Chapter 025 Annual Konoha meeting

-Konoha-

It's been almost five months since Menma was traded away from Konoha.

If Menma were here right now, he would be shocked. The war is over since he went to that sea island. It's been three months since the war ended. The Third Raikage fought against 10,000 enemies for three days and eventually perished. Obito followed the same path as in canon. Kakashi is currently in mourning over Rin's death.

Minato became the Fourth Hokage two months ago. So Kakashi joined ANBU. Dai killed four of the Seven Swordmen and injured the other three. And he perished afterward.

Minato won against 10,000 Iwa shinobi alone. And he became a legend in this war. Menma also made a name for himself, but his name came after Minato, the Third Raikage, and Dai.

Minato married Kushina just after the war; recently she told him that she was pregnant.

Today there is an annual meeting. Everyone is present here. This is Minato's first time as Hokage hosting such a large gathering. The last one didn't count since it was a war meeting. Even Tsunade came to attend it. Jiraya and Orochimaru are also here. Konoha elders, Hiruzen, Danzo, clan leaders, Anbu, jonin, chunin, and some older genin are in this meeting.

Minato said to the crowd, "I am extremely glad to tell you that the Third Ninja War is over. And right now, the peace has been maintained for some time. At least, no one will wage full-scale war for at least 15 years, according to Shikaku's data. The Second and Third Ninja Wars both came one after another and caused the most damage. No one is ready for another war. Now, we can move on to other matters."

Everyone is happy to hear about the war's end proclamation; now they can at least see their village prosper during peacetime. Konoha is the biggest winner of the war since it has ended.

Danzo was looking around when he spotted a familiar face. A small boy is quietly sitting in the back.

Danzo got angry. He suddenly stood up and said, "Why is this guy still in Konoha? Isn't he supposed to be dead? And why did a retired shinobi attend this meeting?"

Everyone looked at the spot where Danzo pointed and they saw Menma sitting in the back row, happily smiling at everyone. He came back to Konoha as quickly as he could. He had heard that the war was over just a few days ago and got all of the details about it.

Menma had a crooked face and said, "Elder Danzo is again targeting the poor me. I just wanted to attend the annual meeting. There is no rule saying that a retired shinobi cannot attend annual meetings. I am not the only retired person here. Ohh! My mistake to call you an elder, you are not an elder anymore. You also forgot that I am from the Satoshi clan. Even though I am the only one right now. It also means I am the clan leader. Yup! You have to suck it up. As far as I remember you are the one who pressured Lord Third to trade me for more time. You also forgot that Cloud Shinobi forged a peace treaty for a limited time which is applicable till the previous war. So now their words no longer have any meaning. I don't think I was banished from the village. You also forgot that I am a Sixth Hokage Candidate. So technically no one can banish me as a future Hokage candidate except Lord Third or Fourth."

His words made sense. Many retired shinobi come to participate in the annual meeting. Danzo has a nasty expression. He lost his calm whenever he looked at Menma.

Many influential people in Konoha looked at the small boy. Even Three Snanin paid attention to him. Everyone knows this guy killed all those who captured and kept him as a prisoner. He is not a small boy but a dangerous one to be underestimated.

Hiruzen coughed at that moment. He looked at Danzo and gave him a warning glare. Then he looked at Menma and said, "Welcome back, Menma. I heard quite a lot about your deed. It was quite helpful in ending the war quickly on the Cloud side. It also relieved a lot of pressure on the other sides."

Danzo decided to butt his head again. He spoke, " He is only coming back now. He must be doing something shady in the dark." Danzo tried to throw some dirt on Menma.

Menma looked at him for a second and said, " Look, who is talking? The child kidnapper pedophile is saying to a child that if he didn't suck a child's dick then, the child has a problem with his dick. I told you before you were never my superior, not before and certainly not now. You never participated other than in the first ninja war. Only take credit for your nameless root members. And make it sound like you are the one who did it. A credit snatcher like you has no place to advise me. I only came back now because I got stuck in a summoning dimension. You live in the dark, but it doesn't mean the whole world is dark. Anyway, I am retired for your information. And I can gladly give the credit to you for it. Ohh, and next time you speak anything about me with that dirty mouth of yours. Be careful, you know what I did to the whole battalion of Cloud shinobi and I was alone at that time. Your root foundation will not be able to protect you from me. And it is not a warning, but a direct threat."

Menma unconsciously flared his chakra and it increased after he slaughtered thousands of shinobi. It is like a killer aura that can suffocate weak-minded people.

Minato coughed at that time. Hiruzen almost looked proud at Minato's action. Menma stopped his action at Minato's coughing action.

But people can see that Menma and Danzo are still in a stare-down contest.

Hiruzen suddenly said, "Danzo take your seat. Menma you should calm down. You know Danzo likes to joke a lot in recent years."

Menma nodded his head and said, "I am calm now, Lord third. I was sitting quietly but someone had a problem even with that. As far as I remember I only offended him once when I didn't recognise him during my ninja registration. And only told him the truth about the rumors going around among old people and ladies. Even people will think Senior Danzo has a problem if he goes on collecting children. He has a genuine problem with me because I can say it on his face. I once thought that those rumors were started by the Foundation's nameless ninjas. They cannot oppose him directly but they spread the truth through rumours. Looks like his foundation isn't loyal to him as he claims."

