Chapter 676: Wear More Clothes When It's Cold
After the meeting, Mugetsu intended to return to his office, but Hiruzen called him and took him to the Hokage Office.
"I lost the battle against Sōsuke," Hiruzen said with a sigh.
"Sōsuke's strength far exceeded my imagination. It is no exaggeration to say that he is currently the strongest ninja in the Ninja World."
Although Mugetsu had the achievement of severely injuring the Kazekage with a single punch and could use a Wood Golem Technique over sixty meters tall, there was still quite some distance between him and Senju Hashirama.
However, Sōsuke gave Hiruzen the feeling of being very close to a legendary ninja like Senju Hashirama.
Therefore, Hiruzen believed that the strongest person in the Ninja World right now was Sōsuke, not Mugetsu.
"I apologize. I was impulsive this time and should have listened to your advice."
As he spoke, Hiruzen showed a look of remorse.
For Hiruzen, this was not just a defeat in battle, but also a major strategic error in Konoha's development.
If he had not provoked Sōsuke, Konoha could have smoothly digested the fruits of victory from the Third Shinobi World War, while also allowing Mugetsu to develop safely.
"Since it has already happened, let's look forward. And if we are going to talk about mistakes, then we high ranking officials cannot avoid responsibility either. If we had been a bit more persistent and forceful, perhaps the outcome would have been different," Mugetsu comforted him.
He had indeed been quite harsh this time. Although he had not left any incurable physical injuries on Hiruzen, he had most likely left a bit of psychological trauma.
After all, Hiruzen was still a top tier powerhouse in the current Ninja World.
To go all out and still be defeated without even touching Mugetsu's clothes, the sense of frustration must have been immense.
Seeing Mugetsu's heartfelt words and genuine expression, Hiruzen could not help feeling a little touched.
Even from Koharu and Homura, his old comrades who had grown up with him, Hiruzen could sense a trace of resentment in their hearts.
Of course, he was indeed wrong in this matter, so Hiruzen did not feel that Homura was in the wrong.
But everything was subject to comparison.
As a high ranking official and one of the Advisors, Mugetsu was still 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 sighed in his heart.
Mugetsu was too reliable.
He truly remembered kindness.
"I lost, but I also probed some intelligence about Sōsuke." Hiruzen then told Mugetsu 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."
Mugetsu showed a listening expression and nodded from time to time.
Using Limitless to create an uncrossable infinity around himself could indeed be understood as a shield, and it was not truly unbreakable.
However, it was not that he had failed to block the Five Great Consecutive Shots. He had only wanted to use Sukunahikona to further increase the sense of oppression.
To break Limitless, the Five Great Consecutive Shots were not enough. A Truth Seeking Orb or Six Paths Sage Art would be more appropriate.
"Until the election is over, Mugetsu, you should not leave the Village," Hiruzen instructed.
Although Sōsuke was powerful, Konoha also had many strong ninja. If they united, they might not be unable to contend with Sōsuke. After all, Sōsuke's chakra was limited.
If Mugetsu left the Village, the risk would be much greater.
Hiruzen did not dare gamble on whether Sōsuke would make a move.
Sōsuke letting him return did not mean Sōsuke would let Mugetsu go.
Because Hiruzen would not pose a threat to Sōsuke, but if Mugetsu continued to grow, it was uncertain who would be stronger.
This conjecture made Hiruzen think that Sōsuke letting them return might be to lull Konoha into a false sense of security and make Konoha lower its guard.
Mugetsu nodded.
Anyway, Hiruzen would not know even if he left.
Limitless was quite useful for long distance travel. Its consumption was not too exaggerated, and the distance it covered was very far.
For long distance movement, Mugetsu 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 said.
In reality, there was no interview yet. Hiruzen still had to issue another order for it to happen.
But that was not 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 Mugetsu being nominated as the Fourth Hokage.
Mugetsu thanked him and left the Hokage Office, heading to his own office to work.
Watching Mugetsu leave, Hiruzen 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 composed himself and continued handling official business.
Until the official handover, he was still the Hokage.
When it was time to leave work, Hiruzen 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 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, and Hiruzen had something to say but could not say it directly right now.
During dinner, Hiruzen proactively talked about his recent work with 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 made significant contributions and achieved battle merits for Konoha. The meetings have been nonstop."
"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, could not help showing a puzzled expression.
The Daimyo did not interfere with Ninja Village affairs, so even Asuma rarely heard about the Daimyo from Hiruzen's mouth.
"What important matter 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 big deal is so troublesome?"
"Eat quietly. Your rank isn't high enough to know about this," Hiruzen did not answer Asuma's question.
And after Asuma asked, Hiruzen immediately stopped talking and focused on eating.
Asuma felt a little annoyed.
Even though he knew Hiruzen was telling the truth, it was still a bit uncomfortable.
If Hiruzen did not want to say it, he did not have to. Why did he have to insist on saying his rank was not high enough?
Even if his rank was not high enough, he was still Hiruzen's child. Was he not worthy of trust?
