The Third Hokage watched as Uchiha Ryōsuke threw another bucket of filth onto his reputation. He understood perfectly what the young man was doing: he was attacking his character and stacking up more crimes to justify the judgment that was surely coming. He could not allow Ryōsuke to have his way.
However, he found himself unable to provide a reasonable explanation for Naruto's treatment. The truth was that he had intentionally allowed the boy to be mistreated.
"What you say has some merit, but I am not a god after all; I cannot account for everything so perfectly," the Third Hokage replied. "As for Naruto being injured, that was due to an error in my Anbu's operations. I have also felt deep self-reproach over it."
Ryōsuke's expression turned mocking. "How interesting. Negligence again? That is no excuse. You are no better than the perpetrators themselves."
The Third Hokage felt a surge of suppressed anger but remained silent. He certainly couldn't admit his actions were deliberate.
Meanwhile, the other clan heads were beginning to see the picture clearly. Regardless of the reason, it truly was the Third Hokage's failure. Allowing the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki to be consumed by darkness was incredibly dangerous; it could have even resulted in the release of the Demon Fox. In their eyes, the Third Hokage had committed a grave dereliction of duty.
At that moment, Ryōsuke recalled another grievance: Sakumo Hatake. He was once a hero of the Second Great Ninja War. It was the inaction of the Konoha higher-ups that had driven him to suicide—a massive loss for the village. Ryōsuke decided this, too, should be laid at the Third Hokage's feet.
"Third Hokage, you should still remember Sakumo Hatake, shouldn't you?"
Ryōsuke continued, "He was once the village's peak combatant and had performed great services for Konoha. Why was he driven to suicide by village rumors in the end? You should be held responsible for that, shouldn't you?"
The Third Hokage naturally remembered the man. Sakumo Hatake had once been a direct threat to his own position as Hokage. Having led the ninja forces to victory against the Sand Village, his prestige had skyrocketed to the point it rivaled his own. He had felt the need to suppress the man's influence; otherwise, his own power would have been significantly diluted. That was something he couldn't allow. However, he had never technically moved against Sakumo personally.
He responded angrily, "Why should I be responsible for that as well? He failed a major mission and simply couldn't handle the villagers' gossip. Does that count as my fault? It wasn't as if I was the one bullying him. I felt deep regret over his death."
The other clan heads felt a wave of regret at the mention of Sakumo Hatake. Back then, because he had chosen to save his teammates, a vital mission had failed. Even his own comrades had turned on him in the aftermath. The scandal had been the talk of the village. They had always found it a pity; how could a man with such high combat power be unable to withstand mere rumors?
Ryōsuke let out a cold snort. "If we don't blame the Third Hokage, who else is there to blame? Everyone saw the strength of Konoha's White Fang. The village lost such a powerful asset because the Third Hokage stood by and allowed the villagers to insult a village hero. If the White Fang hadn't been slandered and broken, and if a peak combatant like him had been there to support the Fourth Hokage, perhaps the Fourth wouldn't have died during the Nine-Tails Rampage. We wouldn't be in such a difficult situation now. This is all the result of the Third Hokage's negligence. Furthermore, if he were alive, you higher-ups wouldn't have needed to resort to human experiments just to gain power. Am I right, Third Hokage?"
The Third Hokage cursed inwardly. 'Right, my foot!'
"I told you already," he insisted. "He failed a critical mission and couldn't handle the pressure of the rumors."
Ryōsuke was not having it. "Should a single mistake lead to a hero being mocked and insulted by the entire village? Let me ask the clan heads here—have none of you ever failed a mission? Should you be subjected to village-wide abuse and forced into a shameful suicide for it?"
The faces of the clan heads shifted. They couldn't help but feel a sense of shared vulnerability. They had spent years as shinobi to reach their current positions and had completed countless missions; naturally, there were times they had failed. Even the heads of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio were no exception. The idea that mission failure justified public humiliation was something they could never accept.
The Third Hokage knew Ryōsuke's argument was swaying them, but he remained stubborn. "The villagers have their own mouths; I don't control what they say. Am I, as the Third Hokage, supposed to forbid the people from expressing their opinions?"
Ryōsuke laughed coldly. "A fine way to put it—'freedom of expression.' Is that why you allowed the village's great hero to be treated with such disdain? You were far too indulgent toward the crowd. And speaking of major failures... has the Third Hokage forgotten the time he escorted the Second Hokage to the Cloud Village for an alliance, which resulted in the death of the Second and many other elites? As a guard, you ran back home while the person you were supposed to protect was sacrificed. Isn't your sin even greater? Shouldn't you have committed suicide out of shame?"
The Third was livid. This wretched man was now blaming him for the Second Hokage's death. "That is slander! That was the Second Hokage's own decision. He chose to stay behind as a decoy, and we were bound to obey."
Ryōsuke remained completely unimpressed. "Even if it was his decision, your duty as a guard was to protect the Second Hokage. Instead, you let the Second Hokage cover your retreat so you could be protected? Do you not feel ashamed? Besides, the Second Hokage returning safely would have been far more beneficial to the village than your return. You aren't just an incompetent Hokage; you were an incompetent guard. How could the Second Hokage have ever passed the mantle of Hokage to someone like you?"
The Third Hokage's head throbbed with a piercing ache. It was all twisted logic! Ryōsuke was questioning not just him, but his teacher, the Second Hokage.
Fugaku, listening to Ryōsuke, found himself agreeing in his heart. 'If the Second Hokage had come back, he certainly wouldn't have suppressed the Uchiha Clan this way.' Though the Second had given the Military Police Force power as a way to isolate them from the villagers, it was an open scheme—if the clan wanted the power, they had to accept the resentment. It was a fair, if harsh, trade.
The surrounding clan heads were stunned into silence. Perhaps Uchiha Ryōsuke was right. The Second Hokage returning safely really would have been more useful than the Third. The Second was not only a supreme combatant but also a master of forbidden jutsu; he surely would have had a way to resolve the Nine-Tails Rampage. He wouldn't have been like the Third Hokage, who failed to support the Fourth and even blocked the Uchiha Clan from helping, causing nothing but trouble.