**Chapter 258: An Unexpected Death**

"You... you..."

Danzo's eyes widened in terror as he looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi.

How was he here? 

He wasn't supposed to be here! 

He absolutely shouldn't be here! 

Yet, here he was!

At this moment, Danzo was truly terrified.

This hideout had been activated temporarily. 

It had always been in a dormant state. 

Danzo had set this place up a long time ago, and only he knew of its existence, not even his guards were aware of it. 

So, he felt very secure here. 

But of all people, the last person who should appear... had appeared.

His safety... 

was now completely out of his hands.

"Attack!" 

Danzo shouted and immediately turned to run. 

Following his order, his two bodyguards—Yamanaka Fū and Aburame Torune—rushed toward Hiruzen. 

But Hiruzen didn't even glance at them. His eyes remained locked on Danzo. 

That was his true target. 

As for the others...

Swoosh! 

Four ninjas appeared, blocking Yamanaka Fū and Aburame Torune.

"Your opponents are us!" 

They were the same four barrier ninjas who had set up the barrier during the battle between Danzo and the Third Hokage, preventing Kakashi and others from interfering.

Kakashi hadn't killed them. 

They were strong, and Kakashi saw them as valuable assets to the village. 

So, they had been captured alive.

Now, as Hiruzen was sent into battle, these four were his guards, standing at his side.

"Move!" 

Yamanaka Fū shouted, and soon, the six of them were locked in combat.

At this point, Hiruzen Sarutobi slowly began walking in the direction Danzo had fled. 

His old friend wouldn't get far! 

And indeed, not far ahead, a large barrier was blocking Danzo's path. 

Dozens of ninjas were struggling to maintain it, while Danzo frantically attacked, trying to break through. The barrier rippled with each of his strikes.

"Danzo!" 

The Third Hokage's voice echoed behind him like a nightmare. 

Danzo froze in place, halting his attack.

"You... knew about this hideout?" 

Danzo's voice was strained, full of disbelief. 

He felt like this was the end.

"Of course," Hiruzen replied calmly. "I knew about it long ago, ever since you first built it." 

"When you defected from Konoha, I knew you would come here. It's not too far from the village and sits in the middle of the route to your other hideouts. It's well-stocked, filled with research equipment. I was sure you'd choose this place."

"Well, Danzo," Hiruzen said with a chilling smile. "Do I know you well or not? Maybe even better than you know yourself."

"Hmph!" Danzo sneered, looking at Hiruzen. "You shouldn't be here."

"But I am here," Hiruzen replied, still calm. "And I've been here just before you arrived."

"Danzo, it's time to end this," Hiruzen said, his voice soft but firm. "We've been allies and rivals for so many years. There should be a conclusion."

With that, Hiruzen removed his outer robe, revealing his battle armor.

"Indeed," Danzo replied, unsealing his arm once again. 

At this moment, the arm that was once embedded with countless Sharingan now had only one lonely eye left. 

Hiruzen couldn't help but smile. 

A deep, meaningful smile.

---

Rumors had begun to spread again.

No, these weren't just rumors anymore.

Nara Shikaku felt a chill run through his body. 

He was both furious and panicked, exclaiming, "How could these things appear in Konoha? And why are they spreading so quickly?"

In his hand was a report. 

It detailed the "evils" committed by Hiruzen Sarutobi. 

Worse than even Danzo's!

It was just a piece of paper, and most people didn't take much notice. 

Even though the villagers had their grievances with Hiruzen, a single piece of paper wasn't enough to sway them. 

You could say whatever you wanted, but you needed people to believe it.

But! 

This paper was different. 

It described Hiruzen's actions in great detail, including times, locations, and people involved. 

It even mentioned the recent battle between Hiruzen and Danzo, claiming the reason was to "silence" Danzo. 

So simple! 

Yet so cold and calculated.

And at this time, several people stepped forward. 

They were subordinates of the Fourth Hokage—Minato Namikaze's men! 

They openly declared that it was due to Hiruzen Sarutobi's orders that they were forbidden from approaching the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, the Fourth Hokage's orphan.

