Konoha.
Hokage Tower.
Hiruzen Sarutobi sat in a broad wooden chair, a long-stemmed pipe resting between his fingers. The pipe had belonged to the body's original owner for years. Now it felt natural in his hand.
He flipped through a stack of documents with steady focus.
Behind the calm in his eyes lingered something new. Curiosity.
Before he could read much further, the office handle twisted violently. A perfunctory knock came almost at the same time. The door swung open, and a man wrapped in bandages, leaning on a cane, strode inside.
Danzo Shimura was holding back anger.
Hiruzen had recently fallen seriously ill. High fever. Bedridden for days. Some work had been left undone.
The Second Shinobi War hadn't ended that long ago. The village was still recovering from smoke and ruin.
And yet the Hokage had lain in bed.
Unacceptable.
As Hokage advisor, it was his duty to knock some sense into him.
Danzo opened his mouth, ready to call out "Hiruzen" the way he always did, the start of a well-practiced verbal combination.
But Hiruzen suddenly looked up.
His gaze was sharp. Almost amused.
Danzo stiffened, stopping where he stood.
What was this?
Fresh from illness, Hiruzen seemed… younger. His posture straighter. His presence more imposing.
Was he imagining it?
"I was wondering who it might be."
Hiruzen tapped the pipe lightly against the edge of his desk. A faint knock. He paused.
"So it's the Hokage… advisor."
He deliberately stressed the last two words.
Danzo's expression darkened.
For a split second during that pause, his heart had jumped.
Hiruzen had never addressed him by title like that.
So was there even the smallest chance… that today—
—That the monkey had finally realized he was the one best suited to be Hokage? That he intended to pass the mantle over?
But the emphasis on "advisor" shattered that fantasy.
This was dissatisfaction.
"Hiruzen…" Danzo frowned. His fingers tightened unconsciously, wrinkling the document folder in his hand. "What do you mean by that?"
"I mean you've been doing excellent work lately." Hiruzen smiled, almost kindly. "Root's scale keeps expanding. Per-person funding and equipment standards now exceed Anbu."
"You've added trench coats to their attire. Masks even more fearsome in design than Anbu's. In Root, your word is absolute."
He leaned back slightly.
"Konoha's Root bears the Shimura name now, doesn't it?"
Danzo's thoughts raced.
Something was wrong.
Deeply wrong.
He was secretly conducting forbidden Wood Style experiments. Hiruzen shouldn't be pressing him now.
At the very least, he should wait until results were confirmed. Then the Hokage would step in, harvest the fruit grown in darkness, and give him a moderate punishment as usual.
Any expansion of personal authority beyond the limits of an advisor was simply compensation. Payment for bearing the darkness.
That had been their unspoken understanding for years.
Was Hiruzen tearing that contract apart now?
Did he not fear that he might stop the Wood Style research altogether?
If Hiruzen handled it himself, as someone who stood in the light, would he dare shoulder that burden?
"Hiruzen, I'm doing this for Konoha!"
Danzo's voice rose. "Root operates in the shadows. We face the cruelest missions and environments. Of course we require personnel and resources!"
"As Hokage, you should be thinking about the village's future and the next inevitable shinobi war. Not nitpicking Root. This kind of internal struggle is meaningless!"
Hiruzen stood slowly.
He walked around the desk, pipe in hand, until he stood before Danzo.
Then he smiled faintly and exhaled a thick cloud of smoke straight at his face.
The sharp scent burned Danzo's nose. His fists clenched instantly.
Humiliation.
Even if Hiruzen was Hokage, he had no right to treat his advisor like this—
"Do you think I'm accusing you?"
Hiruzen shook his head and clapped a firm hand on Danzo's shoulder.
"I'm reminding you. You've taken the wrong path."
Danzo's brows knitted together. "What path?"
Hiruzen waved his hand bluntly.
"Your ambition to become Hokage. From the Five Great Villages down to minor shinobi tribes, who doesn't know?"
"But like this, how could you become Hokage?"
"You walk in darkness, lead a special department with privileges that make ordinary ninja fear you."
"The further you go, the further you drift from that seat."
"For example… why did Lord Tobirama Senju have the Uchiha Clan take sole responsibility for the Military Police Force?"
Danzo's expression shifted.
Of course he understood.
Standing in the light had always been Hiruzen's exclusive privilege.
There could not be two suns in one sky.
So Danzo gripped the darkness tighter.
Dark power was still power. After all, he stood just below one man and above ten thousand as Hokage advisor.
"I know what you're implying," Danzo said hoarsely. "Say it plainly, Hiruzen. I bear the darkness for the village willingly. A ninja must be prepared to sacrifice."
"Do you want to become Hokage?"
Hiruzen smiled suddenly. "I'm only asking you once, Danzo."
Danzo had once believed no one understood Hiruzen better than he did.
Today, he could not read him at all.
Of course I want it. I think about it day and night. I dream about it. I want that damned position more than anything.
But facing this unreadable Hokage, the words stuck in his throat.
Unbidden, his mind returned to that day when Tobirama Senju had asked who would stay behind as rear guard.
He hadn't raised his hand then.
Would he shrink again now?
Danzo drew in a deep breath.
"…Yes."
"Mm. An improvement." Hiruzen nodded, smiling.
The tone grated on him.
You think you understand me? You don't understand me at all.
Why are you talking like you're above me?
Still, Danzo listened carefully.
"If you want it, I can help you. But I won't designate you directly."
"Let's make that clear."
Hiruzen returned to his seat and took a sip of tea.
