Minato Namikaze took the injured Genin and the frightened kid away.
Now, only Shiranui Riku, Uzumaki Kushina, Jiraiya, and Tsunade remained.
The look Kushina gave Jiraiya and Tsunade was full of wariness and distrust. At this point, anyone who showed hostility toward Shiranui Riku was, in her eyes, not a good person.
Jiraiya seemed unbothered, but Tsunade felt a headache coming on.
Kushina was part of Tsunade's grandmother Uzumaki Mito's clan. Now that Kushina had come to Konoha, she was arguably the last representative of Uzumaki Mito's lineage.
Tsunade herself carried Uzumaki blood, so she felt a familial connection to Kushina. More importantly, she knew exactly why Kushina had been brought to the village.
Konoha could never afford to let harm come to Kushina. Yet just now, that Genin brat had actually thrown a real kunai at her!
Tsunade was furious at the boy, but she still had to handle things delicately. After all, he was a leaf shinobi. And then there was Shiranui Riku, standing in front of her.
Tsunade knew a little about Riku's history. His origins had caused a stir years ago. Even Uzumaki Mito had voiced complaints about it.
Shiranui Riku—a boy with both Senju and Uchiha blood—was ostracized by the Uchiha clan and resented by many villagers. What surprised Tsunade now was how close he and Kushina had become.
He had been ready to cripple two kids for her sake.
Hadn't Kushina just arrived in Konoha not long ago? How could they have grown so close?
As Tsunade pondered this, she suddenly caught sight of bloodstains on the ground.
Her pupils contracted, and her body trembled slightly.
Hemophobia. It struck without warning.
Jiraiya noticed right away and stepped in front of her, blocking her view.
"I'll take these two kids to the old man," he said. "Tsunade, you should go rest."
Tsunade took several deep breaths, trying to calm her racing heart.
"I'm fine," she said at last. "I'll come with you."
Now that she understood who Kushina and Riku were, she wasn't going to let them face Sarutobi Hiruzen alone. Riku's intent to cripple the two brats complicated matters. The Hokage would surely be displeased.
Jiraiya nodded and turned to Riku and Kushina. "Come with us to see the old man."
Riku spoke up, "This has nothing to do with Kushina. I'll go alone."
Before Jiraiya could respond, Kushina quickly grabbed Riku's hand.
"No, Riku, I'm going with you!" she insisted. Her eyes were fierce. "I won't let anyone twist what happened. It wasn't your fault, and I'll explain everything to the Hokage myself."
Riku sighed quietly. If the Hokage wanted to punish him, Kushina's defense wouldn't change that.
Still, he wasn't afraid. As long as he showed his value, any punishment would be manageable. Things would still unfold as they were meant to.
Kushina opened her mouth to say more, but her eyes widened in shock.
"Riku, your eyes...! What happened?!"
"My eyes?" Riku repeated, confused. He picked up the broken blade on the ground and used it as a mirror.
To his surprise, he saw the single-magatama Sharingan shining in both eyes.
Just moments ago, when Tsunade had appeared and deflected his attack, Riku had sensed it was all over. He relaxed, stopped concentrating chakra. That was when the sharp pain struck his eyes. Reflexively, he had closed them.
When he reopened them, the world looked clearer, slower. But in the tension with Jiraiya and Tsunade, he hadn't registered what had happened.
He had awakened the Sharingan—and hadn't even realized it.
Jiraiya and Tsunade were staring at him in awe.
"How old are you, kid?" Jiraiya asked.
"Nine."
"What?! Only nine?!"
Both were visibly stunned.
Riku was puzzled by their reaction—until he thought it through.
The earliest known Uchiha to awaken the Sharingan was Sasuke, who did so at seven during the clan massacre, though he didn't know it at the time.
Itachi awakened his Sharingan at eight after witnessing a comrade's death.
Shisui likely awakened his around the same age. Obito was twelve. Madara was fifteen.
Sasuke, Itachi, Shisui, and Obito hadn't even been born yet in this timeline. That meant Riku might be the first to awaken the Sharingan so young—or at least, the first known to do so.
Of course, there might be others who kept it secret. But nine years old was still among the youngest.
Riku felt even more confident now about meeting the Hokage. Awakening the Sharingan raised his worth significantly.
He focused inward, sensing his Sharingan. It was constantly consuming chakra while active.
Thanks to his Senju bloodline, Riku had an abundant chakra reserve. Even with the Sharingan active, he still had one-fifth the chakra of Kakashi's adult self—a Jonin. For a kid still in the academy, that was the level of a Chunin.
Plus, since the Sharingan was his natural ability, he suffered none of the drawbacks Kakashi did.
Riku deactivated his Sharingan, returning his eyes to their normal black.
Jiraiya and Tsunade were still speechless.
"Let's go," Jiraiya said at last.
Riku considered telling Kushina to stay behind. There was no danger, and he preferred to deal with different people in different ways. No need to rile up everyone.
But Kushina held tightly to his hand and looked at him stubbornly.
Riku sighed again, then nodded. "Alright. We'll go together."