I Have a Dream

"Lady Tsunade, was it the Third Hokage who wanted me dead?" Obito asked after lying down once they entered the room.

Tsunade remained silent. The conflict between the Uchiha clan and the village leadership had existed since the day the village was founded, but the First Hokage had used his immense strength and charisma to command the loyalty of everyone in the village, including those clansmen who did not leave with Uchiha Madara.

By the time of the Second Hokage, Tobirama held a deep-seated prejudice against the Uchiha clan. He conducted extensive research on them, including human experimentation! He believed the Sharingan was a power of evil and that the Uchiha were born wicked! The wariness toward the Uchiha clan shifted from the shadows into the light.

During the era of the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Konoha leadership's stance toward the Uchiha shifted from strategic containment to strategic elimination! They were bent on wiping out the Uchiha clan, but fearing that a conflict would compromise the strength of Konoha, the Third Hokage kept hesitating and waiting for the right opportunity, while Danzo, Homura, and Koharu were the hawks.

In the original story, it wasn't until they encountered that naive fool Itachi and the mentally unstable Obito that the two of them joined forces to exterminate their own clan, with the only bargaining chip for the Konoha higher-ups being the survival of Sasuke.

One has to say, that line of reasoning was bizarrely unique. A normal person could never do such a thing.

As the granddaughter of the First and a student of the Third, Tsunade could not agree with the actions of the leadership, yet she lacked the power to change them.

The Konoha of today was no longer the one from the First Hokage's time. The Senju clan had been scattered, leaving her with nothing but a prestigious name. Her younger brother had died on the battlefield, and now, Tsunade was the only true Senju left. Feeling truly disheartened, she had spent these years running away.

"Big Sister Tsunade, do you have a dream?" Obito asked.

"A dream? Of course I do. When I was a child, my dream was to inherit my grandfather's mantle. Later, it was to find my Prince Charming. Now, I just want to go out and travel, to see what kind of different scenery this world has—beyond ninjas and war, what else is out there?" Tsunade sat on the floor, hugging her curled-up knees, and spoke softly.

"Hmm, in a way, our dreams have some things in common," Obito said, staring at the ceiling.

"Oh? And what is the dream of a little brat like you?" Tsunade turned her head to look at Lu Ming.

"Me? I want to create a world without war. A world where children can be accompanied by their parents every day, eat breakfast made by their mothers in the morning, and then go to school happily.

Adults can stay by the side of the ones they love every day, working hard together, getting married, and raising children. The elderly can have their children and grandchildren by their sides every day, enjoying a peaceful twilight. Nations no longer view each other as enemies—a world of Great Harmony!" Obito said earnestly.

"Great Harmony?" Tsunade asked, puzzled.

"Yes, it means that all the nations and peoples of the world share a common goal. For the sake of this goal, everyone can cast aside past hatreds and animosity. To unite and work hard for this common goal! That is Great Harmony."

Obito's words were a massive shock to Tsunade. People in the ninja world were deeply entrenched in the system of one village per nation; how could the hatred accumulated over generations be so easily cast aside? Every village was stained with the blood of others! Great Harmony... this brat, he really dared to think big.

"Then you must want to become Hokage, too?" Tsunade asked.

"No! I don't want to be Hokage. One village, one shadow—that cannot change the world! The hatred between ninjas will never disappear. I want to be the one who changes the world!"

"You..." Tsunade was so shocked she didn't know what to say. This brat who followed her around every day drinking and gambling actually wanted to be the one to change the world? That was something even her grandfather, the First Hokage, hadn't achieved!

"Hehe, Big Sister Tsunade doesn't believe me? Dreams, after all, are things you have to spend your whole life striving for! Things that are easily achieved aren't dreams." Obito grinned.

"That's true. Then I'll be watching to see how you achieve your dream!" Tsunade said with a rare gentleness in her tone.

"Good! That's our promise. If I can do it, will you agree to be with me?"

"Haha~ Alright, it's a deal. I'll be waiting for that day. If you succeed, I'll agree to it. Now, you're still injured, go to sleep," Tsunade said. The dim room hid her slightly reddened face... Could it be that this brat had been planning this for a year, intentionally getting close to her?

Just now, while treating his wounds, she didn't know why she had superimposed Obito's image onto Dan's. Tsunade realized her feelings for this brat had changed. It wasn't that she had suddenly fallen in love with Obito, but rather a soul-deep bond felt more appropriate. She couldn't clearly define what kind of emotion it was, but from this moment on, he was an important person in her life.

Tsunade tucked Obito in and left the room.

Obito sighed inwardly, suddenly feeling a bit despicable. No, no! I can't think like that. I'm doing this to ensure she is happier in the future!

After Tsunade closed the door, her expression turned terrifyingly gloomy. Only then did she exude the aura of one of the Sannin.

"Bang!" The door to the Hokage's office was kicked open by Tsunade! The door shattered into pieces and scattered across the office.

The Third Hokage was still smoking his pipe while reviewing documents; he had heard her coming when she reached the door.

"Why did you do it?" Tsunade slammed her hands onto the Hokage's desk and demanded loudly.

"Why what? Is this how I taught you? Not sleeping in the middle of the night, coming here to throw a tantrum—did you lose at gambling again, or are you just drunk?" the Third Hokage said, looking up.

"Hmm? You mean you didn't send someone to my house to assassinate Obito? Then that means it was that old bastard Danzo!" Hearing the Third's words, Tsunade felt as if she had received the news she most wanted to hear, and the heavy stone in her heart fell. Her teacher still had a moral bottom line...

Danzo sent people to her house to assassinate? Tsunade's words also gave the Third a start; Danzo was acting more and more thoughtlessly! It seemed he still didn't understand what I meant by doing one's job properly! Foolish Danzo, with that intellect of yours, you will never become Hokage!

"Just now. Old man, I don't care what you usually do, but don't lay a hand on the people around me! If something like what happened to Dan happens again, I will absolutely, absolutely not let you off!" After giving the Third Hokage a stern warning, Tsunade left.

The Third watched Tsunade leave, his expression calm, only puffing on his pipe one breath after another. Before long, his face was obscured by thick smoke, and no one knew what he was thinking.