"Wait! That's impossible!"
Hiruzen's roar echoed through the tent.
His voice cracked as his vocal cords rasped, like cloth being torn apart.
He took a huge step forward. His military boot slipped with a squelch on the bloody water covering the floor.
Hiruzen regained his balance and clenched both hands into fists, digging his nails into his palms.
Those fatal few seconds in Lightning Cloud Ravine replayed madly in Hiruzen's mind.
Tobirama had asked who would stay behind to cover their retreat.
He had hesitated. He had weighed his clan's interests against his own life.
Just a few seconds had made the difference.
If he had drawn his kunai and said "I'll do it" back then, he would be the one wearing the conical hat now!
Regret slithered up his spine like an icy venomous snake and sank its fangs into his heart.
Hiruzen could barely breathe. It felt as though his lungs were stuffed with wet cotton.
That was his position. The Sarutobi Clan had plotted for over a decade and poured countless resources into securing the seat of Hokage, and it had been almost within reach!
Why should some nobody of a civilian who had appeared out of nowhere steal it from him?!
"Lord Tobirama was just deceived by you!" Hiruzen pointed at Shu Shiraishi, his finger trembling uncontrollably.
Shu Shiraishi wore the conical hat, its brim casting a shadow over his eyes.
He said nothing. He merely raised a hand and adjusted the ties on his tattered collar.
That casual gesture landed like a resounding slap across Hiruzen's face.
Hiruzen's chest heaved as he turned to the other leaders around him.
"How old is he? Sixteen!" Hiruzen shouted, his voice shaking. "Does he understand the bigger picture? Does he know how to handle disputes between the clans?!"
Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu exchanged a glance, neither daring to speak.
When no one spoke up for him, Hiruzen grew frantic, veins bulging on his forehead.
He ripped the forehead protector from his head and flung it to the floor with a clatter.
"What was Konoha founded for? Love! Mutual understanding!" Hiruzen began waving his arms. "The heart of the Will of Fire is protection! And him? All he knows is killing! Look at all that blood on him!"
Hiruzen pointed at the two severed heads on the floor.
"Today he can slaughter Kumogakure's elite without mercy; tomorrow he can turn his blade on his comrades in the village!"
"Handing Konoha over to him will drive the village to ruin!"
Hiruzen's voice grew louder as he spoke, spittle flying everywhere. He was trying to use those high-sounding words to nail Shu Shiraishi to the pillory of moral shame.
Shu Shiraishi lowered his hand and smoothed his collar.
He lifted his chin slightly and finally glanced at Hiruzen.
Just one glance. The kind of look one gave a barking stray dog.
Shu Shiraishi neither explained nor argued.
He took a step forward. His boot passed over the forehead protector, producing an ugly metallic scrape.
Overwhelmed by his presence, Hiruzen stumbled half a step back, knocking over a wooden rack of bandages with his lower back.
Before Hiruzen could regain his footing-
Clang-
Clang-
Two crisp sounds of weapons being drawn rang out at the same time.
Kagami Uchiha drew the short blade from his back.
Torifu Akimichi pulled the iron rod from his waist.
The two stood firmly in front of Shu Shiraishi, one on either side. The blade's tip and the iron rod were pointed straight at Hiruzen's face.
Hiruzen froze.
His mouth hung open as he stared at the two former comrades blocking his way.
"Kagami? Torifu? You..." Hiruzen stammered.
Kagami Uchiha fixed his black eyes on Hiruzen, their gaze cold.
"Stand down, Hiruzen," Kagami said coldly. "He saved all our lives in Lightning Cloud Ravine. Lord Tobirama personally appointed him the Third Hokage."
The Uchiha Clan worshipped only the strong. The sight of Shu Shiraishi crushing Kinkaku with his bare hands was etched deep into Kagami's mind.
That was the god who could lead the Uchiha to the pinnacle.
Torifu Akimichi slammed his iron rod against the floor, making it shake.
"Hiruzen, stop embarrassing yourself." Torifu's usually good-natured face was now filled with disdain. "If you've really got that much backbone, why didn't you step forward back in the ravine?"
The Akimichi Clan valued straightforwardness. They followed whoever had the strongest fists and could protect the village.
What was all that talk of morality? It was all bullshit.
Those two remarks were like two sharp blades stabbing straight through Hiruzen's last shred of cover.
Hiruzen's face instantly flushed purple-red, like a pig's liver.
His lips trembled violently, but for a long while he couldn't get a word out.
"You... you've been brainwashed by him!" Hiruzen roared in a rage. He spun halfway around and kicked the forehead protector off the floor. It struck the wall and bounced into a corner.
In the corner, Danzo was biting down hard on his thumb. He had bitten the nail down to the quick, drawing blood.
He watched Shu Shiraishi's back beneath the conical hat, jealousy growing like wild grass.
Hiruzen had at least dared to raise his voice. Danzo had been so frightened just now that he hadn't even dared move.
Now, even his right to be jealous had been taken away.
"Form up. We're returning to the village."
Shu Shiraishi gave the order without looking at Hiruzen's clownish face.
His voice was not loud, but it carried over the thunder outside.
Kagami and Torifu put away their weapons and bowed their heads respectfully. "Yes, Lord Hokage!"
The other Anbu Ninja also dropped to one knee and acknowledged the order in unison.
It was absolute obedience born of ultimate power.
Outside the tent.
The Medical Team pushed the stretcher cart carrying Tobirama Senju forward through the rain.
The main force quickly assembled and marched at speed toward Konoha, escorting the stretcher.
Shu Shiraishi walked at the very front of the group.
He wore no raincoat, letting the rain wash the blood from his body.
His stride was steady, like a precision killing machine patrolling its territory.
Kagami Uchiha and Torifu Akimichi followed closely on either side.
Hiruzen trudged unevenly along at the rear of the group.
Mud covered his pant legs, leaving him looking utterly disheveled.
All the way, Hiruzen stared at Shu Shiraishi's back, the venom in his eyes growing stronger.
The humiliation of being ground into the dirt by overwhelming power was driving him mad.
The rain eased into a steady drizzle.
Konoha's tall wooden gates were faintly visible ahead. A dim yellow searchlight shone from the gate tower.
Hiruzen couldn't hold it in any longer.
He suddenly quickened his pace, passed several Anbu, and roared at Shu Shiraishi up ahead.
"Shu!"
Hiruzen's voice cracked with hysteria.
"A brutal man like you will destroy Konoha's peace sooner or later!"
He clenched his back teeth, each word seemingly forced through them.
The group stopped.
The Anbu Ninja turned to look at the Sarutobi Clan's young heir, who had lost his reason.
Shu Shiraishi halted.
His back was to Hiruzen. The white conical hat stood out in the rainy night.
Rain dripped from its brim.
Seeing Shu Shiraishi stop, Hiruzen thought his words had taken effect.
He was just about to launch into another long speech about the Will of Fire.
Shu Shiraishi slowly turned around.
His left hand rested on the scabbard at his waist.
His right hand gripped the hilt.
He pushed with his thumb.
The blade scraped against the scabbard.
It made an extremely piercing metallic creak.
The ninja blade that had severed Kinkaku's neck, a notch in its edge, was slowly drawn.
Dark red crusts of blood still clung to the blade.