The Hokage Tower stood quiet under the afternoon sky.
Fujimoto Tōma stopped at the base of the building and looked up toward the top-floor office. His brow creased slightly.
That chakra… was familiar.
Normally, Tōma couldn't sense chakra with any special clarity. He wasn't a sensory-type ninja. But there was one exception.
The Nine-Tails.
A distinct trace of Nine-Tails chakra was leaking from inside the Hokage's office. Subtle, but unmistakable. More importantly, it wasn't linked to any Flying Thunder God mark.
That made no sense.
Naruto carried one of Tōma's marks at all times. If Naruto were inside, Tōma would have felt it immediately. And Naruto had only just returned to the village with him. There was no way he'd already been summoned here without notice.
So then… who was inside that office?
Tōma stepped into the building and headed for the stairs. Just as he reached the office door, he suddenly halted and took a step back.
Boom!
A pale arm burst straight out of the wall where he'd been standing a moment earlier, sending碎石 scattering across the floor. The arm vanished just as quickly as it appeared.
Tōma glanced at the debris, then sighed inwardly.
…So someone had managed to anger Tsunade again.
With that mystery answered, he pushed open the office door and walked in.
Inside were Tsunade and Shizune, as expected. Sasuke was there as well. And standing stiffly near the wall was a teenage boy dressed in monk-like robes.
The boy looked like he'd just seen a ghost. Sweat ran down his forehead, and his body was rigid with fear.
Tōma's gaze lingered on him for a moment.
That was it. The source of the Nine-Tails chakra.
Up close, he could tell the difference. The chakra was real, but the quantity was nowhere near the actual Nine-Tails. It was like a shadow cast by the real thing.
"Tsunade-sama," Tōma said calmly. "Did something happen while I was gone?"
Tsunade blinked when she saw him. "Hmm? When did you get back?"
"Just now. I heard Kakashi was looking for me, so I came straight here." He glanced at the damaged wall. "I take it nothing serious happened?"
"Oh, nothing at all," Tsunade replied with a very gentle smile, turning toward the robed boy.
"Yes… nothing," the boy said stiffly, nodding too fast.
"See?" Tsunade said, satisfied.
Tōma chose not to comment. Shizune pinched the bridge of her nose beside him, clearly used to this routine.
Across the room, Sasuke watched the exchange in silence. When he noticed Tōma, his eyes sharpened slightly, as if relieved.
Tsunade returned to her desk and looked at Sasuke. "Now explain this to me. Why did you bring someone from the Fire Temple back to the village? Don't tell me you're recruiting again."
Her tone made it clear she remembered his past habits all too well.
Tōma raised an eyebrow. So Sasuke had brought him back.
Thinking about it, that tracked. Sasuke must have noticed the similarity between this boy's power and Naruto's.
Sasuke frowned slightly. "It's not like that."
He explained the mission.
Recently, graves near the Fire Temple had been repeatedly disturbed. Grave robbers, without a doubt. Sasuke's assignment was to capture or eliminate them.
The mission itself hadn't been difficult, especially with Karin's sensory support, though a few opponents had put up more resistance than expected.
Still, they'd been dealt with.
As Sasuke spoke, his gaze flicked briefly toward Tōma. He knew the truth. Without that power he'd gained, the fight wouldn't have ended nearly so cleanly.
Afterward, while passing through the Fire Temple, Sasuke encountered the boy named Sora.
Sasuke had immediately noticed it. The chakra inside Sora felt eerily similar to Naruto's. Naruto's power came from the Nine-Tails.
So where did Sora's come from?
Suspicion alone was enough reason to bring him back.
"A second Nine-Tails?" Tsunade muttered, frowning. "That's impossible."
Tōma, on the other hand, felt a faint sense of recognition stir in his mind.
So this was that incident.
Sora looked between them, confused. "What are you talking about? Is there something wrong with my body?"
"I'll know once I take a look," Tōma said, stepping forward.
Sora instinctively tried to resist, but it was pointless. Tōma's grip was steady and precise. The examination didn't take long.
When he finished, there was a trace of surprise in his eyes.
"Well?" Tsunade asked. "What did you find?"
Tōma released Sora and spoke calmly. "There's no second Nine-Tails inside him. What he has is Nine-Tails chakra. Nothing more."
Tsunade crossed her arms. "That still doesn't make sense. Even if someone implanted it, Nine-Tails chakra shouldn't last forever in a normal body."
"I agree," Tōma said, nodding. "Sora's body isn't suited to handle it. The chakra has been constantly trying to disperse."
He continued, voice steady.
"Whoever did this didn't let that happen. They repeatedly used sealing techniques to force the chakra to remain inside him. Those seals can't be interrupted. If they weaken, the chakra starts leaking away."
Tōma paused, thinking. "And judging by the structure, one of those seals was partially released in the past."
He looked at Tsunade. "Was there an incident at the Fire Temple some time ago?"
Before Tsunade could answer, Sora spoke quietly, eyes unfocused. "There was… a monster attack. The temple suffered heavy losses."
His voice trailed off.
The memories clicked into place. The fear. The stares. The way people looked at him afterward.
So that's why.
He really had been the monster.
Tsunade was silent for a moment before turning back to Tōma. "You're skilled with seals. Can you remove the Nine-Tails chakra safely?"
"Of course," Tōma said with a small smile. That had been his intention from the start.
Only then did he remember.
He hadn't actually come here for this.
…Well, it could wait.
After all, this wasn't just any chakra. It was Nine-Tails chakra that had been nurtured for years.
His eyes flickered thoughtfully as calculations began forming in his mind.