We love and respect you!

During the last class of the morning, Junji Ito suddenly clapped his hands, signaling for everyone to quiet down.

His expression was at least two notches more serious than usual.

"Everyone, stand. Lord Third Hokage has arrived."

The classroom erupted.

The six-year-olds scrambled to their feet, chair legs scraping across the floor.

Minato Namikaze's eyes shone astonishingly bright. Shikaku Nara actually opened his eyes for once, and even Jiro Matsumoto straightened his back, as though ready to rush forward and pledge his loyalty.

Amamiya Maki stood along with everyone else, somewhat surprised.

In the original story, Hiruzen Sarutobi had only started visiting the academy frequently after he grew old, constantly making his presence felt, practically wishing every student would call him Grandpa Sarutobi.

But at this point in time, he was in his prime and perfectly healthy. He had still made time to visit the academy?

On second thought, though, it made sense.

The elderly Hiruzen Sarutobi visited the academy to feel relevant. The middle-aged Hiruzen Sarutobi visited to scout promising talent.

One had a retiree's mindset; the other thought like a man still in office. They were entirely different things.

The classroom door swung open.

Hiruzen Sarutobi walked in.

He wore his signature Hokage Robe, a conical hat sitting neatly on his head and a pipe held between his lips, its smoke drifting slowly upward in the sunlight.

His entire bearing radiated the composure of a man at the peak of his life.

"Hello, students."

His voice was not loud, but everyone in the classroom heard him clearly.

"Hello, Lord Hokage!"

The whole class answered in unison.

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded in satisfaction and swept his gaze across the classroom.

It lingered briefly on Minato Namikaze, then on Shikaku Nara, before finally settling on Amamiya Maki in the back row.

"Amamiya Maki."

Amamiya Maki's heart skipped a beat.

"I personally read your essay."

A quiet murmur spread through the classroom.

Minato Namikaze turned to glance at him, a complicated look in his eyes.

Jiro Matsumoto, meanwhile, stared wide-eyed, his face practically screaming, Why him?

Hiruzen Sarutobi ignored all of this and went straight into his commentary.

"That line you wrote, 'Taking command of a defeated army under the Second's misguided leadership, saving Konoha in its hour of peril,' was very well written."

His tone grew reflective.

"Those truly were difficult years.

"Lord Second passed away suddenly, leaving Konoha leaderless and surrounded by powerful enemies.

"I took up the responsibility in that crisis, but truthfully, I was far from certain I could succeed."

Amamiya Maki listened expressionlessly, thinking, Could you hurry it up, old man? Class is almost over.

"But later, you wrote about Konoha's prosperity today-people leave their doors unlocked at night, and no one pockets lost belongings.

"A flourishing world, brimming with life. That was not merely a reflection on the past, but a vision of the future.

"Each and every achievement is a fruit grown from the will of fire.

"For Amamiya Maki to understand the Third's accomplishments from this perspective shows that his understanding of the will of fire already far surpasses that of his peers."

Amamiya Maki's eyelids were beginning to droop.

It was not that he did not want to listen attentively. Hiruzen Sarutobi's speaking rhythm was simply identical to the lectures his superiors had delivered in his previous life.

First came a review of history, then an assessment of the present, and finally a vision of the future, with assorted self-praise and emotional flourishes sprinkled throughout.

He had heard this routine countless times in his previous life, yet here he was, listening to it all over again.

He could not suppress a yawn.

Only afterward did he realize how inappropriate it was. He quickly lowered his head and pretended to wipe his eyes.

He rubbed the corners of his eyes, wiping away the moisture squeezed out by his yawn.

Hiruzen Sarutobi happened to look his way.

From his perspective, Amamiya Maki had his head lowered, his fingers rubbing his eyes and his shoulders trembling slightly.

He looked exactly like a child moved to tears.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's gaze softened.

"It's all right, child. You don't need to cry."

Amamiya Maki's fingers froze.

"I felt the will of fire in your essay. You're a good child, and your father and mother would be proud of you."

There was a moment of silence.

Then Amamiya Maki reacted.

