If He Doesn't Become Hokage, Who Will?

"The question of taking power..."

Shikaku felt a headache coming on.

How could he not understand what Choza Akimichi had just said? He hadn't been wrong at all.

If Bai Ye had come to power through normal means, there wouldn't have been any problem.

An Uchiha couldn't become Hokage?!

As far as Shikaku was concerned, there was nothing wrong with it.

After all, the Uchiha were part of Konoha too.

The changes over this period had also made Shikaku realize that perhaps he really had held some prejudice against the Uchiha before.

If he set that prejudice aside and looked at the Uchiha objectively...

They really didn't have that many problems.

But the stain of killing the Hokage was still there.

Even if the two of them had said beforehand that the battle would settle their personal grievances and involve nothing else...

Could it really have no bearing on anything else?!

That was impossible!

Just as Choza Akimichi had said, once this happened, it would give rise to something terrifying.

If killing the Hokage meant you could become the next Hokage...

Would other people do the same?!

That really could happen. Perhaps while Bai Ye was still in his prime, everyone else would be able to suppress that impulse.

But once Bai Ye, or any other Hokage, reached the same stage Hiruzen Sarutobi had...

Would someone step forward and become Hokage through the same means?!

It wasn't impossible!

Struggles for power were always cruel.

And that was the biggest problem, one they couldn't avoid.

"But is it possible that, going by what Bai Ye himself said earlier, this doesn't actually count as a stain on his record? They were backed into a corner, after all..."

Inoichi Yamanaka didn't really feel that this was such a terrible thing.

Suppose he stepped outside this framework.

And looked at the matter from the perspective of an ordinary family in Konoha.

He arrived at one conclusion.

This didn't really count as a stain on their record.

Ultimately, the Uchiha had already been backed into a corner.

With so many examples laid out before them, no one could blame them for choosing to take direct action.

"I think so too. The main thing is, who could put up with all that happening to them?!"

Choza Akimichi nodded in agreement. He felt the same way.

From the Sharingan on Danzo's arm and that Wood Release arm...

They could tell exactly what those people had been doing behind the scenes.

"Then I think perhaps this isn't something we need to worry about."

Shikaku took a deep breath, then spoke slowly.

He seemed to have backed himself into a dead end just now.

After hearing what the other two had said, he suddenly came to his senses. Why was he overthinking this?!

It seemed there was no need for him to worry so much right now.

Since Bai Ye had already decided to do this, he must have considered how to resolve this issue.

After saying that, he noticed the looks in the other two men's eyes and explained, "It's actually quite simple. If Bai Ye becomes Hokage now, there may be some lingering problems.

"But as things stand, Bai Ye is strong enough to keep the current situation under control. Putting him in power would at least let us rally the Uchiha's fighting strength in the short term, and Bai Ye himself is enough to keep the other villages from acting rashly.

"At the very least, everyone would think twice before making a move.

"Now, suppose Bai Ye doesn't take power. If the village wants to find a new Hokage, it'll have to choose between Tsunade and Jiraiya.

"I think Tsunade is the more likely candidate, but with one side being Senju and the other Uchiha...

"There could be some problems. On top of that, Hiruzen Sarutobi was the Sannin's teacher, so I don't think this is very likely.

"Still, if both sides could resolve that issue, and Tsunade or Jiraiya returned to become Hokage...

"Then Konoha would gain another powerful fighter stationed here permanently. That would also make the other villages wary!"

Shikaku laid out all his speculation in one go.

As he saw it, there were only two choices.

One was for the Uchiha to take power directly.

In that case, Bai Ye would undoubtedly be the first choice for Hokage.

As for the second option, it was far too unlikely.

The Uchiha had always wanted to become Hokage, and this was the closest they had ever come.

How could they give up this opportunity?

Of course, that still depended on the villagers supporting the Uchiha.

Although they now had enough strength to suppress opposition, a Hokage who came to power through force probably wasn't what they wanted either.

So, with the Third Hokage dead, the situation seemed likely to become even more unpredictable.

Anything could happen next.

"All we can do now is wait. We should hear something tomorrow!"

Shikaku pondered for a moment before speaking slowly.

In his view, they probably wouldn't have to wait long.

News would come soon.

A decision on this matter had to be made quickly.

