Chapter 676: Wear more clothes when it’s cold

After the meeting, Muzuki intended to return to his office, but Hiruzen Sarutobi called him and took him to the Hokage Office.

“I lost the battle against Sōsuke,” Hiruzen Sarutobi said with a sigh.

“Sōsuke’s strength far exceeded my imagination; it’s no exaggeration to say he’s currently the strongest Ninja in the Ninja World.”

Although Muzuki had the achievement of severely injuring the Kazekage with a single punch and could use the Wood Human Technique over sixty meters tall, he was still quite a distance from Senju Hashirama.

However, Sōsuke gave Hiruzen Sarutobi the feeling of being very close to a legendary Ninja like Senju Hashirama.

Therefore, Hiruzen Sarutobi believed that the strongest in the Ninja World right now was Sōsuke, not Muzuki.

“I apologize; I was impulsive this time and should have listened to your advice.”

As he spoke, Hiruzen Sarutobi showed a look of remorse.

For Hiruzen Sarutobi, this was not just a defeat in battle, but also a major strategic error in development.

If he hadn’t provoked Sōsuke, Konoha could have smoothly digested the fruits of victory from the Third Shinobi World War, while also allowing Muzuki to develop safely.

“Since it’s already a fact, let’s look forward. And if we’re going to talk about mistakes, then we high-ranking officials cannot avoid them. If we had been a bit more persistent and forceful, perhaps the outcome would have been different,” Muzuki consoled.

He had indeed been quite harsh this time. Although he didn’t leave any incurable physical injuries on Hiruzen Sarutobi, he most likely left a bit of psychological trauma.

After all, Hiruzen Sarutobi was still a top-tier powerhouse in the current Ninja World. To be defeated without even touching Muzuki’s clothes, despite his full efforts, the sense of frustration must have been immense.

Seeing Muzuki’s heartfelt words and unfeigned expression, Hiruzen Sarutobi couldn’t help but feel a little touched.

Even with Utatane Koharu and Homura Mitokado, his old comrades who grew up with him, Hiruzen Sarutobi could sense a hint of resentment in their hearts.

Of course, he was indeed wrong about this matter, so Hiruzen Sarutobi didn’t feel that Homura Mitokado was in the wrong.

But everything is subject to comparison. As a high-ranking official and one of the advisors, Muzuki was able to actively help him share the blame and offer comfort.

“Although his strength is no longer weaker than mine, he still remembers the kindness of my past teachings,” Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed in his heart.

Muzuki was too reliable; he truly remembered kindness.

“I lost, but I also probed some intelligence about Sōsuke.” Hiruzen Sarutobi then told Muzuki some details of the battle.

“He has a Ninjutsu that can create a shield to protect his entire body. It can withstand both Taijutsu and Ninjutsu attacks, but there should be a limit. When I used Five Great Consecutive Shots, he used other means to nullify my Ninjutsu.”

Muzuki showed a listening expression, nodding from time to time.

Using Limitless Cursed Technique to create an insurmountable “infinity” around him could indeed be understood as a shield, and it was not truly unbreakable.

However, he didn’t fail to block the Five Great Consecutive Shots; he just wanted to use Sukuna Hikona to further enhance the sense of oppression.

To break Limitless, Five Great Consecutive Shots wasn’t enough; Truth-Seeking Orb or Six Paths Sage Art would be more appropriate.

“Until the election is over, Muzuki, you should not leave the village,” Hiruzen Sarutobi instructed.

Although Sōsuke was powerful, Konoha also had many strong Ninja. United, they might not be unable to contend with Sōsuke, after all, Sōsuke’s Chakra was limited.

If Muzuki left the village, the risk would be much greater.

Hiruzen Sarutobi didn’t dare to gamble whether Sōsuke would make a move. Sōsuke letting him return didn’t mean Sōsuke would let Muzuki go.

Because Hiruzen Sarutobi would not pose a threat to Sōsuke, but if Muzuki continued to grow, it would be uncertain who was stronger.

This conjecture made Hiruzen Sarutobi think that Sōsuke letting them return might be to lull Konoha into a false sense of security, making Konoha relax its vigilance.

Muzuki nodded. Anyway, Hiruzen Sarutobi wouldn’t know if he left.

Limitless Cursed Technique was quite useful for long-distance travel, with consumption not being too exaggerated and the distance being very far.

For long-distance travel, Muzuki would call Limitless the strongest, far surpassing the Flying Thunder God Technique.

“Oh, and there will be an exclusive interview with you in the Leaf Newspaper recently. You can prepare for it in advance,” Hiruzen Sarutobi said.

In reality, there wasn’t one yet; Hiruzen Sarutobi would have to issue another order for it to happen.

