Although Amado had become addicted to staying up late these past few years, his skills were growing stronger, and Torifu had great faith in him in this area. But in other aspects, that might not be the case.
Torifu had notified Kakuzu half a month ago, asking him to bring his men to attend the wedding. Kakuzu had agreed, saying that his subordinates were extremely excited. Meeting their leader for the first time at his wedding was quite a coincidence.
Minato and the others would likely be very surprised to see Kakuzu. Currently, all the human residents of this house, apart from Torifu, had been collected by Kakuzu from various places in the world. Seeing Kakuzu would probably evoke a unique set of emotions for them. After all, it was Kakuzu who helped them when they were at their most difficult and helpless, brought them to Konoha Village, and entrusted them to Torifu's care. Regardless, they were likely all very grateful to Kakuzu.
One could only say that Kakuzu carried a bit of good fortune with him; the first time he picked up Amado, and the second time he picked up Minato. Torifu didn't know what to say; Kakuzu was simply his lucky star. Following him to annihilate Takigakure all those years ago was absolutely the right decision.
After another hour, Yahiko and Konan emerged from the house. They immediately greeted Torifu and prepared to start their morning exercises. They no longer needed reminders; they had developed the good habit of exercising right after waking up. This was mainly due to Minato setting an example for them; that senior disciple was extremely responsible—much more responsible than Nawaki. That guy was seen only a few times a year, constantly on the road for missions. However, everyone chooses a different path, and Torifu could only show his support for Nawaki's choice to temper himself through missions.
Kano checked the time; it was already past eight o'clock, so he immediately set off for the Hokage's office. Guests would be arriving soon, and Torifu needed to be there to receive them immediately. The villagers were even more anxious than Torifu, already gathering on both sides of the road, poised for action. They were determined to show the two Kage the enthusiasm of Konoha Village. Torifu just hoped their enthusiasm wasn't so overwhelming that it scared off Ōnoki and the Third Kazekage.
A letter also arrived from the Land of Iron. Mifune stated that the General had agreed to cooperate with Konoha Village and would attend the wedding. This meant everything worked out perfectly: Konoha Village could get the Land of Iron's ores, and the Land of Iron could acquire electronics and various power generation facilities, all to be constructed by Konoha Village personnel.
"Hokage-sama, you're here so early!" The secretary smiled as he poured Torifu a cup of hot tea.
"Yes. Today is the day the Kazekage and the Tsuchikage are arriving. They are punctual men and won't be late, so I need to be prepared." Although the alliance of the three nations was centered around Konoha Village, the foundation of their cooperation was mutual respect. The three nations were merely partners in an alliance, not subjects who had submitted to Konoha Village. Torifu naturally needed to show them the respect they deserved.
Furthermore, Torifu had never intended to unify the entire Ninja World; that sounded like a colossal hassle. His goal was to live a good, peaceful life in this Ninja World. His current living conditions were already enough to satisfy him; the next step was to strive for a peaceful life. Torifu had no interest in unifying the world—a task that was both exhausting and provided little benefit. Even if he did unify it, they would only be wary of Torifu's power. If any accident occurred, the unified Ninja World would instantly collapse and return to its original state. There was no meaning in it. The current situation was already acceptable, with countries afraid to start wars due to Torifu's strength. Achieving the relative peace of the Hashirama era was already quite an accomplishment. True peace only exists in fairy tales; it is impossible to have any genuine peace in reality. This was a very basic truth.
The secretary looked at the clock on the wall. "They should be near Konoha Village by now. They'll be arriving very soon."
As soon as the secretary finished speaking, Torifu felt a message transmitted from the Cloud Palace map. Two groups of people were heading toward Konoha Village, and both were displayed in blue. This indicated that they harbored no malicious intent.
"They've arrived. Come with me; let's leave the village."
The secretary didn't know how the Hokage determined this, but he naturally trusted him completely.
"Yes, Hokage-sama." He then followed Torifu to the entrance of Konoha Village.
When the villagers saw the Hokage himself come out, they knew the two Kage had arrived. They spontaneously gathered on both sides of the streets of Konoha Village, ready to cheer.
Gradually, a breeze began to pick up at the front gate of Konoha Village, which slowly built into a swirling storm. Torifu's white hair was blown wildly by the wind, but he maintained a smile on his face. This was a habit of the Kage; no matter what event they attended, they always established their image and presence first.
At this moment, black iron sand gradually appeared in the storm, converging toward the eye of the whirlwind. It slowly accumulated into a human shape, and then the figure of the statue shattered, and the Third Kazekage stepped out from within.
"Hokage-sama, congratulations on your wedding." The Kazekage dispelled the storm, cupping his hands in congratulation to Torifu.
Torifu's face was also full of smiles. "Thank you, Kazekage-sama. You must be tired from your journey."
The Kazekage waved his hand. "Not at all. Now that roads have been built between our two nations, the journey was smooth and completely unimpeded."
The two chatted for a moment, and then they saw the ground where the Kazekage had just appeared suddenly swell. A giant rock then shot up from it, transforming into a rock giant in mid-air! It frantically pounded its chest with its hands, emitting an earth-shattering sound. Then, it opened its great mouth and constantly spat out rocks, which eventually formed a small, human figure. As the clumps of earth shattered, the person inside was none other than the Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki.
Seeing that their entrances were so dramatic, Torifu considered whether he should arrange one for himself, too. But Torifu himself rarely went to other countries for business. It was always the other Kage who came to visit Konoha Village. Even if he created an entrance animation, he wouldn't have any use for it. This was a bit frustrating for Torifu.
However, the smile on his face didn't fade, and he said to Ōnoki in the air, "Tsuchikage-sama, I hope you have been well."
Ōnoki slowly flew down to stand beside Torifu and the Kazekage.
"Haha, Hokage-sama, congratulations on your wedding! A happy ending for the lovers."
Torifu bowed to Ōnoki. "Thank you." He then looked at the Kazekage. "Both of you must be a bit tired from your journey. Please come into the village and rest. The finest apartment has been prepared for you and your entourage."