Otherwise, how could they have just stood by and let the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki live such a miserable life? 

Hiruzen had done this to maintain control over the Nine-Tails.

The villagers didn't care much about the Nine-Tails, but these subordinates of the Fourth Hokage confirmed some of the claims on the paper. 

They set the example. 

Soon, more and more people came forward, openly accusing Hiruzen Sarutobi. 

This caused an uproar throughout Konoha.

The Sarutobi clan, along with Hiruzen himself, were now nailed to a pillar of shame.

Nara Shikaku took a deep breath and strode into the Hokage's office, his eyes locked onto Kakashi, who was quietly working on paperwork behind his desk.

At this point, if Shikaku still didn't understand who was behind everything, he might as well not have a brain.

"Why?" Shikaku asked in a deep voice. 

Kakashi paused, then looked up, his expression calm. "Is revenge for my father enough of a reason? If not, how about revenge for my sensei?" 

Shikaku fell silent.

The death of Sakumo Hatake... 

To say it had nothing to do with Hiruzen would be shameless. 

Hiruzen's attitude before and after Sakumo's death had been far too obvious. 

Because there had been no attitude. 

As the Hokage, he should have shown some reaction. 

But his silence had been his response. 

It was as if he was saying, *Sakumo Hatake, you should just die.*

Shikaku knew this went deeper. 

Danzo might not have wanted Sakumo to die, but Hiruzen had definitely wanted it. 

Sakumo's death likely even angered Danzo, as he had wanted to use Sakumo as a weapon in his bid for power.

"And the death of the Fourth Hokage," Shikaku said in a low voice. "It had nothing to do with Hiruzen."

"You say it had nothing to do with him, and that's the end of it?" Kakashi retorted. "Do you have proof?"

"And besides..." 

"What is the Will of Fire, anyway?"

"Why did the Fourth Hokage die and not the Third? Couldn't he use that sealing technique?"

"Naruto Uzumaki was treated like a dog on a leash—how do you explain that?"

"My teacher's only son was ruined by him?"

Each question made Shikaku Nara fall deeper into silence.

After a long pause, he finally spoke bitterly, "You can't drag the entire Leaf Village down because of Hiruzen Sarutobi."

Kakashi laughed mockingly and said, "But when they were doing all those things, why didn't they think about the Leaf? They can do what they did, but I, Kakashi Hatake, can't?"

"Don't worry about it," Kakashi said calmly. "The Fire Village won't let the Leaf Village fall."

"They might cripple it, but they'll never allow it to be destroyed."

"Because the Hidden Leaf Village, once the strongest ninja village that dominated the core of the ninja world, is the perfect target. When the Leaf can't hold anymore, the Fire Village will step in."

Shikaku Nara spoke slowly and deliberately, "Are you crazy?"

He couldn't believe Kakashi was putting his hopes on the Fire Village.

Kakashi responded with the same measured tone, "If your father was forced to his death, wouldn't you go crazy? If your son was treated like a monster and tortured for over a decade, wouldn't you go crazy?"

Shikaku Nara remained silent.

"Heh," Kakashi chuckled hoarsely.

"My father was a hero of the Leaf. He was my idol. And one day, I woke up and all I saw was his corpse."

"He died so miserably, so... disgracefully."

Kakashi covered his eyes with his hand, looking through his fingers at the cold gleam in his eyes.

"Shikaku Nara, can you understand how I feel?"

"Tell me, what did my father do wrong?"

"Was it because he accomplished too much for the Leaf? Is that why he deserved to die?"

Shikaku had no words.

"My teacher, Minato Namikaze, died carrying hope and expectation. Tell me, what would his expression be if he knew what Naruto went through?"

"I watched it all. I watched my teacher's hope, and I watched them trample over his legacy. Do you think I shouldn't be angry?"

Kakashi's voice grew calmer. "Why is it that Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo Shimura can betray others, but no one can fight back against them?"

"That's the height of arrogance!"

Shikaku was completely speechless.

Suddenly, he thought of someone.

Uchiha Itsuki!

That rebellious man—what would he have done if he were here?

Probably... spit in disgust!

