Inside the Hokage's Office in the Hokage Building.
When Kaede Kitahara came to submit his mission report, an Anbu invited him to the Hokage's Office.
"I hear you stopped a fight that was about to break out?"
The Third Hokage asked while handling the documents in front of him.
"Yes, but it was only children messing around," Kaede Kitahara said calmly.
"Children?"
The Third Hokage could not help laughing. If they were really counting age, Kaede Kitahara was about the same age as Temari, Kankuro, and the others.
But according to the Anbu's report, Kaede Kitahara had effortlessly stopped the battle between Uchiha Sasuke and Gaara, displaying strength far above both of them.
Previously, Hatake Kakashi had judged that Kaede Kitahara's strength was no lower than his own, and that he had definitely already reached the level of an Elite Jonin. Now, it seemed that was indeed the case.
Still, those people were only Genin, while Kaede Kitahara was already a Jonin. Even if he was only a Tokubetsu Jonin, he was still a Jonin.
In terms of rank, he was already part of Konoha's upper ranks.
And that was only because Kaede Kitahara had been promoted too quickly. His age itself was not that important. After all, during wartime, it had been very common for people in Konoha to become Jonin at around Kaede Kitahara's age.
It was just that Kaede Kitahara's strength had risen later. He had probably gained a huge increase in power after awakening his Sharingan recently, which was why he had been promoted to Chunin only a year ago and had now been promoted again to Tokubetsu Jonin.
Otherwise, he could have been promoted straight to Jonin.
"You did very well. You stopped a possible armed brawl. Those three have unusual identities. They are the Children of the Kazekage."
The Third Hokage praised Kaede Kitahara, then continued.
Kaede Kitahara nodded without showing any surprise, because he had known the three siblings' identities for a long time. After thinking for a moment, he said, "The red-haired one among the three may be a Jinchuriki of a Tailed Beast."
When the Third Hokage heard that, his expression turned grave. "How did you come to that conclusion?"
"I can see the monster inside his body. One tail, yellowish-white all over, and extremely ferocious. It should be the legendary One-Tail, so he should be the Jinchuriki of the One-Tail," Kaede Kitahara said calmly.
Hearing this, the Third Hokage suddenly lifted his head and stared hard at Kaede Kitahara. "Jonin Kitahara, do you understand what you're saying?"
The Third Hokage had already learned from Hatake Kakashi that Kaede Kitahara had awakened the Sharingan. This should originally have been a major matter, but considering that Kaede Kitahara had been hunted by Danzo before, and considering the extermination of the Uchiha Clan, he could understand why Kaede Kitahara was unwilling to publicly reveal his Kekkei Genkai.
So even though he knew, he had never truly pressured Kaede Kitahara about the Sharingan.
That was the biggest difference between him and Danzo. Danzo carried a tiny bit of public devotion to Konoha inside a mountain of selfishness, while the Third Hokage had his selfish motives too, but more than half of him still acted for the public good.
It was only a Sharingan. There was nothing worth fearing that much.
To put it realistically, what truly made Konoha's upper ranks wary was the Uchiha Clan, not one specific person.
Not to mention, Kaede Kitahara had not changed his surname to Uchiha, so he did not even possess the massive latent political influence of the Uchiha Clan.
"I know what I'm saying, Lord Third Hokage. The truth is, I awakened the Sharingan."
As Kaede Kitahara spoke, he removed the cosmetic contacts from both eyes and directly activated his Sharingan.
"I may have the bloodline of the Uchiha Clan."
Without any warning, Kaede Kitahara exposed it himself. But at this moment, his mood was very calm. This was neither the result of some carefully laid plan nor something forced out of him after being cornered. He simply felt that he could reveal it now, so he did.
Unless he planned to wear cosmetic contacts for the rest of his life and never use the Sharingan openly.
But there was no need for that. At present, the only Uchiha Clan member who had been convicted of anything was Uchiha Itachi. The Uchiha Clan itself was innocent. Especially since an orphan like Uchiha Sasuke still existed in this world and was living just fine.
He had not said anything before because he had feared Danzo's methods and felt he could not expose it yet, so he had kept his mouth shut.
But now, there was no need anymore. He was confident enough to face any possible attack Danzo might launch.
In any case, among his available options, leaving Konoha had always been one of them.
For him, someone who had mastered the Flying Thunder God, none of that would be difficult.
That was the true reason he dared to make it public. This was the confidence that belonged to the strong.
A trace of gratification appeared in the Third Hokage's eyes. From his perspective, this was another matter entirely.
After seeing the Uchiha Clan exterminated, and after being inexplicably hunted by Danzo, Kaede Kitahara had still chosen to confess everything to him after a short period of inner struggle. What was that?
That was the Will of Fire.
He remembered that the information gathered on Kaede Kitahara back then had made it very clear. In the Ninja Academy, Kaede Kitahara's other performances could only be considered upper-middle. Only in theory classes, especially the Will of Fire course, had his grades been excellent from beginning to end.
In particular, his essay "My Chunin Father" had been held up as a model composition at the time.
What a good child. Truly, what a good child.
