In front of the Konoha Hokage building.
A massive crowd had gathered below, with tens of thousands packed into the plaza before the Hokage building, all excitedly gazing up at the rooftop.
No matter how busy they were, every villager made time for this special day — the passing of the torch from the Third to the Fourth.
"Move a bit! You're blocking my view!"
"Everybody, stop shoving!"
"I heard the new Fourth will be Jonin Minato Namikaze!"
"That's great news! Jonin Minato... no, I should say the Fourth will definitely lead Konoha into even greater prosperity!"
On the rooftop, high-ranking jonin stood lined up in a row.
Before them, the Third and the Fourth faced each other solemnly.
"Konoha is in your hands now, Fourth," said the Third. He removed the Hokage hat from his head and handed it over to Minato.
"Yes. I dedicate my life to this duty!" Minato accepted the hat reverently and carefully placed it on his head before stepping forward.
Looking down at the sea of people below, Minato himself was deeply moved. "From this moment on, I will be the Fourth Hokage who carries the fate of Konoha. No matter whether the path ahead is filled with thorns or paved with honor, I will always lead you forward!"
A brief silence fell below before it erupted into thunderous cheers, crashing like ocean waves.
"Long live the Fourth!"
"Lead us forward, Hokage-sama!"
"Minato, you've really achieved your dream!" Kushina's eyes softened as she recalled Minato boldly declaring his ambitions on his first day of class — back when she had just transferred to Konoha.
As she marveled inwardly, she turned apologetically toward someone beside her. "Seiki, actually you're the one who should have been the Ho—"
Seiki interrupted with a smile. "Sister Kushina, you should have more confidence in Aniki Minato. Just look at these happy faces — doesn't this prove the Third Lord made the right choice?"
In the joyful sea of smiles, Orochimaru stood expressionless, glancing at the back of the Third's head with complex emotions. "Malice and ambition... so that's how you see me, *sensei*?"
Then those serpentine eyes grew colder. "If I don't become even worse than you expect, wouldn't I be letting you down, *sensei*?"
"Minato, I'm proud of you!" Jiraiya's heart swelled with pride — but beneath that joy, a shadow of worry crept in. "Are you truly the prophesied savior mentioned by the Great Toad Sage? The existence of a savior also implies an unimaginable catastrophe is coming!"
Far away, beneath the shadows of a large tree,
a man clad entirely in black robes carved five jagged claw marks into the bark with his bare hand. "You always showed up late. Yet somehow you reached the Hokage seat faster than anyone. Hmph, what bitterly ironic timing."
Black Zetsu emerged cautiously from the tree trunk. "Can we leave now?"
He didn't want to remain for another second while Shimaseki was nearby.
That guy's sensor abilities are way too sharp — what if he senses us?
Obito glanced contemptuously at the "consciousness form" Madara had deliberately left behind. "Pathetically cowardly trash. So this is the essence of Madara Uchiha's subconscious?"
Thinking about this, the reverence and fear he once held for his ancestors gradually faded away.
"Let's go!" After giving Konoha one last glance, Obito unhesitatingly left through a Spatial Vortex.
"Huh! That was close!" Black Zetsu had no idea that his actions had damaged Madara Uchiha's reputation. Seeing Obito disappear, he quickly fled as well.
...
The grand celebration of the Hokage succession lasted three full days before finally ending.
It wasn't just a celebration for the Fourth Hokage's ascension, but also an opportunity to commemorate the end of the war.
When everything returned to normal, the new leadership received their first diplomatic mission following the reorganization.
Right now, inside the Hokage building.
Minato held a document while giving several awkward-looking individuals a strange look, "The Raikage wants me to go?"
Dodai chuckled nervously, "This document was written before the Raikage knew about your succession as Hokage. Also, didn't it mention Jonin Seiki too?"
Minato instinctively declined, "Seiki is the Hokage Advisor—we can't possibly send him out at random."
"How could it be random?" Dodai corrected, "This is an important diplomatic task to restore normal relations between Konoha and the Cloud Village after the war. During such a historic moment, naturally someone as significant as Jonin Seiki should represent us!"
Minato couldn't help but smile slightly before asking someone beside him, "Seiki, what do you think?"
Seiki, who had been organizing documents nearby, smiled, "They've flattered me so much I'd feel bad refusing. Alright then, let me finish handling my current work before I join you guys."
Dodai coughed twice, "What hasn't been completed can be handed over to others instead. Restoring official diplomacy properly is more important!"
Looking suspiciously at Dodai, Seiki said, "You're in such a hurry—surely you haven't set up a trap there planning to surround and kill me? After all, during the war, I took down more than a few from the Cloud Village!"
Though Minato doubted any ordinary person would stoop to such tactics, considering the Raikage was far from ordinary, he grew serious. "Is the Hidden Cloud trying to start another war?"
Dodai's mouth twitched. What kind of person did they think the Raikage was? Even if they occasionally acted recklessly, there was no way they would do anything this irresponsible!
Knowing the Hidden Cloud's reputation was already shot in their eyes, Dodai decided honesty was his best bet. "Besides restoring diplomatic relations, we do have a small favor we'd like Jonin Seiki's help with."
"That sounds more like how the Hidden Cloud operates!" Seiki nodded knowingly. "Go on, what specifically is it?"
Dodai sighed, "To put it simply, the seal you placed on Yugito during that Chunin Exams four years ago conflicts with her existing seal. We hope you can remove that seal!"
"What? You haven't removed that seal yet?" Seiki asked innocently.
He certainly knew this sudden complication had been deliberately triggered by himself.
"Ah... Haha. It's true—we're not exactly experts in sealing techniques around here," Dodai laughed awkwardly while maintaining politeness.
The Sealing Technique was fundamentally different from other types of ninjutsu. Without the proper Sealing Release technique, even someone with immense power might not succeed in breaking it.
It was like trying to force open a lock—failure could result in the lock being permanently jammed.
"Oh! Got it!" said Seiki, glancing at Minato with a questioning look. "So then…?"
He had pulled away Cloud Village's veil of shame, though not with the intent to humiliate them.
Mainly, he considered the complex and sensitive state of people's minds so soon after the war's end. Helping Cloud Village lift the seal on an important combat ability could easily invite suspicion or rumors.
By bringing it up now, he intended for Minato, as Hokage, to deliver the final word on the matter.
Minato, unaware of Seiki's deeper motives, paused briefly before nodding in agreement. "Since the war has already ended, there's no need for excessive hesitation. Let's treat this as a sign of Konoha's goodwill!"
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