A Thousand Years

The Next Hokage

"He said he's found his own path, that his goals and the villages could never coexist." Hashirama grimaced, clenching his fists. "He left. I couldn't stop him."

Nina did not say a word.

Hashirama told her about everything that had happened, from the conflict with Tobirama about who would be become Hokage to Madara showing him the stone tablet.

"Nina, you're an Ōtsutsuki, both the Uchiha and Senju descended from your clan, you must know something about the tablet." He sounded desperate, almost as if he was pleading with her. "Do you know what it really says?" There was a long moment of silence. Finally, Nina spoke softly, voice strangely empty.

"Hagoromo left it for Indra's decedents, it eventually fell into Uchiha hands. That's all I know." She stated.

"Do you think you could decipher it if I brought you there?" Hashirama pressed.

"No. He never told me how to read it." Nina finished. "I'll help with whatever else I can." She swallowed any emotions she had towards the situation and switched to brainstorming the best solutions.

"He's not going to come back." The distressed Senju rested his head in his hands. "I tried to convince him, but he wouldn't listen." He was defeated.

"You told me he said he would be looking forward to a final fight, right?" The man nodded slowly. "Then he will be back, just not in the way we may want. We'll have to be ready, there must be a way to change his mind." Nina attempted to raise his hope.

"If we are to defend the village without killing him then we will need your help." He sighed, looking her dead in the eye. "You'll have to tell Tobirama at the very least." She knew what he meant, she knew the time would come. As a high-ranking village leader and, dare she say, a friend, Tobirama had the right to know about her past.

So she told him.

After giving him a few hours to comprehend what he was being told, the younger Senju had gotten over his confusion. The room, consisting of Nina and the brothers, had fallen silent.

"Ōtsutsuki, huh?" The white haired man droned quietly.

"Yes." She confirmed with a nod. He seemed to be taking this quite well. Another moment of silence fell.

"That explains a lot." He closed his eyes. "I always knew there was something off about you." He sighed. "Well, let's get to work. We don't know how long we have until Madara comes back."

The village shinobi were put under intense training sessions day in and day out, the anbu especially. The Senju leaders and Nina were also dedicating extensive periods of time to training, individually and together. They would usually go out, far away from the village and train for hours upon hours. At most, to two of them could leave at one time, the other would watch the village and make sure nothing went wrong. When Nina went with one of the Senjus, she would teach them jutsus that she believed would fit their skill set and make them stronger. She would also learn techniques from them.

Nina had spoken to Izuna not long after she first heard the news. He was deeply upset but was more concerned about his brother's safety. Apparently, Madara had not said anything to anyone about leaving.

"He did announce that he wanted to leave Konoha and tried to gain the clan's support but leaving the village didn't seem to be on anyone's mind." Izuna told her solemnly. "He's been trying to convince the council and elders for months." Nina thought about this, expression hardened with concentration. If Madara's had the idea for so long than perhaps that was why he had all but disappeared for a week all those months ago. That must be why he asked her how long she thought the village would last.