Naruto: The Senju After the Age of Gods

Name: Senju Hikaru

Gender: Male

Birthday: Konoha Year 34, March 24

Level: Quasi-Kage level (system evaluation without using any abilities), massive chakra reserves, small portion of sealed Dragon Vein chakra

Dōjutsu: Jōgan (initial stage, development progress: 52%)

Bloodline Development: Intermediate (Senju Secret Arts, Beginner Yang Release Secret Arts), Kekkei Tōta (unnamed), Beginner Yin Release Secret Arts, Yin–Yang Release (fusion progress: 1%)

Jinchūriki: Nine-Tails (intermediate, can grow by devouring large amounts of special chakra; planting an advanced Nine-Tails Fruit can accelerate growth), still growing after absorbing excessive chakra

Seeds: Sharingan Origin Seed (1%)

Fruits: Intermediate Fire Release Fruit (1), Intermediate Water Release Fruit (1), Intermediate Earth Release Fruit (1), Beginner Three-Tails Chakra Fruit, Intermediate Wood Release Fruit

Mission: Become the True Final Boss of the Ninja World (Unique) (Progress: 45%)

Looking at his status panel, Hikaru’s mouth twitched slightly.

He truly had not expected that one small attempt at courting death would end up turning into this.

After obtaining Yin Release, Hikaru had not hesitated at all. He had immediately guided that power into his body. After all, this was a power he had been longing for.

The moment Yin Release fused into him, he felt his spiritual will begin to rise at astonishing speed.

That improvement was subtle. There was no obvious change in chakra quantity, but Hikaru could clearly feel that something in him had changed.

The most direct sensation was that he could now perceive the hidden powers inside his body with far greater clarity.

He had been able to sense those powers before. His sensory ability was already strong, so that had never been difficult for him.

But sensing them was one thing. Mobilizing them was something else entirely.

At most, during genjutsu interrogation, he could feel that power being passively drawn out.

That result was not ideal, because the strength of genjutsu depended on how much Yin Release power one could mobilize to reinforce it.

The reason the Sharingan was so powerful was because it possessed an unimaginable ability to mobilize Yin Release.

Yin Release was not limited to genjutsu alone. The strength of one’s spiritual energy also affected analysis of the battlefield, control over combat flow, and even learning ability to a certain extent.

The Sharingan maximized Yin Release completely. Insight, copying ability, genjutsu enhancement—these were all active uses of Yin Release.

In truth, this was also one of the reasons Hikaru was no longer that interested in the Sharingan.

The essence of the Sharingan was the mobilization of Yin Release. Since he had directly obtained Yin Release itself, why would he still obsess over the Sharingan?

As for the Mangekyō’s special abilities born from one’s inner heart, Hikaru admitted he was tempted by them.

But he was not certain whether the power of the Mangekyō could be applied to his Jōgan.

To put it simply, if he used the Sharingan while already possessing the Jōgan, would the two fuse and elevate each other—or would they clash, drag each other down, and fight to the death?

That was impossible to say.

Moreover, raising the Sharingan to the Mangekyō level required exploiting a weakness of the human heart.

And that weakness could not be known to the person themselves. Once they became aware of it, the results would almost certainly be extremely disappointing.

The most likely outcome was losing both the wife and the soldiers.

Hikaru did not believe for a second that the vast Uchiha Clan had never experimented with the Mangekyō.

At least in the ANBU archives, there were many records of past Uchiha geniuses mysteriously vanishing without a trace.

Perhaps those people had died during missions, and the Uchiha had refused to report it for the sake of pride.

But the fact that those disappearances continued until Uchiha Fugaku took power made Hikaru fully capable of interpreting them as failed experiments that ended in death.

Even the Uchiha themselves had such grim results. Hikaru was not confident he would fare any better.

"Extreme emotional stimulation doesn’t necessarily require killing the person one loves most. It’s just that killing the person one loves most creates the deepest shock. But do I even have someone like that?"

That question truly troubled Hikaru.

In truth, he knew he did.

No one could live in this world utterly alone, without bonds or attachment.

If this were his previous life, he would have answered without hesitation: his parents.

But in this world, he had been only one step away from growing up in an orphanage.

Even if he did have such a person here, he might not know exactly who it was. And he had no desire to find out, because there was no meaning in doing so.

