Chapter 40

Chapter 40

Orochimaru looked at Suzuki in front of him, feeling somewhat puzzled.

Although he had only just met Minato Namikaze, he could already sense the confidence and genius emanating from that blond-haired brat.

But how did this seemingly ordinary kid end up with a genius like Minato Namikaze?

Orochimaru carefully examined Suzuki and Hanako for a while.

But she quickly came to terms with it.

He seems ordinary by all accounts; maybe he's just a regular friend.

Furthermore, even he himself has idiots like Jiraiya around him.

Given that blond kid's approachable demeanor, it's quite normal for him to have friendly interactions with ordinary people.

Although he looked down on ninjas who lacked talent, he still had to put on a show.

Orochimaru then put on a polite smile and replied to Suzuki:

Hello everyone~

After waiting for a while, Suzuki and Hanako also received Orochimaru's reply.

Although he was being observed, Suzuki was not flustered at all.

At this time, Orochimaru's reputation in the village was second only to Sakumo Hatake.

He didn't have such a dark future yet, and he still harbored some longing for the Hokage.

Furthermore, since most of his own power was still in his clone, Suzuki wasn't worried that Orochimaru might inexplicably take a liking to him.

Afterwards, Suzuki and Hanako went to Tsunade and Kushina and greeted them politely as well.

"Greetings, Lady Tsunade~"

Tsunade, however, remained absent-minded and did not reply to Suzuki and Hanako's greetings.

Kushina Uzumaki, standing next to her, smiled apologetically and waved to the two of them.

Suzuki knew that the princess of Konoha must have suffered another misfortune.

Her younger brother, Senju Nawaki, died less than six months ago, and Kato Dan, who helped her out of her grief and was deeply in love with her, also died a few days ago.

So, after seeing the apology on Kushina's face and her waving gesture, Suzuki glanced at Hanako, saw that she was calm, and left without saying anything.

Just like that, the two sides parted ways in an ordinary and unremarkable way.

There's no such thing as a big shot meeting someone once, taking them on as an apprentice, or anything like that.

Suzuki had no intention of shamelessly seeking out an apprentice.

On her way home, Hanako suddenly jumped up and shouted:

"Ah~ Suzuki-chan!"

"We greeted the three legendary ninjas today!"

"Wow... Lady Tsunade is so cool!"

"I don't know why she seems to be in a bad mood, but as expected, Lady Tsunade is the coolest! Hehehe"

"And Kushina-senpai is really cool, hehehe."

Suzuki looked at Hanako with amusement; he knew.

Hanako's dream is to become a medical ninja, so she actually likes and admires Tsunade the most.

Kushina only occasionally saw the Red Hot Chili Pepper fighting at school and thought it was cool.

The princess of Konoha, now Tsunade, the greatest medical ninja in the ninja world, is Hanako's most respected senior.

Unfortunately, Tsunade hasn't been in a good mood lately, and Hanako hasn't been able to have much interaction with her.

I was initially worried that Hanako might feel aggrieved or upset.

But then I saw Hanako suddenly start jumping around and giggling as she walked.

Suzuki was relieved.

There's a reason why he only got along well with Hanako on that street.

Although she looks easy to bully and is petite.

He sometimes giggles like an idiot and is also forgetful.

But Hanako never lacked courage, and rarely felt like giving up or being afraid.

Not only is he cheerful, but he also trains hard. He may look a bit silly, but he has a ruthless streak deep down.

That's exactly what Suzuki appreciated.

Before long, he and Hanako had returned to their respective homes.

Meanwhile, in Konoha Village, at the Hokage Building.

The atmosphere was very quiet; the office was completely silent.

The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, sat in his Hokage seat.

Sitting next to him was his childhood friend, the Hokage's assistant and the leader of Root, Shimura Danzo.

Then there's Mitokado, who's in charge of finances, and Utatane, who's in charge of Konoha Hospital.

Seeing that the others didn't seem inclined to speak, Hiruzen Sarutobi pulled out a cigarette from his pocket and was about to light it.

