What Kind of Hokage Are You?

Konohagakure.

Half a month passed in a blur. Hiruzen Sarutobi and his companions, travel-worn and covered in dust, finally appeared at Konoha's gates.

"We made it back alive." Torifu Akimichi let out a long breath, the tension easing from his shoulders.

"But sensei, Danzo and Kagami, they're both..." Utatane Koharu's eyes filled with tears, grief written across her face.

"Enough, Koharu. We can't let grief consume us. The three of them lived by the Will of Fire. Now isn't the time to mourn. We must get word back to the village as quickly as possible." Hiruzen cut her off, his expression grave.

"It's Jonin Sarutobi and his team!" A gate guard recognized the four at a glance and hurried over.

"Jonin Sarutobi, you're back! Where's Lord Hokage?" asked the puzzled guard, Kazuki Kamizuki.

"Sorry, Chunin Kamizuki, but we have urgent news to report. We can't stop here. You'll hear the rest in due course." Hiruzen gave him no direct answer.

He walked straight past the two chunin on gate duty, and the four entered the village. Gentle morning light spread across Konoha's streets. People came and went, going about their ordinary lives.

An old man called out beside his dango stall, its sweet aroma drifting on the breeze;

Children chased one another through the streets with imitation kunai, their bright laughter rising and falling.

Ninja went about their business. Several genin crouched in small groups by the roadside, sharing dumplings and pausing now and then to argue over which jutsu was better.

"I heard the Second Hokage went to the Land of Lightning for peace talks. Once he returns, the war should be over, right?"

"Those people from Kumogakure are ruthless. What if something happens to him and his party?"

"What's there to worry about? The Shadow Guard is protecting Lord Hokage. They're among the village's finest ninja."

Wind chimes outside a general store in the village center rang softly in the breeze. Villagers gathered at the entrance, chatting about the war and the state of the village.

This peace is what makes Konoha my home. I'll do everything I can to protect their smiles. Looking at the villagers' untroubled faces, Hiruzen made a silent vow.

The four of them stood out, and villagers soon stopped to watch.

"Look! Aren't those jonin from the Shadow Guard? They're back!"

"That's Jonin Sarutobi! He made it home!"

"The stocky one is Jonin Torifu from the Akimichi Clan, isn't he?"

"Jonin Utatane and Jonin Mitokado are here too..."

"Wait, why are there only four of them? Where's Lord Hokage?" a villager suddenly called out.

"That's right! Where's Lord Hokage? What happened to the other Shadow Guard jonin?"

As the questions swelled around them, the four lowered their heads, their expressions darkening.

Once they had passed through the noisy crowd, Hiruzen suppressed his surging grief and said evenly, "What's done is done. Grief won't help us now. We need to notify the major ninja clans and summon every jonin still in the village to the Hokage Building!"

"Torifu, notify the Ino-Shika-Cho Clans. Koharu, find the other jonin. Homura, go to the Hyuga Clan. I'll pay my respects to Lady Mito first."

"Hold on, Hiruzen. Aren't we notifying the Uchiha Clan? Kagami was one of them..." Mitokado Homura frowned, unable to understand.

"Not yet. Their position is already delicate, and sensei remained wary of them throughout his life. Leave this to me. I'll make other arrangements." Hiruzen cut him off.

For a moment, Hiruzen carried something of a Hokage's authority. His tone left no room for argument.

In the heart of Konoha stood an old Japanese-style mansion, solid and unadorned.

Its walls were built from dark brown timber on blue-gray stone foundations, with layers of deep indigo roof tiles along the top. Bronze bells hanging from the eaves swayed in the wind, giving off faint, scattered chimes.

The estate made no show of grandeur, yet it held the weight and dignity of decades.

Deep inside, a woman sat cross-legged on a plain cushion in a quiet room. Her red hair was pinned high, and she wore a simple kimono.

Paper strips covered in intricate seals hung from the hairpins on either side of her head. A diamond-shaped mark like a ruby rested in the center of her forehead.

She sat on the tatami with her eyes closed. Then hurried footsteps approached.

"Come in."

Mito Uzumaki spoke before anyone could knock. She had already sensed her visitor.

"Yes, Lady Mito." A young woman's respectful voice came from outside.

The wooden door slid open, and an attendant in a pale kimono bowed as she stepped inside.

