Meanwhile, in Konohagakure, thanks to the efforts of Shikaku and the others, order was quickly restored.
Of course, it wasn't just Shikaku's doing—the remaining clans of Konohagakure all contributed.
Even though the Third Hokage had died, the people of Konohagakure didn't take long to pull themselves together. After all, there were still plenty of problems to deal with.
First, they had to reorganize things internally. Then, there were the relationships between different clans to sort out. And finally, there was the issue of diplomacy and the village's future direction.
As for the position of Hokage, Tsunade was temporarily filling in.
That said, all she really had to do was take it easy in Konohagakure. The actual work wasn't her responsibility.
Internal affairs were entirely managed by Nara Shikaku. During the recent purges, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu weren't found guilty of anything, but even so, the major clans of the village voted them out as elders.
Danzo, on the other hand, took advantage of the main forces being occupied with Shanks and fled the village.
At a bar in Konohagakure, Tsunade took a sip of her drink and sighed.
"Kakashi could've taken the Hokage job, but no—he pushed it onto me. These younger ones really don't know how to take care of their elders."
"Kakashi isn't strong enough yet to handle the crisis facing Konohagakure. Think of these three years as training time for him. After all, Minato had high hopes for him."
Jiraiya spoke from the side. Compared to Minato, any ninja would seem lacking.
But after everything Kakashi had been through, he had grown enough to carry this responsibility. Jiraiya even saw a bit of Minato in him.
Kakashi was already the next Hokage in waiting. Tsunade was just holding the position for now.
That meant she didn't actually have to do anything—and she had no interest in getting involved anyway.
"If it weren't for the fact that Konohagakure covered all my debts, there's no way I'd take on this headache of a job."
"What's so bad about it? You're just standing in as the village's representative."
"But Kakashi is the one everyone recognizes as the real Hokage, right? And what's he doing now? Escorting Naruto on some mission."
Tsunade grumbled. No matter how she looked at it, Kakashi's work seemed way easier than hers.
Did that look like someone focusing on training?
Jiraiya didn't have much to say about that. He had been staying in Konohagakure to help stabilize the situation, but he was also waiting for Naruto's return so he could personally train him.
"Orochimaru and Hiruko have joined forces. Who knows what those two are up to."
Just thinking about it gave Tsunade a headache. Whether it was Orochimaru or Hiruko, both were trouble.
If she had a choice, she wouldn't want to have anything to do with them. But life never went the way she wanted—Orochimaru had even sent someone to Konohagakure recently to find her.
"Their target is probably the power of the New World. If Orochimaru managed to convince Hiruko, that means Hiruko must have changed his original goal. So working with Orochimaru… might not be out of the question."
Jiraiya had just finished speaking when he suddenly realized—was this why Tsunade had come to him?
"Has everyone else agreed to this?"
"Orochimaru offered them two Devil Fruits along with two pieces of Divine Tree wood, and they agreed."
Tsunade spread her hands. As Hokage, it was her job to step in at times like this.
"Do you need me to go too?"
Jiraiya understood now. Even though it was called a partnership, dealing with Orochimaru and Hiruko meant danger. Right now, the only person in Konohagakure who could keep them in check was him.
He just never expected that after all these years, Hiruko would end up siding with Orochimaru.
Meanwhile, at the Hokage building, Nara Shikaku wasn't too concerned about Konohagakure itself. From his perspective, nothing serious was happening there.
The real focus of the ninja world right now was the Land of Wind.
During the Konoha Crush plan, the Kazekage of Sunagakure had been assassinated by Orochimaru. Now, with no clear leader, the village had to rely on Chiyo as a temporary head.
On top of that, due to previous cooperation with Chiyo and Sunagakure's ninjas, Konohagakure was bound to get involved in the Land of Wind's affairs.
In fact, they had already deployed troops. Some ninjas from the Hyuga and Aburame clans had already left the village.
"Shikaku, are you sure we don't need to go too?"
Chouza was curious. The ninja squad Konoha had sent wasn't exactly elite, and he worried something might go wrong.
"Also, what's the deal with Kakashi? A mission to the Land of Snow doesn't really seem like something that needs Kakashi, does it?"
Yamanaka Inoichi was also puzzled. Why had Kakashi taken that mission? While the people involved had indeed crossed paths with Shanks, it was obvious they hadn't known about Shanks' Daimyo status beforehand.
