Chapter 55: The Curse of the Fourth Kage
Inside the Hokage's office, Hiruzen Sarutobi's fingers trembled as he tightly gripped the daimyō of the Land of Fire's reply letter.
The flame crest of the Land of Fire on the letter paper was clear and imposing: "Permission granted for the Sarutobi, Koharu, Mitokado, and Shimura clans to relocate to the daimyō's residence. From this day forward, they shall receive direct protection from the Land of Fire."
Hiruzen Sarutobi let out a long breath. His tense shoulders finally relaxed.
He looked up toward the window. The sight of tens of thousands of villagers surrounding the Hokage Building had been suffocating him.
He spoke in a deep voice: "Someone, go and invite Uchiha Fugaku, the three clan heads of the Ino-Shika-Chō, Hyūga Hiashi, the Akimichi clan head… to come to the Hokage Building for a meeting immediately."
Inside the meeting room of the Hokage Building.
Uchiha Fugaku sat upright on one side of the long table, with Uchiha Sanpō and Uchiha Yadai standing behind him.
Opposite them were the three clan heads of the Ino-Shika-Chō: Nara Shikaku, Yamanaka Haiichi, and Akimichi Chōza.
Beside them were Hyūga Hiashi, the Akimichi clan head, and others.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's face looked haggard, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes deeper than usual: "Everyone, I have invited you here today for the future of Konoha."
The room fell silent. All eyes focused on him.
Hiruzen Sarutobi took a deep breath and suddenly bowed deeply: "First, I want to apologize to all the ninjas and villagers of Konoha. During the Third Great Ninja War, the Sarutobi, Koharu, Mitokado, and Shimura clans… failed to fulfill their responsibilities and even harmed the village's interests for personal gain. As Hokage, I cannot escape blame."
Everyone's expressions varied, but no one interrupted.
Hiruzen Sarutobi straightened up and continued: "Therefore, I have decided!"
"First, Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado are immediately removed from their positions as advisor elders."
"Second, I myself will resign from the position of Hokage and nominate Uchiha Fugaku… to succeed as the Fourth Hokage."
As soon as the words fell, low murmurs erupted inside the meeting room.
Hiruzen Sarutobi did not pause. He took out a document bearing the daimyō of the Land of Fire's official seal from his bosom: "Furthermore, the Sarutobi, Koharu, Mitokado, and Shimura clans… will completely withdraw from Konoha and take up positions at the daimyō's residence. This is the daimyō's authorization letter."
The document was passed around. Nara Shikaku glanced at it, his brows slightly furrowed.
Uchiha Sanpō shook his head lightly and sighed: "They escaped quite quickly."
The Akimichi clan head spoke in a low voice: "It's a good thing the four major clans are withdrawing from Konoha, but how should the positions they leave behind be allocated?"
When the document returned to Hiruzen, the discussion in the meeting room had not stopped.
Uchiha Sanpō snorted coldly: "The key issue is that the village's finances were emptied by them! During the war, they also profited greatly from the village. Now they want to leave just like that?"
"Shops, real estate, ninja tool workshops… all of these must be confiscated!" The Kazami clan head slammed the table in anger.
Hiruzen Sarutobi listened to the accusations with a calm face, but a trace of suppressed anger flashed in his eyes.
He bowed deeply once more, his voice almost pleading: "Everyone… before our four clans leave Konoha, we are willing to donate all the shops and real estate we own in the village to the village as compensation. We only ask… that Clan Head Fugaku guarantee the safety of the people from our four clans and allow us to leave Konoha with our personal assets."
Uchiha Sanpō's voice was as cold as a blade as he interjected: "No. Last month's ninja wages have not yet been paid. The village has a financial deficit of at least 17 billion ryō. The Sarutobi, Koharu, Mitokado, and Shimura clans must leave behind all the money they embezzled."
His Sharingan stared directly at Hiruzen Sarutobi. The three tomoe slowly spun: "Otherwise, you can forget about leaving safely."
Homura Mitokado, sitting to Hiruzen Sarutobi's left, suddenly slammed the table and stood up, his face iron-blue: "Uchiha Sanpō! Don't push us too far!"
