Shinobi World's Biggest Boss

"Danzo ordered me to lure you out of the village and find an opportunity to kill you."

Itachi said calmly, "He'll send Root to assist me!"

He added, "This time, Danzo seemed very confident. He'll probably send powerful ninja."

"Oh!" Kazuna raised a brow and grinned, his teeth gleaming.

That Danzo wanted to make a move against Kazuna came as no surprise to Kazuna himself, nor to Shisui.

If there was anything surprising, it was that Danzo had only decided to act now.

Based on what they knew about Shimura Danzō, he should have acted that very night—last night.

Could it be that his previous failure had made him more cautious?

Shisui said gravely, "Kazuna, we can't let Danzo act recklessly. Let's go find Hokage-sama right now."

"Are you a pig?" Kazuna looked at Shisui as if he were an idiot. "Do you think the Hokage won't know Danzo is acting this time? Are you playing around here?"

Shisui hesitated.

He truly wanted to say that Hokage-sama didn't know.

But when the words reached his lips, he simply could not say them.

Although all signs indicated that Danzo had privately approached Itachi and used Konohagakure's name to force him into acting against Kazuna, making it a personal matter.

But Itachi's identity was far too important.

Shisui and Itachi were the Uchiha Clan's only two ninja to join the Anbu, bridges connecting Konohagakure and the Uchiha.

Itachi was also the Uchiha Clan Head's son, his status surpassing even Shisui's.

The Hokage had only one piece like that, unique in all of Konohagakure. He could not possibly ignore Itachi while allowing Danzo to issue such an order.

"Shisui!" Kazuna revealed a malicious smile. "This is the magnanimity of the Konoha High Command!"

Shisui felt ice-cold all over.

The Third Hokage had praised them many times, saying they possessed extraordinary magnanimity and the qualifications to become Hokage.

He lamented the Uchiha's narrow-mindedness.

He regretted that the Uchiha Clan lacked the magnanimity to bear Konohagakure.

Then what about your magnanimity?

What about your Will of Fire?

Kazuna's low chuckle sounded beside him. "Shisui, give up those naïve thoughts. Otherwise, you'll suffer without end—though that may strengthen your Dojutsu."

Shisui asked blankly, "Kazuna, do you think I've been wrong all along?"

Although he had supported Kazuna to a certain extent, hadn't he also held expectations for the Hokage?

"I don't know!" Kazuna answered bluntly. "But I do know one thing."

He raised one finger. "The moment Hiruzen Sarutobi allowed Danzo to corrupt Root, he had already betrayed the Will of Fire."

Hiruzen Sarutobi had accepted the position in a time of crisis and become Hokage. At that time, he truly had great ambitions. He wanted to change Konohagakure and bring prosperity to the village.

He had even wanted to change the entire Shinobi World.

Unfortunately, reality slapped him hard across the face.

When he became the Third Hokage, quite a few old relics from the Warring States Period were still alive.

They opposed Hiruzen Sarutobi and did not acknowledge him as Hokage.

At the time, Hiruzen Sarutobi was far inferior to the First and Second Hokage in combat strength.

He had only ascended to the Hokage's seat through the support of a woman, Mito Uzumaki.

The ninja clans within the village looked down on him as well.

The Sarutobi Clan was an ordinary ninja clan and could not offer him powerful support.

Under such circumstances, how difficult had it been to secure his position as Hokage?

Perhaps Hiruzen Sarutobi had already become corrupted during his struggle to secure the Hokage's position.

He paid an enormous price to lead Konohagakure to victory in the war. There were tremendous sacrifices in the open, and no one knew what else had been paid in the shadows.

All they knew was that Danzo had become the Darkness of Shinobi.

What Hiruzen Sarutobi did not realize was that, at that moment, he too had fallen and become part of the Darkness of Shinobi.

As for children only a few years old being sent to the battlefield, that came later instead.

Afterward, the Senju Clan, which had broken apart and integrated into Konohagakure, gradually disappeared.

