The village council meeting began and the elders immediately went on the attack to have Anko Mitarashi executed, falsely accusing her of crimes she had not committed. Almost the entire Civil Council voted for Anko's execution, fearing what the elders would do to them if they did not vote in favor.

That was until Kizashi Haruno spoke up, who had joined the Civil Council only to expose the Council of Elders for their lies. This had a ripple effect as the entire council gradually began to sink their teeth into the evil elders, all their crimes came to light and because of all the injustices the elders had caused, the entire council voted against Anko's execution and for the execution of the elders.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, was fed up with the Council of Elders trying to stab him in the back at every opportunity, he respected the vote of the Council, he labelled the three elders traitors to Konoha and sentenced them to death, they were killed on the spot, quickly and swiftly, without unnecessary suffering, although they did not deserve this mercy, Anko was saved, but it was not over yet, because her and Naruko's future will soon be decided.

Naruko and the World Tree

Adoption Arc

Chapter 8 – Village Council Meeting Part 2

Hokage Tower

Council Meeting Room

14:10

Everyone was shocked at the sudden execution of the three elders, even though they all voted for it, but the way it was carried out so quickly shocked them all, as if the Hokage had planned it but asked for permission from the whole council beforehand, probably to ease his conscience to carry out such an action, but in the end, everyone is glad that the Third Hokage didn't take much time in executing the elders, because Konoha has suddenly become a much better and safer place now that they're dead, their bodies are quickly removed from sight so that the meeting could continue without them lying around, out of sight, out of mind.

Hiruzen coughs into his right hand to get everyone's attention. "Now that the elders have been dealt with, I'd like to move on to the next topic of this village council meeting, but since I'm to act as a mediator at this meeting and nothing else, Asuma will speak on my behalf." Hiruzen still spoke with authority in his voice to show that he wasn't shaken by the execution of the elders he had ordered.

Asuma stood up and walked towards the podium where the now lone Hokage sat, then addressed the entire council. "The next subject I'll speak about on behalf of Lord Third concerns Anko and Naruko." Asuma spoke in a loud, clear voice.

No one on the council is surprised, they have all heard the rumours of Anko protecting Naruko and even taking her into her home, and seeing the two so close before this meeting began only confirmed the rumours.

"Now before we get to the topic I want to discuss with you, I'd first like Anko to explain to all of you how she and Naruko came together, whether you're interested or not it doesn't matter, what matters is that you understand the context behind the discussion we're about to have." Finished Asuma and most of the council members nodded to show they were interested.

Asuma sat down and Anko stood up and took his place. "Almost a month ago, I had to go for a walk because I couldn't sleep. It was around midnight when I went for a walk to clear my head and during that walk I came across Naruko standing under a street light transfixed on some moths flying under the light. I found her in a terrible state, she had cuts, scratches and bruises all over her body, she was malnourished, dirty and underweight, her clothes were almost completely ruined, she had no shoes, it had only been three days since the information had leaked out that the Nine-Tailed Fox was sealed inside her when I found her, it was easy to figure out that she was the girl who had the fox inside her." Explained Anko visibly upset as she recalled that night.

The entire council listened intently. "I could tell because she had been beaten up, beaten up by adults!" Anko began to shout. "Adults attacked a three-year-old girl who couldn't even defend herself, nevermind fight back, I wish ill will on all those who attacked Naruko!" Anko was furious, especially at the Civil Council, Anko took a deep breath to calm herself down.

"I knew in my heart that no one would take Naruko in, let alone adopt her, they do not want to risk bringing the Nine-Tailed Fox into their homes, they don't see a little girl, they see a demon who is just as much a demon as the fox itself, so I decided to take her in myself." Anko managed to calm down.

"Then I approached Naruko, the moment I made eye contact with her for the first time I figured something else out, Naruko Uzumaki was the daughter of Minato Namikaze, the Fourth Hokage and his wife Kushina, that's right!" Anko started shouting again. "This fucking village attacked the daughter of our Fourth Hokage, and those who attacked her are scum, worse than scum, and they all deserve to be executed!" Anko was really angry. "After figuring out that Naruko was the daughter of my hero Kushina Uzumaki, and the Fourth Hokage Minato, that was an added incentive for me to take Naruko in." Anko began taking another deep breath to calm herself down once again.

