Chapter 95: The Hyuga and Uchiha Under the News of Victory

Was the Third Hokage's policy of "peaceful coexistence" wrong?

Actually, no, because Sarutobi Hiruzen truly could not defeat the Fourth Raikage, nor did he have the ability to command the Konoha ninja to defeat the joint siege of the four great ninja villages.

If one cannot win, then must one not be more prudent and, through compromise, minimize the losses of Konohagakure as much as possible?

The Third Hokage was not wrong, so could it be that Orochimaru was wrong?

Of course not!

Orochimaru took the initiative to strike, challenged the powerful Fourth Raikage, and commanded four thousand Konoha ninja to achieve a glorious victory, winning enormous benefits for Konohagakure.

If he were wrong, then there would be no one right in the Ninja World.

In fact, the difference between the two is just one thing: courage!

Orochimaru can fight and endure, and can also ensure he does not die; he has the courage to face every challenge.

The Third Hokage might be able to fight, but he cannot guarantee he will not die, and he lacks the courage to face crises personally.

But the Ninja World only believes in strength, not in courage.

Before Orochimaru achieved his battle record, no matter how much courage he had, it was merely personal spirit.

Konoha ninja felt that Orochimaru was very charismatic and were willing to entrust their lives to him, yet they could not entrust their own fate and the fate of Konoha to him.

But now that the news of victory has spread back to Konohagakure, Orochimaru has not only proven his courage but also proven his strength.

Strength is the only condition for gaining the recognition of ninja, and victory is evidence that requires no explanation.

After the massive shock, those Konoha ninja who supported the Third Hokage's steady policies changed their attitudes one after another and began to question the Third Hokage's policies.

Some have already publicly stated that Orochimaru should be allowed to take office immediately, letting a truly powerful Hokage lead Konohagakure toward greater victories and become even stronger.

Those ninja who were already full of resentment toward the Third Hokage were, of course, cheering and jumping for joy; they believed their grievances were about to end.

Among them, the ones with the most intense reactions were, of course, the Hyuga Clan and the Uchiha Clan.

The Hyuga Clan was calm and introverted to the point of near-decay, consistently supporting the Third Hokage's policies, acting low-key, and never actively participating in the disputes of the Ninja World.

Until Sarutobi Hiruzen forced Hyuga Hiashi to provide an explanation to the Cloud Ninja, they were even seriously considering letting Hyuga Hizashi die in place of Hyuga Hiashi.

Of course, Yamanaka Chujiu intervened, persuading Hyuga Hiashi to toughen up, make the whole story public, and lay all the schemes out under the sun.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's prestige was hit hard as a result; he scrambled around in a panic for several days but solved nothing, and in the end, he even had to slap his own face, apologize to the Hyuga, and arrest the Cloud Ninja to settle the matter.

But even now, Sarutobi Hiruzen has not given a clear conclusion on the matter, instead dragging it out intentionally or unintentionally.

This is a very obvious delaying tactic, to be brought up at an opportune moment to suppress the Hyuga Clan on the grounds that the Hyuga disregarded the overall situation of Konohagakure.

However, the victory of Orochimaru and Yamanaka Chujiu caused Sarutobi Hiruzen's schemes to fall through.

And the delay in resolving the incident of the murdered Cloud Ninja also became clear evidence of Sarutobi Hiruzen's servility toward Kumogakure, becoming foul-smelling yet impossible to shake off.

After all, Shimura Danzo nominally has no power whatsoever and cannot interfere with the Third Hokage's decisions.

Although Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura are obedient, they are slippery and non-stick, preferring to feign illness rather than take the blame for Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Hyuga Hiashi convened a clan meeting, and everyone decided to lean toward Orochimaru, publicly supporting Orochimaru and Yamanaka Chujiu.

They want to actively cut ties with the Third Hokage and participate in the war more aggressively, striving for more fame and benefits for the clan amidst the victory.

After the clan meeting ended, the ninja of the Hyuga Clan were high-spirited and full of vigor, ready at any time to follow Orochimaru to fight in the Ninja World and demonstrate their strength.

Generally speaking, the reaction of the Hyuga Clan was still considered calm, but the Uchiha Clan was different; the Uchiha were excited to the extreme.

The Uchiha Clan has always revered power and had long been dissatisfied with the Third Hokage's cowardice and conservatism.

They believe that it is the Third Hokage who has dragged down Konohagakure and restricted the development of the Uchiha.

They have always hoped that there could be a powerful Hokage to lead Konohagakure and let the Uchiha Clan shine on the battlefield.

Moreover, the Uchiha Clan are the original shareholders of Konohagakure and possess a powerful Bloodline Limit, yet they have always been subject to the suspicion and suppression of the Hokage.

Starting from the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, the Uchiha were squeezed out of the center of power in Konoha, with the entire clan crammed into the Konoha Military Police Force.

These suppression policies caused the Uchiha no small amount of loss, but this bunch of blockheads felt nothing at all, and even worshipped Senju Tobirama because of his strength.

It was not until the Third Hokage took office and indulged Shimura Danzo in continuously increasing the suppression, turning it from invisible policies into real threats with blades and guns, that the Uchiha felt the pain in their hearts, and the contradictions reached an irreconcilable point.

Even if the contradictions were irreconcilable, the Uchiha did not think of rebelling, but rather placed their hope for change on the Fourth Hokage.

During the Fourth Hokage's reign, the Uchiha did indeed feel relaxed, and even looked forward to another Hokage disciple emerging.

As it turned out, the Fourth Hokage died, the Third Hokage was restored, and the Uchiha Clan returned to a situation of being heavily suppressed.

Orochimaru's victory satisfied all the expectations of the Uchiha Clan, letting them see hope again!

Orochimaru ignored the Third Hokage's authority, withstood the Hokage's suppression, challenged the powerful Kumogakure, and achieved a glorious victory, while also bringing enormous benefits to Konohagakure.

The Uchiha believe that as long as they follow Orochimaru, they can shake off the Third Hokage's suppression, and reviving the clan's glory will be very simple.

While the Hyuga Clan was holding their clan meeting, Uchiha Fugaku also summoned the Uchiha Elders for an emergency clan meeting.

At the meeting, Uchiha Fugaku said excitedly: "Everyone, you don't know, Yamanaka Chujiu has long been in contact with us Uchiha!"

"What?"

A bunch of old men were extremely excited: "Does this mean we Uchiha have long been on Orochimaru's boat?"

Uchiha Fugaku shouted excitedly: "Yes!"

"Elders, Lord Orochimaru's victory tells us that we don't need to care about the Third Hokage's authority, we don't need to be servile to Shimura Danzo; as long as we have the courage to take the initiative to strike, we can shake off the fate of being suppressed!"

The Uchiha Elders looked at Fugaku, simply unable to believe their eyes.

Is this still the submissive clan head who dared not make any decisions?

Fugaku had changed from a conservative to a radical, and even the so-called hawk elders were afraid: "Clan Head, directly confronting the Hokage is too unsightly."

Uchiha Fugaku waved his hand: "It doesn't matter!"

"Our Uchiha Clan will not be hostile to the Third Hokage; we are just fully supporting Lord Orochimaru, supporting him to become the Fifth Hokage."

"Haha, as long as Lord Orochimaru becomes the Fifth, the Third Hokage's evil rule will end, and our Uchiha Clan will be able to hold our heads high and live freely!"

So it wasn't about confronting the Third Hokage, but fully supporting Orochimaru; then that was no problem.

Uchiha Fugaku's strategy received the unanimous approval of the Uchiha Elders.