He abruptly raised his head, his eyes slightly red from rubbing, and began bouncing on the spot.

His arms flailed in exaggerated movements, as though he could no longer contain his excitement.

[Detected: Host has inflicted mental stress on "Hiruzen Sarutobi"

Pressure Points +25

Obtained: Clone Technique proficiency fragments ×5. Clone Technique synthesis progress: 25/60]

At the sight, the satisfaction in Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes deepened.

Standing nearby, Junji Ito had somehow developed red eyes as well.

He removed his glasses and wiped them, his voice catching. "So beautifully said, Lord Hokage... Amamiya Maki's reaction expresses what all of us teachers feel."

As he spoke, he too began bouncing on the spot.

"Hokage Sarutobi!"

Several other teachers promptly joined in.

"The strongest Hokage!"

"You're like a father to me!"

"We love and respect you!"

In an instant, everyone was crying.

The teachers cried, and the students followed suit. Even Jiro Matsumoto was wiping his tears with his sleeve, though whether he was genuinely moved or simply afraid of standing out was anyone's guess.

Shikaku Nara stood among the crowd, watching everything expressionlessly. The corner of his mouth twitched, but he soon joined in with a few claps.

Not because he was moved, but because standing out was too much trouble.

Looking at the scene before him, Hiruzen Sarutobi exhaled a long plume of smoke.

"All right, everyone. Stop crying.

"You're putting me in a difficult position.

"I became Hokage so that Konoha's villagers could live good lives, free from oppression, with no need for tears."

Amamiya Maki immediately stopped crying.

Not because he was moved, but because he truly could not squeeze out another tear.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's gaze settled on him again, a flicker of surprise passing through his eyes.

Instant obedience.

He had said to stop crying, and the child had stopped at once.

He truly did love and respect him as Hokage.

Hiruzen Sarutobi silently reached that conclusion.

At this point in time, most of Konoha's gifted ninja came from ninja clans:

The Senju, Uchiha, Hyuga, and Ino-Shika-Cho-the great clans held the finest bloodlines and secret techniques in their hands.

Promising children of civilian birth were exceedingly rare, and the occasional one who emerged would usually be absorbed into one of the clans.

But he preferred civilian prodigies.

For one simple reason: loyalty.

A prodigy born into a ninja clan owed loyalty first to the clan, and only then to the village.

Civilian orphans were different. They had no clan to rely on. Konoha was their only home, and the Hokage was their only parental figure.

With just a little nurturing, such people would become the staunchest inheritors of the will of fire.

Was Amamiya Maki's essay well written?

Yes.

But what mattered more was the attitude it revealed-absolute approval of the Third and wholehearted acceptance of the will of fire.

That was what he truly valued.

Hiruzen Sarutobi gathered his thoughts and spoke solemnly. "Building Konoha and securing its future requires talented people like you."

With that, he stepped down from the podium and began shaking the students' hands one by one.

When he reached Minato Namikaze, he patted his shoulder. "Your practical combat scores are excellent. Keep working hard."

A radiant smile spread across Minato's face. "Thank you, Lord Hokage!"

When he reached Shikaku Nara, he smiled. "Children of the Nara Clan always have good heads on their shoulders."

Shikaku nodded slightly without saying anything more.

When he reached Amamiya Maki, Hiruzen Sarutobi's hand lingered on his shoulder for an extra second.

"Amamiya Maki."

"Yes, sir."

"Keep up the good work."

The words were delivered calmly, but they carried considerable weight.

Amamiya Maki lowered his head and answered respectfully.

[Detected: Host has inflicted mental stress on "Hiruzen Sarutobi"

Pressure Points +15

Obtained: Fire nature transformation fragments ×3.

Fire Release Chakra: beginner (accumulated 3/30 toward proficient)]

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded in satisfaction, then turned and left the classroom.

A seed had already taken root in his heart.

Even if Amamiya Maki's talent proved unremarkable in the future, he would still elevate this child.

He would show every villager in Konoha that loyalty to Konoha and loyalty to the Hokage guaranteed bright prospects and a promising future.

