The sun was peeking above the top of the mountain, the faces of all of the previous Hokage watching over the village like unmoving guardians, ready to strike down any threats to the village. Mitsuo hadn't been able to go and see what had become of his statue, knowing that the statue of Tatsumaru had been vandalized and it was being discussed that it would be removed for what he had done to the village. Mitsuo wouldn't have disagreed with that happening, but it would be unfortunate to attempt to remove someone from the history of the village, even if he was a terrible person. The head of the Sarutobi clan stepped through the gates of the village, his long hair and the tails of his Aoi Bara headband flowing behind him in the wind, and the sun glistening on his bare muscular chest, showing off the seal that he had positioned on his chest. His beard was well trimmed, and to anyone who had seen the monument to him in the museum, he was absolutely obviously the Seventeenth Hokage. He didn't care anymore, however, as all he wanted to do was get to the bottom of the issues that were plaguing him. His name and title would hopefully cause people to give him some respect, but he was ready to defend himself if he had too.

As he made his way towards his goal he saw many people turn to stare at him, which was a reasonable reaction as it was essentially watching a dead man walk through the streets. He had been presumed dead when he had left the shinobi continents and went into his exile, travelling the world and preparing for the confrontation that he was going to set up today. He was a legendary figure in the village, and many of these people had probably heard stories of him, many of them young enough that they likely didn't remember the time when he was the Hokage. A few people nodded to him, those ones he would politely nod back and give one of his trademark crooked half smile. A few of them had shocked looks on their faces and would back away from him or go back inside of their houses, which Mitsuo could understand but it was something that made him a little bit disappointed, but at the same time he had to expected such things to happen. He saw ANBU watching from the rooftops, one of them jumping down and making his way towards him. He looked at the agent's mask and recognized it as one of the agents who worked under him when he was the ANBU captain.

"Mitsuo Sarutobi, what are you doing here? Have you come to cause a problem?" His voice was augmented by the mask, but Mitsuo could catch the undertones of the man's true voice. He stopped walking and faced the agent, smiling and bowing his head before looking back towards the eye holes in the mask.

"I'm here to see the Hokage. I have a request to make of him..." Mitsuo was a little bit nervous about meeting the Hokage, as he had never actually met the man before. He had heard of him of course, and looked up to him when he was a young man and Kenta was the Hokage for the first time. "I hold no weapons and I'm not here to cause any issues Seito," Mitsuo watched the agent shift uncomfortably where he stood and saw his eyes change their position, something that didn't surprise him too much as generally an ANBU agent shouldn't be revealed. "I simply need to find out some information and make a request." Seito looked him up and down and nodded as three more ANBU agents came along to flank him, Mitsuo nodding to each of them in turn. There were two whom he didn't know, and those were the two who seemed a little bit nervous. They went to bind his wrists, something that Mitsuo allowed until Seito waved them off.

"He is coming unarmed and peacefully, there is no need for us to bind him. We will simply escort him towards Lord Kenta and ensure that nothing goes wrong." The other three nodded and the five of them made their way towards the Hokage's palace, where Mitsuo made his way through the door, two of them staying at the door and the two who knew him escorting him to outside of the current Hokage's office. Mitsuo knocked at the door and would wait a few seconds were there no response before letting himself in. The Agents would stay outside the door, giving the former Hokage and the current Hokage their privacy in the matters that would transpire.

"Kenta eh? I believe that is my hat." There was an undertone in Mitsuo's voice that showed that it was a joke, but it was still not entirely easy to tell if he was being serious or not, but it would be interesting to see how Kenta would react either way...

856

"Kenta eh? I believe that is my hat."

Oh yeah, that's exactly the snark he needed on a day like this. Paperwork piled six feet high and five layers deep surrounded the office; making it look more like a storage room than an office space for a person as high up the food chain as a Hokage was. The fun fun fun of organizing international events; he could still remember the last time he'd done this. Granted, everything was in it's initial stages; there was no guarantee or even confirmation that anything was going on; but that didn't stop the flood of paperwork from making him look like he was some paper-manipulation ninja, versus the Inuzuka water god he was. Even better was, this was AFTER Michi had taken the worst of the 'doesn't actually need Hokage attention' piles away; for him and Hiroyuki to work on separately from this batch of actually important shit.

