Ch 160 : The Qualifications of a Hokage

Things did not develop as Tobirama and Hashirama had initially anticipated.

They had intended to uncover the root cause of this turmoil, but as the investigation deepened, some hidden truths began to surface.

These revelations involved far more than just a single individual.

Tobirama did not mind whether someone's methods were dark or unscrupulous, as long as they did not harm the village.

If it was for the village's benefit, his tolerance knew few limits.

That was why, despite knowing that Orochimaru was far from a virtuous person, he still made every effort to uphold Orochimaru's authority as Hokage.

Yet judging by the current trajectory, regardless of who remained after this incident concluded, neither seemed worthy of entrusting the village to in the eyes of Tobirama and Hashirama.

But besides these people, who else could inherit the position?

Tobirama's gaze swept over Hyuga Makoto and Uchiha Fugaku, who had largely refrained from engaging in disputes throughout the proceedings.

Their presence here alone demonstrated their considerable standing in the village.

However, one was from the Hyuga clan, and the other from the Uchiha clan.

Moreover, the Hyuga representative seemed far too young.

What about Nawaki?

The thought suddenly struck him.

As a direct descendant of their lineage, he was already of age by now.

If Nawaki had the ability, that would naturally be ideal.

While Tobirama's thoughts raced, Kakashi in the center of the room took out a scroll.

According to him, this contained the evidence he had uncovered—Orochimaru's dark and unspeakable deeds.

Everyone's gaze was immediately drawn toward it.

Hashirama did not immediately instruct Kakashi to present the scroll but instead turned to Orochimaru.

Orochimaru showed neither panic nor anger.

He didn't even glance at the scroll, as if it had nothing to do with him.

Kakashi held the scroll with both hands and respectfully handed it to Hashirama.

Hashirama, however, asked Orochimaru, "Fourth Hokage, what do you think is in this scroll?"

Orochimaru sneered, "Aside from my achievements, what else could it be?"

Under everyone's watchful eyes, Hashirama slowly unrolled the scroll.

With just one glance, his brow furrowed deeply.

He carefully read through the entire scroll before handing it over to Tobirama.

"Is all of this... true?"

After reading the scroll, Tobirama asked Orochimaru in a stern voice.

Orochimaru responded with a cold laugh, "Who are you asking?"

A mere scroll, without irrefutable evidence, was hardly enough to convict someone.

The contents of the scroll could easily be fabricated.

Trying to make someone confess guilt with just this was utterly absurd.

"You killed Danzo?" Tobirama asked.

"He colluded with the enemy, committed treason, and attempted a coup. Naturally, he deserved death," Orochimaru admitted directly without denial.

"You were the one who passed judgment on him?"

"As Hokage, am I not qualified?" Orochimaru responded indifferently.

Shimura Danzo was once a high-ranking figure in the village, just like the Third Hokage.

Both had been students of the Second Hokage, a fact known to everyone present.

Tobirama continued reading the scroll.

Human experimentation on children, orchestrating the attack on the Daimyo...

Although these acts were vile and despicable, they were not enough in Tobirama's view to sentence a Hokage to death.

Until he reached the final part of the scroll.

During the Third Great Ninja War, Orochimaru had allegedly leaked information to Iwagakure in order to gain fame, resulting in heavy casualties for Konoha and the deaths of thousands of its ninjas.

Shimura Danzo and Hyuga Hiashi were aware of and complicit in this act.

Later, Orochimaru killed Hiashi to silence him and shifted all blame onto him.

The revelations were shocking beyond belief!

Tobirama stared at the scroll, lost in thought for a long time.

He realized that he had underestimated Orochimaru's ruthless nature.

Though Orochimaru was the Hokage, he clearly had no regard for the village's welfare.

The Third Hokage, unable to hold back, grabbed the scroll and glanced at it.

Then— BANG! He slammed the table as he stood up abruptly, his face alternating between shades of pale and furious red.

Through clenched teeth, he roared, "Orochimaru! How dare you?! How dare you?!"

He took several deep breaths, his expression filled with shock and rage.

"You actually dared to commit such a heinous act against Konoha, even going so far as to leak information to the Iwa ninjas?!"

These words left everyone present in shock.

Inoichi and Minato were equally stunned.

The information they had did not include this revelation.