"It's just a simple escort mission. Of course, there's no need for someone like Kakashi."
"Kakashi has been to the Land of Snow before on a mission. This time, he's going there to help secure a partnership between them and Konohagakure."
Shikaku explained. The Land of Snow was remote and had harsh conditions, but it was rich in resources.
With the Land of Fire planning to expand its forces, forming alliances with smaller countries was necessary, especially for operations involving the sea.
Even though the Land of Snow was small, it was still stronger than most other minor nations. Plus, its current ruler was an ambitious person.
Partnering with a country like that was the best choice.
Of course, neither Shikaku nor Kakashi knew what Sandayu was planning, nor did they know that Yukie was actually the daughter of the previous ruler of the Land of Snow.
But even based on what they did know, Doto Kazahana was undoubtedly a capable leader.
Despite the Land of Snow's extreme poverty, he had managed to keep the country running. That alone was enough proof of his competence.
Even if he wasn't the strongest ruler, he was at least as good as the Third Hokage when it came to governing.
However, if Shikaku had known that the previous ruler of the Land of Snow had spent the country's entire fortune just to build a geothermal system so his daughter could see spring flowers, he might have thought even more highly of Doto.
The Land of Snow was a poor country where snow covered the land for ten months of the year. And yet, its ruler had spent all its resources to build a geothermal system.
The problem wasn't building the system itself.
The problem was that the guy built it purely so his daughter could see spring in a land of eternal snow.
And then... his own younger brother, the current ruler Doto Kazahana, killed him.
For years now, Doto had been searching for the secret weapon his brother had poured the country's entire fortune into. The key to unlocking it was with Yukie—also known as Koyuki Kazahana.
But all of this was a well-kept secret. Even Koyuki herself had no idea what her father had hidden.
And no matter how much Doto looked down on his brother, he never would have guessed that all the wealth and resources had been spent on nothing more than a geothermal system to create spring.
Meanwhile, all of Konohagakure was preparing for the changes coming to the ninja world.
"What about the Daimyo?"
Yamanaka Inoichi asked.
The Land of Fire's Daimyo is also a tricky issue. Right now, Konohagakure needs to give the Daimyo an explanation.
"No rush. Since we're the ones training the soldiers, the Daimyo can't interfere with us. What we need to do is follow Shanks' example and become the pioneers of the path they'll take in the future."
"We will build a new Will of Fire. If Konohagakure's roots have already rotted, then we will rebuild them and spread Konohagakure's roots throughout the Land of Fire."
Shikaku spoke. This was his decision. Konohagakure had started to decay from its very foundation. Now that he had stepped forward, he would make sure Konohagakure rose again.
Kakashi is the future Hokage, the highest leaf on Konohagakure's great tree. But where are Konohagakure's roots?
Shikaku didn't know, and he didn't need to.
Right now, what he had to do was strengthen Konohagakure's roots—make them strong enough that no single person could control them.
Strong enough that even if Konohagakure fell, a new village could grow from its vast network of roots.
That was Shikaku's resolve. In this new era, clinging to the old ways of thinking would only lead to being left behind.
This was the lesson Shanks had given to everyone. The reason so many people followed that man was because he never sought to control anything—he handed all the power to the people of the new era.
This was an era of freedom, but also an era of chaos.
And Shikaku was doing the same, giving more people the power to decide.
Outside Konohagakure, at a newly built training ground, the village's instructors stood before the gathered "soldiers."
"You are the future of this new era. It is up to all of you to protect it."
"Konohagakure belongs to the Land of Fire, and you are its roots. Konohagakure will one day fall like autumn leaves, but every fallen leaf will become nourishment, feeding the roots of the Land of Fire."
"If Konohagakure ever collapses, I hope that you, as the roots of the Land of Fire, will sprout new buds and continue to stand against the times."
"This is the Will of Fire."
"But, sir… if all of you fall, then what are we, the so-called roots of Konohagakure?"
A soldier stepped forward.
"You are the people of the Land of Fire. You are your families."
"The leaves flourish because the roots are strong. One day, when you become the highest leaves of the great tree that is the Land of Fire, don't forget the roots that have always nurtured you."
"..."
The voices from the training ground carried outside.
Shanks, disguised as a chef with a hat pulled low, glanced at Shisui beside him.
"This is Konohagakure's Will of Fire?"
Shisui hesitated for a moment.
"…It is now."
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