Hiruzen took in the shock written across the faces throughout the hall and allowed himself a small smile.
"This wasn't a decision made in haste."
The murmurs that had begun after his announcement slowly faded.
"...."
He waited for the room to settle before continuing.
"The elders and I discussed this carefully,"
"Weighing everything the last three Shinobi Wars have cost us."
His gaze moved slowly across the gathered shinobi.
"...."sigh
"Every time, Konoha has found itself standing against one village after another."
"..."
A few shinobi exchanged glances.
One of the older men near the back quietly sighed.
It's always like this.
No matter how many times Konoha fought for peace, another village eventually came looking for war.
Some shinobi could understand fighting over territory or resources, but others still couldn't understand why the villages beyond Konoha's borders were always so eager to treat them like mortal enemies.
Hiruzen noticed the reactions but continued.
"That constant struggle has become a burden on all of us."
"On our shinobi, our families, and even the ordinary lives of the people living in this village."
The hall grew quieter.
Several shinobi lowered their eyes.
They knew exactly what he meant.
Behind every shinobi sent to war was a family waiting for them to return. Behind every mission was a shopkeeper, farmer, or worker whose life could be disrupted by another conflict.
"And after everything we have endured in our struggle for peace,"
"We came to one conclusion; most important thing we can do is buildinng Konoha's strength."
Hiruzen paused.
His eyes moved toward the village shinobi gathered before him.
"The decision to double the compensation may seem like a heavy burden on our resources."
A few clan heads exchanged brief looks at those words.
"But it will also give all of you something you have been lacking."
"..."
His voice softened.
"Time."
The single word drew several curious looks.
Hiruzen let the silence remain for a moment.
"Time to train without constantly worrying about the financial problems."
One young shinobi near the middle of the hall slowly clenched his hands.
They understood.
"It can take that burden off your shoulders, then you can put your energy into becoming stronger."
Hiruzen's voice became firmer.
"Stronger shinobi mean a stronger Konoha."
A few heads nodded.
Then Hiruzen suddenly stopped.
Something seemed to cross his mind.
The faint smile disappeared from his face.
When he raised his head again, his expression carried a quieter weight.
"And honestly…"
He paused.
"It will also ease some of my own regret."
The room became completely still.
"For not being able to answer you all sooner."
His gaze lowered toward the hat in his hands.
"For postponing this again and again."
No one spoke.
There was nothing left to say.
Everyone in the hall knew what that delay had cost the village.
They had seen the small arguments that broke out in the streets.
They had watched frustration turn into anger.
And they had watched that anger grow until civilian shinobi and clan shinobi were standing against one another.
More than a few village Jonin lowered their eyes.
Some remembered the words they had shouted during those confrontations.
Others remembered the people they had tried to restrain.
A few tightened their jaws.
They had believed they were protecting Konoha.
Now, looking back, some of them weren't so sure.
For the first time since Hiruzen's announcement, the anger that had filled the village shinobi side of the hall seemed to lose its edge.
Hiruzen watched them quietly.
He didn't ask for forgiveness.
He didn't try to defend himself.
He simply allowed them to sit with the weight of what had happened.
Then his gaze slowly drifted toward the other side of the hall.
The clans.
The atmosphere changed almost immediately.
Clan heads straightened.
Several elders exchanged cautious glances.
Fugaku remained still, watching Hiruzen without revealing what he was thinking.
Hiruzen's expression became serious.
"We also need to give the shinobi clans some answers."
The words drew the attention of every clan head in the room.
One by one, their eyes met his.
The hall, which had only moments ago been filled with relief, became tense once again.
The village shinobi had received their answer.
Now it was the clans' turn.
"When I first became Hokage…"
Hiruzen looked down at the hat resting in his hands. For a moment, the noise of the hall seemed to fade into the background.
"I thought I would give everything I had to this village. I thought I would remain fair and just for my entire tenure and fulfill my teacher's expectation."
His fingers tightened slightly around the hat.
"..."
"But I never imagined I would become blind to what was happening within my own clan."
"They were using village resources for themselves, right under my nose."
"..."
A shadow crossed his face.
"We gave them opportunities because I believed they would uphold the same principles we did. Instead…"
"No, Hiruzen. It wasn't only you."
Homura's voice cut through the silence before Hiruzen could finish.
Hiruzen glanced toward him.
Homura's expression was unusually serious.
"We failed too. None of us noticed how far our own clan elders had gone in using our positions for personal gain."
His gaze moved slowly across the gathered clan heads. Some avoided his eyes. Others watched him carefully, unsure where this was going.
"Something like this had never happened in Konoha before. None of us imagined it."
Homura paused.
"So today, we are going to correct that mistake."
He turned toward the entrance.
The large doors opened.
Several figures were brought into the hall with their hands bound and their heads lowered. The sudden appearance of prisoners drew murmurs from the crowd. A few shinobi straightened in their seats, while several clan heads exchanged confused looks.
Homura waited until the noise died down.
"Since becoming village elders, we tried to give most of our time to the village and as little as possible to our own clan affairs."
His eyes followed the prisoners.
"But when we saw our clans continuing to grow and prosper despite our neglect, we allowed ourselves to feel pleased by it."
His voice carried a trace of regret.
"And sometimes, that satisfaction led to decisions that quietly favored our own people."
His gaze stopped on one of the prisoners.
"As you can see, my own uncle, Elder Mitokado Jinsai, is among them."
Jinsai remained motionless.
"His position gave him access to authority that should have belonged to the village. He used it for his own benefit."
Homura's expression tightened.
"We brought them here today so you all can question them."
