The inauguration platform stood high above the village.
Hiruzen Sarutobi sat there wearing an ordinary hat, hands folded, eyes on the closed gate behind him. Below, the crowd packed the square until there was no space left to breathe. Everyone was waiting for the same thing.
The difference was that the villagers were excited.
Hiruzen was nervous.
ANBU had just reported that Tsunade was not in the prepared waiting room.
For a terrifying moment, an old, familiar fear surfaced. Had she changed her mind? Had she run again?
It wasn't impossible. Jiraiya was chaotic, yes, but Tsunade had always been the most uncontrollable of the three. Blood of the First Hokage or not, she did whatever she wanted.
Just as Hiruzen was bracing himself for disaster, a calm voice reached his ears.
Tsunade was on her way.
And Fujimoto Tōma was with her.
Hiruzen finally relaxed. If Tōma was there, then whatever problem had come up was already resolved. At least his old face wouldn't be humiliated today.
The gate opened.
The square fell silent.
Even with thousands packed shoulder to shoulder, not a single voice rose. Everyone stared at the entrance, afraid to blink.
Then came the sound of footsteps. Sharp. Confident.
A woman in a green haori stepped forward, long blonde hair catching the light.
Tsunade.
"TSUNADE-SAMA!"
The roar hit like a wave. Cheers erupted, shaking the square.
Then people noticed something odd.
She was dragging someone with her.
A moment later, the crowd recognized him.
Fujimoto Tōma.
Confusion rippled through the villagers, then vanished just as quickly.
It didn't matter.
Either of them as Hokage would be more than acceptable.
"TŌMA-SAMA!!!"
This time, the cheers were just as loud. Louder, even. Tsunade had been gone for years. Tōma's reputation was fresh, vivid, and very real.
Hiruzen watched the two of them with a helpless sigh. Tsunade never followed scripts. But at this point, she wouldn't suddenly flee. Probably.
In the shadows, Danzō Shimura narrowed his eye.
Something was wrong.
They didn't look like two people who had just fought.
Hiruzen stood and stepped forward. An ANBU captain appeared beside him, presenting the Hokage hat with both hands.
Hiruzen took it, then turned and offered it to Tsunade.
She accepted it without hesitation.
No tricks. No drama.
She placed the hat on her head and stepped to the edge of the platform, one hand on her hip.
"From today onward," she declared, "I, Tsunade, am the Fifth Hokage of Konohagakure."
The village exploded.
Hiruzen smiled, deeply relieved.
Tōma, standing beside her, felt oddly blank. So she had dragged him up here just to announce it in front of him? Was this her way of teasing him?
Before he could finish that thought, Tsunade raised her hand again.
Silence fell instantly.
Then she spoke about something no one expected. The earlier movement among the villagers to nominate Fujimoto Tōma as Hokage.
Hiruzen's expression darkened slightly.
Tōma frowned. This didn't feel like Tsunade.
In the shadows, Danzō finally relaxed. Of course. She was shutting it down.
Then Tsunade continued.
"When Fujimoto Tōma believes the time is right, all he has to do is tell me. I will step down immediately."
"And if he doesn't," she added calmly, "then when he turns eighteen, I will step aside anyway."
"He will become the Sixth Hokage."
Silence.
Then shock.
Then chaos.
Even Hiruzen froze. Even Tōma stared at her.
This wasn't a vague endorsement. This was a public, irreversible declaration.
The crowd needed only a heartbeat.
"FIFTH HOKAGE!"
"SIXTH HOKAGE!"
The chants merged into one thunderous roar.
Tsunade nodded, satisfied, then turned back toward Hiruzen and Tōma with a grin.
"Surprised?"
Hiruzen opened his mouth. "Tsunade, you really didn't have to—"
"Sensei," she cut in softly. "I'm not you."
Hiruzen fell silent.
She turned and left through the gate, still dragging Tōma along.
Behind the scenes, Danzō lost control.
Furniture shattered as he swept everything from his desk.
"How dare she!" he roared. "How dare she!"
All his schemes, turned into a joke in a single sentence.
"No," he growled. "I will not allow this."
If Fujimoto Tōma ever became Hokage, there would be no future left for him.
That could not happen.
"Honestly, Tsunade-sama," Tōma said as they walked, "you didn't need to go that far."
"I already did it," she replied lazily. "Besides, I never liked the job anyway. Hurry up and take it off my hands."
"That's not the real reason."
She paused.
"You've heard of the White Fang," she said quietly.
Tōma nodded.
"The real story," she continued. "Not the pretty one."
He nodded again.
"My teacher back then wouldn't have denied his will," Tsunade said. "Wouldn't have let rumors rot a hero alive."
She exhaled. "If Hokage power can twist someone like that… I wanted to cut that possibility off at the root."
She looked at him.
"You're walking the same path. No. A more dangerous one."
Tōma said nothing.
"So I made my choice today," Tsunade finished. "If I ever regret it, then this decision was correct."
Tōma smiled.
"Tsunade-sama," he said, "I truly believe you'll never walk that road."
She smirked. "Let's hope so."
She walked ahead with Shizune toward the Hokage's office.
Tōma stopped, watching her go.
This was far beyond anything he had expected.
The game had changed.