Fun times, fun times.

Blonde hair and golden eyes, pale white skin; no hat, no robes; just a mesh shirt and the hint of musculature underneath. That was all that could be seen from between the piles of the man sitting in the chair behind the desk. "I highly doubt you have more of a claim to it than I do. Last I check; I was the second longest serving living Hokage left. Which would make you either a liar; a usurper; or someone that happened during that debacle that left me out in the boondocks for ten years longer than was absolutely necessary." The sound of boot hitting wood and a chair wheels squeaking; for a moment nothing else moved or sounded until the paperwork just vanished in a puff of smoke. Fuuinjutsu seals in the desk; gotta love it. Simple storage seals that anyone with basic (un)seal jutsu out of the academy could use. There, now there was room to see.

Huh.

Sarutobi Mitsuo.

"Well, I'll be damned. Now, I don't know much about what happened while I was gone; certain agencies have been rather... well, let's just say not everyone was happy that I came home. But you; know you I do know. Plenty of information from Kiri; and plenty of public information from home to boot. You're a famous man, Mitsuo. And you're half right. It was your hat. Right now? Nah, it's mine. Good try, though."

He had next to nothing to fear from this man; not that he didn't fully respect the power the other male had, and it wasn't to say that he thought that Mitsuo wouldn't be a damn fine fighter that could actually pose a real threat and maybe even win a fight; but he knew when someone was on the aggressive or not. There was far to much calm here. Mitsuo was a god among shinobi, but his was still a shinobi. Kenta knew the shinobi mind well. At the levels they functioned at, you could tell the aggressors from the non. For the moment, this was peaceful enough; on both ends. Kenta had no beef with this man. He could, and would, respect the status the male held in Kiri; extend the same benefits to him while in Konoha. More so, he knew of the man's tenure with the hat; and that gave him more reason to be... cordial; if not friendly. Friendly was earned; but respect, to a degree, was given freely between ninja of proven battle prowess. Mitsuo was a legend; therefore he'd earned at least a modicum of Kenta's respect.

"So, beyond demanding my hat and interrupting my day; what can I do for you, my good sir." He was gesturing toward a chair, or a dog bed, or the floor, or the window, or any of the other various places that could be used for sitting. Or laying down. Or whatever. His standard form of polite. He didn't see dog beds as being offensive. He was too Inuzuka for that. A good dog bed was better than a chair in a lot of cases; specially for an old man like him. Sometimes, you just needed to lay down and stretch out.

715.

The Seventeenth Hokage stood across from the man whom had led the village through his childhood and saw him going through the paperwork that Mitsuo remembered being such a large part of his life from when he had been in charge of the village. He seemed irritated when he answered Mitsuo's statement, something that he supposed wasn't entirely uncalled for, but at the same time he wasn't sure if it was simply a case of Kenta not being able to take a joke or not. Mitsuo mostly enjoyed his time as the Hokage, but he understood that there were times when the position could be difficult to deal with. Mitsuo watched as the paperwork vanished, Mitsuo assuming it was Fuuinjutsu that had done the deed, which was something he was fairly proficient with so he wasn't entirely surprised. The look of recognition on the face of the man behind the desk made Mitsuo smile. When he spoke to him it was clear that he seemed less irritated, or at least Mitsuo assumed that was the case. He mentioned word of Mitsuo from Kiri and from information in Konoha, likely of his being a war hero and helping the Mizukage in the Seven Bells War, or perhaps even after, and his time as Hokage. He also knew it was likely that Kenta was aware that he had vanished nearly 6 years ago without a trace, but that wasn't something that Mitsuo hoped would be in the information. He perhaps had even heard of the fact that he had slain two of the most dangerous missing ninja to come out of Konoha, or the unfortunate side of that, the fact that he himself had become one of the most dangerous missing ninja from the village.

