After listening to Uchiha Shisui's description of Uzumaki Naruto's life in Konoha, Namikaze Minato's expression darkened.
Namikaze Minato: "Impossible! Before I died, I entrusted the Third Hokage to take good care of Naruto!"
Senju Tobirama: "Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen? Ahh… it seems you're just as naive as I was. We were all deceived by his façade."
Namikaze Minato: "Maybe… maybe there was no other choice for the Third Hokage?"
Senju Tobirama: "Seriously? You really inherited the Will of Fire, huh? Can you stop being so naive? Sarutobi Hiruzen let you die!"
Senju Hashirama: "That reminds me—didn't the group leader analyse Sarutobi Hiruzen before? But that was just about him wiping out the Senju Clan. We never covered why he didn't act when the Fourth Hokage was in danger."
Lucas: "First of all, let's be clear: it's only a strong suspicion that he didn't act serious. If he really held back, there are only two possible reasons—either his obsession with power or a twisted sense of responsibility."
Senju Tobirama: "Power-hungry, sure, I can see that. But what do you mean by 'twisted sense of responsibility'? If he was truly responsible, he wouldn't just stand by and watch the Fourth Hokage die!"
Lucas: "Because in his mind, he believed only he could handle things properly. He feared Minato wouldn't be capable enough as Hokage and that it would lead Konoha into chaos. But since he was no longer Hokage, he had no right to interfere."
Senju Tobirama: "So he just watched the Fourth die?"
Lucas: "It's possible. Maybe he never intended for Minato to die, just to suffer injuries or damage his reputation. That way, he could justify reclaiming power. Of course, assuming he had ill intent isn't off the table either…"
Senju Tobirama: "What do you mean?"
Lucas chuckled.
Lucas: "If Minato remained in control, he might have brought trouble to the village. But if Minato was gone, it would be 'safer' for an experienced leader like Hiruzen to take over again. And for the 'greater good' of Konoha, Minato had to be sacrificed."
Senju Tobirama: "Hah, good logic! But didn't he also make mistakes during the Third Ninja War?"
Lucas: "Didn't you also mess up when dealing with Uchiha Madara and other villages? I don't see you giving up Hokage out of guilt!"
Senju Tobirama: "What mistake did I make?!"
Lucas: "Are you seriously saying Uchiha Madara's defection had nothing to do with you?"
Tobirama fell silent. Madara's defection… did have something to do with him.
Lucas: "If Madara never defected, your elder brother wouldn't have died so early. Do you feel guilty enough to step down as Hokage? And let's talk about your policies towards other villages—you rejected Madara's idea of conquering the world, yet you sold tailed beasts like they were lottery prizes… Wait a second—"
Senju Tobirama: "What now?"
Lucas: "Turns out, Konoha's top brass didn't just start being idiots under Sarutobi. It all started with you and your brother! Sarutobi and the others just carried on your legacy of stupidity. And yet, you still have the nerve to criticize them?"
Tobirama's face darkened. Am I stupid?
But after reading through Lucas' analysis, he found himself at a loss for words. Young and idealistic as he was, he had indeed made some… questionable choices.
Suddenly, a long-silent member of the chat finally spoke up.
Uchiha Madara: "Hahahaha! Beautiful! Absolutely beautiful! Hashirama and Tobirama—two big idiots! Now you finally get to taste the bitter fruit of your own mistakes!"
Senju Hashirama: "Madara! You're finally talking again?"
Uchiha Madara: "Hmph! Hashirama, you should realize your mistake by now! I told you back in the Valley of the End—your ideology would be the source of Konoha's darkness!"
Namikaze Minato: "Wait, what do you mean by that?"
Lucas: "Hashirama wanted to protect the village without sacrificing anyone. But in the end, the Senju Clan was the one sacrificed by Konoha's leadership."
Uchiha Madara: "Exactly! Well said! Tobirama—you wanted to protect Konoha, right? You wanted to suppress the ninja, right? Well, congratulations! Konoha's leadership followed in your footsteps. You should be proud!"
Senju Hashirama: "Madara, even though I'm sad about the Senju Clan… I don't think Konoha was entirely wrong."
Uchiha Madara: "Tch. Idiot! Hashirama, do you even remember why we created Konoha in the first place?"
