"Of course it has something to do with me," Shin-chan said with a serious face. "I want to become Hokage someday too, so I want to know whether people who become Hokage are really that amazing."
Asuma fell silent for two seconds, then said softly, "He really is pretty amazing. His ninjutsu is strong, and everyone respects him."
"Then why did you say he was bad?"
"Because he never has time for me." Asuma's voice dropped even lower. "When I was little, I wanted him to teach me how to throw shuriken, and he said he was busy. I wanted him to take me to see fireworks, and he said he was busy. Even on my birthday, he said he was busy."
Asuma lowered his head. "But I want an ordinary dad too."
The classroom instantly fell silent.
Obito opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but nothing came out.
Shin-chan leaned toward Asuma. "Your dad doesn't play with you?"
"Yeah."
"Then does he force you to eat bell peppers?"
Asuma froze. "What?"
"Bell peppers." Shin-chan looked completely serious. "My mom forces me to eat bell peppers every day. If your dad doesn't force you to eat bell peppers, then he's a little better than my mom."
Asuma's mouth twitched. "I don't hate bell peppers."
Shin-chan's expression instantly turned into one of admiration. "Really? Then your dad must be very happy."
"He did say it was nice that I'm not a picky eater." Asuma's voice softened without him even realizing it.
Shin-chan nodded, then turned to Obito. "Obito, why are you so angry?"
Obito's face flushed red. "Because Hokage-sama is the village's hero. He protects all of us. I won't let anyone talk bad about him."
"Have you ever seen Hokage-sama?"
"Yeah. At the last festival, he stood on the stage and gave a speech, and everyone was cheering." Obito's eyes shone brightly.
"Then do you like him?"
"Of course I do," Obito replied without hesitation. "He's the Hokage. He's the strongest person in the village!"
Asuma muttered under his breath, "That's because he's never stood you up."
"That's different." Obito glared at him. "Hokage-sama is so busy. If he has to cancel, it can't be helped. He has to protect the whole village, of course he doesn't have time to spend with just one person."
Obito continued, "My grandma says that people with ability have to shoulder more responsibility. Hokage-sama is so amazing, so of course he must have a lot more to take care of."
As he kept talking, his voice suddenly grew quieter. "And besides, having someone you can wait for is pretty nice, isn't it? My mom and dad died when I was really little."
"So my grandma says that what Hokage-sama is doing is making it so people like my mom and dad won't have to die anymore. Even though I never got to meet them, I think anyone who can protect other people is really amazing."
The classroom fell silent again for a few seconds.
Rin's eyes were starting to turn red.
Even Kakashi turned his head slightly to look at Obito.
Asuma stood there, his expression changing again and again.
Obito himself, on the other hand, seemed a little embarrassed and scratched his head. "Why am I even saying all this?"
Shin-chan tilted his head and looked at him. A few seconds later, he suddenly spoke.
"Obito."
"Hm?"
"Were your mom and dad ninja?"
"I guess so."
"Then what do you want to do in the future?"
Obito answered without the slightest hesitation, "I'm going to become Hokage and become someone even greater than the current Hokage."
Shin-chan blinked and tilted his head at him. "Then when you become Hokage, will you eliminate bell peppers?"
Obito froze. "Huh?"
"Bell peppers." Shin-chan looked perfectly serious. "When you become Hokage, can you order all the bell peppers in the village to be wiped out?"
Obito's mouth twitched. "That's not what the Hokage is for."
"Then what good is your Hokage?" Shin-chan sighed in disappointment. "You can't even eliminate bell peppers."
"The Hokage is supposed to protect the village, not eliminate bell peppers!"
"But bell peppers are in the village." Shin-chan tilted his head. "They're in the vegetable fields, in the kitchen, and in my bowl. They hurt me every day. Why won't you protect me?"
Obito's face turned bright red. "Th-That's different. Bell peppers aren't enemies."
"They are to me." Shin-chan put his hands on his hips. "Your Hokage is unqualified. I'm going to compete with you!"
"Compete in what?"
"In becoming Hokage." Shin-chan declared confidently. "When I become Hokage, the first thing I'll do is eliminate bell peppers."
Obito froze for a second, then got fired up too. "Fine, compete then. When I become Hokage, I'll make everyone acknowledge me."
Shin-chan pointed at himself. "Nohara Shinnosuke, future Hokage. My slogan is: Goodbye, bell peppers! Long live chocolate sticks!"
A few of the kids nearby finally couldn't hold back their laughter.
Asuma stood to the side, the corner of his mouth twitching, but there was amusement in his eyes.
Shin-chan suddenly turned to him. "Asuma, do you want to join?"
Asuma froze. "Join what?"
"Join our Hokage competition." Shin-chan counted on his fingers. "Obito wants to become the Hokage everyone acknowledges. I want to become the Hokage who wipes out bell peppers. You can become your own kind of Hokage too."
Asuma rolled his eyes. "Why would I want to become Hokage? My old man is already annoying enough."
"Then what do you want to be?"
Asuma thought for a moment, then looked away. "I don't know. Just not Hokage."
"Then you can be the judge for the two of us." Shin-chan clapped his hands. "You can see whether I wipe out bell peppers first, or Obito gets acknowledged first."
Asuma's mouth twitched. "What kind of contest is that?"
"We'll know once we compete." Shin-chan looked at him. "If you're the judge, then you don't have to think about what you want to be yet. Just watch the two of us first."
Asuma froze for a second.
That actually... kind of worked?
Shin-chan looked back at Obito. "Obito, what do you think?"
Obito thought about it, then nodded. "Sure. It'll be better if someone's watching. Then you'll see who's really better."
"Alright!" Shin-chan raised a hand. "Then from now on, we're the 'Three-Man Hokage Competition Team.' Obito is the Acknowledged Hokage, I'm the Bell-Pepper-Elimination Hokage, and Asuma is the Referee Hokage."
"How is 'referee' a kind of Hokage...?"
"As long as it has Hokage in the name, it counts." Shin-chan slung an arm around each of them. "Okay, from today on, we're friends."
Obito froze. "Just like that, we're friends?"
"Why not?" Shin-chan tilted his head. "You're already competing with me to become Hokage. Doesn't that make us friends?"
Obito thought about it. It actually kind of made sense.
Asuma didn't say anything, but he didn't shrug Shin-chan's hand off either.
At that moment, Guy suddenly rushed over and threw his arms around all three of them. "Me too! I want to join too!"
Shin-chan was being squeezed so hard he could barely breathe. "Guy... let go first..."
Guy released them, flames practically rising behind him. "Competing to become Hokage is too youthful. I want to compete too!"
Shin-chan rubbed his neck. "What kind of Hokage do you want to be?"
Guy clenched his fists, and it looked like fire was burning in his eyes. "I want to become the Youth Hokage and set the whole village ablaze with taijutsu!"
Shin-chan nodded. "Then starting today, the four of us are all Hokage competitors."
Teacher Ibuki stood to the side, watching this scene, and let out a long breath of relief.
~~~
Thank you for reading!