Sarutobi Hiruzen took the diary and opened it. The words instantly caught his attention so much so that he was unable to extricate himself. The Will of Fire was evident even to the naked eye.
He noticed these entries were made during the end of the last semester.
July 1 – Hiruzen clearly remembered that day. That was when he had gone to the Ninja Academy to lecture on the Will of Fire. He had spotted Tonan among the assembled students at the time. And he could recall even now how his expression changed from confusion in the beginning to sincere agreement by the end.
He hadn’t expected this kid to have such unique thoughts after listening to just one speech. Hiruzen himself hadn’t thought this deeply.
Judging from the diary’s content, his status as the Hokage was higher than that of his parents and the clan. More than 90 percent of the diary was about his ideology and his ways.
The mention of his parents or the clan was at best perfunctory.
This child was only six years old, but he had already awakened the Sharingan. Considering he could exchange blows with Kakashi, albeit for a short time, indicated he was already a rare genius.
“As long as he is slightly nurtured, and I personally instill the Will of Fire occasionally, he can definitely become my confidant. When he grows up, maybe, even if I asked him to annihilate the Uchiha clan, he will not disobey.
But if he has to become a person on my side, I must nurture and protect him properly.”
Even if Hiruzen had not realized it yet, in his heart, he had begun regarding Tonan as someone from his own people.
“This young fellow has what it takes to inherit the Will of Fire. Do you think he needs any help now?”
The Anbu was perceptive. On hearing this question, he understood that Hiruzen planned to nurture and draw Tonan to his side. He replied, “From my investigation, Uchiha Tonan’s parents left him with adequate money when they went to the frontlines. However, he seems to have spent most of it buying inessential books.”
The Anbu was referring to the ninja books stored in Tonan’s cupboard. After that purchase, Tonon wouldn’t have enough money left for maintaining daily expenses.
“I had checked the refrigerator in his house, and it only had vegetables and nothing else. If this goes on, he will very likely suffer from malnutrition,” the Anbu added.
Lacking money…
Hiruzen started thinking.
Tonan hadn’t awakened the Sharingan earlier, and his ninjutsu and taijutsu ranked at the bottom. But he wanted to become stronger. It made sense for him to buy many ninja books.
“I’m afraid whether this young fellow has realized these books cannot improve his strength at all. It’s like spending money to buy lessons. Since he is with me now, I cannot treat him unfairly. I could instead use this opportunity to narrow the distance between us.”
Hiruzen was satisfied with this plan and returned the diary to the Anbu and said, “Good job, it seems you were attentive. Return this diary to that young fellow. Don’t let other people notice that you had been there.”
“Yes.”
In the next second, the Anbu disappeared.
The next day, when Tonan was attending class, a teacher came in to call Umino Naoto, who was giving a lecture, outside the classroom and said something.
Naoto immediately returned and looked at Tonan, “Tonan, someone is looking for you in the office.”
Tonan nodded and got up. He left the classroom to follow the teacher outside. While walking through the corridor, Tonan had already guessed who would have called for him.
He didn’t know anyone other than schoolmates and clan members. It was unlikely a schoolmate would call him out like this, and clan members could wait until he returned home. The system had not notified him about his parents’ death so there was little chance that anyone was trying to reach him for an emergency.
This left just one person – Sandaime.
“The person looking for you is inside,” the teacher stopped in front of the office’s door and gestured for Tonan to enter by himself. It was obvious that the person’s status was high enough to even make the academy teacher guard the door.
This re-confirmed that the person inside could only be Sandaime.
Tonan opened the door with an appropriately confused look. He saw Hiruzen sitting behind the desk, looking at him kindly.
The confusion in Tonan’s eyes dispersed, and his expression quickly changed into a pleasant surprise. He opened his mouth, but he was too excited to speak like he met his idol but was too nervous to take a step forward.
He could only stand there in a daze.
“Tonan, right? Come in and close the door,” Hiruzen was very pleased with Tonan’s reaction.
“Yes, yes,” Tonan hastily shut the door and nearly ran to Hiruzen. He then smiled while scratching his head.
“No need to be so careful, child. Although I’m the Hokage, in my eyes, you are all like my children,” Hiruzen reached out his hand and gently stroked Tonan’s head, looking kind.
Tonan narrowed his eyes in happiness as if he was being indulged by a close relative.
“I came to see you because I heard your parents have gone to the frontline to fight and you are home alone. It must be tough on you. If you have any problems, you can tell me,” Hiruzen spoke with concern like a neighborhood grandfather.
Tonan looked at Hiruzen and put on a firm look, saying, “Hokage-sama, it’s not that difficult. It’s not like you who works hard day and night for the villagers. Now that the war is so intense, you must be dealing with too much. You are so busy, and you still took time to care about me, I…, I…”
Tonan choked back tears as he talked but immediately wiped his face with his sleeve, putting on a brave front.
“Good boy, you all are the future of Konoha. When the tree leaves dance, the fire will also grow endlessly. As long as you all grow up healthy, all my hard work will be worth it.”
After speaking, Hiruzen picked up an envelope on the table and stuffed it in Tonan’s hand.
“I noticed you long ago. I also watched your fight against Kakashi. The Sharingan is truly powerful, but your physical constitution is weak. Use this money to buy something delicious to nourish your body.”
“Training is taxing both mentally and physically. If you don’t have enough money, you can always come and find me at the Hokage office. In any case, I don’t have anywhere to spend my salary. It’s just right to use it to nurture Konoha’s next generation.”
Tonan looked at the envelope in his hand and swallowed a mouthful of saliva. He looked like a child who was thinking about something delicious. But he shook his head and pushed back the envelope.
“No, Hokage-sama, you have worked so hard. You should buy more delicious food for yourself and nurture your body. If anything were to happen to you, Konoha will be ruined. I can find food by myself.”
Tonan’s reaction satisfied Hiruzen even further. He put the envelope back in Tonan’s hand and held it in his palms.
“Take it, child, Konoha still needs you all to inherit the Will of Fire.”
This time Tonan was in tears. He looked up at Hiruzen, his eyes filled with emotion, and said, “Thank you, no one has ever been so nice to me. I will work hard to become an outstanding ninja and carry on the Will of Fire. I will implement Hokage-sama’s ideology, and pledge my life to protect Konoha.”
Hiruzen smiled and nodded, “Very good, I’m looking forward to the moment when you become a ninja. Right now though, I want to hear your views on the Will of Fire.”
