The moment Orochimaru fled the ruined Uzumaki shrine in a storm of fury and panic, somewhere far to the east, Kakashi was already moving.
Beneath his mansion, in the deep belly of his lab, an arcane fusion of glass, stone, and chakra steel, Kakashi stood before four tall stasis tanks.
His Sharingan spun slowly.
"Just as I thought," he murmured.
The report from his spore clone confirmed everything.
"The real Orochimaru tried to undo the Death Reaper Seal," Kakashi said, glancing to his left.
The Orochimaru clone, dressed in a lab coat and scribbling in a glowing scroll, snorted. "Typical. My dear inferior original always did crave his own power more than safety or logic."
Kakashi looked at the tanks.
Four blank humanoid vessels floated inside, submerged in preservation fluid. They were fully formed, chakra-hardened clone shells, designed for high-level soul tethering.
Kakashi walked forward and pressed a palm to each tank, releasing a pulse of chakra that surged through the floor's seal array. A hum answered.
"It worked," the clone confirmed. "I'm detecting four high-density soul signatures approaching from the northwest quadrant."
Kakashi didn't smile, but his eyes gleamed with anticipation.
"We're doing this," he said.
The procedure was swift.
With a combination of Modified Edo Tensei, Genesis-Refined Soul Anchoring, and Rejection Immunity Sealwork, the four blank vessels absorbed the fleeing souls like magnets snapping into place.
Each body shuddered, then stabilized.
Kakashi stood back as the tanks hissed open.
One by one, the Edo Tensei clones stepped out, eyes glowing with otherworldly awareness as their forms adjusted to the living world.
The first to open his mouth was Tobirama Senju.
His red eyes narrowed the moment they landed on the Orochimaru clone.
"You again," he growled, voice sharp and noble. "Orochimaru, you inherently evil brat. Do you still crave control? Do you still want to destroy Konoha?!"
Before anyone could reply, Hiruzen Sarutobi stepped forward, his wrinkled brow heavy with disappointment. His gaze landed on Kakashi.
"Kakashi… why? Why are you working with him?"
Then another figure blinked, eyes blue, smile faint.
Minato Namikaze looked at Kakashi gently, pride flickering in his voice.
"You've grown… so strong." He tilted his head slightly. "But your chakra… You feel different. Lighter. More whole."
"I came out of my own shadows." Kakashi looked at him and offered a small nod.
Minato smiled wider. "I can feel that. You've finally let yourself live."
Then came a booming voice.
"Wait a second," the largest of the four said, looking around. "Where… where are we? Who are you?"
Hashirama Senju scratched his head, completely ignoring Tobirama's grim expression.
"Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze, First Hokage-sama." Minato chuckled and gave a polite bow.
Hashirama lit up. "Oh! Another Hokage?! That's great!" He turned to Kakashi. "Who's the current one then?"
"Tsunade Senju. My woman." Kakashi folded his arms, amused.
There was a pause.
And then-
"BWAHAHAHAHA!" Hashirama doubled over in laughter. "Tsunade? Little Tsu? Hokage?! And married?!"
"And you're her husband?!" He slapped Kakashi on the shoulder hard enough to make his bones creak.
"Technically, yes." Kakashi steadied himself with a half-smile.
Hashirama looked like he'd never been more delighted in centuries. "This is incredible! I always worried she'd drink herself into retirement! But now she's married to a man strong enough to summon us back!"
"Do you have so little faith in your granddaughter's leadership?" The Orochimaru clone arched a brow.
Hashirama barked a laugh. "No, no, Tsu is great, she just had a temper when she was younger. Always punching walls. And boys."
Minato's smile faltered slightly as he remembered Jiraiya's long, fruitless crush on her. He looked at Kakashi with admiration, and a hint of awe. So Kakashi not only surpassed all of us… but won over Tsunade-sama too? Amazing!
Hiruzen's eyes flicked downward. He didn't speak for a moment.
He remembered what he and Danzō had done… the subtle manipulation that pushed Tsunade away from Konoha. The arranged missions, the loss of Nawaki, and the pain she endured. He'd told himself it was necessary.
But now… seeing her loved, thriving, and powerful…
He kept silent.
But Tobirama, ever the hawk, narrowed his eyes again.
"If you're Tsunade's husband," he said, gesturing toward the Orochimaru clone, "then why do you associate with this scoundrel who once tried to destroy the Leaf?"
The Orochimaru clone scoffed, but Kakashi stepped forward calmly.
"He's not the original. I created him, using a secret technique and using the remnant soul fragment I recovered from one of Orochimaru's seals. The clone has grown beyond the original. He is now a complete, independent individual."
The clone offered a small, respectful bow. "I no longer share the original's ambitions. I work with Kakashi-sama as a scientist and a loyal companion."
Tobirama blinked. Then… nodded slightly.
"Unexpected. But if you created him using a secret technique, then you're more of a scientist than I thought."
Kakashi gave a small nod. "Your research notes helped us immensely."
Tobirama straightened proudly, though he still eyed the clone with a tinge of caution.
The clone, however, looked at Tobirama as if seeing a legend. "Senju Tobirama… your fūinjutsu work, your advancements in summoning mechanics… I must say, I have studied every scrap I could find. This is-"
Tobirama raised a brow. "Control yourself."
"Don't be mean to your fanboy, little brother." Hashirama chuckled.
Tobirama huffed.
"Why did you summon us, Kakashi?"Minato took a step forward, his eyes soft.
Kakashi's face grew serious. He motioned for the four of them to sit.
A circular table slid up from the floor, revealing a projection of the current world map, marked with red dots and chakra signals.
"The war is coming," Kakashi said. "The masked man 'Madara' is making his move. He has already captured six Jinchūriki, including Gaara of the Sand. The One-Tail was extracted, and Gaara only survived because of Chiyo's sacrifice."
Minato's smile vanished.
Hiruzen frowned deeply.
"War and Jinchūriki again… damn it," Hashirama muttered,
Tobirama narrowed his eyes. "Madara… humph I told you elder brother he should have been dead long ago."
Hashirama shook his head and ignored his murderous little brother.
"Though I brought you back just so the real Orochimaru couldn't get a hold of your souls I can handle Madara myself," Kakashi said with a shrug.
"Nevertheless you have our support," Hashirama said firmly.
"We'll help you however we can." Minato placed a hand on Kakashi's shoulder.
Tobirama added, "So long as you don't let that snake clone near Konoha's national documents."
"You wound me."The clone sighed.
Hiruzen looked around the room, Kakashi, the clone, the tech, the sealing arrays.
"You've… built a nation beneath the Leaf."
"I've built a shield for it."Kakashi looked him in the eyes.
There was a silence that stretched, but it wasn't tense.
It was full of understanding.
Then Hashirama grinned. "Well then, it looks like the future's in good hands. And judging by the chakra in your body, Kakashi… very good hands."
Kakashi smiled faintly. "You haven't seen everything yet."
"I like you, son-in-law!"Hashirama clapped him on the back again.