The revelation that Naruko was the daughter of the Fourth Hokage came as no surprise to any of the shinobi clan heads, for the resemblance to Kushina and Minato's primary blonde hair and azure eyes left no doubt that Naruko was their daughter, while the mouths of all the members of the Civil Council were open in shock, the girl they had treated like dirt and called a monster was the daughter of their beloved Fourth Hokage, all except Kizashi who had the honour of meeting Minato several times, for him it was more of a "Oh yeah, that makes sense." or "Oh yes, I see it now".

"I'm glad I decided to take in Naruko, she has managed to bring out a side of me I never thought I had, my femininity, she has become the light of my life and has completely healed my heart from the loss of my mother, the betrayal of my father and the abuse I suffered in this village, I have grown to love Naruko with all my heart, I love her like my own daughter." Anko's heart could be felt in every word she spoke about taking in Naruko, those who know her well have not seen her this happy in a long time, mostly the clanheads.

Most of the clan heads are happy for Anko, Kizashi was happy for Anko, while most of the Civil Council members were unsure what to make of it.

Asuma stood up and motioned for Anko to sit back down. "I'm sure that explanation, some of you will have figured out what the next topic is about, but for those who haven't figured it out, the next discussion will be about granting Anko Mitarashi custody of Naruko Uzumaki. Lord Third and I can both assure you that everything Anko has told us is true."

This caused a few moments of silence as no one expected Anko to try to become Naruko's legal guardian, especially those who had known Anko for a very long time.

"Now before anyone here starts throwing a temper tantrum because Anko is trying to become Naruko's adoptive mother." Asuma spoke up before anyone could say anything because the Third Hokage's rules stating that no one was allowed to interrupt him while he was speaking.

"First to the clan heads, Anko is not a member of your shinobi clans, so none of you will gain any significant power or influence over the other clans or Konoha itself." Which none of the clan heads can dispute, none of them will gain or lose anything if Anko is allowed to adopt Naruko.

"Second to no one in particular. Since Naruko is the Jinchúriki of the most powerful Tailed Beast, she can never live a normal civilian life, certainly not after the information leak, even if she wanted to." Asuma sighs, even he is beginning to feel the sad reality of taking away someone's choice of how they want to live.

"I'm a shinobi, I am used to dealing with the loss of comrades and taking the lives of others, but that was a choice I made, no one forced me to become a shinobi, not even my father, but Naruko has no choice, and I find it infuriating that Naruko does not have the freedom to decide for herself what kind of life she wants to live. Being a shinobi does not mean one as to be heartless, it means knowing when to steel your heart when you have to make a hard decision, even if it goes against what you stand for, being a shinobi means enduring whatever comes your way." Explained Asuma with a compassionate tone in his voice, causing the Civil Council to start becoming sympathetic towards Naruko, which was what he wanted.

"The only way to protect Naruko is to force her to become a shinobi, and she must become a powerful shinobi if she truly wants to protect herself. The now dead elders are proof that Naruko may have to spend her entire life having to watch her back, not only from enemies outside Konoha, but also within." Asuma felt his anger rising, but he quickly calmed down, he could not let his killing intent out when Naruko and the Civil Council were near.

"Regardless of what Orochimaru has done or what we think of him, it cannot be denied that he is a very powerful shinobi who holds the title of Legendary Sannin, and then there was his late wife Guren Mitarashi, a powerful Kekkei Genkai Crystal Release user, both of whom trained Anko and taught her everything she knows, which made Anko a powerful kunoichi herself. She also inherited her mother's Crystal Release, making Anko an ideal candidate to train Naruko to quickly become a powerful kunoichi." Asuma tried to explain why Anko was the ideal candidate to train Naruko and adopt her, which made the Civil Council a little uneasy.

"Anko Mitarashi has been proven innocent of all the crimes of which she was falsely accused by Inoichi, so it is completely unjustified to continue treating her as a criminal. I trust the judgement of Asuma and the Third Hokage. Since Asuma speaks on behalf of his father, I assume that the Third Hokage would have said the same or something similar to Asuma. And I trust that Anko will not only train Naruko to be a strong kunoichi, but also raise her as the girl's adoptive mother." Kizashi spoke up in favour of Anko.

"Therefore, I vote for Anko to become Naruko's legal guardian, no, her adoptive mother." Kizashi spoke in favour of Anko helped to allay the doubts of the other members of the Civil Council about giving Anko the responsibility of training and raising Naruko.

