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The Hokage’s hat.
The Hokage (火影, Literally meaning: Fire Shadow) is the Kage of Konohagakure, a title bestowed on the village’s leader. The Hokage is generally regarded as the strongest shinobi in the village. There have been six Hokage in the village’s history.
Overview[]
The Hokage position was created shortly after the creation of Konoha by Hashirama Senju, one of the village’s founders. He intended the title to be given to his cofounder, Madara Uchiha, but the village’s population instead selected Hashirama as the First Hokage. Madara feared that Hashirama’s selection was the first step in making the Hokage office an extension of the Senju clan’s authority, a fear Hashirama denied.[1] Despite this, all of the village’s Hokage have traced back to Hashirama in some way: the Second was his brother; the Third was a student of both his brother and himself; the Fourth was a student of one of the Third’s students; the Fifth is his granddaughter and another student of the Third; and the Sixth is the son of the Fourth who learned from the students of the Third and Fourth, respectively.
The Hokage Rock.
The Hokage typically selects their successor. If they die or are otherwise incapacitated, the next Hokage is instead chosen by the daimyō of the Land of Fire with the advice of his committee, the Konoha Council, the Jōnin Commander, and a representative of the Anbu. Konoha’s jōnin must then approve this choice. If one of the Hokage’s predecessors is still alive, they may return to the position rather than select a new Hokage, as when the Third came out of retirement following the Fourth’s death. The Hokage’s inauguration is a major event in Konoha, with most of the village attending. The new Hokage is granted a ceremonial haori on the occasion; the same woman has embroidered the haori for all six Hokage.[2] Once they assume the duties of Hokage, their face is carved into the Hokage Rock and they usually move into the Hokage Residence. The Hokage’s office is located in the administrative section of the Academy.
Hokage are responsible for most of the village’s day-to-day affairs, such as assigning the village’s ninja to missions or securing funding for the village’s projects and personnel. The Hokage spends most of their time in the village, only traveling abroad for events of vital importance to Konoha. Each Hokage typically lives according to the Will of Fire, a philosophy that holds that Konoha is a family and that the Hokage is chiefly responsible for protecting that family. The workload of Hokage can be quite formidable, and as such retired Hokage may continue to oversee certain sections of the village or, if not that, will advise the current Hokage on request. Over a decade after the Fourth Shinobi World War, the workload of the Hokage had expanded tremendously due to the expansive growth that Konohagakure enjoyed after the War, as well as the Hokage’s duties becoming nearly that of a pseudo-head of state in the Land of Fire.
List of Hokage[]
First Hokage[]
Main article: Hashirama Senju (RW109)
Hashirama Senju, the First Hokage.
Hashirama Senju (千手柱間, Senju Hashirama) was a member and leader of the famed Senju clan. He was hailed as the “God of Shinobi” (忍の神, Shinobi no Kami) for his unmatched ninja prowess. Hashirama sought peace for the shinobi world, and to that end founded Konohagakure with his clan, his childhood friend and rival: Madara Uchiha, and the Uchiha clan. He would later become the First Hokage (初代火影, Shodai Hokage, Literally meaning: First or Founding Fire Shadow) of Konohagakure. Although he was not able to achieve peace during his lifetime, his legacy and vision for the world would continue to shape the village and the entire shinobi world even after his death.
Second Hokage[]
Main article: Tobirama Senju (RW109)
Tobirama Senju, the Second Hokage.
Tobirama Senju (千住扉間, Senju Tobirama) was a member of the renowned Senju clan, who, together with his elder brother and the Uchiha clan, founded the first shinobi village: Konohagakure. Throughout his lifetime, Tobirama would work tirelessly to achieve political stability and implement the institutions that made the village system work, thus ensuring Konoha’s continuity and prosperity. After his brother’s death, he would earn the title of Second Hokage (二代目火影, Nidaime Hokage, Literally meaning: Second Fire Shadow).
Third Hokage[]
Main article: Hiruzen Sarutobi (RW109)
Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage.
Hiruzen Sarutobi (猿飛ヒルゼン, Sarutobi Hiruzen) was the Third Hokage (三代目火影, Sandaime Hokage, Literally meaning: Third Fire Shadow) of Konohagakure. A disciple of the village’s two previous Hokage, Hiruzen was a powerful ninja, hailed as The Professor (教授, Kyōjū) for his exceptional knowledge and skill in the five elemental techniques and is a prodigy at understanding non-elemental jutsu, all bloodline limits, and hiden jutsu to an extent during battle. Though he was only ever directly the teacher of the Sannin, generations of Konoha shinobi benefited from his wisdom during his lifetime.
Fourth Hokage[]
Main article: Minato Namikaze (RW109)
Minato Namikaze, the Fourth Hokage.
Minato Namikaze (波風ミナト, Namikaze Minato) was the Fourth Hokage (四代目火影, Literally meaning: Fourth Fire Shadow) of Konohagakure. He was renowned all over the world as Konoha’s Yellow Flash (木ノ葉の黄色い閃光, Konoha no Kiiroi Senkō). He died during the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox’s Attack, sacrificing his life to seal the Nine-Tails into his newborn son, Naruto Uzumaki.
Fifth Hokage[]
Main article: Tsunade Senju (RW109)
Tsunade Senju, the Fifth Hokage.