To this day, only Tsunade remained!

Was that normal?

Integrating into Konohagakure did not mean becoming fertilizer!

Were the deaths of outstanding ninja like Nawaki Senju and Kato Dan not suspicious at all?

After that, Hatake Sakumo committed suicide, Orochimaru betrayed the village, Tsunade and Jiraiya became estranged from the Third Hokage, nearly cutting themselves off from Konohagakure entirely...

Throughout this process, Hiruzen Sarutobi was constantly helpless, constantly aging decades at a time.

Sacrificing this for Konohagakure, sacrificing that for Konohagakure.

Fuck that.

He had seemingly been dealt a perfect hand, yet played it to this point. Some said the Third Hokage was incompetent, while others said it was a problem with his personality.

Others said he had grown old.

But what was the truth?

Kazuna had never underestimated Hiruzen Sarutobi.

In his eyes, Hiruzen Sarutobi was the Shinobi World's Biggest Boss.

He had been Hokage for a full thirty or forty years. All the other Hokage combined could not compare to him.

The Sarutobi Clan had produced thousands of ninja and completely become a first-rate great clan. If Orochimaru had not launched the Konoha Collapse Plan, Konohagakure might have been renamed Sarutobi Village.

That was what a true winner in life looked like.

Compared to him, what the hell were Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju?

They were pathetic!

Danzo?

Heh, just a clown, constantly dancing on the Third Hokage's fingertips without realizing that the man could crush him with a flip of his hand.

Of course, Kazuna was not the only one who had noticed this. Many people in Konohagakure had as well.

Otherwise, how could an Orochimaru at Kage Level, leading a bunch of nobodies and joining forces with one of the weakest ninja villages, have broken into Konohagakure?

The confrontation between Orochimaru and Hiruzen Sarutobi was interesting too.

Not a single person had gone to help.

Four Sound Ninja who were not even Jonin had held everyone back?

What about Konohagakure's many famous ninja clans and ninja?

Jiraiya had actually been tied down by a Three-headed Snake Summoning Beast.

Even the Giant Snake of Ryūchi Cave and Garaga working together could not beat you, could they?

Summon Bunta and the others, summon the sages of Mount Myōboku—without even using Sage Mode, a barrage of punches would have ended the fight.

Just look at who died during the Konoha Collapse Plan.

Anyway, not a single important figure died. Only Hiruzen Sarutobi did!

Those idiots who sought death did not count.

Shisui murmured, "The Will of Fire?"

Itachi glanced at Shisui, a trace of pity in his eyes. "Brother Kazuna, what are you going to do?"

"Step into his trap!"

Kazuna smiled slightly. "You can use this chance to gain more of Danzo's trust, but remember this: don't appear before me this time. Danzo knows I have the Mangekyo and still dares to act, so he must have prepared enough traps. I need to take this seriously too."

"Don't worry!"

Itachi smiled faintly. "I don't want to die in your hands for no reason."

"Hehe!"

"W-wait, Kazuna, you..." Shisui stared at him in shock. "You're going to walk into the trap willingly?"

"Why not?" Kazuna shot Shisui a glance. "Shisui, if there are two tigers on a mountain, how do you maintain peace?"

Without waiting for Shisui to answer, Kazuna said, "First, there needs to be sufficient outside pressure. Second, the two tigers need to be very close in strength."

"We already have external pressure. The other villages have recovered quite a bit of their strength after these years of rest and recuperation."

"What I need to do now is the second thing: weaken the Hokage Faction's strength and gradually bring it on equal footing with the Uchiha."

"It's too dangerous!"

Shisui said gravely, "I'll go with you. I'm a Mangekyo wielder too."

Kazuna looked at Shisui in surprise. "You've made up your mind?"

Shisui gave a bitter smile. "I'm not an idiot. The Hokage and the others only talk without acting. Anyone who isn't blind can see it, and now they've made moves against you again and again..."

"I can't trust them!"