I founded the "Bragging Cult" in Naruto.

Chapter 191: There are some experiences that others have already summarized, so don't try to verify them yourself.

The Hokage's bodyguards are like secretaries to certain leaders in the previous life; their positions may not seem high, but their status is higher than that of many mid-level leaders.

Even if a branch office is established or an overseas posting is made, the secretary is very likely to rise to the top and become the highest leader of the branch office.

The same applies to the Hokage's guards; in other words, each Hokage's guards are extremely special.

When the Hidden Village was first established, the first Five Kage Summit was attended by several people who served as the Hokage's bodyguards. They were all successors to the position of Kage from their respective villages, either the Second or the Third Hokage.

In Konoha Village, the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, was the Hokage's bodyguard of the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju; the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was the Hokage's bodyguard of the Second Hokage; and the Sixth Hokage, Kakashi, also served as the Hokage's bodyguard.

It can be said that this position is extremely valuable, because serving as the Hokage's bodyguard not only means taking on the responsibility of protecting the Hokage, but also means having frequent contact with the Konoha leadership.

They may not have the right to speak, but they are definitely among the first to know about changes inside and outside the village.

Furthermore, if anyone in the village wants to know how the Hokage is feeling lately, such as when submitting a proposal, they should first talk about the leader's mood and tone. Directly approaching the leader is not allowed, so the Hokage's bodyguards become the best targets for inquiry.

In other words, each Hokage's bodyguard would act as an intermediary between the Hokage and the heads of various ninja clans or those ninjas holding important positions, and these people would try their best to maintain good relations with the Hokage's bodyguards.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's proposal to appoint Tatsuma as the Hokage's bodyguard signifies that he genuinely intends to consider Tatsuma as "one of his own."

Although they belonged to the same faction and Hiruzen Sarutobi had given them a lot of resources, there was always Tsunade between them. But if Tatsuma becomes the Hokage's bodyguard, then that little gap will be removed.

Tatsuma naturally knew the intricacies of the matter, so when Hiruzen Sarutobi brought it up, he neither immediately refused nor dared to immediately agree, but instead looked at Tsunade.

She also glanced at Orochimaru beside Tsunade. Orochimaru had also clearly heard his teacher's plan, and he nodded slightly in agreement.

Tsunade, however, seemed not to have understood and retorted, "Why are you looking at me? You don't want to go to Konoha Hospital, and I'm not familiar with other places. You can make your own decision."

Tatsuma then turned back to Hiruzen Sarutobi, maintaining his shyness and humility, and said, "Hokage-sama, I am merely a Chunin. Will my abilities be lacking in serving as your bodyguard?"

This is the downside when dealing with superiors: even if you want something, you have to humbly decline first, and then "reluctantly" accept the benefit under the superior's "request".

Hiruzen Sarutobi also smiled and said, "Tatsuma, there's no need to belittle yourself. Your talent and ability are the most outstanding I've ever seen among your peers."

Furthermore, the Hokage rarely leaves the village, so as the Hokage's bodyguard, you would naturally have to stay in the village year-round. With your current abilities, you are more than capable of handling any potential dangers you might encounter.

I'm actually worried that staying in the village for too long will hinder your development.

Tatsuma knew it was time to agree, because if he refused again, he would give the impression that he disliked or was unwilling to become the Hokage's bodyguard.

Even if Hiruzen Sarutobi tried to persuade him again, and Tatsuma agreed in the next round, it would still leave a bad impression. Therefore, he simply nodded and said:

"No, Lord Hokage. Learning by your side will definitely be much faster than training alone. As long as you don't think I'm not capable enough, I'm willing to serve as your bodyguard."

I will continue to work hard and learn, to become a ninja who can better serve the Hokage and the village.

Tsunade suddenly found this disciple increasingly displeasing. After all, the more polite Tatsuma was, the more impolite she seemed.

She's now reluctant to even use honorifics when addressing Hiruzen Sarutobi, since he hasn't yet fulfilled his promise to her!

"Sycophant."

Tsunade said in a low voice. Tatsuma's face stiffened, and Hiruzen Sarutobi's smile also faded slightly. He glanced at his disciple with dissatisfaction, but did not say anything.

Before the atmosphere had completely cooled down, Hiruzen Sarutobi turned to Orochimaru and said, "Orochimaru, organize the information on the participating ninjas and report the mission completion count to Shikamaru."

He will coordinate and calculate the rewards or subsidies for each ninja. At the same time, the list of the fallen should be compiled as soon as possible. Although fighting continues in various places, the war is over, and it's time to announce the news.

At the same time, funeral preparations should begin.

The funeral that Hiruzen Sarutobi was referring to was not a funeral for any one person, but a collective funeral. After the war, the ninjas who died because of the war would be engraved on memorial tablets and become heroes of the village.

The names on the memorial tablets are not updated in real time; they are only updated once after such a major battle has ended.

Moreover, once the funeral is over and the aftermath of the war is being dealt with, if any more ninjas die, their names will not be able to be enshrined on the memorial tablet, at least not so soon.

At the earliest, it will be filled in after the outbreak and end of the next major war.

"Yes, teacher, I've almost finished organizing it. I'll go back and check it before handing it over to Lord Lu Yuan."

Orochimaru answered, and Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded, then looked at Tatsuma again and said, "You've been fighting for the past two years, so go back and rest for a while."

