"We demand justice! Bring Lord Hokage out to explain whether what's in this newspaper is true!"
"I always thought White Fang's death was suspicious. As one of Konoha's elite fighters, he had never suffered a defeat until that final failure. I can't understand it. He failed once, and suddenly rumors were everywhere?"
"Is that child Naruto really the son of the Fourth Hokage? If so, why did Lord Hokage want everyone to think he was the Demon Fox? Doesn't that only make the hero's child lose faith in us?"
"Three thousand ryo a month? My son's schoolbooks cost more than ten thousand ryo! What can anyone do with that little?"
"Just now, I went to the old Senju Clan Compound and looked at the trees by the entrance. I found the outline of an arm on one of them!"
"Lord Hokage, were the civilianized members of the Senju Clan really used for human experiments? The Senju Clan was the greatest contributor to Konoha's founding. They had already given up the Senju name and become civilians, so why did the Third want to wipe them out?"
One pointed question after another erupted, each voice deafening. Standing before the floor-to-ceiling window of the Hokage Building, Sarutobi Hiruzen's hand trembled slightly as he held his pipe. He knew these matters would come to light sooner or later. He had thought he was ready to face it all.
But when all these questions came to light at once, the resulting impact, the tremendous force of the blow, and the surging public anger crashed over him like a giant wave, leaving him struggling to breathe.
Even Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Third, began to wonder whether he really had been wrong. Once that thought took root, he would gradually sink into despair.
"R-report! Lord Hokage! The guards at the entrance are about to give way. The villagers are ramming the gate with their bodies. If we don't take action, I'm afraid, I'm afraid!!!!!" The Anbu Ninja who had come to report stammered, trembling and drenched in sweat.
He seemed not to have expected that the civilian shinobi, usually so inconspicuous, could wield such strength and authority when they banded together.
The main reason was that, faced with unarmed villagers, the Anbu Ninja didn't dare use force to suppress them. If they did so today, the powerful ninja clans would immediately step in.
Their wealth and numbers of shinobi both far surpassed those of the Hokage Building. At that point, it would no longer be a matter of a popular uprising, but Konoha passing judgment on the Hokage.
It would be like Louis XVI, who had been sent to the guillotine for his tyranny.
So the Anbu had run out of options. They could only ask the Third what to do.
The Third, Sarutobi Hiruzen, drew deeply on his pipe. "Open the gate. There's no way to avoid this."
Of course, he could choose to run away and flee Konoha, which would let him cling to life a little longer.
But as the legitimate Hokage, appointed personally by the Second, Tobirama Senju, his pride and dignity wouldn't allow him to flee.
Even if he had done wrong, even if his people meant to judge him, he wouldn't run. That was the Third, Sarutobi Hiruzen.
He took a deep breath and fixed his eyes on the entrance. The moment he issued his decision, Root operatives relayed it to Root Base.
Shimura Danzo's expression was complicated. He sighed. He hadn't expected Hiruzen to choose this way to end it all.
He was no match for Hiruzen, but Sarutobi Hiruzen's choice made Shimura Danzo's already restless heart stir even more.
His eyes lit up. He was already plotting an armed coup for after Sarutobi Hiruzen stepped down!
He couldn't do it alone. He'd have to rely on the Uchiha! With that thought, Shimura Danzo beckoned for Yamanaka Fu to come over.
Yamanaka Fu immediately walked toward Shimura Danzo. "Lord Danzo."
Shimura Danzo leaned close to his ear. Yamanaka Fu showed no change in expression. After Shimura Danzo finished speaking, Yamanaka Fu acknowledged the order and left the base.
Shimura Danzo gazed at Root Base's ceiling, a smile at the corner of his eye. "Will the Root hidden beneath Konoha finally break through the earth, grow into a new tree, and bask in the sunlight?"
But he hadn't considered that his relationship with the Uchiha had already rotted to the core! Not to mention how he'd tried to gouge out Uchiha Shisui's eyes the other day, he'd also constantly called the Uchiha brats born evil.
With the Uchiha Clan's temperament, they wouldn't agree to work with him. Even Fugaku wouldn't, let alone Uchiha Izuna!
But Shimura Danzo couldn't think of any of that just then. All he could think about was becoming Konoha's Fifth Hokage. He looked at the Hokage Haori hanging in Root Base, tailored to fit him, his eyes burning with desire.
Shimura Danzo rose to his feet (BGM: "You Jing: I walk down the long street~"). At first, his eyes were lost as he slowly walked toward the haori.
Then his gaze grew resolute. When he reached the haori, he lifted his unoperated hand and touched the brim of its hat, his eyes filled with adoration.
His fingertips gently rubbed the brim, and his arm trembled slightly. His mind was filled with visions of himself wearing the haori, raising his arm as the crowd cheered him.
But then he thought of his teacher, the Second, Tobirama Senju.
Of the First Shinobi World War, when Kinkaku and Ginkaku had rebelled and the shinobi of Kumogakure were hunting them down.
"We're in danger now. Which of you is willing to stay behind and hold off the enemy? That's the only way everyone else can evacuate safely!" Tobirama Senju looked at the six disciples present.
Shimura Danzo's pupils contracted. He wanted to stay behind, but he couldn't force the words out. He was a coward. He was afraid to die.
Though he was a passionate young man, he knew that if he took that step, he would surely die. He hesitated.
But a figure passed him and took that step. It was Hiruzen, his good friend, Sarutobi Hiruzen.
"Teacher, I'll stay. Konoha can't do without you." Sarutobi Hiruzen's gaze was resolute, his tone decisive, and his face broke into a smile.
Shimura Danzo was stunned. He watched Sarutobi Hiruzen with admiration, relieved in his heart, but soon began to despise his own despicable cowardice.
A smile appeared on Tobirama Senju's usually stern face. He clapped Sarutobi Hiruzen on the shoulder. "Monkey, from this moment on, you're the Third."
The other five were all stunned. Sarutobi Hiruzen shook his head. "Teacher, you..."
Tobirama Senju stopped him from continuing and said earnestly, "Konoha hasn't yet reached the point where you young people need to sacrifice yourselves. I'll stay behind."
Then he looked at them all. "Once you're back in the village, help Hiruzen manage it. If he needs more people, he can freely call on the shinobi of the Senju Clan Compound."
"The future of Konoha rests with you." Tobirama Senju turned away, then glanced back at Shimura Danzo, disappointment in his eyes.
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