With Nara Shikaku joining the fray to claim Aoi Ren, the victory banquet turned into complete chaos. It had officially transformed into nothing more than a "Family Reunion Show"...
"Enough!"
Tobirama Senju finally lost his patience. He slammed his hand heavily on the table and stood up.
"Lord Tobirama! You aren't going to tell us that Aoi Ren is also a member of the Senju clan, are you?!"
Nara Shikaku looked at him with high alert, his expression clearly saying: You are the Hokage, you can't just use your authority to steal him from us!
"Ridiculous!"
Tobirama sneered with disdain. "This little guy? Even if he wanted to take the name Senju, I wouldn't allow it!"
Hearing this, Shikaku breathed a sigh of relief. He turned around, ready to continue arguing with the other clans about Aoi Ren's heritage...
"However..."
Tobirama continued with a smug smirk, "It is very likely that Lady Tsunade will be taking the name 'Li' in the future!"
He narrowed his eyes and smiled arrogantly, as if saying: Go ahead and fight all you want. No matter what his surname is, he is already tied inseparably to the Senju clan!
This was the ultimate arrogance of the Hokage!
In that instant, all the clan leaders felt exhausted. No matter how hard we try, we can't beat the Hokage. They secured their investment early on and already tied him to their family!
"That's enough!"
Tobirama finally put an end to the farce. He kicked all the representatives of the various clans out of the Senju residence...
Once everyone was gone, Tobirama's expression suddenly turned cold and serious. He looked at Aoi Ren and spoke in a low voice.
"You must feel very proud, right? So many clans fighting over you, chasing after you..."
Before Aoi Ren could answer, Tobirama continued. "I heard... you want to become Hokage?"
"I don't just want to be..."
Aoi Ren smiled confidently. "I will be Hokage!"
Once he made up his mind, there was no stopping him. That was the confidence of a transmigrator. Besides, Hashirama was still watching him from the border...
"But... do you know what kind of person is qualified to become Hokage?" Tobirama frowned sternly. "Do you really think you are capable of handling this position right now?"
Aoi Ren was stunned. To be honest, he had never really thought about this question deeply...
What exactly does it take to become Hokage?
In the original story, it always seemed so simple and random: Jiraiya didn't want it, so Tsunade took it. Danzo died, so they just pushed Kakashi into the seat...
Was being Hokage really just a game of popularity?
Seeing Aoi Ren deep in thought, Tobirama actually smiled—a rare sight. "That's right! The most important quality of a Hokage is the ability to think!"
"You must think about the relationships between nations. You must think about the balance between clans. The honor and future of the entire village and country rest upon a single pair of shoulders!"
"Being strong is not enough to become Hokage!"
Tobirama had said these very words to Hashirama before. And it was for this very reason that Uchiha Madara could never have become Hokage, no matter how long he waited!
"Only a leader who commands the respect and trust of all people is worthy of the title!" Tobirama smiled proudly.
"Killing one or two strong ninja isn't enough. It takes achievements like this recent victory—crushing the combined forces of Sunagakure—to earn the true prestige required!"
Just as Aoi Ren expected, Tobirama couldn't help but start bragging about his own accomplishments...
He didn't know why, but whenever Tobirama was in front of Aoi Ren, he loved to show off.
"It was nothing really," Tobirama grinned casually. "I only killed about twenty of their Jōnin, around a hundred Chūnin, and roughly two thousand Genin. That's all."
"Calling it a great victory might sound too arrogant," he chuckled lightly. "Let's just say it was a moderate victory. A perfectly ordinary, medium-sized win."
"However..." Aoi Ren grinned and struck right at the weak point.
"...in the end, you guys still didn't manage to actually break through and capture the village of Sunagakure itself, did you?"
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