My Hokage Grandfather

Jiraiya walked in front without saying a word, with Akaseki and his two other "teammates" following behind.

Akaseki had long known Minato Namikaze—that cocky little blond brat, tsk tsk.

As for the other one, Ranwu, Akaseki wasn't very familiar with her; she had also graduated a year early and was said to be an excellent student of her class.

Judging by her name, she was likely a commoner without even a surname, but her white hair and red eyes made Akaseki feel somewhat displeased—just like that old ghost of the Senju clan!

"You two both graduated early, right? Don't worry, if you don't understand any advanced courses in the future, you can come and ask me!"

"Since you come from commoner backgrounds, you probably only know what they teach in school, right? Those are just the basics. When there's a chance, I'll teach you some practical techniques."

"If you run into trouble later, you can ask other ninjas with this emblem for help and just say you're my, Akaseki's, teammates... Do you recognize this pattern? Commoners don't have this; it's a family crest! Anyone with this represents our Uchiha clan!"

"Most of our Uchiha clan members are in the Military Police Force, usually responsible for managing the commoners and other ninja clans in the village..."

Regarding Akaseki's "enthusiasm," Minato Namikaze only smiled and nodded. As for Ranwu... she seemed to want to say something at first, but she held it back and kept a straight face the entire time.

Jiraiya, walking in front, could naturally hear the noise behind him. He pondered to himself—did the old man misjudge him? Why does it feel like... this Akaseki is a bit annoying? He's a typical Uchiha!

However, although Jiraiya seemed irreverent, he was still very responsible; otherwise, he wouldn't have been the only one "drafted" by Sarutobi. Especially since this was his first time acting as a jonin instructor, he didn't lose his patience due to some subjective opinions.

Soon, Jiraiya led them to the roof of the school, where they could just see the Hokage Rock.

"Don't just look at me, look at these carvings on the stone... what do you see?" Jiraiya asked, somewhat rhetorically.

When Akaseki saw the portrait of Tobirama Senju in the middle, his heart couldn't help but tremble—although he wasn't yet certain why the Third Hokage and Jiraiya were pretending they weren't the ones using the genjutsu, and even doubted if it was them at all, Akaseki still felt that the genjutsu must have been the work of the Second Hokage.

"Are they... the people we respect the most?" Akaseki asked cautiously.

Jiraiya: ...

Well, he wasn't a very typical Uchiha; a typical Uchiha wouldn't be this flexible!

However, Jiraiya still nodded and said, "That's not wrong. Not to mention Sarutobi-sensei who just became Hokage..."

"The First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, was the founder of our Konoha and the founder of the current era of ninja villages! Back in the chaotic Warring States period, when the First Hokage said he wanted to 'cease fire,' everyone thought he was crazy... but in the end, the war really stopped. The First Hokage not only established Konoha but also planted the seeds of peace!"

Akaseki felt a bit uncomfortable hearing this—if he remembered correctly, didn't our Uchiha clan have something to do with that too? If it weren't for our Uchiha clan and the Senju clan joining forces...

So, Akaseki spoke up indignantly, "Exactly! And Madara Uchiha almost ruined the big picture. I've long felt that his Uchiha surname should have been stripped!"

Jiraiya, Minato Namikaze, and Ranwu: ...

They all felt he was being sarcastic, but... Akaseki had indeed just awakened his eyes because he was angered by Madara Uchiha, so it was hard to say he didn't really think that!

For a moment, Jiraiya felt a bit embarrassed and added, "You can't put it that way. Madara Uchiha was also a founder of Konoha. Without the Uchiha clan, there wouldn't be a Konoha... it's just that Madara Uchiha's ideology had some problems later on... hmm."

"After him was the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju. After the First Hokage passed away, the peace of the ninja world was already precarious. It was Tobirama-sama who, time and again, prevented wars through diplomatic means and founded the ninja academy, allowing the younger generation to grow up safely..." Jiraiya continued.

"This fire of Konoha is never burned by one person alone; when the previous person burns out, the next person picks it up... Where the leaves of Konoha dance, the fire also burns on... What you need to do in the future is not to become statues, but to become the wind that makes this fire burn brighter!"

Clap, clap, clap—

Akaseki timed the pause perfectly and offered enthusiastic applause.

Seeing that the little blond boy and the little white-haired girl remained unmoved, Akaseki couldn't help but sigh—commoners are just commoners! Unlike our Uchiha clan... we often listen to the elders speak, so we have a thorough grasp of when to applaud!

This was Jiraiya's first time as a jonin instructor and his first time saying such things to his juniors. He was already doing it against his better judgment, and now, being applauded by Akaseki, he felt even more embarrassed...

"Ahem, next, let's do some self-introductions... I'll go first. You should know me already. My name is Jiraiya, a jonin of Konoha. My hobbies are reading and appreciating, and my ideal is... to protect this village forever! Hmm, and become a bestselling author by the way! Hahaha..." Jiraiya set the example.

Akaseki didn't know if he was becoming neurotic from the previous genjutsu, but he felt that Jiraiya's "reading and appreciating" didn't sound very serious, and... weren't those two ideals of yours a bit too contradictory?

This time, Jiraiya didn't give Akaseki a chance and pointed directly, "Minato-kun, you go first."

"My name is Minato Namikaze. I am... a genin who has graduated from the ninja academy and is waiting to receive my headband. My hobby is all kinds of food, and my ideal... is to become the Hokage!"

Pfft—

A mere commoner, what good food could he have ever eaten? And wanting to become Hokage... even our Uchiha family hasn't produced a Hokage!

Akaseki, who was snickering, was glared at by Jiraiya.

Immediately after, Ranwu also spoke up: "My name is Ranwu, a genin who has graduated from the ninja academy and is waiting to receive my headband. I am interested in history, and what I hate... is those ninja clans in the village who act like tyrants!"

Upon hearing this, Akaseki looked at Ranwu in astonishment and couldn't help but interrupt, "You can't say it like that, right? Not all ninja clans are like that... After all, with the Military Police Force established by our Uchiha clan, most ninja clans don't dare to go too far."

Jiraiya, Minato Namikaze, and Ranwu: ...

Feeling Akaseki's sincerity, the three of them were even more speechless.

Ranwu took a deep breath to calm her emotions and said, "My dream... is to become a ninja as great as my grandfather!"

"Your grandfather is also a ninja? Great... is he a jonin? Is his surname Ran?" Akaseki asked suspiciously.

Even if she were a mere commoner with no experience, she should at least be at the "jonin" level to be called "great," right?

Ranwu: ...

The First Hokage, Hashirama-sama, once advocated that major ninja clans should no longer use their families as barriers to form small cliques and should mingle with commoners... To lead by example, he convinced Tobirama, and after Konoha was established, all children born into the Senju clan had no surnames, just like commoners!

It wasn't exactly a secret, but Ranwu never specifically mentioned "my Hokage grandfather" at school, nor did she act special...

Although some people in the Uchiha clan knew, no one had specifically warned Akaseki!

"Ahem, Ranwu's grandfather is actually the Second Hokage, Tobirama-sama." Jiraiya felt that this wasn't exactly classified information, and teammates shouldn't keep secrets from each other.

Upon hearing this, Akaseki immediately revealed a look of horror...