On the right, Koharu Utatane's sharp voice echoed in the meeting room: "Konoha Village now only has 10,208 ninjas left. Our four clans together have 3,695 ninjas! If we leave, you will only have a little over 6,000 ninjas left!"
She stood up, a hint of threat flashing in her eyes: "We are going to take up positions at the daimyō's residence. We will still be a force of the Land of Fire. If you insist on a fight to the death… will you still be able to defend the territory of the Land of Fire?"
The temperature in the meeting room seemed to drop to freezing point. The room instantly fell silent.
Nara Shikaku's gaze shifted between Koharu Utatane and Uchiha Fugaku, as if calculating something.
Hiruzen Sarutobi still maintained his bowing posture, but his back had already stiffened.
Uchiha Fugaku remained silent for a moment. He didn't know what to do either.
So he gave a look to Uchiha Sanpō beside him.
Uchiha Sanpō stepped forward and said: "Ninjas earn money quickly, but they also spend it quickly. The economy of a ninja village revolves around ninjas. The problem is that before the Third Great Ninja War, Konoha had 24,163 ninjas. After the war, only 10,208 remain. After the four clans leave, only a little over 6,000 ninjas will be left. Konoha's economy will only be one-fourth of what it was before the war."
Many people in the meeting room were clan heads.
Although they didn't understand economics, hearing such an analysis still made them gasp.
Uchiha Sanpō ignored the reactions around him and continued: "Because of the massive population decrease, real estate prices will definitely plummet. The shops and properties owned by the four clans, which were worth about 16 billion ryō before the war, are now worth at most 4 billion ryō. So we still have a shortfall of 13 billion ryō. As long as your four clans can make up 13 billion ryō, you can leave safely!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi straightened up angrily: "Handing over the shops and real estate is already our bottom line. If you don't agree, then we can only fight!"
Uchiha Sanpō leaned forward with both hands on the table: "Hiruzen Sarutobi, I already knew you bought a large amount of real estate and farmland at the daimyō's residence, planning to enjoy your retirement there. Dream on!"
The atmosphere in the meeting room became tense!
Seeing things develop this way, Uchiha Fugaku frowned and slowly spoke: "I agree. Your four clans may leave Konoha safely with your personal assets!"
Uchiha Sanpō said in disbelief: "Clan Head, how can you agree to this? They ruled Konoha for 32 years and embezzled at least over 1,000 billion ryō. Even if they spent a large portion, they can still拿出 200 billion ryō without any problem."
Hearing the challenge, Uchiha Fugaku's face showed some displeasure: "Sanpō, I am the clan head!"
Upon hearing this, Hiruzen Sarutobi's tense body finally relaxed.
He smiled and said: "Fugaku, congratulations on becoming the Fourth Hokage!"
...
After the meeting ended, two Anbu ninjas holding brand-new announcements slowly walked out.
The watching crowd immediately stirred. The villagers stood on tiptoe, their eyes focused on the thin piece of paper.
Seeing the crowd growing larger, one of the Anbu cleared his throat and read aloud:
"Effective immediately, Hiruzen Sarutobi resigns from the position of Third Hokage. Uchiha Fugaku becomes the Fourth Hokage. Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado are removed from their positions as advisor elders. The Sarutobi, Koharu, Mitokado, and Shimura clans will completely withdraw from Konoha. All shops, clan grounds, and other real estate under the four clans will be confiscated. Starting tomorrow, members of the four clans must leave Konoha Village carrying only their personal belongings."
As the words fell, the crowd first fell silent, then erupted into cheers.
"Hiruzen Sarutobi has finally rolled out!"
"Uchiha Fugaku becoming the Fourth Hokage is truly wonderful!"
Uchiha Sanpō secretly sighed: "Foolish Fugaku. Being the Fourth Hokage is not easy! I will take good care of Mikoto!"
According to the original history, the Fourth Kages of each village seemed to be cursed. The Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato, who was 24 years old, died. The Fourth Mizukage, Yagura, and the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, didn't live much longer either. The Fourth Raikage, A, lost his left hand…
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