But that wasn’t important. As a Konoha hero of the Third Shinobi World War, an exclusive interview in the Leaf Newspaper was very reasonable and had nothing to do with Muzuki being nominated as the Fourth Hokage.

Muzuki thanked him and left the Hokage Office to go to his own office to work.

Watching Muzuki leave, Hiruzen Sarutobi silently pulled out his pipe, lit it, took a deep puff, and exhaled a faint white mist, revealing a relieved expression.

A few minutes later, Hiruzen Sarutobi composed himself and continued to handle official business. Until the official handover, he was still the Hokage.

When it was time to leave work, Hiruzen Sarutobi left punctually and returned home.

At this time, Asuma had also just returned from training at the Training Ground and was lying on a chair in the living room.

“You’re back,” Asuma turned his head and said.

“Mm,” Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded in response, taking off his Hokage hat and putting it away.

Then the two did not communicate much further.

Asuma had nothing he wanted to say to Hiruzen Sarutobi, and Hiruzen Sarutobi had something to say but couldn’t say it directly right now.

During dinner, Hiruzen Sarutobi proactively talked about his recent work with Sarutobi Biwako.

“I’ve finally been able to relax a bit recently. For the past few days, I’ve been busy evaluating and discussing Ninja who have made significant contributions and achievements in battle for Konoha. The meetings have been non-stop.”

“It’s good that you’re done. You’re not young anymore; you need to prioritize rest and not overwork yourself.”

“I can’t help it. I am the Hokage, after all, and such important matters must be personally overseen. I’ll be busy again in a while; I still need to contact the Daimyo.”

Hearing the word “Daimyo,” Asuma, who had been silently eating, couldn’t help but show a puzzled expression.

The Daimyo did not interfere with Ninja Village affairs, so even Asuma rarely heard about the Daimyo from Hiruzen Sarutobi’s mouth.

“What important matter is it that requires continuous high-level meetings and even contacting the Daimyo?” Asuma wondered in his heart.

Asuma was a person with strong initiative, so he directly asked:

“What’s such a big deal that it’s so troublesome?”

“Eat quietly. Your rank isn’t high enough to know about this,” Hiruzen Sarutobi did not answer Asuma’s question.

And after Asuma asked, Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately stopped talking and focused on eating.

Asuma felt a little annoyed. Even though he knew Hiruzen Sarutobi was telling the truth, it was still a bit uncomfortable.

If he didn’t want to say it, he didn’t have to, but he insisted on saying his rank wasn’t high enough.

Even if his rank wasn’t high enough, he was Hiruzen Sarutobi’s child, wasn’t he worthy of trust?

“Not young, evaluating Ninja, contacting the Daimyo…”

After eating, Asuma’s mind kept replaying Hiruzen Sarutobi’s words at the dinner table.

“Could it be that the election for the Fourth Hokage is really about to begin!” A flash of inspiration crossed Asuma’s mind, connecting everything.

Hiruzen Sarutobi had denied the succession yesterday, but Asuma felt that Hiruzen Sarutobi might not have told him the truth in his inquiry.

Instead, the complaints and grumbling at the dinner table just now were more credible.

Moreover, Hiruzen Sarutobi had let slip a sentence yesterday, saying that Muzuki might not have as much time to see him in the future.

The more Asuma thought about it, the more plausible it seemed, and the more excited he became.

He looked left and right, put the Hokage hat that Hiruzen Sarutobi had placed on the shelf into a scroll, and left home.

The old man spoke to him so harshly; it wasn’t too much for him to borrow the hat for a while, was it?

“Why did he take my Hokage hat?” Hiruzen Sarutobi walked out, looking speechless.

He just wanted to give Asuma a hint, to let Asuma know about this matter, and then have him convey it to Muzuki.

Muzuki already knew that he was going to be nominated, but Asuma didn’t know that Muzuki knew.

In the public’s impression, the nomination for the Hokage election was a piece of news that would only be announced by the Hokage at the Jonin meeting.

Regarding the position of Hokage, even if Muzuki already knew this information, and even if Muzuki could guess that there was an intentional result from Hiruzen Sarutobi, Muzuki would still have a better impression of Asuma.

Because no matter what, Asuma was unaware. From Asuma’s perspective, he was risking giving Muzuki advance notice.

For such a student who was wholeheartedly devoted to his teacher, could the teacher not increase his good impression?

Hiruzen Sarutobi didn’t expect Asuma to be trained by Muzuki to be incredibly strong; a level similar to the Fourth Kazekage would be enough, sufficient to lead the Sarutobi Clan to continued prosperity.

…

After leaving home, Asuma went directly to Muzuki’s home in the Main urban area.