Whether the Uchiha wanted the position of Hokage or intended to let someone else take it, sooner or later there would have to be a plan.

But...

The Hokage was formally appointed by the daimyo. If the Uchiha chose to take power now, would the daimyo agree?!

After all, they would be taking power after killing the previous Hokage.

But if he refused, given how the Uchiha were, would they go straight after the daimyo?!

Although such things virtually never happened in the Shinobi World, and everyone observed that unspoken understanding...

These were the Uchiha!

And Bai Ye, at that!

Shikaku no longer dared to try to understand Bai Ye's thinking through conventional logic.

He always felt that Bai Ye looked at certain things from a completely different angle than he did.

Wouldn't the daimyo end up suffering too?!

Of course, he only entertained the thought. He didn't dare speculate any further!

Bai Ye had even killed the Hokage. Wasn't it possible he would kill the daimyo too?!

And undercurrents were already stirring within the village.

Until a conclusion was reached, no one could say for certain what would become of Konoha.

Within the Uchiha Clan.

Although they had killed the Hokage, an eerie silence had now settled over the clan.

The Uchiha were usually rather arrogant.

But at a time like this, they also understood clearly that once certain things were done, everything truly changed!

Now that the Hokage was dead, what were they supposed to do next?!

All at once, they felt lost.

Inside the meeting room.

The three elders, Uchiha Hui, Uchiha Setsuna, and Uchiha Huo, looked at Bai Ye seated directly opposite them, their hearts filled with emotion.

Although Hiruzen Sarutobi had been killed, this was far from over.

"What should we do next?!"

Uchiha Hui looked at Bai Ye.

He truly hadn't expected to have the chance to witness this in his lifetime.

Now, Bai Ye only needed to rally them, and the Uchiha would give him their full support in taking power.

How long had it even been...?

If he remembered correctly, Bai Ye hadn't been in charge for very long at all. When Bai Ye became the Uchiha Clan Head, he hadn't actually expected much of him.

As long as he did better than Fugaku and fulfilled half his promises, that would have been enough.

After all, the Uchiha's situation back then had felt like a stagnant pool to Uchiha Hui.

No matter who took over, the final result might have been nothing more than the difference between dying out sooner or later.

In every other respect, Uchiha Hui hadn't held out much hope either.

But what Uchiha Hui hadn't quite expected was that, in the end, Bai Ye had not only done what he had promised...

He had even exceeded it.

He had truly never imagined the Uchiha could have everything they had now.

Today, they had originally gone to reclaim the Uchiha Clan Compound that rightfully belonged to them.

Good grief!

Before negotiations had even begun, Bai Ye had already taken the fight to Root.

"Next, we'll deal with Root first. Kill every member still loyal to Danzo. They're all threats."

The Anbu were somewhat better, but many members of Root had essentially been brainwashed since childhood.

Although Bai Ye had already purged Root once...

Some members still remained. They were all potential threats, and Bai Ye couldn't simply ignore them.

"We know. Shisui has already led a team out to take action!"

Shisui had personally led the team.

After everything Danzo had done, Shisui had finally seen things clearly.

Besides, Bai Ye really did seem to have resolved the Uchiha's problems this time.

Naturally, Shisui was more than willing to do this.

Since Danzo's death, unrest had already broken out within Root.

Naturally, it needed to be suppressed.

But Uchiha Hui and the others weren't particularly concerned about that. Right now, what mattered most was what came next between Konoha and the Uchiha.

How should they handle it?

Had Bai Ye already thought it through?

"Do we have any other choice?!"

Bai Ye gave Uchiha Hui a somewhat helpless look.

They had already reached this point, and he still harbored unrealistic hopes?!

Once they had done this, there had been no turning back.

"Exactly! We've already come this far. What are you still hesitating over?!"

Hearing Bai Ye say that, Uchiha Setsuna immediately lost all ability to contain his excitement and spoke up at once.

What a joke!

What was there to hesitate over now?!

Earlier, he hadn't actually been sure what Bai Ye was thinking.

That was why he hadn't spoken, but now that he knew Bai Ye intended to take the next step, he could no longer hold himself back.

Even if he himself wasn't becoming Hokage, having an Uchiha become Hokage was definitely a good thing!

Beside him, Uchiha Huo said nothing, tacitly agreeing with Bai Ye.

