After hearing Shiyu Uchiha's description of war, Minato Namikaze stayed up the whole night alone, thinking it over. The more he thought, the more reasonable it sounded. He decided to move up his wedding with Kushina to avoid any delays caused by the war. After all, marrying his own goddess had always been his biggest dream—more important than becoming Hokage.
Shiyu Uchiha was utterly speechless at the way the two interacted. Eventually, he gave Minato a strange look and said, "Well then, congratulations. I guess that's settled." Inwardly, he wished silently that Minato could handle everything smoothly.
Shiyu Uchiha and Minato Namikaze stayed a bit longer at Sakumo Hatake's house chatting before finally leaving. As a wedding gift, Sakumo gave them both his personal item—his sword techniques manual. Since he was leaving soon and wouldn't be able to attend the wedding, he presented it early.
After parting ways with Shiyu Uchiha outside the Hatake household, Minato headed straight to the Hokage building to see the Third Hokage. Shiyu Uchiha went home, watching Minato's retreating figure with many thoughts swirling in his mind. Yet in the end, he simply sighed softly and said nothing—he knew it was far too soon.
Inside the Hokage building, within Hiruzen Sarutobi's office:
"It's you, Minato. Do you need something?" Without looking up, Hiruzen asked casually while busily handling official documents.
Minato stepped into the room and gave a slight bow to show respect before replying, "Lord Third, I've come here to request a change in duties. Recently, Kushina and I are planning to get married soon, so I'll have a lot of personal affairs to take care of.
In addition, I also plan to develop a new jutsu, which will require a large amount of private time. Considering these circumstances, I believe I'm no longer suitable for Anbu missions. Please understand." His tone carried a note of apology, but his stance remained firm.
Hiruzen finally looked up, fixing Minato with a steady gaze, a sense of regret flickering in his heart. Minato had always been an outstanding ninja in Anbu. However, faced with Minato's sincere request, he found it difficult to refuse.
After all, forging a bond with Kushina, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, was one of the most important missions he had. Thus, Hiruzen could only accept the situation.
"Alright then, Minato. If you've already made your decision, I respect it. But remember, no matter where you are or what you do, Konoha is always our shared home—we all carry the duty to protect it." True to his seasoned politician nature, Hiruzen instinctively wrapped his words in the Will of Fire.
The real reason it went so smoothly was because of the recent relocation of the Uchiha Paramilitary Police Force, which had significantly reduced the Anbu workload previously dedicated to monitoring the Uchiha Clan. This freed up enough hands to cover Minato's absence without difficulty.
Hearing Minato's words, Hiruzen could easily agree. He then smiled broadly, saying, "Congratulations, Minato. Don't forget to invite me to the ceremony, haha!"
Upon hearing this, Minato immediately assured Hiruzen he would definitely be invited.
Hiruzen Sarutobi put down his brush, paused for a moment, and said, "Minato, if you need help developing any jutsu, just come ask me directly. I believe I can still offer some useful guidance."
Faced with Minato Namikaze's question about creating new ninja techniques, Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately gave his generous promise. After all, this was definitely one of his strong suits—calling him the strongest Hokage might be an exaggeration, but calling him a "Ninjutsu Doctor" would absolutely fit.
Minato felt very happy after hearing this. He believed he had just received a great chance to learn from this wise old master. Therefore, he decided not to miss this rare opportunity and immediately brought up several difficult issues he encountered while developing new ninja techniques.
Hiruzen Sarutobi patiently listened to Minato's questions and answered them one by one while offering advice. He told Minato that when developing new ninja techniques, it was important to focus on mastering perfect chakra shape transformation, and also consider the practicality and feasibility of the technique. You should also consider how to boost the technique's power and make it easier for you to use effectively.
Minato carefully listened to Hiruzen's advice, feeling that he had gained greatly from it, and once again expressed his gratitude toward the elder ninja.
Finally, Hiruzen asked, "I see. Minato, have you been thinking about taking any specific assignments lately?"
"I plan to become a jōnin squad leader. I've never held this position before. Hokage-sama, are there any outstanding students graduating recently?" Minato naturally responded to Hiruzen.
Hiruzen lowered his head to flip through some documents, then pulled out a stack of papers and said, "Minato, take a look at these. Here are the latest graduates. So many outstanding students from Class A have requested to graduate early. It really gives me quite a headache."
While he pretended to be annoyed, deep down, Hiruzen was actually delighted. After all, these early graduates represented Konoha (the Hidden Leaf Village)'s future potential—they'd soon become his top-notch employees ready to work under him.
Minato accepted the documents and slowly started flipping through them as he spoke, "This morning when I visited Hatake Sakumo, I coincidentally met Kakashi. Sakumo Hatake gave me special instructions back then, hoping I could pay extra attention to his development."
After hearing Minato's words, no surprise or dissatisfaction appeared on Hiruzen's face. As if having expected it all along, he simply replied, "No problem, Minato. Since that's the case, then we'll entrust you with Sakumo Hatake's son. You must ensure his safety. By the way, what about the other two? How are their situations now?"
Clearly, Hiruzen had already known beforehand about Hatake Sakumo's upcoming departure. Perhaps they had privately discussed this issue previously. Right now, deep within his heart, Hiruzen felt extremely conflicted and worried about how to handle Hatake Kakashi properly.
Regardless of maintaining his own reputation or considering practical interests, he needed to guarantee Hatake Kakashi's safety without even the slightest accident occurring. Upon learning that Minato had volunteered to take personal responsibility for Kakashi's well-being, Hiruzen couldn't help but feel a huge burden lift off his shoulders.
He considered this undoubtedly the most ideal solution right now—
and privately breathed a sigh of relief that Minato had stepped up to the plate.
So he unhesitatingly recommended Kakashi to Minato Namikaze, his heart brimming with admiration for the decision Minato had made.
He had even considered proactively suggesting Kakashi himself, though he hadn't voiced it yet. Thus, facing Minato's choice, he felt completely satisfied.
Perhaps it was fate's doing, but after quickly skimming through the documents in his hands, Minato firmly declared, "Let's go with these two—Obito Uchiha and Rin Nohara. They're Kakashi's close friends! I sincerely hope the three of them can get along well and grow together."
Hiruzen Sarutobi took the selected documents from Minato and carefully examined them. He found that although Rin Nohara came from a modest background, she displayed exceptional talent and potential in Medical Ninjutsu.
As for Obito Uchiha, as a member of the Uchiha Clan, his academic performance was so poor that "disappointing" didn't even begin to describe it. However, he was very compassionate and demonstrated considerable practical combat abilities.
More importantly, both shared a deep bond with Kakashi, so forming a team of the three was quite appropriate.
Therefore, Hiruzen Sarutobi gave a slight nod in approval of Minato's choice. He fully understood the importance of teamwork, especially for ninja. A highly cohesive and mutually trusting team often unleashed extraordinary power.
Therefore, he decided to respect Minato's recommendation and said to him, "Alright, Minato, you may return now and wait for further notice. I'll make sure Rin Nohara and Obito Uchiha graduate as soon as possible. Then you'll be guiding those three. I look forward to your outstanding achievements."
No sooner had Sarutobi finished speaking than Minato stood up to leave. Several days later, Sakumo Hatake quietly left after watching Kakashi complete his disciple initiation ceremony.
Although his quiet departure didn't cause much commotion, those who knew the truth naturally understood. This act signified that Sakumo Hatake had officially stepped down from the stage of Konoha Village.
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