Haji and three figures appeared in the office Of Hokage In the Hokage Tower, armored boots touching down on the polished tile of the corridor. In one hand, he held his helt, silver and clean. Behind him followed three figures, cloaked, silent, and marked by war.
Konan moved with calm precision, her paper flower clipped behind one ear, her eyes watching every corner with quiet alertness. Nagato walked slowly, no longer bound to his chanical walker. Though his face was pale and weary, there was strength in his steps, restored by Haji's healing. And Uchiha Itachi, weaken by the sealing but didn't stop. He didn't resist. He walked with purpose.
Ahead, two won stood in stunned silence.
Tsunade blinked, a scroll in her hand paused mid-read. Shizune nearly dropped her clipboard.
"…You're back," Tsunade said cautiously. "And not alone."
"I didn't co to report," Haji replied, walking calmly into the center of the room. "I ca to deliver prisoners."
Shizune took a step forward, eyes flickering between the unfamiliar faces. "Who are they?"
Haji turned slightly and gestured toward the trio. "This is Konan and Nagato. They were the leaders of the Akatsuki. And both were once students of Jiraiya."
Tsunade narrowed her eyes. "Wait, what? Jiraiya's students?" She looked at the two in disbelief. "You're saying he trained the people responsible for all this?"
"Yes," Haji said. "Before they beca what they are now."
Tsunade folded her arms, processing it. "He never ntioned them."
"I'm not surprised," Haji replied. "He probably thought he'd failed them."
Tsunade let out a sigh and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Unbelievable."
"And this," Haji continued, turning toward the third figure, "is Uchiha Itachi. I captured him."
Tsunade's eyes snapped toward Itachi, her expression hardening. "Itachi?" Her voice was sharper now not to Haji But to Itachi. "You brought him here?"
Haji Replied. "Yes."
Tsunade opened her mouth, then stopped. She studied Haji for a mont, and though the questions hung in the air, she didn't ask them, not yet.
"We talked in Agakure," Haji said simply. "Before coming here."
Tsunade raised an eyebrow, but her voice remained even. "And now?"
"They'll stay in Konoha," Haji said. "All three. Imprisoned, chakra sealed."
He gestured toward Konan, Nagato, and Itachi, each bearing the sealing tags pressed against their necks and forearms. Layers of suppression chakra weaved into them, enough to halt even the strongest jutsu. They offered no resistance.
Tsunade approached slowly. "You trust them to remain quiet?"
"I trust the seals," Haji said. "And their willingness to surrender."
Shizune tilted her head. "You're not killing them?"
"No," Haji said firmly. "They're valuable in ways most people won't understand."
He turned back toward Tsunade. "I also need you to send soone to rule Agakure."
"What?" Tsunade asked.
"Hanzo is dead," Haji said plainly. "Nagato killed him."
There was a pause, and then, unexpectedly, Tsunade let out a short laugh.
"That old war hawk? He's been ruling that place since before we graduated. You're telling Jiraiya's apprentice was the one who finally took him out?"
"Yes."
She shook her head in disbelief. "Well, damn."
Her gaze drifted back toward Nagato, who said nothing, simply stood still, his red hair fluttering lightly in the breeze from the open window.
"Fine," she said after a mont. "I'll send soone to assess the state of things. Agakure's too unstable to be left without a leader."
Haji nodded. "That's enough."
"And the Uchiha?" Tsunade asked, glancing toward Itachi.
"Spread the news," Haji said. "Let the world know Itachi is captured and imprisoned here in Konoha."
Tsunade blinked. "Why?"
"So Sasuke will co," Haji answered. "On his own."
Shizune's eyes widened. "You're using him to lure Sasuke back?"
"I'm giving Sasuke a reason to stop running," Haji replied. "He won't co back for lectures or diplomacy. But for his brother? He will."
Tsunade's mouth opened slightly, then closed. She studied Haji carefully.
"And what about you?" she finally asked. "Where are you going next?"
Haji looked out the window, toward the distant mountains beyond Konoha's borders.
"There's another threat," he said. "One that didn't show itself fully… but watched."
Tsunade frowned. "Another Akatsuki?"
"No," Haji said. "Sothing older. Sothing worse."
There was a pause.
He glanced over his shoulder. "He calls himself Jigen. The leader of a hidden organization. I sensed him briefly while fighting Pain. He was observing."
Tsunade's expression hardened. "You're serious?"
"I always am."
"But who is he?"
Haji hesitated for a mont, staring into the sky beyond the window.
He didn't answer her question directly.
But inwardly, his thoughts stirred.
Jigen…
Even in my past life, I never watched Boruto. But I rember clips. Fragnts from social dia. A body used by soone called Isshiki Ōtsutsuki. A parasite masquerading as a human, pulling strings from the shadows. This group doesn't want control, he want annihilation, as he want to harvest Chakra fruit on this planet.
He clenched his hand slowly.
I didn't co to uncover their purpose. I ca to end them.
Tsunade's voice broke the silence. "You're saying you still have enemies out there?"
Haji nodded. "Yes. And this one… is unlike anything this world has seen."
He stepped back toward the open portal behind him.
"I'll destroy them before they reach us."
Tsunade took a deep breath. "You're going alone?"
"I always have."
He looked back once, silver eyes glowing beneath his helt visor.
"Hold the village. Watch them closely," he said, gesturing to the prisoners. "If they try anything, kill them. But I don't think they will."
He paused, then added quietly, "There's still sothing worth saving in them."
Then, without another word, Haji vanished.
And silence returned to the tower.
(Zander: as I was writing this, making it solemn and such, as I drink coffee a hot coffee, there were a dead spider, and I drank it, good thing I didn't swallowed it, but still stayed in my mouth, I threw the coffee, and imdiately wash my mouth, and I keep doing vomiting sounds, felt like dying lol) 🥲
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