"Naruko will need to get strong quickly, and I mean very quickly, but she will still need to attend the Shinobi Academy because it will be a good place for Naruko to make some friends, develop her social skills and build her academic skills, but her actual training will not be through the academy alone, when Naruko graduates she will need to be at a high Chunin or low Jonin level to give her the best chance to survive and thrive in this world to protect herself, others and this village." Asuma decided to explain how strong Naruko must be to be able to protect herself from everyone.

"Anko can give Naruko the training she needs, and she will get help from Kurenai, me, and no doubt other friends of Anko, like Gai and Kakashi, so Naruko will have many people to help her train to become stronger and study to become smarter." Asuma finished his explanation.

"Honestly, I would be more than happy to take Naruko in myself." Tsume spoke in a more cheerful tone now that the elders were dead and her clansmen and clanswomen had been avenged through justice.

"I'd love to take her in for the sake of letting that little girl have a happy childhood, I know my dogs and my Kiba would love to play with Naruko, but unfortunately I can't because the other clans would get their panties in a bunch if I did, so I vote for Anko to be Naruko's adoptive mother, but don't train her so much that you rob her of her childhood, okay." Tsume cast her vote and was genuinely happy for Anko and Naruko.

"I think it's a shame that no clan can take Naruko in without starting a fight with the other clans, but how about the Sarutobi clan taking in Anko and Naruko, I'm already in favour of Anko adopting Naruko, but I'm worried that they won't be safe enough without the protection of a clan they can rely on in times of need, especially if we have to assume that another village is planning an infiltration mission to kidnap Naruko." Choza is genuinely concerned for their safety if they aren't taken in by a clan.

"If I was forced to choose a clan that I trust the most that isn't my own clan, the Nara clan or the Yamanaka clan, I'd choose the Sarutobi clan in a heartbeat, so for the sake of Anko and Naruko's happiness and their protection, how about letting the Sarutobi clan take Anko and Naruko in, so that they can be protected by a clan that we all trust." Choza spoke in a calm tone, trying to convince the other clans to give Anko and Naruko extra protection from the Sarutobi clan.

"Honestly, if I were forced to choose a clan that I trust the most that isn't my own, I too would choose the Sarutobi clan without a doubt, you know what, yes, I can agree to them taking Anko and Naruko in for their extra protection." Tsume knows Choza's argument comes from genuine concern, so she agrees, because she too wants Anko and Naruko to be safe and happy, and she trusts the Sarutobi clan.

Fugaku begins to smile. "Anko, Naruko and Kizashi helped me and my clan a lot with their presence at today's village council meeting, because you three managed to bring out the true colours of the three elders and expose them for what they were, treacherous, conniving, evil bastards."

"You have helped the Uchiha clear our names of what we have been falsely accused of, and hopefully this will be the beginning of the Uchiha being able to repair our damaged relationship with Konoha, I truly love this village and I want nothing more than to protect it and for the Uchiha to become one with Konoha." Fugaku decided to fill his words with his genuine feelings.

"So as a thank you, I vote for Anko to adopt Naruko, and I agree with the Sarutobi Clan taking them in so they can get the extra protection they need, Naruko is the Jinchúriki of the Nine-Tailed Fox, whether we want to admit it or not, she needs the extra protection of a clan, and there is none I trust more than my own clan, than the Sarutobi clan and the Hyúga clan." Fugaku looked at Hiashi and nodded at him in thanks for defending him and his clan against the elders earlier.

"I've no problem with that either, like Fugaku I also love this village and want to protect it with my life, if allowing Anko to adopt Naruko and allowing the Sarutobi clan to take them in and give them extra protection means that Konoha will be protected in the future, even by Naruko, then I too am for both." Said Hiashi with regained dignity.

{I've just found out that Hiashi Hyúga is a Tsundere} Anko thought to herself amused.

Shikaku and Inoichi don't have anything to add, but they're in favour of Anko adopting Naruko, and since they too trust the Sarutobi clan, they too agree to the Sarutobi clan house Anko and Naruko in their compound for extra protection.

"What the elders did to Anko and Naruko is absolutely unforgivable, Naruko could have a very difficult life because of them. To give her some happiness in her life before she becomes a shinobi, I'm voting in favour of Anko adopting Naruko and allowing the Sarutobi clan to house them. I'll bring my daughter Sakura at some point, she's about Naruko's age, I'm sure she and Naruko will become good friends." Kizashi grinned and gave his support.

