"I don't think you're that busy. Those are just excuses… Besides, there's something else you should've noticed already. Better make a decision early."
"Oh, please. You started dating at seven or eight years old—what right do you have lecturing me?"
Kyoichi bristled.
A kid who had a girlfriend in primary school telling him to hurry up?
That was nothing short of—
Copper refining!
(He cursed inwardly.)
Minato took a sip of tea, smiled, and continued.
"Fine, fine. Handle it however you want. I've said everything I can. Oh—and since you helped name my kid, that means you're responsible for being his future teacher."
"Nope, not happening. Jiraiya's perfect for that role. He's got tons of teaching experience—and that name 'Naruto' fits his ideology better anyway."
Kyoichi refused instantly.
Naruto wasn't stupid, but he was the kind of stubborn kid that was exhausting to teach.
Same for the other one.
Those two brothers? Both headaches.
If he had to summarize—
Anyone carrying their combined chakra signatures?
He'd rather not touch the job with a ten-foot pole.
Itachi, on the other hand…
Now he was promising.
Minato had no idea what Kyoichi was really thinking, but he understood that someone like Kyoichi—given his current status—wouldn't easily have the time to personally mentor a tiny child.
At most he'd give occasional guidance.
Some things Minato could teach himself, of course—but after seeing how Kakashi and the others turned out under his instruction… Minato was painfully aware that teaching wasn't exactly his strong suit.
Better leave that to the professionals.
Even for Naruto later on—
Worst case, dump him on Jiraiya.
That man did have real teaching experience, after all.
"When are you coming back to run the ANBU?"
"You're doing fine. It's not a critical job, and most of the initial reforms are already complete. I've still got research to finish—Six Paths power, Sage Mode… tons left to work on."
Kyoichi waved him off carelessly.
Minato rolled his eyes, then teleported away with Flying Thunder God.
Busy?
He didn't even bother changing the excuse!
But Minato had to admit—
Mastering Six Paths power and Sage Mode was more important than ANBU paperwork.
Six Paths chakra might require the Ten-Tails as a catalyst, but if they truly mastered it, then even the Ōtsutsuki wouldn't be impossible to face.
As for Sage Mode—
Everyone currently training in natural energy had reached the same conclusion:
Its upper limit is insanely high.
Sage transformation, sage physiology, sage arts…
If mastered perfectly, it might not surpass Six Paths power, but it could absolutely stand toe-to-toe with it.
More importantly—
Sage Mode was accessible to normal people.
Six Paths power?
Even with Ten-Tails chakra as fuel, almost no one could master it. Not even Long-range-potential talents like Nagato or Kyoichi had it easy.
So Minato didn't argue.
He simply went back to work.
But—
Right after Minato left, Kyoichi officially submitted his resignation.
---
That Night
When Tsunade returned home, she didn't give Kyoichi a pleasant expression at all.
Shizune and Oriri immediately sensed something was wrong.
They ate quietly, carefully, terrified to breathe too loudly.
When they saw Tsunade grab Kyoichi by the collar and drag him into the study, the two exchanged a silent look.
Say no more—
It had to be Kyoichi-sama.
He was the only person alive who could anger Tsunade-hime and not be immediately smashed into paste.
The two of them pretended they saw nothing and went to clean the kitchen.
---
In the Study
Tsunade and Kyoichi sat facing each other in silence.
After a few seconds, it was Kyoichi who cleared his throat first.
"About that resignation… The ANBU doesn't really need me anymore. So I think there's no point in me keeping the position. I can use that time for other, more important work."
"I mean… I'm already used to it. You barely showed up anyway. You were usually off slacking somewhere. But you didn't need to resign."
Tsunade frowned.
To her, resigning and not showing up often were two completely different things.
"I think a Hokage should train their successor early—especially if they don't plan to work themselves into the grave."
Kyoichi stretched lazily.
Tsunade thought for a moment.
"Minato's older than you. You don't need to be worrying about a successor."
"Uh… I'm not planning to be Hokage."
"Huh??"
She stared at him as if her brain glitched.
Not planning to be Hokage?
Then why the hell did you make me come back to be Hokage!?
She wanted to yell "Good heavens!" out loud.
"Ahem. If Minato gains the prestige and ability to succeed sooner, then you can step down earlier and enjoy your life. Konoha has plenty of talent—we don't need every Hokage to die at their desk."
Kyoichi walked behind her and started massaging her shoulders.
With Tsunade's build and strength, her shoulders were always tense.
This technique worked every time.
Sure enough, her anger melted away.
"If I weren't Hokage anymore… I could continue the journey I never finished. Travel around, drink every kind of alcohol in the shinobi world… hmm. Not a bad retirement."
Tsunade leaned back in her chair, completely relaxed.
Kyoichi kept massaging.
"You should go.
You've only been to the east. Next time you could head west—Land of Demons, Land of Snow… places you've never visited."
"And you? If Konoha no longer needs you, where will you go?"
"No idea. But if you don't mind an extra person tagging along… you could bring me on your journey too."
Kyoichi smiled.
"Tch!"
Tsunade spat back, then paused—silent for several seconds.
Only after a long moment did she speak again.
"If I bring you, what about Shizune? And Oriri…?"
"Shizune stays in Konoha. She'll grow more by treating patients, studying on her own, and learning to stand independently. She's already too reliant on you."
That wasn't nonsense—
it was the truth.
In the anime, Shizune was skilled but never reached independence—partly because she spent her life shadowing Tsunade.
Tsunade considered this and found it compelling.
Staying in Konoha, facing more patients, researching independently—that was the best path for Shizune.
"And Oriri… that depends on her.
She's Uzumaki. Even though she's softened a bit toward Konoha, if we leave, she may not want to stay."
"We'll worry about that later. We just got back—there's a mountain of work. We're not escaping anytime soon. And whether you like it or not… if there were to be a Fifth Hokage, it'd practically be stamped with your name already."
***************************
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