At this moment Danzo's face was pure arrogance.
After all, he was already dead—what could Uchiha Jin possibly do to him?
He instinctively glanced around. Senju Tobirama's appearance had sent an involuntary shiver through him, but in the blink of an eye he realized—
I'm already dead, what the hell am I afraid of?
He had always been selfish. When Tobirama hadn't let him become Hokage, it had planted a quiet resentment toward his teacher.
And after a lifetime of repeatedly losing the race for the title, that resentment toward Tobirama had only deepened.
Of course,
had he still been alive, he wouldn't have dared ignore Tobirama no matter how unhappy he felt.
But the problem was—
he was already dead!
Therefore—
With a cold snort Danzo simply stopped paying attention to Tobirama and began sizing up the surrounding situation.
Almost instantly
he understood this was a trial against Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others, but he couldn't figure out why on earth he had been summoned for such nonsense.
"Danzo…"
"Tell me the truth—was the death of Minato Namikaze your scheme?"
"After all, only Kakashi and I knew Kushina's due date, and I told only you."
"…"
Hiruzen launched the attack at once.
He voiced the suspicion he'd just formed, clearly determined to dump the blame on Danzo.
He had no choice!
Reputation was what he valued most in life.
Even if his name was already filthy, he refused to carry this particular black pot for Danzo.
Minato Namikaze had been the Hokage.
A scandal of that magnitude was terrifying. Though his persecution of the Uchiha and Sakumo Hatake's suicide were linked to him, their status couldn't compare with Minato's.
Even… even Senju Nawaki, even the entire Senju Clan, paled beside the crime of assassinating a Hokage.
In Konoha, the Hokage was special.
It wasn't merely a position; it was the spiritual pillar of everyone. If this blame truly stuck to Hiruzen, the Sarutobi Clan would be finished for good.
It could even be said they would never rise again.
As long as the title of Hokage existed, the tale that the Sarutobi had murdered one would live on.
Which future leader would dare promote or trust any Sarutobi descendant?
Yes—
Hiruzen could own up to every past disgrace, because at worst he and the dirty-work agents would die, the clan's embezzled resources would be returned, and a batch of Sarutobi disciples would perish on the front lines.
That would suffice!
Given time, the Sarutobi might still claw their way back.
But… if he admitted to assassinating a Hokage, then as long as Konoha stood, the clan would have no chance of redemption.
Therefore—
This pot had to be handed to Danzo!
Not to mention Hiruzen had always suspected the deed probably had been Danzo's anyway—after all, the man had once tried to assassinate him, the sitting Hokage.
So under these circumstances, knocking off a fourth hokage seemed perfectly plausible.
"Danzo, confess!"
"Was the Fourth's death connected to you?"
"Look into my eyes and answer me!"
Tobirama's gaze was icy.
He stared fixedly at Danzo; clearly he too attached immense importance to the matter.
The office of Hokage was too special.
Almost instantly,
the moment Tobirama spoke, every gaze in the room shifted toward Danzo.
Danzo: "…"
At this instant he was utterly dumbfounded.
What the hell?
Minato Namikaze was killed by me?
Bullshit!
Sure, I've done plenty of dirty deeds, but you can't splash every bucket of sludge my way!
Surprise filled his eyes, then fury exploded into curses.
"Hiruzen Sarutobi, you go too far!"
"What does Minato's death have to do with me? Why pin every filthy act on my back?"
"And don't forget—I'm your damn black glove! Which of Root's dirty jobs didn't have your approval?"
"Take Orochimaru's research on Hashirama cells: without consent from you, the Hokage, how could so many high-end instruments be brought into the Village? Those things can't fit in a storage scroll."
"Did every Anbu under you suddenly go blind?"
"The same principle applies to Minato's case!"
"First, that night I led Root to monitor the Uchiha; I had zero chance to take part in the Nine-Tails Attack."
"Secondly…"
"I admit I badly wanted to be Hokage—but do you think I had the ability?"
"If I truly controlled the Nine-Tails, if I really could kill Minato, then he wouldn't even have qualified to become the Fourth!"
"So spare me."
"Don't dump that sewage on me. I'm already dead—must I still carry someone else's black pot?"
Danzo cursed furiously, showing Hiruzen no respect whatsoever.
Nonsense!
While alive he had borne Hiruzen's blame nonstop; back then he'd wanted to expand Root and seize the title, so even grievances had to be swallowed.
Now it was different!
I'm already dead—what benefit can you, Hiruzen, possibly give me?
In that case, why should I carry your can?
Hiruzen's face was blank.
His mind cycled through the arguments and he had to admit—they made sense.
Yes.
He knew his old partner well: if Danzo truly possessed the power to kill Minato or control the Nine-Tails, he would never have stayed hidden in the shadows.
So… who was the murderer?
He was certain he himself wasn't, and now it seemed Danzo wasn't either.
Could it be—Kakashi?
The name flashed through his mind, but in the next heartbeat he flung it out.
Ridiculous!
Impossible!
He'd sooner believe he'd lost his memory than believe Kakashi could be the culprit.
So… heh, perfect!
Having flawlessly ruled out the "real killer," Hiruzen was now stupefied.
The matter was stuck.
After all, he couldn't refute Uchiha Jin's claim: only he, Kakashi, and Danzo had known Kushina's delivery date.
Kakashi wasn't the killer, and Danzo didn't look like one either.
Then who was?