"Sure, I'd love it if Naruko had a real friend her own age." Anko eagerly accepted that Kizashi would let Naruko and his Sakura become friends.

The rest of the Civil Council had nothing to add, but they were completely convinced by all the points made and are inspired to be more like Kizashi, so they make him chairman of the Civil Council, they all vote for Anko adopting Naruko and for the Sarutobi clan take them in.

Hiruzen coughed to get everyone's attention. "All in the council agree that Anko be allowed to officially adopt Naruko as her own and that she and Naruko be placed under the protection of the Sarutobi clan, this matter is settled, from today Naruko will officially be Anko's daughter and they will live in the Sarutobi clan compound." Hiruzen spoke in a pleasant tone, he was planning to give Anko custody of Naruko regardless of the council's decision, but the entire council voted in favour so he does not have to impose his will at this meeting.

"Anko, after this meeting, I need you to come with me to my office so we can fill out all the paperwork you need to officially become Naruko's mother." Hiruzen said grandfatherly to Anko.

"Yes Lord Hokage." Replied Anko cheerfully.

"Before we end this meeting, there is a third issue I would like to discuss, but I will not acting as a mediator for this is one I must address personally." Said Hiruzen this time without the authoritarian tone, which made everyone except Anko and Asuma curious as they knew what was coming.

Hiruzen looked at Fugaku. "Fugaku, I would first like to apologise to you openly for all the mistreatment the Uchiha have suffered." Said Hiruzen sincerely.

{Why is he apologising to me? He was never hostile to the Uchiha himself, so what should he apologise for?} Fugaku is confused, for Hiruzen has never personally wronged him or the Uchiha.

"And to further apologise to you, I would like to offer you, Fugaku Uchiha, the position of Fifth Hokage." Said Hiruzen without a hint of a joke in his voice, he meant it.

The entire council was stunned into silence for three minutes, everyone's mouth was open except Asuma and Anko, Asuma looked indifferent and did not know what to think, Anko looked sad as she still feels it was partly her fault for blaming him for the information leak a few days ago, Hiruzen had managed to catch everyone in the room off guard, except for two, minus Kurenai, who was still wearing soundproof ear muffs and concentrating on casting genjutsu on Naruko, expecting to be informed later by Anko and Asuma about what had happened.

"Although I had nothing to do with the information leak, I cannot be absolved of all blame, I could have done more to prevent it, I failed to act as Hokage and instead allowed the Council of Elders to walk all over me." Hiruzen takes the blame he believes he rightfully deservest.

"The fact is I am too old and too weak hearted for the position of Hokage, if a high level threat attacked Konoha I doubt I'd have the strength or heart to stop them, perhaps I could wait a few more years until Itachi comes of age, he seems to be a promising shinobi in the making, he clearly has a deep love for Konoha." Hiruzen praised Itachi sincerely.

"However, we cannot be sure that a great threat beyond my strength and weak heart will wait that long, it could be minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, years or even decades before one decides to descend upon Konoha." Hiruzen reluctantly admits it, but he accepts the reality.

"Konoha does not need a withering old man at the helm who will not be much of a deterrent when that time comes, but a leader who is younger, stronger and has a fearsome reputation, and that someone is you, Fugaku. The decision to accept the position is yours, and I will not argue with anyone about my decision to choose you as my immediate successor." Hiruzen finished the statement and waited for Fugaku's reply.

Silence reigns for a full minute, Hiruzen silencing anyone who tries to speak, he wants to hear Fugaku's response, it's a lot to take in and he's willing to give Fugaku the time to think and make a decision.

Fugaku suddenly stood up. " Lord Third, I am truly honoured that you have chosen me as the next Hokage and I have decided to accept the title of Fifth Hokage, even though there are issues between the Uchiha and Konoha that need to be resolved, I, a proud member of the Uchiha clan and citizen of Konoha: Village Hidden in the Leaves, will try to mend the gap between the two sides, for I love this village with all my heart and will put my life on the line to protect it." Said Fugaku with full determination, not a single word of his contained hesitation.

There was silence for a few moments, but it was broken the moment Tsume started clapping to show her support and respect, followed by Choza, then Shikaku and Inoichi, finally everyone in the council clapped, giving their full support for Fugaku to become the Fifth Hokage.

To Be Continued

Next Chapter - Chapter 9 - Adopted, Naruko Mitarashi

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