud his judgment. He actually believed that by controlling or killing Tetsumaru, he could simply inherit that power.
The man was a complete idiot, blinded by avarice. Well, he only has one eye left, Hiruzen mused. No wonder his vision is so narrow.
The Third Hokage tapped out the ash from his pipe and stepped out of the tent. He watched as the Rock ninja worked to clean up the blast site, turning the topsoil deep into the earth.
While this would leave the Tannoura Valley barren for years, it was far better than leaving it uninhabitable for decades.
This was merely the easiest explosion site to manage. The blast at the Akagi Mountain Fortress had been far more devastating. The internal tunnel network was beyond salvaging; it would eventually have to be buried entirely, ending any hope of reconstruction.
The consequences of "planting mushrooms" twice were this severe. What if there were more explosions? What if the Land of Fire were littered with Daikokuten Bugs?
The thought made even the Hokage shiver.
Fortunately, there were only two. Or rather, fortunately, Tetsumaru had only revealed two. Things hadn't reached a state of total devastation. By detonating those two bugs, Tetsumaru hadn't just proven how terrifyingly dangerous he was; he had also proven how rational and restrained he could be.
Danzo, however, had proven time and again that he was neither rational nor reliable. The Hokage couldn't even allow a second Kage-level ninja to appear in Root; he certainly wouldn't tolerate such a dangerous power falling into Danzo's hands.
Ultimately, Danzo was the Hokage's shadow, his "black glove." It was fine for him to be a bit impulsive or irrational, but he could never be allowed to possess power that broke the balance.
Hiruzen lit another pipe and exhaled a long cloud of smoke, shaking his head. There was one final, fundamental reason why they couldn't move against Tetsumaru: throughout this entire ordeal, Hiruzen hadn't seen the real Tetsumaru once.
As the "Professor of Ninjutsu," Hiruzen was certain that the "Tetsumaru" he had interacted with from start to finish was nothing but a series of Shadow Clones and Insect Clones. There were no exceptions.
Even during the battle with the Five-Tails, the Hokage had observed closely. When Tetsumaru performed the Summoning Jutsu, he used blood stored in test tubes rather than biting his own thumb.
Danzo hadn't even noticed that detail, yet he had the gall to say, "Hand him over to me." Could I even catch him to hand him over? Could you?
The more he thought about it, the more his head ached. Hiruzen decided to put it out of his mind. The war was over, but his to-do list was still miles long.
Tetsumaru returned to Konoha to find the village in a state of exuberant celebration. People were busy preparing for the upcoming Mid-Spring Festival.
The scale of the festivities was far larger than a minor holiday usually warranted. Everyone was using the event as an excuse to celebrate the peace. No one cared that it was technically "against the rules."
Tetsumaru strolled toward his home but stopped short. His Secret Technique: Domain Field Barrier linked with the insects inside the house. His parents were home, but he realized it wasn't the right time to go in.
He quickly severed the link and turned toward the BBQ district. As he walked, he muttered under his breath, "They've been married for years, you'd think they'd be more discreet during the day. Sheesh."
Relying on his reputation and a bit of "face," he managed to snag a small corner in a packed, rowdy BBQ restaurant. He ordered an obscene amount of meat and vegetables and proceeded to eat like a man possessed for two hours.
The orders for meat—every cut imaginable, especially the bone-in variety—never seemed to stop. It got to the point where the Akimichi owner actually came out to see if someone was trying to pull a "dine and dash" or start a fight.
He saw that it was just a classmate of his own kid and that the young man could really eat. For the sake of his brand, the owner patted his chest and told Tetsumaru to order whatever he wanted; there was no way the Akimichi family would let a customer go away hungry.
Back in the kitchen, the owner frantically sent half his staff out to buy meat from every butcher in the neighborhood. If they didn't restock now, they'd lose their reputation.
The owner even swore that once the holiday was over, he'd build a massive new cold storage unit and stock three times as much meat for emergencies.
