Acting Hokage

"Hello, Keshiro…" Araki's Wood Clone greeted him with a smile. Instantly, all the remaining clan members turned to his direction.

His appearance was somewhat surprising at this moment.

"S-Senju Araki…" The Hyuuga Clan Head shuttered out while staring at Araki. Perhaps he didn't think Araki would appear at this time.

Not just the Hyuuga Clan Head, but a lot of people shuddered. They had naturally felt the explosions of the fight.

Although they couldn't see the fight, they knew it was someone strong. All these Clan Members had seen a huge meteor, a colossal Blue Coloured Susanoo, although they didn't know whose it was, it was huge. But… these two were not the things that shocked them. It was the presence of even more humongous Wood Statue that could be seen from far away!

Perhaps this was one of the reasons why Suna Shinobi retreated as quickly.

That Wood Statue was so huge that even that Colossal Susanoo seemed a puny thing in comparison.

And there was something that all people in Konoha were aware of. Only a single man in the entire world had Wood Release, and it was none other than the current Senju Clan Head, Senju Araki.

And all these Clan members could agree that fighting against him was simply suicide. That is why, even if they had 10 times more courage, they wouldn't fight against him.

"So, you really dealt with him, huh?" Keshiro asked, quite naturally…

Araki raised his brows and slowly nodded. It seemed that Keshiro was aware of quite a lot of things. He even knew that it was Madara who had been revived.

He looked at the other clan heads, "Hmm… Quite a lot of you survived. So, then, what were you all planning to do now?"

Nearly all the clan heads present at this moment were sweating. They didn't know why but just with Araki standing there, they felt a strange sense of suffocation.

And Araki wasn't even using chakra at this moment, it was just his presence… They felt vastly inferior to him.

It was none other than the Hyuuga Clan Head who stepped forward despite this strange pressure and spoke, "Nothing much, Araki-dono… It's just that you have killed the Third Hokage… We understand that you had your personal grudges against him. But it brings the issue of who will become the Hokage and administer the village? If we let it remain as it is, the village could break apart. Kumo and Iwa might use this to destroy it down to roots."

Perhaps it was because he was the head of the third strongest clan in Konoha, so the Hyuuga Clan Head's words were spoken calmly as he managed to successfully hide his nervousness while standing in front of Araki.

This sort of calmness even received the praise from all the other Shinobi around them except for the members of the Uchiha Clan who just snorted in response.

Araki let out a chuckle, "Indeed… I naturally understand how dire the situation is. However, don't worry about it too much. As the Senju Clan Head, I hold power over who should be appointed as the Acting Hokage during the time of emergency. I am sure you are all aware of such a rule."

"Naturally, I am, that is why, I wish to ask you, who would you choose as the acting Hokage?" The Hyuuga Clan head couldn't conceal a hint of anxiousness as he asked Araki.

"Who do you think is the most qualified for the position of the Hokage?" Araki asked him, with a bit of an amused smile.

"This…" The Hyuuga Clan head was confused as he couldn't understand Araki's intent behind asking this question.

He would appear far too shameless if he stated his own name. Or did Araki want him to state someone else's name?

But fortunately, the clan heads around him weren't stupid. The Inuzuka Clan Head, Aburame Clan Head, Kohaku Clan Head, and the Onikuma Clan Head slowly stepped forwards. Inuzuka Clan Head said, "I believe Hyuuga Hideki-dono is perfect for the job as acting Hokage."

"I believe the same."

"The same for me."

Slowly but surely, they started to voice out their thoughts.

Only three clan heads remained silent at this point. The Nara Clan Head, the Akimichi Clan Head, and the Yamanaka Clan Head… They didn't seem to have any ambition in becoming Hokage nor were they interested in voicing out their support for the Hyuuga Clan Head.

To them, it didn't matter much. As long as the chosen Hokage was fair to their clan, it wouldn't be that big of a deal. They also had no feud with either the Hyuuga Clan or the Uchiha Clan so there was no way either of them would target them.

"I see… Tell me, Hyuuga Hideki, excluding the Senju Clan… Can you confidently say that you can defeat anyone in Konoha in a one-on-one battle?" Araki said while staring at the Hyuuga Clan head.

"I…" Just when the Hyuuga Clan Head was about to speak, he paused. He remembered the presence of Uchiha Keshiro.

"Other than receiving the support of the clans in Konoha, you also need to be sufficiently strong. And in my eyes, you are still inferior to a lot of people. Whether they be Jiraiya, my own sensei Hatake Sakumo, and… Uchiha Keshiro. If you disagree with me, you and he can fight now. I will provide him chakra so that it's equal to your own. All the clan heads can witness the fight between the two of you… Isn't it quite fair?" Araki asked the Hyuuga Hideki.

If it was before fighting against this sudden invasion from Sunagakure, the Hyuuga Clan Head would have immediately agreed to fight against Uchiha Keshiro to prove that he was the strongest in Konoha if Jiraiya, Sakumo, and the whole Senju Clan was to be excluded.

But now, he no longer had any confidence in defeating Keshiro. He had personally seen the Susanoo… It was contending against a full one-tailed Bijuu.

That red coloured Susanoo seemed to be protecting him from all kinds of attacks of a Bijuu. Use Taijutsu against that Susanoo and attempt to break it? That was a joke!

Who knows how many Sunagakure Shinobi had died as they attempted it. Although the Hyuuga Clan Head was quite confident of his strength, how could he even show off his gentle fist's true powers if he couldn't even touch Keshiro's body? His Byakugan would be virtually useless…

"See… You can't even confidently say that you would win against Keshiro." Araki then turned towards Keshiro and asks him, "How about you?"

To this, Keshiro said a bit mildly, "As long as it's not you, I will win no matter who I am up against." Perhaps his words were spoken arrogantly, but this still surprised the clan members around them.

The Hyuuga Clan Head was about to speak something. Still, Araki was faster and said, "Before you all say anything, I have already asked Jiraiya and my sensei Hatake Sakumo, both of them have no interest in the position of the Hokage. So, my choice should be apparent now, shouldn't it?"

Hyuuga Hideki's expression twitched a little at these words. This wasn't good…

Seeing as all the Clan Heads were silent, Araki turned his head towards Keshiro and said to him with a smile, "Congrats Keshiro, you are the first acting Hokage of Konoha."

The other clan heads could only helplessly stare at Araki and then at Keshiro, who said, "Thank you for giving me this chance, Araki-dono. I will show you that I was the right person for this…"

Araki shrugged in response, compared to what everyone thought, he cared little about this. But he couldn't say that having an acquaintance as the Hokage wasn't without its perks.

"Alright, you can all return to your clan compounds now," Araki said before walking past them all. He touched Keshiro's shoulder and transferred a bit of his own chakra to Keshiro.

Keshiro was internally thankful to Araki. He knew Araki didn't need to do this but still, he was showing such consideration for the Uchiha Clan. With this, the thought of attacking Keshiro on their return way completely vanished from the minds of the Hyuuga Clan head and the other clan heads supporting the Hyuuga Clan.