When offered a place to sit, Mitsuo gave a small half bow and took a seat in the chair across from Kenta at the desk, though he generally preferred to stay standing. Mitsuo was a trained killer, and also trained to hunt dangerous people. Generally sitting was akin to letting one's guard down, but he supposed that he probably didn't have anything to fear here. He imagined if the Hokage had wanted to arrest him he'd have done so already, and honestly if he tried to he would simply accept the fate that had befallen him, though he would still try to plead his case; that was why he was here after all, as well as to discuss plans for the village's Future.

"Kenta Inuzuka, I've come to discuss a case that I keep very close to my heart, and it is the main reason for me being back in the village." The look on his face and the tone in his voice became more serious as he spoke now, addressing the problem that he had spent half of his life combating. "There is a plot in Konoha, something that is old and deep rooted in the very foundation of the village. It is an organization that has been corrupting the village for decades and causing the untimely deaths of Konoha shinobi for just as long. They caused the deaths of my mother, my brother, my lover and possibly were behind the actions of that idiot Tatsumaru when he destroyed half the village and killed my father. I have been investigating them since I learned of their existence when my father passed away, trying to find out who was the leader of their organization, and it led me to leave the village the first time in order to seek resources outside of the law. It is where I met up with Tsuyo Hyuga and became a member of the Aoi Bara." Mitsuo touched the Aoi Bara headband around his throat, briefly pausing in his speech.

"We have discovered who the ringleader of this organization is finally, after many years of searching down dead ends and extracting information out of those who would often die before giving it up. Our vast information network has led us to the man who seems to be the head of that organization, and it would seem as though they aren't happy that we are onto their trail, as I have encountered much resistance since coming back. The amount of foreign hostiles and bandits that I have encountered since my return to Konoha only backs that up. The first thing I have come here to discuss with you is the identity of that person, and that I would like you to not call the dogs on me, so to speak, when I go after him." Mitsuo pursed his lips and sighed, looking towards Kenta once more and waiting to see if he had anything to say on what had already been revealed before he would continue...

1660

"Kenta Inuzuka, I've come to discuss a case that I keep very close to my heart, and it is the main reason for me being back in the village." ... "There is a plot in Konoha, something that is old and deep rooted in the very foundation of the village. It is an organization that has been corrupting the village for decades and causing the untimely deaths of Konoha shinobi for just as long. They caused the deaths of my mother, my brother, my lover and possibly were behind the actions of that idiot Tatsumaru when he destroyed half the village and killed my father. I have been investigating them since I learned of their existence when my father passed away, trying to find out who was the leader of their organization, and it led me to leave the village the first time in order to seek resources outside of the law. It is where I met up with Tsuyo Hyuga and became a member of the Aoi Bara." ...

"We have discovered who the ringleader of this organization is finally, after many years of searching down dead ends and extracting information out of those who would often die before giving it up. Our vast information network has led us to the man who seems to be the head of that organization, and it would seem as though they aren't happy that we are onto their trail, as I have encountered much resistance since coming back. The amount of foreign hostiles and bandits that I have encountered since my return to Konoha only backs that up. The first thing I have come here to discuss with you is the identity of that person, and that I would like you to not call the dogs on me, so to speak, when I go after him." ...


Joy. Just... joy. More of this crap. Crap it was, because this wasn't even the only one floating about. Between nearly rouge village elders with their hands in the Daimyo's pocket, the Daimyo himself still angling to get a piece of his kids and favorite medic-sister; a predecessor locking up his brother and having him tortured for years for no reason other than said Uchiha's loyalty to Kenta superseding his loyalty to a Senju that did nothing but ruin his life; the plots and bullshit going on in the shadows stunk to high **** and back, and the mountain of rot filling the air was taller than the mountain that had the earliest Hokage carved into it's face. Just... fun times.

That being said, the man had his attention. A chance to cleanse some of the rot, and get personal revenge against someone that ruined your family? Kenta could get behind that idea. Easily. Very easily. He'd done something similar in his early years; leveraging his own family against the fate of the village by basically telling the Daimyo to go **** himself and taking his stolen kids back. A power play that could have had the village nuked, had he not been smart about how he did it. It was just too bad that he hadn't had the political clout at the time to push for the removal of the Daimyo too; but he would settle with enough to keep the old bastard from **** with his people for a while.

