Chapter 80
It was quite incredible. He could pulverize stone with his bare hands. His punch left nothing behind. He could even create a hole in a cliff. Hiruzen didn't think many could survive a punch from him. This was a strength that he possessed.
But it hurt so damn much. Why, just why couldn't he have anything nice in this life? It was good that he could punch holes into boulders, but the rebound was way too much to handle. He felt like his hands were being torn apart. His bones felt like they cracked in dozens of places.
But he didn't have a choice but to do this. He needed to get used to his full strength. Only then could he hope to control it, but it hurt so damn much that he wanted to cry. So, now he had to man up and heal the damage before repeating it all.
Still, why did it have to be so damn hard? And he couldn't even cry or scream or curse, as he was always watched by his ANBU. Or some passerby. It wasn't like he was in some secret training facility.
Maybe he should create something like that, but ANBU wouldn't leave him anyway, so there was no point. He couldn't even stop to rest and get used to the pain, as it would be improper for someone of his stature.
"Phew." All he could do was take a deep breath to calm down, get used to the pain, and continue.
The sooner he could get used to the pain, the sooner he could use this full strength. He didn't need this shitty system to give him memories of how to use anything. He was perfectly capable of learning that himself.
He had already earned enough time not to rush into things and do it properly. And even though he was happy to gain memories of how efficiently he could use his speed, there was no telling when he would get memories of how to use his strenght. So, he only had himself to rely on.
"Hokage-sama," Hiruzen turned to the Owl, who knelt before him. "Tsunade-sama has been looking for you."
Thank the Sage. He was saved. Today, he had tried too much, and he didn't want to continue, but he couldn't just end his training early. So he was very happy to hear that he was needed elsewhere. He will take any excuse at this moment.
"Let's go."
Well, Hiruzen could already guess why Tsunade was looking for him. He had somehow managed to trick her into taking the role of directing the hospitals, doctors, and all the medical members that were part of Konoha.
So it must have been because of being forced to treat every shinobi and their families for free, putting enormous pressure on the finances of the hospitals. Good thing he managed to win so much money from the Fourth Raikage and was able to put it into the hospitals beforehand.
But it wouldn't last much longer. And it was turbulent times for Konoha. There still weren't enough missions for all the shinobi. But Hiruzen wasn't worried; rather, he was happy. Because that would make many of the shinobi who couldn't earn money angry with him.
And when it came to it, the anger would start boiling up, and someone would have to take responsibility. Hiruzen had made sure that everyone knew whose decision it was to change so many things. And then he would retire under the pretext of taking responsibility for it.
Everything was going as planned. Finally, he wasn't needed anymore. It shouldn't be a problem to retire and have someone else take on the job. Just a little more turmoil, and it would be over.
…
It was one of those peaceful days that nobody realized how lucky they were to have them. It wasn't that long since the Chunin Exams, a bit more than a month. September had just started, but the warmth of the summer hadn't yet left.
And all of it was thanks to the Third Hokage. In the end, Kakashi didn't need to interfere in anything; all he could do was watch the situation. And it was over before he even knew it. Funny how a disaster like this was dealt with so easily.
Well, he could say it now, but at that moment, it did seem like a war would have broken out. It was a bad situation that could have ended even worse. And Kakashi couldn't say that it ended without anyone paying the price. The Third Hokage gambled his life for peace.
At that moment, Kakashi realized what a Hokage was. It wasn't simple strength; it had nothing to do with jutsu or fight capabilities. It was in the power of words and actions. The power of reasoning and deciding what was best for everyone, even at the cost of their lives.
"Yo," Kakashi's thoughts were interrupted when Might Guy arrived, with his left arm broken and in a cast. "That's weird, you're not late? Are you really Kakashi?"
Might Guy got close to Kakashi's face and looked him over. The truth was, Kakashi was late. Shizune knew he would be late, so she gave the wrong time. And so, he fell for it and became the first to arrive in the end.
"What's with your arm?" Of course, Kakashi wouldn't admit it, so he changed the subject, as he was curious about it too. "As far as I know, you weren't on any missions. Did you pick a fight with someone?"
