Danzo became the Sixth Hokage.
The people of Konoha were stunned.
No one understood how things had changed direction so quickly.
There had been no buildup, no rumors, no gossip.
The Hokage announcement had come suddenly and without warning.
The smarter people had already guessed that something had happened behind the scenes.
When ordinary citizens saw Danzo wearing the Hokage robe on television, everyone realized that a new era had arrived.
Still, quite a few people in Konoha were looking forward to it.
Since Danzo's reputation was fairly good, people were interested to see what would happen.
———
Inside the Hokage's office, Danzo stood with his back to Konoha Village outside the window.
"The work that Lord Second Hokage failed to complete will be carried on by me.", Danzo muttered quietly.
"The first step is to restore the reputations of Uchiha Madara and Senju Tobirama."
The reason he was doing this was not for Madara's and Tobirama's reputations, but to pave the way for starting another ninja war and unifying the entire ninja world in the future.
Suddenly, Danzo's eyes became dark and fierce.
"And Hatake Sakumo... that ignorant brat actually dared to oppose me in public."
"If loyalty isn't absolute, then it's absolute disloyalty!"
Danzo slowly took a sip of tea.
———
At the same time, at the Hatake residence in southern Konoha.
A baby had been born to the Hatake family today.
Sakumo Hatake's face was full of foolish happiness, and his eyes were slightly red.
"Congratulations, Sakumo. You became a father pretty quickly."
Holding Tsunade's hand, Arisu walked in and looked at the wrinkled baby wrapped in blankets, a sincere smile appearing on his face.
Sakumo scratched his head and looked at Arisu expectantly.
"I was just worrying about what to name the kid. You're smarter than me. How about helping me come up with one?"
Arisu was briefly stunned, then laughed, "You really want me to name your child? A child's name is important. Stop fooling around."
"How is that fooling around?"
"Back on the battlefield during the Second Ninja War, I promised you that the name of my first child would be chosen by you. I've remembered that ever since."
Patting his chest, Sakumo spoke with complete seriousness.
After a pause, he looked at his wife beside him.
"And Miwako agrees too.", His wife nodded gently.
Beside them, Tsunade impatiently pinched Arisu and raised an eyebrow.
"They're sincerely asking you to choose the name. Stop dragging your feet."
"See? Sister-in-law Tsunade gets straight to the point."
Sakumo quickly agreed, "Come on, pick one already. I can't wait."
Arisu shook his head helplessly and looked at the peacefully sleeping baby.
'So this is the future Hatake Kakashi...'
After a moment of silence, Arisu slowly spoke, "How about Hatake Kakashi?"
The moment he finished speaking, Sakumo's eyes widened.
His face was filled with disbelief, "Amazing! That's the exact name I was thinking about just now!"
Arisu raised an eyebrow in mock surprise, "Looks like great minds really do think alike."
The meaning behind the name Hatake Kakashi was "scarecrow in the fields," symbolizing how he would silently protect Konoha like a scarecrow.
"Hahaha! I have a son! I have a daughter!", Sakumo blurted out incoherently.
Seeing Sakumo grinning foolishly, Arisu smiled helplessly.
Beside him, Tsunade suddenly pinched his waist and leaned closer, pouting as she asked in a low voice, "So when are we going to have our own child?"
Arisu simply smiled and didn't answer.
Tsunade immediately became dissatisfied. Wrapping an arm around his neck, she shook him and deliberately raised an eyebrow.
"Useless. Don't tell me you can't do it?"
Arisu smiled, "I never fall for provocation."
———
"Teacher! We became jonin!"
Three teenagers held up their brand-new jonin uniforms as they rushed into the courtyard, their voices full of excitement they could barely contain.
Under Arisu's careful guidance, Namikaze Minato, Sarutobi Shinnosuke, and Uzumaki Kushina had finally all been promoted to jonin.
"Well done."
Arisu smiled and clapped.
"You're only sixteen years old. Jonin at your age are extremely rare in the entire ninja world."
"Hehe, we're one step closer to becoming Hokage!"
Kushina clenched her small fists, her eyes shining.
Minato nodded seriously beside her.
"It's all thanks to Teacher's guidance!"
"Most of our classmates are still stuck at the chunin level. Only the three of us became the youngest jonin in Konoha's history!"
Shinnosuke looked at Arisu with eyes full of admiration.
Over the years, Hiruzen Sarutobi's resignation had barely affected Shinnosuke at all.
To outsiders, Danzo had become Hokage through a silent struggle among the higher-ups.
But in Shinnosuke's eyes, it was simply a normal transfer of power.
Just like when Senju Hashirama had passed the Hokage position to Uchiha Madara.
He had known Danzo since childhood and had always called him Uncle Danzo.
Now his father was safely spending his retirement years in the Sarutobi clan grounds, and his relationship with Danzo remained unchanged.
Looking at his three spirited students, Arisu nodded with satisfaction.
"Hmm?"
"Today, I'll teach the three of you a new jutsu."
He beckoned them closer.
All three immediately showed looks of surprise and delight.
Ever since they had become chunin, their teacher had rarely personally taught them new techniques.
"Come closer, but not too close. Watch carefully."
Arisu slightly lowered his palm.
A mass of blue chakra suddenly gathered and formed a rapidly spinning sphere of energy.
It buzzed in his palm without leaking even the slightest bit of power.
"Why doesn't it need hand seals?!"
The three shouted in unison, their faces full of disbelief.
This was the first time they had seen a truly hand-seal-less jutsu.
"What kind of technique is this? I've never seen it before."
Shinnosuke's eyes widened.
His father was Hiruzen Sarutobi, known as the "Professor of Ninjutsu." He had read through Konoha's records since childhood, yet he had never seen a technique like this.
Meanwhile, Minato was already staring at the spinning chakra sphere in amazement.
A burning desire appeared in his eyes, as though this technique had been created specifically for him.
Seeing their reactions, Arisu smiled slightly.
"This is a technique I developed myself. It's called the Rasengan."
The moment they heard that, all three hurriedly shouted, "Teacher, we want to learn it!"
Arisu smiled and explained the training method to them.
"Why does this feel a little familiar?"
Kushina raised an eyebrow.
She felt that this Rasengan seemed strangely similar to another technique.