Just as he was about to take out his lighter again.

"Bang!"

Upon seeing this, Shimura Danzo was furious and suddenly stood up, slamming his fist on the table!

He roared at Hiruzen Sarutobi:

"Hiruzen!"

"What do you mean by that?"

"Why give Sakumo Hatake half of the Hokage's sleeve? And why even mention him as the next Hokage?"

"Are you crazy?!"

Seeing Danzo emerge, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu finally joined in:

"Yeah, Hiruzen, aren't you just diverting the power of the Hokage by doing this?"

"Yes, and there's also the matter of the next Hokage. How can such an important matter be decided so quickly?"

"Giving away that half of the Hokage's sleeve was far too reckless."

"Yeah, Hiruzen, you should have discussed this with us beforehand~"

Despite hearing the words of the people in front of him, Hiruzen Sarutobi remained completely calm.

He was used to this kind of scene.

They are all so short-sighted, always speaking after the event, and they still talk about discussing things in advance.

To this, he remained cheerful and slowly gave his answer:

"Sakumo's contribution is certainly worthy of this half of the Hokage's sleeve..."

Upon hearing Hiruzen Sarutobi's words, the people in the room immediately became unhappy.

"Hiruzen, how could you say that..."

"That's so wrong..."

"You, Hiruzen..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi did not reply to his old friends' words, but instead took out another letter from his pocket and handed it to his friends.

Then, he continued slowly:

"As you all know, the daimyo is getting old and is about to abdicate."

"However, he sent me a letter before he abdicated, which I received not long ago."

"This letter is all about the Fourth Hokage, and the person he praises the most is Sakumo Hatake."

"You should all know what this name means."

"So I gave Sakumo half of the Hokage's sleeve; he deserved it given his contributions."

"Of course, it's a good thing that the village has gained another strong person."

"After this, I will give the position of leader of the Anbu to Sakumo."

"Sigh... I hope he can work harder so he can take over my job in the future..."

Hearing Hiruzen Sarutobi's words and seeing the daimyo's letter, the group seemed to have no reason to refute him anymore.

But Shimura Danzo, still unwilling to give up, said:

"Hiruzen, you know him..."

"Sakumo is completely unsuitable to be Hokage!"

"He's only good enough to be a knife!"

After saying that, Shimura Danzo thought to himself: Hiruzen is indeed quite old, and he has indeed been the Hokage for a long time. The teacher and the First Hokage combined only served as Hokage for less than twenty years...

Just then, Hiruzen Sarutobi chuckled and replied:

"It's okay, the Hokage wasn't always the Hokage."

"I can learn slowly, hahaha..."

Just as Shimura Danzo was contemplating that he was the only choice for the next Hokage, he immediately became wary upon hearing Hiruzen Sarutobi's words.

Hiruzen has really gone mad!

Why, why is Sakumo Hatake allowed to become Hokage?

Shouldn't I be the next Hokage?

I have done so much for Konoha! How can Sakumo Hatake compare to me in terms of seniority or merit?

He's so young, why can't I become Hokage first!

I can pass the Hokage position to him too!

Danzo Shimura roared angrily:

"Hiruzen! You'll definitely regret this later!"

"Enough! Danzo, I am the Hokage!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately saw through Danzo's little scheme.

He knew his old friend very well, and even knew what he would do next.

That same phrase again, always the same phrase! Danzo was furious. He didn't want to stay in the Hokage's office any longer, so he left angrily, slamming the door shut as he went.

On the other side, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu saw Danzo leave, but they didn't say anything more and followed him away.

Hiruzen Sarutobi sat alone in the chair in the Hokage's office, silently smoking, his heart filled with mixed emotions.

A hint of guilt crossed her face, but it quickly turned into determination:

"Sakumo, if you can't even get past Danzo, then..."

"That only proves that you are indeed not suitable to be the Fourth Hokage."

Thank you so much for the monthly tickets from "Dream Memories of a Thousand Years" and "Dream Rain Listening"!

(One more chapter will be posted tonight)

(End of this chapter)