"Let's bring Tsunade back next."

When Jiraiya first entered the Hokage's office, Hiruzen directly said what he was thinking, calming Jiraiya who wanted to say something.

Compared to Kakashi and others, he actually returned to the Land of Fire earlier, but due to some reasons, he did not directly enter Konoha. It was not until about half a day after Kakashi and others returned to Konoha that he could return.

When he arrived in Konoha, he still looked like he was carefree and idle, which made Hiruzen feel headache and helpless.

The three most valued students of his, Tsunade left, Orochimaru betrayed Konoha, and only Jiraiya remained. Although he maintained a certain degree of contact with the village, when he encountered the real thing, he only knew

Shirking responsibility made Hiruzen sigh more than once.

"For asking me so seriously, are you going to die, old man?"

Looking at Hiruzen who seemed to be making a will, Jiraiya couldn't help but joke, completely destroying the original serious atmosphere.

Hiruzen coughed violently twice and glared at Jiraiya fiercely. Although his body function had indeed declined to a certain extent, it was not to the point where he would completely step into the coffin board.

According to his own estimation, if he takes good care of his body, he will have no problem living on for more than ten years.

When necessary, he can even contribute his last remaining body to the village like the previous Hokage did.

"I've disappointed you, but I can still hold on for another ten years."

"Who believes this kind of thing? Maybe he will be in the coffin next year."

"So the top priority is to invite Tsunade back and pass the throne of Hokage to her. My health has been getting worse and worse recently. When I deal with government affairs every day, I get distracted from time to time."

Hiruzen was not joking, he looked at Jiraiya seriously and expressed his plea.

Jiraiya was silent for a moment and said: "In the past few years, I have revealed to Tsunade the intentions of the village more than once, secretly and openly, but the effect has been minimal. Moreover, don't forget, Tsunade is as young as me and has already

Fifty years old."

In other words, even if Tsunade is really invited back to Konoha and allowed to assume the position of the Fifth Hokage, she may not be able to rule for more than ten years, or even shorter.

Considering this situation, be mentally prepared to have two consecutive Hokages within ten years.

However, there is currently no unified conclusion regarding the candidate for the next Hokage.

Although he was very willing to have Tsunade come back and take over the position of the Fifth Hokage, some things still needed to be discussed, lest the village would be overwhelmed and waste time and energy on such matters, causing Konoha to stagnate.

forward.

The Sannin are no longer young people. At their young age, there is not much room for improvement in strength. It can basically be said that they have reached the peak level in their lives.

After hearing this, Hiruzen also pondered slightly and asked, "Do you have any good recommendations?"

There are indeed many powerful ninjas in Konoha. Considering all aspects, Tsunade is also the most suitable candidate to succeed the Fifth Hokage. However, it is related to Konoha's future development plans. Tsunade will not be in power for too long.

, Jiraiya's concerns about Hiruzen are understandable.

"How's Kakashi?"

Jiraiya looked at Hiruzen and asked.

His behavior is more like a temptation.

Sure enough, when Hiruzen heard this, he didn't speak immediately, but sat there and stared at Jiraiya with a strange look.

Jiraiya looked at him without fear.

"The incident with Sakumo has passed. There is no need to hold on to this kind of thing. Whether it is for compensation or Kakashi's own ability, he is more than qualified to be the Hokage after Tsunade. Don't forget,

His teacher is the Fourth Hokage."

Jiraiya doesn't like politics and doesn't know much about political struggles, but Hiruzen is his mentor, and he can vaguely feel it.

Hiruzen always remained wary of Kakashi.

As for the source of this vigilance, Jiraiya could also guess a rough idea.

It is probably related to the suicide incident of Konoha White Fang in the past.

But these things have passed, and Kakashi is also growing up, letting go of the past and becoming an indispensable part of Konoha.

As Hokage, Hiruzen shouldn't always be thinking about this kind of thing. "Is that what you think? At that time, I didn't expect Sakumo to make such a choice."

"Results like that are something none of us want to see. To be honest, I am not 100% sure that Tsunade will return to Konoha to take over as the Fifth Hokage. If the situation becomes like that, Kakashi is the best

substitute."

Jiraiya spoke his mind.