"Oh, this is not a big deal. Only shattered my forearm, so I got it in a cast. I should be fine in a week or two," Might Guy showed off his broken arm like it was nothing. "And I felt like I've been neglecting my legs lately, so it's a perfect opportunity to focus on them from now on."
"So, what happened?" Kakashi knew Might Guy wasn't stupid enough to injure himself while training like this, so he was curious.
"I got hurt while training."
"I see." Yeah, Kakashi wasn't that close to Might Guy to begin with, so how could he know anything about him?
"Don't look at me like that. Anyway, it couldn't be helped. When I saw the Third Hokage training, I just couldn't help but try copying him."
"Hmm?" That made Kakashi even more curious. He heard people talking about it, but he dismissed it. "How was the Third Hokage training?"
"Oh, it was so cool and awesome," Might Guy had stars in his eyes. "He was punching a cliffside and making a tunnel with nothing but his fists. I tried to do it too, but I'm still not at that level yet."
Well, that was already a clear conclusion to begin with. In this world, was there even one person on the same level as the Third Hokage? Very few would say that, and even fewer could prove it. So it was quite conceited for Might Guy to think he could do what the Third Hokage did.
Anyway, that wasn't what was important right now. There was a reason Kakashi came here, in this bar, and it was that Shizune forced him. She was adamant that he come, and she also invited Might Guy. And all of it was on Asuma's and Kurenai's behalf.
And soon enough, they came too. All Shizune had explained to Kakashi was that they needed to get Asuma and Kurenai together by tonight, as Asuma was leaving for the capital tomorrow. It was the last chance.
So, in the pretext of celebrating Asuma's acceptance into the Twelve Guardians, they put on a party. Kakashi was genuinely happy and proud of Asuma's achievement. Getting a title of one of the Twelve wasn't something many could hold.
But it had nothing to do with him, though, but then again, Shizune didn't really ask; she demanded Kakashi's help. And there was nothing Kakashi could do if she demanded help from him. Well, it was fine; he just had to deal with this ridiculous thing and be done with it.
At this point, Kakashi just let things be without concerning himself too much. All he had to do was get Asuma drunk enough for him to be comfortable expressing his feelings, but not drunk enough to lose all his senses.
And even though Might Guy didn't know it, he was also part of this plan. His job was to get drunk first so Kakashi and Shizune would have an excuse to leave the lovebirds alone. To him, it was way too much work, but then again, there was no way he could say no to Shizune when she demanded something.
"To Asuma," they already had five drinks, and Might Guy was struggling, just as Shizune had planned. "He is. And will always be. And he was. Good luck."
By this point, everyone was flushed from alcohol, so nobody even commented about how nothing that Might Guy said made any sense. Well, they at least managed to achieve their goal and could end this nonsense.
"Thanks, everyone. I'm sure I'll miss you all," Asuma said, taking the sixth drink. "I will make sure to visit you all when I have a chance."
At this point, both Asuma and Kurenai were beyond flushed from alcohol, and they hadn't realized that Kakashi and Shizune had pushed them closer and closer as the night continued. Now they were sitting shoulder to shoulder, and neither of them made any attempt to separate.
And just like they predicted, Might Guy was barely holding on, unable to take any more. With a nod from Shizune, Kakashi kicked Might Guy's chair and let him fall to the ground. He was so out of it that he couldn't even get up.
"Oh dear," Shizune quickly went to Might Guy to help him up. "I think he had too much. Sorry, Asuma, even though it is your day, it can't be helped. Kakashi, help me. Kurenai, please take care of Asuma while we are gone."
Her acting was bad, and anyone would have realized what she was doing, but by this point, both Asuma and Kurenai were living in their own world, not caring about anyone else around them. So they left the lovebirds alone by dragging Might Guy away.
By the looks of it, the plan had worked out. Hopefully, Asuma wouldn't do something stupid and ruin everything they worked so hard to achieve. After dragging Might Guy back to his home, soon enough, only Kakashi and Shizune were left alone.
