"I'll use you, the 'strongest Hokage,' as a sacrifice to raise my banner!"
Chiya's arrogant voice echoed through the night sky, every word pounding like a sledgehammer against the hearts of all the Konoha ninja present.
The red Susanoo surrounding him was only in its third stage, but with the God Tree-like vitality of Wood Release fused into it, the pressure it radiated was even heavier than that of a complete form.
Hiruzen Sarutobi stood at the edge of the devastated ruins, his face thunderous.
"Utter nonsense! Nothing but utter nonsense!"
The Third Hokage's chest heaved with fury. He pointed at Chiya, his finger trembling. "Chiya, hatred has completely blinded you! You've even fabricated such absurd excuses to slander the village's leadership!"
"Danzo may have used extreme methods, but his loyalty to Konoha was beyond question! As Hokage, I have never done anything to betray this village! You have no evidence, yet you stand here spreading lies, trying to divide the village with nothing but your words. This is treason! A crime punishable by death!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi was, after all, an old politician who had ruled for decades. In just a few sentences, he seized on the crucial point-evidence.
Without hard proof, everything could be dismissed as slander from the Uchiha Clan.
If he killed Chiya right now, the dead could not speak, and history would still be written by him, the victor!
At that thought, a vicious glint flashed in Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes. He abruptly waved his hand and issued an order:
"Anbu, heed my command! Clan heads, heed my command! Uchiha Chiya intends to overthrow Konoha and is extremely dangerous! Do not hold back. Kill him immediately! For Konoha's peace!"
However...
This time, the Anbu, who normally obeyed orders without hesitation, did not immediately charge.
Clan heads such as Hyuga Hiashi and Shikaku Nara remained rooted to the spot. Though they took defensive stances, they showed no intention of attacking.
None of them were fools.
Chiya's words had lodged like a thorn in everyone's heart. The destruction of Danzo's Root was a fact, as was Uchiha Itachi's death. If they attacked now without getting to the bottom of things, what if Chiya was telling the truth?
"Heh... evidence?"
Watching the hesitant crowd, the mockery in Chiya's eyes deepened.
"Hiruzen Sarutobi, did you think that with Danzo dead and unable to testify, you could wash your hands of everything?"
"Unfortunately for you, although your old friend is dead, he kept a very clear record of his dirty dealings."
With a thought, Chiya retrieved the [Root Secret Scroll] that had just dropped from his system space.
The scroll was pitch-black and gave off a stale, bloody smell.
"I found this in Danzo's private secret chamber. It contains detailed records of every 'top-secret mission' Root carried out over the past few decades."
Chiya waved the scroll in his hand, then suddenly fixed his gaze on a figure writhing in pain in a corner of the ruins.
It was a Root ninja.
With Danzo dead, the effects of the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal were fading. But the shock wave from Susanoo had broken both his legs, and he was now trying to crawl into the shadows.
"Perfect. I needed someone to read this aloud."
Whoosh!
Chiya activated Flash Step.
The next second, he had returned to his foothold above the lava, holding the Root ninja by the neck.
"You... you demon..." The Root ninja spat blood, his eyes filled with venom.
"Shh. Don't speak."
Chiya pressed a finger to his lips. Then his right eye, which had just absorbed Kotoamatsukami's ocular power, snapped wide open.
An eerie green chakra glow flowed through the patterns of his Mangekyo.
"Kotoamatsukami Light!"
Using the strongest genjutsu on a small fry was a terrible waste, but for this "live broadcast" before thousands of eyes, to make the truth impossible to dispute, Chiya did not care about spending a little ocular power!
Hum!
The Root ninja's eyes instantly went blank, then quickly regained their "clarity." This time, however, they were filled with absolute obedience to Chiya.
"Take it."
Chiya shoved the black scroll into his hands, his icy voice carrying across the entire scene:
"Read! Read it aloud for our Lord Hokage and all the clan heads!"
"Tell them just how many filthy corpses are buried beneath their so-called 'Will of Fire'!"
Under the absolute control of that ocular power, the Root ninja mechanically opened the scroll. Amplified by chakra, his trembling voice rang clearly through Konoha's night sky.
"Konoha Year 38, during the Second Shinobi World War. To weaken Amegakure's military strength, Root disguised its members as Stone Ninja and massacred three civilian villages in the Land of Rain, framing the Land of Earth and provoking war between the two countries..."
The very first entry caused a stir among the young Anbu nearby. Massacring civilians? That gravely violated the shinobi code!
Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression changed. "Shut up! That was a wartime strategy!"
But the Root ninja could not stop. He continued reading:
"Konoha Year 45. To obtain the power of Wood Release, Danzo collaborated with Orochimaru to abduct sixty infants with Senju blood from within the village for hashirama cells transplantation experiments. All test subjects died. Their bodies were disposed of in Root's sewers..."
"What?!"
An uproar erupted among the surrounding Konoha ninja. Abducting the village's infants for experiments? And targeting the First Hokage's Senju Clan, no less?