Senju Hashirama: "Of course! To protect children from having to go to war at such a young age."
Uchiha Madara: "Wrong! We created Konoha so that we wouldn't have to lose our younger brothers! The village was meant to protect our families. But in the end, you sacrificed your family for the village!"
Senju Hashirama froze, his mind drifting back to his first meeting with Uchiha Madara. Two young boys, both mourning the loss of their brothers, had shared a dream—to build a world where no one had to lose their loved ones again.
But in the end, their falling out had been triggered by the same tragedy—the pain of losing a younger brother.
Senju Tobirama: "Uchiha Madara, what right do you have to say all this? You abandoned the Uchiha Clan yourself! If you truly cared about them, you wouldn't have attacked Konoha in the first place!"
Uchiha Madara: "Hah! Tobirama, you're nothing but a cunning little trickster. I once thought you had some intelligence, but then you and Hashirama went and made a fool's decision on how to handle the other ninja villages."
Lucas: "So, Uchiha Madara actually wanted to unify the ninja world? At the very least, he wanted other villages to surrender. Honestly, that's not a bad idea—it could have brought real peace."
Uchiha Madara: "Exactly! But these two fools rejected it. Not only did they sign peace treaties with the other ninja villages, but they even sold off the tailed beasts we had painstakingly captured!"
Senju Hashirama : "At the time, my thought was to use the tailed beasts as superweapons to create a balance of power, ensuring no village would dare start a war. Isn't that the same principle as how the World Government maintains peace—with overwhelming force?"
…
Lucas: "Your idea wasn't bad… but look at how things turned out. The tailed beasts didn't act as a deterrent. Instead, they fueled even bloodier wars."
Senju Hashirama : "I… didn't expect that. Back then, the major ninja villages seemed much more cooperative."
Uchiha Madara: "Do you know why the other villages were 'cooperative' back then? It wasn't because they loved peace. It was because we were the strongest. They only followed our will because they had no choice. I saw through their deception immediately. You two fools, however, were completely taken in."
Senju Hashirama: "…"
Senju Tobirama : "I admit, I was deceived. I truly believed they hated war as much as we did. I thought we could resolve conflicts through discussion. It wasn't until the First Ninja War broke out that I finally saw the true nature of the ninja world."
Lucas: "I have a question—did you really oppose Madara's plan to unify the ninja world because you wanted peace?"
Senju Tobirama: "That was part of it! The Warring States period had just ended, and people were exhausted from fighting. Even if Konoha had both my brother and Uchiha Madara, we couldn't have unified the world alone."
Senju Hashirama: "Back then, nearly everyone in Konoha opposed Madara's idea. We all believed we could solve conflicts with diplomacy and kindness… so in the end, Madara became the outlier."
Uchiha Madara: "Sound familiar? The same reason Konoha rejected me is why they later refused to help the Uzumaki Clan. Tobirama, you look down on Konoha's leadership, but you're no different from them!"
Tobirama fell silent. He had no defense. He had made mistakes in handling ninja world politics, and those same mistakes had later been repeated by Konoha's higher-ups with the Uzumaki Clan.
Uchiha Madara: "It's only natural for lower-ranked ninjas to hate war. Look at unifying the ninja world or supporting the Uzumaki Clan—it would've brought future benefits, but the common ninja couldn't see that far ahead. They only cared about survival. A strong Hokage was necessary. But Hashirama… he wasn't strong enough."
For once, Hashirama was speechless.
Just then, Namikaze Minato spoke up.
Namikaze Minato: "Madara … did you really die during the battle at the Valley of the End?"
Madara's eyes narrowed.
Uchiha Madara: "Why are you asking, Fourth Hokage?"
Namikaze Minato: "Because the Nine-Tails attack on Konoha wasn't random. Someone specifically targeted my wife while she was giving birth. That person had the Mangekyō Sharingan and knew Konoha's techniques. As far as I know, you were the only one who fit that description."
A moment of silence. Then, Madara chuckled.
Uchiha Madara: "What a pity… that wasn't me."
Senju Hashirama: "Madara doesn't bother to lie. If he says it wasn't him, then it wasn't him."
Madara smirked. He hadn't lied. He simply hadn't told them everything.
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