Chapter 84: Sneaky
One day later, in the morning.
Minato Namikaze woke from his sleep. Kushina was still fast asleep beside him.
He downed the glass of water on the bedside table in one gulp. Last night, to celebrate becoming Hokage, he had been invited to drink by many of his old academy classmates. Some of them he couldn't even name, but that didn't stop him from accepting their invitations.
Minato's alcohol tolerance wasn't bad, but he couldn't withstand the assault of so many people. It was the first time he found a party to be such a terrifying thing. It wasn't until an angry Kushina chased away the rowdy guys who were still forcing him to drink that the soon-to-be Hokage's last shred of dignity was preserved, saving him from vomiting his guts out in front of everyone.
He couldn't remember what happened after that. He rubbed the back of his throbbing head. The drunkenness was gone, but the hangover remained. Fortunately, it wouldn't delay the inauguration ceremony.
Checking the time, he saw the ceremony was about to begin. He hurriedly got out of bed, rushed to the bathroom to get ready, and put on his clothes and the Hokage robe.
Kushina was woken by Minato's movements. She also checked the time and did the same as Minato.
After a period of frantic rushing, the soon-to-be Hokage put a hand on his girlfriend's shoulder and disappeared from the spot.
"If it weren't for the Flying Thunder God, I would have been late."
Observing from backstage, the Third Hokage's speech was already nearing its end.
"Next, the inauguration ceremony of the Fourth Hokage will begin."
Hiruzen Sarutobi, dressed in his most formal Hokage attire and wearing the Hokage hat, turned slightly to the side and looked at Minato, who had suddenly appeared backstage. He wiped the cold sweat from under his hat.
With perfectly standard steps, Minato Namikaze replayed the scene that had already gone through his mind countless times. He walked up to the Third Hokage, who slowly took off the Hokage hat and handed it to him.
The moment it was passed, the crowd below erupted in thunderous applause and cheers.
The Hokage was not just a position; it was the spiritual pillar of Konoha, the pinnacle of ninja, and a symbol of power and wisdom.
Those who could become Kage were all extraordinary people in their villages. Their strength and prestige were recognized by all, which was how they could sit on this throne of the Kage.
"Minato Namikaze!!!!"
"Minato Namikaze!!!!"
"Minato Namikaze!!!!"
The villagers' shouts radiated outwards, spreading throughout the entire village. Even Kushina, still slightly tired, was infected and yelled at the top of her lungs in support of her boyfriend.
He looked at the faces in the crowd one by one: teammates he had fought alongside, civilians who supported him, academy children who admired him, and Rin Nohara, who had specially left the hospital to attend the ceremony.
Unfortunately, Obito Uchiha was nowhere to be seen. He must still be under strict guard at home.
It was a bit of a pity that his brilliant disciple couldn't see him in his most glorious moment.
Minato Namikaze raised his hand, acknowledging the people attending the ceremony.
In the crowd, a sudden flash of silver hair caught his attention. The familiar, brain-rattling appearance—it didn't look like he was here to attend his ceremony at all.
What kind of sneaky behavior was this?
His eyes flickered, and the silver-haired person was gone. The Third Hokage at his side noticed Minato's slightly unnatural expression and felt a bit strange. He followed his line of sight but saw nothing.
"Lord Third."
"What is it, Minato?"
After the cheers, as Minato waved to the crowd, people gradually dispersed. The Fourth Hokage leaned in close to the Third Hokage and asked in a low voice, "Is Obito still locked up in his house?"
"Hahaha, no. I gave him a special two-hour pass today to watch your ceremony. What do you think, did you see him?"
"Um... I saw him."
Minato smiled awkwardly.
"I'm going to go look for Obito."
"Don't be in such a hurry. The ceremony on stage is over, but the ceremony offstage isn't. I finally don't have to face that never-ending pile of documents and missions anymore."
"But..."
"Hurry up. There are a lot of documents today. If you don't start early, you might not even have time for lunch."
"Alright."
Minato Namikaze had no choice but to agree to the Third Hokage's request, handling the document handover first and putting the matter of Obito aside for now.
He just couldn't figure out why that guy would come back to watch.
Really, it was one thing to come back, but the sneaky way he did it clearly meant he was up to no good. His impression of his most troublesome disciple was still from before he sent him to the Land of Lightning. He didn't know how much he had improved during this time.
He hoped he wouldn't be disappointed.
Following Hiruzen Sarutobi to the Hokage's office, under the Third Hokage's gaze, Minato finally sat in the seat he had dreamed of. The suddenly lowered view made him a little unaccustomed. He adjusted his posture, but he still couldn't see his surroundings clearly.
"Don't move. I was the same as you back then. No matter what I did, I felt uncomfortable. It took me years to realize it was because of these."
Moving a pile of documents aside, Minato Namikaze's field of vision suddenly opened up, and his surroundings immediately felt much more spacious. When he moved the documents back, his vision returned to its original state.
"So many!"
"This is only a small half of it."
"....."
"I won't rest today, old man. I'll accompany you to sort out all the old files accumulated here, and while we're at it, I'll teach you how to deal with those more difficult guys."
"You mean?"
"Ahem..."
The Third Hokage coughed twice, followed by a knock on the door.
Knock, knock, knock.
"Come in."
The visitors were Hiruzen Sarutobi's two old classmates, members of the Konoha Council of Elders, Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane.
He secretly gave Minato a gesture.
'It's them.'
"Lord Fourth Hokage, today is your first day in office. We think it's necessary to make some things clear to you."
"Please speak."
"The position of Hokage is watched by all and holds supreme power, but that doesn't mean you can do whatever you want. You are still young. Hiruzen has been in this position for decades and still makes mistakes in judgment. We exist to correct your mistakes."
"Recently, there has been some news that a certain disciple of yours has clashed with Danzo. As the leader of Root, Danzo is also a cornerstone of Konoha's protection. He has not yet returned. Although I don't think anything will happen to him, your disciple still needs more observation. Such incidents must be strictly prohibited from happening again."
"Elders, I understand all of this."
Minato Namikaze's gaze was fearless. These two before him had probably come to put him in his place.
"It's good that you understand. Then, Hiruzen, you can continue with the handover ceremony with him."
The two elders left the Hokage's office. Minato Namikaze leaned back in his chair, his hands resting on the desk for a moment of relaxation.
"As you said, the elders are indeed quite difficult to handle."
...
At the Uchiha compound, the person his teacher had called "troublesome" hopped over the wall, bypassed the line of sight of the several ANBU members through his senses, and knocked on a window.
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