Hiruzen Sarutobi

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Hiruzen Sarutobi (猿飞日斩)
Alias(es)	Third Hokage; Third Generation; Ninjutsu Doctor
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Konohagakure
Occupation/Role	Third Hokage; Konoha’s chief political and military leader
First Appearance	Chapter 5

Appearance

Hiruzen is an elderly man who habitually wears Hokage robes and smokes from a long pipe while working in his office. 73

• Often seen behind the Hokage’s desk, smoking or putting away a crystal ball. 26 73 138
• Despite his aged appearance, he retains exceptional physical strength in battle. 146

Personality

Hiruzen combines an approachable, teasing manner with a pragmatic commitment to Konoha’s collective interests. He plays Go with Jiang Feng as a friend, jokes about the younger generation’s relationships, and enjoys watching their lively interactions. 5 54 152

As Hokage, he is politically calculating rather than conventionally idealistic. He evaluates missions, diplomacy, succession, and military power according to their effect on Konoha, even when this means manipulating public perception or testing his own disciples. 60 105 138

He is also capable of firm self-reflection. After hearing of the failures of his parallel-world counterpart, he bluntly concludes that the other Third Hokage was an idiot for allowing Naruto to be isolated as the Nine-Tails’ jinchūriki. 76

Abilities & Skills

Ninjutsu and Sealing Jutsu

Known as the “Ninjutsu Doctor,” Hiruzen is a versatile shinobi with strong sealing expertise. 146

• Helped establish layered safeguards for the Eight-Tails transfer, alongside Jiang Feng and Orochimaru. 117
• Ordered a sensory-interference barrier to restrict Minato’s Flying Thunder God escape routes during the Eight-Tails incident. 146
• Coordinated the containment and sealing of Killer B and the Eight-Tails. 117

Taijutsu

Hiruzen’s close-quarters power remains formidable even in old age.

• His physical output is described as not much weaker than the Third Raikage’s. 146
• Overpowered the Eight-Tails with repeated staff strikes, knocking the tailed beast back hundreds of meters. 146
• His thrown staff strike was compared to the Third Raikage’s One-Finger Nukite in force. 146

Enma Summoning

Hiruzen can summon Enma, his long-standing combat partner, who transforms into a massive staff. 146

• Uses Enma’s staff form as his primary weapon in direct combat. 146
• Relies on the staff’s immense striking force against large opponents such as the Eight-Tails. 146

Leadership and Political Strategy

Hiruzen manages Konoha through military preparedness, factional balancing, diplomacy, and deliberate public signaling.

• Sent Jiang Feng’s team on an S-class mission to retrieve Tsunade, recognizing that Konoha needed her strength before a new war. 6
• Mobilized more than two thousand Konoha ninja and dispatched Jiraiya to intercept Iwagakure’s surprise attack. 101
• Publicly appointed Jiang Feng as Hokage Advisor, effectively signaling him as the preferred Fourth Hokage candidate. 139
• Tested Orochimaru’s reaction by implying that Jiang Feng would become his successor. 138

Relationships

• Uchiha Jiang Feng — Friend and trusted Konoha asset. Hiruzen assigns him sensitive missions, values him highly despite his Uchiha surname, and promotes him to Hokage Advisor as part of a planned succession. 5 6 54 139
• Orochimaru — Former disciple and major military asset. Hiruzen tests Orochimaru’s ambitions regarding the Fourth Hokage position, yet relies on him during major crises. 138 146
• Jiraiya — Former disciple. Hiruzen dispatches him against Iwagakure and later joins him, Orochimaru, and Tsunade in visiting Jiang Feng. 101 152
• Tsunade — Former disciple whose return Hiruzen considers strategically necessary for Konoha before the coming war. 6 152
• Danzō — Hokage Advisor and political counterpart. Their approaches differ, but they cooperate in Konoha’s defense; Hiruzen also forcibly transfers Yamato out of Root. 54 74 146
• Minato Namikaze — Initially regarded as an excellent prospective successor, though Hiruzen ultimately favors Jiang Feng. He later confronts Minato during the staged defection and Eight-Tails rampage. 73 139 146
• Yamato — Hiruzen removes him from Root after learning of his Wood Release, insisting that such a shinobi should serve openly under his direct Anbu. 73 74
• Biwako Sarutobi — His wife; she hosts visitors at the Sarutobi clan compound. 5

Story Role / Major Arcs

Tsunade Retrieval

Hiruzen sends Jiang Feng and his team to Tanzaku Town on an S-class mission to bring Tsunade back to Konoha. He views her return as vital preparation for a looming new shinobi war and as protection for Tsunade herself. 6

Sunagakure Diplomacy

He formally receives Konan as Akatsuki’s envoy and attempts to use a potential relationship between Jiang Feng and Pakura to reinforce a Konoha–Sunagakure alliance. 26 31

Future Intelligence and Konoha’s Dark History

After Naruto and Yamato arrive from a parallel world, Hiruzen questions Yamato about the next twenty years of history. The account of Konoha’s future decline, Minato’s death, Orochimaru’s defection, and the Uchiha massacre forces him to reassess the consequences of leadership failures. 73 76

Hiruzen rejects the parallel-world treatment of Naruto, stating that he would have publicly raised Naruto as the Fourth Hokage’s son and Konoha’s future protector. 76

Tailed Beast Policy

Following Kumogakure’s defeat, Hiruzen initially proposes keeping the Eight-Tails to strengthen Konoha and deter future wars. Jiang Feng warns that concentrating tailed beasts in Konoha could provoke an international coalition, leading Hiruzen to consider a more deceptive long-term strategy. 108 109

He later supervises the Eight-Tails containment operation, with Might Duy prepared as the intended jinchūriki and Jiang Feng and Orochimaru acting as key safeguards. 117

Fourth Hokage Succession

Hiruzen increasingly supports Jiang Feng as his successor, judging him the best candidate in identity, temperament, ability, and broad acceptability. 54 73

After testing Orochimaru’s response, he appoints Jiang Feng as Hokage Advisor. The appointment is widely interpreted as an open transfer of authority and shifts Konoha’s political factions toward Jiang Feng. 138 139

Eight-Tails Rampage

When Minato appears to defect alongside the Eight-Tails, Hiruzen immediately directs Konoha’s evacuation, barriers, envoy containment, and battlefield response. 146

He personally battles the Eight-Tails with Enma while Orochimaru faces Minato, demonstrating that he remains a high-level combatant as well as Konoha’s commander. 146 147