In August of Year 50 in Konoha, the Hyūga Clan mourned.
After the Hidden Cloud delegation obtained Hiashi Hyūga's body, they lost their excuse and set off back to Kumo.
By September, the Hidden Cloud delegation had returned home. Upon examination, they discovered that the Byakugan of "Hiashi Hyūga" was nonfunctional.
Realizing the deception, Konoha tore up the treaty first. By then, Konoha had already assembled a ninja army at the border.
Seeing no opportunity to exploit, the Hawks of Hidden Cloud eventually withdrew their forces after being persuaded by the Doves.
Iwagakure received the news and abandoned their futile ambitions, recalling people like Kitsuchi back to the village.
With enemies retreating on both fronts, Konoha finally achieved the long-awaited peace. Hiruzen Sarutobi also recalled Jiraiya and held a grand welcome ceremony for him.
Boom! Boom! Boom! — The sky lit up with bursts of fireworks as petals of color rained down, and Konoha Main Street instantly came alive.
A chorus of voices swelled into a roaring wave of sound, echoing across the Plaza like thunder cracking through a clear sky.
On the rooftop near Konoha Avenue, Hiashi leaned against the railing, watching smiling Konoha ninjas pass by and villagers cheer joyfully around him. His pale eyes reflected a trace of mockery.
As the strongest ninja village in the Ninja World, achieving peace required sacrificing its own shinobi.
Even more ironic was that the true hero who brought peace—Hizashi—would never be known by the villagers.
"How ironic! The real hero not only receives no reward but is instead forgotten and even slandered!"
Hearing this melancholic voice, Hiashi turned toward its source. There stood Aozora, dressed in dark casual clothes. With a slight flicker, he easily bypassed Hiashi's guards and approached.
Hiashi stopped his guards, who had activated their Byakugan, and addressed Aozora: "Uchiha Aozora, what brings you here?"
Hiashi had always held Aozora in high regard—a rare prodigy of the Uchiha clan and a jonin who retired at thirteen.
Thinking about the reason Aozora was stripped of his ninja status and recalling Hizashi's recent forced sacrifice, Hiashi couldn't help feeling a sense of shared sorrow.
Aozora glanced around briefly before speaking. "Clan Leader Hiashi, may I ask you to step aside for a moment? We need to talk."
Normally, Hiashi would have taken precautions to avoid suspicion, but today, he genuinely felt like having a conversation.
He nodded and said, "Please proceed."
Soon, Aozora and Hiashi entered a quiet room.
Confidently, Hiashi stated, "I believe no one dares spy on me. Say whatever you want directly."
Indeed, he had every reason to be confident. Possessing a pure Byakugan made him Konoha's most powerful radar; even sensor-type ninjas dared not probe him lightly.
Without hesitation, Aozora spoke bluntly, "The Third has grown out of touch. It's time he took responsibility for his mistakes and stepped down from the Hokage seat."
Hiashi found Aozora unusually direct and asked in surprise, "Are you here on behalf of Fugaku?"
After Kingtai stripped Aozora of his position, Fugaku remained silent. Hiashi assumed Aozora had been abandoned by the Uchiha.
Aozora nodded slightly, then shook his head. "Yes and no. I came for Clan Leader Fugaku, for you personally, and even more so—for the entire Konoha."
Hiashi was taken aback. "What do you mean?"
Aozora replied, "As long as Hiruzen Sarutobi remains in power, he will never stop suppressing the Uchiha and Hyūga clans."
Hiashi remained silent.
Aozora knew silence could mean many things during a conversation, but in this case, Hiashi's silence undoubtedly meant agreement.
"Don't even get me started on the Uchiha—we've struggled for years just to promote our ninja to jonin. Last year we were forced to relocate our clan compound, and now I've been stripped of my status as a ninja over false charges."
Aozora paused briefly before continuing, "If it weren't for our deep love for Konoha, the Uchiha would have already staged a full-scale coup."
When Aozora mentioned the word "coup," Hiashi realized that Aozora was speaking from his heart.
So Hiashi also criticized the Third Hokage: "The Hyūga haven't fared much better either. Although earning jonin rank has been slightly easier for us than for your clan, how is it that among so many Hyūga jonin, not one holds actual power..."