This was exactly the successor to the Will of Fire that he valued.
The reason he had been especially tolerant toward Kaede Kitahara was because he saw him as one of the pillars of the next generation.
Unlike more than ten years ago, when he had been half-forced out of the Hokage position, now he could truly feel what it meant to lack the strength to do what he wanted. Work that he could once finish in one day now took him at least three.
A time-consuming, exhausting job like Hokage should have been handed over long ago.
Of the three disciples he had personally taught, two were unreliable, while one had become a complete traitor.
None of those three could be counted on. As for Kakashi in the next generation, he always felt just a little short. He had never managed to break through to Kage Level.
That was the fundamental reason the Third Hokage had delayed stepping down from the Hokage position.
If a dignified Hokage did not possess Kage Level strength, it would only make Konoha lose face. Could the mighty Konoha really not find even one Kage Level expert to hold the seat?
If others learned of it, they would only look down on Konoha.
Besides, Hatake Kakashi's personality was lazy and unmotivated. Whether he was suited to becoming Hokage was another matter altogether.
Kaede Kitahara, however, was viewed as one of the pillars of the next generation.
Although Kaede Kitahara had already been promoted to Tokubetsu Jonin, while Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke, and the others had only just graduated and were about to participate in the Chunin Exams, in the Third Hokage's eyes, a difference of a few years was nothing. They were all hope for the new generation.
The only difference was that Kaede Kitahara had already cashed in on his talent at an astonishing speed. He was only sixteen. At his current rate of growth, breaking through to Kage Level in the future was entirely possible.
That way, Konoha's generational structure, old, middle-aged, young, and youth, could continue properly.
That was also why the Third Hokage had been so furious when he heard that Shimura Danzo had attacked Kaede Kitahara. In his eyes, that was destroying Konoha's generational foundation, an unforgivable crime.
Not to mention, he had never once planned to let that old friend of his inherit the position of Hokage.
The more the Third Hokage looked at Kaede Kitahara, the more satisfied he became. He was the perfect inheritor of the Will of Fire, properly taught by the Ninja Academy.
Seeing only gratification from the Third Hokage and no surprise, Kaede Kitahara froze for a moment. But he immediately figured it out. The Third Hokage had probably known long ago and had simply never made it public.
In that case, today's confession had actually turned out to be right for the wrong reasons?
He also figured out that it was probably because he had activated his Sharingan during his previous fight with Hatake Kakashi, and Kakashi had sensed it. Although the cosmetic contacts concealed its appearance, the feeling of ocular power between ocular Kekkei Genkai could not fool anyone.
As expected of Kakashi. He was far sharper than ordinary people.
"I see. In that case, one of your ancestors must have had the bloodline of the Uchiha Clan."
The Third Hokage nodded. That was also the conclusion they had reached after investigating.
Of course, even if someone beat him to death, he would never imagine that something like the System existed. So this was the only possibility.
"Have you ever thought about changing your surname to Uchiha?"
The Third Hokage asked.
"No. I have no intention of changing my surname to Uchiha!"
Kaede Kitahara answered decisively.
Of course, changing his surname to Uchiha would bring many benefits. For example, he could inherit the thousand-year prestige of the Uchiha Clan. The fact that he had awakened the Sharingan meant he was qualified to change his surname to Uchiha.
If the Uchiha Clan had not been exterminated, then someone would already have come looking for him by now. A thousand-year noble clan like the Uchiha Clan would absolutely never allow one of its members to remain lost outside the clan.
But there were also many drawbacks. He would be placed under the spotlight and observed just like Uchiha Sasuke.
He had no particular attachment to the Uchiha name to begin with, nor did he feel any sacred mission tied to it. After all, he knew exactly how his so-called Uchiha Clan bloodline had come about.
He was completely different from Uchiha Sasuke, a genuine orphan of the Uchiha.
"I'm very glad you're willing to reveal the secret in your heart to me," the Third Hokage said with a gratified smile. "If anything happens in the future, tell me at once. I can tell you clearly now that Danzo's actions were his personal actions. They were not the will of the village. The village would never be so narrow-minded that it cannot tolerate a pair of Sharingan.
"Whether your surname is Kitahara or Uchiha in the future, you are still a ninja of our village. As far as I'm concerned, there is no difference."
Kaede Kitahara understood. This was the most official explanation the Third Hokage could give regarding the previous incident in which Shimura Danzo had ambushed him.
And of course, Kaede Kitahara believed his explanation. On this matter, the Third Hokage had no need to lie to him.
There was no need to lie to him at all.
"Also, there is one more thing. The joint Chunin Exams between the villages will begin soon. The village plans to appoint you as the Proctor for the Final Round!"
Seeing that Kaede Kitahara understood, the Third Hokage spoke with great satisfaction.
"Me?"
Kaede Kitahara was startled. He had never expected that right after being promoted to Tokubetsu Jonin, he would be assigned as a Proctor.
"When the time comes, Daimyo from various countries will attend, along with the Kazekage and many other powerful nobles. I trust that with your strength, you will be able to perform the role very well," the Third Hokage said.