Only I can make Konoha Village great again.

Seeing Orochimaru's indifferent expression, Hiruzen Sarutobi felt a surge of anger welling up inside him.

But he still suppressed it.

Now is not the time to turn against Orochimaru.

Having just achieved a brilliant victory, Orochimaru was deeply admired by the Konoha ninja.

The most serious problem is that the Fourth Raikage he defeated was the very person Hiruzen Sarutobi was trying to curry favor with.

Currently, the gap in reputation between the two is absolutely overwhelming.

It's really hard to guess which side the Konoha ninja will take if the Third Hokage dares to turn against them at this moment.

Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled again, his tone even gentler: "Orochimaru, you're back."

"You have performed an unparalleled feat in this expedition to Kumogakure, bringing unprecedented glory to Konoha."

"On behalf of Konoha Village, I thank you!"

Orochimaru laughed, his tone equally gentle, but there was an underlying disdain in it:

"Sarutobi-sensei, you don't need to be so polite."

"Compared to the First Hokage, who could gather all four First Kage in Konoha with a single command, I am still far behind."

Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression darkened slightly.

Orochimaru's attitude clearly showed that he didn't take him seriously, showing neither respect for him as Hokage nor regard for him as a teacher.

But he still had to suppress his anger and continued to try to smooth things over, saying, "No matter what, you have made great contributions to Konoha."

"Konoha will not fail its heroes. I have decided to promote Yamanaka Hatsukyu to Jonin and award you two the highest honor medals of Konoha."

"In addition, the village will provide another reward as a bonus you are entitled to."

"By the way, why didn't Shanzhong Chujiu come?"

Orochimaru smiled and said, "Thank you for your kindness, Hokage-sama. I will gladly accept the prize money and medal, and on behalf of Chu Jiu, I thank you, Hokage-sama."

"Chu Jiu doesn't like crowds and hates being watched, so he went to take care of his own business."

Hiruzen Sarutobi glanced at Orochimaru, secretly surprised.

How old is the ninth day of the lunar month in the mountains?

At only fourteen or fifteen years old, how could he be so composed and not at all vain?

No, it shouldn't be.

How can a child be so difficult to deal with?

Orochimaru must have foreseen something, managing to separate Yamanaka Hatsuku from himself, preventing her from being drawn into his camp.

A glint flashed in Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes; it seemed he should make a closer look.

He withdrew his gaze, looked at Orochimaru, and his tone became serious:

"Right now, the ninjas of Konoha greatly admire you, and some even believe that you should become the Fifth Hokage immediately."

"I know you also want to become Hokage, and I don't want to stop my most outstanding student from becoming Hokage."

"But I need you to make a promise. You must guarantee that after you, or after Yamanaka Chukyu, the new Hokage will be my child or my grandson."

"If you agree, I will make you an elder of Konoha right now, giving you power that surpasses Danzo's, and I will begin arranging the handover of the Fifth Hokage."

When Hiruzen Sarutobi revealed his personal feelings for the first time, he felt extremely awkward, and every word he uttered was dry and disjointed.

But he still clearly expressed his meaning.

Orochimaru did not answer immediately, but stared intently at his teacher.

The atmosphere in the Hokage's office gradually became heavy, as if the air had solidified into cement.

Hiruzen Sarutobi stared intently at Orochimaru, his gaze filled with authority and coercion.

Orochimaru's answer will determine the political direction of Konoha Village and, to a large extent, the fate of the Sarutobi clan.

Orochimaru looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi, his eyes filled with growing disappointment.

After a long while, he chuckled softly, "Senpai Sarutobi, I will not give up the position of Hokage."

"If you won't give it to me, then I'll take it myself."

Orochimaru!

Hiruzen Sarutobi roared, "How can you have no sense of the bigger picture at all?"

"Being the Hokage of Konoha isn't an easy job!"

"No matter how great your achievements, you can never surpass me, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and become Hokage yourself. Absolutely not!"

"If you just agree to my request, we, master and disciple, can live in peace, and you can get everything you want. Why won't you agree?"

Orochimaru smiled slightly: "Because the position of Hokage doesn't belong to you, teacher, but to Konoha Village."

"Sarutobi-sensei, you often say that it's not about becoming Hokage to gain everyone's recognition, but rather about gaining everyone's recognition in order to become Hokage..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi, annoyed, waved his hand, interrupting Orochimaru: "I don't want to hear your grand theories, these are my own words!"

"I'm only asking if you agree to my request!"

"If you refuse, don't blame me for being impolite!"

"You're welcome?"

Orochimaru suddenly stood up, his golden vertical pupils filled with disdain and mockery: "Sarutobi-sensei, have you never been rude to me before?"

Why was the Fourth Hokage able to rise to power?

"Isn't it because you deliberately suppressed me, sidelined me, and prevented me from continuing to lead the Konoha ninja?"

"To suppress me, at least three thousand more Konoha ninja died!"

"Teacher, did you catch something from Danzo Shimura?"

"Why do you think that simply by virtue of your status as Hokage you can wield all power and force Orochimaru to bow down?"

"Teacher, when did you become so naive?"

"Sarutobi-sensei, you were able to sideline me because I respect you, disregard the Hokage's authority, and deliberately cooperate with you!"

Orochimaru walked up to Hiruzen Sarutobi, exuding a terrifying and oppressive aura.

His tone was even colder: "But now I'm not willing to cooperate with you anymore, and I won't let you use my emotions to blackmail or bind me anymore."

"We ninjas respect strength above all else; whoever is stronger has the right to control everything."

"Two months after the Fourth Hokage's sacrifice, Sarutobi-sensei, you fully exposed your weakness. You had neither the strength nor the courage to face the Fourth Raikage."

"When a Cloud Village ninja cheats, your subconscious reaction is to give in."

"You can no longer protect Konoha. It is up to me to protect Konoha. I will lead Konoha back to the throne of the ninja world's overlord."

"I will make Konoha great again!!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression darkened completely, and a hint of killing intent flashed in his eyes.

He hadn't expected Orochimaru to be so arrogant, daring to openly refuse his request and even challenge his authority.

"Great, excellent!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice was icy, and his body trembled slightly with rage.

"Orochimaru, you covet the Hokage position! You're betraying Konoha!"

"Betrayal of Konoha?"

Orochimaru laughed loudly: "I, Orochimaru, would betray Konoha?"

"Sarutobi-sensei, if you're going to declare me, Orochimaru, a rogue ninja to the Konoha ninja, then go ahead and do it!"

He sneered and said mockingly, "No, you wouldn't dare."

"Teacher, you dare not say: I, who defeated the Cloud Village army, conquered the Cloud Village, forced the Fourth Raikage to surrender, and brought Konoha a huge amount of war reparations... am a rogue ninja!"

"You dare not say it!"

"The ninjas and villagers of Konoha aren't fools. If you lie about this, everyone will immediately know who the real traitor to Konoha is."

"Sarutobi-sensei, you don't want to be talked about like that..."

"Why did the Third Hokage betray the village...?"