Tsunade Senju (千住綱手, Senju Tsunade) is the last remaining member of the Senju clan and a descendant of the Uzumaki from Uzushiogakure. She was one of the Sannin, famed as the strongest kunoichi in the world, and the greatest medical-nin. The repeated loss of her loved ones caused Tsunade to later abandon the life of a shinobi for many years. She is eventually persuaded to return to Konoha and take on the mantle of Fifth Hokage (五代目火影, Godaime Hokage, Literally meaning: Fifth Fire Shadow), where her skills prove invaluable to the village.
Sixth Hokage[]
Main article: Naruto Uzumaki (RW109)
Naruto Uzumaki, the Sixth Hokage.
Naruto Uzumaki (うずまきナルト, Uzumaki Naruto) is a shinobi of Konohagakure’s Uzumaki clan. He became the jinchūriki of the Nine-Tails on the day of his birth — a fate that caused him to be shunned by most of Konoha throughout his childhood. After joining Team Kakashi, Naruto worked hard to become Hokage as he resented his father, Minato Namikaze, for placing such a burden on him. In the following years, he became a capable ninja who earned himself the title of Hero of the Hidden Leaf (木ノ葉隠れの英雄, Konohagakure no Eiyū, Literally meaning: Hero of the Hidden Tree Leaves) as his father always wanted him to be. He soon proved to be one of the main factors in winning the Fourth Shinobi World War, leading him to achieve his dream and become the village’s Sixth Hokage (六代目火影, Rokudaime Hokage, Literally meaning: Sixth Fire Shadow).
Candidates[]
Sixth Hokage Candidate[]
Main article: Danzō Shimura (RW109)
Danzō Shimura, the Sixth Hokage Candidate.
Danzō Shimura (志村ダンゾウ, Shimura Danzō) was an elder of Konohagakure. As the founder and leader of Root, Danzō gained notoriety as The Darkness of the Shinobi (忍の闇, Shinobi no Yami, English TV: The Shinobi of Darkness)[3] because of his frequent unsanctioned actions and his often suspected (but rarely proven) undermining of specific Konoha personnel. Despite his decades of suspicious deeds, Danzō only ever acted in what he believed was the village’s best interests. He was appointed the Sixth Hokage Candidate (六代目火影候補, Rokudaime Hokage Kōho, Literally meaning: Sixth Fire Shadow Candidate) after Pain’s Assault but died before he could be formally approved to the position.
Trivia[]
- During his life, the Third Hokage was said to be the strongest Hokage in the village’s history as well as the strongest Kage of his time.[4][5][6] Years later, the Sixth Hokage was also recognized in the same way.[7]
- Orochimaru was a prime candidate to be the Fourth Hokage but was passed over because he did not embody the Will of Fire.[8]
- Fugaku Uchiha’s talents were considered comparable to Minato Namikaze, the Sannin, and Shindō Shunsoku; however, his name was not even suggested. Many in the Uchiha Clan suspected this was due to the village officials not wanting the Uchiha Clan on center stage.[9]
- Jiraiya was considered for the Hokage position multiple times: first before the Third’s retirement,[10] again after the Fourth’s death, and again after the Third’s death.[11] He refused each time because he believed he could not give the office the attention it deserved.
- Toshirō Shunsoku was another possible candidate for the position of Fourth Hokage since he could fight any Kage-level opponent, but he declined the nomination because he believed Minato was a closer embodiment of the Will of Fire.
- The first five Hokage had their official photographs taken while wearing a ceremonial necklace of sorts.[12]
- According to Asuma Sarutobi, Shikamaru Nara can become Hokage if he were not so lazy.[13]
- At one point, Sasuke and Shindō claimed Itachi to be the “true” Hokage on account of the latter hefty sacrifices for the sake of the village. A reincarnated Hiruzen would later share this sentiment.
- At the end of A Shinobi Story, Naruto refers to Sasuke as the “Shadow Hokage” because, to Naruto, he protects the village from the inside whereas Sasuke supports him and protects the village from the outside; however, Sasuke never recognizes as a Hokage to his past criminal acts and his lifelong journey of atonement.
- In the Genjutsu World seen in Road to Ninja: Naruto the Movie, Kizashi Haruno was the Fourth Hokage. Like the real Fourth Hokage, he gave his life to save the village.
- Naruto Uzumaki was made Hokage for a week in the storyline of Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 3.
- Might Guy was made Hokage (“Guykage” as it was named) in the Rock Lee’s Springtime of Youth Full Power Ninja Chronicles spin-off.
- In Jiraiya’s novel The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi, the village leader of Shuku is called the Kokage as an obvious homage to the Hokage position.
- Several victims of the Infinite Tsukuyomi dream of different Hokage:
- Kiba Inuzuka dreams that he is Hokage, a position he uses to declare a national holiday for dogs.
- Tsunade dreams that Dan Katō is Hokage.
- In the anime, Karin dreams that Sasuke Uchiha is the Sixth Hokage.
- It is tradition that a Konoha shinobi’s first mission is directly received from the Hokage.[14]
References[]
- ↑ Naruto chapter 625, pages 7-13
- ↑ “The Day Naruto Became Hokage”
- ↑ Naruto chapter 459, page 1
- ↑ First Databook, pages 117 and 265
- ↑ Naruto chapter 94, page 12
- ↑ Naruto chapter 140, page 3
- ↑ Boruto episode 12
- ↑ Naruto chapter 121, pages 6-7
- ↑ Itachi Shinden: Book of Bright Light
- ↑ Naruto chapter 366, page 12
- ↑ Naruto chapter 140, page 10
- ↑ Boruto: Naruto the Movie
- ↑ Naruto chapter 328, page 8
- ↑ Boruto episode 40