Orochimaru remained unfazed.

He didn't even glance at the scroll but calmly responded, "If I had truly done such a thing, would I have left written evidence for someone to find?"

Hashirama's eyes flickered with contemplation.

He was pondering the same question.

The intelligence Kakashi brought was undeniably shocking, but its source made Hashirama suspicious.

There was no way Kakashi, just a junior member of the Anbu, had uncovered this through his own investigation, right?

Judging by the expressions of the Third Hokage and Minato, it was clear they were hearing about this for the first time as well.

Tobirama's voice turned cold. "Fourth Hokage, is what's written here true?"

Faced with the barrage of questions, Orochimaru simply laughed to himself, arms crossed as strands of hair draped down.

"What are you laughing at?" Tobirama's expression grew darker, his voice colder.

Orochimaru's tone became slightly subdued, though the smirk on his lips remained. "I'm laughing at how foolish you are."

Such a blatant insult made Tobirama's face contort with rage, as though he was on the verge of attacking.

His hand had already crushed a portion of the table before him.

Orochimaru continued, "Second Hokage, have you not realized that this so-called trial has been manipulated from the very beginning?"

After hearing Kakashi's latter statements, Orochimaru had already deduced who was behind it all.

Orochimaru's repeated provocations made it nearly impossible for Tobirama to restrain himself.

"What do you mean?!"

Orochimaru slowly raised his head, eyes filled with disdain.

"Second Hokage, to be honest, before meeting you, I still held a bit of respect for you."

"After all, you're the genius who created the Edo Tensei technique."

The forbidden jutsu that could resurrect the dead — if it were to spread, it would surely drive the entire ninja world into madness.

"You sit high above, judging us for being ruthless in our pursuit of power. But haven't you done your fair share of such things? Fugaku, your Uchiha clan knows this all too well, don't you?"

Fugaku's expression changed instantly.

He forced an awkward laugh. "No... no such thing."

The Uchiha clan once held a special position within the village.

With their formidable strength and large numbers, they were undeniably the most prestigious clan in Konoha.

But politically, they were repeatedly oppressed.

Their clan district had even been relocated from the village center to its outskirts by the Second Hokage.

It was important to remember that Konoha had originally been built through the joint efforts of the Senju and Uchiha clans.

As one of the village's founding families, the Uchiha had received such treatment despite their contributions.

Yet the Hokage lineage carried forward Tobirama's ideology.

It wasn't until Makoto and Orochimaru changed that status quo.

Tobirama could no longer contain himself and roared, "You caused the deaths of thousands of comrades in the village!"

Orochimaru sneered. "Do you have any concrete evidence for that? All based on a single claim from that scroll?"

"Senju Tobirama, you're too arrogant."

"Are you already calculating who should succeed as Hokage after me?"

"In the end, you simply regard Konoha as your personal property. I wonder — are you truly angry about the deaths of those thousands, or are you more enraged that what belongs to you has been defiled by someone else?"

Tobirama trembled with fury, his gaze now filled with murderous intent.

Just as he was about to strike, Orochimaru suddenly formed a single hand seal in front of him.

In an instant, Tobirama found himself completely unable to move.

It was the control technique for Edo Tensei.

Although the jutsu had originated from his own hands, due to the special nature of the sacrifice, even Tobirama couldn't break free from Orochimaru's control.

"Orochimaru!" Tobirama spat his name.

Hashirama, sitting right beside them, watched everything unfold without intervening.

Orochimaru's expression gradually became calm.

He said, "The only reason I've played along with you all until now was to see what tricks you still had up your sleeves."

"Orochimaru..." Hiruzen suddenly spoke.

"Was it really you who transmitted information to Iwagakure?"

"Oh? Sarutobi-sensei, did you never suspect me back then?" Orochimaru mocked.

Hiruzen fell silent.

How could he not have suspected? Not only had he doubted it, but many had hinted that Orochimaru was likely the traitor.

However, after Hyuga Hiashi's death, who had taken the blame, the matter was seemingly resolved.

"That's right," Orochimaru suddenly said coldly, uttering words that shocked everyone present.

"It was indeed me who willingly provided intelligence to the Iwa ninja."

No one had expected Orochimaru to openly admit it.

By his own admission, such a one-sided claim carried no credibility.