After knocking and entering, Asuma found that Obito and Shisui were also at Muzuki’s house.

Shisui seemed to be asking Muzuki for advice, while Obito was talking to an unknown creature with wings and an onion-shaped head nearby.

“Muzuki-sensei, good evening,” Asuma greeted them one by one.

“Mm, come and sit down,” Muzuki greeted with a smile.

“Sorry to bother you.”

“It’s no bother. Shisui and the others have just finished asking their questions.”

Shisui came to Muzuki to ask about some issues concerning the Uchiha Clan Compound.

Obito ran into Shisui in the Uchiha Clan Compound and happened to have some theoretical questions to ask Muzuki, so they came together.

Asuma did not go to sit on a chair but walked behind Muzuki, then took out the Hokage hat from a scroll and placed it on Muzuki’s head.

“Muzuki-sensei, it’s getting cold. It’s time to wear a hat,” Asuma said with a serious expression.

Muzuki’s expression was subtle. What was this about? Was he advocating for him to ask the Sandaime to step down?

“Hokage hat!”

Obito’s eyes widened. He looked at Muzuki excitedly and instinctively took out his camera to snap a picture of Muzuki.

Clap! Clap!

The next moment, two transparent bursts of Chakra each hit Asuma and Obito on the head.

Then Muzuki took off the Hokage hat; he didn’t have any obsession with being Hokage.

“Asuma, where did you get that custom-made? It’s exactly like the hat the Hokage Uncle wears,” Obito asked curiously, skillfully rubbing his head.

He had always wanted to wear such a hat for his graduation photo, but unfortunately, there wasn’t an exact replica, not even a high-quality imitation.

“Haha, who knows? I picked it up,” Asuma chuckled evasively.

It wasn’t just similar; it was the exact one Hiruzen Sarutobi usually wore.

Shisui showed a thoughtful expression.

Custom-made? Which clothing store had the guts of a Nin-Beast to make something like this? It looked exactly like the real Hokage hat!

Considering Asuma’s identity, Shisui felt that this should be the genuine Hokage hat.

Asuma picked up the Hokage hat and put it into the scroll. Annoyed as he was, he didn’t actually intend to give the hat to Muzuki right now; he would put it back when he got home.

Seeing Asuma’s hesitant expression, Muzuki said to Obito and Shisui:

“There are some materials I usually organize upstairs; you can go and look at them.”

Asuma clearly had something to say to him, but he had some reservations because Shisui and Obito were present.

Muzuki could understand this. Asuma and Obito were just good friends, not like Kakashi and Obito’s long-term, life-and-death relationship.

“Muzuki-sensei, it’s alright.” Asuma thought about it and decided to directly state Hiruzen Sarutobi’s words and his own deductions.

Because the matter involved was too important, Asuma initially thought the fewer people who knew, the better.

However, upon careful thought, Obito and Shisui were not unknown figures in the village and could help Muzuki in the election.

Moreover, given Obito and Shisui’s personalities, they would not betray Muzuki and leak the information.

“Fourth Hokage!” Obito’s eyes sparkled.

If the invincible Muzuki-sensei became Hokage, Konoha would surely soar.

“Asuma only said you might be nominated. Why does it sound like you’ve already succeeded when it comes out of your mouth?” Muzuki knocked Obito’s head again.

“It’s just that I trust you,” Obito chuckled.

Shisui nodded in his heart. With Muzuki’s current popularity in Konoha, the probability of him becoming Hokage was very high.

As for Minato Namikaze, the Fourth Hokage in the original history, his popularity currently couldn’t compare to Muzuki’s at all.

“If Tsunade-aunt is also nominated, the final result is hard to say, but we can start preparing now to gain the upper hand,” Asuma said.

This was his purpose for coming. If they knew the information in advance and started preparing, they could be ready to maximize their chances of winning votes.

Among all possible nominated contenders, Asuma was most wary of Tsunade.

Because Tsunade had too many buffs: the First Hokage’s granddaughter, the most legitimate existence in Konoha, and also his old man’s disciple.

Additionally, as the strongest medical Ninja in the Ninja World, Tsunade had treated a large number of Ninja and various officials and nobles, giving her incredibly extensive connections.

Tsunade didn’t participate much in the Third Shinobi World War, but she achieved great military feats in the Second Shinobi World War.

A series of factors combined meant that Tsunade was not inferior to Muzuki in terms of the election.

“How about hiding a stone carved with ‘Konoha thrives, Muzuki becomes Hokage’ inside a fish carcass?” Obito said excitedly.

“We could hold a reunion for all the students Muzuki-sensei taught before, integrating everyone’s strength to support Muzuki-sensei.” This was Shisui’s idea.