Inside the Hokage's office.
Since hearing about the Root mission failure and that the Uchiha were escorting someone toward the Hokage Tower, Hiruzen had been puffing nonstop on his pipe.
Thick smoke now filled the room, making the air inside extremely suffocating.
Suddenly, a dark figure appeared within the office and quickly reported, "Hokage-sama, Homura Mitokado and Jiraiya have stepped aside. Uchiha Aozora and others are arriving at the Hokage Tower immediately!"
Upon hearing this, Hiruzen finally stopped smoking and walked to the window.
Looking down at the large crowd of Konoha villagers following behind the Uchiha, his expression became especially complex.
If he'd listened to Danzo earlier and moved against the Uchiha before it got this far, could things have come to this?
And if he hadn't adopted Danzo's methods, would his relationship with the Uchiha have deteriorated to its current state?
Just as he adjusted his attire, preparing to go downstairs, suddenly two figures—one fat and one thin—appeared at the plaza below.
Torifu and Kosuke used the Body Flicker Technique to appear at the center of the main road in the plaza, blocking Aozora's group.
Facing the two elders of the Will of Fire (Konoha's martial spirit), Aozora raised a hand to halt the procession.
He quickly explained the situation to them, then said, "Right now, we just want an explanation from the Hokage."
After glancing at the Konoha villagers standing behind Aozora, Torifu firmly shook his head. Then he motioned to Aozora and said, "Can I talk with you for a moment?"
Aozora exchanged looks with Torifu, gave everyone a reassuring gesture, and walked toward him.
After exchanging a glance with Torifu, Kosuke nodded. He quickly performed Hand Seals, and soon four hazy water walls rose around the three men.
The surrounding crowd could only faintly see the silhouettes of three figures but couldn't discern their actions or words anymore.
Watching the water walls rise, Aozora calmly remarked, "Kosuke-jiji's little barrier is actually pretty practical!"
Kosuke smiled slightly before stepping back half a step, allowing Aozora and Torifu to talk privately.
Without beating around the bush, Torifu stated directly, "This farce can't continue!"
Aozora replied, "It's not our intention either. We've always followed the most formal process to run for Hokage."
Torifu nodded and said, "But if this goes on, it'll hurt the Hokage's authority and shake up Konoha's leadership."
Aozora responded, "That's Hiruzen's own fault!"
Sighing deeply, Torifu continued, "No matter how reasonable Hiruzen's explanation is, continuing like this will completely erode the Hokage's dignity. Konoha will become a laughingstock too."
He paused briefly before adding, "And even if Fugaku becomes the Fifth Hokage someday, he won't receive the same respect from villagers and ninja as before."
Aozora nodded slightly. The Hokage's revered status had been built on generations of sacrifice and service.
If the Third Hokage were entirely portrayed as a villain by Aozora and his faction, the Hokage's sacred image among Konoha villagers would vanish forever.
Acknowledging some truth to Torifu's words, Aozora still shook his head, replying regretfully, "Grandfather Torifu, are you saying we should consider the bigger picture?"
Letting out another sigh, Torifu gently nodded.
Aozora shook his head and sighed, "Grandfather Torifu, you're clearly taking advantage of an honest man!"
"This isn't the first time I've been taken advantage of!"
"I sacrificed my eyesight for this village—how has it treated me in return?"
"Falsely accusing me of slaughtering civilians!"
"For the greater good, I endured it. I allowed Hiruzen Sarutobi to strip me of my ninja status."
"And now?"
"He continues branding me as a Defector! Should I really consider the bigger picture again?"
Torifu remained silent, but Aozora pressed on relentlessly.
"This is not the first time the Uchiha have compromised either!"
"Regarding the incident involving Obito's eye, we gave up a tradition our clan had respected and practiced for generations—all in the name of harmony within the village!"
"During the relocation from our ancestral compound, we moved out of land we'd lived on for decades and nearly received no compensation at all!"