Ultimately, in the past, he would have hesitated just like Uchiha Hui.

But now, they had already done all this. There was no room for regret.

Hesitating at this point would be an insult to the fruits of their victory!

"I just think the village's other ninja clans won't support us right now!"

A trace of helplessness crossed Uchiha Hui's face.

Even if he had always belonged to the Middle Faction, he wasn't an idiot. Of course he understood what was happening now.

Good grief...

He had only said that because he thought there was a chance the other ninja clans wouldn't support them.

Why did listening to those two suddenly make it sound as though he opposed the whole thing?

He supported it.

But this wasn't something they could accomplish so easily!

After all, before long, Konoha and even the entire Shinobi World would know that Bai Ye had killed the Hokage.

Under those circumstances, would people really support them?!

That... didn't seem certain at all, did it?!

In fact, this was precisely why the Uchiha's current position was somewhat awkward.

"Why think so much about it?! Other than us Uchiha, who else can become Hokage now?!"

Uchiha Setsuna immediately lost his composure.

Seriously?!

They had already reached this point, and he was still worrying about all that nonsense!

Now, apart from their Uchiha Clan, could any other ninja possibly become Hokage?!

So what if he had a stain on his record?!

Didn't Hiruzen Sarutobi have stains on his own record?!

Aside from the First and the Fourth...

There was no way anyone could claim they couldn't find a single problem with the Second or the Third!

So, in Uchiha Setsuna's eyes, Bai Ye was absolutely suited to becoming Hokage!

He didn't think anyone else was more suitable than Bai Ye.

"Tomorrow, write up an accurate account of all this, but don't publish it yet. Wait until after tomorrow's meeting to release it. We might end up adding some information at the last minute!"

"Don't release it?! Is there another operation tomorrow?! Should we gather the Uchiha and prepare to move?!!!"

The moment Uchiha Setsuna heard Bai Ye's words, he could barely contain himself.

Judging by Bai Ye's demeanor, had he already prepared some special operation?

Was that why he wanted to hold off on publishing today's events?!

Although they probably couldn't keep what had happened today under wraps anyway. Those who needed to know had likely already heard, and might even have begun discussing countermeasures.

"There's no operation. The other ninja clans won't fight us again. The dust has settled... Tomorrow, I'll discuss the matter of the Hokage with everyone!"

Although his rise to power might lead to plenty of trouble down the line.

It no longer mattered.

Now that he had the strength, he wouldn't let the Shinobi World remain this way. Such a tiny Shinobi World, yet it contained so many countries and villages. He would unite them all!!!

So it didn't really matter how he came to power.

As long as he could unify everything afterward, there would naturally be people to justify his actions.

For now, he only needed to take this step.

Besides, the system still hadn't reacted. It was probably waiting for the final tally.

"Father, I heard the Clan Head killed the Hokage. Is that true?!"

After classes ended at the Ninja Academy, Sasuke rushed home.

He had heard a horrifying piece of news at the Ninja Academy.

Bai Ye had actually killed Hiruzen Sarutobi.

"Even you know about it now?!"

Uchiha Fugaku murmured to himself, an indescribable feeling welling up inside him. Even Sasuke knew about it. It seemed most people in the village had probably already heard.

He had no idea what to do!

That Bai Ye...

He really had acted with lightning speed, resolving the Uchiha's problems in an instant.

But now that the Uchiha's problems were solved, what about the village?!

With Konoha suddenly losing a Hokage and a considerable portion of its fighting strength.

The other villages were probably itching to make a move.

If this ended up triggering the Fourth Shinobi World War...

Could Konoha really withstand it?!

He didn't know whether Konoha could bear the consequences.

But Bai Ye had indeed done better than he had. If it had been him, he probably would have simply waited to die, wouldn't he?!

"Father, what is our Uchiha Clan going to do now?! And what about my big brother?!"

Sasuke was still a child, after all.

How could he not panic after learning that the Uchiha had killed the Hokage?!

"You don't need to worry about this. The Clan Head will handle it."

He was no longer the Clan Head.

As for Itachi...

Uchiha Fugaku was puzzled as well. By all rights, Itachi should have finished his mission and returned by now. Besides, with something as momentous as the Hokage's death, why hadn't he seen Itachi?!

Where had he gone?!