Personal instruction

Xia Yan had guessed correctly. To some extent, the identity he had revealed had indeed earned him a measure of acceptance from Minato Namikaze.

But Xia Yan knew very well that this acceptance was extremely limited.

He was even more aware that his actions might, to some extent, provoke Minato Namikaze's displeasure, or even be seen as a sign of ulterior motives.

In fact, Xia Yan would not have found it strange at all if Minato Namikaze thought that way.

After all, if he himself were faced with someone like Xia Yan, who kept his distance while passing ambiguous information to him through Kakashi,

who also left many things unexplained, concealed his exact identity, and harbored a certain hatred toward the Third Hokage and his group,

he would be wary of such a person approaching him, let alone Minato Namikaze.

Minato Namikaze was no fool. He was indeed kind and bore goodwill toward the people of the village.

But he was, after all, someone who had fought on the battlefield for so many years and faced crisis after crisis. Had he been foolish, he probably would have died on the battlefield long ago.

So what Xia Yan needed to do now was manage his approach to Minato Namikaze carefully and prevent this matter from taking a turn for the worse.

He still had his sights set on Sealing Jutsu and the Flying Thunder God Technique. If something like this sent their relationship straight into a downward spiral, Xia Yan would lose out badly.

"I imagine you must have many questions right now, Lord Hokage."

Xia Yan's voice remained exceedingly gentle as he slowly removed his mask, revealing his face.

Taking off his mask to face Minato Namikaze was also a gesture of openness.

"Yes, I have many questions."

Minato Namikaze nodded earnestly.

"Xia Yan, I'm actually very curious. What exactly were you thinking when you asked Kakashi to pass those words on to me?"

"Actually, I hadn't thought that much about it. If I had a choice, I wouldn't dare meet you, Lord Fourth, much less want to."

Xia Yan sighed softly, looking somewhat helpless, while his words brought a rather odd expression to Minato Namikaze's face.

"Actually, Lord Hokage, you should be able to sense that your orders simply can't get through, shouldn't you?

"Leaving everywhere else aside, even within the Anbu alone, many of the orders we receive come from Lord Third rather than you, Lord Fourth.

"So, Lord Fourth, if it weren't truly necessary, I wouldn't dare come to see you."

Xia Yan spoke sincerely, leaving that faint helplessness fully on display, while Minato Namikaze's expression grew somewhat strange as he listened.

Naturally, he knew all this, but hearing it from an Anbu member dealt Minato Namikaze an even greater blow.

The Anbu were an important force for a Kage, no matter the village. Yet now, his control over the Anbu as Kage was actually close to zero. How could Minato Namikaze feel good about that?

And it was not just the Anbu over which he had no control. Shikaku Nara, the head of the Administrative Affairs Department, treated him very respectfully.

He would also follow his instructions to prepare all sorts of analytical materials, turning them into documents and administrative orders awaiting issuance.

But while they waited, he would also choose to notify the Third Hokage, or Shimura Danzō and the others.

To put it plainly, he did indeed hold the title of Hokage now, but he had none of a Hokage's actual authority!

"Then, Xia Yan, why did you make this choice?"

Taking a deep breath, Minato Namikaze's expression grew somewhat stern, and even his voice sounded a little cold.

"You know my current situation. So did you come to see me and tell me all this because you wanted me to turn against Lord Third Hokage? Or perhaps..."

"No, no, no. Lord Fourth, you've misunderstood."

Xia Yan immediately interrupted Minato Namikaze. He absolutely could not take the blame for that.

Even if he did have certain ideas, he would never admit them.

"Lord Fourth Hokage, if you turned against Lord Third Hokage, leaving aside whether you could win,

"the impact of that happening alone would be impossible to predict for Konoha!"

Since he had no intention of admitting it, he would appeal to emotion and reason in his analysis. Xia Yan's expression did not change in the slightest, and he maintained his gentle smile.

"The war has only just ended, and Konoha is very weak as well. If something like that happened now, it would be terrible.

"Though I must admit one thing: as a member of the Senju Clan, I do indeed hope the Third Hokage loses his power completely.

"But as a member of Konoha, and especially as an Anbu member, I know all the better what choice I should make."

After saying this, Xia Yan spoke no further, but his sensory perception continued to "watch" Minato Namikaze at every moment.

Although Minato Namikaze was looking at Xia Yan expressionlessly, Xia Yan clearly sensed that he had now breathed a sigh of relief.

This told him he had passed the first hurdle. As long as he cleared that most troublesome first hurdle of establishing trust, what followed would be considerably easier.

"In that case, why did you still seek me out, Xia Yan?" Only after a long silence did Minato Namikaze sigh softly. "I don't believe you did it for Sealing Jutsu, nor do I believe you did it for Kakashi. Be direct. Perhaps then we can continue this conversation."

"Indeed, taking such a great risk to meet you, Lord Hokage, certainly wasn't for any simple reason." Xia Yan smiled and nodded. "Actually, you should have already guessed my first reason, Lord Hokage."

"Guessed it?" Minato Namikaze frowned, then suddenly said earnestly, "The Flying Thunder God Technique?"

"Yes." Xia Yan lowered his head to look at the scroll on the ground and said calmly, "My first objective is to learn the Flying Thunder God Technique."

Minato Namikaze nodded. He had indeed guessed that Xia Yan wanted to learn the Flying Thunder God Technique, because the fact that this young man could activate the Flying Thunder God Cursed Seal already said a great deal.

And he was a member of the Senju Clan. There was nothing strange about his knowing of this technique and wanting to learn it.

"I understand." Minato Namikaze nodded. "What else?"

"Besides that, I also hope you can win, Lord Fourth Hokage." Xia Yan spoke very calmly, his voice still exceptionally gentle. "As a member of the Senju Clan, I believe you understand our thoughts, Lord Hokage."

He hopes I can win?

Minato Namikaze looked at Xia Yan calmly. He had indeed just thought of a great many things.

What Xia Yan represented now was probably no longer just himself, but the Senju Clan, wasn't it?

Hoping he could win meant hoping he could defeat the Third Hokage and reclaim the authority that belonged to the Hokage.

Was that how the Senju Clan could once again take the stage of power in Konoha?

Minato Namikaze gazed at Xia Yan, hoping to see something different in his eyes.

Unfortunately, Xia Yan remained gentle and calm, as though no other emotions existed.

"How do you hope I'll win?" After a long while, Minato Namikaze suddenly asked.

"By becoming the true Hokage without turning against him or causing any harm to Konoha." Xia Yan immediately gave the most proper answer.

"Is that so?" Minato Namikaze asked gravely. "Is that what your Senju Clan thinks?"

"No, these are my own thoughts." Xia Yan shook his head. "I haven't reported back, because some people within the Senju Clan..."

Xia Yan stopped there, while Minato Namikaze nodded lightly. There were extremists everywhere. That was nothing strange.

What puzzled him somewhat, however, was whether Xia Yan could represent the Senju Clan.

After a long while, Minato Namikaze suddenly gave a bitter laugh inwardly. What difference did it make whether he could represent them?

Given his current situation, what could he do anyway?

Raising his head, Minato Namikaze gazed at Xia Yan and finally made a decision.

"I understand, Xia Yan. From now on, I hope to receive more intelligence about the Anbu and Konoha's internal affairs that I have no way of learning, but that you can access."

"No problem, Lord Hokage."

"Besides that, I will personally teach you the Flying Thunder God Technique. I hope you can master it."

"Yes, Lord Hokage... huh?"

Personal instruction?

Wait, why not have Kushina teach me Sealing Jutsu first?