Only I can make Konoha Village great again.

Fugaku Uchiha decided to go all in on Orochimaru, and the entire Uchiha clan was thrown into a frenzy of excitement.

Although the main Uchiha ninjas were all on the eastern front, fighting desperately against the Kirigakure ninjas, the elderly and weak who remained in Konoha became even more proactive.

The children all looked up to Itachi Uchiha, training hard and desperately trying to increase their strength.

In the eyes of the Third Hokage and Danzo Shimura, this was simply too glaring.

Half of the Anbu ninja were mobilized, and even the Root organization was re-liberated to strengthen surveillance of the Uchiha clan.

The good news is that, after the most meticulous surveillance, it was confirmed that the Uchiha clan had indeed not made any unusual moves, nor had they secretly contacted other ninja clans.

The bad news is that, without the Uchiha clan as the core, the ninjas in Konoha who were dissatisfied with the Third Hokage united around Orochimaru as their spiritual core.

They lacked a clear organization, but formed a consensus to oppose the Third Hokage, intentionally or unintentionally creating trouble for him.

The Hyuga clan openly supported Orochimaru, the Uchiha clan went all in on Orochimaru, and the Ino-Shika-Cho-Mushi clan no longer concealed their admiration for Orochimaru, dealing a huge blow to the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi.

An even more severe blow came from within Konoha Village, with increasing skepticism from Konoha ninja:

Was the victory under the leadership of the Third Hokage truly a victory?

In the First Shinobi World War, the Second Hokage decisively annihilated tens of thousands of Hidden Mist, Hidden Cloud, and Hidden Stone ninjas, forcing the three Second Hokage to admit defeat.

During the Second Shinobi World War, the Third Hokage did not go to the front lines, and the war dragged on for a full six years, crippling the economies of the four great ninja villages and forcing them to stop the war.

The Third Shinobi World War has seen the Third Hokage never go to the front lines. The war has lasted for seven years, and all the ninja villages, including Konoha, have been worn down.

The result was that the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, emerged out of nowhere and forced Kumogakure and Iwagakure to withdraw from the war with his dazzling achievements.

Under the leadership of the Third Hokage, Konoha Village claimed to have won the Fourth Shinobi World War, but received no compensation and did not seize any land.

So, did the Third Hokage really win the war?

Hiruzen Sarutobi sat in the Hokage's office, holding the battle report from Thunder Canyon and the surrender treaty signed by the Fourth Raikage, his eyes completely unfocused.

He was recalling past wars and comparing them with Orochimaru's achievements.

He was also recalling the peace treaty he had signed and comparing it with the surrender treaty Orochimaru had signed.

The more I think about it, the less confident I feel.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was pale, his hands trembled slightly, and his eyes were full of exhaustion.

He dedicated his life to Konoha, adhering to a policy of peace, all for the sake of Konoha's stable development and for the ninjas and people of Konoha to live and work in peace and contentment.

But he never expected that his good intentions would not be understood by the villagers and ninjas of Konoha, and that his policies would be rejected.

Hiruzen Sarutobi put down what he was holding, walked to the balcony, looked at Konoha Village, and felt a sense of powerlessness.

To be fair, he couldn't refute the doubts raised by the villagers and ninjas of Konoha.

If your own record counts as a victory, then what about Orochimaru's record over the past month?

The difference between the two victories is so enormous.

The Cloud Village ninjas' reaction was even more heartbreaking!

The Third Hokage declared victory, and the Fourth Raikage casually sent a Jonin to surrender, never mentioning surrender, only talking about peace.

They even dared to launch a sneak attack on the Hyuga clan in Konoha, attempting to kidnap a child of the Byakugan bloodline.

(The subject is missing. You can add a subject, such as "the other party") After being killed by Hiashi Hyuga, the other party shamelessly demanded that Konoha pay with their lives, completely disregarding Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Before Orochimaru could even declare victory, the Fourth Raikage personally went to him and obediently signed the "surrender" treaty.

We will pay compensation when necessary and cede territory when necessary, leaving absolutely no room for negotiation.

The Fourth Raikage's performance even made Hiruzen Sarutobi begin to have doubts:

Is the peace policy that I have always adhered to truly correct?

If I had believed in Orochimaru and fully supported him and Yamanaka Hatsukyu back then, would Konoha have achieved an even more glorious victory?

Could this frighten Kirigakure into surrendering to Konoha and ending the war once and for all?

Even if they don't follow a conservative policy, but instead take the initiative like Orochimaru, has Konoha Village already regained its position as the overlord of the ninja world?

But there's no going back in life; everything is irreversible.

The Hidden Cloud Village acknowledged its defeat and signed a surrender treaty, completely altering the landscape of the ninja world and changing the hearts and minds of the Leaf Village.

But the Third Hokage chewed up his regret and swallowed it down.

He doesn't intend to give up, nor can he give up.

He is still the Third Hokage, having completed all the procedures and officially been reinstated as Hokage!

He wields unlimited power; if he so desires, Orochimaru will never be able to surpass him and ascend to the throne of the Fifth Hokage.

I don't think about it!

Of course, Hiruzen Sarutobi wasn't some kind of devil, nor was he incapable of accepting Orochimaru as the Fifth Hokage.

Orochimaru was originally slated to become the Fifth Hokage.

However, Orochimaru must be given a guarantee before he becomes Hokage.

Regarding the Sixth Hokage, or the Seventh or Eighth Hokage, there must be a guarantee from either Hiruzen Sarutobi's son or grandson.

Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't know how to make a guarantee, but if Orochimaru didn't give him a convincing guarantee, he shouldn't even think about becoming Hokage!

What Hiruzen Sarutobi said is true: even if the First Hokage is resurrected, it won't change anything!

Orochimaru's face turned as black as the bottom of a pot, and he handed a small note to Yamanaka Hatsukyu.

Chu Jiu calmly took it, glanced at it, and immediately spat it out.

"Damn it!"

"How could Hiruzen Sarutobi make such a request? He has absolutely no shame!"

"Isn't he afraid that if we reveal this, we'll be despised and scorned by the Konoha ninja?"

Orochimaru smiled wryly, "Chu Jiu, if you announce this, who will believe you?"

"If I hadn't handed you the note, but instead you had seen it from someone else, would you have believed that this was a request made by Hiruzen Sarutobi?"

Yamanaka Chuuyu shook his head: "Orochimaru-sensei, you're right. Even someone like me, who is full of hostility towards Hiruzen Sarutobi, can't believe he would say such a thing. It's even more unlikely for others to do so; they would think we're framing him."

Orochimaru asked, troubled, "Chu Jiu, what should I do?"

Yamanaka Chujiu sneered, "What else can you do, teacher? Of course, you have to refuse Hiruzen Sarutobi."

Orochimaru frowned and said, "But Sarutobi will definitely do everything in his power to stop me from becoming Hokage."

Shan Zhongchu sneered, "So what?"

Orochimaru: "Hmm?"

On the ninth day of the lunar month, Shan Zhong repeated, "I said: So what?"

"Hiruzen Sarutobi made a mistake. The Hokage's power is indeed unlimited, and he can completely act as a dictator, but he still needs people to support him."

"By preventing you from becoming the Fifth Hokage, he has clearly stood against the vast majority of Konoha ninjas and gone against almost all of them."

"I can help the teacher build another system of governance, bypassing the Hokage to directly manage Konoha Village and focus on doing what needs to be done."

"Hiruzen Sarutobi will definitely stop him, which will make him offend the vast majority of Konoha ninja."

"Is a Hokage who faces widespread opposition still a Hokage?"