They all stared at him with widened eyes.
Who didn't know the name Senju?
The Senju family was one of the clans that stood at the very top when it came to authority over Chakra.
And the fact that he could use Wood Release—something only pureblood members of the Senju family could wield—was already an eighty percent confirmation that he was one of them.
They gulped at the realization.
A man possessing the Kekkei Genkai: Wood Release (Mokuton).
"And Hashirama?" someone muttered. "Isn't Hashirama the very first Hokage… the root of the Senju family from millions of years ago?"
This was impossible.
Hashirama was one of the earliest recorded Chakra users in the Akashic Records of this world—millions of years ago.
And Maki had just said he learned from him.
Personally.
Everyone turned to Naomasa, silently asking if what Maki said was true.
They saw his reaction.
The pen slipped from his fingers.
His mouth hung open.
His eyes were so wide they looked like they might fall out of their sockets.
That reaction said everything.
He was telling the truth.
And that was unbelievable.
Naomasa stared at the man sitting in front of him. His mind couldn't process it.
He wasn't lying.
Naomasa's Quirk allowed him to determine truth from lies simply by questioning someone directly. If they lied, his Quirk reacted. If there was no reaction—
Then it was the truth.
Makoto was the most shaken.
She stood up abruptly, grabbed Maki's wrist, and demanded, "Repeat what you just said. Who taught you?"
Maki looked at her hand gripping his wrist.
"Senju Hashirama," he repeated calmly.
Makoto activated her Quirk.
She felt nothing.
No deception.
She whispered, "He's telling the truth…"
What could they even say?
Who would believe this story?
That someone from millions of years ago was alive—and teaching someone now?
It sounded absurd. Laughable.
Naomasa struggled to regain himself. He bent down, picked up his pen, and wrote the most unbelievable answer he had ever recorded.
Minutes passed.
They still couldn't fully process it.
Trying to shift the topic, Naomasa asked another question. His hands were still shaking.
"M-Maki… it says here that you used a crescent moon–shaped blade. Am I c-correct?"
"Yes."
"Th-then w-what do you c-call it?" Naomasa stammered.
Everyone watched him, waiting.
Deep down, they already suspected.
But they didn't want to believe it.
"The moon blade?" Maki tilted his head slightly. "It's called Santa Teresa."
Naomasa nodded slowly.
"C-can you g-give us some d-details about it? I-if you want."
It was obvious.
He was not prepared for the answer.
None of them were.
"Well… I can transform using its Resurrección. But I need to chant first."
Time stopped.
Resurrección.
That ability belonged only to one race.
Arrancars.
Which meant—
Maki wasn't just from the Senju clan.
He was also an Arrancar.
He had authority over Chakra.
And authority over Spirituality.
Two authorities.
It didn't make sense.
Nezu calmly sipped his tea.
Mei and Nemuri remained quiet.
All Might stayed silent.
Unohana… smiled.
They had already prepared themselves.
They suspected it.
And they were right.
But Makoto and Naomasa—who hadn't known—watched him like owls, hoping desperately that something would trigger.
That he was lying.
Nothing.
He was telling the truth.
Naomasa turned to All Might.
"Toshinori… this is a joke, right?"
All Might shook his head. "That's why we called you, Tsukauchi. We needed to know."
Nezu added, "Let's finish the questioning first."
Naomasa looked at them, clearly wanting to stop.
They both nodded.
It's alright.
He steadied himself and faced Maki again.
"You also said yesterday that you can amplify strength… correct? Can you give us details about that?"
Maki answered without hesitation.
"It's called Moa Moa. As I said, I can strengthen things."
Naomasa nodded and wrote it down.
Silence filled the room.
They needed to confirm something in the Akuma Zukan—the Devil's Encyclopedia—to see if a Moa Moa Akuma existed. That was why Gion wasn't present. She had gone to request access.
The atmosphere grew suffocating.
Unohana sensed it.
Before they could continue pushing further, she stood up.
"That should be enough for now."
She looked at Nezu.
He nodded.
The truth was, the questioning had gone too far. They were digging into secrets, and Maki was answering without complaint.
Without even questioning why.
He didn't seem to care about himself.
Unohana wouldn't allow them to continue like that.
He had given them enough.
Naomasa took a deep breath.
"Thank you for your cooperation. That will be all."
Maki didn't respond immediately.
He simply looked at Makoto, whose hand was still holding his wrist.
Their eyes met.
Makoto realized and quickly let go.
"Oh—sorry. I just needed to check something."
"No problem," he replied calmly.
Unohana looked at him.
"Anata, I'm going to have breakfast now. Are you coming?"
"Yes."
He stood up from the sofa.
"What about you two?" he asked Nemuri and Mei. "Are you having breakfast?"
They both smiled brightly.
"Yes!"
Maki turned toward Nezu, All Might, Naomasa, and Makoto.
He bowed slightly.
"Thank you for having me."
Nemuri and Mei immediately dragged him toward the door, following Unohana, who was leading the way.
The office fell silent.
Everything he said—
Was true.
Naomasa suddenly slammed his palm against the table.
"T-this is impossible…"
For the first time in years, he doubted his own Quirk.
Makoto stared at the hand she had used to hold his wrist.
All Might remained quiet.
Nezu closed his eyes.
Their doubts had been answered.
But believing those answers…
Was another matter entirely.
(ノ´ー)ノ