As long as someone was close to him, Hikaru treated them more or less the same. Without a need for the Mangekyō, he had no reason to walk that path.

"Even if such a person exists, I can’t do it. Once I know it, my heart will have a flaw, and that flaw will ruin everything."

Hikaru saw the situation very clearly.

Precisely because he understood it so clearly, and because he already possessed Yin Release and the Jōgan, he restrained himself despite being tempted by the Mangekyō’s special inner-born power.

He decided that any Sharingan fruit he obtained or cultivated would be given to someone else.

After sorting that out, Hikaru took stock of his current strength and harvests. His power really was becoming increasingly terrifying.

The Three-Tails Chakra Fruit and Intermediate Wood Release Fruit had already entered his system inventory. He had not used them yet, but only because he had just obtained them and had not had time.

Aside from that, he also intended to properly adjust the fusion chakra power he had obtained. After all, he had already decided to try replicating Ōnoki’s Dust Release.

"Only... why don’t I try something more creative?"

Just as Hikaru was about to mobilize his chakra and begin fusing those powers, he suddenly froze.

He had obtained Yang Release a year or two ago, and now he possessed Yin Release as well.

If that was the case, why not try fusing Yin Release and Yang Release together?

"True, the fusion power can fuse three powers, and using it only on Yin and Yang seems like a waste. But if I can truly fuse Yin–Yang Release, then it will definitely become a power far more terrifying than an ordinary Kekkei Tōta. It may not reach the level of Kekkei Mōra, but Yin–Yang Release is already a power capable of affecting Kekkei Mōra."

Yin–Yang Release and Sage Arts were both high-level powers, though they differed in nature.

One relied on external natural energy to strengthen oneself.

The other relied entirely on one’s own power, elevating the self to an unimaginable level.

If one truly tried to determine which was stronger, there was no fixed answer. It depended entirely on the user.

But from Hikaru’s personal perspective, he leaned more toward Yin–Yang Release.

The country he had once lived in had one common trait: they did not trust heaven or earth. They believed only that man could conquer fate.

They were different from Westerners who constantly invoked God. They did not worship gods.

They worshiped their ancestors. They worshiped those who had led their nation to change its destiny.

Even after transmigrating, Hikaru had not changed much in that regard.

His system had given him power, yes, but it still required him to train and temper himself.

If it had handed him everything for free, he would have suspected something was wrong with it.

"So even if it’s a little wasteful, I have to fuse Yin and Yang together."

With that thought in mind, Hikaru quickly put it into action.

Without hesitation, he used the fusion power. Then he began mobilizing the Yin Release and Yang Release inside his body.

He had to admit that Yin Release felt completely different from Yang Release.

When Yang Release circulated, Hikaru could clearly feel warmth spreading throughout his entire body. It was incredibly comfortable.

But when Yin Release circulated, a cool sensation appeared in his mind.

That sensation was real.

It was not like the vague, untouchable feeling from before. It was something tangible, something he could truly control.

The feeling was wondrous and deeply refreshing.

"Most importantly, with this power helping me, my mind seems especially focused. That’s a good thing."

Although he now possessed Yin Release, he still had no clear idea how to use it properly or efficiently.

From here on, he would need to develop it himself before he could truly master it.

"So choosing to fuse them is absolutely necessary."

The power of fusion was honestly absurdly like a cheat.

During fusion, Hikaru could gain a deeper understanding of the root of those powers.

The last time he fused Water, Wind, and Earth chakra to create a brand-new Kekkei Tōta, he had not only experienced the entire fusion process. He had also revisited everything about those three chakra natures, from their foundations to their nature transformation and form transformation.

That had been a rare and valuable experience for Hikaru. Naturally, he would not be foolish enough to miss another chance like it.

However, when Hikaru fully brought Yin and Yang together, he froze.

"This is..."

Feeling the changes inside his body, Hikaru suddenly found himself at a loss for words.

He had indeed controlled Yin Release and Yang Release, and the two powers had begun to merge.

When they came together, his body immediately reacted.

It was a good reaction. Hikaru could clearly feel how powerful that force was.

But what he had not expected was that the fusion process lasted less than a second before abruptly stopping!

That sudden halt scared Hikaru badly.

Having experienced fusion once before, he knew the process was uncomfortable, but it had never simply stopped like this.

Why had it halted without warning this time?

Hikaru frowned. He truly did not know what to do with the current situation.

