Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at the blond young man before him, his eyes filled with relief. Then his gaze swept toward a rooftop not far away.
Right where his eyes landed,
Two figures were standing there.
"Old man is watching you."
"I know."
"Tsk tsk, I really don't get how someone like you managed to raise someone as outstanding as Minato."
"Hey, Tsunade, that's going too far! What's wrong with me? I'm one of the Three Sannin, Jiraiya!"
These two were the fellow Sannin—Jiraiya and Tsunade.
The two hadn't gone to the Hokage building but instead watched quietly from afar.
Jiraiya's eyes were full of pride, because today's protagonist was his student. He might not have become Hokage himself, but he had taught someone who did.
For him, this was the greatest honor.
But when his gaze shifted to Gekko Chizan floating mid-air, his expression suddenly darkened, ending with a quiet sigh.
"What is it? Seeing Chizan reminds you of Orochimaru??"
Tsunade had worked with Jiraiya for years and knew his temperament well. There were very few things that could make him sigh, and at this timing, only Orochimaru could stir that sadness.
"Come on, that guy defected, but he didn't harm anyone in the village, did he?"
"Old man only asked you to bring him back."
Tsunade knew Orochimaru's situation was troublesome. Even if he hadn't damaged the village's interests, the experiments he conducted in secret were more than enough to cause a disaster.
The old man wanting him captured was natural.
"Forget it. On a day like today, let's not mention him."
"That bastard… If he hadn't gone down the wrong path, this Hokage position might've been his."
"Hard to imagine what that cold bastard would be like as Hokage."
Jiraiya acknowledged Orochimaru's brilliance. After all, he had always regarded Orochimaru as his rival.
"Haha, whatever. Minato becoming Hokage is great."
"But seriously, this kid Chizan… that Crystal Release technique of his is something else. Watching the ceremony like this? Didn't expect that."
Looking at Gekko Chizan floating mid-air using Crystal Release, Tsunade couldn't help but laugh.
Her laughter dispelled the gloom weighing on Jiraiya's heart, and he also began laughing.
"I should've taken Gekko Chizan as my student back then. Then Konoha's twin stars would both be mine! Just imagine the bragging rights!"
"Hahahahaha!"
While they laughed heartily, the Hokage succession ceremony officially began.
Sarutobi Hiruzen stepped onto the platform. Looking down at the gathered crowd, he couldn't help but feel deeply fulfilled.
This was the village he'd protected for half his life—thriving, vigorous, undamaged even by war.
He was satisfied. He wasn't the First Hokage, nor the Second Hokage. He didn't have Wood Release, nor the ability to create countless forbidden jutsu.
All he could do was give everything he had to make the village prosper—and he had succeeded.
Sarutobi Hiruzen couldn't help but think: First Hokage-sama, Teacher… I've done it. Konoha is steadily walking toward glory.
As he arrived at the front of the platform, the once noisy square fell into perfect silence.
"Everyone, today is an important day."
"Today, we welcome the Fourth Hokage, the inheritor of the Will of Fire."
"A hero of the Third Shinobi World War. He is young, but he possesses both strength and the respect of the people."
"I, Third Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen, formally pass the mantle of Hokage to Namikaze Minato today."
"I believe that under his leadership, Konoha will flourish even more."
As his words fell, Sarutobi Hiruzen stepped aside. Namikaze Minato stepped forward.
The handsome blond—well, at this moment, he looked even more handsome.
"Namikaze Minato, today I entrust the future of Konoha and the shinobi world to you. Do you accept?"
Minato's expression was extremely solemn. At this moment, he felt an unprecedented pressure—yet this pressure was not a burden to him.
Since the moment he made becoming Hokage his dream, he had prepared for this.
After a firm nod, his clear voice rang out:
"I will do my utmost not to disappoint the Third Hokage's expectations. I will lead the village—and the shinobi world—toward a brighter future."
As he finished, Sarutobi Hiruzen smiled with deep satisfaction.
"I believe you will."
Beside them, Koharu personally handed the Hokage hat and cloak to Sarutobi Hiruzen, who then passed them to Namikaze Minato.
Receiving the hat and cloak, Minato didn't hesitate for even a moment—he put them on smoothly in one decisive motion.
Then he faced the ninja and civilians below, and said in a calm tone what had been in his heart all along.
"I am willing to give my life to lead this village toward the light."
His tone was calm—yet everyone could hear his determination.
"Oooh!! Oooh!!"
"Namikaze Minato! Fourth Hokage!"
Suddenly, a massive voice erupted from the center of the square. With that shout leading the way—
The entire plaza began to chant Namikaze Minato and Fourth Hokage.
Only three people looked completely exasperated.
"Kakashi… So this is why sensei told us to stand in the center of the plaza?"
"To give him a coordinate point, I guess?"
Uchiha Obito struggled to push through the crowd, face full of disbelief.
Beside him, Kakashi and Nohara Rinkaku had just pushed their way out too.
"Sensei is still as unpredictable as ever."
"But that shout of his… it worked."
Seeing the crowd erupting, Kakashi felt strength surging through him.
And high above, Gekko Chizan looked at the cheering crowd with satisfaction, turning to Kushina and saying:
"You should thank me. Look at the effect of my shout. Your man is even more popular now."
Yes, that enormous shout just now had been his.
With Kakashi's team providing a precise coordinate, he used Flying Thunder God to teleport directly into the crowd, gathered his strength, and shouted that line—igniting the entire plaza.
Kushina had no mind to respond to him. Her eyes were fixed entirely on Minato.
Her dream had also been to become Hokage. It was no longer possible—but becoming the Hokage's wife, that she had achieved.
At this moment, Gekko Chizan and Uchiha Fugaku stood at the edge of the platform watching Minato.
Minato's gaze was on them as well. Knowing his close friends well, he instantly understood that the shout had come from Gekko Chizan.
His eyes were filled with emotion.
Gekko Chizan and Uchiha Fugaku exchanged a glance, then raised their right hands at the same time.
Their thumbs stood tall in the air.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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