Menma played a simple tactic here, divide and rule. Danzo can never fully trust even his roots from now on. And it creates doubt in the root ninja's mind slowly but surely. Add the rumors with it. When the time comes, he will snatch root foundations from Danzo easily.

Many ninjas are paying close attention to Menma's words. Danzo showed his genuine displeasure through his expression. But even he felt a little doubtful after hearing his words.

Danzo didn't comment after that.

Orochimaru who is silent till now spoke, " I heard about you from fellow Konoha shinobi quite a lot. I heard you have a genius mind. Today we are here to discuss the progress of our village. And how we can improve the life of our village in better ways. Economy, wealth, and recovery after the war. If you have any opinions on it. They will listen to you. As we are not here to argue and put dirt on each other."

Snake sanin diffused the situation with ease. Danzo looked at him little thankful for it. But he is ready to mock Menma if he cannot say anything about it.

But Menma has made a grand impression on many shinobi. They are willing to listen if he says something good.

Menma spoke, " I attended Konoha Hospital as a medical ninja. It was a part-time on my part. But I still like to work as a Doctor. A civilization cannot progress if people die left and right. I find the current hospital quite small for my taste. It should be given more land to expand. I talked with the Hospital head Mrs Biwa Sarutobi once that medicine should be kept separately in an artificial cold place. So the medicine can last longer without losing its effect regularly. Regular monthly checkups of shinobi and civilians can keep them more healthy. If someone has some illness or disease symptom they can cured before getting sick. It will raise the health bar of Konoha village as a whole. It is not only a piece of advice but I am talking from experience as a medic."

And many people find it quite reasonable. Even Minato found that his words held quite reason for them.

Danzo huffed but didn't try to refute it.

Koharu spoke at this time, " You have interesting ideas Menma kun. I already talked with Mrs. Sarutobi about cold storage inside the hospital. I hope Fourth hokage and the council can agree to expand the Hospital as we have a larger population of Konoha than when it was established. And Regular checkups can also be arranged but people should be willing to come regularly. As we cannot spoon-feed them."

Even Tsuande nodded from a nearby chair about it. Jiraya also nodded after her.

Hamura thought for a moment and said, "Menma-kun, you also studied at the academy. And you cleared every subject, including the special classes they offer there. You've aced in every subject. So I also want to hear your opinion on education."

Hamura is impressed by Menma on his earlier advice. So he asked for the education department.

Menma said, " When the Konoha Academy started it had many things Lord Tobirama envisioned while doing it. It was built so every child can learn and build companionship apart from what is taught by family or inside their clan. School playgrounds needed to expand as the population of children in Konoha increased. The library needed to issue new and improved books as the books are quite old and unrevised inside that place. Orphan children should have been given more opportunities as they are quite oblivious to School. Root should be banned from taking children from orphanages who are supposed to study in school. Root is behaving like a private school inside Konoha."

Danzo suddenly got up and said, "You cannot say about banning the root from taking kids from an orphanage."

Hiruzen made him sit down forcefully. Menma ignored Danzo as if he didn't hear his words.

Menma said, "Orphanges inside or near Konoha should be kept a close eye as they have the most children who can be students of Konoha Academy. At least 90% of the orphan children are from Konoha shinobi squad members who died in battles for Konoha. If we cannot give their children a better education, then we should spit on the words comrade and companionship. It is no better than killing the people again who sacrificed for us in the war."

His words stung a lot this time. Many people in the room felt the words deep in their hearts.

Jiraya suddenly got up and said, "I am in favor of giving more education and funds to orphange children. Even if they didn't become shinobi. At least my comrades who died for our village can rest in peace. And we have to take care of them. Give them better education so they can grow up in a fine man and woman."

Jiraya sat down immediately afterward. He remembered the three orphans to whom he gave education after taking some time off.

Tsunade got up and said, " I agree with Jiraya. This is the least we can do for our dead comrades."

Tsunade wanted to get up earlier but Jiraya beat her into it. She has a soft spot for dead comrades. It is also one of the reasons Shizune is always with her.

Soon afterwards many clan leaders got up in this sudden decision.

Minato said, "Orphanages in Konoha and nearby, will be closely monitored by Konoha higher-ups from now on. The children will receive proper food, education, and funding for their growth. We have to keep a close eye on the children of our deceased comrades so they can grow up into fine young men and women one day."

His words met with applause at this time.

He looked at Menma as if asking him to continue. Menma spoke again, "Students need field exercises. Teachers can only teach them what they are supposed to teach. Field exercises mean letting them experience some outdoor experiences beyond the classroom. I'm not talking about sending them to war or bandit hunting. But we can arrange some outside exercises, other than what is originally taught. Or we can expand it to a grand scale. A tournament for children within the school can also be given a thought. From drawing to quizzes, we can also include jutsu competitions which were stopped recently. An annual marathon for school kids throughout Konoha, including doing various tasks during the run, can be appreciated."

