Shattered Worldview of Uchiha Itachi

"How is that possible? Hokage-sama could never persecute comrades in the village. The Will of Fire is to protect the village, to protect com..."

Uchiha Itachi ignored Minagawa Uchiha's teasing about hiding the Mangekyō Sharingan, but hearing that the Uchiha had been persecuted as early as the Third Shinobi World War felt completely unbelievable, and his first instinct was to refute it.

However, halfway through his rebuttal, he recalled the records in the books. This kind of thing could not be faked at all; it was a universally verifiable fact across the entire ninja world. During the Third Shinobi World War, Kirigakure ninja skilled in the Kirigakure Technique and Water Style were assigned to be dealt with by the Uchiha Clan, who were countered by Water Style and lacked powerful sensory capabilities.

This completely overturned Uchiha Itachi's worldview. Before today, he had always believed that the discord with the village was the clan's fault, and earlier he had thought that the fears of the village were caused by himself and Shisui. Only now did he realize that the village had wanted the Uchiha to die as early as the Third Shinobi World War, long before the Nine-Tails Incident.

Although he really did not want to admit defeat, faced with the fact that being born an Uchiha meant you were guilty, Uchiha Itachi had no way to refute it.

"But you saying that the Third Hokage and the others lack strength and have no achievements for Konoha is complete slander. Konoha won all three world wars, which is enough to reflect their strength and achievements."

Seeing Uchiha Itachi still stubbornly arguing, Minagawa Uchiha held nothing back, preparing to completely expose the hypocritical faces of Konoha High Command and thoroughly shatter his worldview.

"Strength? What strength could they possibly have? At that age, what kind of strength could they still have? You must have read it in the Ninja Academy books—the strongest Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen. How laughable. Have you ever actually seen him make a move?"

"You've been to the Valley of the End, haven't you? That terrain was created by the battle between Uchiha Madara and the First Hokage. Do you think he could accomplish that? Don't be foolish and believe everything people tell you. Is there a single recorded instance of him making a move in the books?"

"Is it just completely hollow phrasing about being the strongest Hokage? If there were actual instances, how could they not be recorded? Just like the two statues in the Valley of the End."

"As for the other three advisors, even the Hokage's strength is bragged up, let alone them who are clearly outclassed. They are just a bunch of politicians playing with power; their strength entirely relies on blind loyalists like you. If they were truly powerful, they wouldn't fear the Uchiha Clan, and Konoha wouldn't have so many tragedies."

Minagawa Uchiha's torrent of criticism left Uchiha Itachi with a sudden realization. Only those lacking strength needed to be praised, while those with true strength feared no questioning. As the Hokage of the village, there was no need to hide one's strength, and it should instead be displayed openly to boost personal prestige while increasing the villagers' confidence.

On the other hand, the Third Hokage's greatness was only written in books or heard through word of mouth. No one had ever seen it, and he had no intention of ever showing it. Thinking of this, Uchiha Itachi could not help but feel his image of the Third Hokage's formidable power waver slightly.

Minagawa Uchiha paid no attention to Uchiha Itachi, who was currently experiencing a slight existential crisis, and continued.

"Furthermore, that third world war victory led by the Third Hokage and the rest of high command that you mentioned—you learned about that from the Ninja Academy history textbooks, didn't you?"

Minagawa Uchiha spoke with absolute certainty, leaving Uchiha Itachi with a puzzled expression.

"What's wrong with the Ninja Academy history textbooks? Could that not be true history? Such a major event as the Shinobi World War could never be tampered with."

Minagawa Uchiha simply smiled at Uchiha, his expression carrying a deep meaning, and continued.

"True, you can't change the events, but you can change who takes the credit! People can just drop a line saying, 'It was an order given by Hokage-sama,' and all the glory naturally falls onto the Hokage. As for who actually executed the mission, would the history books care about that?"

Minagawa Uchiha was very satisfied with the expression of astonishment currently on Uchiha Itachi's face.

"In the First Shinobi World War, the Second Hokage died in battle covering the retreat of the current Konoha High Command, and the subsequent wars drained the founding Senju Clan almost to the point of extinction before victory was finally achieved. What does that have to do with Sarutobi Hiruzen?"

"These things can be found in the clan's records. As for inside Konoha—heh, have you ever even heard the name Senju lately?"

"To secure his position as Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen stopped at nothing to suppress the influence of the first two Hokage, who both hailed from the Senju family. Naturally, the Senju Clan vanished completely."

"Wiping out the influence of the Senju Clan within Konoha—that is what Sarutobi Hiruzen actually did during the First Shinobi World War as Hokage."

"The victory of the Second Shinobi World War relied on the Sannin fighting a bloody battle against Hanzo of the Salamander, and on the Konoha White Fang eliminating the Sunagakure high command. Meanwhile, Sarutobi Hiruzen hid in his office under the banner of commanding the rear, sending young ninja onto the battlefield while making himself the only Kage who never fought on the front lines."

"Heh, the most laughable part is, look at what happened to those heroes of the second war now! The Sannin either defected or left the village, and the Konoha White Fang committed suicide because of rumors."

"Do you think that's normal? Is it really such a coincidence that all these meritorious heroes met with misfortune?"

Seeing that Uchiha Itachi was about to voice some form of defense, Minagawa Uchiha did not give him the chance to speak and pressed on.

"Don't rush to speak just yet. Let's talk about the third war. You might not believe it when I say this, but the heroes of the third war also met with misfortune!"

Hearing Minagawa Uchiha state with a smile that the heroes of the third war had also met with misfortune, Uchiha Itachi instantly widened his eyes in disbelief.

"In the Third Shinobi World War, the Sunagakure battlefield was led to a bloody victory by Orochimaru—we won't go into that one."

"The Kirigakure battlefield was primarily centered around our Uchiha Clan, with a portion of the Hyuga Clan also joining in. The Hyuga Main Family even lost a Byakugan back then. Several very famous heroes emerged from this battle; let's count them."

"The Hyuga Clan was mainly responsible for reconnaissance, so they didn't have any overly dazzling figures, but they definitely contributed. So what happened to them afterward? Four years ago, the incident where the eldest daughter of the Hyuga Main Family was kidnapped by Kumogakure ended with the Hyuga Clan handing over the corpse of the clan head's younger brother, Hizashi Hyuga. That was the end of the first hero."

"After that came Vicious Eye Uchiha Fugaku and Body Flicker Shisui. What state they are in now, I believe you know better than anyone."

"As for people like Might Duy, who shattered the conspiracy of the Destroyer Seven Ninja Swordsmen, he died on the spot—and that certainly wasn't thanks to Sarutobi Hiruzen."

"Finally, there was our Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato. He suppressed Kumogakure's A and B combination and brought an end to the Iwagakure war by destroying the God of Destruction Unfeeling Bridge. His achievements in the third war were countless, but this had absolutely nothing to do with the Third Hokage either. So what happened to the Fourth Hokage in the end?"

"In the prime of his life, he died sealing the Nine-Tails. Tell me, what was the Third Hokage doing at that time?"