Where Leaves Dance, Fire Lives On
The family of three chatted quietly from time to time, and the heartwarming scene made the medical staff nearby reluctant to disturb them.
It wasn't until Hong started to feel tired that Shuichi instructed the nurse to take her to rest.
She carried her baby out of the delivery room, and her relatives and friends at the door immediately surrounded her.
"This little guy looks just like you guys!" Ishikawa Tatsuki said in surprise, a rather silly remark.
He couldn't imagine what it would look like if the two faces were combined, but now that he saw Takuma's face, he finally had a real-life example to refer to.
Kakashi, ever the flamboyant one, immediately pulled back his Forehead Protector, observed the child with his Sharingan, and after a moment praised him:
"That's amazing. His life force is incredibly strong; he'll definitely be an outstanding ninja in the future."
This action caused Shisui and Itachi to open their eyes and look over. Their two half-red eyes focused on Takuma. Fortunately, the child was unaware of this, otherwise he would have been terrified.
Shuichi, holding his son, was speechless. Was he supposed to say, "My son Takuma has the potential to Hokage?"
As the Mr. and Mrs. Yūhi took the baby and rocked him in the cradle, the Third Hokage, who had come to inquire about the situation, arrived at Konoha Hospital and found everyone with joy on their faces.
"Third Lord!"
"Third Lord..."
"Haha, Shuichi, congratulations! You've finally become a father!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen laughed heartily, signaling everyone not to be so reserved.
Surrounded by a large crowd, Takuma was essentially turned into a tool, first being handled by Second Hokage, and then continuously "blessed" by numerous powerful figures.
Just as Ishikawa Tatsuki took the child, the child burst into tears, leaving him completely stunned.
Am I carrying an evil aura today?
The sons of my two childhood friends should be very close to me, so why did they start crying when they were with Uncle Ishikawa? This is just too unlucky.
"You people, stop causing trouble! The child is hungry, take him to Hong quickly," Madam Yuhi said, stepping forward.
"Oh!" Ishikawa Tatsuki suddenly realized, though he didn't yet know what he had realized.
Takuma was finally freed. Madam Yuhi, where he happily ate his first delicious meal.
Witnessing the birth of a new life is indeed joyful, but everyone's life must go on. Shuichi's family certainly needs their private space, so after leaving their blessings, everyone gradually left.
Only the Third Hokage and Shuichi continued their conversation on the rooftop, discussing matters concerning the village.
Jiraiya and a small number of Konoha Anbu spent more than half a year investigating in the Land of Rain, but they still couldn't find any trace of Nagato and the others, so they guessed that the other party had already left the country.
In such a vast place Shinobi World, it is extremely difficult to find top-tier experts who are deliberately hiding themselves. Konoha can only shift its focus to monitoring Orochimaru and rely primarily on Jiraiya's actions.
The Land of Rain hasn't given up. With Hanzo, the local strongman, actively cooperating, the village will periodically send out elite teams to search.
However, it's conceivable that unless the opponent accidentally reveals their weakness, Konoha will find it difficult to launch a major operation.
Therefore, Shuichi temporarily put these matters out of his mind and focused his energy on village development, continuing to strengthen his own abilities and cultivate more skilled fighters.
When the Akatsuki Organization begins collecting the Tailed Beast, the two sides will inevitably clash again.
In late spring of the 60th year of Konoha, the forest trees sprouted tender buds, and the village presented a vibrant scene of life.
Not far from the Ninja Academy, at the foot of a rock wall, a large number of ninjas dressed in black stood solemnly before a huge tombstone in silent tribute.
At the very front of the neatly arranged line were two figures, one tall and Shuichi held hands together in prayer, while the other held a bouquet of flowers. After bowing respectfully, they stepped forward and placed the flowers at the foot of the tombstone.
"Dad... Dad, who is this old man?" Little Takuma was almost a year and a half old, and his speech was quite clear, clearly showing that he was a clever and quick-witted child.
He caught up quickly, but lost his balance slightly, and suddenly grabbed Shuichi's leg.
Shuichi lowered his head and smiled gently, "This old man is a respected elder who led all the villagers, including Dad, forward. Now he has gone to a peaceful place to rest."
"I see..." Takuma tilted his head and bowed like his father, "This old man is amazing."
After Shuichi, two more people stepped out of the line.
Asuma, with a cryptic expression, took a deep drag on his cigarette in front of the Third Hokage's grave, then put down the half-burnt butt.
Konohamaru's eyes welled with tears, and he sniffled every now and then. He placed a large handful of flowers in front of the tombstone and asked Shuichi with some confusion, "Lord Hokage, was Grandpa a great Hokage?"
"Certainly!"
A gentle breeze blew by, stirring up countless leaves.
Shuichi pinched a leaf between two fingers and smiled at Konohamaru, "Wherever leaves dance in the air, fire will burn. The fire's shadow will illuminate the village, and it will cause new leaves to sprout."
"The Third Lord have left us with the most important things: the will to protect the village, to protect future generations, and to protect our comrades."
Nearly two years have passed since the Third Hokage was injured, and just as the Medical Unit Captain predicted, he passed away earlier this year.
Several months ago, he completely relinquished his responsibilities and stayed home to recuperate, leaving Shuichi to take over all village affairs on his own.
In all aspects, including national diplomacy, communication with the Daimyo's Mansion, the rational allocation of ninjas for missions, and the arrangement of village construction, everything was done perfectly.
In many places, there were groundbreaking feats, prompting Sarutobi Hiruzen to sigh that the older generation really needed to let go; the mindset passed down from the Warring States Period was no longer suitable for the new era.
Shuichi is absolutely capable of becoming a successor who surpasses all his predecessors; he is a great Hokage combines strength, skill, and creativity...
Those who came before us have passed away; those who come after us must strive forward.
After the Third Hokage passed away, given Shuichi's outstanding performance, the two advisors rarely interfered in village affairs, only offering their opinions on some key decisions.
Konoha officially entered the Fifth Hokage era.
According to Shuichi's understanding, managing a village is similar to managing a company in his previous life. As long as you grasp the key points, you can adjust your approach at any time if mistakes occur in the details.
The most important thing for a ninja village is its martial prowess, or in other words, its combat strength or the quality of its ninjas.
The current trend in the Shinobi World is towards an elite path that reduces fiscal expenditure; perhaps only the Land of Lightning is still expanding its military power.
Shuichi wasn't worried about Konoha lacking top-tier fighters. Besides himself, Shisui, Kakashi, Itachi, Might Guy all possessed extraordinary fighting power.
Although Jiraiya and Tsunade are not in the village, they will definitely come back if something big happens. In the future, Naruto and Sasuke take over. Other villages can only tremble in fear.
Therefore, what needs to be improved most now is the average quality of a large number of mid-level ninjas. The village no longer has any forces hindering him, Shuichi can begin to try some advanced reform measures...
With the start of the first semester this year, a new batch of children joined the reserve force of ninjas at the Ninja Academy, bringing students in other grades one step closer to becoming ninjas.
Crackling sound --
The rhythmic clatter of ninja shoes on the wooden floor accompanied Iruka as he carried a large case across the hallway, as usual.
He could hear a commotion inside even before he entered the classroom, but he was used to it.