Minato's eyes narrowed slightly. By now, he had already gone through more than half of the scrolls he wanted to check.
He was searching these historical records for any hidden clues that might reveal the Masked Man's true intentions.
Yet in this process, aside from learning about the conflicts between various clans of Konoha Ninja Village—especially the Uchiha and Senju clans—there was little else worth noting.
However, this only made Minato even more uneasy.
The issue was that information regarding the Senju clan became progressively scarcer in these scrolls...
"What exactly is going on here?" Minato muttered to himself.
The Uchiha and Senju were the two most powerful clans during the founding of Konoha Ninja Village. Today, the Uchiha handle the village's security duties, though they seemed to have been deliberately moved to the outskirts by The Second Hokage.
Even so, the Uchiha's prestige remained unquestionable—they represented an incredibly strong clan. Their unique Kekkei Genkai, the Sharingan, had dominated the ninja world for over a century, particularly at its peak under Madara Uchiha.
At that time, there was practically no one who could rival Hashirama Senju—the First Hokage and head of the Senju clan—except Madara.
Although the Uchiha clan has since declined somewhat, they remain among the strongest clans within Konoha Ninja Village.
But the Senju clan, once a dominant rival of the Uchiha and even surpassing them in their prime, had quietly vanished from Konoha.
Nowadays, aside from Tsunade and Nawaki Senju—the grandchildren of the First Hokage—no other known Senju descendants remained in the village.
Strangely enough, neither Minato as the Fourth Hokage nor these ancient scrolls before him provided any explanation for this disappearance.
Where had so many members and descendants of the once-great Senju clan gone?
This question lingered heavily in Minato's mind, unanswerable for now. Deep in thought, he continued flipping through the remaining scrolls.
However, the records stopped abruptly at the beginning of the Second Great Ninja War.
The war had just ended, so it made sense that its records hadn't been fully compiled yet.
Still, Minato found not a single mention of the Senju clan anywhere.
"Not even here?" Minato frowned slightly.
If even these archives lacked any information about the Senju's mysterious disappearance, then perhaps only a few high-ranking individuals in the village—and those two with Senju blood—might know the truth.
Nawaki Senju and Tsunade Senju.
"It's still too early to draw conclusions. I can check other scrolls tomorrow; maybe something will turn up." Senior Minato's voice sounded. Hearing this, Minato nodded slightly.
Pushing his doubts aside, Minato suddenly realized how hungry he was.
Clearly, while engrossed in reading the scrolls, he had once again lost track of time.
In this attic, with Minato's full attention focused on the scrolls, he had lost track of time and didn't realize how long had passed.
It wasn't until he walked out of the Hokage Tower and saw the pitch-black sky that Minato realized at least twelve hours must have passed.
On the main road in front of the Hokage Tower, the streets buzzed with activity. Although the weather was cold, everyone was fully enjoying the peace after the war's end.
Looking at those shops brightly lit and filled with steady streams of customers, Minato felt an indescribable sense of comfort.
Wasn't this exactly what he and his comrades had fought so hard for on the battlefield?
Minato didn't rush home immediately. Instead, he strolled leisurely down the street.
However, before he had walked a hundred meters, someone suddenly appeared before him.
"You bastard, where did you disappear to? We've all been searching for you," Minato was startled; standing in front of him was none other than Shikaku Nara.
Minato blinked in confusion. "Everyone is looking for me?"
Shikaku quickly explained, "It's your birthday today. Everyone specially gathered together to celebrate it for you."
"Uh…" Minato looked surprised then asked, "You guys know today is my birthday?"
He'd only told Kushina about it. Sure, he might've mentioned it once or twice back at the ninja academy, but honestly? He didn't think anyone'd bother remembering.
"That was all thanks to Nawaki—he spread the word." Shikaku smiled slightly. "He said previously during the battle in the Land of Rain, you saved his life, so he made a special effort to find out your birthday and informed many of your comrades. Everyone has been searching different parts of the village trying to find you."
This indeed came as a surprise to Minato. He hadn't expected Nawaki to be so considerate just to thank him.
In the original timeline, Nawaki had died on the battlefield during the Second Great Ninja War, but now his fate had changed thanks to Minato.
"We finally found you. Come on, let's go." Shikaku said.
"Where to?" Minato asked.
"Nawaki gathered everyone at the barbecue restaurant." Shikaku replied.
Minato nodded, then followed Shikaku toward the barbecue shop.
...
When the two entered the barbecue restaurant, it was the same one where Minato had first dined with his teacher Jiraiya.
When the barbecue restaurant owner—a slightly chubby man—saw Minato, he couldn't help but smile.
Now that Minato has become famous across Konoha, the man who had always liked him since early days naturally felt delighted upon learning of Minato's accomplishments.
"You're Konoha's pride now! Since today is your birthday, let me treat you." The restaurant owner grinned.
"Mr. Owner, that won't do. Today I'm here to thank Minato. This meal absolutely must be on me." At that moment, Nawaki and Shurou walked through the door. The former rushed straight to Minato's side and casually slung his arm around his shoulder.
"Nawaki Sempai, there's no need..." Minato began to say something, but before he could finish, Nawaki interrupted him.
"Minato, I know what you're trying to say, but today, I won't let you be polite with me. On the battlefield, without you, I might have long been dead. This isn't just my opinion — it's also my older sister's wish. If she hadn't been held up by some matters, she definitely would have come herself."
After Jeshu said this, Minato couldn't really argue anymore.
Soon, several of them walked into a private room. At this point, many people had already gathered in this room.
"Kushina," Minato called out in mild surprise when he saw her. After all, they had already celebrated her birthday last night.
When she saw Minato, she raised her eyes and said, "It was Mikoto who brought me here."
Minato then looked over to Mikoto, who sat beside Kushina. The latter smiled at him as she said, "Happy birthday, Minato!"
"Thank you," Minato replied, then took a seat next to Kushina.
It was no secret among their peers that Minato and Kushina were close. Actually, despite having a mature heart, Minato didn't feel any awkwardness about it.
Before long, everyone had gathered. The comrades he'd fought alongside on the battlefield — Hiashi and Hizashi Hyuga, the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, and others — all sat around together, celebrating his birthday.
Except for Yan Uchiha.
The war gave Minato more than just praise and reputation. What truly mattered to him... were the friends right by his side.
<><><><><><><><>
Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!
~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!
<><><><><><><><>
~ 100+ Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon!
~ More *Free* Chapters and Books Available on Patreon!
patreon.com/Tansnovel
<><><><><><><><>