The Sentence Begins
The Hokage inauguration platform had fallen silent.
Only Danzo remained inside the Hokage Tower. Tsunade and Sasuke had already withdrawn after the earlier clash. There was nothing left for them to do here. What followed was Fujimoto Tōma's stage alone, and staying any longer would only get in the way.
Even with layers of barrier seals reinforcing the tower, everyone understood the truth. If Tōma and Danzo truly cut loose, no amount of fortification would fully contain it.
Danzo finally spoke, his voice hoarse.
"How did you manage to predict everything?"
"There's no mystery," Tōma replied, his gaze steady. "You committed too many crimes. You should've expected this ending."
Danzo froze, then burst into wild laughter.
"Crimes? I only wanted the Hokage's seat! But all of you refused to give me even a single chance!"
"Did you really never get one?" Tōma asked quietly.
Danzo's laughter cut off.
For a moment, the world blurred, and memory flooded back.
During the war, his teacher, the Second Hokage, had proposed a test. One person would act as bait, drawing enemy forces away so the rest could escape. It was a test of resolve. Of self-sacrifice.
Danzo had wanted to volunteer.
He truly had.
But fear had seized him at the critical moment.
Instead, Sarutobi stepped forward. He took the role without hesitation, and with that decision, was named the next Hokage.
That was the closest Danzo had ever come.
And he had lost it with his own silence.
"If you hadn't tried to seize power through twisted means," Tōma said calmly, watching Danzo's expression crumble, "you were the one closest to becoming Hokage. But you never cherished the chances you had."
"Don't lecture me, brat!" Danzo snapped, fury surging back as if a mask had been ripped away.
His right arm suddenly erupted with chakra.
"Wood Release: Piercing Spear Tree!"
A massive wooden growth burst forth, stabbing straight toward Tōma.
Tōma didn't flinch.
A black-bladed sword appeared in his hand, its surface gleaming as pale light spread along the edge, stretching outward like an invisible blade.
"Nintaijutsu: Vacuum Sever."
The glowing slash fell.
The towering wooden spear was cleaved apart instantly, shattered as if it had never existed.
Danzo's eyes went wide.
"That's impossible…!"
This was Hashirama's Wood Release. How could it be destroyed so brutally?
But reality didn't care about disbelief.
Tōma knew one thing with certainty. Even if the First Hokage himself stood there, this level of Wood Release would never stop Vacuum Sever.
The white arc didn't slow.
In Danzo's stunned gaze, it cut straight through him, splitting him cleanly in two.
"That strike," Tōma said evenly, "was punishment for defiling the First Hokage's legacy by abusing his cells."
Light flared again.
This time, lightning joined it.
Crackling arcs danced along the blade, shrill and violent, like countless birds screaming at once.
Danzo's body reformed atop the Hokage Tower.
Since Izanagi had already been exposed, there was no point delaying anymore. Reviving immediately was his best option.
What awaited him, however, was—
"Nintaijutsu: Chidori Blade."
The sword came down again.
Danzo didn't even have time to react before he was split apart once more, lightning scorching the remains black.
"That strike," Tōma continued, "was for the Uchiha. For the lives you took just to steal the Sharingan."
He didn't notice Sasuke at first.
Sasuke was staring, frozen. Then, slowly, he smiled.
In his mind, memories surfaced. His parents. Familiar faces. Voices that would never return.
He hadn't killed Danzo himself. But hearing Tōma say those words… it felt like part of the Uchiha's debt had finally been repaid.
The rest, Sasuke would settle with his own hands.
His Sharingan emerged on its own, three tomoe spinning violently. He hadn't forced it. He hadn't even realized it until it was there.
Not Mangekyō yet.
But close.
Very close.
And Sasuke understood something clearly now. He would awaken it on a path different from Itachi's. Only then could he prove that his brother's way wasn't the only one.
Tōma, unaware of Sasuke's change, continued.
Chidori Blade was far crueler than Vacuum Sever. The cut wasn't clean. Lightning ravaged the body from within. Danzo's charred remains made that painfully obvious.
And so, before everyone's eyes, Danzo "died" again.
And again.
Burned to ash by Fire Release.
Skewered by a storm of kunai.
Torn apart at the cellular level by Wind Release: Rasenshuriken.
Each death was harsher than the last.
Each revival bought him no time at all.
It was as if Tōma possessed endless chakra and an endless arsenal.
Eventually, it wasn't just Danzo who went numb.
The clan heads did too.
Every technique Tōma used was something that would kill them outright. And unlike Danzo, they had no second life to fall back on.
Even if their entire clans joined forces, could they stop him?
The answer was obvious.
No.
Only then did they truly understand. This execution wasn't just about punishing Danzo.
It was a warning.
And faced with power so far beyond them, every one of them backed down without complaint.
Below, Tsunade stared at the still-standing Hokage Tower, stunned.
"Shizune… is the tower really this sturdy?"
"Tōma-sama's control is nearly perfect," Shizune said, eyes shining as she watched the figure suspended in the air. "He's barely letting his attacks touch the building."
"I can tell that much," Tsunade muttered. "But even the residual force should've blown holes in it. I've done worse by accident."
"Maybe… the barrier team?" Shizune offered uncertainly.
"They're that good now?" Tsunade grumbled, then kept watching.
She almost felt sorry for Danzo.
Izanagi wasn't saving him at all. It was just letting him suffer again and again.
If it were her, she would've canceled the jutsu. Facing Tōma, survival was impossible anyway. Why endure all that pain?
Nearby, the Third Hokage watched in silence.
He had already made his decision. Still, seeing his old friend die repeatedly, reviving only to be killed again…
It was hard to watch. Harder with each cycle.
Maybe this was enough, he thought. Danzo had died so many times. Surely his sins were paid—
"Old man," Asuma said suddenly. "You're not thinking of stopping this, are you?"
The Third Hokage stiffened.
"Heh. Thought so," Asuma continued. "Don't do anything foolish. Tōma doesn't leave things half-finished. And if Danzo survives, this mess won't end."
The Third Hokage fell silent again.
Around them, the crowd's eyes burned with fervor. Tōma's strength. His presence. His refusal to tolerate evil.
Each execution came with a reason. And every reason was unassailable.
Cruel? Maybe.
But no one cared.
Their emotions had already been ignited.
"Grandpa…" Konohamaru tugged at the Third Hokage's sleeve, nervous but determined. "I think… I think Tōma-nii is right. That man shouldn't be forgiven."
The Third Hokage froze.
Then he closed his eyes, pain etched deep into his face.
"So be it," he said softly. "If even Konohamaru sees it this way… then Danzo's time has truly come."