The Death of White Fang!

Senya watched as Kakashi was nearly overwhelmed by fury and hatred, and he knew his goal was within reach.

Next, it was time to peel back the truth, layer by layer.

"After the Second Shinobi World War, the name 'White Fang of the Leaf' echoed throughout the entire ninja world, alongside the title of the 'Sannin'."

"But the title of 'Sannin' was bestowed by Hanzo, whereas your father, Hatake Sakumo, was different; the title 'White Fang of the Leaf' was something your father carved out with his own blade, battle after battle."

"So, after the war ended, it was only natural that he was granted the Hokage Haori, his status second only to the Third at the time—Hiruzen Sarutobi."

Kakashi furrowed his brows, drawn into deep thought by Senya's words. If that were the case, who could have possibly wanted to strike at his father?

Seeing that Kakashi had calmed down slightly, Senya felt it was the right time to continue. A person's thoughts while in a blind rage are often overturned once they cool down, because they realize their own perspective was extreme. But if an answer is reached through calm contemplation, they will believe in it implicitly.

Therefore, Senya needed Kakashi to ponder this question and accept this answer! Only then would Kakashi truly be pulled to his side. It was the same approach he had used when communicating with Hyuga Hiashi earlier.

It was just that Hiashi had already been prepared to turn against the village elders, which had saved Senya a great deal of effort.

"Then who exactly wanted to force my father to his death? Could it have been the Hokage himself?"

Kakashi felt a sense of dread at the conclusion he had reached. He could not believe that the kind-faced old man who carried a pipe everywhere could be the mastermind behind his father's suicide.

Seeing Kakashi voice his suspicion, Senya continued.

"It wasn't the Third. Although Hiruzen Sarutobi was in his prime back then and had no desire to vacate the Hokage's seat, he didn't harbor any intention of forcing your father to his death."

"Didn't want to leave the Hokage's seat?"

Kakashi repeated the phrase, beginning to think. Could the 'Hokage Haori' given to his father have held another layer of meaning? Was it meant to restrict his father from becoming Hokage?

Leaning against the wall, Senya gave an affirmative answer.

"Exactly. Hiruzen Sarutobi was not yet fifty at the time. For a top-tier ninja, although his body was beginning to decline, his combat experience was becoming increasingly rich, and his strength was still at its peak."

"The Third didn't want to step down at that time, but faced with a 'White Fang of the Leaf' who was under thirty and already famous throughout the ninja world—especially after the war, where he had caused such massive losses and casualties for the Leaf—could he still have held onto his seat as Hokage?"

The image of Hiruzen Sarutobi in Kakashi's heart began to crumble—the image of the gentle, kind man who had shown such care for Kinoe began to collapse.

Kakashi's tightly clenched fists began to tremble, but the truth Senya was recounting did not stop there.

"In the years following the end of the Second Shinobi World War, as the name 'White Fang of the Leaf' grew ever more illustrious, it finally reached the point where his 'merit overshadowed his master,' and the Third panicked."

"It was then that Danzo proposed a plan: to engineer a failure for the 'White Fang of the Leaf,' who had never failed a mission, to shatter the myth of your father's 'one hundred percent mission completion rate' and strike at his prestige."

"As for what happened next, I assume you, having experienced it firsthand, are more familiar with it than I am."

Kakashi, who had been kneeling on the ground, stood up with a trembling body, his eyes filled with fury as he stared fixedly at the floor.

"Yes, I know it well. But if it was just to suppress my father, then Hiruzen Sarutobi's goal had already been achieved. Why did my father still have to commit suicide!"

Senya, leaning against the wall, let out a soft laugh.

"Hiruzen Sarutobi's goal was indeed achieved, but Danzo's was not. Ever since Hiruzen became Hokage, Danzo had been obsessed with the seat of the Hokage, even going so far as to attempt to assassinate Hiruzen in private."

"I assume you know about that incident, too—it happened after your teacher, the Fourth Hokage Minato, died and Hiruzen returned to power."

Kakashi nodded. As he had been in the Anbu at the time, he was aware of it, though Hiruzen had placed a gag order on the matter. He wondered how Senya, standing before him, had come to know of it.

"So, do you understand who the culprit is now?"

Senya threw out the final question.

Kakashi raised his head and locked eyes with Senya.

"It was Danzo, wasn't it? But why? If he wanted to become Hokage, why kill my father? Why?"

By now, Kakashi understood the entire process, had cleared his thoughts, and had deduced the answer in his heart. But he needed to know why Danzo, in his quest to become Hokage, had to harm his father. He was determined to get to the bottom of it today and get a clear answer.

Senya calculated in his heart, knowing Kakashi would ask exactly that. Everything was being guided toward the outcome Senya desired.

"Because at that time, both Danzo and Hiruzen could afford to wait. As long as Danzo engineered the death of Hatake Sakumo, when the Third eventually stepped down, the next in line would be Danzo."

"But what Danzo didn't expect was that after the Third Shinobi World War ended, although Hiruzen stepped down, the seat of the Hokage was passed to your teacher, Minato Namikaze."

"That is the reason why, on the day of the Nine-Tails Incident, the Root led by Danzo did not appear on the battlefield. Do you understand now? Danzo used various means to frame your father into suicide and stood by while your teacher Minato died. It wasn't until he was old and frail, and could no longer afford to wait, that he chose to assassinate Hiruzen."

"Everything—every single thing—was done just to sit in that seat called 'Hokage'."

Hatake Kakashi's mental defenses broken. Lightning Release Chakra Mastery replicated. Mangekyo ocular power +10%.

The system's voice rang out in Senya's mind. He felt a surge of joy; he hadn't expected that breaking Kakashi's defenses would not only increase his ocular power but also grant him mastery over Lightning Release ninjutsu. He truly lived up to his reputation as the man known as "Kakashi of the Sharingan."

Kakashi tore the forehead protector from his head and threw it onto the ground with all his might.

"Is this what they call the 'Will of Fire'! Father! Teacher Minato! They died for something so ridiculous! What have I been doing all these years! I've been carrying out missions for my own enemies!"

At that moment, the Mangekyo Sharingan in Kakashi's left eye was exposed directly to Senya, though Kakashi himself was unaware of it.

Seeing Kakashi looking completely broken, Senya knew the troublesome cleanup work was beginning. He would have to reshape Kakashi's shattered "Dao heart" and give him a brand-new "Ninja Way."

"Kakashi, your father's suicide was partly due to Danzo's conspiracy, but there was another reason."

Kakashi froze, instinctively asking, "What reason?"

Senya walked up to Kakashi, reached out to pull him to his feet, and brushed the dust off his clothes.

"The first is the loyalty of 'Bushido.' Your father was the last generation of samurai in the Leaf, and also the most powerful among those who transitioned from samurai to ninja. Although his status had changed, your father's ideology remained forever loyal to the 'Leaf,' not to the 'Hokage'."

"But I believe the primary reason was for your sake."

When he heard Senya's final sentence, Kakashi staggered back a few steps, as if he had lost his soul, muttering to himself.

"For my sake?"

Senya gave an affirmative answer once more.

"That's right. Because if Hatake Sakumo had stayed alive, you would have lived forever in his shadow, constantly ostracized and even cursed by the people of the village. So he chose to use his 'death' to appease the dissatisfaction of the villagers in the Leaf he loved so dearly, ensuring they would not vent their anger on you."