"Any news of the Hokage?" Mito opened her eyes and looked at the attendant.

As soon as word of Kinkaku and Ginkaku's rebellion at the peace talks reached Konoha, Mito had sealed off the information. Apart from a few senior ninja, most clans and ordinary villagers knew nothing of it.

Mito was deeply worried. Konoha was the home her husband, Hashirama, had built with Madara Uchiha. After Madara abandoned the village and Hashirama died, Tobirama had borne its burdens alone.

If Tobirama had fallen in the ambush, what would become of Konoha?

And there was another matter—

Who would become the Third Hokage?

If Tobirama had died, who should succeed him? Should she choose someone from the Senju Clan, hold an open selection, or pick one of his students?

The news of Tobirama's ambush weighed on Mito like a boulder.

At least she had kept it quiet. Otherwise, Konoha might already have been in turmoil. Weariness flickered in her eyes.

The village still held plenty of cunning survivors from the Warring States era. Not one of them would be easy to deal with.

Mito pushed the tangle of thoughts aside.

As Hashirama Senju's wife and the Nine-Tails' Jinchūriki, she had to protect the village her husband had poured his life into building. Konoha had to endure!

"Lady Mito, news has arrived!"

"The Second Hokage stayed behind alone to secure the village's future and hold off Kinkaku and Ginkaku's pursuers."

"And before the others withdrew, he passed the Hokage Position to his student, Hiruzen Sarutobi."

Another attendant hurried into the room and delivered the report.

Mito took the letter she brought, grief spreading across her face.

"He stayed behind alone..."

"Of course you did. You brothers were both complete fools."

She knew Tobirama well. Cold and rational on the outside, always weighing costs against benefits, he loved this land just as deeply as his brother had.

He had inherited his brother's will. Though he knew his life was more important to the village, he had entrusted its future to the younger generation without hesitation.

What she had not expected was for him to choose Hiruzen. She had once asked Tobirama whom he intended to name as his successor.

Tobirama had given no clear answer, but he had favored the steady-tempered Hiruzen.

Danzo was hard-hearted, with deep darkness hidden inside him. His methods resembled Tobirama's too closely. In Tobirama's eyes, Konoha did not need a ruthless ruler. It needed a gentle leader.

Torifu Akimichi and the other students lacked the qualities needed to serve as Hokage.

As for Kagami Uchiha, he was one of the few Uchiha who truly cared for the village. Tobirama had even considered that making Kagami Hokage might heal the long-standing rift between the Uchiha Clan and Konoha.

But after Madara Uchiha's defection, Tobirama had come to believe the Uchiha Clan's emotions were too easily stirred. He had not dared place such a burden on Kagami.

"Lady Mito, Lord Tobirama's student requests an audience."

"Oh? They're back already? It must be Hiruzen. Bring him in."

A short while later, Hiruzen followed the attendant into the quiet room and stood before Mito.

Seeing the grief on her face, he lowered his eyes. "Lady Mito, sensei..."

"I already know, Hiruzen. Why did you come alone? Where are the others?" Mito asked, puzzled.

"I sent them to notify the major ninja clans, apart from the Uchiha Clan, and the jonin who remained in the village," Hiruzen replied quietly.

"That was a mistake, Hiruzen. Kagami Uchiha was your comrade, and the Uchiha Clan is part of Konoha. Excluding them will only deepen the tension between them and the village." Displeasure entered Mito's voice.

"Lady Mito, Kagami died in battle. Danzo didn't make it back either..."

After Hiruzen told her everything, disbelief filled Mito's face. "What? How could Tobirama make such an arrangement? Kagami Uchiha was one of the few in his clan devoted to the village. After this, relations between the Uchiha Clan and Konoha will only grow more strained..."

"Are you all right, Lady Mito?" Hiruzen asked quickly.

"What's done is done. Regret won't change it. We'll go to the Hokage Building at once and announce the Third Hokage's succession. The village must remain stable." Mito steadied herself as she spoke.

The Hokage Building.

The meeting hall felt stifling, a world away from the lively streets below.

Clan leaders and jonin filled the seats along both sides of a heavy wooden table. Though they sat in orderly rows, few spoke.

