Will of embers

Chapter 32

Looking through the ROOT base wasn't one of the things Hiruzen wanted to do on the anniversary of his getting into this world. But he couldn't delay this any longer. After finally finishing his work that had piled up quite a bit, Hiruzen decided to clean the house, so to speak. Before handing down this base, Hiruzen had to go through it first and see what was in there.

And he wasn't disappointed, he found exactly what he wished he didn't. At first sight, the research faculty wasn't that bad. It was clean and well-organized. But when he went through the research itself, he shuddered with disgust. Human experiments were forbidden in Konoha, but animals were fair game, and reading through what was done to them to achieve any kind of results shook Hiruzen through his core. And that without the documents of what Orochimaru or Danzo had done behind closed doors. Those were probably long destroyed or cleverly hidden.

"Burn it all," Hiruzen ordered without a shred of hesitation.

Maybe some of this research would prove useful in the future, but none of them were finished, and Hiruzen didn't find it in himself to continue any of them. Enough lives were already ruined, and it was better to end all of it now and here than let it plague him further. With that done, Hiruzen continued his inspection of the base before he gave it to Fugaku.

He stopped at the archives, where he went through some documents. At first, it didn't seem like anything interesting was there, but soon, he found a gold mine. Various cases were made for various merchants, politicians, and nobles of this country and the neighboring ones, too. In short, it was nothing but blackmail that Hiruzen could use, and it only hurt the corrupt and despicable.

Danzo might have it for other reasons and probably didn't even deem it important, but Hiruzen saw it as a gold mine. He could make countless deals that heavily favored him and the village with all these individuals. He wouldn't need to worry about financing for years to come if he played these cards well. At last, some of the burden has fallen from his shoulders.

"Collect all these documents and have Kakashi go through them and organize them," Since Kakashi has returned, Hiruzen had to put his sharingan to work.

While Kakashi did that, Hiruzen had other things planned. As it was one year since he got here and managed somehow to survive and make others believe he was the real Hiruzen, he thought that he deserved a bit of relaxation. And it so happens to be the birthday of the adopted son of one of the most powerful clans in the village.

…

It was supposed to be a small thing. A simple celebration for Naruto with only their family and a few friends. There was no need for anything more for the first birthday. And everything was going as planned. Mikoto made a cake, Itachi helped with decorations, and Fugaku looked after Sasuke and Naruto. But then he showed up.

Hokage does not simply go unnoticed, especially when he comes with his family. And since the Sarutobi family came, so did many others follow. It wasn't like Fugaku could deny Hokage and his family his hospitality. And since he accepted the Hokage, he could only let the others come in, too. And soon, from a little family celebration, it becomes a clan meeting.

Every generation from every clan was in the courtyard of Fugaku's home. It would be fine if it were only children, as Fugaku didn't wish to talk politics today. It was his son's birthday, and he wanted to be with him and not be tied up with these geezers who couldn't read the room, especially when he had to sit next to the Hyuga twins and the Hokage.

"Danzo's death has left quite a big hole in the village's council. Have you considered who will replace him, Hokage-sama?" Hiashi was quite candid in his question, and Fugaku disliked it.

"It has been one hard year for the village and me," Hokage replied. He didn't seem to like to talk about it much. "There is no one who could replace any of those we have lost. The only reason I have let the council still be established was because they are my old comrades who had worked with me for years. Homura and Koharu will keep their positions, but the role of the council will be downsized. It is time for new reforms."

Fagaku smirked as Hokage pretty much denied Hiashi's or any other Hyuga the position with his little speech. Still it did surprise him quite a bit of how keen the Hokage was on change. From his experience, the older generation wanted to keep things as they were, stable and secure. Even he didn't think so much change was needed, but so far Hokage's judgment was spot on.

"Don't tell me you let the civilian council have more power with decision-making," Tsume Inuzuka gnarled her words, but everyone agreed with her aggression toward the civilian council; they can be very annoying.

"Civilian council shall remain responsible for civilians, as they always had been," Hokage replied coldly. "They have no business nor requirements to interfere with shinobi."

That was probably the only thing every clan member of Konoha agreed on. No, every shinobi agreed on that. Even if we lived among and with other residents of Konoha. A shinobi life was vastly different from that of a civilian. Only shinobi could understand a shinobi world. Every time a civilian council tried to interfere in that world, it didn't end up pretty for either side.

The conversation continued, but Fugaku tried to ignore it. Instead, he looked at Sasuke and Naruto interacting with other clan's heirs. It was refreshing to look at them sharing or stealing toys from each other. They had no idea who they were or what history their clans shared, and Fugaku hoped it would continue that way for a long time.

"Enough!!" Fugaku was brought back to reality by Hokage's outburst and looked at the Hokage, who was a bit enraged. "It's that all you care. Why even come here? Have any of you even congratulated Naruto on his birthday? Fugaku might be too polite to reprimand you, but I am old, and I am running out of patience. I don't want to hear a word about anything connecting to politics anymore. I came to celebrate our hero's first birthday, not talk to any of you about your future positions. I will overlook this, but don't test me anymore."

With that, Hokage picked a plate of cake and joined Itachi and Hana Inuzuka in watching over the other kids. Tsume snorted and did the same before most of the other clan heads left the table, too. Leaving only the Hyuga head sitting next to Fugaku. The bastard was too proud to leave. So, he and Fugaku stared at each other in silence and drank tea that Mikoto prepared.

"I was rude; my apologies," After a few tense moments, Hyuga's head opened his mouth. "I confess, as you probably have suspected, I came here only because I heard the Hokage was here. I have been a bit anxious of the late, and that makes me a bit hasty in my actions and inconsidered of other people. Hokage's anger was well placed, and I hope I haven't insulted you or your son, Uchiha-sama."

