Orochimaru wore a rare look of disbelief.
Danzō was recommending him?
At this point, saying the sun had risen in the west wouldn't even begin to cover it...
It would have to burst spinning out of the ground!
"People can change, you know..."
"Besides, Danzō is getting old. He's spent all these years on the front lines of intelligence work while also serving as my assistant. If he sheds the extra responsibilities and focuses on the work he's most comfortable with, he might actually accomplish even more..."
Hiruzen said with a chuckle.
In truth, although Hiruzen had anticipated Danzō's sudden resignation over the past few days, even he hadn't expected his old friend to go through with it so decisively.
Given Danzō's personality, Hiruzen had thought he would at most offer some token self-criticism...
"Sensei, something isn't right."
Orochimaru fell into thought.
"I have a feeling there's more to this! Danzō and I have been at odds for a long time. I don't believe he'd hand the position of Hokage's assistant over to me this easily..."
Danzō's reputation in Konoha had always been rock-solid.
For better and for worse.
Orochimaru had even worked with Danzō at Root for a time, commissioning work from him.
So his preconceived image of the Darkness of the Shinobi ran particularly deep...
For the past several years, the two had also been constantly sparring from a distance. Every so often, Danzō would inspect the Research Department's funding, trying to catch Orochimaru making a mistake in matters large or small...
And now he had suddenly admitted defeat?
That was nothing like the stubborn, impossible Danzō he knew!
Kaguya perked up and listened.
During the time she had spent inside Hiruzen, Kaguya hadn't communicated all that much with her vessel.
The Hokage had been intensely focused on designing Konoha's development and plans for the relatively long term. As long as Kaguya didn't speak up, he simply immersed himself in the work at hand.
Where would he find the time to entertain her?
There was the self-sustaining economy in the Land of Water and the process of gradually binding it to Konoha, the various environmental projects in the Land of Rain and its further integration with Konoha.
There were plans for Rōran and applications for puppetry...
And then there was a whole series of matters within Konoha itself awaiting review and approval.
Pensions, postwar personnel adjustments, the fulfillment of military rewards, and further improvements to compensation and benefits.
Although Hiruzen disliked war, even he had to admit that the Third Shinobi World War Madara had instigated had, objectively speaking, made Konoha obscenely wealthy...
Konoha and the Land of Fire had already established Konoha's hegemonic position. Although Kumogakure and Iwagakure had been taken over by the Crimson Organization, seemingly creating a "two-pole" balance of power...
On one hand, quite a few nobles and shinobi believed that whoever stood behind the Crimson Organization had ties to Konoha and was very likely a certain Senju whose name was inconvenient to mention...
On the other hand, even the shinobi and nobles who didn't believe that still thought an organization packed with shinobi from the Warring States Period was far too unstable.
For all they knew, it might turn into the next Bloody Mist one day...
Thanks to Nakamaro's publicity efforts, Kiritori, the Third Mizukage, could practically be considered a celebrity throughout the shinobi world.
What he had done was now widely known throughout the shinobi world, to the point that even children passing by would snicker when they heard about him.
With all these factors piling up, even though Daimyō Kujō Gen imposed a crushing tax of more than half their property on nobles from abroad who relocated to the Land of Fire, it still wasn't enough to stop them from flocking there...
Hiruzen's reputation spoke for itself.
If he said he wanted money, then money was all he wanted.
After that, as long as they worked and lived properly, even if they couldn't enjoy the same treatment as native residents of the Land of Fire, they could still live safe and stable lives...
But with those Warring States shinobi, whether they wanted your money or your life could depend entirely on their mood.
The old balance between the Kage of the Five Great Shinobi Villages and their Daimyō had already been shattered...
That meant Konoha could now steadily and systematically improve the pay, benefits, and protections offered to its shinobi.
It could also provide a relatively generous reimbursement system for medical expenses.
To Hiruzen, all these matters were like saplings that needed to be carefully nurtured without fanfare. They might seem to make little difference in the short term, but they still required attentive care.
Because with time, those policies would grow into fruit Hiruzen could harvest...
In a certain sense, he and Kaguya really were in the same line of work.
'Finally!'
'There's internal conflict now instead of everyone getting along...'
Kaguya calculated inwardly. 'I want to see how Hiruzen handles this!'
She and Hiruzen had already exchanged names, but they still hadn't spoken particularly deeply.
What they lacked was an opportunity to build greater trust between them.
That opportunity might come from some particular event, or perhaps from mutual recognition accumulated little by little over time...
At the very least, Kaguya was growing increasingly interested in Hiruzen. Over these past few days, even the faintest trace of admiration had begun to emerge in her heart...