But when he looked at his system panel, he froze again.

His panel did indeed show Yin–Yang Release.

However, behind the label was a fusion progress indicator.

He had received enough surprises today.

First, Fugaku’s Mangekyō Sharingan had given him a huge surprise by producing two results at once.

Among those results was Yin Release, a power he had long awaited.

But the depressing part was that this fusion attempt had gone wrong.

Strictly speaking, it had not failed. It had simply failed to reach the result he had imagined.

That was what made him sigh.

He had been planning to use this opportunity to gain a deep understanding of Yin–Yang Release and all the changes produced by their fusion.

But now it seemed that would not be so easy.

He could also guess that fusing these two powers would definitely take a long time.

Even though both were only at the beginner level, Yin–Yang Release was no simple thing.

The time required for them to fuse was hard to estimate. All Hikaru could do was hope that this fusion would not consume too much time.

"I really didn’t expect a simple power fusion to end up feeling like planting a brand-new seed."

Hikaru smiled bitterly and shook his head.

He could not say he was satisfied with the result. After all, it had consumed one precious fusion power.

Of course, if he looked toward the future, the cost was completely acceptable.

But if he judged only by immediate benefits, he had suffered a real loss. He had sacrificed the power of one possible Kekkei Tōta.

"Forget it. Since things have already reached this point, there’s no use complaining."

Hikaru’s mentality was still fairly good.

Although he valued immediate benefits, he valued long-term development even more.

Besides, it was not as if he had gained nothing else. He still had the Intermediate Wood Release Fruit and the Beginner Three-Tails Chakra Fruit.

These were both new powers he could obtain, and Hikaru believed that if used properly, they would not necessarily be worse than another undeveloped Kekkei Tōta.

Especially the Intermediate Wood Release.

Combined with his advanced Sage chakra, its effect might truly approach the level of Senju Hashirama!

"So strictly speaking, I haven’t lost out. Besides, I still have the Three-Tails chakra to handle properly."

...

In Kumogakure, the Fourth Raikage stared at the report in his hand and fell into deep thought.

Ever since his father, the Third Raikage, had died at Ōnoki’s hands, he had inherited the position of Raikage.

Only then did he realize that being the shadow of a village was not easy at all.

Leaving aside whether the village trusted him, even whether he could trust the people around him was a huge problem.

Those elders who had once treated him fairly well had all begun to change their faces.

Former playmates with whom he had once shared decent relationships gradually drifted away because of differing positions and perspectives.

That feeling displeased him immensely.

Even though he still had many followers around him, that did not make the experience pleasant.

Fortunately, he was a strong-willed man.

He overcame all kinds of difficulties and eventually secured control over Kumogakure.

He did not know how many people had died by his hand in the process, nor how many people would never rise again because of him.

Among them were many former friends and subordinates.

Regardless, he had successfully grasped everything now, even if he had paid a considerable price.

After stabilizing the village, the Fourth Raikage knew what he had to do next.

Aside from promoting trustworthy people, he needed sufficient achievements.

He knew his own reputation.

It was not bad, but there was still one small blemish.

On the battlefield in the Land of Hot Water, he and Killer B had been forced into a stalemate by Namikaze Minato.

That incident had always weighed on him.

To him, it was an enormous humiliation in his life.

From beginning to end, he had wanted revenge.

It was just that he had been too busy and had needed too much time to deal with too many matters.

But now, he finally had time.

Although it was unfortunate that Namikaze Minato had left Konoha after the Nine-Tails incident, the Raikage had not forgotten that grudge.

And he had to settle it properly.

"Fortunately, we never officially signed a ceasefire agreement with Konoha back then."

The Fourth Raikage, A, muttered to himself.

Many thoughts had already formed in his mind.

If Konoha and Kumogakure had signed an official ceasefire agreement at the time, then for several years at least, he might genuinely have had no intention of attacking Konoha.

Ninja needed credibility.

Those who broke their word and acted unpredictably would suffer unimaginable damage to their reputation.

Without credibility, how could they accept missions?

Without credibility, those with requests would rather travel farther to commission another village.

In the end, ninja still worked hard for the enormous share of the mission market.

The Fourth Raikage was no different.

In fact, he was deeply dissatisfied with the current distribution of missions in the ninja world.

"In the past, perhaps I could do nothing about Konoha. But the current Konoha..."

