Hiruzen Sarutobi pondered for a moment. His current mindset was no longer that of the impulsive young man from years past. He leaned more towards peace now. If not for this war against Kirigakure, where his teacher Tobirama Senju had personally named him and Danzo as the vanguard, he wouldn't even have wanted to come.
"Teacher, I think this matter is solely the problem of Hidan from Takigakure. There's no need to provoke conflict between our two villages. Moreover, Takigakure is just a small village. I believe we should prioritize harmony, deal with the chief perpetrator, and focus on appeasement."
"We, Konoha, are a great and prosperous village. How can we stoop to their level? Wouldn't that make us a laughingstock in the world?" Hiruzen said with a smile. From this, we can see that Hiruzen is a man who values propriety. What he cares about is face.
Tobirama Senju looked at him deeply. To be honest, he felt somewhat disappointed. The Hiruzen Sarutobi who had volunteered to stay behind as rearguard back then, who feared no death, who was willing to sacrifice everything for Konoha...
The passage of time had not only aged his appearance but had almost completely washed away his convictions and courage. It was fortunate that earlier, Tobirama had persuaded him to step down from his position.
If Hiruzen were still in power now, the ninja clans of Konoha would likely be extremely dissatisfied. The enemy had come to our doorstep. Even if it was because of one individual, they had indeed caused losses to Konoha.
When someone has already come to defecate on your face, are you still supposed to endure it? What then was the original purpose of my elder brother founding Konoha? Should a Konoha like this even continue to exist?
Furthermore, Tobirama realized that Hiruzen was too concerned with propriety. Many times, his advice made Tobirama somewhat nauseous. Things like, after occupying Kirigakure, we should sincerely cooperate with the various ninja clans.
Giving the clans some benefits is also understandable. Then we could govern Kirigakure jointly with the clans, which would be more convenient and easier.
As ninja of a great village, Konoha shinobi should yield in conflicts with Kirigakure ninja to demonstrate the magnanimity of our great village! If Tobirama weren't considering that Hiruzen was old and advanced in years, he'd want to hang him up and beat him!
To preserve your so-called face, you would wrong our own Konoha citizens? What were you thinking? Timid and submissive externally to display your own benevolence, yet internally strict with laws, striking with heavy fists.
Well then, are you one of us, or a spy sent by the other side? If not for the fact that Hiruzen's father, Sasuke Sarutobi, was the secretary to the First Hokage Hashirama Senju, which made Hiruzen's background politically correct...
Tobirama Senju might even have wanted to treat Hiruzen like an Uchiha. Oh, no, like the Uchiha of the past! The current Uchiha, under Ryun's leadership, are actually quite decent.
Although not equal to his own Senju clan, they are now a ninja clan with culture, heritage, and substance!
Hearing Hiruzen's answer, Tobirama Senju did not rush to speak. Instead, he turned to look at Danzo. "Danzo, tell me, if it were you, how would you handle the matter of Hidan from Takigakure in the Land of Rivers?"
Danzo narrowed his eyes. A killing intent, unconcealed, emanated from his body. Hiruzen, standing beside him, frowned and was about to speak up, to say Danzo was being disrespectful! Tobirama glared at him.
Hiruzen had no choice but to close his mouth. He lowered his head to look at his toes, his ears perked up, ready to listen to his old friend's opinion. He guessed it would probably be similar to his own!
Danzo spoke. "Looking across the nearly thousand years of history in the ninja world, I have comprehended only one word. Kill!" As these words came out, Hiruzen's face turned pale. He looked up at Danzo as if meeting him for the first time today!
"What? Danzo! Do you know what you are saying? Kill? The other people of the Land of Rivers are innocent. They are living lives! Do you intend to kill indiscriminately? When did you become so twisted?"
Danzo felt a chill in his heart. He looked at Hiruzen with gloomy eyes. He raised his thumb, sneering coldly. "You're amazing. You're noble. Now you can scold me!"
"What if I scold you! I don't want my friend, my close friend, to become a demon who only knows slaughter. I don't want you to be nailed to the pillar of shame in ninja world history!" Hiruzen's face flushed red with argument. Even his body began to tremble, his teeth clenched tightly as he looked at Danzo.
Danzo pushed Hiruzen. He was furious now, already forgetting the teacher was present. He started shouting directly. "Do you have any idea what you just said?"
Hiruzen did not make a sound, but the fury in his eyes made people shudder to see.
"Appeasement as the main approach externally? He killed people openly on our Konoha streets, without any regard, treating our Konoha laws, Konoha's dignity, as nothing. And you say appeasement!"
"Are you trying to chill the hearts of our Konoha clans? You're so noble! For your false reputation, for people to sing your praises, you disregard Konoha's interests, Konoha's dignity!"
"If you could take just half of this hardline attitude you use against me and use it against the other villages, you wouldn't have been abandoned by the clans. You wouldn't have stepped down in such disgrace!" Danzo's words were like a knife, plunging straight into Hiruzen's heart.
