Hikaru sat in the Hokage's office, lazily watching the sunlight outside the window.
He looked unusually relaxed.
For someone sitting in the Hokage's chair, he was rare.
Hashirama, Tobirama, and even the now obedient Hiruzen had never enjoyed this level of ease.
When they were Hokage, every one of them had walked on thin ice, afraid one wrong decision might drag Konoha into ruin.
Hikaru's current environment was enough to make any past Hokage envious.
In Hashirama's era, Konoha had only just been founded.
The founding of Konoha marked the shift from scattered shinobi clans into a unified village system.
To put it bluntly, the establishment of that village meant integrating the resources of an entire country. In essence, they had gained control over the Land of Fire.
During such a massive transformation, Hashirama and the others faced tremendous pressure.
After all, this was a brand-new system.
One wrong step, and the village they had finally built could have collapsed overnight.
By Tobirama's era, Konoha had already passed through its earliest struggles and period of adjustment.
Unfortunately, Hashirama and Madara were both gone.
Those two men, who had once suppressed the entire shinobi world, had carved out the Valley of the End and then seemingly left the world together.
Their departure instantly dragged Konoha down from its former untouchable position to roughly the same level as the other great shinobi villages.
Konoha still stood proudly because of its foundation, but compared with its former strength, the gap was enormous.
On top of that, the era Tobirama lived in forced him to be cautious.
Internally, the village's systems and institutions had to be planned and implemented.
Externally, other villages began encroaching on the Land of Fire's resources after Hashirama's death.
If Tobirama handled even one thing poorly, Konoha would have fallen into real trouble.
And in truth, that was almost exactly what happened.
When the other four great villages tore up their agreements, Konoha was eventually dragged into war.
Hiruzen's era was even more miserable.
His succession marked the point where the other villages had fully closed the gap with Konoha.
Although he inherited Hashirama's political legacy, he had not inherited the same recognition.
For himself and for the village, Hiruzen had no choice but to raise the blade and begin integrating Konoha from within.
Internal conflict was always the fastest and most fundamental way to destroy a nation.
But sometimes, internal conflict could not be avoided.
During Hiruzen's consolidation of Konoha, the rewards from winning the First Shinobi World War were rapidly consumed.
Because of that internal friction, many powerful clans in Konoha declined, and many shinobi lost their lives.
Konoha's external environment was just as terrible.
The First Shinobi World War had not been small. It had been the four other great villages surrounding and attacking Konoha.
For the five great nations, that war was deadly.
But for many smaller villages, it actually brought benefits.
Because the war caused a huge number of missions to flow away from the great villages, those missions were eaten up by smaller villages that were not involved in the fighting.
Amegakure was clearly one of them.
Once the war ended, that situation stopped.
Small villages could not truly compare with great shinobi villages.
With the help of a large mission share, small villages had gained money to train shinobi and develop themselves.
When that suddenly stopped, of course they were unwilling to accept it.
Their development had also reached a bottleneck, and they needed expansion to maintain growth.
That was how the ambitious Hanzō of the Salamander marched into the Land of Iron and declared war on both Sunagakure and Konoha.
Sunagakure had always been unreliable, and the Land of Wind's lack of resources was severe. Naturally, they took the chance to stab Konoha as well.
Just like that, the Second Shinobi World War began.
The final result was clear.
A demigod was still only a demigod.
And Sunagakure was no match for Konoha.
During the Second War, Konoha displayed its strength, but it also exposed its weakness.
Konoha did not show mercy to Sunagakure in that war. It squeezed them hard, which naturally created hatred.
Meanwhile, Iwagakure and Kumogakure, who had not joined the war, watched from the sidelines and continued building their own strength.
That war gave them enormous room to develop, which also planted the seeds for the Third Shinobi World War.
None of those three Hokage had lived comfortably.
Even if Minato Namikaze, the Fourth Hokage, was counted, his days had been tragic too.
After all, above him stood Hiruzen, the man who had actively supported his rise while still holding major authority over Anbu, the medical system, and other key powers.
Hikaru was different.
The era he lived in was not peaceful, but at least the Third War had ended, and three of the great villages had signed ceasefire agreements.
The Third War had exhausted everyone. No one wanted to start another war lightly.
Kumogakure was the exception.
Their losses had not been heavy, and they had not signed any agreement.
Their newly appointed Raikage was also ambitious. He had long been unhappy that a weakened Konoha still occupied the seat of the strongest village in the shinobi world.
So even if war broke out, Konoha only had one main enemy to face.
