Immortality begins with the ninjas of Konoha.

In early November of Konoha 48, after news of the successful expulsion of Kumogakure from the front lines of the Land of Hot Springs reached Konoha, the ninjas remaining in the village were once again in an uproar.

They held their own against the three great ninja villages, and everyone looked proud when this was mentioned.

Despite some casualties and the impact on the mission, most ninjas still supported the village's initiative.

Death is not scary. As long as we can win this war, everything we have lost will come back!

More importantly, the commission market that has been secured must not be given up, as it concerns the vital interests of every ninja. Even the "daytime faction" no longer opposes it after seeing the dawn of victory.

Besides the good news from the front lines, Minato Namikaze's efficient killing spree was also a source of great interest among the Konoha ninja.

In the eyes of many ninjas, Minato Namikaze was a sunny and warm-hearted man. Although he was exceptionally strong, he still did not fit the impression of a strong person in most ninjas' minds.

Over the past six months, the death toll of enemy ninjas on the front lines of the Land of Grass and the Land of Hot Springs has reversed Minato's reputation.

One man, one team; efficient killing; Minato Namikaze demonstrated his absolute strength with the corpses of his enemies!

This exceptional individual performance allowed Minato Namikaze to overshadow the three legendary Sannin.

Although Orochimaru achieved success on the battlefield in the Land of Rain, he suffered considerable losses.

Jiraiya performed adequately, without using his personal strength to overwhelm the opposing ninja.

Tsunade gave ordinary ninjas "half a life" with the Three-Colored Pill, but they remained in the village. The ninjas on the front lines felt more gratitude than admiration for her.

Under these circumstances, even the Konoha leadership began to re-evaluate Minato Namikaze, and Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado increasingly praised the young man.

-

Inside the Hokage Building, after the Jonin team's routine meeting, Hiruzen Sarutobi listened calmly to the advice of his two old friends:

"We can send Minato Namikaze to represent the village and communicate with Yugakure. As long as they agree to bear half of the supplies during the war, this defection can be treated as if it never happened."

"Minato may be young, but with his abilities, he should be given more responsibility."

Koharu's suggestion to switch dorm rooms prompted Homura Mitokado, who was sitting next to her, to nod in agreement. Seeing that her old friend remained silent, she continued, "..."

"Hiruzen, not only matters concerning the Land of Hot Water, but also issues concerning the Land of Frost can be given to Minato to make decisions."

"Ninjas from small countries are always short-sighted. Minato is still young, and this is an opportunity for him to re-understand the relationships within the ninja world. With the ANBU relaying our instructions, there's no need to worry about the mission failing."

The two advisors, one squinting and the other pushing up his glasses, offered advice that sounded quite reasonable, but Hiruzen Sarutobi felt that his old friends had truly grown old.

Even Danzo, who was constantly scheming against Orochimaru, didn't remain silent at this moment and surprisingly agreed with these suggestions:

"Minato Namikaze is indeed very suitable for negotiating with ninjas from small countries. With ninjas from the Hyuga clan around, no one can hold him back."

"If you're still worried, I can send a few more Root ninjas to assist you."

"If the Land of Frost and the Land of Hot Water cannot maintain their neutrality, we must teach them a lesson."

Danzo, who advocates for putting pressure on neighboring small countries, is eager to mobilize them to help Konoha attack major powers. Now that he has the opportunity to implement his plan, he doesn't mind giving Minato Namikaze a push.

After all, young ninjas have no foundation, and the three legendary ninjas all have followers, so it's not their turn to "help".

Hiruzen Sarutobi started puffing on his cigarette again. He knew his old friends didn't want to lose their power, but he had no interest in knowing about it.

If things don't go well, he plans to take the blame and step down. What happens in the future is up to the next Hokage; he will only offer advice when necessary.

Out of consideration for their past friendship, Hiruzen Sarutobi ultimately did not refuse the proposal:

"I'll leave this negotiation to Minato. I'll transfer Nara Shikaku and the others there, while Root will remain in the Land of Rain."

"Sunagakure will not give up the war as long as the assigned mission cannot be resolved."

Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado breathed a sigh of relief. Their old friend was still looking out for them. If it were Tsunade, she wouldn't let them command her from here.

Danzo nodded in acknowledgment and then got up to leave. Rumors had already begun to circulate among the Jonin that Osamu Furukawa's strength was approaching that of the Hokage. He needed to speed up his plans and capture Kakashi as soon as possible.

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at Danzo with surprise. He had thought the other man would try to bargain with him. He tapped his pipe and pondered to himself:

"Could it be that Tsunade is putting too much pressure on him?"

-

After thoroughly wiping out the Cloud Village ninja at the border outpost of Tang, the group awaited instructions from their superiors. Their ally had turned against them, and they needed an explanation.

Minato Namikaze has been away from the village for a month. After completing his mission, he wants to go home to be with Kushina. After their engagement, their relationship has heated up rapidly, and they wish they could be together every day.