"Enough, Danzo. I am the..." Halfway through, Hiruzen paused. Having been out of office for years, he still couldn't shake off the demeanor of the Hokage.
"You are the what? Why don't you finish? Hiruzen, face reality! You are no longer the Hokage!" Danzo showed no regard for Hiruzen's face, stating this directly.
Tobirama Senju did not speak, looking at Danzo, his expression uncertain. He began to doubt whether he had truly made a mistake, whether he had chosen the wrong person back then! Danzo's current thoughts, Danzo's words, were those a qualified leader should have.
Hiruzen, ashamed into anger, directly slapped Danzo. Slap! A crisp sound filled the entire office. Tobirama frowned, looking at Hiruzen, anger already in his eyes.
Danzo was also stunned. Then he chuckled coldly. "Heh, hahahaha, Hiruzen, ashamed into anger?" Danzo spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva.
"The teacher entrusted Konoha to you so you could lead Konoha to prosperity. If Ryun hadn't appeared out of nowhere, turning the tide when all seemed lost, supporting the collapsing edifice, the current Konoha would probably be paying the price for your so-called false reputation!"
"Lose a war, pay reparations. Win a war, still give money to help them, to display your name of benevolence. How can you be so naive! Sir Hiruzen." This 'Sir' meant Danzo and Hiruzen Sarutobi had already broken ties. There was no more brotherly affection between them.
Hiruzen naturally understood the meaning of these words. He staggered back and sat on the ground.
"You think if you give them money, they'll be grateful? You think if you don't want war, they are the same as you and don't want war? Konoha and the Land of Fire are like a piece of fatty meat, possessing countless kekkei genkai, possessing countless material resources."
"Do you think they don't want to attack the Land of Fire, don't want to annex Konoha Village, don't want to plunder our Konoha Village's kekkei genkai?" Danzo was now completely firing on all cylinders.
Hiruzen's face was ugly, but he could not refute it, because what Danzo said was right. Even though he no longer had the fighting spirit of the past, from an objective point of view, everything Danzo said was the truth.
"For Konoha to prosper, for other countries to fear us, we must not yield a single inch of territory. We must not give a single coin of resources. We must repay grievances without fail, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth! Only then can we have lasting peace and stability!"
"Not for the sake of so-called false reputation, so-called benevolence and righteousness!" Danzo roared! His voice passed through the Mizukage's office to the outside, making the Seven Ninja Swordsmen tremble.
They looked towards the Mizukage's office with grave expressions! In their hearts, they approved of Danzo's argument. Even though they were enemies, they all understood that for a village to become strong, this is how it must be done!
The current situation illustrates this perfectly. Ryun's name is known throughout the ninja world! And Hiruzen Sarutobi? Mention him and someone might say this. "Oh! The Third from Konoha!" And then nothing more.
Tobirama Senju looked at his two disciples, now like fire and water, and couldn't help but sigh inwardly. He spoke loudly. "Alright, Danzo, calm down."
Danzo was taken aback. This was the first time the teacher had told him to calm down. In the past, when he and Hiruzen disagreed, the teacher had always been concerned with Hiruzen's face, not his!
"Teacher, I..." Danzo started to speak but stopped. Tobirama waved his hand, then looked at Hiruzen. Hiruzen slowly stood up and bowed. "Teacher."
"Hiruzen, I don't know what you have been through. Back then, I entrusted Konoha to you indeed because you stayed behind as rearguard. But do you know what I saw in you?" Tobirama said solemnly.
"Facing danger, stepping forward, daring to fight enemies to the death."
"Facing a desperate situation, knowing death was certain, still leaving hope for your comrades."
"Uafraid of sacrifice, for the village, willing to go to your death."
"I vaguely remember, how heroic and vigorous you were back then, how utterly reliable you seemed. But what have you become now!" Tobirama's face was filled with disappointment.
Hiruzen's face stiffened. Hearing these words, he lowered his head. He gritted his teeth, not uttering a word.
"Time, it truly is a knife. It changes people too much. And the reason I asked you questions today is actually because I already had an answer in my heart. I wanted to test you."
"Hiruzen, your heart is gone. That heart that strove tirelessly for Konoha has, under time's冲刷, turned into propriety, turned into benevolence and righteousness."
"And Danzo, over these years, has grown more and more mature. Facing foreign enemies who violate our Konoha, what we must do is kill! Not engage in duplicity with them, making compromises. Compromises only make the enemy press for more!" Tobirama's words settled the matter!
Hiruzen's face turned ashen. He began to doubt whether he had truly changed. Danzo's expression remained unchanged. The corner of his eye glanced at Hiruzen, filled with disappointment.
---------
Please like, please urge for more updates, please power with love.
Haven't asked in a while. This chapter Danzo explodes.
Tobirama Senju realizes his mistake. This should be what everyone likes to see!