Assessment About to Begin

Through Danzo's words, Hiruzen Sarutobi felt a pang of guilt, realizing he hadn't paid much attention to Asuma. He tapped his forehead with his pipe, a flicker of frustration crossing his face.

"I don't have the Second Hokage's ability to handle village affairs with ease. One must make choices between the greater good and personal matters, mustn't they?" Hiruzen said, his back to Danzo, as if responding to him or perhaps comforting himself.

"Say that to your son, I don't want to hear it," Danzo said. Recalling his own upbringing of Kazashiro, he felt that although he had lost to Hiruzen his entire life, he had won at least one battle against him when it came to family.

"Heh, Asuma will understand. Or rather, anyone who possesses the Will of Fire will understand. Danzo, what exactly are you..."

Seeing Asuma's figure disappear into the school building, Hiruzen turned to face Danzo.

"Can that kind of thing protect Konoha?" Danzo stared back at Hiruzen with his single eye, extending his bandaged arm. "Will cannot protect Konoha, Hiruzen. Only iron and blood can protect Konoha. I paid the price of an arm and an eye for this village. You should know this."

"..." Hiruzen remained silent.

He had witnessed Danzo's contributions firsthand, which was why he had protected and even indulged him despite some of his questionable actions.

After all, Danzo truly fought for the village.

As for how much personal ambition was mixed in, Hiruzen consciously chose to ignore it.

"Do you have any thoughts on this year's new recruits?" Hiruzen put down his pipe, changing the subject.

Every year, Danzo would pay attention to some of the talented children among the new students, preparing to recruit them into the Anbu at the right time.

After all, the true name of Root was "Anbu Training Department." Except for members personally appointed by the Hokage, most of them served in the Anbu after graduating from here.

As for the Root ninja under Danzo's command, they were talents he scouted himself and trained separately before keeping them by his side.

"You're the Hokage, so it's up to you who gets chosen," Danzo said. Due to Kazashiro's upcoming enrollment, Danzo hadn't been paying much attention to the other students recently, focusing his energy on raising his son instead.

"These are all good seedlings this year: Kurenai Yuhi's daughter, Kurenai; Hatake Sakumo's son, Hatake Kakashi; Shiranui Genma's son, Shiranui Genma; as well as Aoba Yamashiro, Namiashi Raidō, and others..."

Taking out the enrollment roster, Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at the densely packed names with a slight smile.

These were the leaves of Konoha. As long as they were nurtured, Konoha would flourish and one day achieve the First Hokage's vision.

"Ultimately, only members of clans with a strong foundation will pass the assessment. True commoner children can only join during recruitment seasons when there's a shortage of clan children," Danzo interjected sarcastically, shattering Hiruzen's fantasy.

"As long as these clans exist, especially the Uchiha, Konoha will never truly be at peace," a sharp glint flashed in Danzo's single eye. "I know what you're thinking, Hiruzen. Back then, the First Hokage voluntarily stripped the Senju Clan of its name and had its members integrate into Konoha to unite the ninja clans. But what about the other clans? They only sought to carve up the spoils left behind after the Senju Clan disappeared."

"Look at your disciple, Princess Tsunade. As the First Hokage's granddaughter, all she has left is an old building." Danzo's words made Hiruzen uncomfortable.

He wanted to say that Tsunade was poor because she gambled away her fortune, but considering she was his disciple, directly exposing her flaws would likely affect his reputation. Moreover, a large portion of the Senju Clan's land had been designated by Hiruzen as public property for Konoha's development.

Although it was for the village, combined with Danzo's recent words, he couldn't help but feel like the immoral clan member Danzo described.

Damn Danzo, he couldn't resist provoking him even at a time like this.

After being repeatedly stifled by Danzo, Hiruzen decided not to talk to him for the next hour.

"Four per group, enter the room." Inside the school building, a teacher pointed to several rooms in front of them, signaling the children to enter in groups of four for the assessment.

Kazashiro's group consisted of himself, Anko, Shiranui Genma, and...

"Yo, hello."

A guy with a bowl cut, wearing a green tight suit, gave Kazashiro and the others a gesture and flashed a bright smile.

"My name is Might Guy, nice to meet you."

What the hell, Red Dog? No, he's still a little Red Dog. No, he's a Green Dog.

So, the voice I just heard was indeed Might Guy.

Shiranui Genma, chewing on a toothpick, glanced at Might Guy without speaking, simply nodding before turning away.

Anko, on the other hand, sized up Might Guy with interest before leaning into Kazashiro's ear and whispering, "I think I've seen this guy before. He's always walking upside down on the street, shouting things like 'youth'."

"Huh? I haven't seen him? Where did you see him?" Kazashiro whispered back to Anko.

"On my way home. Oh, right, your house is in the center of the village, so you definitely wouldn't see him. His house seems to be on the very edge of Konoha." Anko patted Kazashiro's shoulder, reminding him to consider where he lived.

"I see." After listening to Anko, Kazashiro showed a look of understanding. Then, before Anko could react, he extended his hand. "My name is Shimura Kazashiro. This is Mitarashi Anko, and the one chewing a toothpick is Shiranui Genma. Nice to meet you, Guy."

"Oh! Let us passionately pursue our youth together, Kazashiro-kun!" Seeing Kazashiro's outstretched hand, Guy was taken aback for a moment before enthusiastically shaking it and uttering his signature line.

"Alright, next group."

Before the group could continue their conversation, the teacher's voice came from inside the room. The four children who had entered earlier then emerged with varying expressions.

Some looked dejected, some were beaming, and others were full of confidence.

Although the assessment results would be posted in the village the following week, the children could already guess the outcome based on the teacher's tone and attitude.

"Shiranui Genma, right? Throw a shuriken for me to see." The male teacher sitting at the desk looked up at the somewhat arrogant Shiranui Genma, pointed to a shuriken on the table, and then to a target on the wall.