I Am the Hokage! (Please Keep Reading)

Danzo was the sort who acted on whatever came to mind almost immediately.

Early the next morning, he went straight to the Hokage Office to find his old friend.

But before coming, he had already prepared himself mentally for all sorts of possibilities.

An argument was inevitable. He might not win it, but he wanted to vent anyway.

He had been holding it in for far too long!

"Hm? What are you doing here?"

Without even knocking, Danzo pushed the door open and walked in. Even the Anbu hidden in the shadows dared not say anything.

The sudden intrusion gave Hiruzen Sarutobi quite a fright. He forced himself to remain calm and shut off the crystal ball on his desk before speaking.

"I need to talk to you about something."

Danzo glanced over and immediately knew what his old friend had been doing, making him even angrier.

Damn it, no wonder he managed to teach someone like Jiraiya!

And it was my fault too. If I hadn't been one second too late, Sensei wouldn't have made that wrong decision.

Though his mind was full of complaints, Danzo spoke with a blank expression.

"It's about the Chunin Exams."

"The Chunin Exams?"

The moment Hiruzen Sarutobi heard that, he thought of Itachi Uchiha. Still, he kept his expression neutral as he asked,

"Why are you suddenly concerned about that?"

"Don't play dumb, Hiruzen."

Danzo had no interest in beating around the bush with Hiruzen Sarutobi, so he bluntly exposed the matter.

"Itachi Uchiha is taking the exam, isn't he?"

So that was it!

Hiruzen Sarutobi had a headache. He naturally knew just how deep his old friend's prejudice against the Uchiha ran.

Though there were times when he too felt that those Uchiha lunatics were truly troublesome, he still wanted to help them integrate into Konohagakure.

"That's right."

He shook his head helplessly and said,

"Itachi Uchiha is outstanding. His age and strength both qualify him for the Chunin Exams."

"But one of his teammates died."

Danzo spoke expressionlessly.

"His team is no longer at full strength. Forming a temporary team would be meaningless, and letting him take the Chunin Exams violates the rules."

"Rules are made by people."

Hiruzen Sarutobi felt a headache coming on as he explained,

"Besides, this is an internal Konohagakure assessment. It doesn't matter even if he participates alone."

"That makes it even more unacceptable!"

Danzo immediately seized on the point and refuted him without hesitation.

"Rules are indeed made by people, but we cannot change them for one person. That would be unfair to everyone else!

And don't forget, he is an Uchiha. He is also very capable, and the Uchiha are an unstable factor.

If he participates alone and passes smoothly, it will inevitably cause quite a stir. It may even make those Uchiha people—"

"The Uchiha are members of Konohagakure too!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi could no longer hold back. What did he mean, unfair to everyone else?

Were the things Danzo did fair to others?

And now he had come here to lecture him?

Inverted Heavenly Principles!

"I know you have issues with them, but the Uchiha are not incapable of changing. Don't forget Kagami Uchiha."

"Kagami was an exception. After his death, the Uchiha Clan had more people like Uchiha Setsuna."

Danzo met him head-on. How could he not know that his old friend was angry?

But he had come here to argue!

Besides, he was not wrong. Through his step-by-step maneuvering, the Uchiha had become increasingly extreme, and Uchiha Setsuna's ideology had influenced them all.

And Uchiha Setsuna had once tried to assassinate his teacher. His teacher had personally identified him as an extremist and thrown him into prison.

If the war had not required the Uchiha to unite and contribute for Konohagakure, that man would probably have remained in prison, repenting for his mistakes by "hanging himself"!

"We should have followed Sensei's will and completely eradicated those evil Uchiha, instead of being as indecisive as you."

"You have overstepped, Danzo!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi finally lost his patience and stared at Danzo coldly.

"I'm merely stating the facts."

Danzo still kept a straight face as he spoke.

"Enough! I am the Hokage!"

"..."

Hearing that, Danzo truly wanted to curse Hiruzen Sarutobi for fighting dirty, using nothing but the Hokage's title to suppress others. He also wanted to slam the door and leave.

But remembering that he had not finished what he came to do, he could only grit his teeth and remain where he was before replying,

"You'll regret this sooner or later!"

"Whether I regret it is a matter for the future."

Hiruzen Sarutobi also felt that his words had been too harsh. Though his old friend was a good person,

his petty, vindictive, and other extreme traits were all too obvious. So he needed to ease the tension a little.

"As the Hokage, what I must do is unite everyone for the sake of the village. I will not let go of any opportunity that can bring peace."

"Hmph!"

Danzo snorted coldly, but he knew it was time to put forward his own condition.

"If he wants to participate, then let him. But I have an idea."

"Oh?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi raised an eyebrow. He felt this was Danzo's true objective.

"Let's hear it."

"I want to assign Itachi Uchiha a dedicated examiner."

Danzo did not hide anything and directly stated his idea.

"That boy is far from ordinary. At eight years old, he defeated a Root ninja. An ordinary examiner might not be able to test his limits."

"Then who do you intend to recommend?"

"It's not a recommendation. I intend to have Shihara Hidezawa take on this responsibility!"

"..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked silently at Danzo. Test Itachi Uchiha's limits?

This was obviously blatant suppression and revenge!

Itachi Uchiha was indeed outstanding. He had awakened the Sharingan at such a young age and defeated a Root ninja at eight.

But Hidezawa was no ordinary person either. After all, he was someone who had caused such a huge incident in Sunagakure and still escaped unscathed.

Having him serve as Itachi Uchiha's examiner... Hiruzen Sarutobi could hardly avoid being suspicious.

"This matter..."

Yet after pondering it for a moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi felt that it was not impossible!

Danzo did know him well. He truly had considered bringing Itachi Uchiha into the Anbu.

Itachi Uchiha had been intelligent since childhood and was close to Shisui. Most importantly, the boy was Fugaku Uchiha's son!

If Shisui could influence his thinking and bring about a change, it would be a good thing for both Konohagakure and the Uchiha.

And Hidezawa and Shisui were teammates. If he gave Hidezawa a hint and had Shisui put in a good word as well, then...

"That will do. Itachi Uchiha is quite strong, and an ordinary person truly might have trouble testing him. Hidezawa is powerful enough for the task, and since he is in the Anbu, it will be easy to adjust his schedule."

"..."

Danzo gave Hiruzen Sarutobi an expressionless look. Couldn't he stop mentioning that Hidezawa was in the Anbu?

He was starting to regret sending Hidezawa there. But there was nothing to say now that things had come this far.

Besides, he had achieved his goal. This trip had not been in vain!

Since you think so highly of him, I'll make him lose face badly. Even if he passes, I won't let him have an easy time!