Jiraiya was the first to lose patience. He repeated the rumors circulating around the Konoha camp.
"People outside say you insisted on making a name for yourself on the battlefield. You ordered two jonin stationed at the camp to head to the war zone. When you were attacked together, you abandoned your comrades and fled alone, causing Konoha unimaginable losses.
"You should reflect on yourself. You abused your authority to order around jonin and abandoned your comrades."
Orochimaru had no desire to speak. He scoffed at Jiraiya's words. The rumors were full of holes, yet people actually believed them—and spread them so widely.
He leaned against the wall with his eyes closed, resting. He didn't want to argue with an idiot. Yesterday had already worn him out enough.
"Haha~"
Senju Nawaki sneered and laughed aloud.
At that moment, he felt just like he had in his previous life, when his teacher had stolen first authorship of his paper.
The way everyone had been whipped into condemning him was certainly much the same.
Tsunade furrowed her brow, not quite understanding what Nawaki meant. But the rumors around them stirred a sense of resistance in her.
She couldn't help feeling that Nawaki shouldn't be blamed for everything.
"I'm tired. You can all leave."
Senju Nawaki's face stiffened as he tried to hide what was going on inside him.
"Nawaki, don't put too much pressure on yourself. It wasn't all your fault. I'll ask the Hokage to show you leniency."
Tsunade gently comforted him. In her eyes, Nawaki was like a child who had done something wrong and was hiding rather than accepting responsibility.
As his older sister, she had to help Senju Nawaki shoulder the blame.
"Nawaki, a man takes responsibility for his actions. You..."
Jiraiya looked displeased. He also thought Nawaki was shirking responsibility, and lectured Senju Nawaki as if he were an elder.
Tsunade stopped Jiraiya from continuing. Nawaki had already been taught a lesson; he shouldn't keep rubbing salt in his wound.
Orochimaru only shook his head. He stepped over the battered door and, before leaving, put it back on its hinges.
Inside the hospital room.
Senju Nawaki stared at the door, battered full of holes and swaying as it tried to block the wind blowing in. He felt like smashing it to pieces.
That door was just like the Senju Clan now.
It still carried out its duty, protecting the people inside from harm.
But everyone knew the door was about to collapse. It was only waiting for a new one to arrive before being thrown away.
The broken door would be discarded as junk—or perhaps recycled as part of a bonfire, where it would keep giving light for a little while longer.
His mind went completely blank.
He couldn't stay in this Konoha any longer.
Even his own sister had been brainwashed. How could she not doubt the village at all?
The rumors were full of holes, yet people still believed them.
Given how stupid he used to be, could he really have ordered the loyal jonin of the Ino-Shika-Cho clans under the Sarutobi Clan?
If a battle had taken place, then who were the enemies?
And what huge losses had the village suffered? What had it lost?
It was all baseless.
He was clearly the victim, yet he had to prove that he wasn't the perpetrator.
Those who believed the rumors were either stupid, wicked, or both.
The people who truly controlled the narrative behind the scenes were all after their own interests.
The Senju Clan still controlled a great deal of resources, and plenty of people coveted them.
He took stock of the strength at his disposal.
Militarily, even after the Senju Clan had fallen into decline and endured several great wars, it still had a solid foundation. There were more than a dozen jonin among its shinobi, enough to wage a small-scale war.
The compensation mentioned by the Konoha Anbu earlier was probably just a way to send jonin loyal to the Senju Clan on dangerous missions and weaken its forces. His predecessor, that idiot, had often done things like that.
Financially, his aunt had married into the Genji Clan in the Land of Fire, and her clan had long traded grain and medicinal herbs with the Senju Clan.
They controlled a share of the Ninja World's grain trade, which was also their greatest source of wealth.
Even after abandoning the Senju name, the clan members still had a natural affinity for plants.
They also possessed various other minor resources. Even under pressure from Konoha's factions, they still held certain advantages.
He realized that the power in his hands wasn't weak. It was just that the idiot he used to be didn't know how to use it and had let Sarutobi Hiruzen lead him around by the nose, using Tsunade as a blade to cut away his power.
The other clans had gradually devoured it.
In the future, the Nara Clan would take over the Senju Clan's medicinal herb business...
In the end, all the benefits went to the loyalists under Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Tsunade had never truly inherited the Senju name, so she couldn't earn the genuine trust of the older-generation Senju shinobi.
He wasn't the same idiot Senju Nawaki had been, willing to give everything to Konoha.
He didn't dare take on the role of Konoha's loyal servant.
He turned over ways to break out of this predicament in his mind.
Strength!
The first step was to gain enough strength to protect himself. Only then could he carry out the plans that followed.
He needed to take back the remaining power of the Senju Clan, too.
The corners of his mouth drooped, and he felt bitter.
Only now did he remember how much of the Senju Clan's remaining strength he had squandered during the previous war. Some people were already dissatisfied with him, though fortunately, there were still loyalists among them.
There was still time.
"Grandpa Six, come out."
As Senju Nawaki sensed the surroundings, the environment around him shifted, faintly resonating with the Wood Release bloodline within his body.
His gaze settled on the ground nearby, and a name surfaced in his mind.
"Young Master Nawaki."
The ground twisted, and a hunched figure emerged. He wore a loose black Warring States-era suit of armor. An unsightly scar marked his face, resembling tree bark.
Most striking of all, the Forehead Protector on his head did not bear Konoha's symbol, but the crest of the Senju Clan.
He bowed slightly to Senju Nawaki.
Senju Tojian was of the same generation as Senju Hashirama and Senju Tobirama. He had once tried to master Wood Release, but failed, leaving a scar on his face. His strength was not to be underestimated.
He had another identity as well: the Senju Clan's lineage elder, entrusted with all of the clan's secret techniques. At the time, he had also been the elder most opposed to the Senju Clan becoming commoners.
The lineage elder was bound by one rule: he could not have descendants.
Once an elder had children, they might compete for power with the future heir. So lineage elders were paired with the clan heir from childhood and raised alongside them.
It was also a way to ensure that the heir could smoothly take control of the clan.
This generation's heir and lineage elder were Senju Nawaki and Senju Tojian.
That was one reason Senju Nawaki trusted Senju Tojian so much.
When Senju Nawaki was young, this old man had secretly given him many resources. The reason the ninjutsu panel in his Soul Space was so impressive was also that the old man had taught him.
Unfortunately, his predecessor had been brainwashed by Konoha's environment and gradually distanced himself from the old man. Their childhood closeness had faded until they could no longer be close.
Only now did he understand who had truly treated him well.
No matter how kind someone's words sounded, actions mattered more.
"Grandpa Six, you've worked hard all these years. That won't happen anymore. I'll listen to your teachings."
Senju Nawaki let out a heartfelt sigh.
Even when Nawaki had clearly refused to let the Senju Clan continue to exist, Senju Tojian had still raised him as the clan's heir.
Their relationship was even closer than Senju Hashirama's and Senju Tobirama's.
Just like in the Warring States era, the clan's lineage elder had carried out his duty, devoting everything to preserving the clan.
Whenever Senju Nawaki did something foolish, this old man had cleaned up after him, constantly draining the Senju Clan's foundations.
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