He stepped closer to his uncle.
"Uncle…"
Jinsai slowly raised his head.
For the first time, their eyes met.
"Did you forget everything Grandfather taught us?"
Homura's voice softened, but the disappointment behind it was unmistakable.
"To always act in the village's interest." a reply came instantly.
"..."
"Why did you do this?" homura asked
Jinsai stared at him for several seconds.
Then he looked toward Hiruzen.
"Homura."
His eyes shifted between the two men.
"Hiruzen."
There was no shame on his face.
Instead, there was almost disbelief.
"Are you two really this naive?"
A few people in the hall frowned.
Jinsai lifted his bound hands slightly.
"You think giving safe missions to clan shinobi is a crime? Keeping them stationed at quiet borders? Using maximum resources to benefit our people?"
His expression hardened.
"You call that betrayal?"
Koharu's chair scraped against the floor as she rose.
"You're still not sorry, are you?"
Her anger was no longer hidden.
"Do you actually believe what you did was right, old man?"
Jinsai said nothing.
Koharu took a step toward him.
"Do you understand what you've done? You damaged the trust between the village leadership and the clans. You placed a stain on the Will of Fire itself."
Her words drew uncomfortable reactions from several clan heads.
Some looked toward the prisoners.
Others lowered their eyes.
Homura noticed.
"Each of you held the position of elder while representing one of our four great clans."
His eyes moved across the prisoners.
"Did any of you stop to think about how your actions would reflect on the rest of us?"
Hiruzen finally lifted his head.
His expression was tired.
"I am ashamed to even call you an elder of my clan."
The words hung heavily in the hall.
The prisoners' faces changed.
Whatever little restraint remained in them disappeared.
They weren't ashamed.
They were offended.
One of the Sarutobi elders slowly raised his head.
"Ashamed?"
His voice was quiet at first.
Then he looked directly at Hiruzen.
"What exactly have we done wrong, hiruzen?"
Hiruzen's brows furrowed.
"Uncle Hanzen…"
"We carried out our duties as clan elders."
Hanzen's eyes narrowed.
"Is that a crime?"
The question made several people shift uneasily.
Hiruzen opened his mouth, but Hanzen continued before he could answer.
"Enough, Hiruzen."
Hanzen turned away from his nephew and looked toward the rest of the hall.
"Do you truly believe what we did was so different from what any other clan here would have done?"
That question landed differently.
The clan heads exchanged glances.
"...."
A few looked irritated.
Others remained completely still.
"Ask them yourselves."
Hanzen gestured toward the gathered clans.
"If one of their own family members became Hokage… or took a position as an elder…"
His eyes swept across the room.
"…do you honestly believe they wouldn't use that position to make life easier for their own clan?"
No one immediately answered.
Hanzen's gaze stopped on Shikaku.
"Nara Clan Head."
Shikaku looked back at him calmly, though a slight crease appeared between his brows.
"Your clan is supposed to have some of the sharpest minds in the shinobi world."
Hanzen leaned forward slightly.
"So answer me honestly."
"If you became Hokage tomorrow, are you saying your own clan elders and jonin wouldn't use your position to benefit the Nara?"
Shikaku remained silent.
The silence itself seemed to irritate some of the other clan heads.
Hanzen slowly looked around the room.
"Anyone."
His voice grew louder.
"Tell me honestly that you wouldn't have done the same thing in our position."
No one spoke.
One clan head opened his mouth.
Then stopped.
Another shifted in his seat and folded his arms, suddenly finding the floor more interesting than Hanzen's eyes.
Even those who clearly disagreed with him seemed unable to produce an immediate answer.
Hanzen noticed.
A short, humorless laugh escaped him.
"Heh."
He looked back at Hiruzen.
"See, Hiruzen?"
He gestured toward the room.
"Everyone here is the same."
Hiruzen's expression remained stern, but he said nothing.
"The only difference between us and them…"
Hanzen paused.
"…is that we actually had the opportunity."
That sentence created an uncomfortable stillness.
Jiraiya's eyes moved across the clan heads.
Fugaku remained silent, his arms folded as he watched Hanzen carefully.
Even Orochimaru gave usual faint smile.
Hanzen closed his eyes for a moment before continuing.
"We have been loyal shinobi of this village our entire lives."
His voice had become quieter now.
"And we will remain loyal until the day we die."
He opened his eyes.
"If Konoha demanded our lives today, we would give them without hesitation."
There was conviction in his voice.
"But we were also elders of our clans."
He glanced at the prisoners beside him.
"We had responsibilities toward them too."
His gaze returned to Hiruzen.
"And we fulfilled those responsibilities just as seriously."
Hiruzen's expression tightened.
He wanted to reject those words.
But Hanzen continued.
"If you believe what we did was wrong, then punish us."
He slowly raised his bound hands.
"That is your right."
His eyes hardened.
"But remember one thing."
The hall became completely still.
"Whether you like it or not…"
Hanzen paused.
"…this will happen again."
Silence swallowed the room.
Hiruzen stared at his uncle.
Homura's expression had gone rigid.
Koharu's anger remained, but uncertainty had begun to creep into her eyes.
Even Danzo, standing quietly at the side of the hall, didn't immediately respond.
Jiraiya lowered his gaze.
Fugaku remained motionless, his mind clearly working through Hanzen's words.
Orochimaru's eyes narrowed.
None of them wanted to admit it.
Hanzen was not innocent.
What he had done had damaged the village.
But the question he had forced upon them was far more uncomfortable.
Could anyone placed in the same position truly guarantee that they would never put their clan first?
No one in the hall had been willing to answer.
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