"From now on, I'll provide official backing for certain Root activities."
Danzo's breathing grew heavier.
Hiruzen… was willing to take the blame for him?
Had the world changed? Was this still the shinobi world founded by the Sage of Six Paths?
He waited eagerly for more.
Hiruzen only drank tea, slow and steady.
Then he glanced at Danzo, chin slightly raised.
I've shown my sincerity.
Now it's your turn.
Danzo's thoughts churned.
Should he reveal the Wood Style test subject?
That was a precious Wood Style ninja.
But Hiruzen's relaxed posture made his intentions impossible to read.
"Under Orochimaru's request, I cooperated in some Wood Style experiments," Danzo said carefully. "We paid a price. But the results are promising. A subject has survived the intensity of the First Hokage's cells."
"I came to inform you."
A lie.
He had come to scold Hiruzen.
Hiruzen gestured for him to sit and poured him tea.
He seemed entirely indifferent to Wood Style.
Danzo frowned.
That was Wood Style.
Was Hiruzen feigning disinterest to lower the price of confession… or had he already known?
The tea tasted bland under the weight of his thoughts.
Hiruzen smiled faintly.
"That all?"
"A few days ago, I requested a talented ninja from the Aburame Clan."
Danzo's irritation flared. "Hiruzen, is that even an issue? If I don't requisition people from those arrogant clans, how is Root supposed to fight? How do we uphold the authority of the Hokage's faction?"
Hiruzen laughed.
"There you go again. So tense. It's been years since we sat and talked like this. I'm concerned about your work and your life."
"You haven't had it easy."
Danzo scoffed inwardly. Playing the sentimental card now?
Yet the rigid lines of his face softened slightly.
"Sometimes I see you cultivating armed forces in Root… hiding it from me."
Hiruzen's tone shifted abruptly.
"I'm not angry. I'm worried."
"You know you're not in the normal line of succession. Building private troops… perhaps you're thinking that if I die one day, you could try your luck with a coup?"
"Researching Hashirama Senju's cells. Beyond serving the village, you also desire that power, don't you?"
"Fist equals authority. That's not wrong. But in Konoha, equating the two completely betrays the teachings of Lord Hashirama and Lord Tobirama."
The room grew heavy.
For a Hokage to accuse a subordinate of harboring thoughts of armed seizure of power was severe.
And for Danzo—
Hiruzen seemed to know him too well.
They drank tea in silence for a long time.
"I've never thought of it that way," Danzo said finally. "Hiruzen, just tell me what you intend."
"After all… you are the Hokage."
He expected reprimand.
Instead, he received a promise.
"Danzo, in the honor of being Lord Tobirama's disciple, I promise you this. From now on, I will regard you as one of the official Hokage candidates."
The weight of those words was immense.
"You mean that?" Danzo blurted.
Hiruzen narrowed his eyes and pointed casually to the portrait of Tobirama Senju on the wall.
Heat surged through Danzo's chest.
"If you're walking the right path, then act under the sun," Hiruzen said calmly. "Keep a few capable people in Root. The rest, hand them over to me for unified allocation."
"Don't worry. I'll prepare an official post for you."
Here it was.
Danzo calculated rapidly.
He didn't believe Hiruzen was acting out of kindness. And this price was already fair.
If Hiruzen were ruthless—
What could he really do with the strength he held?
Just Hiruzen alone…
Danzo hated admitting it, but the monkey could fight.
Ino-Shika-Cho. His three disciples. Sakumo Hatake. The major clans rallied under the Hokage's name.
Even the Uchiha Clan would suppress him without hesitation.
As long as Hiruzen lived, pinning him down was simple.
"Hiruzen, I think Root should—"
Hiruzen raised a finger, silencing him.
"Danzo. Think from the Hokage's perspective. If you were Hokage, how would you handle Root?"
Danzo fell quiet.
In present-day Konoha, the Hokage's power wasn't limitless.
But for him, whose authority depended entirely on Konoha's legitimacy, it was a fatal grip.
And invoking Tobirama as guarantor…
Making the succession an open competition.
The weight was enough.
"I understand."
Danzo placed a scroll on the desk.
"Some matters concerning Orochimaru. I'll hand them over as well."
"I'll handle Root."
"But what you promised me…"
He held Hiruzen's gaze for a long moment before striding toward the door.
After two steps, he paused.
The door stood open.
Reluctantly, he turned back and closed it.
In the past, he wouldn't have bothered.
Not slamming it would've been generous.
But times had changed.
A little respect for the old man… was warranted.
Danzo shut the door and left.
Hiruzen watched the door close, a faint smile on his lips.
He was not the original Hiruzen Sarutobi.
He had once been a man named Leon, a seasoned bureaucrat who had risen swiftly through his career before being struck down by ALS.
Treatment had left him with long hours of rest. He passed time reading historical commentary.
Days ago, an algorithm had pushed a video comparing ninja history to real-world history.
Though flawed, it amused him. He watched several before drifting to sleep.
When he awoke—
He found himself in this shinobi world, inhabiting the Third Hokage.
This body was no youth, yet it contained power far beyond his former comprehension.
And though his knowledge of the future here was fragmented and uncertain—
He had a trump card.
With a mere thought, a page appeared in his mind. Red header. White paper. Black characters, solemn and clear.
[Authority]
[Diplomacy]
[Economy]
[Education]
[Military]
Five indicators stood side by side.
After completing his conversation with Danzo just now, the word "Authority" shimmered faintly.
A touch of gold spread at the base of the characters.
Like a progress bar filling in.