Night Talk

Night

Hiruzen Sarutobi watched as the Senju Clan Ninja filed out of the Reception Hall. The vast room felt unbearably empty, while the soft chirping of crickets lingered in his ears, leaving him increasingly unsettled.

Just moments ago, Mito Uzumaki had asked everyone else to leave. Only the two of them remained in the room now.

Hiruzen Sarutobi studied Mito Uzumaki's expression. Her face was calm, without the slightest trace of anger, as though her furious outburst earlier had merely been an act.

"Mito-sama, please do not take my earlier offense to heart. I only..."

After some thought, Hiruzen Sarutobi decided he still needed to say something, to salvage at least a little of his image in Mito Uzumaki's eyes.

"That's enough. Sit down. I know what you want to say."

Mito Uzumaki waved a hand, cutting Hiruzen Sarutobi off and telling him to sit.

So Hiruzen Sarutobi walked to a stool at the side and sat down, though only half his backside touched the seat. He still could not read Mito Uzumaki's intentions and was ready to rise and stand at attention again at any moment.

Seeing Hiruzen Sarutobi's cautious, restless demeanor, Mito Uzumaki found it rather amusing. Her expression softened, and the kindly look returned to her face.

"Monkey brat, your performance just now made me see you in a new light. You are not as ordinary as I imagined. You have a few qualities that set you apart from the common lot."

Mito Uzumaki looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi's tense expression and praised him. Over the long years of her life, she had seen far too many geniuses favored by heaven.

Her husband, Hashirama Senju; her brother-in-law, Tobirama Senju; Uchiha Madara of the Uchiha; Uchiha Izuna...

They had been the most dazzling figures of their era. Compared with them, the talent Hiruzen Sarutobi displayed was as unremarkable as a stone by the roadside, drawing no attention at all.

Still, Hiruzen Sarutobi's character was not bad. Tobirama had taught him well, and he had inherited Konoha's Will of Fire.

"Mito-sama, you flatter me. I merely did what I should have done."

Hiruzen Sarutobi responded modestly. Mito Uzumaki no longer had the savage, predatory air from before; she looked like a kind old grandmother next door, which eased Hiruzen Sarutobi's nerves considerably.

"You need not be so modest. Among your generation, you are fairly outstanding. But do you believe you are worthy of Konoha's Hokage Position?"

Mito Uzumaki's single question extinguished the flame that her praise had just lit in Hiruzen Sarutobi's heart.

Am I worthy?

Hiruzen Sarutobi dearly wished to answer that he was worthy of becoming Konoha's Hokage. It had been the dream he set for himself from the moment he became a ninja, an aspiration that had never changed despite countless brushes with death.

Unfortunately, reality was cruel. He was not worthy!

"I will do everything I can to become a qualified Hokage."

That was Hiruzen Sarutobi's answer. He simply could not bring himself to say outright that he was unworthy.

"Hmph. It seems you have some self-awareness."

Mito Uzumaki rose to her feet and looked at the Konoha emblem on the Reception Room wall, her gaze turning profound.

"There are many people in Konoha better suited than you to become the Third Hokage. For example, myself, or my son, Senju Touma."

"Even Kagami Uchiha from earlier is better suited to be Hokage than you. The strength to suppress everyone in Konoha, an illustrious background, the power of a formidable clan—you possess none of these."

"I have thought about it for a long time, yet I still cannot understand why Tobirama passed the position of Third Hokage to you. I truly cannot fathom what that bastard Tobirama was thinking before he died. All he did was leave me trouble, exactly like his dead brother Hashirama."

"And I always thought he was the one who gave me the least trouble."

"..."

Mito Uzumaki spoke to herself, her voice aged as she recalled the past. Now the burden of protecting Konoha rested on her shoulders, so heavy that it nearly left her unable to breathe.

Hiruzen Sarutobi sat there without daring to make a sound. Mito Uzumaki had cursed two Hokage in a single breath—how could he possibly dare interrupt?

Was that even a topic he could interrupt?

"Although I cannot understand why Tobirama passed the position of Third Hokage to you, I will still help you. After all, it was Tobirama's final wish. I hope I have misjudged you, and that you possess some extraordinary quality I have yet to discover."

Mito Uzumaki looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi. Her words made his heart pound, and his delight was written plainly across his face.

"Mito-sama, I will work hard."

"Do not celebrate too soon. I only said I would help you. I never said I would definitely make you Konoha's Hokage. After all, you are still far from possessing what it takes to become Konoha's Hokage."

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded. He knew his own circumstances well enough; he still had some self-awareness.

But things were already much better now. Mito Uzumaki's willingness to help him was the greatest mercy heaven could grant him.

"Originally, I intended to conceal the news of Tobirama's Death first, then find a way to suppress Konoha's clans. Once everything had settled, I would announce Tobirama's Death."

"Unfortunately, those Uchiha can never be let out of one's sight. News of Tobirama's Death has already spread throughout Konoha, and the story that you abandoned Tobirama and fled back to the village has spread even more widely. I cannot imagine how badly the reputations of you few will suffer in Konoha next."

"Mito-sama, I... we did not intentionally abandon Lord Tobirama. It was—"

Hiruzen Sarutobi stood up, wanting to explain. On the battlefield, ninjas had to obey orders, even if those orders went against their own duties.

More importantly, it had been the Hokage's order. The six of them had not possessed the ability to defy Tobirama Senju's command.

Mito Uzumaki waved a hand, telling Hiruzen Sarutobi not to get so agitated.

"I know. There is no need to explain. Tobirama was always a man whose word was final, and he was even more so on the battlefield. Once he made a decision, all you could do was obey."

"But the villagers will not understand that, especially with the Uchiha guiding things from behind the scenes. You must be prepared."

Mito Uzumaki was advising Hiruzen Sarutobi. This was not impossible to resolve: the Hokage sacrificed himself, carried out Konoha's Will of Fire, and saved Konoha's newly sprouted leaves.

Hiruzen Sarutobi also bore Tobirama's final wish. Backed by righteousness, he could barely salvage his reputation in the court of public opinion.

With proper handling, it could still be remedied.

After all, the opinions of villagers without even a shred of strength could not decide the Hokage Position. Those capable of deciding the Hokage Position were Konoha's Ninja Clans.

"I understand, Mito-sama."

Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice was filled with gratitude. Thankfully, he had Mito-sama's help. Otherwise, the villagers' spittle alone would have drowned him, let alone any hope of becoming Konoha's Hokage.