From the Sky (Happy New Year)

"No one understands the Will of Fire better than I do!"

Konoha.

Standing atop ruins piled high with debris, Sarutobi Asuma spoke loudly.

Below him, quite a few villagers and shinobi had gathered, listening to Asuma's words with thoughtful expressions.

It couldn't be helped.

He was the Hokage's Son. Maybe some of the things he said were the will the Hokage wanted to convey?

Fortunately, no one asked Asuma. Otherwise, he would definitely have told them that wasn't true at all.

Well.

It had started when Fugaku wanted to strike back at the Old Village Chief, and his general, Uchiha Satoshi, had been the first to offer his opinion.

Simply using villagers to spread rumors would have a negligible effect on Lord Third during wartime.

Rumors needed to be mixed with some real information to become credible, and the person spreading them needed a certain status as well.

Thus, the Hokage's second son naturally entered Uchiha Satoshi's sights.

After a brief period of contact, Uchiha Satoshi discovered that the kid was easier to fool than he had imagined.

Of course, it was also possible that he already had an opinion about his own father, which was why he so readily accepted certain theories.

Among them were the Will of Fire and the reason his father did not go to the battlefield.

"Where the leaves of Konoha dance, fire burns on endlessly. The firelight will continue to illuminate the village and allow new leaves to sprout."

Asuma grew more animated as he spoke. He brought up the view his father had summarized, then offered a Different Opinion.

"That's complete bullshit!"

The villagers below erupted in an uproar, staring at the Hokage's Son in shock and confusion.

"Think about it. If all the leaves have been burned away by the fire, how are they supposed to sprout? With love? I believe the Will of Fire is an extension of this theory!"

Asuma spoke with a grave expression.

"All leaves must serve the Flame. Only then can the Flame burn more fiercely! More abundantly! Once the Flame becomes strong enough to sweep across the entire Shinobi World, Konoha will be invincible!"

"But the problem now is that our Flame has gone wrong!"

The Hokage's Son pointed toward the Hokage Building with sound reasoning, his face full of grief and indignation.

"He's practically gone out! He can't even light you up, you know?!"

"As the Hokage, he doesn't even dare go to the battlefield! What kind of logic is that? Is he worthy of being Hokage?"

Awesome!

The villagers below were collectively dumbfounded.

Everyone gave Asuma a thumbs up in admiration.

That metaphor was truly awesome.

Even Uchiha Satoshi and Uchiha Fugaku, who were observing in secret, nodded.

"This kid actually makes a lot of sense. How did you educate him?"

Fugaku was clearly very satisfied with his subordinate's work, but he had yet to ask exactly How to Do It. He had merely ordered them to make an issue of the Old Village Chief not daring to go to the battlefield.

"Simple. We brought out more of Young Master Itachi's theories and used the Sharingan to guide him a little. He figured it out himself. In fact, this subordinate investigated the Hokage's Son. He has never gotten along well with Third and often argues with him at home. They even debated what was Most Important to the village."

"We merely gave things a push. We had someone carry Young Master Itachi around and spend more time with Asuma, then let them have a good talk."

And then Asuma's thinking went off course?

Was his son really that destructive?

Uchiha Fugaku was clearly a little surprised, but he was also very pleased with this.

"Uh, forgive this subordinate for speaking out of turn."

Uchiha Satoshi pondered for a moment before cautiously offering his opinion.

"This subordinate believes some of Young Master Itachi's ideas are detrimental to our clan's development. He even tends to think about problems from the Hokage's perspective. This subordinate believes that is a dangerous sign and that you should guide him."

That was right.

Even at such a young age, Itachi God already possessed some destructive power. Just one Set of Theories had made Asuma dare to openly oppose his father. Once he grew up, he would definitely be extraordinary.

"It doesn't matter. He is Uchiha after all."

As for his son's Education Issues, Fugaku felt there was no major problem. He even thought it was a good thing that his son was more mature. There was no need to rush things.

How old was Itachi? There was absolutely no need.

Uchiha Satoshi shook his head and said nothing more. After all, this was the Clan Head's family matter, and it would not be appropriate for him to interfere.

Looking up, Asuma in the distance had clearly gotten carried away.

