He's in the Marvel universe, and his first step is marrying Scarlet Witch.

Chapter 302 The Capable Danzo (First Update)

"Shimura, are you sure you're not joking?"

Danzo's answer stunned the Third Hokage and the two advisors.

They thought it would be one of the Root's executives, Aburame Ryoma, Aburame Torune, or Yamanaka Fu, but they never expected it to be Madoka, the third generation's newly accepted disciple.

This answer caught them off guard.

"Of course I'm not joking. In terms of status, he is your fourth disciple of the third generation and a prince of the Land of Fire."

In terms of contributions, he saved the Third Hokage and a large number of ninjas and villagers in Orochimaru and the Sand Village's plan to destroy Konoha.

In terms of strength, he single-handedly developed a new Sage Mode, severely injured Kisame, an S-rank rogue ninja from the Mist Village, and repelled Itachi Uchiha. You should all be well aware of Itachi's strength.

I think that apart from Jiraiya and Tsunade, everyone else on this list seems inferior to him!

Danzo's words were resolute.

Upon hearing this, Xiaochun, who was switching dorm rooms, frowned:

"While that's true, Madoka is, after all, one of the daimyo's people. If he becomes Hokage, I'm afraid that the daimyo will influence things within Konoha, which is not in the village's best interest."

"You're wrong. I think your perspective is too narrow. Maybe he was a daimyo's man before, but if he becomes Hokage, his status will be equal to that of the daimyo. How could he still be controlled by the daimyo?"

If he becomes Hokage, the Daimyo will have a better impression of the village and will allocate more funds to it. The relationship between the village and the Daimyo will improve, which is a good thing.

Besides, we advisors are there to look after him. If he really doesn't care about the village, I think it's not too late to replace him."

Danzo turned his gaze to Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado, offering a meaningful reminder:

"As advisors to Konoha, isn't our job to give the Hokage constructive advice and correct his mistakes? Otherwise, wouldn't we have no value?"

Danzo's meaning was clear: Marukawa might have been related to the daimyo, but only after he became Hokage could the value and power of advisors like them be realized.

If the Third Hokage had chosen his own people to be Hokage, the Third Hokage, now an advisor, and the Fifth Hokage would have formed an unbreakable bond, leaving the other three advisors out of the picture.

Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado, being two cunning old foxes, immediately understood Danzo's intention upon hearing his words, and promptly changed their tune:

"Danzo is right. I think it's reasonable to add Madoka as a candidate for Hokage."

It's true that Marukawa is the fourth disciple of the Third Hokage, but that's only in name. The two of them couldn't possibly have a deep relationship. He's also the nephew of the Daimyo, and it seems he has some connection with Danzo as well.

It seems that it would be more in their best interest for such a person to become Hokage.

It's not that the two don't love the village, but it's reasonable for them to seek their own interests while loving the village.

The Third Hokage glanced at Danzo, then at Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado, took a puff from his opium pipe, thought for about three seconds, and replied with a smile:

"You make a good point, so let's add Marukawa as another one."

He could easily see why the two advisors had suddenly changed their attitude, but that didn't matter, because even if Madoka was added to the list of Hokage candidates, the final decision was still in his hands.

Madoka was indeed qualified to run for Hokage, but the others were no less capable than him, especially Jiraiya and Tsunade, the two legendary Sannin, whose achievements and reputations gave them an overwhelming advantage.

What really made him think was whether Danzo pushed Enkawa up to him to disgust him, or whether there was some secret between them that he didn't know about.

Picking up the pen from the table, the Third Hokage added the name "Yunkawa" to the end of the list, then called over the ninja standing at the door and gave him instructions:

"Post this list on the village bulletin board."

While the decision to select the new Hokage rests with the previous Hokage, it doesn't mean the Third Hokage can choose whomever he wants. For example, if he were to choose Naruto to succeed as the Fifth Hokage, the entire village would immediately erupt in uproar.

Therefore, the selection of the new Hokage is nominally based on the same model used when the First Hokage became Hokage.

When the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, and Madara Uchiha led the various clans to establish the first ninja village, Konoha, Hashirama originally intended for Madara to be the First Hokage when deciding on the first Hokage.

However, his younger brother Tobirama suggested that all members of the clan vote to elect the First Hokage, otherwise it would not be convincing to the public.

As a result, Hashirama, who received the most votes, became the First Hokage.

Hashirama died after fighting Madara at the Valley of the End, and Tobirama took over as Hokage, a result of a vote by the various clans.

Of course, by then Tobirama had already won over all the clans except the Uchiha to his side.

When it came to the Third Hokage, because it was during a war, and because the Second Hokage had sacrificed his life to hold off the enemy and pass the Hokage position to the Third Hokage, the Third Hokage skipped the vote and obtained the position of Hokage.

In the fourth generation, it returned to voting.

However, in addition to Minato, the candidates for Hokage also include the legendary Sannin: Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru.

However, with Tsunade leaving the village and Jiraiya giving up, only Minato and Orochimaru remained to compete.

The Third Hokage ultimately chose Minato. With the Third Hokage's support, the families who followed him would naturally vote for Minato, and Minato's votes would definitely far exceed Orochimaru's.

The reason why the Hokage has the power to choose his successor is that he can get most of the Konoha clans to vote for the successor he chooses.

Therefore, in essence, under normal circumstances, the selection of the Hokage of Konoha is still determined by the candidate with the most votes.

Now we are announcing the list of candidates for the Fifth Hokage to all the ninjas and villagers of Konoha. The vote will be cast from this list of candidates.

The reason Danzo was so angry before was that his name was not on the list of candidates, so he didn't even have the chance to be voted on.

If his name is on the list, he can mobilize the small group of families in the village who support him, and also lobby other families to support him, giving him a one in ten thousand chance of getting the most votes.

"That Danzo guy is pretty capable!"

At the foot of Hokage Rock, Li Chuan looked at the list of Hokage candidates on the bulletin board and chuckled as he stroked his chin.

In truth, he wasn't entirely sure whether Danzo would help him.

It doesn't matter, he has several backup plans anyway, but this is the best outcome, a win-win situation for everyone.

Because if the backup plan is activated, unpleasant scenarios are inevitable.

For example, kidnapping the third generation, forcibly stealing the secret techniques of various clans, or taking over the entire Hidden Leaf Village by force—these are not actually too difficult for Li Chuan with his current strength.

(End of this chapter)