Given the shit the idiots that came after him did; all his work was for naught, it would seem. Yes, it was expected for there to be a bit of rot and taint in the shadows of and political organization; any military was going to have it's semi-rouge faction in the ranks. But Konohagakure was literally one mishap from splintering down the middle at any given time; and that's never a good place to be. So as it stood, he had to be more... careful, thoughtful, about allowing this man; this former Hokage that was basically not even a Konoha citizen anymore and by all rights should and could very well be a most wanted defector of the village to just waltz in and do whatever he wanted with no more explanation than "I wanna do what you did, but not to the same people". Ten years ago, Mitsuo would have gotten his blessing, and probably a shitton of money and gear and whatever he needed to do what he needed to do.

But Kenta was older now, wiser. He had to be; after all he'd been through, all he'd seen.

"You come to me, asking for what amounts to free reign to act within a village that you can't seem to decide if you've forsaken, or want to rule, by the tone of your demanding. I have no grudge against the Aoi Bara, personally; I was gone when your people where doing whatever the hell it was you did. I have nothing to go on but opinions and what history was recorded; and we both know how biased recorded history is. But that's been a bit of a gift to you; your status in Kiri has saved you from being thrown into our Bingo Book; and I feel it only fair that you know and understand that. My loyalty to my word, and our treaties with Kirigakure; saved your tail in that regard. My own personal opinions aside; on a purely rational level, you sound like a bounty hunter, really. Not someone that I would allow to just do whatever they pleased. However... I am listening. I can respect your position; I've been in it myself. But you must understand; and if the stories of you are true, you have the intelligence to realize this; Konoha isn't in the stable place many think it is. True; the village itself is thriving; but there is a rift within the leadership and military aspects; and that rift is growing every day. If I release you to do what you ask, I risk that rift turning into a full out civil war; depending on just whom it is you're planning on taking out."

Shifting in his chair, he leaned back in a way that allowed him to stretch his legs outward under the desk, while lifting hands up to cup behind his head; the angle of the bodily stretch turning his face upward so that when he exhaled the rough equivalent of an icy mist, it didn't fly directly into Mitsuo's face; merely dispersing into the air around them in a cloudy vapor. It was a sign of frustration and a testament to how tense he was at the moment; his chakra was agitated, but not in a way that was directed entirely toward the other male. Generalized tension and frustration, something he could guess the Sarutobi knew well.

"Names. I need names. Supporting information. Anything you can give me. If I'm satisfied, you'll have my support. If not... well; we'll discuss that if we come to that bridge. I might step in on my own, if I don't entirely like what you say. I can't do anything about what happens to someone after I banish them, after all..."

1212. 1927 total.

"You come to me, asking for what amounts to free reign to act within a village that you can't seem to decide if you've forsaken, or want to rule, by the tone of your demanding. I have no grudge against the Aoi Bara, personally; I was gone when your people where doing whatever the hell it was you did. I have nothing to go on but opinions and what history was recorded; and we both know how biased recorded history is. But that's been a bit of a gift to you; your status in Kiri has saved you from being thrown into our Bingo Book; and I feel it only fair that you know and understand that. My loyalty to my word, and our treaties with Kirigakure; saved your tail in that regard. My own personal opinions aside; on a purely rational level, you sound like a bounty hunter, really. Not someone that I would allow to just do whatever they pleased. However... I am listening. I can respect your position; I've been in it myself. But you must understand; and if the stories of you are true, you have the intelligence to realize this; Konoha isn't in the stable place many think it is. True; the village itself is thriving; but there is a rift within the leadership and military aspects; and that rift is growing every day. If I release you to do what you ask, I risk that rift turning into a full out civil war; depending on just whom it is you're planning on taking out."

"Names. I need names. Supporting information. Anything you can give me. If I'm satisfied, you'll have my support. If not... well; we'll discuss that if we come to that bridge. I might step in on my own, if I don't entirely like what you say. I can't do anything about what happens to someone after I banish them, after all..."

