Namikaze Minato stepped out of the Hokage Tower with his thoughts in turmoil.
He hesitated only briefly before vanishing in a flash of body flicker.
Moments later, his figure appeared beside a broad, powerful river flowing south of Konoha.
The Naka River.
During the Warring States era, it had once marked the homeland of the Uchiha Clan—their ancestral ground.
Minato stood quietly, waiting.
"Caw… caw…"
A crow descended onto a tree some distance away.
Minato turned.
The bird's eye shifted—
And transformed into a three-tomoe Sharingan.
His vision blurred for a moment.
He did not resist.
The illusion swallowed him whole.
A crimson world unfolded.
In the sea of red, a familiar figure stepped forward.
Uchiha Jin.
"Minato," Jin said calmly, "we agreed you would reduce contact after returning. Why are you in such a hurry to see me?"
Minato gave a helpless smile.
"I wouldn't have come if it weren't important."
"The Third told me something. I'm… not sure how to judge it."
Jin did not ask immediately what had been said.
Instead, he eyed Minato strangely.
"You didn't come straight here after leaving the Hokage Tower, did you?"
Minato blinked.
"…Yes. Is that a problem?"
Jin closed his eyes and sighed.
Silently, he observed three seconds of mourning.
Then he looked at Minato with unmistakable sympathy.
"The moment you entered the village, Uzumaki Kushina probably sensed it."
"If you went to report first, she might tolerate it."
"But if you left the Hokage Tower and didn't go straight to her…"
He did not finish.
The look he gave Minato said everything.
Minato froze.
A bead of sweat slid down his temple.
Kushina.
Second jinchūriki of the Nine-Tails.
The Red-Hot Habanero of Konoha.
His fiancée.
And the one person in the world who could make the Yellow Flash panic.
Normally, his return would have meant a warm reunion.
Now—
It might become a battlefield.
Minato's composure shattered instantly.
"Jin. Save me."
Only when it came to Kushina did he lose all sense of dignity.
Jin considered briefly.
"I'll have Nono prepare flowers and a cake."
"Pick them up from the orphanage on your way home."
"As for the rest…"
"You're on your own."
Jin had no intention of involving himself too deeply in Kushina's temper.
Minato's eyes lit up in relief.
"You're a lifesaver."
"At least now I have an excuse."
Jin waved him off.
"Enough. Tell me what Hiruzen said."
Minato's expression turned serious again. He recounted everything from the Hokage's explanation of the Uchiha situation to the sudden decision to step down and initiate the Fourth Hokage selection.
When he finished, Minato frowned.
"I don't know why, but he feels… too eager."
"You once said when something is abnormal, something is hidden."
"I feel uneasy."
Jin thought for a moment.
Then he chuckled coldly.
"You're overthinking it."
"He doesn't want to step down."
"He has to."
Minato's brows knit together.
"What do you mean?"
"Rumors," Jin replied calmly.
"They may be suppressed, but they won't disappear."
"They'll sink into the soil and wait."
"Right now, the village is full of currents moving beneath the surface. Too many people are targeting him."
"If he stays in that seat, those buried rumors could erupt at any moment and destroy him completely."
"So he steps back now."
"Retreating at the right time protects him from the storm."
"Until the Fourth officially takes office, he still holds real authority."
"It's clever."
"With one announcement, he avoids multiple risks."
Minato slowly nodded.
"I suppose I still haven't adjusted to thinking this way."
"In battle, everything is straightforward."
"In politics… it feels different."
He had begun to doubt himself.
Was he truly suited to become Hokage?
On the battlefield, he was a genius among geniuses.
But here—
He felt almost naïve.
Jin shook his head.
"Don't belittle yourself."
"Hiruzen uses schemes because he must."
"His strength and authority aren't overwhelming enough."
"When you lack absolute power, you rely on methods."
Minato looked up.
Jin's gaze sharpened.
"You are different."
"You have talent equal to the First Hokage."
"As long as your strength reaches that level—"
"Nothing will threaten you."
"In the face of absolute power, all conspiracies are paper tigers."
This was not an ordinary world.
In a normal world, politics dominated.
Here—
Power could overturn politics.
Just like Orochimaru in Otogakure.
Just like Pain in Amegakure.
When strength surpassed the structure—
The structure bent.
If Minato—or Jin—ever surpassed Konoha's limits,
Then even Hiruzen and Danzō would become nothing more than jumping clowns.
Minato's hesitation eased.
"I won't slack in training."
"Good," Jin said with a smile.
"By the way—Hiruzen stepping down is good news."
"I've prepared a surprise for the day you become Fourth Hokage."
Minato blinked.
"A surprise?"
Jin's smile deepened, almost playful.
"I guarantee…"
"It will truly surprise you."
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