The external environment was unstable, but still manageable.
Inside Konoha, Hikaru had even less to worry about.
At the time, Hiruzen had still held power, but the true Hokage was the Fourth.
Hikaru controlled Anbu and did not need to pay much attention to Hiruzen.
Danzo's incident gave Hikaru leverage, and Hiruzen could not act forcefully toward him.
Then, when Kumogakure made its move, Hiruzen made the wrong decision.
That decision completely paved the way for Hikaru.
Hikaru had also lived up to the opportunity.
His strength was terrifying, and the war between Kumogakure and Konoha had practically crowned him.
When Hikaru displayed that monstrous power, he shook the entire shinobi world.
And because he had spent so long building his image inside Konoha, everyone already knew what kind of person he was supposed to be.
Under that double approval, his succession had been natural.
He had become Hokage by the will of the people.
In other words, Hikaru had used his own effort and strength to create a governing environment with no real internal or external threats.
So no matter how relaxed he appeared, the other Hokage could only look on with envy.
Besides, they also believed that Hikaru deserved everything he had.
In their eyes, Hikaru was the true God of Shinobi.
They still remembered the figure floating in the sky three years ago, looking down from above as he unleashed destruction upon True Several Thousand Hands.
Knock, knock, knock.
While Hikaru was idly wasting time, someone knocked on the office door.
He immediately sat up and made himself look much more alert.
Then he said, "Come in."
The office door opened, and saya stepped inside.
"Hokage-sama, Kakashi is here with Zero."
"I see." Hikaru nodded slightly, then smiled. "Since they're here, let them in. I'll leave the recording to you, saya."
…
Under Hikaru's strong push, the secretary system had developed over the years and successfully grown from a secretary office into a full Secretary Department.
saya and Ayame naturally became the first chief private secretary and chief administrative secretary.
Now, every department head had begun being assigned secretaries, and Konoha's administrative efficiency had indeed risen sharply.
Of course, Hikaru knew that secretaries had both advantages and disadvantages.
But for now, everything was moving in a good direction.
During the Secretary Department's upgrade, Shikaku Nara and Hiruzen Sarutobi had played major roles.
Shikaku, in particular, had spared no effort in helping Hikaru complete the reform.
He had not been like that at first.
Although he had not opposed the creation of a Secretary Department, he had not been especially active either.
Everything changed after he witnessed Hikaru's battle three years ago.
Especially after Hashirama and Tobirama fully supported Hikaru, Shikaku took the firmest possible position at Hikaru's side.
It had to be said that the battle three years ago had a massive impact.
Hashirama and Tobirama's appearance had also created a massive impact.
If the people who watched that battle were asked about it now, what they remembered most clearly would probably be the thousand-meter-tall True Several Thousand Hands.
They would also remember the figure wrapped in destructive blue chakra, floating in the sky.
And the pale-eyed, silver-haired woman who appeared behind that figure after he lightly swung his blade.
That slash, if it had to be described, could only be called world-ending.
Under that slash, the thousand-meter-tall Buddha statue had been split in two.
Even though the statue launched a furious counterattack, it had not visibly harmed Hikaru.
Of course, that was only what they saw.
Hikaru had not had an easy time withstanding Hashirama's Sage Art: Top Transformed Buddha.
Even though he had used two Truth-Seeking Balls to defend himself, Hashirama had used Sage Mode too.
Those two Truth-Seeking Balls had almost been shattered, and the terrifying force had still passed through them and struck Hikaru.
If he had not been supported by Sage Mode and Jōgan Chakra Mode, he might have died under that barrage.
To put it bluntly, Hikaru had looked unharmed, but he had genuinely suffered internal injuries.
With his physique, he had still needed a full month of rest to recover.
Hashirama truly deserved to be Hashirama.
The God of Shinobi truly deserved that title.
Even though many people now wanted to place that title on Hikaru, Hikaru himself was not that interested.
He was happy about it, of course. It helped his mission.
But he also knew very well that he was still far from being a true god.
While Hikaru was thinking, Kakashi entered with a figure wrapped entirely in black.
Hikaru returned to his senses.
"You're here?" Hikaru looked up and smiled. "What brings you to me this time, Nagato?"
"Hokage-sama."
Zero slowly removed his black cloak and looked at Hikaru seriously.
Then he bowed respectfully.
Nagato was now extremely respectful toward Hikaru.
That respect did not come only from Hikaru's strength.
After all, Hikaru's spar with Hashirama had only been seen by a few people. Nagato had not been qualified to watch.