Mitsuo bit the inside of his cheek gently as he listened to what the Hokage said. It was clear that he had no clue what was going on as he was positive that if he truly knew what Mitsuo had done, he wouldn't have brought up the bingo book. the Aoi Bara were heroes in Kiri, heroes in Iwa, and the only reason they weren't liked in Kumo was because the new Raikage was an idiot and refused to listen to reason when they tried to explain to him that Reika Misora was killed by Tame who absolutely was not a member of the Aoi Bara. They had taken the drug, smuggling and human trafficking rings in the Earth Country down so they could greatly improve the quality of life in that area. They refused to ever bend to corruption and stood up for those in need. They were real heroes in this world, but even though he wanted to lecture Kenta on the deeds of his organization, he figured he'd give him a cliffsnotes version so that it would make this meeting more brief, since time was precious and every moment lost in here was a moment that he could be putting towards killing Sebasu Hyuga and saving the village he loved.

He stood no longer able to simply sit there, never being one to simply stay in one place in general, and began pacing back and forth in front of the Hokage's desk. He would speak as he walked, none of the joking tone in his voice that he would usually carry. He was absolutely serious as he spoke his next words, his words holding the weight of his many years of pain and sacrifice.

"I have never forsaken this village. Everything I have done has been for this village. Do you know why the stream of drugs coming into the village is down? Myself and Tsuyo Hyuga personally dealt with the leaders of the trade and sent them a message that they will never forget. We have fought for the love of this village, and for the chance to give it hope and a new tomorrow to look forward to. I would do anything for this village, and give everything for it, as I already have. I want it to be a place where I can be proud to raise my children, and feel safe while doing so. My daughter Kaia-Mai lives here and I want to ensure that no harm ever comes to her, and the same with my son Takezo. Children are something that I know you understand. I gave up my entire life, leaving the continent so that the Raikage wouldn't come here and destroy this village based on a lie. We didn't kill Reika Misora, which is the only crime we are accused of; that was Tame, the man who killed Tatsumaru as well. We would never kill anyone who wasn't deserving of it." He paused briefly, recalling Kenta speaking of a rift in the village, and about respecting his word. HE believed that Mitsuo sounded like a bounty hunter, when he was nothing of the sort. He clenched his teeth and stopped his pacing, walking towards the window in the office.

"This village is my entire life, and I have sacrificed absolutely everything for it. You cannot imagine how upsetting it is to see the state of affairs that it is going through. Based off of the words that you have used as to why I have shown up, a want to rule is closer. I am not here to take your position, unless that is what is best for the village. If you are having issues with a rift in the power players, I am an expert at closing those gaps, something that I ensured when I was Hokage. I don't know what happened when Sousetsu took over, as my life had to change in quite a drastic way at that point, but I led this village in a period of great peace and prosperity...I apologize I am really getting off track. The man who leads the organization that I have come to speak to you about is none other than Sebasu Hyuga, the village's tenth Hokage. He was revealed to us as the mastermind behind the organization, which he has been leading for decades. He wishes to posses all of the power in the village, hence his surprisingly long life, or so it would seem. You and I are considered a couple of the older men in the village, both both of us are nothing close to the longevity that he holds. He is responsible for the death of my family, and I won't allow him or anyone take my daughter or my son from me. I will remove any threats from this village by whatever means it takes." He took a deep breath and calked down a little bit, attempting to relax himself. He could feel heat radiating off of his body, his chakra that always seemed just the smallest bit from bubbling over the edge, manifesting in the heat. It wasn't hot enough currently to cause any issues, and his breathing easily bringing it back under control. He was able to completely bring it back down, waiting to see what the Hokage would say before he continued with his speech. "As for evidence..." He pulled out an envelope with the research and pictures that he and his agents in the Aoi Bara had taken. "I believe everything you are looking for is in there. I would never accuse someone who is considered to be a hero of the village of such a thing without having substantial proof. I am not a monster, I want what's best for this village. I am not leaving any time soon, and am hoping to return to the village once more so that I might be able to do as much as I can for it once more. After all I have done, it would be nice to be able to finally come home..."

