Time flew by.
Satoru worked quietly and visited Ichiraku Ramen diligently.
His job was stable, and his conversations with Ayame were pleasant.
It was then that Orochimaru returned with his team.
Minato Namikaze also returned with him.
Meanwhile, troops were left on the battlefield to guard against other Villages, preventing a sudden counterattack.
In the welcoming party, Satoru did not see Orochimaru, presumably because he disliked such an atmosphere.
"It's finally over."
The war was over, which meant a long period of stability, except for the Nine-Tailed incident.
Thinking of this, he looked at the escort team.
He finally saw the legendary Yellow Flash, Minato Namikaze.
Just as the legend said, he was very sunny.
The level of welcome from the people around him showed his current reputation.
Everyone was cheering for him.
After seeing the person he wanted to see, Satoru turned and went home.
There wouldn't be much interaction between them.
Satoru had no intention of clinging to a powerful figure; he only needed to stick with Inoichi Yamanaka.
His affiliation was secure.
He belonged to the Ino–Shika–Chō.
As Konoha's three swordsmen, their political leanings were clear: they supported whoever was Hokage.
And their status was high.
…
In the time that followed.
The funeral for the fallen comrades was also grandly held.
All of Konoha's high-ranking Ninja, from Jonin to Genin, came to the cemetery to bid farewell to their comrades.
Here, Satoru saw the main characters of the Hokage.
Orochimaru, Minato Namikaze, Kakashi, Might Guy…
Many familiar faces; Orochimaru was still young at this time, and Minato was only around twenty years old.
The others were also young.
He also saw Kushina Uzumaki, who was pregnant.
Her red hair, and the immense Chakra that could be felt just by sensing, brought an overwhelming sense of pressure.
It was hard not to recognise her.
The funeral was solemn; the Third Hokage rarely preached his Will of Fire theory in public at this time.
Instead, he silently mourned for the fallen comrades.
…
The funeral ended.
The war ended.
Konoha silently returned to its normal routine.
Satoru gradually received news that the Third Hokage was indeed going to elect the Fourth Hokage.
After a month of discussion, a conclusion was finally reached.
Minato Namikaze succeeded as the Fourth Hokage.
At this time, Konoha was also bustling and lively.
The Third Hokage abdicated, and Minato succeeded.
This was very popular with the people.
On the day he held the Fourth Hokage's inauguration, all the residents of Konoha watched the figure with the Hokage robe fluttering.
A sunny smile.
He was perfect; no residents objected, except for certain shadowy figures.
Here, Satoru did not see Orochimaru.
He wondered if it was due to anger over not being able to become the Fourth Hokage, or if he was conducting his human experiments.
He also did not see the rumoured king of Root, Danzo Shimura.
This left Satoru a little regretful.
It seemed that unless there was some special mission, he wouldn't see him.
"Ah, it's better not to see him; I should go eat ramen today."
Satoru arrived at Ichiraku Ramen again.
When Teuchi saw him arrive, he wanted to grab his rolling pin.
This young man wanted to pursue his daughter.
But due to professional ethics, he still maintained his natural smile, serving him with a grin.
"Pork bone ramen, please enjoy."
"Thank you, Uncle. Where's Ayame?"
Satoru was very polite, but his eyes kept glancing around the shop.
"She went to deliver noodles to an old lady who has trouble with her hands and feet," Teuchi said.
He wasn't dissatisfied with Satoru, but mainly, he wasn't ready to be a father-in-law yet.
"How about I help you out? I'm very nimble," Satoru offered, seeing that Ayame wasn't there and the shop was quite busy.
Teuchi's expression hardened: "No, I must be responsible for the deliciousness of the food I produce. You haven't learned the craft, and I'm afraid you'll ruin my reputation."
He absolutely would not allow that.
Seeing Teuchi so insistent, Satoru decided to compromise: "How about this, I'll help you knead the dough? I'm a Ninja, I have strength."
Without waiting for Teuchi's agreement, he quickly finished the ramen in his bowl and slipped into Teuchi's workspace.
"Hey, don't mess around!" Teuchi exclaimed in surprise.
However, Satoru had already started.
After observing for so long, he knew he couldn't handle the ingredients, but he was already skilled at kneading dough.
Flour, an appropriate amount of water…
Kneading, slamming, rubbing, pulling… it was all fluid and smooth.
After the flour dried, he would appropriately dip his palm in water to keep the dough moist.
His powerful mind allowed him to know when the dough was at its best elasticity.
With a Ninja's perception, the ingredients the dough needed also couldn't escape his senses.
Teuchi was stunned; were those techniques and that level of skill really from someone who hadn't learned the craft?
"You brat, you clearly learned the craft, yet you weren't honest and said it was your first time learning," Teuchi said to him grumpily.
His hands didn't stop, making noodles for the customers.
Satoru laughed: "I come every day and learned by watching your movements. Look at my current movements, they're all done according to your method."
With his help, Teuchi's work became much easier.
The speed of serving also increased.
Knowing Satoru's learning speed, Teuchi was also very satisfied; this kid's learning ability was quite good.
If he became his son-in-law, he could inherit his ramen shop after retiring from being a Ninja.
Thinking of this, he even explained the noodle-making process and details to Satoru.
With the guidance, Satoru, who was already skilled, became even more proficient.
Tap, tap, tap!
Just then, a blonde man entered with a red-haired woman, whose stomach was already large.
"Fourth Hokage-sama."
Satoru was startled and immediately bowed to him.
Goodness, he had just been inaugurated less than half a day ago, and he was already bringing his wife to eat noodles!
"You're a Ninja, aren't you?" Minato said to Satoru, his perception was also quite good.
Since Minato's inauguration was today, Satoru didn't have to do any missions, so he wasn't wearing his forehead protector.
"Yes, Analysis Team, under Inoichi Yamanaka, a member of Dokuro's squad, Satoru."
Satoru answered honestly.
He didn't dare to be dishonest; Kushina was a Jinchuriki, and he couldn't let his eyes wander.
It wouldn't be good if Minato suspected him of being a spy or something.
"Minato… Hokage-sama, he saw I was too busy and helped me out," Teuchi quickly said, afraid that Satoru would be punished.
"Haha, Kushina's stomach is already so big; it'll be a few more months, right?"
Hearing this, Kushina, next to Minato, showed a happy smile on her face and touched her stomach: "Yes, it'll be soon."
And Minato remembered Satoru's name.
"One pork bone ramen, one seafood ramen."
"Yes, Hokage-sama."
Satoru also helped out; he had nothing to feel guilty about.
He was a legitimate inheritor of the Will of Fire.
However, it was better not to get involved with these important figures; a Ninja should just work honestly.
Just do a good job as a Ninja.