"What did all these concessions achieve?"
"Hiruzen Sarutobi repeatedly used Anbu to spread rumors painting the Uchiha as a cursed bloodline—reincarnated demons..."
Aozora shook his head bitterly and sighed, "Grandfather Torifu, this time, the Uchiha have already shown great restraint!
The Clan Leader has received my message, but his very first move was to go to the Police Force and calm everyone down, asking the clan members to continue maintaining Konoha's order.
Yes, once again, I've chosen the bigger picture while under the suppression of Hiruzen Sarutobi. But why must those who are oppressed always be the ones thinking about the larger interests?
Shouldn't Hiruzen Sarutobi himself, as Hokage, be considering the greater good too?
Just because the Uchiha love Konoha more, does that mean we should keep swallowing our bitterness after every blow?"
After hearing Aozora's words, Grandfather Torifu fell silent. Anyone with clarity could see how the Hokage Faction had suppressed the Uchiha.
And yet, despite being pushed aside time and again, the Uchiha still managed to deliver outstanding results. Asking them to swallow yet another injustice—he simply couldn't bring himself to say it.
Kosuke had never felt particularly sympathetic toward the Uchiha before, but after hearing Aozora speak, he began feeling deeply remorseful.
Any other clan—or any individual—facing such oppression might have already defected from the village!
And this wasn't some long-running pattern—it had likely been going on for decades.
He couldn't even begin to imagine how much longer the Uchiha could endure this!
One day, if the Uchiha reach their breaking point, what kind of consequences would follow?
After a long silence, Torifu asked, "Aozora, do you trust me?"
Aozora replied, "Of course I do."
Torifu nodded with satisfaction and said, "Then if you truly trust an old man like me, come alone with me to meet Hiruzen and settle this once and for all!"
He paused briefly, then made a firm promise: "If Hiruzen is truly in the wrong, I will make him give you and the Uchiha a proper reckoning—and I'll get every jonin from our Ino-Shika-Cho Triad to vote for Fugaku!"
Kosuke, who had kept quiet until now, finally spoke up, "This time, I'll fight for justice on your behalf!"
He thought about what might happen if the Uchiha finally lost patience—that was definitely not a future he wished to see.
To prevent Konoha from heading toward ruin, he rarely chose to side with the Uchiha—but today was different.
After listening to both Torifu's and Kosuke's promises, Aozora lowered his head in deep contemplation.
This time, his original plan was to ruin The Third's reputation entirely, cutting off the Hokage faction's last hope and enabling Fugaku to skip the elections and become The Fifth Hokage outright.
Still, Torifu had a point. Toppling The Third would tarnish the Hokage seat and turn Konoha into a laughingstock.
Konoha had already been the subject of ridicule in recent years—Orochimaru's defection, the Nine-Tails attack, Danzo's betrayal...
If yet another Hokage were to defect, Konoha's prestige would truly plummet. Without prestige, the Ninja Village's income would drop sharply, making it incredibly difficult for Fugaku to manage Konoha once he took over leadership.
Besides, if they aggressively removed The Third from power and angered elders like Torifu and Kosuke, then Fugaku—who was taking charge for the first time—might struggle to find anyone experienced enough to help with state affairs, and he'd end up tripping over his own feet, embarrassing himself left and right.
On the other hand, accepting Torifu's suggestion would win him the votes of Ino–Shika–Cho and Kosuke's support. His existing 60% chance of victory would then shoot up to 99%.
The only downside was that this might allow Hiruzen Sarutobi to step down peacefully and leave behind a good reputation among the villagers.
If Aozora were some hot-headed fool, he might act impulsively and seek personal vengeance.
But the soul within this young body wasn't merely thirteen years old!
Of course, all of this hinged on whether Aozora could outsmart The Third during the upcoming debate!
But hey, wasn't that something anyone could pull off with a bit of wit?
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