3016

"I have never forsaken this village. Everything I have done has been for this village. Do you know why the stream of drugs coming into the village is down? Myself and Tsuyo Hyuga personally dealt with the leaders of the trade and sent them a message that they will never forget. We have fought for the love of this village, and for the chance to give it hope and a new tomorrow to look forward to. I would do anything for this village, and give everything for it, as I already have. I want it to be a place where I can be proud to raise my children, and feel safe while doing so. My daughter Kaia-Mai lives here and I want to ensure that no harm ever comes to her, and the same with my son Takezo. Children are something that I know you understand. I gave up my entire life, leaving the continent so that the Raikage wouldn't come here and destroy this village based on a lie. We didn't kill Reika Misora, which is the only crime we are accused of; that was Tame, the man who killed Tatsumaru as well. We would never kill anyone who wasn't deserving of it." ... "This village is my entire life, and I have sacrificed absolutely everything for it. You cannot imagine how upsetting it is to see the state of affairs that it is going through. Based off of the words that you have used as to why I have shown up, a want to rule is closer. I am not here to take your position, unless that is what is best for the village. If you are having issues with a rift in the power players, I am an expert at closing those gaps, something that I ensured when I was Hokage. I don't know what happened when Sousetsu took over, as my life had to change in quite a drastic way at that point, but I led this village in a period of great peace and prosperity...I apologize I am really getting off track. The man who leads the organization that I have come to speak to you about is none other than Sebasu Hyuga, the village's tenth Hokage. He was revealed to us as the mastermind behind the organization, which he has been leading for decades. He wishes to posses all of the power in the village, hence his surprisingly long life, or so it would seem. You and I are considered a couple of the older men in the village, both both of us are nothing close to the longevity that he holds. He is responsible for the death of my family, and I won't allow him or anyone take my daughter or my son from me. I will remove any threats from this village by whatever means it takes." ... "I believe everything you are looking for is in there. I would never accuse someone who is considered to be a hero of the village of such a thing without having substantial proof. I am not a monster, I want what's best for this village. I am not leaving any time soon, and am hoping to return to the village once more so that I might be able to do as much as I can for it once more. After all I have done, it would be nice to be able to finally come home..."


By the Gods, the man could talk. Not that he should say anything, he was well known to have a case of verbal diarrhea or two when he felt like it. Still, to many words to say what amounted to a fairly basic 'How dare you question me!' in a very self-righteous manner. He could understand the motive given, even if he had an inkling that there was more to this story than he was being told; but he really didn't feel like pushing that button and getting his ears assaulted by more of this indigent crap. Pushing himself backward in his chair a few inches, he leaned backward and reached up into a loooong, bone popping stretch that had his head shaking like a dog with water in it's ears when he was done. Knuckles where cracked, wrists popped, shoulders rolled, his back twisting and turning to reset alignment of his spine; even a moment to beat on his chest to allow him to inhale properly; he wasn't in any sort of rush to deal with this upstart.

"Look. You can get huffy with me all you like; it won't change shit. You claim to know anything about me, that you're proficient at dealing with politics; but your attitude screams greenhorn. I'm not saying this to offend you outright, merely stating my observation. Chill your attitude a bit; which I get is hard for a Katon user, but it is possible; and let's us actually talk, eh?" He wasn't backpedaling; he just didn't feel like taking a semi-heated discussion into an all out brawl. Maybe another time they could go duke it out in a nice field somewhere, then get some drinks after; but right now, shit was more important than having a good time. "Now, I was gone for a very long time. I was gone when Midnight handed the hat to whoever and whatever was before Sanosuke. Yeah, I have no idea who came between Midnight and Sanosuke, but explain to me how Kumo is or was a threat. Yes, we lose a bit of help from Kiri due to Kumo being a bunch of lightning ****; but statement stands. I know that's hypocritical of me, because I left under roughly the same idea; if I didn't go, shit was going to go down; but I was only supposed to be gone a few weeks. Now, I **** up; I left the wrong person in charge apparently. I never got the call to come back, and I let myself get so far gone that it took me those ten solid years to get back; not because I wanted to be gone that entire time. Similar, but different circumstances." Shifting again, he pulled himself back to where he could lean over his desk, resting his elbows on the wood and crossing his hands beneath his chin so that he could rest his head comfortably upon them, "I don't deny, nor reduce, the value and importance of the things you've done for the village. I give you full credit. But while I also fully admit to being woefully ignorant of the details of much of it..."