But that did not stop him from deeply respecting Hikaru.
He had seen the success of what Hikaru had done over the past three years.
He had seen dead people brought back to life.
A shinobi's speed and efficiency were not something ordinary people could compare to.
After Nagato eliminated those in Yugakure who refused to cooperate with Konoha, Konoha quickly chose a new partner through Nara Kashiro.
That new partner was clever and obedient.
Although he had some thoughts of his own, he knew exactly who had given him everything.
He also understood that if Konoha was displeased, everything he had gained could vanish.
Fortunately, he already had a favorable view of Konoha.
And with Konoha pouring in manpower, resources, and money, Yugakure entered a period of full construction and development.
In order to gradually bring Yugakure to the point of self-sufficiency, Konoha allowed its shinobi to work together with them on missions inside the Land of Hot Water.
Konoha even allocated a certain share of missions to them.
After receiving training and guidance from Konoha, Yugakure's shinobi now had enough opportunities to sharpen themselves.
Once the trade road was repaired, commerce between the two sides became even more frequent, and both economies grew effectively.
Almost visibly, the Land of Hot Water had transformed.
From a place that seemed to have no future at a glance, it had become a place whose future was obvious at a glance.
Now, Yugakure had even begun actively discussing with Konoha the matter of sending children of the proper age to Konoha's Ninja Academy.
If that was implemented, Yugakure would receive tremendous benefits.
At the same time, Konoha gained everything it wanted through their cooperation.
After all, Konoha held absolute dominance in the partnership.
Even if Hikaru did not deliberately exploit Yugakure too harshly, he still had to protect his own interests.
As a result, mineral resources from the Land of Hot Water flowed wildly into Konoha.
Konoha also invested in many fields there.
With those investments, the Land of Hot Water's already decent tourism industry became even better.
As for Konoha accepting children from the Land of Hot Water into the Ninja Academy, that was another source of profit.
There were tuition fees, dormitory fees, and the cost of food and daily needs.
More importantly, by teaching those children the Will of Fire and making them genuinely identify with Konoha, Konoha would gain unimaginable long-term benefits.
Under Konoha's leadership, both sides took what they needed.
With Konoha's support, Yugakure was flourishing.
Nagato had seen all of this with his own eyes, and he truly envied it.
The current Yugakure could no longer be compared with the Yugakure of three years ago.
He had fully accepted the model Hikaru had created.
As long as this model spread, it could truly bring peace to the shinobi world.
And only a rich and powerful Konoha could do such a thing.
If another village tried it, the terrifying early investment alone might crush them.
Even if they had the ability, they might not have the courage.
What Nagato desired most now was for Hikaru to turn his eyes to the Land of Rain.
He truly wanted his homeland to become prosperous too.
Aside from that, there was one more thing he desperately wanted.
He wanted Hikaru to revive Yahiko.
…
"Tell me, then. What did you come to see me about?"
Hikaru sat in his chair, glanced at Nagato, and smiled.
He had seen Nagato's changes over the past three years.
With Yahiko around, Nagato's brain seemed to have returned to his head.
And for the past three years, Obito had not had much time to trouble him.
Nagato had lived quite comfortably.
Although he was still looking for new members for Akatsuki, his goal and purpose had long since changed.
And during these three years, Tobirama's research had also made considerable progress.
Although he had not fully removed Nagato's curse seal yet, suppressing its activation was no longer a problem.
Nagato now had great goodwill toward Konoha.
He knew his parents had died because of Konoha shinobi, but he also understood that the Second Shinobi World War had not truly been Konoha's fault.
Amegakure had declared war on Konoha first, forcing Konoha to send troops in response.
War was cruel.
If you declared war on me, why would I be gentle with you?
Nagato had put himself in the other side's position.
If another village declared war on his village, would he not feel hatred?
If he entered enemy territory and met resistance, would he not become more cautious?
Would the chance of misunderstandings not become higher?
The thing people feared most was putting themselves in another person's place.
After thinking through all of this, Nagato could only sigh.
Fortunately, he still had Yahiko helping him.
Yahiko was currently in the Land of Hot Water.
Over the years, he, Yahiko, and Konan had witnessed every change there.
Although their role in the Land of Hot Water was to suppress those who resisted Konoha, their actions had still received recognition from the people there.
Most importantly, they had seen something there.
Hope.
The seed of hope had taken root and sprouted.
That was the most precious thing.
"Hokage-sama, I came this time to report on a rebel organization we dealt with earlier."
