In Naruto, being a Hokage is not just a position of prestige and privileges, but a political position that demands responsibility. After all, your main function is to manage an entire village and preserve the safety of its population. Basically, he (or she) needs to take on political commitments in times of peace and be on the front lines commanding ninja troops in times of war.
The position comes along with the foundation of Konoha, as the need for a centralized administration for the growth of the village was seen. Usually, Hokages are chosen through a Council of the Land of Fire (the Leaf Village Council, the ANBU with a representative, and the commander of the Jounin) or through the direct nomination of the Hokage himself if he or she is still alive.
Throughout the franchise, we had seven Hokages, but there are other characters who would do great commanding Konoha. Here are seven more Naruto characters who would have done the title of Hokage proud.
Haruno Sakura
Haruno Sakura became one of the most powerful ninjas of her generation, being extremely intelligent, having enviable chakra control and overwhelming strength. She has become a disciple of none other than Senju Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage, so it is clear that she is more than qualified for the role.
In addition, many believe that she surpassed her sensei—not to mention becoming a medical ninja who runs the entire Konoha Hospital. She would be able to handle the bureaucratic part of being Hokage, as she is the director of a hospital, in addition to making smart decisions in combat and, of course, being able to save lives with her Medical Jutsu. Like her great master Tsunade, Sakura would certainly be a good Hokage and protect the Leaf Village.
Uchiha Sasuke
Leaving aside all the troubled past and taking into account the grown man that Sasuke has become, it is clear that he would not be left out of this list. Like everyone present here, Sasuke meets all the requirements such as intelligence, strength, skills, and ability to be a leader of the Village. His Doujutsu is a separate detail since it makes him one of the most powerful ninjas of his generation. He would be extremely capable of leading an army of ninja and even protecting Konoha alone if he had to.
He is also not the type to accumulate functions, so it is very likely that he would also do well in the bureaucratic and administrative part.
Nara Shikamaru
Despite many fans finding Shikamaru too lazy for the job, he would be quite the Hokage if he really wanted that for his life. Starting with the fact that he is the right-hand man to Naruto—the Seventh and current Hokage—all the village's decisions are already passed through him for his opinion.
In addition, it is known by all who have watched Naruto how much Shikamaru is a great strategist who does not even need to use brute force to win his battles, as his intelligence always proves to be enough. Able to make quick decisions in difficult times and come up with infallible plans, Konoha would definitely be in good hands.
What's more, he has everything a good diplomat needs: intelligence, wisdom, calm, and a willingness to avoid conflict. That is, he would do everything to resolve possible disagreements with other villages and countries based on conversation and strategy, thus avoiding major wars.
Maito Guy
Guy has one thing all Hokage must have: the Will of Fire! Despite not being a character that has great relevance to the work (until the Arc of the Great War), he has always shown unshakable willpower, in addition to being an excellent sensei and a very powerful ninja.
Responsible for making Uchiha Madadra himself bleed in his most powerful version, he opened the Eighth Gate —the Gate of Death—without caring about losing his life, if it would save all of Konoha. That's the attitude of a leader, and he had it even without being a Hokage.
He might not even be the best of all in bureaucratic affairs and paperwork, but Tsunade and Naruto weren't either. However, Guy would give his life whenever it was necessary to protect his people and that's the function of a Hokage, after all.
Uchiha Itachi
It is indisputable the fact that Itachi would be one of the best Hokage Konoha has ever had. As he grew up with the terror of war, he became a prodigy and entered ANBU at a very young age, further evolving his skills as a ninja.
Furthermore, as a teenager, Itachi sacrificed his own family to protect the entire Leaf Village. He became a traitor to his own Clan just to preserve the lives of people he didn't even know. While this genocidal attitude divides the opinion of the fans until today, one can't deny that he went to extreme lengths to protect Konoha.
He is also extremely organized and intelligent, which would make him do very well managing paperwork and bureaucratic meetings with the other Kage. In addition, he is one of the strongest ninjas that Naruto has introduced us to, so, of course, he could protect Konoha if necessary.
Hatake Sakumo
Konoha's White Fang was, in life, recognized as one of the greatest ninjas of his generation, to the point of being compared to the feared Sannin group, composed of Jiraiya, Tsunade and Orochimaru. This is an important indication of how advanced his intellect and power were.
With a strong sense of unity, Sakumo sacrificed a mission to save a comrade, suffering several judgments from the village for this. To get rid of the suffering, he completed suicide. Despite his tragic fate, his actions demonstrate that he possessed the most essential quality to become a Hokage: a love for his fellows and the village.
There is not much information about the character, but considering that he was extremely respected by everyone from the Hokage and the Konoha Ninja Council to the Tsuchikage, everything leads us to believe that he would be a shinobi who would do justice to the position.
Jiraiya
The beloved Ero-Sennin could never be left out of this list. When people think of Jiraiya, many focus on the character's erotic tales and humor, but he goes far beyond that. Considered Konohagakure's greatest spy-nin, he is also an expert strategist, master of all three main forms of jutsu, and a great master of senjutsu.
Considered by many to be the most powerful of the Sannin ninja, Jiraiya has already turned down numerous offers to become the head of the village. Behind the facade of a lazy and perverted old man, Jiraiya has always been very mature and attached to his village.