With Kakashi as the second choice, in this way, regardless of whether Tsunade agrees to return to Konoha and take over as the fifth Hokage, Konoha will have room to turn.

Hiruzen considered Jiraiya's words carefully.

Since he took over the power of the Hokage again, there have indeed been many problems within Konoha that have not appeared before. It has become inevitable that the root and the tail will not be lost. The voice of the martial arts faction is getting louder and louder. Danzo's power has become so powerful that even the Hokage

, to the point where it cannot be removed.

Faced with such a dilemma, Hiruzen couldn't help but feel worried.

The root should not be allowed to grow bigger. This kind of statement is meaningless. The matter is a foregone conclusion. What needs to be considered now is to decide who will be the next Hokage.

"We will discuss this matter after Tsunade comes back."

Hearing Hiruzen's answer, Jiraiya couldn't help but feel disappointed.

But he quickly cheered up and said: "I have been assigned two groups of ANBU. Recently, my contact with Tsunade has suddenly been severed, and I need the assistance of the ANBU."

This kind of interruption of contact with Tsunade has happened frequently in the past few years.

Sometimes Tsunade would find his harassment very boring, so she would secretly change her appearance, cut off contact with anyone, and go to a place unknown to anyone to continue her journey of becoming a fat sheep.

Every time we restore contact, it takes half a month or even a month to prepare.

Normally, Jiraiya could take his time to find her, but now that Hiruzen has officially issued a mission, he naturally needs to restore contact with Tsunade as quickly as possible, find her location, and convey Hiruzen's will.

.

"Then I'll leave this matter to you. No matter what, it can't be done by Tsunade's temper this time.

Faced with Hiruzen's stern words, Jiraiya smiled bitterly.

You are already so humble that you need to beg someone else to be Hokage, how can you not follow the other person's temper?

That's why he hoped to include Kakashi on the list of candidates for Hokage, in order to give Konoha a way out.

"Really, I originally wanted to rest in the village for two days. I am born to be a hard worker. I'd like to ask you, Naruto. The signs of the organization's activity have become more and more obvious recently."

"Hanabi, when did you come back?

In a mansion full of ancient charm owned by the Hyuga clan, Hinata met her younger sister Hanabi walking towards her in the corridor, showing a surprised look on her face.

After the Chunin Exam, she thought Hanabi would stay in the Demon Country for a while, so she didn't expect Hanabi to return to the village so soon.

"Why are you so surprised? Originally, the meeting with the Hyuga clan over there was just used by others to establish authority. Because there was no way for the adults to embarrass themselves, I had to let me, a child, go over and bear the pressure."

Hanabi was very thoughtful, so she naturally knew the purpose of her family's decision to send her as a child to the Kingdom of Demons to visit the Chunin Exam Competition.

Because if a child like her doesn't show up, it will be the adults who are embarrassed.

"Yes, really?"

Hinata was a little confused and didn't quite understand the meaning of Hanabi's words. She always felt that she was venting her dissatisfaction.

"Then when did you come back?"

"I came back two days earlier than you. At that time, you had always focused on your Naruto-kun, so I didn't bother you.

Hanabi raised her eyelids, as if looking at her sister Hinata.

Hinata's face turned red immediately after being hit in the vital point by the fireworks.

"There is no such thing!"

"Oh, even the voice of defense is so small... This must be a lie, right? It's really not something that a young lady can do."

"Really, why is there a sister like you?"

Hinata also imagined that it would be nice if she had a sister who was not so strong and didn't like to tease others.

Is teasing an older sister so fun?

"What's wrong with me?"

Hanabi looked weird.

"As a younger sister, you are not cute at all." "Sister, are you secretly reading some idle books behind your father's back?"

Hinata was speechless.

"No, have you really done it?"

Hanabi became interested, took a step forward, and walked directly in front of Hinata. She raised her head and stared directly at Hinata, pressing her tightly. Her small body was filled with a sense of oppression that could not be ignored.

"I...I am the sister.

Hinata who said these words seemed to have used up all the courage she had accumulated in her life to confirm her status as a sister.

As a result, he still sounded so unsure of himself, and his face was completely saying, "Don't bully me again."

But in Hanabi's eyes, the words "I'm easy to bully, come and bully me" are always written on her sister's face, which is so obvious that it's hard to ignore.
To be continued...