Upholding the Hokage's Will

Faced with Itachi's question, Shisui gave an affirmative answer.

"After that gathering, I found Eiji, and then we conducted an in-depth study of a Konoha issue."

"Eiji and I both believe that the Uchiha have always been an inseparable part of Konoha."

"In the future, we should—no, we must—thoroughly implement the Hokage's Will of Fire and its related spirit..."

And so on and so forth.

After an hour-long conversation, even Itachi was led astray.

"Could it be that Big Brother Eiji is like you, Shisui..."

A smile spread across Shisui's face. "Yes, Itachi."

"But lately, there have been some extreme opinions spreading within the clan."

"That's precisely why we need to uphold the Hokage's will."

Shisui stretched lazily, then took a skewer of tricolor dango from a wooden box and handed it to Itachi.

"After you finish eating, we'll start the special training."

Time flew by, and half a month passed.

It seemed Konoha had regained a rare period of peace.

Itachi and Shisui trained in secret every day, setting Eiji as the goal they aimed to surpass.

Even Shisui couldn't help but remark that Itachi was working harder than ever before.

Kakashi remained the same withdrawn man, wearing his mask every day and moving in the shadows.

Only during rare breaks would he speak a few words in front of Obito's Memorial Stone.

Naruto had a new fishing rod and spent his time fishing and picking mushrooms.

Of course, he never missed out on buying those limited-edition instant noodles.

"Boss, I want this one, and this one, oh, and that one too."

Naruto stood on tiptoes at the counter, picking out the latest instant noodle releases.

Supposedly, this was a collaboration between the Land of Fire and the Land of Iron, with only 9,999 sets available across the entire ninja world.

If you came late, they'd be gone.

Of course, this was just a shady merchant tricking a fool.

What interest would those samurai from the Land of Iron have in making such things?

But Naruto didn't know that.

He was grinning like an idiot just because the shopkeeper was being nice to him today.

As Naruto pulled out a handful of coins, Hiruzen, standing behind him, wore a pained expression.

So this was where his pension was going.

"Ahem, ahem." Hiruzen deliberately coughed a few times.

Naruto turned around, and when he saw the familiar face of the Third Hokage, a bright smile spread across his face.

"Gramps Hokage, long time no see! What brings you here today?"

Hiruzen forced a smile as well. "There's been too much going on in the village lately. I finally managed to squeeze out some time to see you."

"Oh~" Naruto proudly showed off his purchases.

"Look, Gramps Hokage! These are the limited-edition instant noodles from across the entire ninja world!"

Hiruzen glanced at the noodles, then at the shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper's sweat was about to drip.

Damn it, he just wanted to trick some idiot—how did the Hokage end up here?

The shopkeeper's brain spun like crazy. "Lord Hokage, I can explain."

Hiruzen dropped his smile. "We'll talk another day. I'm busy today."

With that, he took Naruto by the hand and led him outside.

Seeing Hiruzen lifted Naruto's spirits considerably.

Along the way, he shared his recent experiences with Hiruzen.

"Gramps Hokage, I met a big brother named Eiji. Do you know him?"

Hiruzen paused for a moment. "I've heard the name before."

Naruto opened his door and led Hiruzen inside.

"Big Brother Eiji is really good to me. Look, Gramps Hokage—this fishing rod, these daily necessities, and some clothes, he gave them all to me."

Hiruzen followed Naruto's pointing finger and saw boxes of various sizes scattered around.

Naruto's room used to be a complete mess, but for some reason, today it looked much tidier.

"Hokage Grandpa, sit down," Naruto said with a grin, pulling up a chair and sitting in front of Hiruzen.

He was dying to share everything that had happened between him and Eiji.

"The first time we met, Big Brother Eiji treated me to a bowl of ramen."

"You know, Big Brother Eiji actually knew I don't like bamboo shoots."

"Big Brother Eiji said I'm a really amazing ninja, but I think he's an amazing ninja too."

"Big Brother Eiji wants to become Hokage just like me, so doesn't that mean we'll end up as rivals?"

"Big Brother Eiji..."

At first, Hiruzen smiled warmly, like a kindly old man.

But as he listened, the smile faded.

Every word out of Naruto's mouth revolved around Eiji. In his mind, Eiji seemed to be the most important and best person to him.

He even said Eiji wanted to become Hokage.

That wasn't just bold—it was outright audacious.

An Uchiha becoming Hokage?

That was a bit of a stretch.

Or had Eiji let something slip unintentionally?

Hiruzen couldn't help but let his thoughts drift in that direction.

"Hokage Grandpa, are you listening to me?"

Naruto leaned in close to the Hokage, noticing Hiruzen seemed distracted.

"In that case, I'll say it all over again."

Hiruzen: ...

Naruto rubbed his chin, thinking hard for a moment.

"Oh yeah, Big Brother Eiji said the Hokage is the greatest person, so that's why he wants to..."

Hiruzen's expression brightened considerably.

Listen to that—an Uchiha clan ninja saying the Hokage, meaning me, Sarutobi Hiruzen, is the greatest ninja in this village.

Truly, the people's eyes are sharp.

Eiji was a good man, one who carried on the will of his old friend Kagami!

Hiruzen didn't even realize how highly he'd come to regard Eiji, to an almost strange degree.

In fact, Hiruzen even thought Eiji could fully become one of his own.

They chatted a while longer, and Hiruzen patted Naruto on the head.

"Alright, I have things to take care of."

He pulled some bills from his pocket and handed them to Naruto. "Here's some extra allowance. Don't waste it."

"Hokage Grandpa," Naruto suddenly grabbed Hiruzen's Hokage robe, "Big Brother Eiji is a good person. Don't arrest him."

Naruto still remembered that day by the river, when those strange people took Eiji away.

So he'd been looking for a chance to explain things to Hiruzen face-to-face.

After a brief silence, Hiruzen gave a low hum.

"I understand. I'll handle it properly."

With that, Hiruzen left Naruto's house.

On the way to the Hokage Building, Hiruzen kept replaying Naruto's words in his mind.

He knew children didn't lie.

What came out of Naruto's mouth should be fairly trustworthy.

"Eiji... he's a child worth nurturing."

Hiruzen pulled out his pipe, lit the tobacco, and took a puff.

If he could give Eiji specialized training in the Will of Fire, maybe he really could become a second Kagami.

Like Shisui, a vital link between Konoha and the Uchiha.

Lost in thought, Hiruzen returned to his office.

He took out Eiji's file and read it through carefully once more.

What approach should he use to bridge the distance between them?