Chapter 54: The Establishment of Konoha
Year 1 of Konoha.
In the newly established village of Konoha, one could already see faint traces of the future. The somewhat familiar streets gradually overlapped with scenes buried deep in Masahiko's memory.
Masahiko was wandering through the new village, recalling yesterday's scene of Hashirama and Madara standing atop what would become the Hokage Rock. Hashirama had opened his arms wide and announced the official establishment of Konoha.
The name "Konoha" (Village Hidden in the Leaves) was provided by Uchiha Madara, while Hashirama proposed the title "Hokage" for the nominal leader.
The timely establishment of Konoha brought Masahiko a full 100 Witness Points. Adding his previous savings, he now had a total of 130 points. He didn't rush to spend them. Instead, he planned to relax for a while. After all, with Konoha established, he wouldn't need to fight for a long time.
"Madara's face must be quite a sight right now..." Masahiko chuckled softly.
In the current Konoha meeting room (the future Hokage's office), a plenary meeting was being held to select the Hokage. In Masahiko's heart—or rather, in everyone's heart—this was just a formality. The Hokage could only be Hashirama.
A few medium-sized clans might have other ideas, but the small clans, led by the Sarutobi, would definitely support Hashirama. The Uzumaki Clan Head, his "big nephew," would surely support his son-in-law. Regardless of the outcome, no one would support the Uchiha.
"No, Hashirama will definitely support Madara..." Masahiko shook his head.
Unknowingly, Masahiko had wandered around the entire village, but he didn't find the building he wanted to see most: Ichiraku Ramen.
"I'm really obsessed. Did I actually believe the legend of Otsutsuki Ichiraku...?" Masahiko laughed bitterly.
He didn't find Ichiraku Ramen, but he did find several Yakiniku (BBQ) restaurants. Considering the current Konoha was basically a conglomeration of ninja clans with fewer than a hundred civilians, the appearance of BBQ restaurants puzzled him slightly. Upon closer inspection, Masahiko's face darkened.
"So it's the Akimichi clan's..." Masahiko cursed inwardly, recalling the hundred-meter-tall fat man from the mining war.
If the Akimichi clan's physique wasn't so "special," Masahiko would have really wanted to learn their secret technique. It felt like practicing the legendary immortal art of "Law of Heaven and Earth" (gigantification) from his past life.
"Law of Heaven and Earth?" Masahiko murmured. "I must be crazy."
After circling around, Masahiko returned to the "Hokage Building" and saw people filing out.
First came the leaders of the small clans. Aside from Sarutobi Sasuke and Shimura Ken, Masahiko didn't recognize anyone. Next came the leaders of the medium-sized clans. There were six clans, and surprisingly, all six leaders were still the same people Masahiko was familiar with.
Masahiko sighed. "Still holding onto their positions at their age... It seems there's a gap in the next generation."
With the end of the Warring States, ninja warfare decreased, and a decline in overall strength was inevitable.
In the future, every Great Ninja War would produce remarkable figures, proving that war was crucial for honing ninjas.
"You win some, you lose some..." Masahiko didn't greet the six acquaintances but sighed softly. "The current Konoha is truly strong. Those surpassing Clan Head level... er, now I should say 'surpassing Kage level'... there are two. Counting me, maybe two and a half. And there are about ten Kage-level shinobi, with countless Peak Jonin."
Masahiko stood less than a hundred meters from the six clan heads, watching them walk past, preoccupied with their thoughts. Not a single one noticed him.
"Er... is my presence that low?" Next, he watched Hyuga Tenjin walk out, brow furrowed. "Even the Hyuga Clan Head didn't notice me?"
Next came Senju Tobirama and the Uzumaki Clan Head. They did notice Masahiko, but they gave stiff greetings and turned away.
"Er... why is everyone so angry?"
Fifteen minutes later.
Inside an Akimichi BBQ restaurant.
"So, Hashirama, you want Madara to be the First Hokage (Shodai Hokage), and you want me to give you some ideas?" Masahiko mumbled, his mouth full of grilled meat.
"You think you can fool your Great-Uncle with just one BBQ meal?" Masahiko swallowed the meat.
Hashirama scratched his head and nodded sheepishly.
"In the meeting, not a single person supported the Uchiha, right?" Masahiko sighed. "The Hokage can't be Madara. You'd better think of another suitable position for him..."
"For example... Konoha's Ambassador for Foreign Exchange?"
Hashirama was speechless. He felt he had wasted a meal. That position was completely unsuitable for Madara.
"During the meeting, seeing Madara's unhappy face, I proposed a public vote for the Hokage," Hashirama sighed. "Thinking about it now, that seems even more inappropriate."
"Pfft..." Masahiko nearly spat out his meat. "A public vote? Were you afraid Madara hadn't lost enough face?"
Seeing Hashirama enter his depressed state again, Masahiko felt bad about hitting him further. He comforted him, "Alright, you be the Hokage. Let Madara be the Great Elder. Let my 'big nephew' and the medium clan heads fill the other elder positions. Don't include Tobirama, and maybe Madara won't object."
This comfort clearly backfired. Hashirama became even more depressed, obviously thinking of the hostile relationship between Tobirama and Madara.
"One is your brother, the other is your gay friend... it's really tough for you, Hashirama..." Masahiko lamented.
"Gay friend?"
"You misheard. I said 'best friend'..."
Masahiko finished his meal with satisfaction, eating Hashirama's private stash clean.
"The Akimichi clan must have a special BBQ recipe. Otherwise, how could I eat so much? I must ask for a copy sometime..." Masahiko thought, completely ignoring the pained expression on Hashirama's face beside him.
A week later, as expected, Hashirama was selected as Hokage by an overwhelming majority. Masahiko smiled just thinking about Madara's expression.
Masahiko didn't fully know what happened in between. The night before the election, Tobirama and Hashirama had a conversation that Madara overheard completely. Tobirama disagreed with Madara becoming Hokage and explained the nature of the Uchiha's Sharingan to Hashirama, which was why Madara's face was so grim.
With the Hokage decided, the number of elders was also determined. In the end, there were four: Uchiha Madara, Hyuga Tenjin, the Nara Clan Head, and Masahiko...
As for why it wasn't the Uzumaki Clan Head, he still had to return to the Uzumaki clan to manage affairs there.
Interestingly enough, Masahiko entered the council as the representative of the small clans. Since the small clans had no Kage-level powerhouses, they could only let Masahiko, an Uzumaki with close ties to the Sarutobi and Shimura clans, represent them.
At the same time, to accommodate Madara's feelings, Hashirama decreed that Madara's vote would count as two among the four elders to prevent a tie—though in Masahiko's eyes, this was useless.
As for Tobirama, he got his wish and became his brother's guard, establishing the First Hokage Guard Platoon.
With everything settled, the village bustled with activity again, preparing for the inauguration ceremony of the First Hokage.
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