Little did he know that twenty years later, that cold storage would actually save his restaurant's reputation from being trampled by a true glutton—even if she only ate until she was eighty percent full.
In the afternoon, Tetsumaru sat in a sun-drenched courtyard, drinking tea to aid his digestion with Elder Shiki. Tetsumaru wore his traditional trench coat and sunglasses, while Elder Shiki was bundled in a cotton robe and a blanket. The old man was growing weaker by the day.
"You gave me quite a scare this time, kid," Shiki said. "I'm getting too old for this. Not only do I have to worry about finding a suitable successor, but I have to worry about the 'big news' you stir up every other week."
"You flatter me, Elder. Truly."
Shiki glanced at the floor where Tetsumaru sat. The wooden floorboards were only slightly bowed. He blinked in confusion and sighed. "You're getting more cautious by the day, Tetsumaru. Are you a Shadow Clone right now? An Insect Clone? Or is it actually you?"
Tetsumaru grinned. "So even you can't tell anymore, Elder? I can't say. Truly can't say."
"Is that so? Then forget I asked."
Elder Shiki's gaze sharpened. He wasn't annoyed with Tetsumaru; he understood that Tetsumaru's answer meant they were currently being watched.
Where was this? The Aburame clan's inner sanctum—an absolute private zone. Not even the Hokage was supposed to enter uninvited. For someone to stretch their eyes and ears into this place... it was obviously Danzo's work.
"You've certainly had a hard time, kid."
"It's fine. It's only temporary." Tetsumaru carelessly downed his tea in one gulp. "Give me two years to reach the same height as Lord Orochimaru, and I won't have to care about that clown anymore."
Internal Monologue: And when that time comes, I'm going to kill him. I'm not letting years of repressed frustration slide.
"A clown? Hahaha! You're right. He really is just a clown." Elder Shiki laughed, but the laughter ended in a sigh. "Actually, he used to be decent. A bit annoying, but he got things done."
"In recent years, he's suffered defeat after defeat. The more he loses, the more impatient he gets, leading to even worse failures. Add to that the fact that Orochimaru's generation has surpassed him, and your generation is growing up so fast... he's desperate. He's just rotting away day by day."
Tetsumaru snorted with disdain. "What does his misery have to do with me? I'm the victim here. I don't have the spare energy to empathize with my victimizer."
The two ninjas continued to badmouth Danzo Shimura right in front of the hidden surveillance.
As long as Danzo couldn't catch the real Tetsumaru, Tetsumaru had nothing to fear. As for Elder Shiki, he didn't have much time left and had no children of his own; he had absolutely nothing to lose.
"What do you plan to do next?" Shiki asked finally.
"I'm going back to the Land of Tea. I'll stay far away from the village. Distance creates beauty... and avoids conflict."
"Heh, well put." Shiki smiled. "Do as you wish. Don't worry about things here at home."
Tetsumaru nodded and raised a final cup of tea to the old man. "I wish you good health."
He drank it down, then vanished in a puff of white smoke.
"Hmph. Brat."
At that moment, another "Tetsumaru" was walking through Konoha's commercial street, browsing the new merchandise. Suddenly, he noticed a particularly eye-catching couple: the "Tomato and Fried Egg" duo, Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki.
The two were walking toward him, hand-in-hand and laughing.
Seeing Tetsumaru towering over the crowd, Minato offered a polite greeting. "Aburame-senpai."
Tetsumaru didn't speak, but he nodded in return and kept walking. As they passed, he heard Kushina whisper, "Which Jonin was that?"
"That's 'Swarm Master' Aburame Tetsumaru. His Daikokuten Bug and the End-Times Giant are incredibly cool."
"Ooh! That was him? Can I ask him for an End-Times Giant?"
"You want an End-Times Giant?"
"Of course! A bug that tall? Imagine how cool it would be to ride that through the village!"
Minato let out a helpless laugh. "You definitely couldn't ride that through the village. It's way too dangerous."
"But it would be so awesome!"
