Inside the Hokage's office, Minato stared at the towering stack of paperwork on his desk, his heart filled with despair.
His lips trembled slightly as he held onto a sliver of hope, turning to Nara Shikaku, who only shrugged helplessly. With a shaky voice, he asked:
"Shikaku, don't tell me… all of these are untouched documents."
"Of course not."
Shikaku's lips twitched.
"That's a relief."
Minato let out a breath of relief, but in the next second, Shikaku spoke with a completely serious expression:
"The Hokage has processed about one-tenth of them. The rest are yours to handle. This is your assigned task—your evaluation mission."
"…"
The smile on Minato's face slowly froze. He could no longer bring himself to smile.
The so-called "Little Sun" felt as if dark clouds had suddenly covered his bright sky. It was as if he had been struck by lightning, completely dumbfounded.
Evaluation mission, my ass!!!
This was clearly just an excuse to slack off!
My god, there are so many documents left. How long is this going to take?
Minato felt like his future had suddenly turned bleak.
"You have my sympathies."
Shikaku's gaze was filled with pity.
Having a Hokage who loved drinking, skipping work, and gambling… he could only sigh in resignation.
Once upon a time, he had envied Minato.
Pushed forward by Takuya from behind, Minato had gone from being an elite Jōnin of the village to a Hokage candidate. But now… there was nothing to be envious about.
The Hokage's work was incredibly busy. Even in times of peace, the sheer amount of paperwork could make a person go cross-eyed.
The endless troubles that came with the position could drive someone insane. This was precisely why Tsunade had been so eager to retire.
Watching others wander the village freely, going shopping and enjoying good food, while she remained stuck in the Hokage's office day after day, year after year—of course, she wasn't happy about it.
Tsunade wanted to rest too! She wanted to go out, gamble, shop, and enjoy delicious meals!
She didn't want to waste her precious time on endless paperwork.
And so, the idea of Hokage candidates was born.
I knew this wouldn't lead to anything good. Takuya, you bastard, you've completely screwed me over.
Feeling utterly miserable, Minato could only sit down in frustration and start working.
Tasks that were once exclusively handled by the Hokage had now been delegated.
Since Minato was a Hokage candidate, he needed to be trained as soon as possible. With Takuya backing the decision, Tsunade completely ignored any objections from the Third Hokage and his supporters, firmly pushing Minato into the role.
Minato was getting trained in advance, and Tsunade had gained more time to be a hands-off leader.
"Eh~~~?"
Hearing a voice from the window, Minato jolted, practically leaping three feet into the air.
"Takuya, the Hokage skipped work again! Can't you do something about it?"
"The other villages are constantly mocking us, saying our Hokage is a gambling addict, a foodie, and a heavy drinker!!!"
"She's picked up every bad habit imaginable!"
Sitting on the windowsill, Takuya hadn't expected Minato to be so full of grievances.
"Tsk, so much resentment."
"You're one to talk! If it weren't for you, why would I be sitting here?!"
The more Minato spoke, the angrier he got.
Takuya got here first. He should be the one taking responsibility, but instead, he dumped it all on me!
Damn it, I just want to go home and spend time with my wife and child, not sit here drowning in paperwork.
Minato missed his old life as a ninja. Even though it was busy, he still had time to spend with his family.
But now? Ever since he became a Hokage candidate, his peaceful life had been completely ruined.
"Tsunade skipping work is not my fault."
Takuya had no intention of taking the blame. He quickly cut off Minato's complaints and waved his hand.
"Alright, alright, I know you're suffering. Just skip work today. Leave the rest to Shikaku—I believe in the intelligence of the Nara Clan. He can handle it. Let's go grab some grilled meat. Nawaki's already there."
"…What? Grilled meat?"
I'm drowning in stress, and you guys are planning a barbecue?
Minato's eyes widened in disbelief.
I almost had a heart attack just now!
Nara Shikaku wanted nothing more than to kick Takuya out the window.
The Hokage already skipped work, and now you're encouraging the Hokage candidate to skip too?
Have some decency! I'm just a Hokage's secretary!!!
This workload isn't supposed to be dumped on me!
But considering the gap in their strength, Shikaku held back his urge to kick Takuya.
He was relieved to see that Minato was at least somewhat responsible and didn't immediately follow Takuya's lead.
However, his relief was short-lived.
Just moments ago, Minato had been furious. But then his eyes flickered with an idea, and the next second, he disappeared with Takuya.
As the curtains fluttered in the wind, Nara Shikaku was left standing there, completely stunned.
Where did they go?
Where the hell did those two just go?!
Did they just use the Flying Thunder God Technique to escape?!
Looking at the mountain of unfinished paperwork, Shikaku wanted to cry.
I'm just a Hokage's secretary, not the Hokage or the Hokage candidate. This workload shouldn't be mine.
He kept saying he didn't want to do it, but in the end, he ran away faster than anyone else.
Classic Minato.
Minato had no choice but to throw Shikaku under the bus to escape his workload. After all, the Nara Clan was known for their intelligence—who else would he dump it on?
If you have a problem, go find the Hokage.
She's either at a gambling den, shopping, or drinking somewhere. If you're not afraid of getting beaten up, go ahead and track her down.
With Takuya in tow, Minato ran as fast as he could. But as they left, he started feeling a little guilty.
"Do you think leaving everything to Shikaku will be okay?"
"What could possibly happen? Right now, there isn't a single village in the ninja world that dares to mess with us."
"At worst, he'll just have to handle some minor issues. And if things really get out of hand, he'll risk his life to go find Tsunade. Trust me, let's go. We don't want Nawaki waiting too long—he's been full of complaints lately."
Not everyone is as lazy as you…
Minato was speechless.
I have a reason to be resentful. But Nawaki?
Minato was burdened with Hokage candidate responsibilities, leaving him exhausted.
But Nawaki? He was simply going crazy from taking care of his kids.
At the barbecue restaurant, Nawaki was leaning against the table, propping his chin up with one hand, yawning repeatedly as if he had been completely drained.
"You guys couldn't get here any faster?"
"I still have to go back and take care of the little ones. If they wake up and don't see me, they'll start crying and throwing a fit."
Takuya and Minato had barely pushed open the door to the private dining room when Nawaki immediately started complaining.
Due to the pressure of continuing the Senju Clan's lineage, he had no choice but to get married and take on the exhausting role of a stay-at-home dad.
Even when he managed to escape for a meal with friends, he couldn't stop worrying about his kids.
Five kids… no wonder he looks so exhausted.
Takuya had to admit—he was impressed.
In just a few short years, Nawaki had single-handedly increased the number of Senju Clan members by five.
And all five of them were boys.
Even if he stopped having kids now, once his sons grew up and had their own families, the Senju Clan's numbers would only continue to rise.
You're even crazier than me.
Minato shook his head, sitting down cross-legged and pouring himself a drink.
"All because of your sister—she keeps skipping work, leaving me with all the responsibilities."
You're complaining? I should be the one complaining!
"Oh, please."
Nawaki rolled his eyes.
"My sister did this for your own good. Otherwise, with no missions to keep you busy, you'd just be hiding at home taking care of Naruto."
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(P)(S): If you're interested, you can read the rest of the Chapter at Patreon com/ Emik01.
DO NOT FORGET POWER STONE AND CHATTING