Nagato lowered his head slightly.
In front of others, he was extremely proud.
But in front of Hikaru, he had no arrogance at all.
Hikaru's strength had convinced him.
Hikaru's policies and resurrection jutsu had convinced him even more.
"There seems to be someone else behind that organization. Yahiko is investigating now, and I came to report the situation."
"I see."
Hikaru nodded.
He was not surprised by this answer.
Hikaru had shown his strength but had not acted excessively. That made everyone understand that he was someone who followed rules.
Because of that, no one dared target Konoha openly.
But doing things in secret was another matter.
Even if Hikaru became angry and traced it back to them, they could always push out a scapegoat who supposedly hated Konoha.
To put it simply, these matters existed because the other village leaders were turning a blind eye.
As long as it did not cross the line, they would tolerate it.
If it crossed the line, someone else would take the blame.
"Investigate slowly. We are not afraid of trouble, but resolving some trouble in advance is never a bad thing."
With that thought, Hikaru nodded lightly and smiled.
"You've worked hard. Without your help, the Land of Hot Water would not have recovered so quickly."
"This is what we should do. Since we promised Hokage-sama, we will definitely fulfill our promise."
Nagato's voice was calm and steady.
He slowly raised his head to look at Hikaru, hesitation briefly appearing in his eyes.
But that hesitation disappeared quickly, replaced by determination.
"Hokage-sama, the construction plan for the Land of Hot Water is basically complete. I wonder what plans Hokage-sama has next?"
"Plans?"
Hikaru glanced at Nagato, and the smile on his face grew brighter.
How could he not know Nagato's little thoughts?
Or rather, Nagato had never really hidden them.
What Nagato cared about was nothing more than two things.
The Land of Rain.
And Yahiko.
For the past three years, Hikaru had basically called Hidan over once a year to assist with resurrection.
Hidan's ability had also caught Hashirama's attention, so Hashirama had spent quite some time studying him.
Of course, Hashirama was not reckless.
He knew Hikaru valued Hidan's ability and intended to train him into one of Konoha's people.
So Hashirama's methods were gentle.
While teaching Hidan many things, he also quietly deepened the boy's bond with Konoha.
Smart people knew what attitude to use in what position and what actions would best complete their task.
Tobirama was an expert in this area.
Hidan, who had little experience of the world, had almost ended up kneeling and calling Tobirama father.
Including Sakumo Hatake, the first person revived, Konoha currently had four people who had truly returned to life.
Hashirama, Tobirama, and Rin had all been revived by Hikaru.
Originally, Kakashi wanted to revive Obito first.
Unfortunately, Obito's supposed death had been too clean. There were no usable remains at all.
Kakashi was still searching for Obito's body material, so Hikaru revived Hashirama and Tobirama first.
With those two revived, along with Sakumo's existence, Konoha's leadership immediately understood something.
Their Fifth Hokage possessed the ability to bring the dead back to life.
Because of that, every one of them worked with extraordinary effort.
After so many years of war, whose family did not have a loved one who had died unexpectedly?
They all hoped that one day, they might receive such a chance.
Or that such a chance might be used on themselves.
Nagato's current wish was very simple.
He wanted Hikaru's help.
Yahiko was still in an Edo Tensei state.
Nagato did not want that state to continue.
"There are plans," Hikaru said calmly while looking at Nagato. He tapped the desk lightly and continued, "At present, we are evaluating the Land of Tea, the Land of Waves, and the Land of Rain.
"Actually, I know what you're thinking. We can give the Land of Rain more consideration. However, we do not have a deep understanding of the Land of Rain…"
"Hokage-sama, whatever you wish to know, I will provide the information immediately!"
Nagato spoke before Hikaru could finish.
"If you wish to send people in to investigate, that is no problem either. I will make sure the shinobi of the Land of Rain fully cooperate with you."
"Is that so?"
Hikaru seemed to fall into thought.
After a long moment, he smiled and nodded.
"Very well. The Land of Rain is located where three countries meet. If its strength can be raised, it will also make the Land of Fire safer.
"Do not be upset by what I'm saying. The Land of Rain's location is sensitive, and because it rains all year, we are not sure whether it has enough resources."
"Please don't worry, Hokage-sama."
Nagato did not mind Hikaru's words at all. Instead, he gave a serious promise.
"That is the truth. Before I came, Yahiko mentioned the same issue. We will fully cooperate with Hokage-sama."
"Good. Then I'll have to trouble you."
Hikaru smiled and nodded.
