Decision

Realizing that he was the biggest tumor within Konoha, Shiraishi Yoshijo felt terrible.

No wonder he always felt so out of place in Konoha; it turned out his very existence was a threat to the village.

Shiraishi Yoshijo had ten thousand curses he wanted to scream, but he didn't know who to scream them at.

Forget it, he would just scream them into the void.

Shiraishi Yoshijo pushed Takemoto Shuichi along slowly, and Takemoto Shuichi was in no rush either; some things just required slow contemplation.

After thinking for a long while, Shiraishi Yoshijo asked hesitantly, "Does Grandpa Shuichi mean for me to lead the clan in a defection?"

Takemoto Shuichi turned his head and gave him a blank look.

"Why would we be the ones to run?"

Shiraishi Yoshijo scratched his head.

He couldn't figure out what Takemoto Shuichi meant.

Takemoto Shuichi suddenly reached out and grabbed his ear, scolding, "You little brat, can't you have some backbone? Always running, running, running—are you a rat born to dig holes?"

Shiraishi Yoshijo didn't dare to dodge. Being scolded and having his ear pulled by Takemoto Shuichi, he didn't dare to fight back; after all, the old man didn't have many days left to live.

"Ouch, ouch, Grandpa Shuichi, let go! There are so many people on the street, give me some face!"

Takemoto Shuichi gave him a hard slap on the head: "Brat, let me tell you, fleeing before a fight is a disgrace to your ancestors."

"Don't forget, your grandfather, your parents, your uncle, and all the clansmen who died in battle are buried here. You want to take their descendants and run away without a second thought?"

"What, you're just going to leave your ancestors here and not care about them?"

"I'll be buried here too eventually. Are you planning to take away everyone who would burn paper for me while I'm still alive?"

"That's worse than being an animal."

Takemoto Shuichi cursed Shiraishi Yoshijo in a fit of rage, berating him until he was thoroughly drenched in insults.

Shiraishi Yoshijo stood to the side, looking left and right, then started picking his ear.

Once Takemoto Shuichi had calmed down, he began pushing him forward again.

"Grandpa Shuichi, what exactly do you mean? What do you want me to do?"

"First, fight for it."

"Fight for what?"

"Hokage."

Shiraishi Yoshijo: "What's the point of fighting for that thing?"

Takemoto Shuichi: "Once you've won it, you can kill them openly and honestly."

Shiraishi Yoshijo: "Kill who?"

Takemoto Shuichi: "Don't you want revenge? You can kill whoever you want."

Shiraishi Yoshijo felt like he was being swindled by this old man.

After thinking for a moment, he asked again: "And if I can't win?"

Takemoto Shuichi replied irritably: "Then you run! Pack up your things, gather the people, and take everyone with you."

Shiraishi Yoshijo: "..."

"Didn't you just call me a disgrace to my ancestors?"

"Brat, let me tell you, you are our last chance. If you can't win, then run quickly. Being a disgrace to your ancestors is still better than having your bloodline wiped out."

Shiraishi Yoshijo was speechless once again.

This old man's way of thinking was too advanced; he couldn't quite keep up.

"Even if I win it, it's impossible to just kill whoever I want, otherwise how would I have survived until now?"

"Calling you stupid is an understatement. Once you win the Hokage seat, control the next successor, and then slowly weed them out generation by generation. Sooner or later, those guys will have no descendants left."

This old man was truly a ruthless character.

"If I go to fight for it, many people will die."

"And if you don't fight, will no one die?"

Shiraishi Yoshijo understood.

Even if he didn't fight for it, that guy Danzo wouldn't let him have an easy life.

If he wanted to take all his clansmen out of Konoha, Hiruzen Sarutobi wouldn't agree to such a thing either.

Fight first; if you can't win, run; if you can't run, then fight.

What a simple and brutal line of reasoning.

As expected, none of these old things who had survived since the Warring States period were simple characters.

If Shiraishi Yoshijo didn't know how the future would unfold, he might have actually done it.

Unfortunately, he knew all too well what kind of price one had to pay to fight for the position of Hokage.

The Second Shinobi World War would inevitably break out within these few years, and strange rumors regarding the Land of Rain had been increasing in Konoha lately.

If he wanted to vie for the position of Hokage, he would have to earn merit and prestige on the battlefield.

This would precisely play right into the traps set by Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo.

One had to realize that ever since Konoha initiated the Second Shinobi World War, the fighting had almost never ceased.

The Third Shinobi World War would follow only a few years after the second ended, and it would take at least twenty more years before the third war concluded completely.

How many people would die in those twenty-plus years of war?

He feared that even if he and his entire clan were to die, it would still be far from enough.

Therefore, the position of Hokage was like a carrot dangled in front of a donkey; it could be seen, but it was impossible to actually eat.

Since that was the case, it would be better to simply take his clansmen and leave Konoha.

However, Shiraishi Yoshijo was very clear that wanting to take his clansmen and leave Konoha was not such a simple matter.

His clansmen lived in comfort and plenty in Konoha; if he were to take them away for no reason, only a fool would follow him.

The final outcome would only be like Uchiha Madara, leaving Konoha all alone.

In the past, Shiraishi Yoshijo might have been quite happy with such an ending.

He could console himself that it wasn't his fault, but rather that they were unwilling to follow him.

But now...

Shiraishi Yoshijo sighed; he was human after all, and he could never truly escape the limitations of being human.

He could toy with the prisoners in the Butterfly Habitat Valley without a shred of emotion.

Because he knew that the only reason he had captured them was to do exactly that.

If it weren't for his experiments, he would have slaughtered those prisoners clean during their missions.

But for those in his clan, after spending these past few years together, he had developed some different feelings after all.

Just as Takemoto Shuichi had said, in a certain sense, they were indeed his property.

There was no reason to let others spend his property or let others ruin them.

Thinking of this, a sharp glint flashed in Shiraishi Yoshijo's eyes.

"Have you thought it through?"

Takemoto Shuichi's voice rang in his ears.

Shiraishi Yoshijo exhaled a breath of stale air and smiled. "I've thought it through."

"I have already told you my thoughts; can you tell me what your thoughts are now?"

"I don't intend to vie for the Hokage position."

"Why?"

"It's meaningless."

Takemoto Shuichi sighed. "It seems you are determined to leave this place."

Shiraishi Yoshijo remained silent and did not speak.

"What do you plan to do about your clansmen?"

"I'll take as many as I can, and if I can't take them, then there's nothing I can do."

"Have you thought about the life they will face after you take them away?"

Shiraishi Yoshijo furrowed his brows.

Leaving Konoha meant becoming a rogue ninja, and without a doubt, they would be hunted down by Konoha.

If it were just him alone, it wouldn't matter, but that certainly wouldn't work if he brought his clansmen along.

Not only would their lives have no security, but they wouldn't even be able to see a glimmer of hope.

Is what I'm doing really right?

Or perhaps, should I establish a village like Orochimaru?

Hearing no answer from Shiraishi Yoshijo for a long time, Takemoto Shuichi understood.

"Don't be in a rush to make a decision; go back and think it over carefully."

"This is your era now, and the future must be forged by you."

Shiraishi Yoshijo pushed him for a while longer before sending him back.