Sarutobi Hiruzen stared blankly at the furious crowd gathered before him.
His head swam. His limbs felt cold.
A strange sense of unreality crept into his heart.
What was happening?
Just days ago, he was the Hokage—ruler of the village, a man who could cover the sky with one hand.
Now?
He stood on the edge of ruin.
It all played back in his mind, each moment a nail in his coffin.
Day One: The head of the Cloud Shinobi diplomatic mission kidnapped Hyūga Hinata... and then committed suicide.
At the time, Hiruzen had believed he could manipulate Hyuga Naraku into sacrificing the child, invoking the Will of Fire for the village's sake.
Instead, Naraku's counter argument had left them speechless.
Day Two: They arranged for Root operatives—three elite jōnin—to ambush and kill Naraku.
The assassination failed.
Worse: word spread. The villagers were furious. War fever surged. The people turned against the Cloud.
Day Three: Under orders from Sarutobi Shinnosuke, Anbu from Root and members of four clans formed a strike force of over a hundred to destroy Naraku.
All were killed. No survivors.
Hiruzen's own son perished. The sight of his corpse had broken him.
Day Four: The council tried to install a Hyuga clan elder as the new patriarch to force the clan to execute Naraku via the Caged Bird Seal.
That elder—and his son—were executed on the spot.
Hiruzen himself was driven out of the Hyuga compound in disgrace.
Day Five: They were out of ideas. No plans. No moves.
Day Six: Danzo acted alone, leading what remained of Root in a final, desperate assault.
He failed.
Hiruzen arrived afterward, ready to frame Naraku for attacking an elder advisor. But every clan leader, spurred by Naraku, condemned Danzo and executed him on the spot.
At that moment, Hiruzen realized the truth: the clans no longer recognized his authority.
Now…
As they debated how to respond to the brewing war with Cloud Shinobi, Hyuga Naraku made his final move:
He called for the removal—and imprisonment—of Sarutobi Hiruzen and the two remaining elders.
"Cloud Shinobi..."
A flicker of desperation lit Hiruzen's eyes.
His final gambit.
"No! I cannot be removed—not now! The war with the Cloud looms! Without me… who will lead the defense of Konoha?!"
He gasped as though surfacing from deep water, seizing this last excuse like a lifeline.
Naraku tilted his head.
"Oh? So the Third Hokage is finally ready to step onto the battlefield?"
Hiruzen hesitated.
Battlefield?
No… He meant to command from the village, not fight himself.
But that moment of pause betrayed him.
The patriarchs' eyes hardened.
Naraku's voice sliced through the air:
"Needless to say, Hiruzen. We all saw your hesitation."
They had given him chance after chance.
And he'd failed them all.
"I, Hyuga Naraku, will lead the army to face the Cloud Shinobi," Naraku declared.
"This began with the Cloud attacking my clan. It is our duty to respond."
Hyuga Hiashi stepped forward. "The Hyuga Clan will follow."
Aburame Shibi nodded. "The Aburame Clan stands with Commander Naraku."
"The Nara Clan."
"The Yamanaka Clan."
"The Akimichi Clan."
Voices rose in unified response. The memory of Naraku's overwhelming strength—his slaughter of Root, the annihilation of the Dream Tapir—was still fresh.
Naraku's gaze returned to the old Hokage.
"Sarutobi Hiruzen, do you have anything else to say? If not, Anbu—take them."
"Anbu?!"
Hiruzen's eyes widened.
Anbu were under his command!
But to his horror… none moved.
Except to turn… toward Hatake Kakashi.
Two Anbu squads had already been lost—wiped out during the past week's failures. The remaining two had leaders: Kakashi, and Sarutobi Asuma.
But Kakashi wasn't just anyone.
He was the son of Hatake Sakumo.
The most talented of his generation.
And now… the strongest man in Anbu.
Anbu instinctively looked to him.
Kakashi hesitated—only briefly.
Not whether to arrest Hiruzen.
But why he was the one to do it.
Then his decision crystallized.
Cold-eyed, he gave the order:
"Take the Third Hokage and the two advisors. Imprison them in Konoha Prison."
"You—"
Hiruzen's voice cracked.
The Anbu moved in.
He backed away.
"I'm the Hokage! What are you doing?!"
One older Anbu looked at him, eyes weary.
"Enough, Lord Third. You've made too many mistakes."
"I DID NOTHING WRONG! IT'S HIM! IT'S THAT BASTARD—HYUGA NARAKU!"
Enraged, Hiruzen lunged at Naraku.
Naraku snorted.
One punch.
Boom!
Hiruzen flew across the room, coughing blood.
"Impossible…" Hiruzen gasped. "Even if I've aged, how could he…"
Naraku's voice was like ice.
"Accept it. Your fate is no longer yours. Once the investigation is complete, we'll decide whether you die… or rot forever."
"Die?"
The word echoed like a death knell.
Hiruzen's eyes bulged. Execution?
But he was the Hokage!
He looked around.
No one defended him.
Their faces were cold. Silent. Done with him.
"No…"
He screamed.
Eyes bloodshot, he lunged again—then pivoted.
He leapt out the window of the Hokage's office!
Escape.
It was all he had left.
He bit his finger.
"Summoning Jutsu—Ape King Enma, transform into the Adamantine Staff!"
Boom!
Enma appeared, scowling, saying nothing. He turned.
Hiruzen grasped the staff. It extended like a javelin to the horizon.
"I'll come back for you, Naraku!" he howled, disappearing into the distance.
"…The Hokage… defected?"
Whispers filled the chamber.
The impeachment had already rocked the ninja world.
Now, a new legend was born:
The Hokage… had become a missing-nin.
Naraku merely chuckled.
Let him run.
Let him squirm.
Death was too easy. He had not yet tasted true despair.
But Hiruzen's flight sparked a final flash of hope in the remaining elders.
Homura and Koharu exchanged a glance.
They bolted—dashing for the shattered window.
CRACK!
Naraku's shadow flickered.
He appeared behind them, hands grasping their hair.
SLAM!
Their skulls crashed into the Hokage's desk, blood splattering the wood.
The desk cracked.
"Anbu," Naraku ordered coldly, "lock them up. They're not allowed to die yet."
Hiruzen had watched his son die… watched Danzo perish with his own eyes.
Now, the final act would come with the fall of his last two allies.
Homura and Koharu, bloodied and humiliated, looked around for sympathy.
They found none.
Only cold eyes… and iron chains.