She was flushed from the alcohol, red to the ears as they walked together. It was a quiet night, still warm but pretty dark. In a word, it was peaceful. And just as Kakashi thought he would go home, Shizune stopped him.
"Hey, do you have anyone you love, like romantically?"
"Love? I don't even know how to love. What is it anyway?" Kakashi wasn't interested in that kind of thing; he could understand familial or platonic love, but romantic love was too foreign to him.
"Have you never had anyone you wanted to hold with your hands and feel their warmth against yours?"
Kakashi's lone eye looked down at his hands. The bloody hands that took countless lives and the life of the one he should have protected. How could such hands hold anything? And anyone who would hold him would feel nothing but coldness; there was no warmth left in his heart.
"Hah, I see," Shizune didn't wait for Kakashi to formulate a reply as she let out a sigh. "You aren't blind after all, nor an idiot. But I won't give up on you that easily. I don't know how much you are suffering, but I am used to taking care of people like you. So don't dare to even think you are inconvenient to me, and ask for help from me when it is too hard. Promise me at least that much."
It wasn't a request. She wouldn't accept any other answer. That much he understood, but he couldn't comprehend why she was doing this for him. She wasn't that of a foolish girl, but then again, he didn't dislike that about her, even if he couldn't understand her.
…
Shikaku looked through the reports. There were way too many injured shinobi. If another village saw through the medical reports, they would have thought that Konoha was at war. It was indeed strange since most of the shinobi were home, as there were barely any missions to go around.
Tsunade must have quite a bit on her hands. Since the implications of the free medical services to the shinobi, not many were shy to use them, even for the slightest of injuries. And many more have put their ailing families in the hospitals since they didn't need to worry about affordability.
Shikaku could only feel pity for Tsunade as she was forced to put up with it all. Making room for everyone and having enough personnel to run the hospitals at the same time. Still, since there weren't any missions yet, many started taking practice in medical ninjutsu.
Even though we're starting to get more missions with each successful one. It was a slow process, as all they got were A-rank and S-rank missions. So only jonin could take them, leaving chunin and genin behind in the village.
So far, the changes had been remarkable. Shikaku didn't know if the Third Hokage expected such a change or not, but it was what the village needed, a breather after the war and the attack of the Nine-Tails.
At first, many people were anxious about the new changes, especially with one of the founding clans dismantled overnight. Creating even more turmoil and uncertainty. The future didn't look bright for a while.
Nobody knew where things were going to go, but Shikaku, as commander of the jonin forces, made sure that the most powerful shinobi of the village kept calm and reassured the others. Keeping a strong front before others' eyes.
There was still plenty of work for genin; D-rank missions were as countless as ever, and the residents of the village and near it didn't mind paying a little bit more. So even a chunin could earn some money doing chores. It was slow, but the economy still moved forward.
But what made it possible was what the Third Hokage did next. Only someone like the Third understood that in times of uncertainty, words meant little. Even words from someone like him. So he showed everyone through his actions.
His not-so-secret training was the talk of the village. Even though the Third Hokage didn't tell anyone about it and went out of his way to the most isolated place in the village, people noticed his training.
And now, even jonin didn't want to take any missions, and many had even refused, stating that they needed to go on a training journey. The sight of the most powerful shinobi of the village going out of his way to train his body made many very motivated.
Shikaku didn't know if he should laugh at the situation or groan in frustration. It was all good, and the village had entered some kind of renaissance of training and learning, but there was still plenty of work to be done.
So everything fell upon his shoulders. He was the bad guy who pulled shinobi from their training journeys so they could take on missions. It was fine, though, seeing the village finally going through peaceful times was worth the extra hours of work he had to do.
For the first time in ages, it felt like the war was over. That they could finally rest and enjoy themselves. And everything was thanks to the Third Hokage's actions. He could with all certainty say that there wasn't a shinobi or a civilian who didn't like the Third Hokage at this moment.
A.N. As always, thanks for reading and supporting me, so I can continue writing without any concerns, and if you want more, up to seven more chapters, you can support me on pa treon. com \ ironwolf852.