In contrast, the core of this meeting was still about the selection of the Fourth Hokage.
"Are we really going to continue following the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi, that monkey?" Inoichi Yamanaka looked at Nara Shikaku with a worried expression, a hint of hesitation in his voice, "He doesn't show any remorse at all! Otherwise, he would have stepped down to slowly atone to all the great clans and all the Ninja of Konoha! How can he still be so indifferent and cling to that position!"
Mentioning the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi, whom he had respected in the past, he now showed no respect whatsoever, his face filled with disdain and resentment.
He only felt that his past trust had been completely betrayed.
"Moreover, now, he has directly brought back to Konoha Village all the more than 2,000 exposed Ninja of the Sarutobi Clan. This kind of action, even we were kept in the dark about it before! Don't you understand his hidden intentions?"
"It's nothing more than Hiruzen Sarutobi's immense ambition; he wants to devour not just the clans that have already been devoured, but all the clans in the entire Konoha, and even our three clans, once we show weakness, will be swallowed whole by him."
Inoichi Yamanaka's heart was filled with conflict and hesitation; he couldn't help but worry that if the Third Hokage continued to act so wantonly, perhaps one day, even their Ino–Shika–Chō three great clans would definitely be swallowed whole by him.
Just thinking about that scene.
His heart couldn't help but be filled with fear, and he was full of disgust and hatred for Hiruzen Sarutobi, this deceptive person.
"Indeed, Inoichi, even if we once had unwavering faith in the Sarutobi Clan, it was merely because we were blinded by their hypocritical facade, mistakenly believing them to be a clan full of righteousness and understanding of friendship. However, to this day, we realize that it was merely a disguise for their development and growth. All the Konoha Ninja were consumed by them like mere straw, and by devouring the blood of the entire Konoha, they have developed to such an extent. If it weren't for this exposure, do you think they would have sucked our blood dry like hungry tigers pouncing on prey!" Akimichi Choza's brother, Akimichi Dinyuan, said solemnly to Nara Shikaku. This brother of Choza was not supposed to inherit the position of clan head, but with Akimichi Choza's passing, he naturally became the clan head.
Facing Nara Shikaku's actions during this period, even with a centuries-old clan alliance, their hearts were filled with confusion. The Sarutobi Clan had already been exposed, their reputation so tarnished, why did they still follow them!
Now, they were even helping Minato Namikaze so eagerly in the election of the Fourth Hokage for the sake of the Sarutobi Clan!
Even if Minato Namikaze in a parallel timeline did become the Fourth Hokage, this timeline was different!
For a time, both of them had much to say and complain about Nara Shikaku, and still wanted to hear an explanation from this wise man.
It turned out that ever since the Sarutobi Clan was exposed for hiding in various shadows, Danzo Shimura seized the opportunity to attack fiercely, seemingly with divine assistance, employing various methods that left Hiruzen Sarutobi completely passive and caught off guard.
If it weren't for Hiruzen Sarutobi's deep reserves and his vast Ninja army composed of a sufficient number of Sarutobi Clan Ninja as support, he would have probably been overthrown and eliminated from the Hokage's throne by Danzo Shimura in alliance with those small and medium-sized clans long ago.
However, even so, facing the loss of morale and near collapse of Konoha Village, Hiruzen Sarutobi stubbornly refused to step down, making all the high-sounding words he used to utter sound like farts to everyone, utterly devoid of authority.
His constant talk of the "fire will," and "where the leaves dance, Konoha thrives," sounded great, but what about in reality? Wasn't it just letting others burn themselves out, while the Sarutobi Clan reaped the benefits behind the scenes?
The result was that only the Sarutobi Clan continued to grow stronger! Back then, when the Sarutobi Clan joined Konoha Village, their numbers were only the size of a normal large clan.
But now, they have grown to tens of thousands, and have trained thousands of Ninja.
The most crucial thing is that these thousands of Ninja are not Genin, but Elite Chunin!
This means that every Ninja possesses a considerably high level of strength and skill. The human resources, financial resources, and various other resources required to train such a group of Elite Chunin are simply unimaginable.
It's easy to imagine how much this dog-like Hiruzen Sarutobi has embezzled in Konoha Village!
Then look at the other clans.
They suffered heavy losses in several consecutive Ninja World Wars.
Some clans were even on the verge of collapse, and it was already very difficult for them to barely maintain the status quo.
However, every time it came to awarding merits, the situation was completely different. The Sarutobi Clan always had the greatest merits.
This was truly baffling.
But now, everything is clear.
It turns out that the so-called merits of the Sarutobi Clan were merely their consumption of the blood and sweat of other clans, letting others make the sacrifices.
As these matters were revealed one by one, people discovered that the actions of the Sarutobi Clan were simply insane.
They not only engaged in corruption but also forced elite Ninja from the Village to marry into their Sarutobi Clan as live-in husbands and had to change their surnames to Sarutobi.
If anyone refused, they would be sent to the cruel battlefield to die.
Once these beastly behaviors were exposed, the elite Ninja from small and medium-sized clans immediately felt insecure, fearing that they too would become sacrifices for the Sarutobi Clan.
They were all afraid of being sent to the battlefield to die.
For a time, Ninja on the border, upon hearing this information, felt a strong surge of worry and fear. They had originally held the Sarutobi Clan in high regard, but now they began to doubt their true nature.
And all of this was the consequence of the Sarutobi Clan's sins being exposed after Hiruzen Sarutobi became Hokage. Just like the incident at the River Country border base this time, the entire army chose to surrender.
It should be known that even if the person in charge of the base chose to surrender out of fear of death, those who had been constantly washed by the fire will, who should have been the most steadfast guardians of Konoha Ninja Village, remained silent at that moment.
Clearly, once Hiruzen Sarutobi's true face was exposed, all the previous brainwashing instantly crumbled.
These Konoha Ninja no longer saw protecting the Village as their primary duty, but instead began to consider the importance of their own lives, their family's safety, and their personal interests.
At the same time, not to mention the various Ninja armies on the border.
Even within Konoha Village, it is now almost on the verge of collapse.
If Hiruzen Sarutobi hadn't completely torn off his mask of disguise after his true face was exposed, revealing the hidden 2,000-strong Ninja army to everyone, perhaps the various small and medium-sized clans of Konoha, fearing that Hiruzen Sarutobi would continue to drain their blood, would have long since followed Danzo Shimura to kill Hiruzen Sarutobi.
And now, even if Hiruzen Sarutobi has brought this army back, it has only prolonged the civil war. Everyone can no longer tolerate his Sarutobi Clan sucking the blood of Konoha.
As long as people haven't figured out where his remaining thousands of Sarutobi Ninja are hidden, at most, they won't kill him?
But even so.
He cannot remain in the position of Hokage.
For a time, the struggle for the Hokage position reached its most intense moment, undeniably so.
However, unexpectedly, both sides feared the outbreak of war, afraid that Konoha would be devastated into ruins by the conflict, allowing other Ninja Villages to benefit.
It was precisely for this reason that they had no choice but to engage in a long and difficult negotiation, attempting to avoid this terrible disaster through consultation.
During the negotiation process, both sides racked their brains, devising various strict restrictive measures to ensure their respective interests were protected.
It was in this tense atmosphere.
Regarding Konoha's various situations, various factions within Konoha began to stir, secretly calculating how to maximize their interests in this complex situation.