10 years later
Dog jumped from tree to tree on his way back to the Leaf Village. His father left massive shoes to fill & the weight of his life was making it hard for him to continue going. When he was not on duty Dog had fallen into disgraceful vices & while he was on duty he only knew the pain & ruthless aggression that was needed to fulfil his missions. This was another team mission that he ran solo Dog didn't dwell on the pain from the wound in his side or the multiple broken bones he was putting pressure on by traveling this way. He only focused on his losses & how he had failed the ones who mattered to him. So caught up in his musing he didn't realize that he was no longer alone. It wasn't until the person said "boo" that Kakashi was immediately on guard. Kakashi quickly struck out where he knew the person was, but he stabbed nothing but air. The person always seemed to be just out of his reach, as if he was teasing him. Tired of playing cat & mouse Dog pulled up his eye patch under his mask. This action led to a punch so hard Dog fell to the ground. Dog rolled out of the way of an incoming punch that nearly decimated the area. The force knocked the closest two trees on their backs with just the force alone. Dog surveyed the area & noticed that his opponent was missing. Dog couldn't shake the feeling that he was still in danger, but he could not tell where his enemy was. That was when Dog realized he couldn't sense any killer intent (ki). Throughout the entire encounter not once did he feel any real intent to kill. Only a few people had the ability to completely overwhelm him let alone do it without planning to take his life. So, he waited, observed & as he finally felt something in the air he turned & bowed low to the man standing before him. "Hello ANBU Chief". In ten years not once did Dog hear from him, no silent orders, no pop ups & locations outside of the Land of Fire, but today, exactly 10 years since his banishment he was here. Being a mile outside of the village made it so that Kenji was not in violation of the second part of his banishment, he released a pulse of chakra & within 30 seconds 12 more individuals all dressed in ANBU attire stood before him. "Report" was all he said & honestly that was all he needed to say. What followed was 5 hours covering 10 years of mission reports & observations. Kenji's face never betrayed a single emotion. He asked questions where he needed to & for the most part he listened. He listened to every word, every comment & identified every instant where the information seemed wrong or missing. By the end of the briefing Kenji had orders. "Dog, fix it. Whatever the hell you're going through deal with it & fix it you will be responsible for the legacies of your sensei & the owner of that eye. Boar, continue as ANBU Chief. Keep a closer eye on the civilian council, Danzō's Root & the elders. Rooster, Snake, Turtle, Dragon, Monkey & Tiger shore up defenses. Rooster south gate & entrance into the village, Tiger western gate & the prison, Turtle & Snake north gate & Hokage library by the monument, Dragon east gate. Monkey center pillar of the Village, the Hokage is under your supervision. Rat I need you inside of Danzō's Root, all information goes directly to Boar. Bull, Rabbit & Horse Boar will give you your orders & Goat retire. Open that mom & pop shop with your daughter, feed the village". Everyone nodded & disappeared. From the shadows Hiruzen Sarutobi approached Kenji. Kenji bowed his head & acknowledged the Leaf Village Hokage. "You look old" Kenji stated with a smirk. "You don't" was all Hiruzen chuckled. The two men shared a laugh for the first time in 10 years. Kenji disappeared for a split second & suddenly two of Danzō's Root members landed at Hiruzen's feet. Hiruzen seethed at the site & was going to call on his own ANBU to collect them, but Kenji stopped him. Kenji removed their masks & began to check them for seals. On their tongues he found a suppression seal that was limiting their ability to speak. More than likely it was to stop them from exposing any secrets. "He's upgraded from explosive masks to seals" Kenji stated as he showed Hiruzen the seals. "Hiruzen didn't speak, instead of calling on his Root he summoned the Monkey King Enma. "Take them to Ibiki Morino & tell him to contact on Anko Mitarashi & Inoichi Yamanaka only. Not even ANBU need to know they have been captured". Enma nodded & disappeared to the Torture & Interrogation Unit. Hiruzen looked too Kenji & grimaced. "You've lost control of your village young one" Kenji stated. Hiruzen said nothing, he couldn't even defend himself. He knew Kenji was right. "I'm to old for the seat", Was all Hiruzen said. Kenji almost felt pity for the old man, almost, but he didn't. "You knew the responsibility when you took the mantle, even when I heard that you took it back after Minato's death I knew you would do the job in a way that only you could. But from the reports I've heard & the public incidences I've read about you've lost your will of fire. When Tobirama gave you the position you treated it like a general would, but now you play politician. I thought I trained you better". Hiruzen let the words sit for a minute. "What should I do"? He asked in a quiet whisper. "Train" Kenji said "Strengthen your body, your mind & spirit will follow. You're not meant to sit behind a desk". With that Kenji struck. A strike so fast that Hiruzen couldn't even see it coming before he hit the ground. "When I return you better be able to defend yourself against that or were going to run the Gauntlet". Hiruzen chuckled as he picked himself up off the ground "Ever the task master" Hiruzen said but as he looked around Kenji was gone. While brief Kenji's time with Hiruzen & his Root members had lasting impact. Hiruzen did begin to train in secret & while his paperwork did catch up at first he found that the better shape he was in the better he handled the paperwork. As Hiruzen looked outside of the Hokage Tower he was mindful of the small changes he could see around the village. He acknowledged that serious changes needed to be made & that very soon he would need to choose a proper successor, but until that time the "Professor" was going to make sure he put in the work needed.