IUTT: Ch. 120

Tsunade was stunned for quite a while before she reacted. She grabbed Shin's ear and shouted in embarrassed anger, "You've gone too far!"

"Ow ow ow! That hurts!" Shin immediately begged for mercy. "Take it easy, you're about to rip it off!"

"Even better if I rip it off! Serves you right for fooling me!" Tsunade got even angrier seeing that Shin had the nerve to plead, but her grip subconsciously loosened a bit out of concern.

"When did I fool you? You misunderstood, okay?" Shin tried to joke his way out.

"You're still talking back?" Tsunade scolded, grabbing his other ear with her other hand.

"You really misunderstood me," Shin quickly said. "I told you before, I'd find a romantic day. But today wasn't romantic enough, so I..."

"I'm not listening, I'm not listening, blah blah blah!" Tsunade puffed up in anger, looking just like a pufferfish... adorable.

Seeing this, Shin couldn't help but reach out and pinch her cheeks with both hands. Their playful bickering escalated, and naturally, they rolled onto the bed... And then proceeded to do some delightfully indescribable things that would take ten thousand words to detail.

---

While the two of them were enjoying their bliss, back in the office, Hiruzen was anything but happy.

His heart was filled with hatred. He was the Hokage, so why was everyone choosing to support Tsunade? These people were all traitors to Konoha.

Despicable.

Detestable.

Deserving of death!

But did he truly not know how things had come to this?

No, he was very intelligent. He had always known. After calming down, he suddenly recalled something Mito had told him not long ago.

"Do you know why Tobirama disbanded the once-dominant Senju clan and made them ordinary civilians? Because after Hashirama and Tobirama became Hokage, they set aside personal desires and did everything they could to avoid using public resources for private gain. Their hearts were wholly devoted to the village. I truly hope you can stay true to your original intention, and become someone like them."

Back then, although he had appeared respectful when hearing those words, deep down he was completely dismissive. But now, he remembered the disappointed, heartbroken look in Mito's eyes at that time.

Was I really wrong?

For once, he felt a rare sense of self-doubt. Because he had already used the power of the Hokage to seek private benefits for the Sarutobi clan more than once. In recent years, together with Danzō, Koharu, and Homura, he had embezzled and carved up countless assets of the village.

Yet the moment he thought of all those things he had done, cold sweat began pouring down his back.

Did he really have any way out now?

Even if he truly wanted to change, to devote himself to the village and become someone like the First and Second Hokage, did he still have a chance?

Would Danzō give him that chance?

Would Koharu or Homura?

If he didn't embezzle, how were they supposed to?

If they didn't embezzle, how would their clans profit? And besides, would the aggressive Tsunade ever give him a chance?

Would those supporting Tsunade give him a chance?

But the thought that he didn't even have a chance to regret it, that even his Hokage seat was at risk, filled him with deep resentment.

"No, I'm not wrong!"

His expression suddenly turned twisted and vicious. He growled, "Yes, I took the village's money. But I was using it to cultivate talent for the village! I didn't keep a single coin for myself, so what did I do wrong? Aren't Sarutobi ninjas also Konoha ninjas? Isn't the Sarutobi clan's strength also Konoha's strength? What a joke! It's you who are wrong! Why are you all pressing me like this? After so many years of tireless service to the village, is this the end I deserve?"

Power was a bleeding blade. Once someone tasted its allure, most find it impossible to let go.

If it hadn't been for Shin, many things wouldn't have come to light over a decade later, and even then, Hiruzen's forced abdication wouldn't have been entirely voluntary.

That was why he had no choice but to support Minato's rise to power. Yet even so, he never truly let go of power. Instead, he allied with Danzō and others to completely sideline Minato. As a result, the Fourth Hokage was reduced to Konoha's strongest enforcer, under the guise of needing a "transition period" for power.

But the moment Minato died, Hiruzen immediately reclaimed authority, holding onto it until he later perished in battle against Orochimaru. However, during his second tenure, he grew jealous of the talented and suppressed geniuses, leading to a point where Konoha had no capable fighters left.

An entire village unable to handle even one Orochimaru, how laughable was that?

Only after his death did Konoha's young geniuses finally get their chance to shine. In truth, Konoha had the potential to flourish under Hiruzen. Just imagine, if Kagami hadn't died, if Sakumo hadn't been driven to suicide, if the Sannin had stayed, if Minato and Kushina hadn't died, if Shisui had survived, if the Uchiha clan hadn't been alienated... How powerful would Konoha have become?

Forget one Orochimaru, they could've handled ten with ease, and none would have walked away alive. Looking at it this way, the ones who deserved to die were Hiruzen and his ilk.

Had it not been for Hiruzen and Danzō, Konoha would have remained the strongest village from beginning to end. No other ninja village would've dared to provoke them. In fact, the Second and Third Great Ninja Wars might not have even needed to be fought, Konoha could've just watched the world from the sidelines and laughed.

But all of that... will never happen now.

Aside from Kagami, who had already been set up and killed by Danzō, no one else needed to die such senseless deaths anymore.

---

After stepping down as the Hokage's advisor, Danzō did not become idle. On the contrary, he was more active and determined than ever.

Back when he was an advisor, he held great power, but the actual forces he controlled within Konoha were limited.

Though he could mobilize the Shimura clan's resources, it was still a relatively new clan, and its ninja were trained only in recent years, there were barely any truly capable fighters. And even if there were a few strong ones, they might be willing to support him, but to follow him in rebellion?

They'd probably sell him out in the next breath.

After all, even someone as powerful and respected as Madara couldn't get his clan to follow him out of the village, what hope did Danzō have?

But things were different now.

He now commanded 17 elite operatives, each with the strength of a high-level jonin.

Moreover, all 17 had unique skills and exceptional talent. In one-on-one fights, even a weaker Kage-level opponent might fall to them.

What's more, many of them had complementary abilities, when working together, they could unleash combat strength far beyond their individual levels. If all seventeen acted in concert, even assassinating a Kage from another village, if properly planned, was entirely possible.

"I didn't expect you to come." Danzō looked coldly at the unexpected visitor before him.