No wonder there were so many shinobi under his rule who were vastly stronger than White Zetsu...
He really did put just a little more effort into things than she had...
Hiruzen didn't rush Orochimaru. He simply lit his pipe and smoked while he waited.
Orochimaru remained deep in thought. After a long while, he slowly spoke.
"Sensei, do you think Danzō is trying to bury me under the work that comes with being your assistant? To slow down my research..."
"For example, he could have me take over Root and the village's main intelligence operations, then compare my performance in areas I'm not particularly skilled at against his own, making his past accomplishments look even better..."
Hiruzen exhaled a puff of smoke and shook his head with a smile.
"No."
Orochimaru looked at Hiruzen curiously.
He was that certain?
"Because Danzō will still be broadly responsible for intelligence work..."
"I've created a special position for him called 'Inspector.' He'll be responsible for overseeing the overall structure of the intelligence system, training, and review. Even after you become my assistant, Danzō will still handle those matters."
"Besides, I'm not going to let Danzō step down as my assistant only to come back later. This isn't a game."
"I made that perfectly clear to him, but he insisted."
Hiruzen shrugged.
"That's too strange... far too strange..."
Orochimaru frowned deeply.
It was essentially the same as Orochimaru receiving every benefit that came with becoming the Hokage's assistant, while Danzō turned himself into an old workhorse who did nothing but work.
"Sensei, could you call Danzō over?"
Orochimaru rubbed his brow. "This is a major matter, after all. There are some things I'd like to settle with him face-to-face. With you here, communicating with Danzō should go much more smoothly."
Hiruzen nodded and waved a hand.
The ANBU silently sprang into action.
A short while later, Danzō slowly pushed open the door and entered.
Orochimaru turned toward him and froze for a moment.
Danzō wasn't wearing the same signature black-and-white robe he'd worn for the past thirty years.
His face was still wrapped in bandages, but he'd changed into a loose black cotton tracksuit. The moment he entered, there was even a smile in his voice.
"Hiruzen, you wanted to see me?"
When he noticed Orochimaru looking at him, Danzō even smiled and nodded in greeting.
"Oh, Orochimaru's here too... Your Research Department has produced quite a few results lately. Take care of yourself. Don't work yourself too hard."
"Though with that unusual body of yours, I suppose working yourself to exhaustion would be difficult."
Orochimaru was finally stunned, undisguised confusion written all over his face.
Had some kindly middle-aged man used Living Corpse Reincarnation to take over Danzō's body?
Was this really happening?!
Hiruzen silently watched the scene.
Even he found Danzō somewhat unfamiliar...
The Hokage had single-handedly broken an army, yet somehow his old friend had returned to the village as though he'd undergone some profound personal revelation.
He had shut himself away for a week without seeing anyone. Only Tobirama-sensei had been able to communicate with him...
And when he emerged, he'd become like this.
"I can understand why you're surprised, even uneasy."
Danzō gestured toward the chairs in front of the desk in the Hokage's office and shook his head slightly.
"At this point, there's no reason to hide what I'm thinking anymore. Let's sit down and talk..."
"Seisui said a few things to me. He made me realize what I'd been obsessing over."
Now Orochimaru was genuinely curious.
He despised things that never changed. He wanted to see fresh winds of change sweep through Konoha and the entire shinobi world...
But Danzō?
Orochimaru had once believed that man would never change.
Like a stone left to dry in a latrine, he had been set in his ways beyond all hope...
Danzō casually picked up the teapot on the desk and poured tea for Hiruzen and Orochimaru before finally pouring himself a cup. He leisurely took a sip before speaking at an unhurried pace.
"I'm giving the position of Hokage's assistant to you because I've finally figured something out..."
"Ever since Hiruzen rescued me from the tens of thousands of Iwa and Kumo shinobi, I've known that even if I became Hokage, I could never surpass him in this lifetime..."
"The competition between Hiruzen and me is over."
"Rather than truly being interested in the position of Hokage itself, what I've actually wanted all these years was a chance to prove myself—to prove to Tobirama-sensei's spirit that I was better than Hiruzen..."
A trace of emotion crossed Danzō's face.
"But who could possibly be better than Hiruzen? Especially when it comes to being Hokage."
"Tobirama-sensei couldn't. And as for Hashirama-sama, that goes without saying. So there's nothing particularly discouraging about losing to Hiruzen, even if we did train and grow up together."
"Strength, temperament, ability to see the bigger picture, judgment, personal charisma..."
Hiruzen hurriedly waved his hand, cutting Danzō off.
"All right, all right..."