Then his expression became slightly more serious.
"If this matter is handled well, I may give you a gift in the future.
"For example, a truly living Yahiko.
"All right, you may go. We still need to discuss this matter slowly."
"Yes, Hokage-sama…"
…
"Are you really letting him benefit that easily?"
Only after Nagato completely left the Hokage's office and quickly disappeared into Konoha's streets did Kakashi speak with some dissatisfaction.
His dissatisfaction was naturally not toward Hikaru.
It was toward Nagato.
He knew Nagato had always wanted to revive his companion, but had never had a proper excuse to ask.
But Nagato was surrounded by foxes.
Even Kakashi had become very sharp by now, so of course he could see what Nagato wanted.
Hikaru had now given Nagato a promise.
Although he had not set a specific time, he had confirmed the matter.
Giving such a benefit to an outsider made Kakashi somewhat unhappy.
He would never question Hikaru, but he was still displeased that Nagato had taken an opportunity that should have belonged to Konoha shinobi.
"This isn't exactly cheap for him. He has paid quite a lot. We shouldn't be stingy with rewards when they are deserved. Besides, this jutsu does not cost us much."
Hikaru was unconcerned by Kakashi's words.
He smiled casually, then asked, "How is Rin doing?"
"She's doing well. She's performing very well in the medical department."
At the mention of Rin, Kakashi's exposed eye immediately curved into a crescent.
Clearly, he was very satisfied with his friend's current situation.
After Rin was revived, she had struggled badly at first.
Especially in the beginning, when she did not fully trust everything in front of her and resisted it in subtle ways.
But once Hikaru brought them back to Konoha, everything changed for her.
She saw familiar yet unfamiliar sights.
She saw old companions who had grown into adults.
She listened to the stories of everything that had happened in Konoha over the years.
Slowly, she began to believe it.
She finally understood what had happened to her.
The Second Hokage had truly created a forbidden jutsu that could awaken the dead.
And the Fifth Hokage, her former classmate, had created a forbidden jutsu that could turn an Edo Tensei body into a truly living person.
That meant she could live again.
The news struck her mind a second time.
The first time, she had not fully believed it.
Now, she finally did.
But Rin was a proper Konoha shinobi.
She felt that even if she returned to life, she would not have much value, so she had once wanted to give up the chance.
However, through Kakashi's explanation and pleading, she eventually accepted.
After all, according to the Fifth Hokage, she could also be considered a test subject.
After truly coming back to life, Rin needed to adapt to Konoha again.
She had revived at the same age she had died.
That meant she was five or six years younger than classmates who had once been the same age as her.
For her, that was not exactly a pleasant experience.
Especially when several of those classmates had already become extraordinary people.
For example, the once ordinary Fukami Hikaru had turned out to be a hidden descendant of the Senju Clan.
His true name was Senju Hikaru.
And now, he was the Fifth Hokage of Konoha.
Her closest friend and teammate, Kakashi, had become the Anbu commander.
In addition, Uchiha saya, who had been closest to Hikaru back then, had become the chief private secretary of the Secretary Department.
Rin did not know exactly what that meant at first, but according to Kakashi, Uchiha saya's status was not lower than his own.
Others, like Guy, were also working hard toward becoming jonin.
These changes made Rin happy, but also uncomfortable.
With Kakashi's help, she eventually pulled herself together and began studying and adapting again.
However, her identity was not suitable to be revealed yet.
At least, not for now.
So she was living under another name and staying at Kakashi's home.
"That's good. Three years should be enough for her to adjust somewhat."
Hikaru nodded.
Then he smiled and nudged Kakashi's chest with his elbow.
"You really gained from this. She's five years younger than you now, and she's already sixteen. I think…"
"Hokage-sama, please don't joke about that."
Kakashi awkwardly interrupted Hikaru.
He really could not handle that kind of joke.
And he genuinely did not have such thoughts right now.
"Still, Rin has been revived, but Obito's side is still full of problems. I still haven't found his remains, and I don't know what his current situation is."
"It's fine. I believe you'll find them eventually. I'll keep that chance reserved for you."
Hikaru lightly patted Kakashi's shoulder.
In truth, he knew Kakashi would never find Obito's remains.
After all, that brat was still alive and well.
"Oh, Hokage-sama, there is one more thing I need to report."
"What is it?"
"I wonder if Hokage-sama still remembers Shisui?"
"Of course. What happened?"
"He asked me to report to Hokage-sama that the Uchiha Clan is about to hold a new clan head election…"
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