His intelligence had yet to fully develop. He was only a child around ten years old. According to the True Man's Handbook, children would be forgiven no matter what they said, so there was no need to hold back!

"Why doesn't my dad dare to fight the Raikage? If I were Hokage, I'd definitely charge into battle and Give a Demonstration for my brothers!"

"But my dad has no intention of going to the battlefield at all. As his son, I'm deeply ashamed!"

"However, there's only one reason for it!"

Asuma took a deep breath.

"He's scared!"

"He's afraid of losing to the Raikage and embarrassing himself!"

Bullshit!

Whoosh!

A Figure fell From the Sky. As the fully swung Slap struck his face—

With the scenery flying backward in his eyes and that twisted face he saw before losing consciousness, Asuma fully experienced the heavy fatherly love coming from his dad.

With a single slap, the Old Village Chief instantly knocked out his own son!

This Palm Technique from the Sky fully demonstrated that he had the strength to face the Raikage head-on!

The scene was shocking.

Only when they saw Asuma smash into a wall did many villagers and shinobi recover from their shock.

Although they had seen the Old Village Chief take action during the Nine-Tails Attack, he had relied more on Enma: Adamantine Prison's characteristics back then. It was nowhere near as direct as watching him beat his son now. This was pure taijutsu!

And that speed just now was probably even faster than the Raikage's rumored Lightning Release Chakra Mode!

Worthy of the Old Village Chief!

But—

"Lord Third, do you really not intend to go to the battlefield?"

Finally, after a certain "honest" villager spoke up, everyone looked at Third Hokage with expectant eyes.

In their view, even if the Old Village Chief used half the strength he had used to beat his son, he should be able to instantly defeat the mere Fourth Raikage, right? If that happened, far fewer people in the village would die.

"Cough."

Sarutobi's expression stiffened. He cleared his throat and briefly organized his words.

"This old man is not someone who fears death. Everyone saw that clearly during the Nine-Tails Attack."

Back then, he had dared to swing Enma and confront the Nine-Tails head-on, which naturally proved he was not afraid of being killed by the Nine-Tails.

Or perhaps it was more accurate to say that he had sufficient confidence in his ability to protect himself.

After all, Sarutobi was a contradictory person. If he found himself in a Desperate Situation with no hope of escape, he also had the resolve to summon his courage and Fight Desperately.

"However, this old man cannot easily go to the battlefield. The Land of Fire is surrounded by powerful enemies. If there is no strong Kage to Guard the Rear, it would be easy for others to launch a sneak—"

The Old Village Chief was under no small amount of pressure, but he still brought out the explanation he had prepared.

Unfortunately, Fugaku had prepared very thoroughly this time.

Before he could finish, whispers had already begun below.

"Doesn't the village have the Uchiha and Hyuga Clans protecting it?"

"Yeah, with the Hyuga and Uchiha Clans working together, could anyone really break in? Unless the First came back to life."

"So in the end, Lord Third still doesn't dare go to the battlefield."

"..."

Outrageous!

Sarutobi, Sweating Profusely, clenched his fists.

These ignorant fools did not understand anything at all!

It was precisely because the Uchiha and Hyuga were in the village that he could not go to the Front Line!

Who knew whether, after he went out and came back, he would still be the Hokage?

To put it bluntly, it was still a Historical Issue. No one could guarantee whether the Uchiha Clan, with the support of the Hyuga Clan, would dare to launch a coup!

Even if the Uchiha Clan was not stupid and knew that launching a coup at a time like this would only mean being purged once the main forces returned, the Old Village Chief simply did not dare to gamble!

He did not have the courage to control the Uchiha.

Thus, at a time like this, the Old Village Chief was more inclined to listen to his teacher's words.

"That clan is full of madmen! Back then, they even wanted to invite the Hyuga Clan to launch a coup together."

"Monkey... keep a close eye on them for this old man!"

Good!

The Old Village Chief was Sweating Profusely.

In the outskirts of Konoha, at the Hyuga Clan's new territory, the Hitoshi Clan Head withdrew his sharp gaze and turned toward the gathered Hyuga Clan elites.

He memorized every face, then took one step forward!

"Ascend to Heaven to Worship Ancestors!"

Happy New Year, everyone!!!