Dialogue Between the Third and Fourth Hokage

High above the buildings.

"The Hyuga and Uchiha truly are noble clans. Their strength is indeed something ordinary shinobi cannot contend with," the Third remarked, unable to help but sigh as he watched Shisui Uchiha end the battle with such ease.

The Uchiha and Hyuga clans had an overwhelmingly high probability of producing geniuses.

Kekkei genkai shinobi were indeed far more gifted in certain aspects than ordinary shinobi.

They were born with exceptionally powerful bloodlines, coupled with the techniques passed down through their clans—ordinary shinobi would find it no easy task to catch up to them!

During his time in office, the Third had also deliberately sought to suppress the growth of the noble clans, hoping to give more common-born shinobi a chance to rise. Though there had been some results, they were not many...

Among the common-born shinobi, one had emerged—Minato Namikaze—who even became the Fourth Hokage. But overall, the number of common-born shinobi still fell short of the shinobi from the various major clans within the village...

"After all, they are kekkei genkai clans passed down since the Warring States period. Their foundations are naturally something ordinary shinobi cannot compare to," the Fourth added with a sigh.

After a moment of thought, the Fourth continued, "Should we arrange a battle between Hyuga Yei and Shisui Uchiha?"

The Fourth had only recently taken office, and he was not yet adept at matters of political maneuvering. This required time to hone; it could not be achieved overnight.

More often than not, before making a decision, the Fourth would first consult the Third.

The Third fell silent for a moment, as if pondering something. After a long pause, he slowly shook his head and said, "The situation in the village is not as rosy as you imagine. There is an undercurrent of rivalry among the major clans, especially between the two great houses—the Uchiha and the Hyuga!"

The Third looked down below, his gaze lingering mainly on the members of the Uchiha and Hyuga clans. "Between fellow noble clans, their covert conflicts are quite pronounced. You have only just taken office; do not rashly stir up strife between these two families."

"Do not provoke conflict between the two noble clans? I understand..." The Fourth seemed to grasp the idea, nodding slightly.

The Fourth was no fool—in fact, he could be called exceptionally sharp, or else he would never have earned the title of genius.

It was simply that he had never been exposed to matters of political scheming before, so his considerations often lacked full scope.

But with the Third's prompting, he quickly saw the reasoning behind it.

Now that he had just taken office, his foundation was shallow. If he rashly provoked discord between the two noble clans, it would appear as though he were deliberately stirring trouble, pitting them against each other to create a balance of power...

Even if that was not his true intention, others would inevitably read into it. That was why the Third urged him to think carefully on this matter.

"Good, you understand. You are the Hokage now. Many things require careful consideration, especially the balance among the major clans in the village. Balance is paramount! For the stability of Konoha, certain measures must still be taken, but the timing must be well considered..." The Third merely offered a few pointers; the rest had to be grasped on one's own. Saying too much would be pointless.

He looked at the Fourth with a slight smile. "But I believe you will handle it even better than I did, because in you, I see hope!"

As the shadow of a village, the considerations were far from simple. One could not look only at the surface and ignore the repercussions behind it.

Take the Uchiha and Hyuga, these two noble clans—even he, a Hokage who had held office for so long, sometimes found them a headache.

If both clans grew too powerful, they would inevitably threaten the ruling authority of the Hokage line!

That was why, during his tenure, he had occasionally suppressed them.

This was not because the Third was black-hearted or ruthless—well, perhaps a little...

But more than that, the Third sought to restrain, to balance!

This was something every ruler had to consider!

It had little to do with anything else—it was simply a matter of the position one held!

Just as war had no right or wrong, only differences in standing!

The Third hoped the Fourth would see through these things sooner. As a ruler, methods were crucial!

The Third's words carried no small weight. If these words were to leak out and reach the ears of the clan heads in the village, they would surely stir up a storm, even breeding resentment toward the Hokage line!

The Fourth's heart tightened. He spoke gravely, "I will."

"Regarding Kakashi's Sharingan, the Uchiha clan made a fuss with me as well, but I suppressed it. They probably still hold some grievances. As Kakashi's teacher and the current Fourth Hokage, you need to give careful thought when handling matters concerning the Uchiha clan," the Third said leisurely, casting a glance at the Fourth.

For an outsider like Kakashi to possess a Sharingan was something the Uchiha clan could not tolerate!

The current clan head, Fugaku Uchiha, had repeatedly approached the Third demanding the return of Kakashi's Sharingan, but the Third had always shut it down.

The reason?

It was a gift from Obito Uchiha to Kakashi—the Uchiha clan had no right to interfere!

Of course, Fugaku Uchiha was far from satisfied with that answer. He had intended to use this as leverage to extract compensation from the Third, but that too was suppressed by the Third...

At the time, the Fourth had not yet taken office, and the village was under the Third's authority. He had the power to decide the matter.

But now that the Fourth was Hokage, the Third worried that Fugaku Uchiha might raise the issue again. So he took this opportunity to inform the Fourth, preparing him mentally.

The Fourth's mind raced through many thoughts. He nodded and said, "I understand."

He had not expected that Kakashi's Sharingan would still stir discontent among the Uchiha. But this was a gift from Obito to Kakashi, representing Obito's wish and will!

As their teacher, he naturally did not want to see the Sharingan—a symbol of Obito's will—returned to the Uchiha clan.

Not just for Obito, but for Kakashi as well.

'It seems I need to find time to talk with Fugaku,' the Fourth thought to himself.

"The future belongs to you young ones. I will do my best to transfer my authority to you. However... regarding the two advisor elders and the 'Root' division, I cannot easily intervene. You will have to win them over yourself." The Third patted the Fourth's shoulder again with a soft sigh.

For the Third to say such words was proof of how highly he regarded the Fourth.

But more often than not, he himself was not entirely free to act. Mitokado Homura, Utatane Koharu, and Danzo Shimura were his old acquaintances and comrades-in-arms. Their power was not insignificant, but the Third, out of respect for their past bonds, was reluctant to rashly strip them of their authority.

Even during his own tenure, he had sometimes been constrained by these three.

Of course, more often than not, it was the top brass of Konoha who jointly controlled the entire village.

The contradictions between them weren't obvious, but now that the Fourth Hokage had taken office, the transfer of power would inevitably lead to some conflict. On this point, the Third Hokage couldn't help—it was something the Fourth would have to fight for on his own.

The Fourth Hokage simply nodded, saying nothing more.

"Let's keep watching." The Third Hokage gave a slight smile, changing the subject.

The Fourth Hokage also looked down at the training ground below, his mind seemingly elsewhere.