Chapter 234: My Heart and Actions Are Clear as a Mirror—All I Do Is Justice
Kazuma watched Jiraiya's impassioned speech with an expressionless face. Only after Jiraiya finished did he respond coldly:
"Lord Jiraiya, I am a shinobi loyal to the daimyo."
"Everything I do is based on choices beneficial to the daimyo."
"As for your talk of peace and suffering—none of that concerns me."
"I couldn't care less about such boring nonsense!"
"The only reason I cooperated with you before was because restoring Konoha Village's productivity benefited the Land of Fire. But that doesn't make us friends."
"My guiding principle has always been the daimyo's commands as my highest standard."
"If you and your actions interfere with the daimyo's orders, then you and I will inevitably become enemies."
"Is that so!" Jiraiya took a deep breath, straightening his spine. His towering frame loomed over Kazuma. "Then we're enemies now. What do you plan to do about me?"
"I'll say this directly!"
"As long as I remain this village's Hokage, I absolutely will not allow such unjust wars!"
"What—are you planning to split the village? Start an internal conflict?"
"Internal conflict?" Kazuma glanced dismissively at Jiraiya, laughing coldly. "Jiraiya, you vastly overestimate your prestige in this village!"
"How many shinobi do you think still support you?"
"Do you imagine those who aren't present are peace-loving idealists who share your beliefs?"
"No—they're just fence-sitters!"
"They're all watching which way the wind blows. Whichever side wins, they'll support."
"You've been nothing but a man alone from beginning to end!"
"Haha..." Jiraiya laughed with unrestrained boldness, utterly unaffected by Kazuma's words.
"So what if I'm alone?"
"I am the Toad Sage Jiraiya!"
"My heart and actions are clear as a mirror—all I do is justice!"
"Even if I stand alone, I will still stop your evil deeds!"
"Come on then! Try to defeat me!"
"Only if you defeat me can you proceed without my interference!"
Jiraiya crossed his arms, glancing left and right, regarding everyone present. His demeanor made clear his intention to suppress everything with force once more.
"Hmph!" Kazuma sneered. "Jiraiya, I recognized your methods long ago. I've prepared accordingly. Do you think flaunting your prowess still works on me?"
He clapped his hands twice sharply. The door opened with a creak. A shinobi entered, head bowed.
Jiraiya turned to look and immediately froze in shock.
"Itachi?"
"How is it you?"
Itachi wore the same wooden, lifeless expression as always. His eyes remained dull and dim—but now held a faint glimmer of light.
The heart that Jiraiya had inadvertently shattered had somehow revived!
Jiraiya had tried many times to reawaken Itachi, but every attempt failed. Itachi had remained in that half-dead, spiritually broken state.
Now seeing Itachi's sudden appearance, Jiraiya felt profound shock.
How did Kazuma accomplish this?
"Haha..."
Kazuma laughed triumphantly, patting Itachi's shoulder while regarding the astonished Jiraiya with mocking disdain:
"Jiraiya, you're truly an idiot!"
"Why leave such an excellent tool as Uchiha Itachi gathering dust in a corner unused?"
"If Mizuki-jonin hadn't recommended him, I never would have known the village was wasting such a talented individual."
"Mizuki explained it to me. Itachi collapsed mentally because he lost his spiritual anchor. He believed his past actions brought no benefit to Konoha Village—only harm."
Kazuma surveyed the room, suddenly raising his voice to shout loudly:
"That's complete nonsense!"
"Who says the Uchiha massacre brought no benefits to Konoha Village?"
"Every single one of you benefited, yet you all pretend ignorance, putting on false displays!"
"Shameful!"
He clapped Itachi's shoulder heavily again, speaking with exaggerated sincerity:
"Itachi, remember this well!"
"The Uchiha were a major clan, but they never submitted to village authority. They constantly plotted rebellion."
"Such a clan would inevitably become a festering threat. Eliminating them early meant safety for everyone!"
"Moreover, I've carefully reviewed the records. After the Uchiha were eliminated, the village absorbed their land, shops, ninja tools, jutsu scrolls, libraries—massive amounts of property and resources."
"Those ninja tools and jutsu scrolls played crucial roles in the previous war, saving countless comrades' lives."
"Precisely because the village obtained the Uchiha clan's vast wealth, we had sufficient funds to withstand the Four Nations' siege."
"Precisely because of the abundant resources from the Uchiha, Konoha Village's recovery has proceeded so rapidly."
"So tell me, Itachi—how can anyone claim the massacre brought no benefits to Konoha Village?"
"The benefits are abundantly clear!"
"These despicable ninja clans deliberately concealed your contributions for their own selfish interests."
"Especially that Jiraiya—to reconcile with that damned rogue Uchiha Yasushi, he twisted truth into lies, declaring right as wrong, heaping all blame onto you."
"Shameless, Jiraiya!"
"Itachi, you must not be deceived by Jiraiya's words. You must hold firm to your convictions!"
"Regarding the massacre—you did absolutely nothing wrong!"
"This was righteousness over blood ties!"
As Kazuma spoke, his gaze swept across the assembled jonin.
These political creatures immediately understood. A group rushed forward to play their parts, prostrating themselves with enthusiastic declarations:
"We sincerely apologize!"
"After the Uchiha massacre, the Morino clan received many plots of land and shops. We only downplayed this matter out of fear the village might reclaim them for the Uchiha clan."
"Ah, speaking of which—during the war, the Moonlight clan's supplies were exhausted multiple times. We barely survived thanks to village support. Turns out those resources came from the Uchiha!"
"If Lord Kazuma hadn't clarified these connections, I never would have understood!"
"Come to think of it, every ninja clan benefited from the Uchiha massacre!"
As these people "confessed," the extinguished fire in Uchiha Itachi's eyes gradually reignited.
His entire body trembled. He muttered to himself repeatedly:
"That's right—I upheld righteousness over blood ties!"
"I did nothing wrong!"
"The Uchiha massacre truly did benefit the village!"
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