Starting with Naruto, I'll become stronger through my own efforts.

Chapter 125 This is a line from Danzo Shimura!

"In the Second Anbu training division, there are more young Jonin from the Ino-Shika-Cho clans than in their respective clans."

"These children were kidnapped by Danzo Shimura. They were rescued when the Anbu were eliminated, but you took them back under the pretext of treating their psychological trauma, and continued to control these young Jonin."

"You stole someone else's best child, and you still have the nerve to ask: Why do they hate you?"

"In the second training department you rebuilt, there are not only children from the Ino-Shika-Cho families, but also young ninjas from all the ninja clans."

Xia Zuo said with a sneer, "In the past, Shimura Danzo bore everyone's hatred. Now that you personally take charge of the Second Root, everyone's hatred has naturally been focused on you."

Hiruzen Sarutobi shouted, "Those excellent ninjas going to their respective clans is just scattering our strength. How can we be stronger if we concentrate our efforts?"

Xia Zuo: "Even if the combined strength is greater, each individual should join voluntarily, not be forcibly controlled by you!"

'

Hiruzen Sarutobi was enraged. He roared, "Everything I've done is for Konoha!"

Xia Zuo:?

Xia Zuo:!

Hiruzen Sarutobi: !!

He scratched his head, puzzled, and asked, "Hiruzen Sarutobi, doesn't that line sound familiar?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi also felt something was off; he missed it terribly, yet at the same time felt extremely uncomfortable.

Xia Zuo suddenly slapped his forehead: "Holy crap, isn't that Shimura Danzo's catchphrase?"

"Hiruzen Sarutobi, you've actually fallen to the same level as Danzo, utterly degenerating into trash!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi panicked: "I didn't! I didn't! You're lying!"

He was so anxious to defend himself that he even spat out saliva and blood.

Xia Zuo took a half-step back in disgust: "Ugh—"

Hiruzen Sarutobi argued for a few moments, then fell silent. After a long while, he finally asked, "Just because of the Second Training Division, Nara Shikaku conspired with you in that coup?"

Xia Zuo approached and placed his hand on Hiruzen Sarutobi's chest, opening a wound in his lung to make the old man's breathing easier.

However, this wound will quickly develop into a pneumothorax, leaving him with no chance of survival.

After doing all this, Xia Zuo continued, "Nara Jonin is excellent, wise, and rational."

"After making the decision to change his stance, he solved many problems for my coup plan."

"For example, the problem of convening the Konoha Jonin Tournament. I also thought it would be very difficult to convene the Konoha Jonin Tournament, requiring at least a month of advance planning."

"The Nara Jonin told me that he had calculated the fastest possible mobilization time, and that if 70% of the Konoha Jonin actively cooperated, all the preparations could be completed in just three days."

"So I'm not as powerful as you think. It's only through everyone's cooperation that you can experience that kind of sudden coup."

Hiruzen Sarutobi sneered, "You still want to hide your true strength at this point?"

"Without you, a Wood Release ninja, would Nara Shikaku even be following you? He couldn't even handle Yamanaka Inoichi!"

Xia Zuo said with slight surprise, "Hiruzen Sarutobi, your mind is still quite clear."

"Indeed, the reason we were able to form an alliance is because of my existence as a Wood Release ninja, and all the decisions were made by me."

"The reason why so many of my decisions have been accepted by everyone is because I know what everyone wants, and I'm just speaking out for them."

"For example, launching a coup to oust you is not my idea, but a consensus among Konoha ninja."

"If you just accept your fate of stepping down and honestly consider yourself a Konoha Jonin, I really won't do anything more to you."

"Even when purging the Sarutobi clan, I have to hold back and not go too far."

"After all, if I want to take over Konoha, my actions must meet the expectations of the Konoha ninja to the greatest extent possible, so that I can motivate them to work for me."

"Even after you stepped down, you still acted like you were the Hokage, still wanting Konoha to operate according to your wishes, and interfering with the power of the Junin everywhere."

"You've really angered everyone."

99

Hiruzen Sarutobi found it difficult to breathe again, but this time he didn't feel the pain he had felt before, only a suffocating feeling.

No matter how hard he tried to inhale, he could only take in a tiny bit of air into his lungs.

Hiruzen Sarutobi knew that he was about to die, and that his death would be extremely painful.

But he finally managed to say, "Why, why did I incur public wrath? I've always done it this way."

Xia Zuo laughed: "That's your misconception. The past 30 years have been 30 years of your power constantly expanding. You haven't always been doing that."

"You didn't feel anything before because you were so powerful."

"Your personal strength is formidable, your classmates are not weak either, and your three students are even stronger. Therefore, the ninja clan almost dares not compete with you and has retreated step by step to avoid conflict, which is why you have not felt anything."

"But things have been different in the last 10 years. Shimura Danzo has become estranged from you, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu have fallen from grace, and your own strength has also declined."

"But you continued to expand your power, which led to increasingly intense conflicts. Sakumo Hatake's death was a result of this power struggle."

Hiruzen Sarutobi weakly retorted, "Sakumo Hatake committed suicide. I didn't want him to die."

Xia Zuo ignored him and continued, "You cleverly arranged for Shimura Danzo to be in front, shielding you from the pressure of the conflict, but you still don't seem to feel much of a difference."

"As a result, your power expanded faster and faster, to the point that you couldn't even tolerate your three disciples who had grown up, and expelled them from Konoha Village for various reasons."

Hiruzen Sarutobi felt increasingly suffocated; his eyes bulged out, yet he still managed to say, "They left on their own; I didn't chase them away—"

Xia Zuo continued unfazed, "Then you continued to seize power from Konoha, and soon you were forcing various ninja clans to relinquish power, even offering up their best clansmen to serve you. At this point, it had already provoked anger."

"But you were really lucky. The Uchiha clan, who were not good at handling clan relations, stepped forward, and the fierce conflict between you overshadowed your conflicts with other ninja clans."

"Once the Uchiha clan's high-ranking officials are all wiped out, and I've killed Shimura Danzo, your conflict with Konoha will be completely exposed."

"I thought you would realize the problem, curb your greed, improve your relationship with Konoha, and relinquish some power and benefits. That's why I said: you don't have much time left."

"Who knew you'd become senile and keep clinging to power and interests?"

"When Naruto Uzumaki takes off his mask and directly tells you to return my parents' inheritance, that will be the last chance I give you to live."

"Who knew you were so greedy? Naruto asked you directly, but you stubbornly refused to give back the inheritance you forcibly seized."

"So you deserve to die, Hiruzen Sarutobi!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi could no longer speak and died in agony.