"Come on, Hokage-sama, make your choice!"
"Out of these six things, you can only choose one."
Naruto tossed Shinnosuke and the signal flares onto the ground in front of him, then spread his arms, waiting for Hiruzen's decision.
Hiruzen frowned, deep in thought. He was considering whether he could simply rescue Shinnosuke directly, as the choice presented seemed obviously rigged.
"What do those signal flares represent?"
Hiruzen felt that he still needed to clarify.
"Destruction!"
"Each signal flare represents a ninja clan. Want to try lighting one up?"
Naruto's words sent a chill down everyone's spine.
"What do you mean?"
Hiruzen's face darkened as he stared at Naruto.
"Rather than me explaining, why not see for yourself?"
Naruto picked up one of the signal flares, pulled the ring, and launched it into the sky. A red light shot upward, exploding in the air.
Then, to everyone's horror, a deafening roar echoed from the distance, as if the earth itself were trembling.
The crowd turned their terrified gazes toward the source of the sound. A pillar of fire rose into the sky, and a blinding white light illuminated the horizon, accompanied by billowing smoke. In the distance, they could vaguely see an area being consumed by destructive force.
"This... this is what you call 'destruction'?"
Hiruzen's eyes widened in disbelief. Even the other Ninja who had come with him, as well as the remaining Uchiha clansmen, wore expressions of shock.
In just a moment, Hiruzen and the other Konoha Ninjas' shock turned to fury.
"You bastard!"
They could already hear the wails and alarms coming from the village. For a moment, every Konoha Ninja present felt an overwhelming rage.
"H-Hokage-sama, that area... it seems to be the territory of Elder Koharu's clan."
An Anbu Ninja whispered into Hiruzen's ear.
"What? This..." Hiruzen's face paled, and he quickly asked, "Is Elder Koharu in her clan's territory right now?"
The Anbu shook his head and said: "Currently, Elder Koharu and Elder Homura are both at the Hokage Tower."
"That's good." Hearing this answer, Hiruzen let out a sigh of relief before gritting his teeth and glaring at Naruto.
"Can you tell me which clans these signal flares represent?"
"Why? Hokage-sama, are you trying to prioritize your own clan? Hahahaha."
Naruto burst into laughter, but his words had already placed Hiruzen in a precarious position.
Hiruzen regretted asking the question.
For a moment, he had indeed considered prioritizing the safety of his own clan. But now, feeling the piercing gazes of everyone behind him, Hiruzen found himself in a dilemma.
Being Hokage was also about compromise.
Since others supported him as Hokage, he naturally had to provide benefits in return. But now, with his own clan facing the threat of annihilation, what could he offer to maintain that support?
Naruto still had four signal flares in his hand, and no one dared to gamble on whether one of them represented their own clan.
Seeing this, Naruto grew even more delighted. "Since that's the case, I'll give you a little hint."
Naruto picked up another signal flare from the ground.
"What are you doing? I haven't chosen yet!"
Seeing this, Hiruzen immediately shouted to stop him.
Naruto shook his head and said: "I'm just kindly reminding you… this one represents the Sarutobi Clan."
'Thank you so much!'
Hiruzen thought sarcastically, nearly gritting his teeth to dust. He knew that if he wanted to remain Hokage, he absolutely could not choose this one.
"Shikaku, Inoichi, do you think you can control him?"
Hearing Hiruzen's whispered question, Shikaku and Inoichi exchanged glances, then both saw the helplessness in each other's eyes.
"Hokage-sama, please don't put us in such a difficult position."
Shikaku said with a bitter smile. Even as staunch supporters of the Hokage, they couldn't agree to this. After all, if they failed, they wouldn't be able to bear the consequences.
"Hokage-sama, what if it's just for a moment? Would that be enough?"
Itachi spoke up. His physical condition was dire, and further use of his Mangekyo Sharingan would likely leave him with permanent damage.
However, Itachi knew the destructive power of that ability couldn't be allowed to continue.
Hiruzen and the others looked at Itachi with surprise and suspicion.
Hiruzen quickly calculated the distance, 'If I could unleash a Jutsu and that masked man pulled the signal flare at the same time, it might work.'
So he nodded.
"Later, I'll go over and make a random choice. Itachi, you find a way to control him for a moment. We'll all attack together and kill him!"
"What about the signal flares?"
A leader from a smaller clan spoke up.
Hiruzen shook his head and said, "The signal flares aren't the key. Those can be made in unlimited quantities. The key is him!"
"Do you all understand?" Hiruzen looked at the many Ninja Clans' representatives who remained silent.
The others naturally nodded in unison. If the Hokage was willing to put his own clan at risk, anyone who hesitated would surely face retribution later.
After preparing, Hiruzen took a deep breath and looked at Naruto.
"Oh? Have you made your choice already?"
Naruto, of course, had noticed Hiruzen's gaze. Moreover, he had also overheard their entire conversation.
"I'll make my choice now!"
Hiruzen practically spat out these words through gritted teeth.
He stepped toward Naruto, but just as he was about to get close…
"Wait!"
Naruto kicked Shinnosuke directly in front of Hiruzen.
"What do you mean by this?"
"He's part of the choice. If you don't want to choose him, then you'll have to do it yourself. This way, he can at least have a quick end."
After that, Naruto tossed a kunai over.
"You bastard!"
Hiruzen glared at Naruto and shouted with fury: "What has Konoha ever done to you to make you hate it so much?!"
Shinnosuke was his most accomplished son, and he's already the deputy commander of the Anbu. If everything had gone smoothly, he would have been the Fifth Hokage.
"..."
Naruto fell silent for a moment, then suddenly spoke. "Do you really want to know?"
"Are you too afraid to even show your true face?"
Hiruzen suppressed his anger, his hands gesturing behind his back.
Even though it was a blind spot, Naruto already guessed his intentions.
"Ah, wanting to know everything... that's no good, Grandpa Sandaime."
"You're just too greedy."
"As punishment, I'll let you witness Konoha's despair."
Though he used respectful language, there wasn't a trace of respect in his tone.
"You..." Hiruzen, who had been glaring at Naruto and secretly signaling, widened his eyes in shock upon hearing the familiar address. He stared at Naruto in disbelief: "You are..."
Naruto had already removed his mask.