"So the reason the Senju Clan dwindled was..."
"My God, they're absolute monsters!"
Chiya looked at the Third with a cold smile. "Lord Hokage, Orochimaru's laboratory was right here in the village. Sixty children died. Don't tell me you knew nothing about it?"
Cold sweat began to bead on the Third's forehead. His lips trembled, but no words came out.
Yet even more explosive revelations were still to come.
The Root ninja turned a page. His voice grew even flatter, yet even more grating:
"Konoha Year 51, following the Nine-Tails incident. To prevent the Uchiha Clan from seizing power, the leadership ordered the Uchiha relocated to the village outskirts and placed under round-the-clock Root surveillance. At the same time, a plan was devised to spread rumors that 'the Uchiha controlled the Nine-Tails,' encouraging the villagers to ostracize them..."
The truth was out!
Those supposed rumors really had been spread by the leadership!
Watching the Third begin to sway on his feet, Chiya calmly twisted the knife. "See? These are your methods. First isolate them, then provoke them, and finally wipe out the clan with a convenient justification."
"The last entry. Read the one about the Hyuga." Chiya suddenly pointed to the end of the scroll.
The Root ninja nodded mechanically and read the passage that plunged Hyuga Hiashi into an icy abyss:
"Konoha Year 54, the Kumogakure delegation incident. Danzo proposed using this opportunity to force Hizashi Hyuga to his death, and secretly planned to retain one Byakugan for research when recovering his body. Code name: 'Caged Bird Seal Breaking Project'..."
Crack!
The rock beneath Hyuga Hiashi's feet shattered instantly.
His normally placid Byakugan were now filled with terrifying veins of blood.
Hizashi dying in his place had been an everlasting wound in his heart. He had always believed it was to protect the Main Family and preserve the village's peace.
But now...
Danzo had not even intended to leave Hizashi's corpse alone? He had even wanted to study the Byakugan to use against the Hyuga Clan?!
"Lord Hokage..."
Hyuga Hiashi turned his head, his voice as cold as ancient ice. "Did you know about this?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi stiffly turned toward him. Looking into Hiashi's Byakugan, which seemed ready to devour him, he felt fear for the first time.
He had lost their hearts.
It was not just the Hyuga. Shikaku Nara, Choza Akimichi, Shibi Aburame... none of the clan heads standing nearby looked at him with their former respect. In its place were deep wariness and chilling hostility.
Today it was the Uchiha, yesterday it was the Senju. Would the Ino-Shika-Cho be next tomorrow?
For the sake of that so-called "Will of Fire," could any of them be sacrificed at any moment, their corpses exploited afterward?
"That's not it... Hiashi, let me explain..." Hiruzen Sarutobi tried to salvage the situation.
"Explain?"
Chiya kicked the Root ninja away, and the Ryūjin Jakka in his hand burst into roaring flames once more.
"Save your explanations for the First and the Second in hell!"
"Hiruzen Sarutobi, look around you. Everyone has abandoned you!"
"That Will of Fire you're so proud of is nothing but a stinking pile of dog shit in the face of these bloody truths!"
"How do you still have the nerve to wear that ceremonial robe? What right do you have to stand in the position of Hokage?!"
Every word from Chiya landed like a resounding slap across Hiruzen Sarutobi's aged face.
The surrounding Anbu lowered their swords.
Without a word, the clan heads each took a step back, clearing an open space.
At that moment, the "Shinobi Hero," who had held office longer than anyone else, looked so old and alone.
He had lost.
Politically, morally, and in the hearts of the people, he had suffered a crushing defeat.
"Heh... heh heh..."
With his head lowered, Hiruzen Sarutobi suddenly let out a hoarse chuckle.
He slowly raised his hands and unfastened the ceremonial robe that symbolized the Hokage's honor. The coat bearing the words "Third Hokage" drifted to the ground and became stained with dust.
When he raised his head again, the panic and guilt in his eyes had disappeared.
They were replaced by reckless resolve and the fierce killing intent of a powerful warrior.
If reason was useless, if he could no longer win back their hearts...
Then he would kill!
As long as he killed the man exposing the truth, as long as he suppressed everything by force, he had to preserve Konoha's stability-even if it meant being branded a tyrant!
"There's no point in saying more."
Hiruzen Sarutobi tightened his grip on the Adamantine Staff again. His immense chakra erupted like a storm, lifting even the rubble around him into the air.
"Chiya, since you refuse to see reason and insist on destroying the village I've spent my life protecting..."
"Then, on behalf of every Hokage, I can only purge this traitor from our ranks!"
"Whatever the truth may be, tonight, you must die here!!"
Boom!
The Third Hokage vanished in an instant.
The next second, the enormous Adamantine Staff came crashing down toward the crown of Chiya's head with overwhelming force!
This was no longer a probing exchange, but a true fight to the death!
Before you continue