Hokage, How Could It Be Such a Narrow Dream

But Kawaki Aoba was right about one thing: Konoha was too strong, so strong that any other ninja village would strike without hesitation the moment they found an opportunity to weaken it.

So, as for this Third Shinobi World War...

Sarutobi Hiruzen's thoughts drifted far away, back to the beginning of the Second Shinobi World War. He remembered how suddenly that war had broken out; even his teacher hadn't realized it would erupt so quickly.

Sarutobi Hiruzen pulled his thoughts back. He admitted that he had been persuaded by this little guy, even feeling the urge to order the stockpiling of war supplies right now.

But he knew he couldn't do that. As Hokage, he had to consider every aspect of Konoha.

Forget it, he would call Danzo and the others over to discuss it later. And that kid, Nara Shikaku—he should hear his opinion as well.

As for the little guy in front of him.

After a moment of contemplation, Sarutobi Hiruzen had already made his decision.

"Ahem, your name is Aoba, right? The village will take your analysis seriously. Furthermore, your thinking is quite profound; to be able to consider issues from the perspective of the Hokage at such a young age is truly remarkable."

Kawaki Aoba: ...

What the hell? Is this line meant for me? I have a strange feeling that the star of death is shining over my head.

If he couldn't genuinely sense a faint trace of goodwill from Sarutobi Hiruzen, Kawaki Aoba would have thought this old guy was jealous of his talent and wanted to make him famous in the ninja world before Uchiha Itachi.

Wait, speaking of Uchiha Itachi, it wouldn't be bad if he could take his script. When the time came, he would carry two Watermelon Cutters and hack his way from one end of the Hyuga Clan's street to the other, cutting down everyone he didn't like—especially a certain old immortal; he would have to mince that one into paste.

As for the rest, he would leave them to Sarutobi Hiruzen to deal with; he believed the old man would be more than happy to do so.

Ahem, alright, he was overthinking it. There was no way such a thing could happen.

However, facing the Hokage's praise, Kawaki Aoba appropriately showed his humility: "Lord Hokage, you are overthinking it. I am just an ordinary Konoha ninja; this is simply what I should have done."

"Hmm?" Now it was Sarutobi Hiruzen's turn to be surprised. The thinking of this kid in front of him was truly profound.

Setting down his pipe, Sarutobi Hiruzen asked with apparent interest: "Then Aoba, what is your dream?"

In Sarutobi Hiruzen's view, Kawaki Aoba, who could be called a genius in terms of both talent and wisdom, should be a person with grand ideals. He wouldn't be surprised even if the boy's goal was to become Hokage or a high-ranking official in the village.

But to Sarutobi Hiruzen's surprise, Kawaki Aoba's subsequent answer was completely unexpected.

"A dream, huh." Kawaki Aoba turned around and "looked" at Yuhi Kurenai behind him. Although he had no eyes, the feeling was as if he were staring right at her.

"Rather than a dream, I prefer to call it a hope." As he spoke, Kawaki Aoba began counting on his fingers: "First, I want to become stronger, carry out more missions, strive to be promoted to Jonin within ten years, resolve the troubles on my body, save up more money, and then propose to the girl I like."

"After that, get married and have children, watch my kids grow up day by day, go to the ninja academy, graduate, become a Genin, and then I can successfully retire and enjoy my twilight years. I'll collect a pension every month, walk around the village when I have nothing to do, chat about life with familiar people, and reminisce about the glorious years of the past..."

Sarutobi Hiruzen's mouth twitched; he wanted to interrupt Kawaki Aoba's rhythm several times.

At the same time, he began to doubt reality. Was this little guy really only ten years old? How was he already considering pension issues? Did ninjas even have such things?

Could this kid be from the Nara clan?

If not for the previous Byakugan incident, Sarutobi Hiruzen felt he would have needed to have the Nara clan head come over to verify the lineage.

"Ahem, Aoba, don't you think it's a bit of a waste for a genius like you to live such an ordinary life?" Seeing that Kawaki Aoba was already considering where he would be buried after he died, Sarutobi Hiruzen hurriedly interrupted:

"Many of your peers have the goal of becoming Hokage. Have you never considered that?"

"Hokage?" Kawaki Aoba scratched his head, his tone becoming somewhat heavy: "No matter how I think about it, becoming Hokage is too far away for me. It's better to keep my feet on the ground."

"Besides, we are all contributing to the village, so isn't it the same everywhere? There are always things that someone has to do. The Hokage has the responsibilities of a Hokage, and ordinary ninjas have their own places to shine. In my view, regardless of rank, an ordinary ninja's love for the village is not necessarily inferior to that of the Hokage."

"Where the leaves dance, the fire also burns. The fire will continue to illuminate the village and allow new leaves to sprout."

"Konoha belongs to everyone—whether it's the Hokage, ordinary ninjas, or the villagers. Everyone's final destination is the Will of Fire."

"As long as one has a heart that protects Konoha, aren't we all doing the work of a Hokage?"

"How could the Hokage be such a narrow dream?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen: ...

He had already forgotten how many times he had been shocked by this little guy today.

A heart that protects Konoha! Doing the work of a Hokage!

How could the Hokage be such a narrow thing!

At this moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen actually felt he saw the light of fire in Kawaki Aoba.

Was this the purest will in that child's heart?

Such remarks made an old man like him feel ashamed.

For a moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen was very glad that Kawaki Aoba had lost his sight; otherwise, he doubted he would be able to avoid the gaze of those eyes filled with the radiance of the Will of Fire.

"Aoba, you are very good, truly very good. In you, I see the purest Will of Fire."

Please keep this original intention and strive forward. Let this old man see just how far you can go.

"Kurenai, although your squad's mission failed, considering that you eliminated an elite squad from Sunagakure during the process, it can be considered that your merits offset your faults. This record of failure will not be entered into your ninja files."

"Furthermore, the intelligence you brought back regarding Sasori of the Red Sand and Sunagakure is also very important. I will count this as the completion of an A-rank mission."

"In addition, the performance of Genin Aoba in this mission was extremely outstanding. In the name of the Hokage, I will reward him with a jutsu from the Scroll of Seals."

With that, Sarutobi Hiruzen concluded the assessment of the four's mission. At the same time, he began to consider which jutsu from the Scroll of Seals would be best for Kawaki Aoba.