Amamiya Maki watched the Third's figure disappear at the end of the corridor, the respectful expression slowly fading from his face.

Deep inside, he screamed, I want to get ahead so badly!

Meanwhile, in an office in the Hokage Building.

Shimura Danzō stood by the window, having taken in everything that had just happened.

He sneered.

"Putting on a show."

Danzo's voice carried undisguised contempt.

Hiruzen Sarutobi visiting students at the academy, shaking hands with orphans, delivering heartfelt speeches-to him, it was nothing more than an elaborately staged political performance.

Its sole purpose was to win hearts and consolidate his position as Hokage.

Still, he rather agreed with certain lines in Amamiya Maki's essay.

One did not gain recognition by becoming Hokage; one became Hokage by gaining recognition.

Danzo tapped his fingers against the windowsill.

That statement was correct.

To become Hokage, one needed prestige.

And where had Hiruzen Sarutobi's prestige come from?

He had stolen it from the four of them.

Back when the Second designated his Hokage successor, Danzo had hesitated for an instant, allowing Hiruzen Sarutobi to beat him to it.

Of course, in this version of the story, Danzo had selectively forgotten that the Second had intended to choose Hiruzen Sarutobi all along.

Because he refused to admit that his own momentary cowardice had cost him the position of Hokage.

[Detected: Host has inflicted mental stress on "Shimura Danzō"

Pressure Points +45

Obtained: Wind Release: Air-Palm fragments ×4

Air-Palm (B-rank Wind Release) synthesis progress: 4/720

Wind Release Chakra nature transformation: beginner (accumulated 12/90 toward proficient)]

Back in the classroom, Amamiya Maki was sprawled over his desk, savoring the spectacle that had just unfolded, when a string of system notifications suddenly appeared before his eyes.

He stared at the words "Air-Palm," momentarily stunned.

Danzo?

I've never even met him. How did I stress him out too?

And he had dropped four B-rank Wind Release fragments in one go, along with forty-five Pressure Points—even more than Minato's last time.

After two seconds of thought, Maki understood.

His essay being publicly praised by the Third had probably indirectly provoked a certain Darkness of Konoha lurking in the shadows.

After all, the one thing Danzo could never stand was Hiruzen Sarutobi stealing the spotlight-the happier the Third was, the more miserable Danzo became.

That counted as milking him from a distance.

One bootlicking essay had earned him the Third's appreciation, raised Danzo's Pressure Points, and netted him free Clone Technique proficiency and Wind Release fragments.

That was a massive win.

The dismissal bell rang, and the students packed up and headed out in twos and threes.

Nonō walked over to Amamiya Maki, glanced at him, and hesitated before speaking.

"Were you really crying in front of Lord Hokage today?"

Amamiya Maki stuffed his textbook into his bag without batting an eye.

"Of course I was."

Nonō stared at him for a few seconds.

She recalled what she had seen while standing in formation earlier-Amamiya Maki had lowered his head and rubbed his eyes, his shoulders trembling slightly. Then he had looked up with faintly reddened eyes and started bouncing on the spot.

Everyone had been moved, but she had felt that something was off.

Not because Amamiya Maki's acting was too poor. Quite the opposite-it was too good.

So good that every movement was perfectly timed, and his eyes were just red enough for Lord Hokage to notice without seeming exaggerated.

"Your eyes were red because you yawned, weren't they?"

Amamiya Maki's hand paused.

[Detected that the host has caused mental stress to "Yakushi Nonō." Stress +2. Obtained: Chakra Control fragment ×1.]

He turned to Nonō with an earnest expression.

"When did you learn to read minds?"

"From you."

Nonō picked up the medical handbook on the desk, the corners of her mouth lifting slightly, then turned and walked toward the classroom door.

Amamiya Maki watched her leave and slung his bag over his shoulder.

I let my guard down.

Next time, I'll have to get Nonō out of the way before putting on a show.

The girl had spent six years with him and knew his microexpressions better than the formulas for her own poisons.

Still, she hadn't exposed him on the spot, which meant she was on his side.

She would just look at him with that "I know you're acting, but I can't be bothered to say anything" look.