Just as Izuna was fully immersed in his work, a sudden warmth washed over him like a spring breeze. His eyes instinctively narrowed slightly as he enjoyed this rare moment of peace.
But the serenity didn't last long.
He quickly pulled himself out of that state.
Upon seeing Hikaru walk into the office, Izuna rolled his eyes in exasperation—as if blaming him for interrupting his flow.
Hikaru, however, didn't take offense.
He knew all too well how rare and valuable it was to have someone like Izuna—so dedicated and reliable—handling everything behind the scenes.
Still, he couldn't help but feel a touch of curiosity.
The Uchiha Clan was famously overprotective of their siblings. Even Madara Uchiha was no exception.
But from the looks of it now, Madara seemed to be paying much less attention to Izuna than usual.
Otherwise, with Izuna so worn out, wouldn't he have already been "physically persuaded" to take a break?
As if reading his thoughts, Izuna sighed and murmured, "You think only Mito feels like Madara stole Hashirama away?"
His voice carried both helplessness and grievance, answering Hikaru's unspoken question.
Madara always went looking for Hashirama, and it wasn't just Mito who felt neglected—Izuna did too.
He then handed over a document to Hikaru and added,
"They've been spending all their free time entering dance battles. I still don't know who keeps organizing these damn competitions."
Hikaru took the folder and saw the title boldly printed: "5th Konoha Dance Battle Tournament."
His face twisted into something unreadable.
Even Izuna, acting Hokage, hadn't been able to trace the organizer—because the whole event had been secretly funded by Hikaru himself.
It had been a throwaway move at the time, but now it had turned into something… surprisingly useful?
Just then, loud voices rang out from outside.
Hashirama's desperate yelps echoed through the walls:
"My dear Mito, let go! My ear's going to fall off!"
What Hikaru didn't expect was that Madara Uchiha's voice came right after:
"Hmph! Women only get in the way of my dance steps. Hashirama, you've fallen!"
Hikaru nearly choked.
'That's Madara for you… The only one he's ever truly loved is Hashirama.'
He silently lit a candle for the First Hokage in his mind.
Because he knew—once Madara said something like that, Hashirama was doomed.
Sure enough, Hashirama's cries got even louder.
Then—Bang! The office door flew open with a kick.
Mito stormed in, still yanking on Hashirama's ear. But the moment she saw Hikaru, she froze.
The anger on her face vanished, replaced by a warm and gentle smile.
Letting go of Hashirama, she waved at Hikaru. Hashirama rubbed his ear like a wronged puppy.
"Little Hikaru, you're back!" Mito greeted him with heartfelt joy.
Hikaru returned her smile. "I'm back, Grandma Mito."
Just that one sentence seemed to have magical power. The atmosphere in the office instantly lightened and warmed.
But that peace didn't last long either.
Having just escaped from Mito's "claws," Hashirama leaned in beside Hikaru with a pitiful expression and began complaining:
"Hikaru, you've got to be the judge here! I just went to a dance battle with Madara, and Mito got so mad she told me not to come home tonight. Tell me—how am I supposed to live like this?"
He even faked wiping tears from his eyes, trying to win sympathy.
Hikaru looked at Hashirama and didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
He maintained an awkward yet polite smile, but deep down he thought:
'Nope. I'm not getting dragged into this mess.'
Mito, when angry, wasn't someone he could handle either.
As expected, the moment Hashirama finished speaking, Mito suddenly seemed to remember something important.
Her eyebrows lifted as she stepped up and grabbed Hashirama's ear again.
But this time, she didn't twist—just maintained a threatening stance.
Before Hashirama could even cry out, she turned to Izuna and asked in a stern tone:
"Have you found out who's sponsoring the tournament? Who's behind this nonsense?"
Madara, watching from the side, couldn't help but twitch.
He was secretly thankful he didn't have a wife.
Otherwise, wouldn't he be getting the same "treatment" as Hashirama?
Faced with Mito's questioning, Izuna could only give a helpless smile.
"Still no leads. Same as before."
He paused, then changed the subject slightly:
"But… it doesn't seem to be causing any harm. In fact, it's giving those overly energetic shinobi something fun to do. If anything, it might be a good thing."
Mito nodded subconsciously, as if persuaded.
But the moment she saw Hashirama chiming in with agreement, her irritation flared right back up.
Still, with a cold snort, she chose not to pursue the matter further.
Hikaru, watching from the side, quietly let out a breath of relief.
After all, this whole thing wasn't entirely unrelated to him—and thankfully, Grandma Mito hadn't dug too deep.
Clearly, Mito had more important matters to discuss.
Once the dance battle incident was put aside, she said,
"This year's ninja academy graduates should be out, right?"
Izuna gave a firm nod.
Mito immediately turned a sharp gaze toward Hashirama and declared:
"In that case, let Hashirama lead one of the new teams."
Her real plan was to reduce the time Hashirama spent hanging out with Madara.
With a genin squad to guide, he'd have to put his focus into nurturing the next generation.
Just as she finished, Mito seemed to remember something and turned her gaze to Hikaru:
"Oh dear, I almost forgot—you're the Hokage, Hikaru. This is your call. I'll leave the arrangements to you."
Hikaru was caught off guard and scratched his head helplessly.
He might be Hokage in name, but he'd long become the ultimate delegator.
Even the news about the new graduates—he'd only just heard it from Mito herself.
And having Hashirama be a jonin instructor… Was that really wise?
He could already picture it:
The team would ask Hashirama for jutsu guidance, and he'd blankly respond,
"Just let the chakra flow as you like. What's the point of hand seals?"
Just imagining it gave Hikaru a headache, and his scratching grew more vigorous.
At the same time, Izuna clearly realized the same problem.
He and Hikaru exchanged a glance—both seeing deep resignation in each other's eyes.