Orochimaru wasn't the only one who thought Danzō was acting strange. Even Hiruzen was starting to have trouble keeping a straight face.
Hearing Danzō praise him like this was downright bizarre...
It had the strange charm of listening to a dying man's sudden burst of sincerity.
Danzō shook his head.
"Look at you. You won't even let someone tell the truth!"
"So I've stopped competing."
"Like Tobirama-sensei said, when you encounter a problem, you need to calmly examine yourself. That's the only way to find the best solution when you're in a difficult situation. If all you ever think about is competing, you'll only create the kind of pointless internal friction Hiruzen is always talking about..."
Danzō took another sip of tea.
"Even putting my competition with Hiruzen aside, I'm not suited to being Hokage..."
"Konoha keeps growing larger. It needs a Hokage who is accepted by all sides and possesses enough strength and resources to keep everything running efficiently."
"Seisui's assessment of me was very accurate..."
At the mention of Seisui, Danzō's expression turned gratified.
"Tobirama-sensei has actually always seen me as Hiruzen's blade. And in that regard, I've done fairly well."
"But how could a blade that's always cutting people down become Hokage?"
"The Hokage needs to be someone everyone can trust and accept. Only then can they build the consensus Hiruzen is always emphasizing. Don't you two agree?"
In truth, even the top students at the Academy could understand what Danzō was saying.
But hearing Danzō himself say it left both Hiruzen and Orochimaru stunned...
This man had actually learned to analyze himself?
Something clicked in Hiruzen's mind. He knew who was responsible now...
Tobirama-sensei's handiwork was obvious at a glance!
"Don't you think it's unfair?" Orochimaru asked softly.
"Why would I?"
Danzō smiled and pointed toward Hiruzen's seat.
"The person sitting in that chair has to care about fairness more than anyone, yet the position itself is inherently unfair..."
"You sit in the position that matches your ability and talent."
"If Hiruzen were an incompetent Hokage, then of course I'd think it was unfair. But with so many facts laid out in front of me, no matter how unwilling I am to accept it, I can't keep lying to myself forever."
"Tobirama-sensei never makes mistakes. He was an undefeated Hokage, so he couldn't have been wrong when he chose between Hiruzen and me, nor could he have been wrong about the role he gave me."
"Clearly, Hiruzen is far better than I am. And as the disciple he personally chose and raised from childhood, I also believe you can become an excellent Hokage."
Danzō stared directly at Orochimaru.
"Looking back, there were things I didn't handle as well as I should have. I hope you won't hold them against me."
"I'm sorry, Orochimaru."
Orochimaru stared at Danzō in disbelief, momentarily at a loss.
The fact that Danzō could analyze himself so accurately had already been shocking enough.
And now he was actually apologizing to a junior like him, right in front of his sensei?
This was insane...
"I..."
Orochimaru quickly adjusted his state of mind and let out a long breath.
"There were things I could have handled better too. If you ever notice me going down the wrong path in the future, I hope you'll pull me back, Danzō-ojisan."
"I'll be counting on you."
Orochimaru used a form of address for Danzō that he had only occasionally used some thirty years ago...
'Danzō-ojisan.'
Strictly speaking, they were all members of the same Hokage lineage...
"All right. There's something I'll need your help with as well." Danzō extended a hand toward Orochimaru. "But don't worry, I won't put you in a difficult position. It's related to research ninjutsu."
Orochimaru hesitated briefly.
"All right!"
Their hands clasped firmly, and they gave them a vigorous shake.
Hiruzen watched the scene with deep emotion.
It really had to be Tobirama-sensei!
Hiruzen had put plenty of effort into educating Danzō over the years. The results hadn't exactly been negligible, but nothing he'd done had ever brought about a fundamental change.
Changing a person was difficult, especially someone like Danzō.
And given the complicated relationship between the two of them, Danzō would instinctively resist Hiruzen even more.
But Tobirama was clearly Danzō's natural counter. Even after becoming an Uchiha, his second disciple still couldn't escape the grasp of the original Darkness of the Shinobi...
Poor Danzō had been played like a puppet in Tobirama's hands across two lifetimes.
"Koharu and Homura have also decided to step down as advisors after seeing you do it. They'll take on some responsibilities in the Administration Department instead and focus on logistics."
Hiruzen looked at Danzō.
"So Konoha's leadership is about to undergo a major reshuffle."
"It's time to let the next generation of shinobi shoulder more responsibility..."
Orochimaru slowly nodded.
He wasn't particularly interested in becoming the Hokage's assistant. Life in the Research Department was simply too comfortable. All he had to do was lose himself in an ocean of research...
