After Uchiha Chisen brought up the "Fourth Hokage" who sacrificed himself on the Nine-Tails Night, Sarutobi Hiruzen was taken aback.
He hadn't expected Uchiha Chisen to mention the Fourth Hokage in front of Naruto.
But upon noticing Naruto lowering his head, afraid to speak, as if he hadn't noticed.
Sarutobi Hiruzen felt an inexplicable sense of relief.
He lowered his voice slightly and said, "Chisen, you should be well aware of Naruto's unique nature. Imprisoning him for a prank could traumatize him."
"So..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen spoke with a pleading tone, earnestly saying, "Occasionally giving the village's young sprouts some room to grow is also the most perfect embodiment of Konoha's Will of Fire."
But Sarutobi Hiruzen found that despite his heartfelt plea.
Uchiha Chisen's eyes showed no sign of wavering.
Uchiha Chisen said expressionlessly, "Hokage-sama has already abused his power for personal gain, acting against Justice, by choosing to cover for Shimura Danzo, who inexplicably possesses the power of the Uchiha Clan's Sharingan."
"And now you intend to continue abusing the Hokage's authority to protect Uzumaki Naruto, a child who should have received proper guidance but has instead been neglected, leading to a warped sense of values."
"Your actions, Hokage-sama, are no different than splashing dirty stains onto the word 'Justice'."
Sarutobi Hiruzen: "!!!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen felt as though he had been scolded, and right to his face.
However.
The sheer amount of information contained within Uchiha Chisen's words was immense, causing Sarutobi Hiruzen's gaze to become grave.
"Chisen, what do you mean by Danzo's Sharingan?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen immediately changed the subject and asked.
Uchiha Chisen, without hesitation, exposed Danzo's secret, stating coldly, "When he fought me, he used the Sharingan's secret technique, 'Izanagi'."
"For Shimura Danzo, who is not of the Uchiha Clan, to possess the Uchiha's Sharingan and use its forbidden secret technique? Hokage-sama, it's 'difficult' to guess!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression shifted slightly.
He knew that Danzo had conducted numerous human experiments in secret with Orochimaru, and he also knew that Danzo had researched the Wood Release Kekkei Genkai.
But Sarutobi Hiruzen hadn't expected Danzo to be so fixated on the Uchiha Clan's Sharingan.
Sarutobi Hiruzen recalled Uchiha Shisui, who the village had ruled "deceased, but cause of death unknown."
He had long suspected that Shisui's "unknown cause of death" was highly likely connected to Danzo's Root.
After all, Shisui's exceptionally special Sharingan...
Given Danzo's personality, he would never let it go.
Sarutobi Hiruzen then remembered that during the Third Shinobi World War, the Sharingan of some deceased Uchiha Clan ninja had mysteriously disappeared, suspected of being taken by enemy ninja.
Could it be that Danzo had sent people to secretly dig them out? A sudden, absurd thought crossed Sarutobi Hiruzen's mind.
He believed the possibility was extremely high!
He knew Danzo too well; Sarutobi Hiruzen felt the probability of Danzo doing such a thing was at least ninety-nine percent.
Moreover, Chisen had never wrongly accused anyone.
Although he didn't quite agree with some of Chisen's methods and his belief in 'Absolute Justice,' finding it too extreme.
It didn't affect his trust in him.
"Chisen, regarding Danzo's matter... I will give you, and the Uchiha Clan, an explanation." Sarutobi Hiruzen's voice was slightly stiff, and he suddenly felt a twinge of guilt for "covering up" for Danzo.
But in the blink of an eye, that so-called guilt vanished.
And he vaguely realized that he seemed to have inexplicably accepted the label of "cover-up" that Uchiha Chisen had pinned on him?
No!
As Hokage, he was merely trying to prevent infighting among the village's ninja; how could it be considered cover-up?
Sarutobi Hiruzen cleared his throat and said, "But Naruto..."
"There's no room for negotiation." Uchiha Chisen, under the watchful eyes of the Anbu ninja, picked Naruto up again.
This caused a stir among the Anbu ninja.
But Uchiha Chisen didn't care. He looked directly at Sarutobi Hiruzen and said, "I will not let go of the Root that obstructs the execution of Justice. In Konoha, it's either me or them."
"I will definitely find the location of the 'Root' deep within Konoha, and I will thoroughly purge Root, which is filled with darkness and sin, to uphold the belief of 'Absolute Justice'."
"You can stop me once, twice... but can you stop me forever?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen: "..."
He felt that his attempt at mediation had not successfully resolved the conflict.
Instead, it had escalated the conflict between Chisen and Danzo to the entire Root organization.
Chisen would never speak without reason.
His saying this meant he truly intended to destroy Root!
He truly wanted to relentlessly pursue Danzō!
Sarutobi Hiruzen took a deep breath and glanced at Naruto, who had given up struggling and wore a pleading, distressed expression.
Frowning, he said, "Chisen, your methods are too extreme. If I, as Hokage, were to order you to cease your conflict with Root, and to let Naruto go, what would you do?"
Uchiha Chisen replied, "You can try, Third Hokage."
Click—Suddenly, an Anbu ninja slightly drew his ninja sword an inch.
"Uchiha Chisen, the Hokage's order must not be disobeyed," the Anbu ninja issued a warning. "Furthermore, you should address him as Hokage-sama, not Third Hokage."
Uchiha Chisen glanced at him.
[Son of Sarutobi Jō—During the Third Shinobi World War, out of personal vendetta, he vented his anger on civilians, killing a large number of ordinary citizens in enemy towns, and falsely claiming credit for killing enemy soldiers.]
The Anbu ninja who attempted to draw his sword suddenly felt a chill in his heart.
For some reason, he felt as if Uchiha Chisen's gaze was looking at him like he was already dead.
Uchiha Chisen, keeping his eyes on Naruto, left as if nothing had happened.
"Uchiha Chisen! You—"
"Wait." Sarutobi Hiruzen stopped the Anbu who was about to act. He stared at Uchiha Chisen's retreating back, his expression shifting slightly. Finally, he said in a deep voice, "Let him go."
"Hokage-sama, that's Uzumaki Naruto..."
An Anbu ninja reminded him.
Sarutobi Hiruzen clasped his hands behind his back and said faintly, "In his eyes, I am no different from Danzō now. If we stop him again, I will be the one in a physical conflict with Chisen. As his strength grows, it will be increasingly difficult for me to suppress him."
The Anbu ninjas found it unbelievable.
Uchiha Chisen actually wanted to fight the Hokage?
How could he dare?
What gave him the right to dare?
At this moment, Kakashi, who had been silent, finally spoke, "Hokage-sama, do you have a plan for the Jinchuriki?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded slightly and said, "Chisen taking Naruto is in line with his duties as a member of the Konoha Military Police Force, and it is also his right. As Hokage, I have the power to grant Naruto amnesty."
"Kakashi, take a squad of Anbu and stay behind to clean up the mess. The rest of you, follow me to the Root base!"
"Yes, Hokage-sama!"
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