Denying Sarutobi Hiruzen's Hokage Career

He could accept the choices made by these dozen or so people now.

Because they were all once members of the Senju Clan, having merely abandoned the Senju surname.

No one could blame them, nor did anyone have the qualifications to do so.

They were protecting the rights that were rightfully theirs.

The Senju Clan had sacrificed too much for this country and for Konoha.

Third Hokage lowered his head; at this moment, he knew that his schemes within the Land of Fire had completely come to nothing.

"I will compile the attitudes expressed by everyone here today into a report to inform the Daimyo of the Land of Fire and the nobles. Thank you for your choice!"

Kazuma bowed deeply.

Half of his goal in coming to Konoha had already been achieved.

Next came the remaining half: completely crushing the influence of the Sarutobi Clan in Konoha.

With Kazuma's show of weakness this time, the audit seemed to have passed; they had obtained sufficient compensation from the Sarutobi Clan without having to spit out their previous gains.

The conference room fell into a state of harmony.

The only one wounded was Sarutobi Hiruzen, this former Third Hokage.

The eyes of the Third Hokage grew increasingly dim as he looked at this familiar conference room and the same people; the only change was their attitude toward him.

The original respect and adoration had turned into hidden contempt and wariness.

His reputation was in ruins, which filled him with an anger he could not vent. Finally, recalling the origin of all this, it seemed to be that rebellious Shinichi Hyuga.

He was always questioning him.

And all he had done was try to ensure that Konoha could develop "harmoniously." Why couldn't he sacrifice himself like Hatake Sakumo once did?

Third Hokage still believed he was not wrong; the one who was wrong was Shinichi Hyuga, who refused to obey him.

Minato Namikaze noticed the displeasure in Third Hokage's heart and wanted to come forward to offer some comfort.

"Lord Hiruzen, let's stop here! From now on, let the younger generation strive for themselves!"

Although Minato Namikaze's words were gentle, they fell upon the ears of the Third Hokage as exceptionally harsh. Was this a rejection of him, or a warning?

Even a guy like Minato Namikaze had changed; he was untrustworthy.

He still needed to continue striving for the prosperity of Konoha.

He began to plot in his heart how to maintain his influence in Konoha at its former height.

Kazuma's next words plunged him completely into the abyss.

"The Daimyo expresses his utmost recognition for the past efforts of all you ninja. The funding and missions from the Land of Fire will not be reduced in the slightest; on the contrary, they will gradually increase.

However, there are some flaws within Konoha that you all need to recognize and strive to rectify."

Kazuma noticed the movements of Third Hokage and Minato Namikaze and spoke up to draw the attention of all the ninja. At this moment, Third Hokage no longer possessed his former dominance.

The Sarutobi Clan had become a thorn in the side of these ninja clans, one that needed an opportunity to be pulled out.

This was the perfect chance for Kazuma to beat a dog that had fallen into the water.

These ninja frowned one after another. They still did not understand the true intentions of the Daimyo of the Land of Fire. Could he really just want to hear their opinions on the candidates for Daimyo?

That was likely not so simple. It now seemed more like it was targeting internal issues in Konoha, especially the Third Hokage!

Kazuma's follow-up words provided the answer they were looking for.

"During his tenure, the Third Hokage has been a Hokage without responsibility, prone to posturing.

The First Hokage founded Konoha and formed a close alliance with the Daimyo of the Land of Fire; the Fujiwara Clan is the best witness to this.

His entire life was spent fighting for the stability of Konoha and the Land of Fire.

The Second Hokage even went to the Land of Lightning in person for the sake of peace, seeking to end the war. In the end, he died to cover his subordinates.

Among them was the Third Hokage, who has already resigned in disgrace.

Only the Third Hokage!

Back then, as a guard for the Second Hokage, he required the Second Hokage to protect them instead.

In this Ninja World war, due to poor command, he caused Konoha to face a siege by three nations simultaneously.

He even allowed countless young ninja to sacrifice their lives on the battlefield.

In the end, he voluntarily abandoned the fruits of victory that countless Konoha ninja had traded their lives to obtain.

The Third Hokage is an unqualified Hokage.

Therefore, the Daimyo respects the choice of everyone in Konoha; past matters will not be pursued.

He is stripped of his qualifications to continue as Hokage; from now on, he shall no longer style himself as Hokage, nor shall he serve on the Council of Elders to provide foolish decisions.

You all should have no objections, right?"

Kazuma's words were like sharp swords, piercing through the body of the Third Hokage.

Just a moment ago, he had wanted to return to the position of Hokage, believing that only then could he use his political wisdom—the thing he was best at—to elevate his own prestige.

This strategy, however, was negated by a single sentence from Kazuma.

"No! Are all my years of dedication to be so easily dismissed by you people!" Sarutobi Hiruzen roared at Kazuma, filled with fury.

"Do you have any rebuttal, then?"

Kazuma's voice was calm, forming a stark contrast to the Third Hokage's explosive rage.

All the ninjas present looked toward the now irrational Third Hokage.

One after another, they began to ruminate on the matters Kazuma had raised.

The first matter: the fact that Sarutobi Hiruzen, while serving as a guard, allowed the Second Hokage to be surrounded and killed was a stain in itself.

He had taken up the mantle of Third Hokage under the orders of the Second Hokage, yet many clans were secretly dissatisfied.

However, these clans were eventually skillfully controlled, and now, some of them had vanished entirely.

The Daimyo's questioning of the Third Hokage was reasonable and justified.

His position as Third Hokage had been obtained through murky circumstances. If it weren't for the fact that the Daimyo at the time held such immense respect for Tobirama Senju, Sarutobi Hiruzen would never have been able to become the Third Hokage.

The second matter: his poor command during the Third Shinobi World War was an undeniable fact. Abandoning hard-won gains was even more contemptible.

The Kage of other villages all had records of battlefield achievements, yet the Third Hokage alone had not a single accomplishment to his name during the war.

He had relied entirely on his students to hold the line.

What many criticized most was his decision, in the later stages of the war, to abandon the fruits of their labor.

He had actually waived the reparations from the Land of Wind and the Land of Lightning.

This was something no one could accept.

The third matter: sending children under the age of ten to the battlefield.

Although the premise for this was the heavy losses of Jonin and Chunin, this decision was the ultimate betrayal of the Will of Fire established by Hashirama Senju.

The Daimyo had stripped away all the momentum the Third Hokage had built for himself and the glory he had woven, exposing that filthy and unbearable soul beneath.

He had sacrificed everyone's interests to satisfy this parasite.

Everyone present fell into a trance.

Previously, they had been subtly conditioned to believe that even if the Third Hokage was flawed, he should not be blamed.

At the very least, he maintained their own interests.

Kazuma's words just now had criticized everything from the Third Hokage's tenure to his final forced resignation, leaving not a single merit intact.

The final punishment handed down was that he would no longer serve as Hokage.

In the hearts of these ninjas, this punishment felt like nothing more than a formality.

He had already stepped down, yet he still acted everywhere in the capacity of Hokage.

But then, they reconsidered.

The Third Hokage had truly done quite a lot.

In the name of the Hokage, he had interfered in the succession of various clan heads and had even sought to involve himself in the competition between the Daimyo's heirs.

Secretly, they all began to approve of the Daimyo's method of handling this.

This was also the suggestion of Shinichi Hyuga, intended to prevent the Third Hokage from making a comeback in the future.

He did not want that twisted, cannibalistic Will of Fire to continue to exist.