"You want me to be in charge of negotiations between Tangnin Village and Shuangnin Village?"

After reading the mission scroll, Minato subconsciously asked a question, and the ANBU ninja bowed again, responding earnestly:

"Yes, this is the Hokage's instruction."

Minato Namikaze quickly regained his composure. As a ninja, he wouldn't refuse a mission, and solemnly assured him:

"Once Jonin Inoichi and the others arrive, we will set off immediately to complete the mission as soon as possible."

Back at the base, Minato Namikaze made simple arrangements for the trip, and everyone congratulated him upon hearing that they were going to Yugakure and Shimogakure.

The fact that Minato can represent Konoha indicates that he has entered the center of power.

"Keep it up, Minato! You might just become the Fifth Hokage!"

Inuzuka Jacques smiled and patted Minato on the shoulder. Having worked together on many missions, he greatly admired this determined young man.

Ninjas are usually accompanied by killing, and taking lives can be addictive, but Minato was completely unaffected. Ninjas with such qualities are extremely rare.

Faced with his senior's praise, Minato Namikaze scratched his head. Only at times like this did he show his youthful side. Seemingly thinking of Kushina at home, he sighed softly and responded in a low voice:

"Senior, becoming Hokage is still too far away!"

"The negotiations shouldn't take too long, thank you all for your help again!"

At a distance from the base, Furukawa Masayuki took a scroll from the blue snake's mouth. In just two months, the small snake had grown larger again.

"Has Orochimaru-sensei not obtained a special experimental subject yet?"

"I didn't expect him to be so disciplined, and to even pay attention to the thoughts of senior advisors."

The green snake coiled around his body seemed to understand his words, flicking its tongue repeatedly. Furukawa Osamu handed him a secret medicine and gave him a prepared scroll, offering simple instructions:

"You can sense the changes in chakra after the Hashirama cells were injected. Pay attention to the changes in Orochimaru-sensei's body."

After swallowing the secret medicine, the green snake shook its head repeatedly before reluctantly dispelling the spirit communication spell.

After the slug released the resonance, it wriggled onto Furukawa Osamu's shoulder. Having recently been researching Yin-Yang Release techniques without much progress, it could only offer comfort in its soft, gentle voice:

"Lord Xiu, it seems we're missing crucial information."

"Theoretically, possessing Yin and Yang chakra attributes does indeed enable the Yin-Yang Release technique, but this technique has not been passed down."

Furukawa Osamu nodded. The energy he had collected from the Eight-Tails contained a lot of information, but most of it was about Yin-Yang Release, which was similar to the Nine-Tails' chakra.

After repeatedly trying the Yin-Yang Release technique, Furukawa Osamu completely gave up. This technique most likely required the Rinnegan, and even if he understood the principle, he couldn't use it.

Mixing in natural energy has no effect; the "rules" cannot be broken. To use Yin-Yang Escape Technique, one still needs to "reverse the ancestral lineage."

Is the "life" created through Yin-Yang Release techniques truly life?

Furukawa asked casually, while the slug on his shoulder pondered for a moment but ultimately didn't give a definite answer:

"The Tailed Beasts were created by the Sage of Six Paths, but they cannot truly die, which may not fit the definition of life."

"Life forms like mine, which are quantified, will eventually disappear from this world. Although it may take thousands of years, I am certain that I will die and cannot be resurrected."

"..."

Upon hearing the words of this immortal being, Furukawa Osamu fell silent until the slug began shaking its tentacles repeatedly, bringing him back to his senses. He then mentally assessed his own abilities:

"White Zetsu and Tailed Beasts are defined as non-living entities by their abilities, therefore they can be [harvested]."

"A body corrupted by Hashirama cells is also a non-living entity and can be 'refined'."

"The roots of the assimilated Divine Tree can also be harvested, and the Gedo Mazo should also be within the scope of this ability."

Unable to obtain a bloodline limit for the time being, Osamu Furukawa could only use his own power. This time, he verified his conjecture again through the Eight-Tails, and he managed to find some ways to counter the Gedo Mazo.

"I've mastered the Super Tremor Lightning Blade. Next, I'll continue practicing the Lightning Plow Heat Blade. The way the Cloud Village activates its Lightning Release is truly interesting."

"I abandoned the large amount of chakra produced by the secondary extraction of cells and focused entirely on physical transformation and nature transformation."

The Lightning Blade that Furukawa Osamu obtained from Killer Bee is unusable by ordinary ninjas. It requires extremely high physical strength to slash with the arm at maximum speed.

The live slug disliked these physically taxing ninjutsu techniques, so it transformed into a pool of liquid, merging into its body to enter a state of resonance, and sighed regretfully:

"It's a pity I don't have a way to strengthen the meridians, otherwise Master Xiu wouldn't have to worry about damaging his meridians."

