Actually, there was no need to wait for the Third to understand. Because Minato would go offline at the speed of light, and then the old man would return to office, and everything in Konoha would return to its former trajectory.
The only change would be that the Uchiha clan's situation within the village would become even harsher, and they would be even less favored by the higher-ups.
Which brings up the matter of the Nine-Tails' Rampage.
Time had already entered Konoha Year 51. At present, Uzumaki Naruto was most likely already happily undergoing cell division in his mother's womb.
In other words, there were still ten months left. The time remaining for Minato… was not much.
Megumi did not like it when the father and son discussed such matters. It instinctively made her sense a trace of danger.
Back when Jirō was still a chūnin, he liked to drink and discuss these topics with Yūya. But at that time, everyone was insignificant and of little influence, and the conversation never went too far—at most, they bragged a bit after drinking too much.
The most excessive period had been during the time of Hatake Sakumo's suicide a few years ago. But since many shinobi who knew the situation were discussing it then, no one paid much attention.
But now her husband was already a formal jōnin in the village. Every word and action represented the stance of their entire family, and what they were talking about was the dangerous topic of disagreement between the old and new Hokage.
This truly made her feel extremely insecure.
She glared at the two of them and said, "Enough. Eat properly. From now on, you are not allowed to talk about this kind of thing."
Sensing that the volcano at home was about to erupt, the father and son immediately lowered their heads and focused on eating.
Although the small alliance formed by the Higashino, Gekkō, and Uzuki families—huddling together for warmth—was regarded by others as a force aligned with the Fourth Hokage, Jirō was not worried about his family's future.
In the end, the shinobi world spoke through strength. As long as his son continued to grow stronger, and with several jōnin among them, no matter who sat in the Hokage's seat, they could not ignore this power.
Thinking of this, Jirō's mood suddenly improved.
As dinner was about to end, he suddenly said, "Oh, right, Megumi. We're going to Yūya's house for a gathering tomorrow night. After work, you don't need to come back to cook. Just go straight there."
"Got it!"
Makoto asked curiously, "Is tomorrow some important day, Father?"
"You'll know when the time comes!"
He made it quite mysterious.
...
The next day, after finishing an afternoon of training, Makoto went home, washed up, changed into clean clothes, and headed to the Uzuki residence.
While in Konohagakure, Makoto would not waste chakra to activate active perception. Passive perception was enough to ensure he would not be ambushed. The range was not very large, but it was sufficient.
So when he approached the courtyard of the Uzuki house, he immediately sensed an enormous chakra signature, on a scale far beyond any shinobi he had encountered before.
And accompanying that chakra was an even more powerful chakra source—vast as an abyss and the sea, and extraordinarily violent and active.
No wonder Jirō had been so mysterious yesterday. It turned out that an honored guest was visiting today.
In Konoha, after living there for ten years and possessing powerful sensory abilities himself, Makoto of course recognized those two forces. Aside from Uzumaki Kushina and the Nine-Tails sealed within her belly, who else could it be?
Worthy of the Uzumaki clan—her chakra reserves alone were terrifying.
And yet, with you being that damn formidable, how on earth did Uzushiogakure get wiped out back then? All one can say is that it remains one of the shinobi world's unsolved mysteries.
When Makoto reached the gate outside the courtyard, his keen ears caught the noisy chatter coming from inside.
Among it, one woman's voice was the loudest, giving people the impression she was blunt and easygoing.
"Wow, that's amazing! Sure enough, after handling it like this, the tempura comes out a golden color—looks even better, y'know, dattebayo!"
"Not just that, Kushina. The texture is crispier too. Try it and you'll know." That was Uzuki Sakura's voice.
"Really? Then I won't hold back, dattebane."
When Makoto pushed the door open and entered the courtyard, he saw that everyone was there. The guests really were the Fourth Hokage Namikaze Minato and his wife.
A long table had been set up in the courtyard. The men sat together chatting, while the women were preparing a lavish dinner.
Uzuki Shige, the little kid who would usually jump up the moment he saw Makoto and try to have a bout with him, was sitting in the corner right now, obedient beyond belief.
Like a little quail being watched by an eagle, he looked like he wished he could turn invisible.
There was no helping it—the one sitting there was the village's Hokage. To kids at the Ninja Academy, that was an existence even more terrifying than a teacher, practically a dimension-reducing strike.
Makoto stepped forward and saluted. "Hokage-sama."
