Hashirama Cells and the Handover
"If you've already thought it through, I won't interfere," Tsunade said, nodding in agreement with Fujimoto Tōma's plans.
"Tsunade-sensei, there's one thing I'd like your permission for," Tōma added after a brief pause.
"Hm?" She looked at him, puzzled.
"It's about the First Hokage's cells. I need a portion for research."
Strictly speaking, Tōma no longer needed approval from anyone. He was Hokage now. But the First Hokage was Tsunade's grandfather, and given their relationship, Tōma felt it was only right to ask.
Tsunade frowned slightly. "I don't mind you using them, but with your strength, do you really need that stuff? Is it actually that miraculous?"
"I'm not planning to transplant them," Tōma replied. "I want to study Shikkotsu Forest's Sage Mode. As far as we know, the First Hokage may have been the only one to master it."
He glanced at Tsunade again. "As for whether it's special… from my perspective, it definitely is."
Truth be told, Tōma had always found Tsunade's case strange. She was a direct descendant of the Senju and Hashirama's granddaughter, yet her talent didn't seem to receive the kind of boost one would expect. She was exceptional, far beyond ordinary shinobi, but compared to the Uchiha or even some Uzumaki branches, her bloodline advantages didn't stand out.
Her physical strength was monstrous, sure, but even without Senju physiology, her chakra control alone would've made her terrifying.
In the end, Hashirama, Tobirama, and Tsunade all felt oddly… normal, template-wise.
"If that's the case, go ahead," Tsunade said. "But can you even find them?"
"No problem," Tōma smiled. "As soon as the ceremony ended, Sasuke led ANBU to clean out Root's facilities."
"That figures," Tsunade nodded.
Tōma then turned to Jiraiya. "Jiraiya-sensei, you can brief us on those two Akatsuki members now."
Jiraiya's expression grew serious. "Alright."
He hadn't uncovered much about Hidan specifically, but he had learned of the cult behind him. They practiced a terrifying forbidden technique. By obtaining a target's blood, they could link their lives together. Damage inflicted on one would be shared by the other.
According to records from Yugakure, once the cult acquired someone's blood, their lives became bound.
Combine that with Hidan's apparent immortality, and the result was horrifying. He couldn't die, but his opponent could be killed through him.
As for Kakuzu, Jiraiya had gathered extensive information. The man had lived an absurdly long time and almost always worked alone. Most of his previous partners had died, and not at enemy hands.
More likely, Kakuzu himself had killed them.
Tōma listened carefully. Some of the intelligence matched what he already knew. Other details hadn't appeared in any previous records he was aware of.
Once again, he was impressed by Jiraiya's information network. In such a short time, he had dug out the core of both men.
"So techniques like that really exist…" Tsunade muttered after hearing everything.
"The world's a big place," Tōma replied calmly. He then turned to Shizune. "My secretary hasn't arrived yet. Could you help distribute this intelligence to the villages that host tailed beasts?"
"Of course," Shizune said immediately and got to work.
"There's one more thing," Jiraiya added. "I can't confirm it, but I heard on the way back that Kumogakure's Two-Tails may have gone missing. There's a good chance Akatsuki already captured it."
Silence fell over the office.
Even if it was only a rumor, given Akatsuki's strength, the odds were grim.
"Just how did that group even come together?" Tsunade rubbed her temples. None of the members they knew were easy opponents.
"Who knows," Tōma replied, eyes flickering briefly.
With that, the meeting concluded.
Jiraiya headed for the back mountain to check on Naruto, while Tsunade began formally handing over Hokage responsibilities to Tōma. Ideally, this should've been completed before his inauguration, but Tōma had his own plans, so they were making up for it now.
Listening to the endless list of tasks, Tōma felt a headache coming on.
Not only was there a lot of work, it was fragmented. Countless minor issues ended up on the Hokage's desk simply because no one else had clear responsibility.
No wonder Naruto would later drown in paperwork even with shadow clones.
One reason was Naruto's lack of administrative talent. The other was sheer volume.
Tōma sighed as Tsunade kept talking.
Once Nara Shikaku arrived, institutional reform was going to be the first item on the agenda.
News of Konoha's change in leadership spread quickly.
What happened during the Sixth Hokage's inauguration traveled even faster.
Within Konoha, the response was overwhelmingly positive. Few had realized just how rotten things had been beneath the surface, or how deeply it had affected their lives. Seeing the new Hokage uproot a massive internal threat on day one was reason enough to celebrate.
Sunagakure wasn't particularly surprised. Tōma's reputation there was already formidable.
In Konoha, his fame came from his ANBU days and the Konoha Crush incident. In the Sand, it had been earned through bloodshed. That reputation included fallen Sound shinobi and even Sand casualties, but most remembered one thing above all.
The massive crater left behind by Deidara's self-destruction.
Even now, it hadn't been fully filled in.
The remaining three villages reacted more quietly.
Kirigakure was still recovering from the Blood Mist era and had little interest in outside affairs. Iwagakure was in a similar state, short on talent and still licking its wounds after Orochimaru's schemes.
That left Kumogakure.
But with the possible loss of the Two-Tails weighing on them, they had no time to concern themselves with Konoha's internal changes.