“I don’t think I’m suited to becoming a Jōnin instructor.”
Since it was Naraku’s suggestion, Yūgao Uzuki still gave it some serious thought, but in the end, she turned it down.
Don’t be fooled by Yūgao’s beautiful appearance.
She was no nobody in the ANBU.
Setting aside her actual strength, even Naraku had less seniority in the ANBU than she did.
“If you don’t want to, then forget it.
Being a Jōnin instructor is actually quite busy.”
If Yūgao had wanted the position, Naraku could have transferred her out of the ANBU and made her the instructor of the tracking team formed from the Twelve Konoha Ninja.
In other words, she would have become the instructor of Hinata Hyūga, Kiba Inuzuka, and Shino Aburame.
Yes, this would mean taking Kurenai Yūhi’s position.
Kurenai had only recently been promoted to jōnin.
For her to become the instructor of the tracking team, her background was important, but Asuma Sarutobi’s support was indispensable.
After all, Kiba, Hinata, and Shino all came from shinobi clans and potentially stood to inherit their respective clans.
Hinata Hyūga in particular was the heir to the Hyūga clan’s main branch!
Without Asuma’s support, it would indeed be difficult for Kurenai to become the instructor of these three.
But if Naraku really wanted to intervene, taking the position would be quite easy.
However, Yūgao wasn’t interested, so Naraku let it go.
…
The next day, Hokage Tower.
The Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen; Koharu Utatane; Homura Mitokado; and Shikaku Nara had gathered in the Hokage’s office.
Aside from Hiruzen, who was puffing away at his pipe, the others were flipping through the documents in their hands.
The photographs of ShihōinNaraku and Hatake Kakashi were clearly printed on the documents.
Why hadn’t the meeting started yet?
Shikaku knew why he had been summoned, but he was somewhat puzzled.
Wasn’t everyone already here?
Who were they still waiting for?
Could it be—
“Tap, tap, tap…”
The sound of a cane striking the floor gradually became clearer.
Shikaku immediately knew his guess had been correct.
The office door opened, and Shimura Danzō slowly walked inside.
He didn’t even knock?
Shikaku frowned.
Of course, everyone present knew that this was Danzō expressing his dissatisfaction.
After Danzō silently sat down in the chair that had been prepared for him, the Third Hokage finally spoke.
Sarutobi Hiruzen tapped his pipe against the armrest of his chair.
“Everyone should know why I’ve called you here.”
“Wait!”
Before the Third Hokage could say much more, Homura and Koharu exchanged a glance.
Homura then spoke.
“Hiruzen!
You’ve been doing a good job.
Why are you suddenly thinking about stepping down?”
“Cough, cough, cough…”
Hiruzen coughed lightly.
“I’m old.
My eyesight is already deteriorating.
If I don’t step down now, I’ll only hinder Konoha’s new branches from growing.”
Homura frowned and was about to say something, but Hiruzen interrupted him.
Homura could only sit back down for the moment.
Sarutobi Hiruzen stood up, pipe in hand, and looked out through the window at the prosperous Konoha.
“Actually, I stepped down a long time ago, didn’t I?”
“If the Fourth Hokage were still alive, this old man would have retired to enjoy his old age long ago.”
“Back then, the situation during the Nine-Tails attack was critical.
Minato died so suddenly, and for the stability of the village, I had no choice but to take this position again.”
“Now Konoha has long since returned to peace and is developing quite well.
The younger generation of shinobi has also grown up.
Stepping down would be a very good choice.”
You should never have taken the position back in the first place!!!
It should have been me!
Shimura Danzō had always been dissatisfied and resentful over Sarutobi Hiruzen returning to the position of Hokage after Minato’s death.
In Danzō ‘s eyes, if Hiruzen hadn’t gone back on his word, he, Danzō , should have become Hokage!
Suppressing the anger in his heart, Danzō narrowed his remaining eye slightly.
