The Hidden Leaf Village's first-ever concert was still being put together at full speed.

Hirofumi Ito had never expected Kakuzu to turn the whole thing into this massive of an event.

And Hirofumi definitely hadn't expected Kakuzu's money-making ability to be this terrifyingly good.

But the situation had given him some new ideas.

After leaving company headquarters, Hirofumi gathered the Konoha 11 together.

"Hirofumi, what's going on today?!"

Naruto Uzumaki looked at him with open curiosity.

The Konoha 11 had all been slammed lately. On top of studying every variety of ninjutsu imaginable, they were grinding through Senjutsu from the Three Great Sage Regions, and somehow still had to carve out time to practice songs, the concert was right around the corner, after all.

Hirofumi looked at the faces in front of him and let the corner of his mouth curl up.

"You all know about the concert, so here's the plan — I want to shoot an MV. We play it for the crowd right when things kick off."

None of them had any idea what an MV was, but hearing it was something to be played for everyone to watch, they figured it was probably something like a movie.

"Hirofumi, what's an AV? Are we filming some kind of movie? I thought the concert was supposed to be about singing? Why do we need to film an AV too?!"

Naruto Uzumaki scratched the back of his head as he asked.

That one sentence left Hirofumi completely dumbfounded. Was that really something you could just say out loud?! Did he not realize that kind of talk could get the whole thing shut down before it even started?!

THWACK!

"Ow~~ Sasuke! What'd you hit me for?!"

"You idiot! Hirofumi said MV! Not AV! Stop changing words on your own!"

"It's basically the same thing... I don't know what any of this stuff is anyway."

And so, under the curious stares of the Konoha 11, Hirofumi laid out his idea.

The plan was simple: film a short clip depicting the founding of the Hidden Leaf Village, then pair it with music. Play it at the very top of the concert. That way, outsiders who didn't know much about the Hidden Leaf Village could get a feel for the place, and a passionate, stirring video set to equally stirring music would have the whole crowd fired up before a single note was sung.

The Konoha 11 were on board immediately.

Everyone sprang into action. They pulled filming equipment from the Research and Development Department, scouted locations, and reached out to the people needed for the shoot.

Any video about the founding of the Hidden Leaf Village had to feature hashirama senju and madara uchiha. But Hirofumi had no intention of going to either of them. Instead, he wanted Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha to use Transformation Jutsu to take on their appearances and film the MV that way.

When the two masters saw the finished product at the concert, it would be a surprise.

Filming began. Each member of the Konoha 11 called in ninja from their own clan to fill the screen as warriors from the Warring States Period. Then Naruto Uzumaki transformed into hashirama senju, and Sasuke Uchiha transformed into madara uchiha.

Neither of them were entirely comfortable with it.

"Hirofumi... how do I act more like the First Hokage?"

Sasuke standing nearby looked equally lost. Playing it cool on his own was one thing, playing his own ancestor was a different problem entirely, and he genuinely didn't know where to start.

"Yeah, Hirofumi... throw us some pointers?"

Hirofumi studied the two of them standing there in transformation, hashirama senju and madara uchiha staring back at him with very confused expressions, and thought it over for a moment before nodding.

"Honestly? It's pretty simple. You two just need to crank your own personalities up a notch.

Naruto — play it a little more dopey. Sasuke — lean into the arrogance. More of that superior air. Way more."

Filming got underway. The rest of the Konoha 11 used Transformation Jutsu to make cameos throughout the MV.

And to make the whole thing as authentic as possible, Hirofumi specifically invited Butsuma Senju, Tajima Uchiha, Tobirama Senju, and Izuna Uchiha, all veterans of the Warring States Period, to come on set and provide guidance.

The goal was to capture the feel of that era as faithfully as possible, and to bring to life the Hidden Leaf Village as it looked in its very earliest days.

Ninja didn't lack for efficiency. And the filming equipment Orochimaru's Research and Development Department had developed was leagues ahead of anything else in the Shinobi World. In just a single day, the MV was done.

Not too long, not too short, exactly the right length to open a concert.

It moved from the shared dream of hashirama senju and madara uchiha, to their years of opposition on the battlefield, and finally to the two of them building the Hidden Leaf Village together.

The video began with a single falling leaf. It ended the same way.

Watching the Hidden Leaf promotional video he'd personally put together, Hirofumi felt his blood run hot.

He had to give credit where it was due, Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha had actually pulled it off.

Maybe someday he'd put those two in a drama.

Once the filming and editing were wrapped, Hirofumi called in a group of people to handle the background music production.

In the end, he recreated an instrumental piece directly from Naruto.

The Naruto Main Theme.

It was originally background music from the series, the theme that played whenever Naruto Uzumaki made his entrance. Laying it over this video was a perfect fit.

(This piece is genuinely beautiful! Personally, the only other one that even comes close is Blue Bird! Go listen!)

With the background music added, Hirofumi stretched slowly, a faint and slightly odd smile sitting at the corners of his mouth.

He was really looking forward to seeing what faces his two teachers would make when they watched this video their student had so carefully put together for them.

Hehehehehehehe.

Would they be moved to tears?!

Finally.

With every team pushing hard on preparations, the Hidden Leaf Village's first-ever concert was about to open.

The village had grown noisier and more alive with each passing day as the concert approached, and the stage was already fully built. Stage lighting, smoke effects, every kind of instrument, every kind of accompaniment track, with the Research and Development Department behind him, Hirofumi had sorted out every last piece of it.

➤ Next: The Concert Begins

Chapter 228 - The Concert Begins

Two days later, on an evening that felt like the whole world had been holding its breath...

