The title of "most perfect Hokage in history" might have been a little inflated, since Minato's time in office had been too short for his achievements to fully take shape.
But if they were judging purely by the qualities of a ninja, then the Third Hokage and both advisors agreed on one thing: Minato had been the very image of perfection.
The two old advisers slowly pushed themselves to their feet. Then, in solemn voices, they said to Akira, "Whatever your own thoughts may be, we both believe you are fully qualified to surpass the Fourth and one day wear the hat of the Sixth Hokage."
After dropping that bombshell, the two old men shuffled out of the room.
This place might have been their office in name, but the truth was that they rarely came here. At their age, neither of them liked moving around unless absolutely necessary.
Akira could only laugh helplessly at the sudden declaration.
"I really don't want to be Hokage. That job works you to death."
Tsunade, on the other hand, looked openly pleased.
Those two stubborn old fossils had always spoken highly of Akira in private, but they had never once publicly declared support for him stepping into the role.
What they had just said was different. This time, they had laid their cards on the table and openly acknowledged him as the rightful successor.
In a world where strength often mattered more than anything else, their approval might not decide everything, but as political capital, it carried enormous weight.
After all, if a Hokage fell in battle, those two advisers did hold the authority to appoint an acting Hokage directly.
Of course, that only mattered if the Hokage actually died. Under normal circumstances, all they could really do was talk.
That was the truth of advisory authority. Its value only showed itself at critical moments.
It was the same kind of influence Chiyo had once wielded in Sunagakure. The moment the Third Kazekage disappeared, she had been able to push Rasa into power without delay.
Getting a kind word out of old foxes like these was harder than reaching the stars, so hearing them say this today felt almost surreal.
Even Tsunade, who usually had little patience for the pair, found herself feeling an unusual flicker of respect for them.
Yamato looked at Akira with open pride and relief in his eyes.
That gifted boy who had once run around behind them was now a towering tree strong enough to shelter others beneath him.
Shizune was even more stunned. Her mouth hung open as she hugged Tonton a little tighter.
The fact that those two old advisers, whose mouths were usually harder than stone, had actually relented felt like a miracle.
After all, the future Shizune had always imagined for herself was basically to grow into one of those advisory roles.
Tsunade got to her feet, walked over to Akira, and slapped him firmly on the shoulder.
"All right then. When I retire one day, this whole rotten mess is yours. Those two old relics may be rigid, but they still carry influence in the village."
"With their backing, your future run for Hokage would basically be a formality. There wouldn't be any real competition."
Akira gave her a helpless smile.
"Why is everyone so determined to dump this miserable job on me? I already told you, my personality doesn't fit it."
Tsunade's smile faded. Her gaze turned serious, almost as if she were studying some priceless treasure.
Akira could only raise both hands in surrender and placate the temperamental woman before she blew up again.
"All right, all right. We'll talk about the future when it gets here. Who knows what tomorrow will bring?"
"Still, since they finally gave way, Naruto probably won't have to sneak in and out of Konoha like a thief anymore."
Then he turned to Yamato.
"Yamato-sensei, I'll have to leave the road ahead to you. I reinforced Naruto's seal, but I deliberately left a gap instead of locking it down completely. I still want him to learn how to control that power."
"If he can truly master the Nine-Tails' chakra, then he'll become one of Konoha's greatest anchors."
As he spoke, Akira pulled out a sheet of paper covered in seals and handed it to Yamato.
"If that kid loses control again, find a chance to slap this onto his forehead."
"There's chakra of mine sealed inside it. It was made specifically to suppress Tailed Beasts."
Yamato accepted the paper and could feel the terrifying force flowing faintly through it beneath his fingertips.
Combined with Wood Style, this thing was basically a restraint tailored specifically for the Nine-Tails.
With Akira's chakra reinforcing it, Yamato felt certain that even if Naruto erupted into six tails again, he could pin him to the ground and keep him there.
Yamato carefully tucked the seal away and smiled.
"Don't worry. I'll watch him like he's the village treasury."
At that point, Tsunade cut in.
"And don't just watch Naruto. Keep an eye on the person Danzō is slipping into the team too. That old bastard is definitely plotting something. Stay sharp."
Yamato nodded, his expression immediately turning solemn.
"Understood, Hokage-hime."
The moment he finished speaking, he vanished from the room in a Body Flicker.
Tsunade moved to the window, folded her arms, and leaned against the sill, her brows drawn tight.
"We still don't know Akatsuki's real purpose in collecting the Tailed Beasts, but from the power they've already shown, any major hidden village would be gutted if it faced them alone."
"Just from the intel we have now, Uchiha Itachi, Kisame Hoshigaki, Deidara, Sasori... which one of them isn't an S-rank rogue ninja soaked in blood? Sasori fell to you, yes, but every one of the others starts at Kage level."
For a major hidden village, having three or four Kage-level fighters as pillars was already enough to count itself blessed.
As for Konoha, the true Kage-level fighters it could currently field were, at most, Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Akira. Three pillars, and no more.