"Why? What makes you so anxious?" Fugaku was curious.

"It is no secret that Hokage is favoring your clan. The Hyuga clan elders do worry about the influence you have over our Hokage and what it would mean for our clan in the future."

"And why are you telling me this now?" Fugaku was now suspicious of Hiashi's real intention.

"It's funny," Hiashi let out a rare smile; Fugaku didn't think he had ever seen the man smile before. "Hokage's outrage a moment ago woke me up a bit. Over the past year, it felt like I was in a trance. My body moved, but my mind seemed to be half asleep. And now I realize why. I have been overworking myself way too much. Worrying about things that I shouldn't and listening to people who shouldn't have any say over me."

"Right," Fugaku was wondering what was in Hiashi's tea now.

"As Hokage said, there is time for work and time for celebrating," Hiashi continued. "It is amazing how few words from the Third can change people. But I guess that would be expected of him. His wisdom is something that someone like me could only dream of achieving. To him, I was still a youngster that needed a few teachings. I will be leaving for today, and I think I owe Naruto a gift, so until then."

Fugaku just sat there, not understanding a word that Hiashi had spoken. He just looked at his tea and wondered what Mikoto had put in it. Or was he missing something? He had no idea. And didn't want to worry about either. All those Hyuga were a bit touched in the head, to begin with. And that was probably why the Third didn't want to deal with them too.

…

At this point, Hiruzen didn't really care too much about how he acted around others. By now, most of them noticed little quirks or oddities about him and got used to them. It has been a year, after all. If they weren't suspecting anything about him now, then they wouldn't suspect anything any time soon. He would need to do things or act vastly differently before anyone even noticed it. So, he wasn't worried about that much anymore.

A year was a long time to realize many things, at least when so many things have happened. One of these things was the reality of his abilities. He simply was not a shinobi. And it was time he gave up on trying to be one. He will never be able to catch up to other shinobi in time. He needed to find another way to counter his enemies. So, he shouldn't worry about how to get stronger every waking moment.

Another thing he realized was that he needed not only to be the Hokage but also Hiruzen Sarutobi, a father of two. Even though it was weird to have children suddenly, it was time he accepted those memories and feelings he had of them. Asuma made clear he wanted to join the Twelve Guardians and protect the Daimyo. So, Hiruzen decided to get to know him better before it was too late. Even if he wasn't the real Hiruzen and couldn't be a father figure for Asuma, he still could be his friend.

Asuma at least deserved that much. So, after Naruto's birthday, Hiruzen thought of an idea of how to approach Asuma. And it so happens his birthday wasn't that far away either. And what was a better way to get to know someone than going fishing? So, on Asuma's sixteenth birthday, Hiruzen invited him for a fishing trip. The problem was that was how far his plan extended, and now, sitting by the river bank, he had no idea what to do.

"So," Hiruzen really shouldn't have rushed this, but what was done was done, and he had to push forward. "How is it going with that girl you like? Kurenai was her name, right?"

"What?" Asuma was in as awkward situation as Hiruzen was. "How do you know about her?"

"Hmm?" Hiruzen only smiled sleeplessly. "Why shouldn't I know about her? Have you asked her out already?"

"No," Asuma looked down and stared at his fishing rod. "Every time I gather the courage to do so, something interferes with us, and then I take it as a sign that it isn't time yet."

"Or you are looking for signs," Hiruzen was more than familiar with crushes. "Rationalizing your fears is the most powerful enemy that would get in your way. I let you into a secret how to get around it and ask your crush out."

"Secret?"

"Yes, believe it or not, I was in your situation too," Hiruzen smiled, remembering his school days and all the failed romances he had; as sad as he was then, he still remembered it fondly. "I thought of these strategies multiple times. I know how hard it is to ask a girl on a date. It sounds cringe and weird to ask her out for lunch or dinner. So, don't do that. Instead wait for some kind of event, a festival is the best time. And ask her if she wants to join you."

"Then what?"

"If she says yes, don't react too much. Don't jump around in joy—trust me, it doesn't look good on you. But do not be an emotionless robot. Smile and show that you are happy with her answer. This girl just made your day, and you should let her know it."

"And if she says no?"

"Is that really what you are concerned with?" Hiruzen knew too well that what guys in Asuma's situation feared the most was the positive answer; at least, he feared that answer as he didn't know what would come next. "If she does say no, it will probably be because she has an important reason to say it. So, don't panic."

"Fine, then what should I do next?"

"Oh, boy," Hiruzen chuckled. "Everything and nothing. It will be your first date and don't even think that she doesn't know your intentions. You would be surprised how scary girls can be at picking up those things. But don't make a big deal of it either. First rule: don't confess too soon."

"But how then will she know how I feel?"

"She knows. It is you who doesn't know how you feel. Talk to her, Walk with her. Eat with her. This is you two having a good time and getting introduced a little more personally. Listen more than you talk. When you do talk, talk about the things that excite you; your hobbies, your interests. Then, at the end of the day, think how those things made you feel and only after that tell her that. Convey what you felt at those moments and then wait for her response."

"And what if her response is negative."

"Then, my boy, we will have a drink."

Hiruzen remembered how many times he had been heartbroken. The woes of a teenager, even if they weren't that long time ago for him, felt like a whole eternity now. Those were the best times of both of his lives. All he was worried about was romance, not being responsible for tens of thousands of people, and how he would have to blackmail countless people to do his biting to get next year's financing.