But after seeing all the reactions to Hiruzen single-handedly breaking through an army, Orochimaru had keenly realized that there was a problem with his way of thinking.
Because his teacher's prestige in Konoha was still rising at an extraordinary rate.
Under those circumstances, if Orochimaru wanted to succeed him someday, he needed to start preparing early.
At the very least, he needed everyone in Konoha's sphere—and even shinobi throughout the entire shinobi world—to know relatively early on that he was the next Hokage...
Only then could he gradually build prestige of his own, minimize internal friction when he eventually became Hokage, and take Konoha's burden onto his shoulders.
Konoha had already grown too large for a Hokage to simply appear out of nowhere...
With the village having developed this far, Hiruzen's prestige and status, combined with the bond between teacher and disciple that he shared with Orochimaru, had created a rather unusual phenomenon.
Ordinarily, someone in a position like the Hokage would tend to have a relationship with their designated successor that mixed cooperation with rivalry. Being the "crown prince" was never an easy role...
Do too much and build too much prestige, and the "emperor" would grow suspicious of you.
But do nothing at all, and you'd simply prove yourself incompetent, which was even worse.
Orochimaru, however, was different.
What he needed to do now was build up his own team as much as possible, establish a voice of his own within Konoha while Hiruzen was still in office, and make sure everyone took notice of him...
It could be called a fortunate kind of problem.
'I can't stay buried in the Research Department anymore. It's time for me to step forward...'
'I'm carrying more than just my own ideals. I'm also carrying Sensei's expectations. He's sheltered me from the wind and rain all the way to this day. I have to make everyone else understand that Sensei didn't choose wrong...'
'I'm Sensei's strongest disciple!'
Those thoughts passed through Orochimaru's mind.
Regardless of how many years he might eventually serve as Hokage, at the very least, he intended to turn in an answer sheet worthy of a perfect score. Naturally, that included all the preparation before actually taking office.
He wanted to build a perfect model together with Hiruzen.
One that future generations could study, so that later Hokage and their successors could simply follow their example.
Help the successor into the saddle, then see them through the first stretch of the journey.
As for doing what Tobirama had done and appointing Hiruzen as Hokage in the middle of a crisis...
Orochimaru respectfully wanted no part of that.
He might have tremendous respect for the founding father of the Tobirama school of research, but that particular decision had still been far too terrible.
As Hokage, ensuring an orderly succession to the next generation was also an extremely important responsibility—another duty that came with wearing the Hokage's cloak.
"Konoha's leadership currently has four seats..."
"We'll expand it to five for now. With Kirigakure and Amegakure joining us, the number of Konoha committee members should also be increased appropriately. Orochimaru, coordinate with the Administration Department on that and bring me a proposal."
"As for the new advisors..."
Hiruzen spoke softly.
"We'll choose Sakumo, Tsunade, and Isshin!"
"I've already spoken to Tenzō. Isshin will serve for a few years, then we'll rotate him out for either Tenzō or Hizashi..."
That way, both the Uchiha and the Hyūga would have someone who could gain the prestige of having served as a "Konoha Advisor."
After people like Danzō, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu stepped down, Hiruzen would still preserve most of the benefits they had previously enjoyed. They would also be more than welcome to participate in meetings whenever they wished.
So in the future, having someone from one's shinobi clan become a "Konoha Advisor" would carry considerable prestige.
And that wouldn't apply only to the Uchiha and Hyūga, but to the other shinobi clans as well...
There was no need to rush it, though. As Konoha continued developing and the various clans made further contributions, Hiruzen—or whichever Hokage came after him—could arrange things systematically and advance the process step by step.
The Uchiha had simply been chosen first because the clan truly had no shortage of talented people.
The village had four Mangekyō wielders—Fugaku, Isshin, Tomie, and Obito—as well as Shisui, who showed tremendous promise.
The next generation also had two excellent prospects in Itachi and Sasuke.
The Hyūga had made major contributions as well, but most of their clan members occupied mid-level positions, where the Byakugan's utility and reliability made them invaluable.
Compared with something as absurdly powerful as the Uchiha's Mangekyō, though, they still fell a little short...
So when Hiruzen told Tenzō that Isshin would serve as advisor first, the Hyūga clan head hadn't objected. If anything, he had been touched that the Hokage had personally come to reassure him...
There wasn't much Tenzō could do about it.
All he could do was lament that the Hyūga simply didn't produce geniuses like the Uchiha.
After all, the Uchiha's ancestors had produced the Shura of the Shinobi World...
---
I will post some extra Chapters in Patreon, you can check it out. >> patreon.com/TitoVillar
---