After the "Elders' Jōnin Council," the matter of the Fourth Hokage was essentially settled.
Except for Nawaki and Minato, everyone else had withdrawn from the competition and compared to Nawaki, Minato's support was overwhelmingly higher.
Minato had originally been a civilian-born ninja and already held high esteem among other civilians. After the meeting, aside from a few families aligned with the Senju and the still-neutral Uchiha and Hyūga clans, nearly every other clan publicly voiced their support for Minato.
Akio wasn't surprised by the result. Even though no one had directly responded during the meeting, the silence had already said everything.
"Still… a little disappointing."
He sighed softly inside his shop. The fact that everyone supported Minato meant they agreed with the views of Danzō and Koharu.
His relationship with Hiruzen was nowhere near as close as it had once been with Tobirama or Hashirama, there was now a clear gap. As time went by, Akio felt more and more like an outsider to this era.
"Father, what are you thinking about?"
Sara, standing beside him, asked in concern. She'd noticed something was off about him these past few days.
Akio blinked, then smiled faintly. "It's nothing. You seem rather free lately."
Sara nodded. "The shop hasn't been busy, and the Uzushio branch is being prepared. Once Matsu leaves for there, I won't have any time to rest."
Sara had refused to go manage the Uzushio branch herself, so Teuchi had taken on a new apprentice, Matsu. Unfortunately, the boy was clumsy, and only now did Teuchi feel ready to send him out.
Akio paused. "How about I take you back to Uzushio? That's our home, after all."
Sara froze. "Father… what's gotten into you?"
He sighed. "It's nothing. I just thought I'd go back for a few years. Maybe in a year or so. Four or five years at most. I don't like the idea of leaving you alone in Konoha."
Sara hesitated. "I wouldn't mind, but what about Master and Matsu…?"
"I'll handle that," Akio interrupted.
Sara still looked puzzled, she couldn't figure out what had caused this sudden change in her father's plans.
It wasn't that Akio was "hurt" or disheartened far from it. His reason for returning was simple: his Witness Points were about to reach 2,000, which meant he was close to unlocking the long-awaited Kekkei Mōra.
He planned to master it fully between Naruto's birth and his academy enrollment and Uzushio would be the best place to train.
As for whether he'd have enough Witness Points by then, that wasn't a concern. If necessary, he could always seal the remaining half of the Nine-Tails into Naruto himself. He'd already planned for that long ago. A major plot event like that would surely grant enough points.
"Buy one, get one free. You can have a jinchūriki thrown in too, Hiruzen satisfied?" he thought to himself with a smirk.
He wasn't worried about Naruto's childhood, either. When Kushina gave birth, he'd be nearby to watch over them. As long as the Nine-Tails wasn't released that night, nothing would happen, with Kushina's strength, there was no way she'd lose control afterward.
"Well, for now… my main problem is still Teuchi," Akio muttered with a wry smile. It had been his idea not to let Sara go to Uzushio before and now he was the one changing his mind. Poor Teuchi had been training that apprentice all this time for nothing.
But to his surprise, Teuchi was delighted by Akio's decision.
"That's great news, Boss Hagoromo! Matsu's so clumsy I was worried he'd mess up everything over there. Having Sara in charge is perfect!"
Akio raised an eyebrow. "You're being serious?"
If Teuchi's hands weren't covered in flour, he probably would've pounded his chest for emphasis.
"Completely serious, Boss!"
Akio exhaled in relief. "Good. I was afraid this might inconvenience you. When would Sara need to leave?"
Teuchi thought for a moment. "My wife's still in Uzushio, picking out the store location. It'll need remodeling afterward, so… maybe three months to half a year."
"Still a little early…" Akio muttered, pulling a handful of high-value notes, over ten million ryō in total from his robes.
"Ichiraku Ramen's first Uzushio branch deserves to stand out, especially with Sara managing it. Take this, have your wife pick a big place, decorate it properly. There's no rush."
Teuchi scratched his head, face dusted white with flour. "Boss Hagoromo, that's far too generous"
Akio glared. "You think I'm giving it for free? Half the Uzushio shop will belong to Sara."
"Ah? Oh! No problem at all, Boss Hagoromo!" Teuchi nodded rapidly.
"Good man." Akio smiled as he walked out, while behind him, Teuchi's grin was so wide it looked almost blinding.
Time passed, two months later.
The grand Fourth Hokage Selection had finally concluded.
Despite Tsunade's tireless efforts for her younger brother, Nawaki couldn't compete with Minato. The final straw, ironically, was Jiraiya's return from his travels.
"He's got more integrity than I gave him credit for," Akio muttered. He'd thought Jiraiya might actually abandon his own student for Tsunade's sake.
Now, Akio stood among the massive crowd gathered before the Hokage Tower, a sea of people stretching as far as he could see. Today was the day Minato Namikaze would officially take office as the Fourth Hokage.
To keep Sara from being crushed by the crowd, Akio subtly activated his repulsive force, clearing a small space around them.
"Sensei!" came a familiar voice, Obito's.
"Ugh… move, let me through who's stepping on me? Stop pushing! Don't touch me there"
Akio couldn't help but laugh as Obito was tossed around by the crowd. Surrounded by civilians, he didn't dare use force, so he just kept getting bounced around helplessly.
"Huh?" Akio narrowed his eyes behind Obito, a small boy was cleverly weaving through the crowd, tugging at Obito's sleeve to guide him forward.
"Nicely done, little brother!" Obito praised, patting the boy's head, only to earn a glare of disdain.
"Sensei, this is my new little brother, Uchiha Shisui!"
Akio sighed. "Being your little brother probably means this kid's future isn't too bright."
Of course, he knew who Shisui was but he hadn't expected him to cross paths with Obito this early. He could only assume Obito had declared him his little brother by force. Kagami must not be too worried about his grandson turning out weird.
Before Obito could retort, the entire crowd went silent. Hiruzen and Minato appeared atop the Hokage Tower balcony.
Akio listened quietly as Hiruzen spoke about the Will of Fire, the words echoing over the plaza. After about ten minutes, Hiruzen placed the Hokage hat upon Minato's head, and the ceremony continued with Minato's own speech.
He'd always been handsome, but with the Hokage hat on, he looked even more striking.
"Maybe I should get myself some clothes worthy of my looks," Akio thought dryly.
A line of glowing text appeared before his eyes:
'Witnessed and slightly altered the main story event: The Fourth Hokage's appointment.
Reward: 50 × 2 Witness Points.'
"Slightly altered, huh? Must've just happened a bit earlier than canon. Nice, a pleasant bonus."
Thus, at the end of Konoha Year 46, Minato Namikaze officially succeeded as the Fourth Hokage.
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