When Hyuga Shuichi arrived in the dense forest, he looked around and had no choice but to activate his Byakugan. Only then did he notice that Furukawa Osamu was sitting cross-legged on a tree branch not far away.

"Shu, Captain Minato is going to negotiate with the two countries next. We may not be able to return to the village until the end of the month."

Furukawa Osamu jumped down from the tree branch. Although he had already obtained more detailed information from Orochimaru, he still exclaimed in admiration:

"It seems the captain is going to shoulder even greater responsibilities; who knows, he might even become Hokage in the future!"

Upon hearing "Hokage," Hyuga Shuichi looked up at the sky, his view obscured by tree branches, and muttered to himself:

"What's so great about Naruto? It still doesn't change anything."

"I'm sorry, Shu, you should understand that no one from the branch family can become Hokage. I'm just mocking my own fate."

Furukawa Osamu approached Hyuga Shuichi without offering any words of comfort. This man somewhat resembled the "Hyuga Neji" from his memories; perhaps not as talented as Hyuga, but within the branch family, his abilities were top-tier.

"Live well, and maybe one day everything will change."

-

In mid-November, the Cloud Village ninja retreated all the way back to the Land of Lightning.

This reaction terrified the ninjas of the Land of Frost, who, without waiting for Minato's arrival, immediately sent peace envoys to Konoha.

The Konoha leadership was equally perplexed, and their undercover intelligence agents had not sent back any useful information. Hiruzen Sarutobi couldn't understand why the usually assertive Cloud Village ninja would take the initiative to make concessions.

The "weakness" of the Cloud Village made the Konoha ninjas in the village cheer with delight. It was also at this time that news that Osamu Furukawa possessed strength close to that of the Hokage began to spread widely in the village.

Normally, genin and chunin wouldn't know about jonin's missions, but this time it's different; even people at the ninja academy are discussing it.

Orochimaru, with the list provided by Furukawa Osamu and his own subordinates, quickly launched a "counterattack," aiming to push Tsunade to the top and completely replace Danzo!

Late at night, in an underground laboratory in the dense forest west of Konoha Village, Orochimaru summoned a blue snake that had grown even larger, and handed over a scroll, instructing:

"Go and investigate Xiu's body for me. You can sense natural energy, so you should understand what I'm saying."

The green snake nodded obediently and even wrapped itself around Orochimaru a few times affectionately.

Orochimaru, in high spirits, chuckled ominously. He suspected that Furukawa Osamu had mastered Sage Mode, because Tsunade's strength shouldn't have increased to this level with just her secret techniques.

Facing the Eight-Tails head-on is more difficult than facing ninjas like Rasa or Chiyo.

Orochimaru was about to "smile and pat the snake's head" when the green snake suddenly dispelled the summoning jutsu with a bang:

"The impatient little guy."

"If it's magic, your talent seems to be even more outstanding than I imagined."

Lying on the experimental table, Yekura looked numb, her dark green hair had lost its luster, and her body had been largely eroded by the modified Hashirama cells.

Orochimaru, who occasionally sticks out his long tongue and mutters to himself, is a demon in Pakura's eyes:

"The evil Konoha ninja will be punished..."

Orochimaru ignored the test subject. He had already studied most of Yekura's bloodline limit, and the only remaining value of this body was to serve as a backup "sacrifice".

...

When Osamu Furukawa accompanied Minato Namikaze to visit the Land of Frost, the White Zetsu, who had been lurking in the Hidden Cloud Village, had already returned to their base on the Iron Peninsula.

After an intensive search for the Uchiha genius ninja yielded no results, the White Zetsu responsible for surveillance began gossiping about "Konoha news."

"Lord Madara, it is said that the next Hokage is Hashirama's granddaughter, whom you often mention."

"Her disciple has recently become very popular in Konoha."

"At the age of 11, he already had strength close to that of a Hokage, that's what everyone in the village says."

"Is there anything special about the Hokage's poop?"

The aged Madara Uchiha had no energy to pay attention to the dim-witted White Zetsu; he only heard that Hashirama's granddaughter wanted to become Hokage, and couldn't help but mutter a sarcastic remark:

"How ugly, Hashirama! In the end, it's always the Senju clan that becomes Hokage."

"The Hokage can't change anything, I'll correct your mistakes..."

White Zetsu had grown accustomed to the daily "Hashirama Time," and seeing that the Creator had fallen silent, he began to report on the situation in Kumogakure:

"Lord Madara, there's a problem with the Eight-Tails of Kumogakure. It seems to be related to that Konoha ninja named Osamu Furukawa."

"The other party is currently in the Frost Kingdom. Should we increase surveillance?"

Madara Uchiha snapped out of his daze, suddenly remembering the lost energy of the Divine Tree, and looked up at the awakened Ancient White Zetsu, giving the order:

"Don't approach rashly. Investigate whether his ancestors were related to the Senju clan."

"The power of the Divine Tree can only be mastered by the Uchiha and Senju clans."

"Hashirama, is this the trouble you've left me with...?"