“Actually, the most suitable candidate would still be… Forget it.
What do the rest of you think?”
Hiruzen turned around and looked at the others, waiting for their answers.
Everyone present knew who the most suitable candidates were.
Jiraiya and Tsunade, of course.
But both of them were wandering outside the village and had been away from Konoha for years.
There was no way to choose them.
His favorite and most valued student, Orochimaru, had defected.
The other two had also left Konoha for various reasons.
One could say that Sarutobi Hiruzen was an excellent teacher, but none of the three students he had painstakingly raised had stayed by his side.
Jiraiya and Tsunade’s departures had dealt quite a blow to Hiruzen.
“Shikaku and I believe Hatake Kakashi is more suitable as a Hokage candidate!”
Now that they understood Hiruzen had already made up his mind to step down, Homura and Koharu didn’t waste any time.
The two had discussed this beforehand and directly chose to support Hatake Kakashi!
“Of course, Naraku isn’t bad either.
But he not only has to handle matters in the Medical Department, he is also managing the ANBU now.”
“If he becomes a Hokage candidate, he would need to temporarily step down and become a Jōnin instructor.
That would delay too many things.”
This was an excuse.
Everyone knew it was an excuse!
Homura and Koharu absolutely did not want ShihōinNaraku to become the Fifth Hokage.
As Tsunade’s direct disciple, Naraku had connections with the daimyō and nobility of the Land of Fire.
Moreover, through the Medical Department, he had maintained those connections extremely well.
Naraku could also obtain funding through the Medical Department.
And now he had entered the ANBU as well.
Connections, money, and military power—
Naraku had all three!
If he became Hokage, ShihōinNaraku would seize control of the village’s power in the shortest possible time.
Then he would kick the two Elders aside!
Even when Minato Namikaze became the Fourth Hokage, he hadn’t possessed resources as overwhelming as Naraku did.
Absolutely not!
At least for now, neither Homura nor Koharu was willing to relinquish the authority in their hands.
Their decision was exactly what Hiruzen had expected.
So he turned his attention to Shikaku Nara.
Shikaku pondered for a while before finally speaking.
“Whether it’s Hatake Kakashi or ShihōinNaraku, both are very suitable candidates…”
What a useless answer!
The others present were somewhat dissatisfied.
This wasn’t the time to beat around the bush.
“…But I believe ShihōinNaraku is relatively more suitable.”
Shikaku gave his answer and then fell silent.
The Third Hokage took a puff from his pipe, a faint smile appearing on his face.
“Shikaku, tell us your reasons.”
“Yes!”
Since the Hokage had asked, Shikaku naturally couldn’t refuse.
“Hatake Kakashi and ShihōinNaraku are both quite powerful, and both have sufficient seniority.”
“But the most important point is that Kakashi’s personality has certain flaws.
If he were to become Hokage…”
Shikaku didn’t finish his sentence, but everyone understood what he meant.
The problem did indeed exist.
Everyone sitting here was a high-ranking member of Konoha.
They knew about everything that had happened to Hatake Kakashi.
They also knew how the various tragedies he had experienced had changed his personality, and how he had been unable to escape the shadows for such a long time.
The Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, had noticed more than once that Kakashi would occasionally visit the Memorial Stone to pay respects to Obito Uchiha and Rin Nohara.
Being soft-hearted wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.
But if one’s mentality was too fragile, there would be serious problems with becoming Hokage.
Of course, what everyone didn’t know at this point was that after becoming the instructor of Naruto and Sasuke, Kakashi would gradually overcome the knots in his heart and begin to shine with his own brilliance.
The problem was that, in everyone’s eyes right now, Kakashi was simply a man who had been beaten down by countless hardships and could barely stand back up.
That was why Sarutobi Hiruzen was still hesitating.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have summoned everyone here in the first place.
At the very least, the Third Hokage was still wavering deep down.
◇ THE STORY DOESN’T END HERE…
◇
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