The Fourth Raikage muttered under his breath.

He understood why Rasa of the Land of Wind had started a war.

The reason was obvious.

One of the key reasons was poverty.

Rasa could indeed rely on his Kekkei Genkai to create gold dust, which he could sell to maintain Sunagakure’s normal operations.

But how much money could that gold dust really bring in?

The Daimyō of the Land of Wind was also ruthless. He had long since placed his funds in the Land of Rivers, a place split between Konoha and Suna.

If Sunagakure truly tried to seize that money back, Konoha would inevitably react.

In a sense, Konoha had also ruthlessly tricked Sunagakure.

That caused Sunagakure to receive the least support from its daimyō, eventually forcing the balance of power to reverse. Rasa had no choice but to lower his head.

Under such circumstances, it would have been strange if Sunagakure did not hate Konoha.

The Land of Wind was covered almost entirely by desert. It could barely produce staple crops, making self-sufficiency impossible.

Its transportation was also extremely poor. Without money, there was no way to build roads. And building roads in the Land of Wind was too costly, so merchant caravans were unwilling to travel there.

Without merchants entering the Land of Wind, Sunagakure’s consumption could not be stimulated, and its mission share was cut down even further.

Under that pressure, it would have been stranger if Sunagakure had not chosen war.

They had to seize more land.

For example, the entirety of the Land of Rivers.

Of course, poverty was not the only reason Sunagakure started the war.

Things like consuming surplus manpower and diverting dissatisfaction and crisis caused by Rasa’s rise were not issues the Fourth Raikage needed to consider.

He only needed to know that one of Sunagakure’s core goals had been land, population, and a greater share of missions.

Just as he thought.

If this were Konoha under the First Hokage, the Second Hokage, a younger Third Hokage, or an uninjured Fourth Hokage—

Or even Konoha before the Third Shinobi World War—

He would not have dared consider war.

There was no other reason.

Konoha had simply been too strong.

No one dared act rashly against it.

The Land of Wind had dared move because it had been pushed to the edge. Even a cornered dog would jump over a wall, let alone a village.

Rasa had still possessed some intelligence. He had likely understood that the ninja world had long suffered under Konoha’s dominance, but no one had found the right opportunity to act.

Once he moved, Kirigakure would certainly follow, letting more people see a chance to divide Konoha.

But at that time, Konoha had still endured.

They defeated Sunagakure at the fastest speed, then forced Kirigakure back.

Only after that did the battle lines stagnate. Facing both Iwagakure and Kumogakure, Konoha had indeed begun to struggle.

"If not for Ōnoki..."

The Fourth Raikage would never forget the ten thousand men who surrounded and killed his father.

That incident caused Kumogakure to withdraw directly from the battlefield and shift into confrontation with Iwagakure, taking on a posture of imminent attack.

Seeing this, Iwagakure did not dare continue either.

Especially after Kannabi Bridge was destroyed and Iwagakure’s supply line was severed, they could only surrender quickly.

They understood they were not Konoha.

They likely could not withstand being attacked by two villages at once.

The war had ended there.

Konoha had ultimately resisted the siege of the four great shinobi villages with a tragic victory.

That gave Konoha enormous prestige.

Under that prestige, Konoha continued to sit firmly as the strongest village in the ninja world and received an enormous share of missions.

All of this made the Fourth Raikage deeply envious.

In his eyes, the current Konoha was fundamentally strong on the outside but weak within.

Even its victory had been painfully costly.

In addition, its Fourth Hokage had been seriously injured and had left his position.

One of the Three Sannin, Orochimaru, had defected, and the other two were also absent from Konoha.

Adding the fact that training ninja was not simple, and that Hiruzen Sarutobi had given Iwagakure leniency during peace negotiations—

All of this pointed to one conclusion.

The current Konoha likely no longer possessed the same spirit it had when it fought one against four.

By contrast, Kumogakure had declared war relatively late, and the forces it had invested were not large. Its losses could be considered almost nonexistent.

Aside from the death of the Third Raikage, which had dealt a heavy blow to the village’s morale, Kumogakure’s ninja count had not suffered any real problem.

"It is time to stir this stagnant ninja world. Kumogakure should also take back what belongs to it."

The Fourth Raikage put down the report in his hand.

The report contained detailed information on Konoha’s ANBU Minister, Senju Hikaru.