Shikaku shook his head vigorously. "So what do you plan to do?"

"Danzo has always wanted to be Hokage. I'll make sure he's kicked out of the Leaf."

"He has a complicated relationship with the Third Hokage. I'll make sure he dies by the Third's hand."

"And the Third is no exception."

Kakashi's voice was calm. "Shikaku, if you want to stop me, now is the time. Kill me!"

"Or..."

Kakashi's eyes filled with a deep malice. "Or you can hand over Shikamaru to me, and I'll give him the same treatment as Naruto. I wonder if you could bear it."

Shikaku Nara walked away heavily.

Kakashi's intentions were crystal clear.

It was a choice.

Kill him!

Or stay silent.

If you can't do it, don't try to stop him.

"Sigh," Shikaku sighed deeply.

Even the strongest ninja village would fall one day.

The Leaf Village had shone brightly for decades, always the undisputed leader of the ninja world. Was this the end of its legacy?

Shikaku wasn't lacking confidence in himself—he had lost faith in the Leaf.

So...

Was it time for the Ino-Shika-Cho alliance to find a new home?

When the leadership of a village loses faith in it, that's the beginning of its downfall.

Rumors spread like wildfire, and eventually, Hiruzen Sarutobi became a target for everyone's wrath.

Even Jiraiya was caught off guard by the situation.

What's more—

It had deeply shaken him.

He couldn't believe his teacher would do such things.

As Hokage, Jiraiya understood that sometimes hard decisions had to be made, and sometimes sacrifices were necessary.

Jiraiya even thought if one day his teacher sacrificed him, it would be fine.

The Hokage, the leader of the village, must look at the bigger picture and consider the entire ninja world.

But—

Some of Hiruzen Sarutobi's other actions, Jiraiya simply couldn't accept.

Including the death of White Fang!

In fact, when Jiraiya left the village in pursuit of Orochimaru, wasn't it because he had already sensed some of the darkness within?

In his youth, he couldn't accept it, so he left.

Now, he thought he could handle it, so he returned.

But when everything was fully exposed, Jiraiya realized that what he thought he could handle was nothing!

At that moment, Jiraiya felt utterly defeated.

He suddenly thought of someone—Uchiha Itsuki!

When he decisively led the Uchiha clan out of the Leaf, was it really just for the sake of the Uchiha?

There were plenty of ways to protect the clan.

Why did he have to take the entire clan and leave the village?

Having the village label you as traitors was a lifelong shame.

So he must have discovered something, right?

"Sigh."

Jiraiya slumped helplessly in his home.

His face was filled with despair, as if he had just been hit by one of the Cloud Village's muscle-bound brutes.

I shouldn't be here. I should be...

"What should I be doing?"

Jiraiya muttered to himself.

...

Bang!

With a dull thud, Hiruzen Sarutobi stood in a daze as he dropped a lifeless body to the ground.

Danzo Shimura!

At this moment, he had taken his final breath.

The Sharingan in his arm had lost its shine, and the one in his eye had dimmed as well.

"Danzo, Danzo..."

Hiruzen sighed, his face full of pain.

In the end, he had killed his old comrade.

"You showed me a Sharingan, and I knew you must have another hidden somewhere. But why, why was there only one hidden Sharingan?"

Hiruzen muttered, "I had made up my mind. If you had hidden a second one, I would be the one to die. But you really only had one."

One Sharingan on the outside.

One hidden.

One in his eye socket.

Three in total!

That was Danzo's final ace.

But—

Hiruzen had secretly hoped, hoped that Danzo had another Sharingan hidden away.

Hoped he had concealed two.

But no!

He was wrong.

Danzo really only had one hidden Sharingan.

No second one!

Hiruzen felt disappointment!

He felt pain!

But Danzo was dead—killed by his own hand.

"We..."

Hiruzen sighed deeply and turned to leave.

Left behind was Danzo's lifeless body, eyes wide open.

If Danzo could speak, what would he say?

... Probably something like:

"To hell with you, Hiruzen! Why are you pretending? If I had hidden two Sharingan, you'd have had a different story! You're as fake as ever!"

(End of chapter)