They believed it was true only because their preconceived notions about Orochimaru clouded their judgment.

Tobirama's gaze radiated raw killing intent, but Orochimaru didn't even spare him a glance.

Instead, he continued looking at Hiruzen and said, "Sarutobi-sensei, don't you want to know why I did it? Or do you already know?"

Why did Orochimaru do it? For fame.

After that battle, Orochimaru became a savior and a strong contender for the position of Hokage.

Did Orochimaru lack fame?

As one of the legendary Sannin, how could he possibly be unknown?

Everyone in the village treated him with the utmost respect.

But back then, Hiruzen had stationed Orochimaru at the rear, while only one figure dominated the battlefield — the Yellow Flash.

Hiruzen understood it all.

Unspoken guilt and grief filled his heart as he looked at the man with a cold and hardened expression, whose face gradually overlapped with that of a delicate and gentle boy from his memories.

This was his most beloved student.

Hiruzen was momentarily dazed before collapsing weakly into his seat.

Jiraiya, who had remained mostly silent, spoke in a deep voice, "Orochimaru, no matter what reason you had, you should never have gambled with your comrades' lives."

Orochimaru sneered, "What a righteous speech. Everyone here seems so morally superior."

"The fate of Konoha means nothing to me. I just don't like having what belongs to me taken away. But since all of you treasure it so much, I might as well give up the position of Hokage."

Everyone was shocked.

Orochimaru's actions were becoming increasingly incomprehensible.

Having said this much, Orochimaru seemed utterly nonchalant, as though he had finally let go of everything he wanted to abandon.

But Makoto knew the truth—Orochimaru wanted to sever the bond with the Third Hokage.

Yet as long as he remained Hokage, that bond would remain tangled and unbreakable.

Orochimaru turned his gaze to Hashirama. "Allow me to ask, First Hokage, do you already have a suitable candidate in mind for the next Hokage?"

Hashirama fell silent, his gaze shifting toward Minato.

Inoichi and the others couldn't help but grow tense.

"No," Hashirama finally said.

"Of all the people I've met, none have yet demonstrated the qualities and capabilities required of a Hokage."

Minato's expression froze.

The First Hokage's remark was clearly aimed at him.

It would be a lie to say he wasn't disappointed—after all, the one evaluating him was the God of Shinobi himself.

Suddenly, Orochimaru burst into unrestrained laughter.

"Sarutobi-sensei, did you hear that? The person you've always favored doesn't seem to have the qualifications and abilities," Orochimaru said, still laughing as he wiped the corner of his eye.

He then turned his gaze to Minato and, with a smile, said, "Don't be too disappointed, Minato. It's not like the First Hokage's word is absolute. Konoha now is no longer his."

His tone grew lighter, as though speaking to an ordinary friend.

Minato remained silent, his gaze fixed intently on Orochimaru.

Orochimaru's eyes swept across the entire meeting room, from the Third Hokage, Jiraiya, and Tsunade, finally stopping on Makoto.

He spoke calmly, "Everything Kakashi said is indeed true. First Hokage, what will you do now? Kill me?"

Hashirama responded just as calmly, "I don't know what you've gone through to become like this. It's clear that the Third Hokage once placed high hopes in you..."

"But for me, anyone who harms Konoha cannot be forgiven!"

Orochimaru sneered and retorted, "What about the one who orchestrated this prison riot?"

Hashirama's gaze darkened slightly. "The same. They will not be spared."

"Orochimaru..."

A low voice came from Hiruzen.

He then said, "First Hokage... could I kindly ask you not to act just yet?"

Hashirama didn't respond.

The Third Hokage continued, "Regarding the prison riot, I swear on my life that Minato absolutely had no knowledge of it!"

Upon hearing this, Hashirama remained noncommittal and instead turned to Minato, asking, "Minato, when did you become aware of it?"

The question seemed odd; the phrase "became aware" carried too much implication.

Minato remained silent.

Indeed, he hadn't known, but at the very moment the riot broke out, he had made the decision to leave the villagers behind.

Hashirama then asked, "Do you realize you are the beneficiary of this?"

Minato still remained silent.

With a neutral expression, Hashirama asked, "Then, do you have any objections to what I said about your qualifications?"

Minato slowly lowered his head. "…No."

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