"Water."
"Bring me water. My throat's already smoking..."
"Damn it! I'm not dead yet. I can still keep going..."
Night.
After taking a full-force beating from Roshi, White Fang had been carried back to the Leaf by his men in the middle of the night.
He had suffered heavy injuries.
Even though he had escaped with his life, he had still paid a serious price.
By the time he was brought back to the Leaf's hospital, the doctors inside had already gone numb from the endless stream of wounded.
The war had only just ended, yet the village had not truly become peaceful.
The cost of this war was still being slowly settled.
White Fang lay on the bed, his entire body wrapped in bandages. His voice was hoarse, and he looked unbelievably miserable.
He had fought all the way from the battlefield back to the Land of Fire, then finally returned to the Leaf under the protection of his subordinates.
Along the way, he had almost died several times.
And all because of one bastard.
Roshi.
That little monster had nearly beaten him to death.
"I was careless..."
White Fang's eyes were full of bitterness.
Back then, he had thought Roshi was just another powerful enemy.
Who could have guessed that the little brat would turn into a human-shaped natural disaster the moment he started fighting seriously?
If he had not reacted fast enough and used every last bit of strength he had, he might not have made it back alive at all.
"It's over now. You made it back."
A familiar voice entered his ears.
White Fang turned his head and saw Haru walking in.
The moment White Fang saw him, his emotions became complicated.
He had risked his life on the battlefield while Haru sat comfortably in the village, counting money and giving orders.
But the one standing at the top now was still Haru.
And the one who had earned enough money to make the entire Leaf crazy with joy was also Haru.
White Fang's mouth twitched, but in the end he only let out a tired sigh.
"Hokage-sama."
"How embarrassing. I nearly died outside."
"There's nothing embarrassing about it. Surviving is already a skill."
Haru waved it off casually.
Then he sat down beside the bed and looked White Fang over.
"Looks like your injuries are serious."
"Roshi hit harder than I expected. That little brat really is absurd."
White Fang's face darkened.
Not just absurd.
That was a monster.
A monster wearing a child's face.
"That little brat isn't the point. The point is that you survived, and survival means you still have value."
Haru's tone was calm, but White Fang could hear the meaning underneath.
As long as he was alive, he could continue working.
If he died, then all of that battlefield experience and all that reputation would become meaningless.
White Fang stayed silent for a while, then finally asked:
"Hokage-sama, was this war really worth it?"
"The number of people who died was too high."
"The village won, but I don't know if it really feels like a victory."
Haru narrowed his eyes slightly.
"It was worth it."
"The problem isn't whether the war was worth it. The problem is whether the result was worth the price."
"This time, the result was worth it."
White Fang did not refute him.
Deep down, he knew Haru was right.
The Leaf had taken severe losses, but the other villages had taken even worse ones.
And with the futures plan bringing in that monstrous amount of money, the Leaf's recovery speed would now far surpass all the others.
That kind of advantage could not be measured with a few simple words.
"You should rest properly."
"The village still needs you."
Haru stood up, ready to leave.
But just as he reached the door, White Fang suddenly called out again.
"Hokage-sama."
Haru paused.
"What is it?"
White Fang hesitated for a moment, then said in a low voice:
"If the village keeps going down the road you're pushing it toward, sooner or later... you're going to get yourself hanged from a streetlamp."
Haru froze for a second.
Then he turned his head and looked at White Fang with a strange expression.
"You've learned to talk nonsense too?"
White Fang stared at the ceiling.
"I don't know why, but that sentence suddenly came to mind."
"It just feels right."
Haru's mouth twitched.
That was a little too right.
It was right enough to make him uncomfortable.
"You're overthinking it."
"As long as the people under me can make money, eat well, and keep living, then no one's going to hang me from anything."
White Fang closed his eyes.
"I hope so."
Haru gave him one last look, then left the room.
On the way back, the expression on his face became increasingly odd.
Why had White Fang suddenly said something like that?
Could this world really produce that kind of line on its own?
Or was there some other reason?
By the time he reached the Hokage's office, Shikato was already waiting there.
"Hokage-sama, the first batch of the new Will of Fire handbook has already started being distributed."
"The academy side is also preparing to use it formally."
"And there's another matter."
"The author name issue has already started attracting attention."
Haru instantly remembered that ridiculous pseudonym.
Saburo.
Tobirama had nearly argued with him to the death over that name, but in the end Haru had forced it through anyway.
"What are people saying?"
Shikato's expression became subtle.
"They're all asking the same thing."
"Who exactly is Saburo?"
Haru fell silent for two seconds.
Then he calmly replied:
"A wise man."
"A model citizen who understands the law, understands its loopholes, can trigger it, dance around it, and still remain an upright and law-abiding person."
Shikato's eyelid twitched slightly.
That explanation sounded insane no matter how he heard it.
But since it had come from Hokage-sama, then naturally it had to make sense.
At least on the surface.
"I understand."
Shikato nodded and decisively chose not to ask further.
Haru sat down in his chair and took a sip of tea.
Then he asked, "How are the other villages reacting lately?"
Shikato immediately gave his report.
"The Sand is still the same. The daimyo has cut funding again, and the Kazekage has personally gone back to mining gold in the desert. The Sand Village has no choice but to continue reducing its ninja numbers, and their training has started leaning even further toward elite specialization."
"The Cloud's situation isn't much better than what the Leaf was facing before. The mess left behind by the war is enormous..."
