Because the Third Hokage had taken office without absolute strength to convince everyone, his teammates from the same squad had been promoted one after another into Konoha's upper ranks. That eventually led to a situation where the council of advisors held enormous real power.
Shimura Danzo's ability to act however he pleased, even to the point of daring to assassinate a Hokage, was directly tied to this structure.
While Sarutobi Hiruzen was still alive, he could rely on decades of accumulated prestige to barely keep the advisors in check.
But after Hiruzen's death, when Senju Tsunade took the seat as Fifth Hokage, she would keenly feel the pressure and obstruction coming from the council. The conflict between them would be constant.
In the advisors' eyes, even the Hokage had been chosen by them, so having special privileges seemed only natural.
And Tsunade was never the type to swallow her anger quietly. A clash between them was inevitable.
When that time came, Danzo's hand would reach out again.
Which meant that the time Kaede had left was likely only half a year.
No. Possibly not even that long.
Based on Kaede's understanding of Danzo, once that man fixed his sights on someone, he never let go. Even with the Third Hokage keeping a strict watch, Danzo would still find ways to cause trouble.
He just would not be able to use overt methods anymore.
That was why Kaede had to gain enough power to protect himself before Danzo could stir up another storm.
For example, taking another step forward and reaching Kage Level.
But right now, he had no clear direction.
His strength had grown almost methodically. With the rapid development of his mental power and physical body, he had reached elite Jonin level.
The transformation of the past few months equaled decades, even twenty or thirty years, of cultivation for an ordinary elite Jonin. In fact, it surpassed most of them. His chakra reserves had already firmly stepped into Kage Level territory.
Yet he was still missing that final line.
And that line might be an eternal gap.
Hatake Kakashi was nearly thirty now and still stuck at elite Jonin. He had reached that level more than ten years ago, yet still had not crossed into Kage Level.
By contrast, Kakashi's father, Hatake Sakumo, had already shaken the entire ninja world at this age as the White Fang of Konoha.
Other powerhouses, including the Yellow Flash Namikaze Minato and the Legendary Sannin, had all experienced periods where they hovered at elite Jonin level. But each of them eventually found their own way to break through into Kage Level.
In other words, there were many paths to reaching Kage Level in the ninja world.
But the higher one climbed, the narrower the road became, and the more one had to rely on power inherited from the Ōtsutsuki bloodline.
How to develop that bloodline power was the key to breaking from Kage Level into Super Kage Level.
For Kaede right now, however, reaching Kage Level was still the hardest hurdle.
And the most likely method was actually very simple.
Awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan.
Once the Mangekyo Sharingan awakened, Kage-level combat power would come naturally.
But the price was something Kaede absolutely refused to pay.
It required sacrificing a loved one, using intense emotional trauma to force the evolution into the Mangekyo Sharingan.
Kaede held onto a bit of hope.
The process by which he awakened the Sharingan had been smooth, far easier than Uchiha Sasuke's or Uchiha Obito's. Perhaps the standard Uchiha bloodline he had fused with was different.
Maybe he could reach the Mangekyo with a smaller price.
Then he thought about the Flying Thunder God he had just mastered, and his heart settled.
Even if he could not yet fight Kage-level opponents head-on, with Flying Thunder God in hand, no one could stop him from leaving.
Unless he ran into someone else with space-time ninjutsu like Uchiha Obito, he could escape whenever he wanted.
Those worries only lingered in Kaede's mind for a moment before he tossed them aside.
It was rare to relax with his teacher and teammates over barbecue. He did not want to burden himself with thoughts about the coming months.
"I didn't expect everyone to grow this much after all this time," Akai Akimoto said with emotion.
"Of course we did. We all grew up," Amakusa Ryuji said with a grin.
Akimoto nodded. Just three years had passed, yet it felt like an entire lifetime.
Three years ago, when the three of them were first assigned to his squad, they had still been green. Now, Kaede had already reached the same rank Akimoto himself had once held.
Even though Chunin were divided into ordinary and elite, the position was still Chunin.
Jonin, on the other hand, had clearly defined roles and ranks.
The other two disciples were still Genin on paper, but in terms of strength, they were already at elite Chunin level. That kind of growth speed was anything but slow.
Still, the fastest by far was Kaede.
His rank was only Chunin, but in terms of combat power, even elite Jonin might not be his match.
That rate of improvement was like riding a rocket.
Akimoto had only let go for a short time, yet it almost made him feel like he had held these talented students back.
"You're planning to sign up for the Chunin Exams, right?" Akimoto asked, looking at Kaede.
In Konoha, participation in the Chunin Exams required recommendation, usually from a squad's Chunin or Jonin leader.
"When the time comes, I'll recommend them," Kaede said. "With their current strength, passing shouldn't be a problem."
In the original history, only Nara Shikamaru had been promoted, becoming the sole lucky one.
But this time, that might not be the case.
Even if they missed this promotion, there would be another chance in half a year.
The Chunin Exams were held every six months. Otherwise, the number of Chunin would never keep up.
Akimoto nodded in satisfaction. This was his first time leading a squad, and seeing his students do so well filled him with pride.
"Then I'll wish you all good luck in advance," Akimoto said, raising his cup.
Even though they were all in Konoha, it was not easy to meet often anymore. They were no longer on the same squad, and everyone had their own duties. Without deliberate effort, going long periods without seeing each other was normal.
They stayed together until late into the night before finally parting ways.
Kaede returned home. After washing up, the alcohol had mostly worn off. The sake of the ninja world was mild to him, barely worth mentioning.
He sat at his desk, took out his diary, and began writing.
[That Danzo really is relentless. I didn't expect him to dare impersonate Anbu and try to lure me to the Root base inside the village.
But he probably didn't expect that I already knew about Root and exactly what kind of person he is. There was no way I'd walk into my own grave.
I'm not Uchiha Shisui.
Shisui was far too naive. He actually trusted Danzo and even told him about his Mangekyo ability, Kotoamatsukami, and its power to alter a person's will.
He thought that kind of openness would earn him complete trust from Konoha's upper levels. He was even willing to use Kotoamatsukami on the radical faction of the Uchiha for the sake of the village.
But to Danzo, something that dangerous was absolutely intolerable.
If I were him, I'd be nervous too. Being able to silently change someone's will without them realizing it. Who wouldn't be afraid of that?
Your own will altered without your knowledge or awareness. That's terrifying.
That kind of secret should belong to you alone and be taken to the grave.
Naivety just hands yourself over for free. Decisiveness leads to defeat.]
Kaede's diary updated.
And in that instant, it stirred all of its holders.
At the Uchiha clan compound, Uchiha Sasuke drove a crackling Chidori straight through a stone pedestal beside him.
The pedestal was riddled with holes, as if pierced by some terrifying force.
This was the result of a full day of Chidori training.
After releasing the final Chidori, Sasuke collapsed onto the ground, gasping for breath. Moonlight fell across his face, revealing deep exhaustion.
The chakra in his body was almost completely drained. Lately, his training consisted of squeezing out every last bit of his potential each day.
For the past month, his life had returned to something simple, boring, and monotonous.
Most of his missions were still D-rank, with the occasional C-rank mixed in. Even those C-rank missions rarely took him far from Konoha.
That was normal for newly graduated ninja.
On one hand, it squeezed labor out of fresh Genin to contribute to village construction. New graduates were workhorses everywhere.
On the other hand, it gave squad leaders enough time to teach these rookies the basics of the ninja world and fundamental training methods.
[A/N: Enjoying the story? You can read more chapters early and support me here:patreon.com/Aeroscissors]