"You'll receive an official appointment letter in a while, at which point you'll officially assume the position of Hokage's bodyguard."

"Yes, Lord Hokage."

Tatsuma quickly obeyed the order, and Hiruzen Sarutobi gave Tsunade one last look, who still looked dissatisfied.

He knew where Tsunade's dissatisfaction stemmed from, because a few months ago, he had promised Tsunade that once the war ended, he would prepare for the establishment of a medical ninja training system.

But there are still too many things to do, too many rewards and subsidies, and too many condolence payments to distribute. Hiruzen Sarutobi is not sure how much money will be left.

Even now, the village's funds may not be enough, and he may have to go to the Daimyo Prefecture to apply for more funding. Therefore, Tsunade's matter will have to be postponed again.

Therefore, Hiruzen Sarutobi could only ignore Tsunade's displeased gaze, wave his hand, and say, "Alright, you're all tired from the journey, go back and rest."

Tsunade stared at Hiruzen Sarutobi, and seeing that he had no intention of bringing up the matter, she snorted, then grabbed Tatsuma by the back of the neck and walked outside.

Not long after leaving the Hokage Building, Tsunade and Orochimaru said a brief goodbye and were about to leave when Tatsuma quickly asked, "Lord Orochimaru."

"Um?"

Orochimaru stopped in his tracks, looking at Tatsuma with a puzzled expression. Tatsuma, wearing an awkward smile that suggested he was short of money, asked, "When will the mission reward be issued?"

Upon hearing this, Orochimaru retorted, "Are you short of money?"

Tatsuma nodded and said, "Yeah, we're penniless, and Minato's about the same."

Orochimaru recalled for a moment and said, "It usually takes two to three weeks after a battle to complete the overall planning and calculations before the rewards are distributed. Moreover, this time the scale is larger than any I have ever experienced, and it will probably take even longer."

Tatsuma's face stiffened. Orochimaru, seeing this, patted his head, then pulled out a large wad of cash and said, "But if it's just money, I can have it."

"Swoosh~"

Orochimaru's hand suddenly went empty; Tsunade had already run over a hundred meters away, leaving behind a cry: "Orochimaru, thanks! I'll pay you back double if I win!"

Tatsuma slapped his forehead, and Orochimaru's facial muscles twitched several times, but he took a deep breath and calmed down, saying, "Let me tell you a little trick for getting along with Tsunade."

"what?"

Seeing the confusion on Tatsuma's face, Orochimaru felt a strange sense of relief. After all, in terms of intelligence, this little guy seemed to be no less than himself, and it would be quite nice to be able to give him some guidance.

Prepare two or more pockets or wallets for carrying money.

As he spoke, Orochimaru pulled out another wad of cash from another pocket. Although it wasn't as much as the previous wad, it was still a considerable sum. He handed the money to Tatsuma and said:

"Take it first, no rush to pay it back. I'm not Jiraiya, I won't be robbed of every penny."

Tatsuma looked at Orochimaru with a hint of admiration. How come he hadn't thought of such a simple yet effective method before?

At the same time, Chenma also glanced at the money in Orochimaru's hand. Each bill was two hundred taels in denomination and was brand new. He estimated that there were exactly one hundred bills, which would amount to twenty thousand taels. It wasn't a lot, and he wouldn't have much trouble paying it back.

If you don't buy ninja supplies or spend extravagantly, plus the fact that rent and utilities are now free, and even meals are free, it's enough to meet many of your consumption needs.

Therefore, Tatsuma accepted it and said, "Thank you, Lord Orochimaru. I will return it to you as soon as the bounty is paid."

"Don't go with your teacher to collect the mission reward. After collecting the reward, remember to open an account for savings. Don't carry too much money with you, and never reveal your savings password."

As Orochimaru handed the money to Tatsuma, he also gave him a few words of advice. Tatsuma listened very attentively; these were probably Orochimaru's hard-earned lessons.

Without Orochimaru's instruction, Tatsuma would probably have been foolish enough to fall for it once before he understood these things. But if he had to figure it out on his own, he would have already lost too much.

After saying goodbye to Orochimaru, Tatsuma headed towards the Senju clan's territory. Minato had already been brought there, but Kushina was nowhere to be seen.

"Kushina has moved out."

Perhaps anticipating Tatsuma's question, Minato explained, "It seems to be a bit far from where the sealing squad usually carries out their missions, so they moved out."

Tatsuma found this reason rather unbelievable, since that distance wouldn't affect a ninja at all; there must be other reasons for leaving, perhaps it was due to a rebellious phase.

Tatsuma pursed his lips, handed half the money to Minato, and said, "This is a loan from Lord Orochimaru. Don't let my teacher know."

"What? How can that be?"

Minato seemed to have a natural resistance to lending money, but Tatsuma simply handed it to him and said, "Take it, you have to pay it back."

Upon hearing this, Minato nodded. Seeing that Minato had accepted the gift, Tatsuma released him and asked, "Will Kushina be back for dinner tonight?"

"I'm not sure, should I go ask? I just found out the address myself."

"Okay, I'll go check on Grandma Mito."

After a brief exchange, Minato left, while Tatsuma entered the house, smiling, and said, "Grandma Mito, I'm back."

(End of this chapter)