Hikaru was definitely the person the Fourth Raikage valued and found most troublesome right now.

That enormous summoning beast and that terrifying Wood Release seemed almost born for war.

In addition, like Namikaze Minato, Hikaru had mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique.

In other words, he was practically a fusion of Senju Hashirama and Senju Tobirama.

However, in all of Konoha, only this one person made him feel troubled.

He did not put the others in his eyes nearly as much.

"As long as that brat is restrained and controlled properly, Kumogakure will definitely be able to defeat Konoha!"

At that thought, the Fourth Raikage stood up, a fanatical glint appearing in his eyes.

War certainly killed people.

But war also brought endless benefits.

Jiraiya had always yearned for people to understand one another.

But if people wanted mutual understanding, they had to stand on the same starting line first.

Otherwise, how could communication and understanding be achieved?

...

"The movements from Kumogakure are getting bigger?"

Inside the ANBU office, Hikaru looked at the report in his hand and shook his head lightly.

He had just returned to his office when Kakashi brought him this intelligence, leaving him somewhat helpless.

He already knew Kumogakure was restless.

ANBU had been monitoring them all along. Although ANBU would not leave the Land of Fire casually, they were not blind to Kumogakure gathering forces in the Land of Hot Water.

Moreover, Hikaru had now taken over the external portion of Root, so his intelligence sources were broader than before.

In truth, Hikaru did not have many thoughts about Kumogakure’s actions.

He even wished Kumogakure would move.

But he could not say that aloud. After all, he was Konoha’s ANBU Minister. His position had to be for Konoha’s sake.

"All right, I understand. You’ve worked hard, Kakashi."

Hikaru put down the report and smiled.

"It seems the days ahead won’t be very peaceful."

"Kumogakure never signed a ceasefire agreement with us. Their current actions are too dangerous."

Kakashi also sighed softly.

"But what exactly are they trying to achieve by making such a show of force?"

"Who knows? Maybe military intimidation."

Hikaru spread his hands, though he had directly spoken the truth.

In the original timeline, Konoha and Kumogakure never fought in the end.

On one hand, Kumogakure achieved its goal. On the other, Konoha’s situation was poor.

After the Third Shinobi World War, Konoha was truly strong on the outside and hollow within.

Its high-end ninja were either gone or dead. Even the Hokage had died.

Under those circumstances, Kumogakure making moves near the border and clashing violently during missions put enormous pressure on Konoha.

That eventually led to Hiruzen Sarutobi personally "visiting" the Hyūga Clan and giving them a choice—

One person dies, or the whole family suffers.

In the end, the Hyūga Clan made its decision.

Through that decision, Konoha and Kumogakure "happily" ended the dispute.

It was not that Hiruzen Sarutobi’s choice had been wrong.

With Hiruzen’s insight, he could not possibly have failed to see that Kumogakure was setting a trap.

He knew what kind of consequences forcing the Hyūga Clan like that would cause.

He also knew how badly Konoha’s reputation in the ninja world would be damaged by such humiliation.

He knew even more clearly that both his own prestige and Konoha’s momentum would take a severe hit.

But even knowing it was a pit, he had no choice but to jump in.

At that time, he had no options.

From his perspective, that was the situation.

But from Hikaru’s perspective, Konoha was not necessarily without the power to fight.

Ninja needed blood and backbone.

If Konoha chose to counterattack under such humiliation, morale would definitely not be weak.

Under those circumstances, fighting to a draw would at least not be a problem.

And if some methods were used properly, forcing Kumogakure to yield was not impossible either.

The example of the Third Shinobi World War was right there.

As long as one thought carefully and planned properly, anything was possible.

"Forget it. Let’s not talk about that. We just need to handle our own preparations."

Hikaru shook his head and skipped over the issue.

After thinking for a moment, he asked, "By the way, how is the Hokage doing?"

"Teacher?"

Kakashi naturally knew which Hokage Hikaru meant.

After considering it briefly, he replied, "He’s recovering, but it probably won’t be quick. Still, Teacher did mention one thing."

"Oh? What is it?"

"He plans to let Naruto return to Konoha for school once he’s old enough."

◇ I’ll drop one bonus Chapter for every 10 reviews (leave a review/comment!)

◇ One bonus Chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones.

◇ Read 60 Chapters ahead on P@treon: patreon.com/KageNaruto