Chapter 102: The Next Leader
Disclaimer: Naruto and all of its characters belong to Shueisha and Masashi Kishimoto. I own nothing but the original characters I create.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 102: The Next Leader
"Right, I believe we all have a specific candidate in mind," Koharu glanced at Jiraiya.
"Not everyone…" Danzo was obviously not too happy with their choice.
Homura was also looking at Jiraiya. This was something they had discussed in detail the day before.
"Will you take the position, Jiraiya? As a member of the Legendary Sannin and a former student of the Third Hokage, you are without a doubt the most qualified for the job. I'm sure the rest of the council members will agree."
"Him?…" Naruto looked at Jiraiya with a dubious expression. He had only known this man for a week, but leaving aside his strength, he didn't seem to have the qualities of a good leader.
"I'm not interested," Jiraiya said without hesitation.
Danzo flinched.
"Interested?… Jiraiya, this is not about what interests you. It's about taking responsibility." Koharu looked very upset.
"That's right! As ninjas of Konoha, we should all do what is best for our village. And right now, we are in dire need of a strong leader...someone who has already been recognized by the inhabitants of the entire continent," Homura added.
"As much as I hate it, they are correct," Danzo said.
"Konoha is in a vulnerable position right now. After suffering an attack like that and losing our Hokage, the other Great Villages could see us as an easy target. I would be the most worried about the Cloud (Kumo) and Stone (Iwa) Villages. They are likely watching us right now like a pack of vultures, seeing if there's anything they can pick off. If we don't make a show of strength soon, we may have another war at our door."
"I agree, and that's why we need a strong leader, someone the other Great Villages will be forced to recognize and respect," Homura said.
"I'm not saying your logic is incorrect, but… you're forgetting something. There is another Sannin out there," Jiraiya said.
"You want the snake guy to be our leader?" Naruto asked.
'This man may be even more incompetent than I thought,' he told himself.
"Of course not!" Jiraiya snapped.
"You're talking about Tsunade? But…" Koharu showed some concern.
"She abandoned our village over a decade ago!" Homura exclaimed.
"You want to bring that traitor back?" Danzo huffed.
"She is not a traitor. Tsunade had a good reason to leave, and still… she never abandoned her loyalty to the village that her grandfather founded," Jiraiya said.
"You think you can bring her back?" There was some hope in Homura's voice.
"Having another Sannin with us would certainly be wonderful. And Lady Tsunade is the best healer this village has ever seen," Koharu added.
"She's a healer?" Naruto became more interested. Perhaps this person could heal Rock Lee. And Hinata could also use a healer. Her wounds were still very serious.
"Yes, she is one of the best ninja healers in the world," Jiraiya assured him. "And she has other wonderful features…" His expression changed all of a sudden.
"Ahem!" Koharu cleared her throat. "If you can truly bring Lady Tsunade back to us and she agrees to become the next Hokage… I will have no issue with this solution."
Homura nodded. "But, if you fail to do so, then you will have to take the position yourself."
"Fine… deal." Jiraiya placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "But I'm taking this brat with me. He can help me track her down."
"You want to take the Jinchuriki out of the village? Have you lost your sanity? It is too dangerous right now." Danzo frowned.
"Danzo is not wrong. The chances of suffering an ambush are very high. We have been forced to reduce the perimeter of our security by a large margin, and we are lacking the resources and personnel to restore it. At least for the moment," Homura explained.
"This is why we have canceled all Genin missions outside the village for the time being," Koharu added.
"He'll be completely safe at my side. Even more so than staying in the village," Jiraiya said with confidence.
"What makes you think that I am not busy with something else?" Naruto didn't mind staying in the village for a few more years. He had everything he needed to break into the Golden Core stage already, and by then, if he wanted to leave… they would have a very hard time stopping him.
"Please… you spent most of your week locked inside your apartment. You are definitely not busy," Jiraiya said.
"Have you been spying on me?" Naruto asked.
Ignoring his question, Jiraiya added something else, "And you heard Koharu… Genin will have no important missions for the time being. Are you telling me that you prefer to do chores?"
"Mmm… I suppose not," Naruto admitted.
Learning more about the outside world might not be a bad thing. And finding a healer was also important for his goals.
"Very well, I will go with you."
"We have yet to agree on this!" Danzo exclaimed.
"I don't need your agreement for anything," Jiraiya confronted the other man.
"Okay, let's calm down…" Koharu could feel the tension rising.
"You, you can take the boy, but this mission cannot take too long… I would say a month at most," Homura added.
"Indeed… if you cannot find and bring Lady Tsunade back in one month, you must return and take your place as our next Hokage. That is your duty." Koharu glanced at the grumpy Danzo.
"What do you think?"
"Hmph… very well. We will entrust him with this mission, and the protection of the Jinchuriki. But you must be back in a month. Or we will have to make a decision without you…" Danzo's words sounded more like a threat than anything else.
"Oh, before you leave, we have one more order of business with Uzumaki," Koharu turned to him.
Homura did the same.
"Your contribution during the attack has not been overlooked, young man. Now… without the Hokage, we cannot do anything official, but if there is something that you require… we can consider it."
"A ninja should need no reward for doing their job!" Danzo huffed.
"I think even you have to agree that Uzumaki's actions were above and beyond what is required and expected from a Genin," Homura said.
"And besides… we always pay our ninjas for their missions. You can consider this as such," Koharu added before addressing Naruto again.
"Now… is there something on your mind?"
"Mmm…" He considered the offer for a minute. At first, he thought about requesting a good blade since he lost his previous one during the Gamabunta test. But then he remembered that he had a promise to keep.
"How many barrels of high-quality sake can you get me?"
The three elders looked shocked.
"Sake?…"
"Did he say barrels?!"
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