The Beacon of the Ninja World - Konoha

Over the next few days, after the Five Great Ninja Villages had settled on the general direction, they began negotiating the specific details. The conference room was filled with red-faced arguments, table-slamming, and stubborn refusals to yield as everyone battled with words.

The attendants from the other four great ninja villages, meanwhile, wandered around Konoha.

Hozuki Sakuya, a ninja escort from the Hidden Mist Village, stood before a public book kiosk along a Konoha street. She noticed many pamphlets inside, each bearing the title Hokage Quotations on its cover.

Curious, Hozuki Sakuya picked one up and opened to the first page, where she saw a line written prominently—

"Where the leaves of Konoha dance, the fire shall burn unceasingly."

What followed were the Hokage's everyday speeches.

"Is this the Will of Fire?"

After reading the Hokage Quotations, Hozuki Sakuya felt an indescribable strength within them. The Hidden Mist Village had a Mizukage as well, but unfortunately, the Mist had no Will of Water.

After finishing the Hokage Quotations, Hozuki Sakuya spotted another book on the shelf beside it—How Konoha Was Built. Author: Uchiha Yan.

"Written by Konoha Kirin?" Hozuki Sakuya had heard that name before. The entire ninja world knew that Konoha had an Uchiha Yan, one of the Uchiha Three Heroes—powerful, resourceful, Konoha's brilliant strategist, and even more so, the architect of Konoha's soul.

She picked up the book and began turning through it page by page.

The more she read, the less she could stop.

The book not only introduced the original purpose behind Konoha's founding and explained the bond between Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama, but also described in detail how the Senju and Uchiha had set aside their thousand-year feud. When she read how Hokage Uchiha Madara had been willing to commit suicide in order to dissolve that hatred, even Hozuki Sakuya, an outsider from another village, grew tense.

The book also discussed Konoha's system of three ministries and six departments, whose purpose was to divide authority, restrain the Hokage's power, and establish that "the Hokage stands beneath the law." In particular, when Hozuki Sakuya read Uchiha Yan's speech, I Have a Dream, she felt as though her whole being had been elevated. How could one person possess such a magnificent dream? As she read, she murmured the words aloud:

"Life is the most precious thing a person has. Each person lives only once. A person's life should be spent like this: when looking back upon the past, he should feel no regret for wasting his years, nor shame for having accomplished nothing; so that at the moment of death, he can proudly say: I have devoted my entire life and all my strength to the most magnificent cause in the world—to fight for the liberation and peace of the ninja world. Fight! Fight!"

"We are the successors of the Will of Fire, inheriting the glorious spirit of our forebears. Love Konoha, love our comrades, march bravely onward, let our blazing faith light our way..."

A burst of childish singing drifted over from the street corner.

Hozuki Sakuya looked up and saw a young boy standing by the roadside, singing.

Sarutobi Hiruzen, Shimura Danzo, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu were the leading members of the Konoha Academy Children's Choir.

Their task that day was to sing in Konoha's streets and serve as junior tour guides, allowing visitors from other villages to experience Konoha's culture and the Will of Fire. The four of them had split up to perform along different streets in the village.

Hozuki Sakuya walked over.

"Kid, what song are you singing?"

"What do you mean, kid? I'm a successor of the Will of Fire. Please call me Little Maple Leaf!" Shimura Danzo proudly lifted his chin.

"Little Maple Leaf, then what is the name of this song?"

"This song is called We Are the Successors of the Will of Fire. My teacher wrote it."

"Who is your teacher?"

"Speak my master's name, and you'll be scared stiff! My master is one of the Uchiha Three Heroes, Konoha Kirin, Konoha's architect of souls, the Minister of Revenue—Uchiha Yan!" Perhaps Shimura Danzo had learned it from Uchiha Yan, but every time he introduced his teacher, he had to go on at great length.

"So it's him. He really is impressive." Hozuki Sakuya grew increasingly curious. How could this person be so extraordinary? He could do everything—brave and wise, capable not only of writing books but also songs.

"That's nothing. My teacher has written lots of songs!"

"If you want to know about my teacher's deeds, there's a statue on Konoha Street with his life story written on it. I'll take you there." Shimura Danzo led Hozuki Sakuya toward it, taking on the role of a little tour guide.

"I'm telling you, my teacher also wrote songs like Konoha Is One Family, My Konoha, and Konoha and Me." As he spoke, Shimura Danzo began humming on the spot.

"A great tree, thick and strong, its lush branches casting cool shade. Konoha takes root beside green mountains, while village youths train with swords and spears..."

Once he finished the song, Shimura Danzo showed off, "Nice, right? That song is called My Konoha."

"Little Maple Leaf, then sing Konoha and Me too." This was Hozuki Sakuya's first time receiving such a peculiar baptism in village-loving culture, and she found it especially refreshing.

"This one is even better. It's the anthem of the Konoha Youth League. When I grow up, I want to join the Konoha Youth League too."

"Konoha and me, never apart for even a moment.

Wherever I go, I leave behind sparks of hope..."

Shimura Danzo's childish singing rang out.

"We're here! This is my teacher's statue."

Looking at the one-story-tall statue of Uchiha Yan, Hozuki Sakuya hurriedly asked, "Little Maple Leaf, why is this statue so strange? Why is the sword blade curved?"

"You don't understand, do you? This is called 'Swords into Plowshares.' The Uchiha are a ninja clan with great love. My teacher hates war and loves peace, so he wanted to forge swords into plowshares!"

"So that's how it is. How remarkable." Hozuki Sakuya's admiration for Uchiha Yan flowed on without end like a surging river.

At that moment, an image emerged in Hozuki Sakuya's mind—an architect of souls with ideals and conviction, moral sentiment, a compassionate heart, and a belief in peace.

"Little Maple Leaf, what's your name?"

"My name is Shimura Danzo! I'm my teacher's finest student!"

Elsewhere, Sarutobi Hiruzen was also singing on the other side of the village. Compared to Shimura Danzo, though, Sarutobi Hiruzen's outfit was even more unusual—he was cosplaying his own teacher, wearing Sharingan contact lenses.

As his teacher's finest student, Sarutobi Hiruzen felt that he ought to display Uchiha culture and spirit. Beside him, Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura were also dressed up as the Hokage and Uchiha Izuna.

"We are the successors of the Will of Fire, inheriting the glorious spirit of our forebears..."

The ninja from the other villages found it novel as they watched Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others sing. As the strongest ninja village in the ninja world, Konoha was its standard-bearer and beacon. These escort ninja had come to Konoha to learn from it and imitate it.

After finishing a verse, Sarutobi Hiruzen felt proud to be one of Konoha's people. He puffed out his chest and sang with even greater vigor.

His father had said that this Five Kage Summit was an excellent opportunity for Konoha to showcase itself, and that children like them were Konoha's finest calling cards.