At this point, his patience was wearing thin, mostly due to his own thoughts at the moment. Had the other male been in any way telepathic, he'd have realized the grave mistake he'd made in bringing up family in this discussion. Even with the air of fire and heat the Sarutobi gave off, Kenta's own icy water chakra was enough to counteract and lower the temperature of the room when he wanted it to do so; doubly so when he was... agitated. "I know far more about your daughter Kaia than you seem to think. Told to me, by her own admission, when she came to me for help dealing with transitioning into living in Konoha. I've come to be rather fond of her myself; she's very much like my own children in some ways, so I've been rather dotting of her. Given her plenty of leeway where others wouldn't, placed protections that most wouldn't understand a need for. I've protected children through plenty of bullshit; but given what she's experienced with you... you're lucky I don't throw you out of this country for even presuming to have 'protected' her. However; I do also understand that a child, even one as grown and adult as Kaia is, would have a rather warped perception of what's happened over the years. Hence, I haven't acted, beyond offering her protections and such of my own. The last thing that poor child needs is to see another death of someone that she does actively care very deeply for. I can leave room to have my stance on you in relation to Kaia corrected; but that's for another time. Right now, we argue politics, not personal lives; although for the Kages of the world, those facets are intertwined deeply."

Hnnn, paperwork. More folders full of crap. The same shit Kyohei did; pass a bunch of nonsense at him and claim it would clear him of murder. More bullshit, different day. Fun. Sebasu, though. That was going to hurt. He was rather fond of the old man; the Hyuuga had done much to get him settled and lent many a sympathetic ear to the Inuzuka when he was far younger, less experienced. If not for Sebasu, there was a real chance that Kenta wouldn't have made it through his first three years as Kage; what with the kidnapping of his kids, the almost war with Suna, and having to handle bolstering two villages after Hao burning Kiri to the ground. Just... all the fun. All of it.

"I think the biggest problem we have is that we both stand on the same pedestal. We both believe that what we've done, has been for the sake of the village. We've done many of the same things; but done differently, with different intentions. And those intentions don't align very well; maybe not for solid, good reasons; but there's just enough of a cognitive rift to turn this into two rams butting heads over who gets to keep the herd. You said it yourself, we're both old men as far as the village and rest of the world are concerned. The era of the child Kage ended quickly enough; I'm the last one left of them, it seems. The rest are either dead or in hiding for whatever reasons. Sad, really; I rather liked a few of them. Hikou was one of my first friends, and the reason why Kiri and Konoha are so close. Yui, I could take or leave. She tried to fight a battle she couldn't win; but I've come to understand her as I've gotten older. Jurou was a bastard, simple and plain; but I could respect his positions on some things. Midnight, I never knew him well enough to care. Dengen was a moron, simple as that. Gin, I liked her a bit. She was an interesting one. They're all gone now. I'm what's left. An anachronism you could say. Maybe that's what the problem is now; I'm an atavism of a time that's passed. But right now, I'm what we have. If you can show me you're better for the hat than I am; I'll consider stepping down. That's been my one, consistent, rule. It's the law of my pack, and the law the Alpha lives by. If a time comes when the Alpha is no longer able to lead, is no longer the strongest and best fit, then the Alpha will step aside; or die defending his position. I am first and foremost the Alpha of this pack called Konoha; that's how I've always treated these people. They are all my pack, my family. I protect them with the same ferocity; even the ones I don't particularly like, or that work to sabotage me. So long as they wear a Konoha headband, they are mine. Can you understand that, Mitsuo?"

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