Many found his words quite pleasing to their ears. Especially the clan leaders, as it will demonstrate the strength of their clan within the competition.

Hamura asked, "You spoke a lot about students. I agree with you on that because they are the future generation. What about teachers and staff?"

Menma sighed in his heart. He had to speak again, "I was never a teacher, so I cannot comment on that. But teachers should be carefully selected. One bad teacher and all the children will die. If not that, then they will not learn anything useful. The teacher's behavior also shapes the student's mindset. We don't need a genius as a teacher, but a teacher who can make geniuses. And push the limits of their knowledge. Even a teacher who can make students learn better is also appreciated. A teacher should have two assistant teachers. Take it as an internship for new teachers as assistants. But an active and thinking-out-of-the-box teacher is more appreciated in my view. Good luck on finding them, as they are rarer than genius students."

Hamura was satisfied with his words.

Minato suddenly said, "You don't speak like a kid of your age. Your insights are very valuable. Do you have any more advice? If you do, I am all ears."

Minato wants to know more about it as he believes it will help him understand things better.

Menma thought for a moment and said, "Genin reserve squads don't get rapid promotions. A good employee likes to get promoted, especially when they are worthy. Mostly they don't have a jonin instructor. But we can change that for them. Few dojos under the authority of the Hokage, which can be managed by a few retired or old shinobi. Where they can teach them as their students in their free time. It can not only increase their chances of survival but also allow them to learn from a dojo master. Dojos can also be made according to specialization. A dojo can be used to train, hone, and learn even as an adult. The dojo master can have dojo teachers of around ten or twelve people to instruct the dojo apprentices, who can be genin or even chunin. However, the dojo services cannot be free. They have to pay a membership fee three times a year. The money will go into the Konoha fund. And among these dojos, we can have competitions once a year to see their progress."

Many people remained silent, but a Jonin suddenly stood up and said, "Is this for only Genin reserve squads or other people as well? I am very supportive of this idea."

Menma said, "I thought this idea had merits for both genin and chunin. If you want to form a club or even a dojo, everyone just needs to pay four months' membership fees. We could also change it to an annual membership. The person who joins has to pay for his development since it isn't a school. Genin reserves or even jonin sends his students while he is away on a mission. A jonin has to make sure his students learn properly. If he doesn't have time for some reason, then he should find someone else to torture them. I mean training. And an older generation can teach many other things and share their experiences with the younger ones. A good teacher knows what field he is good at. And which person can teach his student a better thing apart from him? A good teacher cannot neglect his students when he is far away. Even if it means to train them through his other comrades."

Many Jonin had laughed at his tortured words earlier.

Minato thought for a moment and asked, "This Dojo idea is very good. It will make our village even stronger. So, how many dojos do you think we can have?"

Even three sanin like the idea.

Menma thought for a moment, "We can have 40 dojos right now. But we can increase the number to 50 if the 40 dojos cannot handle that many apprentices. We can add some daily necessities-type dojos like cooking skills as a separate one. Most shinobi or kunoichi don't know about cooking. Even my father complained about my mother's cooking after they got married. It took at least a few months for Mother to learn how to cook a few nice meals."

Every jonin and chunin who is married has sweated at that time.

Minato twitched for some reason but he said, " Approved. Dojo can be built as soon as possible especially that cooking one."

At home, Kushina felt that Minato must have been thinking about her. She is pregnant and has learned how to cook. She experimented with various dishes for Minato. The Hokage had to eat them without complaint.

Menma sat down at that moment, seemingly indicating he wanted some rest. The meeting soon went on in full swing. However, people noticed that Danzo and Menma were eyeing each other like prey. Whatever one of them agreed upon, the other would disagree; and vice versa.

Shikaku Nara once suggested expanding the Anbu force. Danzo disagreed with this idea. However, Menma stood up and agreed with Nara. He even pointed out that the Root is not part of the Anbu, but rather a private army, whose loyalty is questionable.

Once Orochimaru agrees with Danzo on some matter. Jiraya is then convinced by Menma and has to stand up for him. Then Tsunade also joined after hearing Menma's point.

Even Elders and clan leaders have never seen this kind of heated discussion. Shikaku Nara was the last to speak as he found the discussion quite enlightening.

That day shinobi of Konoha knew that Whatever Danzo threw Menma would counter. And then counterattack Danzo soon afterward. They didn't even shy away from throwing threats sometimes.

Danzo once said that he was doing it all for Konoha. Then Menma replied he was going to kill Danzo for Konoha and its greater good.

Even Minato felt that he was in a court or parliament at that time. And Danzo looked like an accused and Menma the revengeful victim. Both sides went bombing words during the whole annual meeting this time. A young boy and an Old man are in a cold war inside the annual meeting.

By the time, the meeting came to an end. Menma and Danzo are still going at each other throats. Danzo's voice became dim from all the speaking. But Menma will be known for his poisonous tongue from that day. Even Danzo wanted to go back after suffering from such tongue lashing.

Menma stayed for five more days in Konoha. And left after saying goodbye to everyone. He even met Fourth hokage for one last time before leaving.