Aozora nodded repeatedly before saying, "Putting everything else aside, look at this recent Cloud Village incident. Once again, the Third exposed his weakness and total lack of responsibility.
"Any reasonable person can see the Hyūga were framed. So what did the Hokage actually do?
"He let those rumors run wild—wounding the Hyūga Clan beyond repair..."
At this point, Aozora sneered coldly. "This reminds me of the same tactics used against the Uchiha before. I suspect these rumors didn't arise naturally among villagers—they were likely guided by someone behind the scenes."
Upon hearing this, a deep flicker of resentment passed through Hiashi's pale white pupils.
That night, Aozora visited the Akimichi household.
Torifu's wife opened the door. She said, "Aozora, you've come at just the right time—Grandma made pork bone soup today!"
Aozora laughed happily, "Now that's perfect timing."
As he spoke, he handed the roasted goose he had brought to Grandma Huizi. "Huizi, this roast goose was bought along the way—I hope Grandpa Torifu likes it."
Huizi smiled, "When has he ever disliked meat?"
With that, she led Aozora into the dining room.
Torifu's son Nagare had died young without leaving any descendants. Normally at dinner, only Huizi joined him. Now with Aozora present, the extra company improved their appetite. The three finished every last bite on the table.
After they ate their fill, Torifu patted his belly and walked outside with Aozora toward the courtyard.
They sat down at the same table where they'd arm-wrestled earlier in the year. Torifu asked, "Little Aozora, what brings you here this time? It's not even New Year's yet!"
Aozora gave an awkward smile. Truthfully, he rarely visited Torifu except around the New Year.
Scratching his nose, Aozora explained, "Technically speaking, the Third Hokage should have resigned in disgrace when Danzō defected. But for the stability of Konoha, we chose not to push the matter..."
Torifu caught on as soon as Aozora started. He cut him off bluntly, "Fugaku wants to be Hokage, and you're here trying to campaign for him."
Aozora nodded, praising, "Grandfather Torifu truly is wise..."
"Stop!" Torifu interrupted. "I may enjoy kind words, but flattery won't change my mind."
Aozora asked, "Then Grandfather Torifu, what is your stance?"
Torifu answered honestly, "Hiruzen should step down, and Fugaku would make a fine candidate—but not necessarily the only one."
Jiraiya and Fugaku each have their own strengths and weaknesses. I haven't decided yet."
Aozora nodded and said, "Right now, the only ones qualified to compete for Hokage are indeed Jiraiya-sama and Uncle Fugaku."
Then Aozora tattled playfully, "Grandfather Torifu, don't you think the Third is being too biased? With the war at the northeastern border just ended, he's already working to build up Jiraiya's reputation while deliberately stalling on recalling Uncle Fugaku."
Torifu shook his head and said, "Hiruzen did handle this one poorly."
Aozora continued, "Grandfather Torifu, I also believe Jiraiya-sama and Uncle Fugaku each have their pros and cons, but considering Konoha's long-term development, I think we shouldn't let Jiraiya become Hokage."
Torifu chuckled and asked, "What twisted reasoning do you have? Let's hear it."
Aozora grew serious and said, "I simply believe the Hokage should not be chosen based on favoritism or connections!"
"Based on favoritism?"
After thinking for a moment, Torifu asked, "What exactly do you mean?"
Aozora explained, "Ever since Hashirama-sama became the First Hokage, whether intentionally or not, the Hokage title has been passed down only within close circles.
The Second was the First's younger brother, the Third was the Second's student, the Fourth was the Third's grandstudent...
If the Fifth still comes from the same Hokage bloodline, it'd be terribly unfair to the other ninjas who've bled and fought for Konoha.
It means if you aren't personally taken under the wing of someone from the Hokage line, you'll never become Hokage—or rise to any of Konoha's top ranks.
Now that's what I call completely hopeless!"
Upon hearing this, Torifu fell silent. It wasn't just about Hokage—right now, nearly all of Konoha's leadership were connected through relationships.
Even Kosuke and Torifu himself had both been students of the Second.
After a long silence, Torifu replied solemnly, "I will seriously consider what you've said."
Seeing this, Aozora didn't press further.
If Torifu said he'd take it seriously, he truly would—and he'd also make sure Ino–Shika–Cho gave it serious thought too.
After a bit more small talk, Aozora turned and made his way home, ready to let the situation simmer and develop on its own.
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