Naruto, Madara is my girl.

"Th-that…"

Akira's sudden entrance threw Sarutobi Hiruzen off, especially with how cheerful he looked. Nothing made sense, not the timing, not the mood, none of it matched what he expected after learning about Tobirama's fate.

"Master Akira, Master Hokage…" Hiruzen began hesitantly.

"Rest assured," Akira said, slapping him lightly on the shoulder. "He's already dead. It won't affect you becoming Hokage. How about it? Are you happy?"

No one answered right away. They had heard no rumors of any fallout between Tobirama and Akira, or even tension between any of the "Three Senju" And here Akira was, declaring Tobirama dead in the most casual tone possible while throwing sarcasm in every direction. It left everyone unsure whether to believe him or not.

Hiruzen couldn't avoid it though. Tobirama had placed heavy expectations on him, and now it looked like those expectations just dropped dead. He forced himself to ask anyway.

"Master Akira… why did you come back? Weren't you and Master Hokage-?"

"I came back after seeing him die." Akira's tone was light, conversational even. "As for how I popped up next to you, ever heard of the 'Flying Thunder God'?"

Everyone had. It was one of Tobirama's signature moves, infamous for being insanely difficult to master. Between sealing techniques, space-time awareness, and chakra control, it was basically impossible without years of specialized training. Most who tried either ended up torn apart in teleportation or unusable afterwards.

It was listed as forbidden for good reason.

Akira's calm mention of it only deepened their unease about whether Tobirama was truly dead or not.

Spotting their troubled expressions, Akira smiled casually.

"Let's drop this irrelevant talk and move on."

"You're calling the Hokage's death irrelevant?" Danzo's sudden interruption drew every eye in the tent to her.

Unlike Madara, whose dominance was unmistakable, Danzo moved with guarded calculation. Reserved in speech, but dangerous underneath. Akira looked at her once and dismissed her completely before turning to Hiruzen instead.

"Your girlfriend?"

Hiruzen fumbled the denial immediately. "No! Danzo-"

"She belongs to someone else?"

"She-no!"

"Great. Why don't you date her then? If she keeps acting like this, no one else will marry her."

"Lord Akira!" Hiruzen flushed immediately and looked to Danzo apologetically. "I already have a wife."

"Oh?"

Though Akira kept speaking to Hiruzen, his gaze hadn't broken from Danzo once. Her expression shifted slightly,surprise, mild joy, then disappointment, all within seconds. She masked it well, but not well enough to evade Akira's eyes.

Danzo caught that look, the way Akira watched her shift beneath the surface, and understood she'd been targeted from the start.

Hokage position... Hiruzen's marriage... Her own shaky footing within Konoha's current factional tension-it surged up at once and broke through her restraint.

"Senju and Thousand Stars… don't you go too far!"

"How about I just leave then?"

Akira's suggestion felt like someone lit explosives under their feet. Everyone went tense instantly, not because of what he said, but because of the implications.

Konoha wasn't unified. The war hadn't fully settled. Powerful clans were already grumbling under centralized authority. If Akira the most powerful political and military piece they had left, really left now?

It would implode everything.

Hiruzen stepped forward quickly and spoke fast.

"I'm sorry! Master Akira, Danzo only said that because she was concerned about Master Hokage!"

Akira stayed silent while Hiruzen scrambled through apologies and pledges of loyalty until the tension finally dropped from his face again.

"Well… you said that. I didn't force you."

Hiruzen nodded quickly, even though he had no idea what he'd just avoided-only that it would've gone badly otherwise.

Akira changed his tone then to soothe them again. "Everything's arranged already. You don't have to worry about anything, i'll get you back to Konoha."

It sounded ridiculous, like another boast, but they weren't in any position to argue again. Hiruzen could only bow slightly and respond without protest.

"Yes, Lord Akira."

…

To avoid saying anything that might make things worse, Hiruzen and his group traveled in near silence for the rest of the journey, occasionally asking directions or distance, but nothing else passed between them loudly.

What shocked them most was how uneventful everything became from that moment onwards.

No ambushes. No patrols blocking their path. No scouts hounding their trail. Even as Konoha's walls came into view, not one enemy stood against them from where they last met Akira until now.

It left most of them in disbelief as they crossed back into their own village safe and whole for the first time in days.

"Hahhahaha…" Akira laughed with relaxed pride, hands on his hips as if he'd lifted half the sky on his own.

He waved dismissively at their uncertain looks and shrugged, "its just Basic operation, don't lose your minds over it."

Everyone knew this was typical of him, but Hiruzen and his group couldn't help but watch him with newly cautious eyes now that they'd seen what he could actually do when left alone for long enough.

"Um… Master Akira… what are we supposed to do now?"

Akira frowned at him with open disappointment, as if the answer should've been obvious.

"You're Hokage now," he said bluntly. "Start acting like it, send word to every clan and arrange your next steps."

Even though he expected it, even though Tobirama had apparently chosen him, Hiruzen hesitated again inside. He wasn't strong enough, not by legacy or rank, to pull this off cleanly without support.

"But… what if they don't listen?"

Akira rolled his eyes without hiding it. "If You want help, just say it."

"Please." Hiruzen bowed again immediately. "For Konoha, I'll do anything I must."

It sounded selfless, but if Akira hadn't read the full record of events-maybe he would've believed it too.

"My lab needs to be bigger and better supplied," he said flatly. "No funding cuts moving forward."

"No problem." Hiruzen agreed instantly. After everything they'd survived, it was nothing compared to what that backing could do for him now politically and militarily.

They both smiled, two people lying with perfect harmony, for different reasons entirely.

"Alright… now I want to see who'll stop you from becoming Hokage."

"Much appreciated… Lord Akira!"

"…Jie jie jie…"

"…Hehehe…"

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