"So, kid—what do you want to be in the future?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi puffed on his pipe as he casually asked Nara Kazuki.
Originally, the retired Third Hokage had just come by to observe the new generation at the Ninja Academy and reflect on the passage of time. But stumbling upon Kazuki piqued his interest.
His first impression of the boy had been from that day at the training grounds, when he and Minato watched Kazuki's rather... unusual training methods. Still, the fact that Kazuki had made it into the ANBU spoke for itself—especially under Kitsune's command.
Kazuki gave the question some thought.
He didn't believe this was a trick. At this point in time, Hiruzen had no idea he'd return to the Hokage seat in a few months. Kazuki did—but only because of his otherworldly knowledge.
Then again, with his own interference, maybe things wouldn't play out the same way. Maybe Obito's plan wouldn't even work.
"I want to be a strong ninja," Kazuki said finally. "Like my parents. They always taught me to follow in the footsteps of our clan leader."
Hiruzen nodded as he inhaled. A fairly standard answer. But aspiring to be like Shikaku, the clan head of the Nara, wasn't a bad goal at all.
The Ino-Shika-Cho clans had thrived for generations precisely because they knew their role. They pledged loyalty to whomever held the Hokage title. Simple, effective, and stable.
"You don't want to become Hokage?" Hiruzen asked, watching the young Academy students in class.
It was a casual question—but one he often posed, especially after spreading the Will of Fire so deeply through the village. It had become almost a tradition under his leadership.
"No way. It looks exhausting. I see Lord Fourth running around all day like a ninja hound—I mean..."
Kazuki coughed, waving it off quickly.
Becoming Hokage? No, thank you. That was a self-imposed prison sentence. Just look at Minato—swamped every hour, and somehow still finding time to worry about his students' emotional well-being.
Too bad he was worrying about the wrong student.
If he'd paid attention to Obito, maybe things wouldn't have ended so tragically. But in Minato's mind, Obito was already dead. So Kazuki couldn't blame him too much.
"Hahahaha! You brat..."
Something Kazuki said struck Hiruzen's funny bone. The old man laughed so hard, tears came out.
Kazuki watched him quietly. This man, once written as the Strongest Hokage, had become more of a joke with each retcon. The infamous "Danzo Conspiracies" among fans weren't even about plot—they were just byproducts of Kishimoto's inconsistent writing.
Even so, Hiruzen laughed heartily.
"Come to think of it, when I was Hokage... yeah, it was like being run ragged like a dog every day," he said, wiping his eyes.
Kazuki gave him a polite chuckle. The old man was clearly enjoying his retirement.
"I'm old now. The future of Konoha lies with you. You're hardworking—I believe you'll reach the rank of Jōnin Elite someday."
Kazuki gave a modest smile.
That was about as high as most ordinary shinobi could ever hope to go.
The "Kage" tier? That required either raw talent or legendary feats. Neither of which Kazuki had yet displayed.
After Sarutobi left, still smiling, Kazuki didn't linger long at the Academy.
He'd originally dropped by to see Iruka, only to realize that Iruka was still just a little kid at this point.
By the time Naruto came of age, Kazuki would be well into his thirties.
"Back to the grind," Kazuki muttered, stretching before heading off for his usual training.
But ever since Great Fireball Technique had ranked up again, the experience required for the next upgrade had become outrageous—a whopping 15,000 proficiency points.
Even now, after all that training, Kazuki barely had just over 6,000. To reach 15,000, he'd need to cast Great Fireball nearly 90,000 times.
The mere thought made his internal organs ache.
But before he could fully dedicate himself to this Herculean task...
Kazuki got called in for another mission.
"Seriously? Already?"
He blinked. He'd barely had a day and a half of downtime.
Was this still ANBU? Or had he joined the Beast of Burden Corps?
"It's connected to our last assignment," Kitsune explained, yawning as he looked sleep-deprived. "According to ANBU protocol—"
"I get it," Kazuki interrupted. "If a task has follow-up objectives, the original squad is automatically designated as primary operatives—if the team is still active."
Kitsune gave Kazuki a surprised look.
The ANBU codebook was massive and mostly considered decorative.
Most operatives didn't bother reading it, since the first line of every page basically said: Use common sense and improvise.
"You're saying... we're picking up the money?" Kakashi asked, catching on.
"Exactly. The daimyō agreed to pay, but it's all in cash. We've been assigned as money escorts."
Just then, a kindly old man stepped forward, pipe in hand.
He exuded calm, but authority hummed beneath the surface.
Kitsune straightened at once.