“Renye, can you explain why Hashirama had to fake his death?” Uzumaki Mito asked expectantly.
Even now, she still didn't understand why Hashirama had to fake his death and leave.
What kind of situation would make him make such a decision?
If it weren't for the Nine-Tailed reminding her, she probably would never have known the truth in her life.
Renye was silent for a moment, then explained, “When Uncle Hashirama was seriously ill, I didn’t want him to die like that, so I lied to him and said that Uchiha Madara wasn’t dead…”
He recounted what happened that night, mixing truth with falsehood.
Hearing this, Uzumaki Mito looked incredulous.
“You mean… you not only lied to us, but also to Hashirama?!”
“Uh, you could say that.” Renye scratched his head awkwardly.
Although the news of Uchiha Madara's faked death couldn't be verified, it was still better not to mention it.
Saying too much about certain things often leads to problems.
“I just didn’t want to see Uncle Hashirama leave like that, so I told a lie.” Renye spread his hands, “And as a result, things turned out this way.”
Who among normal people would think of faking their death to escape?
One can only say that it truly lives up to being the Chakra reincarnation of Indra and Asura.
The two brothers do very similar things…
Uzumaki Mito did not speak, seemingly digesting his words.
After a moment of silence, she slowly said, “Do you know Hashirama’s exact location?”
“I don’t know.” Renye shook his head, “I haven’t seen Uncle Hashirama since that night.”
He wasn't lying about that.
He had originally wanted to contact him using a summoning beast, but before he could say anything, Senju Hashirama was gone.
Now Hashirama is out of contact.
No one knows which corner he might have died in.
If he can't even be summoned with Edo Tensei then, that would be interesting.
However, given Senju Tobirama's nature, he probably collected Hashirama's cells long ago.
He can still be summoned with Edo Tensei…
Uzumaki Mito felt completely relieved upon learning that Hashirama was not dead.
As long as Hashirama wasn't dead, he would return one day.
She just needed to wait for Hashirama to return home.
Uzumaki Mito's gloomy mood instantly dissipated, and a smile bloomed on her face.
She didn't blame Renye for hiding this matter; knowing her husband was alive was enough.
Once Hashirama couldn't find Uchiha Madara, he would return to the Village.
And she only needed to quietly wait for her husband to return.
…
“Let's go, Renye.”
Uzumaki Mito smiled and said softly.
With that, she turned to leave, but found Renye still standing in place.
She couldn't help but ask, “Renye, what’s wrong?”
“Aunt Mito, don’t tell Uncle about this!” Renye looked nervous.
This kind of thing must never be known to that Old Man Senju Tobirama.
Otherwise, the very next day, he would send people to the Ninja World to search for his elder brother's whereabouts.
And he, who concealed the truth, would definitely not have a good outcome!
Renye recalled the killing intent Senju Tobirama had directed at him years ago.
It was still fresh in his memory.
He would never forget that feeling in his life!
Uzumaki Mito looked at Renye's nervous expression and was slightly taken aback.
Then she quickly figured out the reason.
She covered her mouth and chuckled, “I understand, Renye.”
Renye sighed in relief upon hearing this.
The two left the Senju Ancestral Tomb together.
“Renye, when do you think Hashirama will return?”
“I don’t know, he should be back soon.”
“By the way, is Uchiha Madara really not dead?”
“…Who knows.”
——————
Senju Hashirama, wearing a straw hat, swiftly moved through the forest.
An intuition told him that Madara had appeared here before.
As he passed through the forest, a tavern came into view.
“I’m a bit hungry, so I’ll eat here.”
Senju Hashirama pulled down the brim of his hat and walked into the tavern.
Inside the tavern, there were seven or eight wooden tables, and in the innermost corner, three people were gathered, looking like wandering Ninja.
He didn't pay them any mind, found a table and sat down, placing his hat on it.
The tavern owner enthusiastically said, “Customer, what would you like?”
Senju Hashirama smiled and said, “A pot of sake, and a few meat dishes.”
“Alright, please wait a moment.”
While waiting for his food, the conversation of the three wandering Ninja reached Hashirama's ears.
“Have you heard? Hōzuki Gengetsu of the Hidden Mist just became Mizukage, and immediately launched an attack on Iwagakure.”
“I know about that! The two newly appointed Kage had conflicts before, and after becoming Kage, they launched wars against each other.”
“Speaking of foolishness, these two Kage are truly foolish. Their fighting directly reduced Konoha’s opponents by two.”
Senju Hashirama's lips curved upwards; indeed, Konoha's pressure had lessened.
He believed that with Tobirama's leadership, the war would soon end.
He wouldn't even need to step in.
The wandering Ninja's conversation continued, and he began to tilt his head to listen.
“Who says otherwise? Konoha now only needs to face Kumogakure and Sunagakure.”
“In fact, Konoha only needs to face Kumogakure… The Sunagakure on the Southwest Battlefield has been completely suppressed by Konoha to the point of being unable to lift their heads.”
“Oh? How so?”
Upon hearing this, Senju Hashirama instinctively turned his body.
The wandering Ninja who had spoken earlier explained:
“It is said that Konoha produced a genius Poison Expert, who not only easily deciphered the poisons developed by the Sunagakure, but also developed poisons stronger than those of the Sunagakure!”
“Facing the poisons developed by Konoha, the Sunagakure had no solution whatsoever.”
Senju Hashirama's expression was strange, and the face of a young man appeared in his mind.
This Poison Expert, could it be…
Just then, the wandering Ninja's exclamation interrupted his thoughts.
“Really? When did Konoha get such a high-level poison master? How come I’ve never heard of it?”
This wandering Ninja couldn't help but doubt the veracity of the news.
The wandering Ninja who had spoken earlier said irritably, “Why would I lie to you? My relative was a Sand Hidden Jonin on the Southwest Battlefield, and he was poisoned to death just like that. Could it be fake?”
“Amazing, even a Jonin can be easily poisoned to death!”
“Indeed, he has a resounding title on the Southwest Battlefield.”
“What’s it called?”
“【Konoha’s Poison Expert!】”
…
Senju Hashirama's mouth twitched; no need to think about it.
The Konoha Poison Expert they were talking about was definitely that Old Man Renye!
He hadn't expected the poisons Renye developed to be so astonishingly powerful on the battlefield.
Hashirama heard from the wandering Ninja's words that Renye had made a very significant contribution on the Southwest Battlefield.
He looked relieved and couldn't help but exclaim, “That child Renye can already stand on his own now.”
…
“Customer, your sake and dishes are here.”
Senju Hashirama put away his thoughts; he still had important business to attend to after eating.
During this time in the Ninja World, he had indeed discovered some clues.
He believed it wouldn't be long before he found Madara's hiding place.
P.S.: Six chapters left, three updates are so tiring, sob sob sob…