Thankfully, all of Sora's worries were only in his head. Neither Kushina nor Minato asked him anything, which made Sora breathe a deep sigh of relief.
If either of them had seriously pressed him, he honestly wouldn't have known how to explain himself. Everything he'd done couldn't hold up under scrutiny—anyone with half a brain would see something was off.
Kakashi and Rin were also curious, but since they didn't know the whole story, they didn't dwell on it. And seeing their teacher and his wife keeping silent, Kakashi just played along and pretended not to notice.
Still, Sora couldn't avoid Kushina's wrath entirely. She'd been holding onto her frustration over him running off, and she didn't let it slide. After some teasing and roughhousing, the group had more or less rested up and resumed their journey.
After all, it wasn't exactly appropriate for Minato and Kushina to be away from Konoha for too long—the sooner they returned, the better.
On the road, however, Sora noticed a strange issue with his system.
He saw a white card drop from Kakashi… but no matter what he did, he couldn't pick it up.
He tried everything, but ultimately had to give up on the card, which left a shadow in his heart. It made him uneasy, and his mood completely dropped.
Whoosh! Minato flickered to Sora's side with the Body Flicker Technique, steadying him just as he nearly stumbled. "Sora, what's going on? You're completely out of it."
He wasn't joking—Minato had never seen a ninja almost trip while traveling at full speed.
And just earlier, Sora had seemed fine. He clearly wasn't injured, yet something was clearly bothering him.
Minato and Kushina exchanged worried glances, their eyes scanning him carefully for clues—but found nothing.
Seeing their concern, Sora felt a warmth rise in his chest. "I'm okay. Don't worry, I just got distracted for a moment. Let's keep going."
He didn't wait to see if they believed him. He simply took the lead and started moving toward the village.
There was no way he could explain the situation, so playing it off was the best he could do.
As they drew closer to Konoha, things weren't so easy for Uchiha Madara on the other end.
His aged, frail body was on the verge of collapse. Even with the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path sustaining him, it could only delay the inevitable.
"Black Zetsu, I don't have much time left. That girl... it's too late. Konoha will surely hide her and the Three-Tails from the world."
"Send White Zetsu to impersonate the girl and Kakashi. Force Obito to awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan. I'll use what little time I have left to visit the Hidden Mist and ensure they don't leak any information."
Black Zetsu froze for a moment, then gave Madara a deep look, mentally raising his guard. Still, he masked his reaction perfectly and replied respectfully, "I'll handle it, Lord Madara."
With that, Black Zetsu's body slowly melted into the ground, vanishing from the cave.
Madara let out a low, furious growl. "I don't have much time left… I have no choice but to use this crude method. Damn it. When I return… when I'm reborn… I'll make you pay…"
His voice echoed through the darkness of the cave, filled with restrained rage.
...
After a full day of travel, Minato returned to Konoha with the group. But the moment they reached the village gate, they were stopped by a member of the Anbu.
"Lord Hokage. Lady Kushina. The Third Hokage requests your presence at the Hokage's office—immediately."
The masked Anbu, wearing a fox mask, stood motionless as he delivered the message, his gaze sharp and fixed on the group.
"You—!" Kushina was just about to explode when Minato reached out to stop her. He calmly replied to the Anbu, "Understood. We'll go now."
Satisfied with the response, the masked ninja turned and began leading them toward the Hokage Tower.
"Minato, you're the Hokage now. Who does he think he is, barking orders like that? The old man already stepped down!"
Kushina muttered her complaints loudly and deliberately, making sure the Anbu could hear every word.
But the masked figure didn't react at all, as if he hadn't heard a thing.
Minato simply tugged at her hand and quietly whispered, "I did leave the village without permission… it was my mistake."
Even Sora managed to temporarily push aside his frustration about the uncollectable card, musing inwardly, So the Telescope Technique has already been deployed? Hiruzen, what exactly do you think you can do now?
The group arrived at the Hokage's office. When the door opened, Hiruzen Sarutobi was already seated in the Hokage's chair, puffing away at his pipe. His expression was unreadable behind the swirling smoke.
"You're back," he said flatly.
"Yes, Lord Third," Minato answered respectfully, then immediately began to explain, "I left the village without authorization because—"
"You don't need to explain," Hiruzen interrupted, waving his hand. "It's clear you've yet to fully grasp the responsibilities of a Hokage. Looks like this old man will have to keep supporting the village for a few more years."
Sora nearly laughed out loud. Finally revealing your true face, huh? Too bad you don't have what it takes anymore.
He was just about to speak up—eager to vent all his frustration about the system bug and unload on Hiruzen—when Kakashi suddenly stepped forward and spoke first.
"Lord Third, Minato-sensei left the village to save me. If there's any punishment, I'll take it."
Hiruzen chuckled softly and shook his head. "Kakashi… this isn't about punishment."
"...!"
Still too young, Sora thought, watching Kakashi get verbally shut down with a single line. He shook his head inwardly.
With an opportunity like this—one where Minato had clearly violated protocol—how could someone as power-hungry as Hiruzen not take advantage?
Look at Danzō. Hiruzen was exactly the same. The only difference was that while Danzō was outright sinister, Hiruzen was hypocritically "kind."
Boom!
"You old geezer—what the hell do you mean by that?!"
Kushina's temper finally snapped. She slammed her fist down on the desk, shattering it instantly, and roared at Hiruzen.
She might've been simple, but she wasn't stupid.
She had never liked Hiruzen from the start.
Before, she hadn't understood the full picture. But now that Minato was Hokage, the secrets behind the fall of the Uzushiogakure were no longer hidden from her.
If she hadn't already forged deep ties in Konoha, she would've turned her back on this village long ago.
And now this man dared to push even further?
There was no way she was going to sit and take it.