Nearly every soul in the Hidden Leaf Village had packed into the concert grounds.

The sun had already slipped below the horizon, but the venue blazed with light as though day had refused to end. It was a good thing the grounds had been built large enough from the start, anything smaller and they simply couldn't have held this crowd.

The food stalls running along both sides were a crush of bodies.

Even Hirofumi Ito, the Hokage himself, was taken aback. By now, the number of people gathered here had to be pushing well into the tens of thousands.

Ninja and civilians side by side. Villagers from the Hidden Leaf, travelers from across the Land of Fire, and even a scattering of civilians and merchants from other countries entirely. At this moment, they were all here.

The village's senior leadership and every notable figure naturally claimed the front-row VIP seats, and most of them were scheduled to perform before the night was over.

The energy in the air was electric. Everyone present was buzzing with it.

Hashirama Senju swept his gaze across the tens of thousands of faces filling the grounds, ninja and civilians, old men and young children, husbands and women heavy with child, and every single one of them was smiling. Really smiling. The kind of smile you couldn't fake.

His eyes went wet.

"Madara... is this it? Is this what we used to dream about?

Madara... I think I really am the luckiest person alive. That I got to meet you when we were still kids. That I got to have you as my best friend, my very best friend.

That we got to build our Hidden Leaf Village together. That we got to chase that dream together.

And even after death — that I still get to see something like this...

Madara. I mean it. I think I'm the luckiest man in the world.

Our will. Our dream. Let our disciple be the one to finish it!"

Sitting beside him, Madara Uchiha's face gave nothing away.

But inside, he was just as moved.

The corner of his mouth curved up, barely, and he spoke quietly.

"Hashirama... you're not the only lucky one. You think I don't know that?" A pause. "This. This is what my dream was supposed to look like. That little brat Hirofumi Ito... at least he hasn't embarrassed me."

And so, under the gaze of tens of thousands, Hirofumi Ito walked out onto the stage.

He wore the Fifth Hokage haori, the one Ino Yamanaka had sewn for him with her own hands.

"Welcome, everyone, to tonight's show!

I am Hirofumi Ito — Fifth Hokage!"

The crowd lost its mind.

"Lord Hokage!"

"Lord Hokage is so handsome!"

"I want to have Lord Hokage's children!"

"Get out! I'm the one having Lord Hokage's children!"

"Have you seen yourself?! You look like a little gremlin! Lord Hokage would never look twice at you!"

"It should obviously be me!"

"Bro! You're a guy — just stay out of this, okay?!"

"Lord Hokage!"

"This is the Fifth Hokage of our Hidden Leaf Village!"

"..."

The cheering rolled on and on. Hirofumi raised a hand and pressed it down, and slowly, slowly, the noise settled.

"Welcome, everyone, to the Hidden Leaf Village's very first concert!

As your Fifth Hokage, I want to say, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for being here.

Now. I'm not going to waste your time with a long speech.

I know what you all came for.

So let me make it official:

The Hidden Leaf Village Concert has officially begun!

Wherever the leaves of Konoha dance, the fire burns eternal!

But first, please turn your attention to the Hidden Leaf Village's official promotional video!"

A surprised murmur rippled through the crowd. A concert was one thing, but a promotional video too?

Most people weren't entirely sure what a promotional video even was, but the enormous screen rising behind the stage answered that question on its own. Something like a film, it seemed. Something that would show them the village.

The excitement sharpened into genuine anticipation. A movie about the Hidden Leaf? That actually sounded incredible.

The Konoha 11 were buzzing in their seats.

Sure, they'd all used Transformation Jutsu during filming, but it was still something they'd made together, every one of them, and that meant something.

Down in the center seats directly below the stage, Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha exchanged a glance.

Nobody had said anything about a promotional video.

When did this happen?

Curious, both of them.

Hashirama Senju's eyes were still faintly red, bright with anticipation. Madara Uchiha wore a quiet, satisfied smile. His disciple was doing well as Hokage. A Leaf promotional video, fine, even he had to admit he was a little curious.

On Hirofumi's last word, every light in the venue cut out at once.

The great screen behind the stage began to glow.

Hirofumi slipped away from the stage and settled in beside Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha.

"Kid." Madara Uchiha's voice was low. "What exactly are you pulling here? You never said a word about any promotional video. Is this actually some kind of advertisement for the village?"

Hashirama Senju leaned in from the other side. "That's right, little Hirofumi! How could you make something like this without including me and Madara?! I'm the First Hokage, promoting this village is basically my sacred duty!"

Hirofumi smiled. The kind of smile that gave nothing away.

"Easy, both of you. Just watch. The reason I didn't tell you was because I wanted it to be a surprise." He paused. "Think of it as a gift. From a disciple to his teachers.

I hope you like it."

Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju stared at the screen, then at each other. A promotional video, a gift for them? They couldn't quite work out how those two things connected.

But the screen was already alive with images, so they let it go and watched.

Tens of thousands of people. And not one of them made a sound.

The music came first.

A rolling drumbeat. Then a sharp, single cry, Ha!, and another roll of drums. The percussion built and built, and then the shakuhachi came in, its voice long and resonant and mournful-bright, spilling out over the crowd like smoke over still water.

(The shakuhachi is a traditional wind instrument, its tone is deep and hauntingly beautiful. It is also used extensively throughout the Naruto soundtrack.)

The music swelled, and the video opened with it.

A breeze moved through the frame. A single leaf caught the wind and drifted, slowly, through the air.

➤ Next: Wherever the Leaves of the Hidden Leaf Dance on the Wind, the Fire Will Burn ...