As dawn approached, Tsunade came out.
Her eyes were swollen like walnuts, and her face was covered in tear stains, but she was not crying.
She just stood there, looking at Nobunaga.
"Shinnosuke is dead," she said.
Nobunaga nodded.
"Mm."
Tsunade looked at him.
"He died protecting civilians."
Nobunaga nodded again.
"Mm."
Tsunade was silent for a long time.
"What was he thinking when he died?"
Nobunaga did not speak.
He did not know.
He would never know.
Tsunade turned and walked towards the end of the corridor.
Her back was straight and thin, just like before.
But something was different.
That night, Tsunade began to drink.
She sat in the courtyard of the Senju compound, facing a cold moon, drinking pot after pot.
When Nobunaga found her, she had already drunk three pots.
She saw Nobunaga and smiled.
That smile was different from before.
"You're here," she said, "Come, have a drink with me."
Nobunaga sat down beside her, took the wine pot, and took a sip.
It was very spicy and bitter.
Tsunade tilted her head back to look at the moon.
"Do you know, before Shinnosuke graduated, he was especially clingy to me.
Everywhere I went, he followed, and I couldn't shake him off.
Later, when he grew up, he wasn't clingy anymore.
He said he wanted to go to the battlefield, protect the Village, and help his fourth brother."
She paused, "I said go ahead, big sister will wait for you to come back."
Her voice began to tremble.
"I waited five years. And what I got back was a corpse."
Nobunaga did not speak.
Tsunade turned her head and looked at him.
"Tell me, is the path we are taking really right?
Shinnosuke died, Shinku Yuhi died, so many people are dying.
Can we really wait for that dawn?
I am so afraid, afraid that the lives sacrificed are not enough, afraid that one day Jiraiya, Orochimaru, Mitarashi Shishio...
Or even your life and mine will be sacrificed, but it still won't be enough to achieve that ideal."
Nobunaga was silent for a long time.
He did not know how to answer.
Sakumo had asked the same question.
He did not answer.
Now Tsunade asked it again.
He still did not answer.
Tsunade smiled.
That smile was very bitter.
"You don't know either."
She took another sip of wine.
Nobunaga sat beside her and kept her company drinking all night.
The next day, Nobunaga returned to his office.
He sat down and looked at the map on the table.
He picked up the intelligence report and read it again.
Iwagakure front, Third Battalion, encountered an ambush.
While protecting civilians during the evacuation, they were hit by the Demolition Corps.
He stared at those words for a long time.
A thought began to spin in his mind.
Why did Shinnosuke's unit appear in that position?
The intelligence said it was safe there, why were there enemy troops in ambush?
Why was it Shinnosuke?
Why was it the Third Battalion?
He put down the report and leaned back in his chair.
He thought of Danzo.
He did not want to suspect.
But he had to suspect.
Because if he didn't suspect, Shinnosuke would have died in vain.
Because if he didn't suspect, the next person to die would be someone else.
Tsunade, Jiraiya, Orochimaru, Sakumo, Shishio, Might Duy.
Everyone is a possibility.
Nobunaga stood up and walked to the window.
Outside the window, the streets of Konoha were empty; people were hiding in their homes with doors and windows tightly shut.
In the distance at the Training Ground, young Genin were gathering, preparing to head to the battlefield.
Many of them would not return.
He closed his eyes.
Shinku Yuhi's short blade swayed gently at her waist.
He heard what Shinku Yuhi said — "Live on, and watch that dawn for me."
He heard what Tobirama said — "You must be ruthless; be ruthless to others, and even more ruthless to yourself."
He heard what he said himself — "We do this so that in the future, no one will need to kill."
He opened his eyes.
Then he pushed the door open and went out.
The courtyard of the Sarutobi compound was very quiet.
Hiruzen sat under the veranda, with a pot of wine and two cups in front of him.
He saw Nobunaga and smiled slightly.
That smile was very bitter.
"You're here."
Nobunaga walked over and sat down opposite him.
Hiruzen poured a cup of wine and pushed it over.
"When Shinnosuke was young, he loved sitting here the most.
He said he could see the Hokage Rock here, could see the First Hokage's face.
He said when he grew up, he wanted to be carved on it too."
Nobunaga did not speak.
Hiruzen raised the wine cup and took a sip.
"You didn't come to see me to drink."
Nobunaga looked at him.
"Shinnosuke's death was not an accident."
Hiruzen's hand paused.
The wine cup hovered in mid-air, the liquid sloshed, and a few drops spilled out.
He put down the wine cup and looked at Nobunaga.
"What did you say?"
Nobunaga took the intelligence report from his robes and placed it on the table.
"Shinnosuke's unit should not have been in that position.
The intelligence said it was safe there, but they encountered an ambush.
And it wasn't just ordinary ambush troops, it was the Demolition Corps.
A Demolition Corps specifically targeting squad leaders."
Hiruzen picked up the intelligence, read it once, then read it again.
His hands began to tremble.
"You suspect someone —" He did not finish.
Nobunaga looked at him.
"You know who it is."
Hiruzen was silent.
He sat there, looking at the intelligence in his hand, and did not speak for a long time.
Then he looked up at Nobunaga.
"Danzo."
His voice was very soft, so soft it was like he was talking to himself:
"He told me that Shinnosuke was too young, too impulsive, and not suitable for leading troops.
He said Shinnosuke should be transferred back and replaced with someone more experienced. I disagreed.
I said Shinnosuke was doing very well. He glanced at me and didn't speak."
He looked at Nobunaga.
"That was three months ago."
Nobunaga did not speak.
Hiruzen closed his eyes.
"Shinnosuke is my son. He always wanted to protect the Village since he was a child.
He worshipped Lord Hashirama, worshipped the Second Hokage, and later he worshipped you.
He said you could lead Konoha to peace. He believed in you."
His voice began to tremble, "He believed in you."
He opened his eyes and looked at Nobunaga.
"What are you going to do?"
Nobunaga looked at him.
"I am going to investigate this clearly."
Hiruzen was silent for a long time.
Then he stood up and walked over to Nobunaga.
"I will help you," his voice was very steady, "No matter who it turns out to be, I will help you."
Nobunaga looked at him.
There was moisture in Hiruzen's eyes, but no tears.
There was something on his face that Nobunaga had never seen before.
It was not anger, not sadness, but a very cold, very firm determination.
"He is my son," Hiruzen said, "I cannot let him die in vain."
Nobunaga stood up and reached out his hand.
"It's a deal."
Hiruzen grasped his hand.
"It's a deal."
Nobunaga let go of his hand and turned to walk out.
Walking to the door, he stopped.
He did not look back.
"Hiruzen."
"Mm."
"In his last letter, Shinnosuke said that when the war ends, he would take me to taste the wild vegetables from the front lines. He said they taste especially good when roasted."
Hiruzen did not speak.
Nobunaga pushed the door open and walked into the sunlight.
He did not walk fast, but every step was steady.
Behind him, Hiruzen sat under the veranda, holding the wine cup, watching his back.
The wind blew over, and the leaves in the courtyard rustled.
That pot of wine was never drunk by anyone again.