Faced with Itachi's question, Shisui gave him an affirmative answer.
"After that gathering, I found Eiji. Then we conducted an in-depth study of an issue concerning Konoha."
"Eiji and I both believe that the Uchiha have always been an inseparable part of Konoha."
"In the future, we must—no, we have to—carry out the Will of Fire and the related ideals of Grandpa Hokage..."
And so on and so forth.
After an hour-long discussion, Itachi had been led astray as well.
"Could it be that Big Brother Eiji is like Big Brother Shisui...?"
A smile spread across Shisui's face. "That's right, Itachi."
"But lately, some extreme opinions have been circulating within the clan."
"That is precisely why we need to carry out Grandpa Hokage's will."
Shisui stretched, took a skewer of three-colored dango from the wooden box, and handed it to Itachi.
"Eat up, then we'll begin special training."
Time flew by, and half a month passed.
Konoha seemed to have regained its rare tranquility.
Itachi and Shisui conducted secret special training every day, treating Eiji as the target they had to surpass.
Even Shisui couldn't help but sigh. Itachi was working harder than ever before.
Kakashi was still the same withdrawn boy, wearing his mask every day and operating from the shadows.
Only during his occasional breaks did he say a few words before Obito's Memorial Stone.
Naruto had a new fishing rod, and whenever he had nothing to do, he went fishing and picking mushrooms.
Of course, he never missed buying those limited-edition instant noodles.
"Boss, I want this one, and this one. Hmm, and that one too."
Naruto stood on tiptoe at the counter, picking out the latest instant noodles.
Apparently, they were a joint release by the Land of Fire and the Land of Iron, limited to 9,999 packages across the entire Shinobi World.
They would be gone if you arrived too late.
Of course, this was nothing more than a dishonest merchant deceiving a gullible fool.
The samurai of the Land of Iron had no time to produce this kind of nonsense.
But Naruto didn't know that.
He was even grinning foolishly because today's boss had treated him so well.
When Naruto pulled out a large handful of coins, Hiruzen, standing behind him, wore a Pain Mask.
So this was where all his allowance had gone?
"Ahem, ahem, ahem." Hiruzen deliberately coughed several times.
Naruto turned around. When he saw the familiar Grandpa Hokage, a happy smile appeared on his face.
"Grandpa Hokage, long time no see! How come you have time today?"
Hiruzen forced out a smile as well. "There have been too many matters in the village lately. It took quite some effort to find time to come see you."
"Oh~" Naruto showed Hiruzen what he had bought.
"Grandpa Hokage, look! These instant noodles are limited across the entire Shinobi World!"
Hiruzen glanced at the instant noodles, then at the boss.
The boss was sweating profusely.
Damn it, I only wanted to fool some gullible kid. How did I end up bringing the Hokage here?
The boss's brain spun like a crazed CPU. "Lord Hokage, I can explain."
Hiruzen's smile vanished. "We'll talk about it another day. I'm busy today."
With that, Hiruzen led Naruto outside.
Seeing Hiruzen put Naruto in a much better mood.
Along the way, he shared everything that had happened to him recently.
"Grandpa Hokage, I met a big brother named Eiji. Do you know him?"
Hiruzen paused. "I have heard that name."
Naruto opened the door and led Hiruzen inside.
"Big Brother Eiji is so nice to me. Grandpa Hokage, look! This fishing rod, these daily necessities, and these clothes were all given to me by him."
Following Naruto's pointing finger, Hiruzen saw the various boxes of different sizes scattered around Naruto's room.
Naruto's room had always been a complete mess. For some reason, it seemed much tidier today.
"Grandpa Hokage, sit down." Naruto cheerfully brought over a chair and sat in front of Hiruzen.
He was eager to share everything that had happened between him and Eiji with Hiruzen.
"When we first met, Big Brother Eiji bought me a bowl of noodles."
"Did you know? Big Brother Eiji actually knew that I didn't like bamboo shoots."
"Big Brother Eiji said I was an incredible shinobi. But I think he's an incredible shinobi too."
"Big Brother Eiji wants to become Hokage just like me. Doesn't that mean we'll become rivals?"
"Big Brother Eiji..."
At first, Hiruzen smiled kindly, like a benevolent old man.
But the longer he listened, the stranger it became.
Every one of Naruto's sentences revolved around Eiji. In his eyes, Eiji seemed to be the most important person to him, and the best one as well.
Naruto even said that Eiji wanted to become Hokage.
That wasn't merely bold. It was outrageously bold.
An Uchiha becoming Hokage?
That would be rather difficult.
Or had Eiji inadvertently revealed something?
Hiruzen couldn't help thinking in that direction.
"Grandpa Hokage, are you listening to me?"
Naruto leaned toward the Hokage and noticed that Hiruzen seemed to have zoned out.
"Since that's the case, I'll say it again."
Hiruzen: ...
Naruto rubbed his chin and thought hard for a long while.
"Oh, right. Big Brother Eiji seemed to say that the Hokage was the most incredible person, which was why he wanted to..."
Hiruzen's expression improved considerably.
Listen to that. An Uchiha shinobi said that the Hokage—in other words, I, Sarutobi Hiruzen—was the most incredible shinobi in the village.
As expected, the masses see things clearly.
Eiji is a good person, a good person who inherited my old friend Kagami's will!
Even Hiruzen failed to realize that his assessment of Eiji had already reached a rather strange level.
He even believed that Eiji could completely become one of his own in the truest sense.
The two chatted for a while longer before Hiruzen patted Naruto's head.
"All right, I have things to take care of."
He took some bills from his pocket and handed them to Naruto. "Here's some more pocket money. Don't spend it carelessly."
"Grandpa Hokage..." Naruto suddenly grabbed Hiruzen's Hokage robes. "Big Brother Eiji is a good person. Don't arrest him."
Naruto had always remembered how those strange people had taken Eiji away by the river that day.
That was why he had been looking for an opportunity to explain the situation to Hiruzen in person.
After a brief silence, Hiruzen hummed in response.
"I understand. I'll handle it properly."
With that, Hiruzen left Naruto's home.
On the way to the Hokage Building, Hiruzen kept recalling what Naruto had said.
He knew that children did not lie.
The information coming from Naruto should be relatively trustworthy.
"Eiji... He's a child worth nurturing."
Hiruzen took out his pipe, lit the tobacco, and drew in a puff.
If Eiji could undergo specialized training in the Will of Fire, perhaps he really could become the second Kagami.
Like Shisui, he might become an important bond that maintained the ties between Konoha and the Uchiha.
Lost in thought, Hiruzen returned to his office.
He took out Eiji's file and read through it carefully once more.
What would be the best way to narrow the distance between us?
Before you continue