The head of the Hyuga Clan sat quietly, occasionally glancing toward the door;

Beside him sat the Uchiha Clan's representative, the hardline elder Uchiha Setsuna. His face was cold, his mouth shut, his half-lidded eyes sharp as a hawk's.

The other clan representatives either lowered their eyes in thought or exchanged scraps of news from the front in hushed voices;

The jonin sat straight-backed, unable to hide the worry in their eyes.

Only wind slipping through the window cracks and the faint rustle of turning pages broke the silence.

They were all waiting for Hiruzen Sarutobi: the Second Hokage's student who had escaped the disaster and could tell them what had truly happened at the peace talks.

About half an hour later, a group entered the hall.

Mito Uzumaki led them, her expression solemn. Hiruzen walked close beside her, with Torifu Akimichi, Mitokado Homura, and the others alongside them;

Several Senju jonin followed behind. Their faces were somber and their brows lowered. As they entered, the weight of their mood seemed to settle over the entire hall.

"Lady Mito is here."

"Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others are back. Then Lord Hokage really has..."

The ninja murmured among themselves, questions rising on every side.

"So they finally showed their faces. Hmph. Let's hear how they intend to explain themselves!" Uchiha Setsuna scoffed from his seat.

"Quiet," Mito said from the front of the hall.

As the current head of the Senju Clan and the Nine-Tails' Jinchūriki, she was the pillar holding Konoha steady. Her words carried weight.

"Hiruzen will tell you what happened."

Hiruzen stood, straightened his Shinobi Flak Jacket, and spoke in a grave voice. "Everyone, the latest news is that the peace talks in the Land of Lightning have failed. Kumogakure's Kinkaku and Ginkaku launched a rebellion at the meeting, and the Second Raikage died there. A large force of Kumogakure ninja then pursued us. Jonin Shimura Danzō and Kagami Uchiha fell in battle. Lord Hokage stayed behind to cover our escape. He remains in the Land of Lightning, and we do not know whether he's alive or dead!"

"What?"

"How could Lord Tobirama have ended up in such danger?"

"Danzo..."

"Kagami!!!"

"Damn Kumogakure. We should never have trusted them so easily."

"Is the Second Hokage still alive?"

A harsh shout suddenly rang out from the crowd. "Hiruzen Sarutobi, you're a coward! Lord Hokage was surrounded, and you, his Shadow Guard, abandoned him and fled back to the village?"

Uchiha Setsuna, who had sat motionless until now, shot to his feet and challenged Hiruzen.

The hall erupted. Arguments, cries of shock, and furious accusations overlapped. Fists clenched, and grief and anger burned in many eyes.

A vast surge of Chakra burst from Mito. Threads of crimson light flickered around her, and the crushing pressure silenced the hall.

"Hmph!"

"Uchiha Setsuna, sit down."

Setsuna stiffened. His hawklike eyes turned icy, his fists clenched tight, and his face darkened. Mito Uzumaki thinks she can intimidate me with her power? What does she take me for?

"Everyone, in accordance with Tobirama's final wishes, Hiruzen Sarutobi will succeed him as Konoha's Third Hokage," Mito continued.

The hall erupted again.

"What? Hiruzen Sarutobi?"

"Why should a man who abandoned his leader and ran away become Hokage?"

"He's still so young. Can he really shoulder that responsibility?"

The cutting questions kept coming. Hiruzen's face grew paler, and his fists slowly tightened. He was about to defend himself when—

A cold, ringing voice filled the hall.

"The Second Hokage's fate is still unknown in the Land of Lightning, and you want to hand Konoha to a man who abandoned his leader to save himself? I will never accept it!"

"And since when did Konoha become the Senju Clan's private property? How can you decide among yourselves who takes on the responsibility of Hokage? Can you face Lord Hashirama, the First Hokage, after this? I spit on it!"

"And you, Hiruzen Sarutobi—what gives you the right to become Hokage? Running away while your superior stayed behind? The handful of people in the Sarutobi Clan? Look at yourself! Find a mirror and take a good look! What about you is worthy of a Hokage?"

"Your teacher hasn't been avenged. The threat at our border remains. And now you come here to tell us you're taking over as Hokage? Ha! What kind of Hokage are you?"

With that, Uchiha Setsuna fell silent and fixed Hiruzen with an icy stare. Several Uchiha beside him nodded in agreement. Across the hall, arguments broke out once more among the clan leaders and jonin.