"The Stone has already selected its Third Tsuchikage after Mu's death. His name is Ohnoki. He inherited Mu's Particle Style and was already the publicly acknowledged successor even while Mu was alive."
"As for the Mist, that's the troublesome one."
"The Second Mizukage, Gengetsu, died too suddenly. A successor still hasn't been decided. The Mist is currently in internal conflict. The Hozuki Clan, the Kaguya Clan, and even Mizuto, the old guard who once served under the First Mizukage, are all fighting over the position of Third Mizukage."
Haru thought for a moment.
The Third Mizukage.
That mysterious man really had barely existed in the original story except as a shadow behind the Blood Mist era.
Name mostly unknown.
Personality unknown.
Ninjutsu unknown.
A true mystery.
But from later events, one thing was obvious: during his reign, the beginning of the Bloody Mist period had already started to form.
Bloodline ninja were stigmatized, demonized, and politically marginalized.
The Kaguya Clan later rebelled and was wiped out.
The Yuki Clan either died or scattered.
Then Obito slipped in later and used Yagura to push the entire system even further into madness.
The Mist really was tragic.
Still, for the Leaf, that was not necessarily bad news.
Let the Third Mizukage keep persecuting his own bloodline clans.
Later, if the opportunity appeared, Haru could just poach them all into the Leaf.
Ding.
A familiar system notification suddenly rang beside Haru's ear.
New side quests.
He immediately checked them.
[Bloodline Godfather: Invite three or more non-Leaf bloodline clans to join the Leaf.]
Reward: 60 draw chances.
[Sugar Is True Love: Cream puffs, desserts, cola, milk tea... spread the trend of high-sugar foods across the ninja world.]
Reward: 20 draw chances.
[Ninja World Voice: Songs give people strength. Create ten songs that become popular across the ninja world.]
Reward: 20 draw chances.
Three new missions had refreshed at once.
Haru looked over the requirements and rewards.
The requirements were high.
The rewards were decent.
But it all depended too much on luck afterward.
Useful enough that he could not throw them away.
Annoying enough that he did not want to think about them right now.
What bad timing.
Haru shook his head and set the missions aside, then continued listening to Shikato's report.
"Based on the Mist's intelligence situation..."
"It'll probably take at least another month before they choose a new Mizukage."
"So the Five Kage Summit..."
Haru nodded after hearing everything.
Looks like the summit would have to be delayed a bit longer.
"Send invitations to the Sand, the Cloud, and the Stone first."
"As for the Mist, leave them alone for now. We'll wait until they pick a Mizukage."
Shikato nodded and turned to leave, only to stop halfway to the door and turn back again.
"Hokage-sama, the ninja academy's enrollment is almost over. Aren't you going to make an appearance?"
"By custom, the Hokage is supposed to show up in person."
Haru paused.
He had almost forgotten that completely.
Lately, he had been too busy with the power plant and the new Will of Fire handbook.
The ninja academy was the Hokage's personal nursery for building loyal followers.
Every year, Tobirama had always gone in person for a few days during enrollment to show how much importance he placed on it.
"Fine. Then let's go take a look."
Haru felt there was no point staying in the office slacking off anyway.
A walk through the academy sounded good.
At the Leaf Ninja Academy,
Even though enrollment was almost over, the registration area was still packed.
Becoming a ninja meant gaining power.
And in a chaotic era, everyone understood exactly what power meant.
"It really is lively."
The moment Haru arrived wearing the Hokage's robe, the whole atmosphere ignited.
Cheers erupted, and the crowd automatically made way for him.
"Shikato, are there any good seedlings this year?"
"No need to mention the clan kids. I want to know if there are any promising ones among the civilians."
As he walked beside Haru, Shikato started listing several civilian children with good talent this year. They were said to be born with chakra reserves even greater than those of some clan children.
Haru listened, then suddenly his attention was pulled away by one extremely eye-catching figure.
Dark green training clothes.
A bowl-cut hairstyle like a watermelon rind.
Thick eyebrows.
Might Guy?
No.
At this point, that had to be Might Duy.
"Please, let me try one more time!"
"My talent for ninjutsu is bad, but I can become an excellent ninja through taijutsu!"
"The burning blood of youth..."
"Kid, didn't you already apply last year? I already made an exception and let you test again. Stop causing trouble here!"
The teacher handling enrollment was already out of patience. If Hokage-sama had not been standing nearby, he would probably have exploded and dragged the kid away already.
"Hokage-sama..."
"I'll remove that little guy right now."
Shikato tensed up slightly.
His work had not been thorough enough. The moment Haru arrived, he had already seen a scene like this.
"Don't!"
"Let him pass!"
"Give him enough training resources. In the future, he'll become an unbelievably powerful ninja. The kind who could kick Hashirama to death!"
Haru immediately stopped Shikato.
Other people might not know Might Duy's future, but how could Haru not know?
The user of the Eight Gates.
The man who kicked the Seven Ninja Swordsmen into a tragedy set.
And his son, Might Guy, had nearly kicked the ending out of the entire story.
"What...?"
"Kick the First Hokage to death?"
"Hokage-sama..."
Shikato looked helpless.
He knew his Hokage liked saying outrageous things sometimes, but this one was too ridiculous.
(End of Chapter)
[Check Out My P@treon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!][[email protected]/euridome]
[Thank You For Your Support!]