"Not young, evaluating ninja, contacting the Daimyo…"
After eating, Asuma's mind kept replaying Hiruzen'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 together.
Hiruzen had denied the succession yesterday, but Asuma felt that Hiruzen might not have told him the truth when he asked.
Instead, the complaints and grumbling at the dinner table just now were more credible.
Moreover, Hiruzen had let slip one sentence yesterday, saying that Mugetsu 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 had placed on the shelf into a scroll, and left home.
The old man had spoken to him so harshly. Borrowing the hat for a while was not too much, was it?
"Why did he take my Hokage hat?" Hiruzen walked out and looked speechless.
He had only wanted to give Asuma a hint, letting Asuma know about this matter and then have him convey it to Mugetsu.
Mugetsu already knew he was going to be nominated, but Asuma did not know that Mugetsu knew.
In the public's impression, the nomination for the Hokage election was news that would only be announced by the Hokage at the jonin meeting.
Regarding the position of Hokage, even if Mugetsu already knew this information, and even if Mugetsu could guess that Hiruzen had intentionally arranged this result, Mugetsu would still have a better impression of Asuma.
Because no matter what, Asuma was unaware.
From Asuma's perspective, he was risking giving Mugetsu advance notice.
For such a student who was wholeheartedly devoted to his teacher, could the teacher not increase his good impression?
Hiruzen did not expect Asuma to be trained by Mugetsu into an incredibly strong ninja. 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 Mugetsu's home in the main district.
After knocking and entering, Asuma found that Obito and Shisui were also at Mugetsu's house.
Shisui seemed to be asking Mugetsu for advice, while Obito was talking to an unknown creature nearby, one with wings and an onion shaped head.
"Teacher Mugetsu, good evening," Asuma greeted them one by one.
"Mm, come and sit down," Mugetsu greeted him with a smile.
"Sorry to bother you."
"It's no bother. Shisui and the others have just finished asking their questions."
Shisui had come to Mugetsu to ask about some matters concerning the Uchiha Clan Compound.
Obito had run into Shisui in the Uchiha Clan Compound and happened to have some theoretical questions to ask Mugetsu, so they had come together.
Asuma did not go sit on a chair. Instead, he walked behind Mugetsu, then took the Hokage hat out from a scroll and placed it on Mugetsu's head.
"Teacher Mugetsu, it's getting cold. It's time to wear a hat," Asuma said with a serious expression.
Mugetsu's expression became subtle.
What was this about?
Was Asuma advocating for him to ask the Sandaime to step down?
"Hokage hat!"
Obito's eyes widened. He looked at Mugetsu excitedly and instinctively took out his camera to snap a picture of him.
Clap! Clap!
The next moment, two transparent bursts of chakra struck Asuma and Obito on the head.
Then Mugetsu took off the Hokage hat.
He did not have any obsession with becoming Hokage.
"Asuma, where did you get that custom made? It's exactly like the hat 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 was no exact replica, not even a high quality imitation.
"Haha, who knows? I picked it up," Asuma chuckled evasively.
It was not just similar.
It was the exact one Hiruzen usually wore.
Shisui showed a thoughtful expression.
Custom made?
Which clothing store had the courage of a ninja 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 back into the scroll.
Annoyed as he was, he did not actually intend to give the hat to Mugetsu right now. He would put it back when he got home.
Seeing Asuma's hesitant expression, Mugetsu 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.
Mugetsu could understand this.
Asuma and Obito were only good friends. They were not like Kakashi and Obito, who had built a long term relationship through life and death.
"Teacher Mugetsu, it's alright." Asuma thought about it and decided to directly state Hiruzen's words and his own deductions.
Because the matter involved was too important, Asuma initially thought that the fewer people who knew, the better.
However, after thinking carefully, Obito and Shisui were not unknown figures in the Village and could help Mugetsu in the election.
Moreover, given Obito and Shisui's personalities, they would not betray Mugetsu and leak the information.
"Fourth Hokage!" Obito's eyes sparkled.
If the invincible Teacher Mugetsu became Hokage, Konoha would surely soar.
"Asuma only said I might be nominated. Why does it sound like I've already succeeded when it comes out of your mouth?" Mugetsu knocked Obito's head again.
"It's just that I trust you," Obito chuckled.
Shisui nodded in his heart.
With Mugetsu's current popularity in Konoha, the probability of him becoming Hokage was very high.
As for Minato, the Fourth Hokage in the original history, his current popularity could not compare to Mugetsu's at all.
"If Aunt Tsunade 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 advantages.
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, officials, and nobles, giving her incredibly extensive connections.
Tsunade had not participated much in the Third Shinobi World War, but she had achieved great military feats in the Second Shinobi World War.
With all these factors combined, Tsunade was not inferior to Mugetsu in terms of the election.
"How about hiding a stone carved with 'Konoha thrives, Mugetsu becomes Hokage' inside a fish carcass?" Obito said excitedly.
"We could hold a reunion for all the students Teacher Mugetsu has taught before, gathering everyone's strength to support Teacher Mugetsu." This was Shisui's idea.
....
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