"Have you guys noticed that Elder Danzo is already in his seventies but has always been alone?", Aoba whispered.
The other girls all nodded seriously.
Aoba continued.
"And have you also noticed that the Third Hokage is also alone now?"
The four girls nodded again. Tenten asked in confusion.
"What's the problem with that?"
"Oh, it's a big problem!"
"I feel like their relationship is definitely unusual. They might even be secret lovers."
Aoba showed a mischievous smile.
"Huh? Aoba, what nonsense are you talking about? Aren't they both men?"
Tenten looked at Aoba speechlessly, 'How did this conversation take such a weird turn?'
The other girls also looked at him in confusion.
Aoba shook his finger and said, "Who said men can't be together? That's discrimination!"
"True love can transcend gender and age." [T/N: 😑]
"Uh…"
At that moment, Tenten, Ino, Sakura, and Uzuki Yugao all looked at Aoba with shock.
A strange thought popped into their minds at the same time.
"Aoba… could it be… that you like guys?", Uzuki Yugao asked cautiously.
The other three girls perked up their ears, afraid of hearing an answer they didn't want to hear.
Aoba's face immediately scrunched up in disgust. He looked baffled as to why she would even ask that, "Why would you think I like guys?"
He was always calling girls 'my little girlfriends,' yet somehow, they still doubted his preferences?
"Uh, well, you just seem really into this whole guy-on-guy thing…", Uzuki Yugao felt embarrassed and quickly changed the topic.
"I think you're mistaken. The Third Hokage actually had a wife, but she passed away a few years ago. And I often see the Third Hokage arguing with Elder Danzo. They don't seem like that kind of couple at all."
"Heh, if things were that obvious, wouldn't it be too easy?", Aoba chuckled.
"Besides, think about it. Even though Elder Danzo constantly argues with the Third Hokage and makes him unhappy, they still always stick together. Doesn't that tell you something?"
"As for the death of the Third Hokage's wife, I think that's exactly what led to this situation."
"Eh? Why?"
The four girls still didn't get it.
"Have you ever heard of 'love growing over time'?"
Aoba looked at them, grinned, and started talking passionately.
"You see, the Third Hokage and Elder Danzo were childhood friends, trained under the same master, and even served as the Second Hokage's guards together. They've been through life and death together, forging a deep bond over the years."
"And after the Third Hokage's wife passed away, he was heartbroken and grieving. That's when Elder Danzo seized the opportunity and stayed by his side."
"With their years of mutual understanding, even their fights wouldn't hurt their relationship. In fact, it only made their bond stronger. Now tell me, what is truly an unbreakable bond?"
"Hiss—", The four girls simultaneously sucked in a cold breath.
They quickly processed everything Aoba said and realized his logic was flawless.
A crazy thought crept into their minds.
'Could this be real?'
'This… this is way too absurd.'
'Two old men…'
But Aoba's expression grew even more excited, his eyes gleaming.
"It's like dry wood meeting a raging fire—once it starts, it can't be stopped. But given their positions, if they openly showed their love, it would have a terrible impact on the village."
"So, they buried their feelings deep in their hearts. So deep that sometimes, even they forget each other's love."
"Yugao, when you submitted missions with your Jonin squad leader, did you ever notice any small details between the Third Hokage and Elder Danzo?", Aoba asked.
"What details?", Uzuki Yugao was confused.
"Does Elder Danzo ever knock when he enters the Hokage's office?"
"Uh… I think not?", Yugao wasn't entirely sure, since she hadn't been there often.
"And when they argue, does Elder Danzo ever win?"
"Uh… it always seems like Elder Danzo storms out angrily," This time, Yugao was sure—she had seen it herself.
Aoba smirked, "See? That's their way of expressing love—they tolerate each other."
"And I'm sure, at the start, it was Elder Danzo who fell for the Third Hokage first."
"Why?", The four girls were now completely engrossed in the gossip.
"Because Elder Danzo never married. And he always finds excuses to visit the Hokage's office and argue with him, only to leave angrily afterward."
"That's just him trying to get the Third Hokage's attention. Over time, their love blossomed."
As soon as Aoba finished speaking, he suddenly felt a chill.
He immediately looked around but didn't see anything suspicious. Scratching his head, he muttered to himself.
Smack!
"You know, that actually makes sense!"
Uzuki Yugao suddenly clapped her hands together, looking as if she had figured everything out.
"Ever since Lady Biwako passed away, the Hokage has been staying in the office alone. Besides work-related visits, almost no one goes to see him."
"But Elder Danzo, he keeps visiting every week, even without any business. Maybe the Hokage was moved by Elder Danzo's persistence."
Everyone stared at Uzuki Yugao in shock, even Aoba.
'Wait… you actually made this logically consistent?'
But he didn't say anything. He found this really entertaining.
It reminded him of his university days. Staying up late in the dorms, chatting nonsense with his roommates.
'Ah, those days are gone forever.'
For some reason, Aoba suddenly felt a little emo.
And it wasn't even midnight yet.
"I never expected the story between the Hokage and Elder Danzo to be so touching… *sniff*… so emotional…"
While the others were still struggling with the idea of two old men being in a relationship, feeling slightly uncomfortable, Sakura, the hopeless romantic, actually started crying.
Aoba was stunned by Sakura's reaction. He glanced at the others.
'Wait… you guys actually believe this?'
'In a few decades, this might become a wild piece of Konoha folklore.'
But now wasn't the time to think about that. He needed to calm Sakura down.
And what better way than another juicy piece of gossip?
"Sakura, actually, let me tell you… In Konoha, this kind of thing has a long history. There have been plenty of cases, dating back to the very beginning."
"For example, the First Hokage and Madara Uchiha, Jiraiya and Orochimaru, Kakashi and Gai…"
"Listen, let me explain…"
"Back then, Madara Uchiha couldn't be with the First Hokage, which is why he…"
"The Second Hokage also had a tragic love-hate relationship with an Uchiha, which led to…"
"Orochimaru defected from the village because Jiraiya never understood his feelings…"
"And then there's the complicated love triangle between Kakashi, Might Guy, and a certain unnamed Uchiha…"
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