Nobunaga froze for a moment and raised his hand to touch his face.
It was wet.
He didn't know when he had started crying.
Tsunade didn't speak.
She just stood there, staying by his side.
The corridor was very quiet.
Footsteps echoed from afar; someone passed by and then walked away.
Moonlight shone in through the window, falling on the floor, deathly pale.
Nobunaga thought of the words Shinku Yuhi had said.
"Fourth Brother, I believe world peace will be realized in your hands. Live on, and see that dawn for me."
He remembered that night when the nine of them took a photo on the back mountain.
Shinku Yuhi stood beside him, looking serious, but with the corners of his mouth slightly curled.
He remembered Shinku Yuhi's voice when he called him "Fourth Brother," so light and natural, as if they were truly biological brothers.
He remembered Shinku Yuhi's back as he charged towards Kinkaku.
Red Chakra was burning, like the setting sun.
That was the last time he saw the sunset.
Nobunaga closed his eyes.
Shinku Yuhi's name surfaced in his mind, like a stone sinking into deep water, falling down and down.
For the first time, he realized that ideals are paved with lives.
Those things he thought were just slogans, the theories he wrote on paper, the words he spoke to the tombstones—now, they had all turned into Shinku Yuhi's blood.
Holding Shinku Yuhi's relics, he suddenly understood something.
The ideal he was going to fulfill wasn't just because of the mission or the system.
It was also because of these burdens, these bonds.
Only by carrying these could his power save everyone.
Not the Sage Body, not Wood Release, and not the Mangekyo.
It was what those who died had left for him.
"You have become stronger."
These were the words Ao had said to Mei Terumī upon her return from the Northern Border.
Nobunaga now understood the meaning of those words as well.
Three days later, Senju Tobirama woke up.
When Nobunaga was called into the hospital room, Senju Tobirama was leaning against the headboard, looking out the window.
His complexion was poor, frighteningly pale, but those eyes were still bright and sharp.
"Sit," Senju Tobirama said.
Nobunaga sat down.
The two were silent for a long time.
The sunlight from outside shone in, falling on the floor and moving inch by inch.
Then Senju Tobirama spoke.
"If it were you, what would you do?"
Nobunaga looked at him. "What do you mean?"
"If you were sitting in the position of Hokage," Senju Tobirama said, "how would you deal with those people?"
Nobunaga was silent for a moment.
Then he said two words.
"Unification."
Senju Tobirama's eyes narrowed slightly. "Unification?"
"Unify the Ninja World."
Nobunaga said, "Not negotiations, not deterrence, not balance. It's unification. Turn all Villages into one Village, and all Ninjas into one family. Only in this way will the war truly end."
Senju Tobirama looked at him for a long time.
"Senju Hashirama said something similar."
He said, "But what he thought of was an alliance, not unification.
He felt that as long as everyone sat together, the problems could be solved.
I don't believe that. I think human nature is inherently evil, and only power can suppress war."
He paused. "What about you?"
Nobunaga thought for a moment.
"I believe it. But I don't believe human nature is inherently good, nor do I believe it's inherently evil.
What I believe is—as long as everyone has food to eat, clothes to wear, and lives with dignity, no one will want to go to war."
The corner of Senju Tobirama's mouth twitched.
It wasn't a smile; it was a very complex expression.
"Do you know how difficult this path is?"
"I know."
"Many people will die."
"I know."
"You might even die yourself."
"I know."
Senju Tobirama looked at him for a long time.
The sunlight outside moved another inch.
Then he smiled.
It wasn't a bitter smile; he truly smiled.
"Senju Hashirama said that realizing this dream would require too many deaths; he didn't dare let thousands upon thousands of people go to their deaths.
I dare, but I don't have Senju Hashirama's tolerance. Forget other Ninja Villages, I can't even tolerate the Uchiha who fought alongside me."
He looked at Nobunaga. "But you can."
Nobunaga was stunned. "What?"
"You are calmer than Senju Hashirama and more tolerant than me. You have his ideals and my methods. Most importantly—"
Senju Tobirama's eyes lit up. "You can endure."
Nobunaga did not speak.
Senju Tobirama continued.
"Ever since she was little, Tsunade has mentioned you to me. She said you were very strong and defeated her. She said you spoke those words before the Martyrs' Tombstones.
She said you were writing something about everyone having food, clothes, and dignity. She also said—"
He paused. "You've been hiding."
Nobunaga's eyelashes trembled.
"You think I can't tell?"
Senju Tobirama looked at him. "The aura of Wood Release, the Chakra of the Mangekyo, and that Sage Body of yours.
You hid them well, but I am Senju Tobirama. Senju Hashirama's younger brother, the inventor of Forbidden Techniques. I am more familiar with these powers than you are."
Nobunaga fell silent.
He thought he had hidden them deeply enough.
But in front of Senju Tobirama, he still couldn't hide.
Senju Tobirama didn't press him, only saying:
"The experience Big Brother, the First, left me was not to be soft-hearted. Soft-heartedness cannot solve problems completely; it only turns them into lingering hidden dangers.
The experience I can leave you is to be able to endure. Only by enduring can the final victory be achieved. Only then will the previous sacrifices not be in vain."
He looked into Nobunaga's eyes. "A Kage must be able to be ruthless to others, and even more ruthless to themselves."
Nobunaga was silent.
Then he spoke, "Being ruthless to others and even more so to oneself... for such a person to become Kage—"
Senju Tobirama smiled.
"Because of love."
He said, "In the heart of such a person, there must be a great love hidden.
Senju Hashirama was such a person. He was ruthless to himself and ruthless to others.
But he had love in his heart, a love for the entire world. That's why he could become the First Hokage. That's why everyone was willing to follow him."
He looked at Nobunaga. "You are the same. What is hidden in your heart is more than you realize."
He paused, the smile on his face slowly fading, replaced by a deeper, more serious expression.
In those old eyes, something was surging.
"Nobunaga," he began, his voice lower than before. "I have one more thing to tell you."
Nobunaga looked at him.
Senju Tobirama was silent for a moment.
The sunlight from outside shone in, falling on his pale face and clearly illuminating those wrinkles.
He reached out and grasped Nobunaga's wrist.
That hand was very thin, with protruding knuckles, but it was very strong.
"Danzo and Hiruzen," he said, "they will oppose you."
Nobunaga did not speak.
"I know."
Senju Tobirama's voice was very soft. "They have followed me for decades; I know their personalities. Danzo is too impatient, and Hiruzen is too soft.
They won't be content to let a sixteen-year-old child like you sit in the position of Hokage.
They will cause trouble for you, question your decisions, and do many things behind your back to make you uncomfortable."
He looked into Nobunaga's eyes. "But I hope you can promise me one thing."
"What is it?"
"Don't kill them."
Nobunaga did not speak.