As their bickering faded into the distance, Tetsumaru looked back at them with a faint, sad smile.
Because the Raikage had negotiated directly with the Hokage in the Land of Earth, no foreign diplomatic teams had come to Konoha. Consequently, the "Kushina Kidnapping Incident" never happened—but it didn't seem to have affected their relationship. They had found each other anyway.
In the eyes of the public, Tetsumaru had no connection to either of them. But Tetsumaru kept his own ledger. He had surreptitiously "borrowed" Minato's Flying Thunder God Jutsu, even if he hadn't mastered it yet.
He had also indirectly benefited from Kushina's lectures on Uzumaki Sealing Techniques. Even though his time studying them had been brief, they were already proving to be of immense value.
Goodbye, you two. If the future doesn't change on its own... I'll reach out and pull you back from the brink to pay the debt I owe you today.
After dark, Tetsumaru finally went home "for real." He spent the entire night talking with his parents, who were beyond awkward after being caught earlier. He was an adult now, and the scope of their conversations had broadened: war, combat, food, clothing, and life.
"Tetsumaru, you're not getting any younger," his mother ventured. "It's about time you found a girlfriend."
Tetsumaru: !!??
Even in the Shinobi World, I can't escape the 'marriage nagging'? And at nineteen?!
At dawn, an ANBU arrived with Tetsumaru's new appointment orders.
He was in no rush. He said his goodbyes to his parents, Elder Shiki, his friends, classmates, and students. He even stayed for lunch and dinner, only slipping away from Konoha after dark. He headed south.
Two hours after he left, a group of ninjas wearing intricate, patterned masks departed through the main gate. After clearing the village perimeter, the leader held out his left hand. He carefully observed a male insect on his finger, which was fluttering its wings as if ready to fly. He confirmed the direction.
"He really is heading south. Let's move."
"Yes, sir!"
Six days later, sixteen Root ninjas reached the coast of the Land of Tea. They were in a wretched state—disheveled, filthy, and their clothes in tatters.
They had sprinted non-stop for six days, covering four thousand kilometers. They had squeezed every ounce of stamina from their bodies.
Huff... puff... "He's ten kilometers in that direction. The target has been stationary for over four hours."
Another Root ninja spread out a rough map, tracing the direction. He pointed decisively at a large island. "Yes. That's it."
"We finally made it. I can't believe how far he came."
"Huff... huff... Tonight, we rest. We recover our combat strength, then we infiltrate for reconnaissance."
Aside from the four who spoke, the other twelve ninjas stood perfectly still, despite their trembling legs. They were silent and motionless, like twelve breathing dolls.
Oh? Still quite cautious, aren't you? Fine. I'll let you live one more night.
The next day, thirteen Root ninjas set out, leaving three behind as backup. They walked across the water for six kilometers before diving beneath the surface to approach the island.
Because their map was so crude, they had to perform a quick survey upon arrival. They chose to land on a rugged, rocky stretch of coast.
They scaled the steep black cliffs, cresting the ridge in total silence. But once they looked down at the island's interior, they were paralyzed with shock. What they saw defied every law of the natural world.
As far as the eye could see, the land was covered in a deep purple "grass." Countless fleshy pillars towered hundreds of meters high, venting plumes of smoke into the sky—black, white, purple, orange, and even multi-colored.
In the misty distance, two gargantuan, curved pillars rose to rival the volcanoes in height—perhaps hundreds, or even thousands of meters tall.
Across the purple plains, swarms of mantis-like creatures marched in formation. Countless small insects gathered and dispersed like living clouds. There were even multiple specimens of the so-called "Mountain Giants" or "End-Times Giants" lumbering about. Just within their immediate line of sight, there were twenty-three of them.
"There are... there are so many," the Root leader whispered, his voice dry.
"It's quite a sight, isn't it? Welcome to my domain."
Tetsumaru flipped up over the ledge they had just climbed. In his hand, he dangled three severed heads—the three backup ninjas they had left on the beach.