The Fourth Kazekage remained missing, and Gaara, as a jinchūriki, was also unated for. However, Link khe whereabouts of Temari and Kankurō—they had been pced in a ninja apartment plex. They were effectively his neighbors now, sing a meeting was effortless.

  “Speaking of which, the ninja apartment is way too small. There’s not even a proper training room. Should I think about taking out a loan to buy a better apartment?”

  The thought crossed his mind suddenly.

  Despite the fantastical world of shinobi, the existenes and loans in Konohagakure was strangely grounded iy. As the you Special Jōnin, Link's meteoric rise in ra he had a signifit loan limit.

  Buying a trally located apartmehe Ninja Academy, like Naruto’s, was out of the question. But getting one closer to the vilge ter, not so far from everything, seemed feasible.

  “But during the Pain assault…”

  Better to stick to renting for now.

  After weighing the high i rates fe properties and recalling how his wallet had thinned from not taking missioly, Link decided to sell his father's old small apartment and use the proceeds to rent a rger, more tral space.

  He didn’t need many rooms—just oh enough space for training. Liviing, and training in a single cramped room was starting to feel oppressive.

  His current home, cluttered with scrolls and boxes of tailed beast chakra cubes, made even simple movements feel restrictive.

  Meanwhile, Baki, oblivious to Link's musings, was deep in thought, staring at the distant sky with a heavy expression.

  The failure of the Sunagakure’s p they could no longer approach Konoha on equal footing. The future of his vilge looked grim.

  In life, Baki had left behind a trove of unpassed intelligence, spy tacts, and political legacies. His death had been sudden, and he had destroyed his brain tissue to prevent information leakage. Now, with an opportunity to pass on that legacy, it felt like a small silver lining.

  Moreover, Link's summoning teique was extraordinarily powerful—capable of breag the barrier between life ah without any cost.

  Given the weakeate of the Sunagakure and the impossibility of eliminating Link, iing in the boy seemed like a prudent choice.

  Baki, though a ninja, had a mind as sharp as any politi. As the right hand of the Fourth Kazekage, strategic thinking was sed nature.

  "Link, my mother wants to talk to you," Sasuke said, his face flushed. Years of emotional barriers were slowly breaking down.

  The blurred liween life ah was reshaping his worldview.

  Hatred, sadness, and pain were being repced by the warmth of having his parents back, even if temporarily. Sasuke was beginning to accept that as long as he stayed close to his panions, he could reuh his family again.

  When Link approached, Mikoto Uchiha’s gaze was ge curious.

  “I disguised myself as Sasuke to tact you,” Link expined with a smile.

  “Thank you,” Mikoto said, her warm smile radiating motherly affe. “Thank you for taking care of Sasuke.”

  Li her gaze and replied, “It’s no trouble. We’re rades.”

  Sasuke, standing behind Link, couldn’t take his eyes off his mother’s face, his expression one of lightness and joy. pared to his stern father, he was clearly much more attached to his mother.

  "No matter what happens, if you ever need us—whether for battle or anything else—" Mikoto g Fugaku before tinuing, "please don’t hesitate to ask."

  “You’re too kind,” Link said politely, though inwardly he was more than eager to accept su offer.

  Mikoto gently stroked Sasuke’s hair, a few more words of fort and advice. As the Rashōmon began to close, she hugged Sasuke and whispered, “I’m sorry about Itachi…”

  Whees closed, the embrace turo air. Sasuke stood frozen for a moment, staring at the empty space. Then, snapping back to reality, he turo Link.

  "Link…" Sasuke seemed lost for words, his emotions tangled, much like Naruto had been at one point.

  “Go train,” Link said, patting Sasuke on the shoulder before returning to his own training.

  Using Sasuke's identity to summon Mikoto had been an enlightening experience for Link.

  The spiritual e and bonds seemed to make it easier to locate specifidividuals. But he realized he didn’t have to rely solely on those ties.

  If summoning jutsu allowed him to tact the Pure Land directly, why not try impersonating other identities?

  Gathering his chakra, Link formed hand seals.

  “I am the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju!”

  “Liar!”

  Nawaki, uo hold back, called him out immediately.

  "This shameless Konoha brat!" another voiapped, apparently one of the spirits his wide- summoning teique had caught.

  Then came a cacophony of replies:

  “I’m the Sed Hokage, Tobirama Senju!”

  “I’m the Sage of Six Paths! Hahaha!”

  The broad nature of his summo that dozens of spirits thought the message was addressed to them. What ensued was chaos, with everyone shouting over one another.

  “Link- is great at everything… except hoy.”

  Mikoto’s actal thought, captured by the summoning, caused her to immediately withdraw in embarrassment.

  "A bunch of idiots," Link muttered, ign the barrage of insults and ughter.

  Most of the replies came from uncooperative spirits—shinobi from other vilges who her wao reveal their identities nage in meaningful dialogue.

  After broadcasting “I’m the First Hokage” twice more, he switched tactics.

  “I am Nagato.”

  If he could summon Yahiko, that would be a signifit gain.

  Unfortunately, there seemed to be many Nagatos in the Pure Land. The ones who responded were entirely uo the Rinnegan-wielding Nagato he had in mind.

  Initially awkward at this “spiritual scam,” Link quickly found his groove. He added text to his introdus:

  “I am the First Hokage. Konoha is in crisis…”

  Some spirits took the bait, but the fw in his summoning teique soon became apparent. Once a spirit accepted his call, basiformation was automatically shared. Upon realizing they’d been deceived, most promptly cut ties.

  Bleam