Hokage's Office.
On Hiruzen Sarutobi's desk sat a file detailing Kakashi's recent missions and records of his behavior.
For the third time now, Kakashi had gotten into conflicts with new teams, making it difficult for him to function normally in missions.
Shimura Danzo, leaning on his cane, stood in front of Hiruzen's desk and said in a low voice,
"It seems you still haven't found a proper place for that child, Hiruzen. If that's the case, why not leave him to me?"
Hiruzen puffed on his pipe, glanced at Danzo, and replied
"You want to turn Sakumo's child into an emotionless tool?"
Danzo's face was blank as he answered,
"If I train him, he won't make the same mistakes Sakumo did. He'll become an even greater ninja, someone who surpasses Sakumo."
Hiruzen snorted and stood up.
"Don't tell me you came here just to talk about this, Danzo."
Danzo looked at Hiruzen deeply, then said,
"No. I just happened to hear about Kakashi's situation. What I really came for is to ask you, what's your next move regarding Kirigakure? Hiruzen, are you planning for war, or...?"
Hiruzen took another drag from his pipe and exhaled a ring of smoke.
He walked to the window, gazing out into the distant sky. After a few seconds of silence, he finally replied in a low voice,
"Let's make some moves to intimidate them. Their recent probing has gone too far. I'll leave this matter to you."
"Understood."
Danzo nodded and turned to leave the office. As he walked out, he added,
"...Don't let that boy's talent go to waste, Hiruzen."
Sakumo's two sons, well, he wasn't interested in Kaede but Kakashi's potential had caught his attention. Otherwise, he wouldn't have brought it up. Still, if Hiruzen disagreed, Danzo didn't have the time to meddle too much in such affairs right now.
Hiruzen didn't respond, only turning his gaze toward the door once Danzo had left.
He shook his head, and the image of Sakumo appeared in his mind. A sigh escaped his lips.
Sakumo's death had impacted the village significantly.
Other ninja villages had been probing Konoha more aggressively lately, and the loss of a powerhouse like the "White Fang" was definitely part of the reason.
Kakashi had been deeply affected by Sakumo's death as well. No matter which team he was assigned to, he always ended up clashing with his seniors. It had been over two years since his graduation, yet he still hadn't found a proper team. Danzo's suggestion, while extreme, did have some merit.
"Your child is a gifted ninja, Sakumo... but in terms of handling people, he's still a bit too immature."
Hiruzen fell into thought.
Of Sakumo's two sons, Kaede could be considered "excellent," but Kakashi was without a doubt a genius, he had inherited Sakumo's talent and might one day become the next White Fang of the Leaf.
The issue now was how to properly place Kakashi. Hiruzen had already tried assigning him to multiple teams, but every time, conflict ensued, and the matter ended up back on his desk.
Giving Kakashi to Danzo was out of the question.
While Root might suit someone like Kakashi in theory, it would be a betrayal of Sakumo's wishes. Sakumo had openly clashed with Danzo in life and would never want to see his son molded into a tool of Root.
"...Very well, then."
After sorting through countless thoughts, Hiruzen finally made a decision. He spoke quietly to the seemingly empty rooftop:
"Bring Minato here."
Regular jonin couldn't handle Kakashi, and the few Hiruzen had in mind had all clashed with him already. That left only one final candidate: Minato Namikaze.
After Sakumo's death, the best candidate to succeed as the Fourth Hokage was one of the Legendary Sannin. But Jiraiya and Tsunade both had no interest in the role. It was Jiraiya's recommendation, Minato Namikaze, that stood out the most.
If Minato was to inherit the title of Fourth Hokage, then naturally he needed to begin training his own elite subordinates. Entrusting a genius like Kakashi to Minato was a perfect fit.
"Yes."
The Anbu on the rooftop replied and vanished instantly.
Hiruzen returned to his seat, took another drag of his pipe, and muttered,
"...In the end, it's Minato again."
Because of the tense situation in the ninja world, Minato's skills were in high demand everywhere. Hiruzen had thought of him early on, but hesitated. Now, after going in circles, he was right back to where he started.
He had no worries about Minato. After all, he was Hiruzen's ideal candidate for Fourth Hokage. Training a talented young ninja was child's play for someone like him.
As he mulled over the situation, Hiruzen pulled out a file.
It listed detailed information about the current crop of academy students, organized by their relationship to Kakashi.
At the very top of the stack was Kaede's file. Hiruzen glanced at it, then set it aside.
It wasn't appropriate to put two brothers in the same team, especially when one of them was also a key figure's younger sibling. If Kaede had talent on par with Kakashi, it might be worth overlooking, but right now, it was important to consider public perception within the village.
"Guy... Obito Uchiha... Rin Nohara..."
Hiruzen pondered for a moment and made his choices.
First was Obito Uchiha. Assigning a member of the Uchiha clan to Minato would help smooth the clan's attitude toward Minato's future as Hokage.
Next, a civilian student. Since Guy was male, he was ruled out to avoid an all-boy team. Rin Nohara, a competent and well-balanced kunoichi, was a perfect fit to round out the squad.
Clack.
Having made his decision, Hiruzen took a puff from his pipe and chuckled quietly.
The great Hokage, going to such lengths to sort out a single ninja's placement, even meddling in next year's team assignments for graduating students.
But Kakashi's talent was truly worth the effort. And with Minato, there was nothing to worry about. Letting him handle this personally was far more reassuring.
There would be no problems.
With Kakashi's placement settled, Hiruzen lost interest in the rest of the student files. He returned Kaede's folder to the stack and tossed it aside, not giving it another glance.
"Let's hope Danzo's actions are enough to quiet things down with Kirigakure…"
Hiruzen looked up at the ceiling, exhaling a swirl of smoke.
What truly troubled him now was the state of the ninja world. The great villages were clashing more and more, with everything seemingly revolving around Konoha.
And for good reason, the Land of Fire was the most resource-rich country, and Konoha had claimed huge spoils in the Second Ninja World War. The other villages had all set their sights on Konoha.
But conceding was not an option.
In the ninja world, one concession leads to another. Only by meeting greed with strength could true peace be maintained. Hiruzen understood this all too well.
If the situation couldn't be stabilized, if a Third Ninja World War became inevitable, then Konoha would fight back with everything it had!
As that thought crossed his mind, a cold gleam flashed in Hiruzen's eyes.
Thanks to the gains of the Second War, Konoha's core strength was vast and steady. Even though they'd lost Sakumo, their top-tier forces still included Orochimaru and Jiraiya, who had both become powerful enough to lead. And rising stars like Minato Namikaze promised a strong future.
If war came...
Konoha would not lose!
************
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