Minato showed a warm smile. "Makoto's back, huh. No need to call me Hokage-sama—just like before is fine."
"Alright, Minato-senpai."
"That's it—just like that!" Minato looked very happy, but it also seemed that only after Makoto returned did the conversation enter the main topic.
He said to Kumomi, "Kumomi-senpai, you've served in ANBU before, and you're more familiar with this kind of work, so I'd like to ask you to help me form a new ANBU."
ANBU was the Hokage's important direct force, but Konoha shinobi did not enter ANBU and then sink into it like the sea, never again to stand under the sunlight for the rest of their lives.
ANBU's personnel turnover was actually quite large. Every year, veteran members would withdraw, or die in the line of duty, so every year they would recruit talented young new members to join.
While bringing in fresh blood, this also ensured ANBU's roster remained complete.
When a new Hokage took office, it was only natural to form an ANBU force that belonged to him. The ANBU that had originally belonged to the Third would be gradually replaced—this was a very normal thing.
Members of the original ANBU would also, in the course of that replacement, return to the ranks of regular shinobi.
Hiruzen himself also taught his successor this way. From this point, the Third Hokage's intention to withdraw step by step from the core of power was very clear.
It was just that there were too many chains of interest wrapped around him. Many times, that left him somewhat unable to act as he pleased. And after he got older, his personality became increasingly less decisive, so he ended up seeming a bit dragged out.
Kumomi was somewhat tempted. After all, this was helping the new Hokage form ANBU. Once the ANBU that had belonged directly to the Third completely withdrew in the future, wouldn't he become the head of Konoha's ANBU?
That would count as truly reaching the upper ranks of Konoha's shinobi hierarchy. It was an opportunity for the Gekkō clan.
However, as he looked at his three disciples, he hesitated slightly. "Hokage-sama, I'm still a jōnin squad leader. I'm afraid I won't be able to spare the time."
"I've considered that as well. So I plan to have your entire squad join ANBU. As for Makoto, Hayate, and Yūgao, I want them to join my Hokage Guard Platoon."
Upon hearing this, Kumomi, Yūya, and Jirō all felt a surge of joy in their hearts. Even Uzuki Yūmura's breathing grew noticeably heavier.
In essence, the Hokage Guard Platoon did indeed belong to the Hokage's directly subordinate ANBU. The difference was that they would remain constantly at the Hokage's side and could receive the Hokage's guidance.
That effectively made them the Hokage's disciples—or to put it another way, it meant grooming successors.
If Minato's Team Seven had still been intact, then Kakashi, Obito, and Rin would naturally have been the first choices for the Hokage Guard. But now that two were gone, and the remaining Kakashi was still unable to pull himself out of the darkness—
If not for that, this benefit… might have fallen to their own side anyway. After all, given the talent Makoto had displayed, no matter who succeeded as Hokage, as long as they weren't foolish, they would not let him slip away.
The three jōnin exchanged glances. They very much wanted to agree, but they all knew Makoto's temperament. If he was unwilling, there was little they, as elders, could do.
After all, in terms of strength, they couldn't even beat that brat—tell me, isn't that infuriating?
Jirō said, "Hokage-sama, thank you for valuing the children so highly. However, this depends on their own wishes. As parents, it wouldn't be appropriate for us to force them."
Kumomi and Yūya both shot their sons a look: It's up to you now!
But their sons were rebellious to the core and paid no attention at all to what their fathers were thinking.
Hayate: "If Makoto is willing, then I'm willing too."
Yūgao: "I'll follow Makoto."
A certain jōnin who couldn't control his daughter thought: This so-called "precious daughter" is completely unreliable. She's siding with outsiders so blatantly she might as well have run off to the Land of Snow. What's the point of having her?
With an affable, sunlit smile, Minato looked at the candidate he favored. "What an enviable bond within the team. So, Makoto, are you willing?"
After thinking for a moment, Makoto replied, "Minato-senpai, let me think about it. It won't take long. I'll have an answer after dinner."
"No problem, Makoto. I'm looking forward to it!"
If it were another Hokage, personally inviting you—a mere kid—to join the Hokage Guard, and you still dared to hesitate… what are you hesitating for? Looking down on the Hokage, are you?
But the Fourth Hokage was Namikaze Minato. By nature, he was bright and magnanimous, and he did not mind Makoto's slight discourtesy.
Most importantly, Makoto was strong. The strong, by nature, possessed the right to be willful.
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