Known as the "Professor" for his almost encyclopedic knowledge of Konohagakure's treasured ninjutsu techniques, the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi was hailed as one of the strongest Kage of his time in Naruto. He took on his post as Hokage under extremely trying circumstances, as his mentor, Tobirama Senju, was forced to sacrifice himself in order to allow his subordinates to escape a skirmish with Kumogakure's Kinkaku Force during the First Shinobi World War. While his reign saw two more such conflicts occur, he was able to guide his village to a period of relative peace and stability by the start of Naruto's main storyline.

Although his tenure as Hokage was far from perfect, with some of his gravest mistakes leading to horrific problems for both Konohagakure and the shinobi world at large, Hiruzen also instilled a deep sense of community within his village. Being a firm believer in the Will of Fire, Hiruzen was responsible for a great many reforms in the village. He also trained some of the strongest shinobi in the village's history, in the form of the three legendary Sannin. There are a great number of reasons behind Hiruzen's longevity as Hokage, beyond the fact that he was made to serve two terms in the role, and many stem from his ideals as both a shinobi and his intense love for those he watched over.

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One Of The Most Versatile Shinobi In History

Having studied under both of his predecessors, Hashirama and Tobirama Senju, Hiruzen was able to use all five chakra natures alongside Yin Release and Yang Release, and also knew virtually all of Konohagakure's secret ninjutsu techniques. The Third Hokage also developed a number of now iconic jutsu of his own, such as the Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique, or the Five Release Great Combo Technique.

In addition, Hiruzen was said to have immense reserves of chakra during his prime, which only diminished towards the end of his life. Despite this, he was able to compensate with incredible chakra control, which permitted him to use exactly as much chakra as was necessary to perform a technique. Although his reserves reduced in old age, Hiruzen's chakra was still quite potent, as he was able to crack stone while molding it. Even Orochimaru believed that if Hiruzen had been only ten years younger at the time of the Konoha Crush, he would have easily defeated the Sannin as well as the First and Second Hokage, who had been revived by the Edo Tensei. He also possessed sharp sensory abilities and reflexes even in old age, as seen during the Konoha Crush when he had to take on Hashirama Senju's Bringer-of-Darkness Technique.

Combined with his exceptional taijutsu and keen knowledge of advanced sealing techniques, Hiruzen was arguably one of the most versatile and well-rounded shinobi in history, able to respond to virtually any situation he had to confront. From his arsenal of jutsu, which perhaps exceeded even Kakashi's, to the monstrous chakra he had in his prime, and his equal aptitude in using all five Nature Releases, Hiruzen had reached a level comparable to his mentors. This earned him a great deal of respect among both the shinobi of Konohagakure, and those from rival villages, which speaks volumes of how safe the villagers felt with him as Hokage, playing a major part in how long he held on to the position.

A Moderate Approach To Leadership

One of Hiruzen's most prominent traits was his steadfast belief in the Will of Fire. He saw the people of Konohagakure as his family and viewed the Hokage as someone who was responsible for looking after the collective well-being of the village. As such, he was devoted to his students and the youth of Konohagakure, seeing them as the future that he had to do everything to protect. His decisions as Hokage were always made with goal of improving the lives of everyone in the village, and he was always ready to provide guidance and advice to the shinobi that he was responsible for.

Another very noticeable aspect of his approach to being Hokage was his moderate outlook on resolving conflicts, as opposed to the more hard line attitudes of others such as his mentor Tobirama Senju, or Danzo Shimura. In many ways, Danzo's decision to take on the darkness of the village allowed Hiruzen to follow his route of avoiding conflict wherever possible, even though it did prove to be one of his biggest mistakes. Danzo's misdeeds were responsible for tragedies such as the Uchiha Clan Downfall, the destruction of Konohagakure by Pain, and the vile human experimentation conducted by Hiruzen's own pupil Orochimaru, Hiruzen collectively viewed them as his own failures.

Pacifism was also a philosophy that Hiruzen staunchly adhered to at all costs, as he had seen the horrors of war firsthand at various points in his life. While this led him being perceived as soft by some, it also contributed to how much he was loved and admired by the villagers of Konohagakure, and the degree of respect he received from his fellow Kage. As such, his death during the Konoha Crush was deeply mourned as a great loss to the shinobi world.

Taking On The Mantle A Second Time

Hiruzen initially stepped down as Hokage after the Third Shinobi World War, where he signed a peace treaty with Iwagakure to end the conflict despite the losses Konohagakure had endured. This act enraged Danzo, prompting the Third Hokage to end his reign and choose a successor. When his favorite student, Orochimaru, proved himself unworthy of the role, and Jiraiya refused the position, it was the young Minato Namikaze who stepped up to become the Fourth Hokage. Unfortunately, his reign was short-lived as he and his wife Kushina, died during the Nine Tails' attack on the village.

With no qualified candidates to replace him, Hiruzen came out of retirement to serve a second term, which would continue until his eventual death during the Konoha Crush. The reason why he was called back to serve a second term was the immense admiration the village held for him, even despite his failures. Hiruzen's presence itself came to embody the Will of Fire for many, and the villagers saw some of its most important principles reflected in the way he conducted himself as Hokage.

As the strongest Kage of his time, and perhaps even one of the strongest Hokage in history, Hiruzen's first term brought some measure of stability between rival nations, as compared to the earlier era of Warring States. The hidden village system laid out by his predecessors had finally taken root across the world, and had brought an unsteady calm, only broken by the two great wars that broke out in this time. Building on this progress, his second term was a period of relative stability and peace, without any large scale conflict between major nations in the shinobi world of Naruto. This was also a huge factor in his longevity as Hokage, as the absence of conflict reduced the risk of him dying in battle towards, while also consolidating Konohagakure's defensive measures against any attempt on his life.

When brought back to life by the Summoning: Impure World Reincarnation, Hiruzen reflected on some of his failures and realized that his time as Hokage was flawed just as he himself was, even though he was always trying to do his best for the good of the village. He lamented that he could have averted a great deal of misfortune that befell the village and the shinobi world if he had ruled with a firmer hand. Nevertheless, Hiruzen Sarutobi came to be regarded as a great leader, and one that many shinobi strived to emulate, showing that in the end, he was judged by his merits rather than purely his faults, which is why many were content to have him serve as Hokage for so long.

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