"Choose to forgive? Don't make me laugh, Jiraiya-sensei. If you were treated like this…maybe you'd forgive them..."
"I won't."
Namikaze Kirito stretched out his hand. Pitch-black chakra surged outward, rolling like smoke, completely engulfing his arm.
"Konoha talks about light and darkness. Sarutobi Hiruzen wants to be the light. Shimura Danzō lurks as the so-called darkness behind him." Kirito's lips curled slightly.
"But to me, they're just children playing house."
"In the face of real power, they're nothing more than ants."
"When I was three years old, I was forced to make false claims alongside them. I couldn't even protect my own parents… or my younger brother."
"I will protect everything I have now—no matter the cost."
"As for them?"
"They can become nourishment."
"Isn't that exactly what your so-called Will of Fire is about?"
"Bury the rotten remnants of the old era for me."
"There is no place for you in the new world."
His gaze sharpened.
"From now on—this is my era."
Silence fell.
Everyone stood frozen, staring at the man before them. There was no mistaking it—his ambition was vast enough to shake the entire shinobi world. With power like this, mediocrity was never an option.
Orochimaru stared at his leader with barely restrained excitement. Karin and Kurenai, meanwhile, both felt their cheeks heat up.
"Hehehe…"
Karin's eyes gleamed.
"This is the true, ultimate darkness. Completely different from Danzō's cheap imitation. He doesn't hide in the shadows—he wants to drown the entire world in his darkness."
"This kind of man… is our leader."
The darkness Kirito spoke of wasn't something he bore for others. It was a world he intended to create himself—where all order would be decided by his will alone.
Orochimaru understood that long ago.
That was why he chose to follow him.
"…Kirito."
Jiraiya's back looked strangely bent now. Regret weighed heavily on him. He couldn't help his comrades. He couldn't help his teacher. He couldn't even guide his own student.
So what right did he have to lecture Kirito?
And yet...
He was Jiraiya.
Giving up had never been his way.
Orochimaru noticed the look in Jiraiya's eyes at once. He knew exactly what his old comrade intended to do.
But he didn't stop him.
Because he sensed an old acquaintance approaching from behind.
"Kirito… I'm sorry. I'll take the old man with me."
Jiraiya moved to Sarutobi Hiruzen's side, preparing to withdraw—
BOOM!
A massive force slammed into his back.
Jiraiya's body was sent flying, crashing into the railing of the platform and shattering it completely.
Yet instead of anger, surprise flashed across his face.
He had been so focused on Kirito that he hadn't noticed another presence arriving.
"Tsunade… you're here!"
He forced himself upright.
"Please—talk to him! Persuade Kirito!"
Tsunade's face twisted with pure disgust.
"Shut up, Jiraiya."
She turned slowly, her gaze locking onto Sarutobi Hiruzen.
"Old man. I came here today to confirm one thing."
Her voice trembled—not with fear, but rage.
"What really happened to Nawaki?"
Senju Nawaki had died in the war, his internal organs torn out. At the time, it was dismissed as a tragic coincidence.
But coincidence?
He was the last heir of the Senju.
Even on the battlefield, Orochimaru had personally ensured his protection. It had only been a simple supply mission.
So how did the information leak?
Who leaked it?
And why did the enemy show such hatred—enough to desecrate his body like that?
Orochimaru had uncovered the truth years ago… and told Tsunade.
Nawaki's death was the first seed—the catalyst that drove Orochimaru down his path of obsession with life and death.
And for Tsunade, it was a wound that would never heal.
When she saw Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression, her heart sank.
For just an instant—panic flickered in his clouded eyes.
That was enough.
The veins on Tsunade's forehead bulged violently.
"Old man…"
Her voice shook.
"You're truly despicable."
Her only remaining family had died so brutally.
And the mastermind… was the teacher she once respected above all else.
"Tsunade!"
Jiraiya's heart skipped.
He rushed forward instinctively.
"If you say one more word," Tsunade snapped, fists clenched tight, "I'll bury your head in the ground."
Her knuckles cracked.
If not for the last shred of respect she still held for Sarutobi Hiruzen, she would have struck him down herself.
At that moment, Namikaze Kirito stepped forward.
Under everyone's stunned gazes, he removed his black windbreaker and draped it over Tsunade's shoulders.
Tsunade looked up.
For a split second, something uncontrollable flickered in her beautiful eyes—but she forcefully suppressed it, turning her head away.
Nearby, Uzumaki Kushina leaned toward her husband, whispering softly.
"Hey, Minato… Tsunade-san and Kirito… that doesn't look simple."
"Huh?"
Minato scratched his head.
"Isn't that just concern between teacher and student? Kushina, you're overthinking it."
"You dense idiot."
Kushina shot him a glare, utterly convinced her husband was hopeless.
Not far away, Kurenai noticed the exchange as well—and felt an unfamiliar tightness grip her chest.
"…Hey…"
At last, Sarutobi Hiruzen let out a long sigh.
"Namikaze Kirito… I've lost. Everything is my responsibility."
His voice was tired.
"I only ask that you spare the innocent."
Kirito smiled gently.
But only he knew how deep Hiruzen's schemes truly ran.
Weakness. Sympathy. Manipulation.
As expected, Jiraiya, Minato… even Naruto showed traces of hesitation.
Kirito stepped forward.
"This farce ends now."
"Sarutobi Hiruzen, being punished alone would be lonely."
"So—go invite Elder Danzō."
Yakushi Kabuto adjusted his glasses, eyes glinting.
"Yes, Leader. I'll bring Shimura Danzō here immediately."
In the next instant, he vanished.
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