Chinya entered the meeting room. All the elders and clan leaders of Konoha were already present, except for Minato Namikaze and Fugaku Uchiha. Even Orochimaru had come this time.
There was an empty seat beside Orochimaru. Chinya nodded to him and said, "Orochimaru-sensei," then sat down next to him.
Looking at the scene before him, Chinya felt slightly confused.
This meeting should have been about discussing post-disaster reconstruction after the Nine-Tails' attack. Why wasn't Minato here?
Chinya glanced at Orochimaru beside him. Orochimaru shook his head slightly, signaling that he himself didn't know what was going on either.
Orochimaru had still been in the middle of his research when suddenly Anbu had urgently summoned him, demanding his presence.
Hiruzen Sarutobi rose from his seat, his face weighed down with sorrow. "Everyone has arrived. I thank you all for your contributions during the Nine-Tails' attack.
But there is another matter we must address—the Fourth Hokage... is now unconscious and shows no sign of awakening."
Chinya's eyebrows instantly furrowed.
Minato unconscious? What happened?
The clan leaders who were unaware of the situation exchanged puzzled glances, also unsure of what was happening.
Hiruzen continued explaining, "The Fourth Hokage has nearly exhausted all his chakra. Already weakened, he suffered a severe blow. He is alive, but we don't know when he will wake up."
Chinya couldn't help but feel speechless—it was just this reason.
Chakra is the average mixture of spiritual energy and physical energy—essentially one's mental stamina and physical energy.
If both stamina and strength are completely drained, death occurs.
Just like how Kakashi originally died fighting Deva Path by exhausting all his chakra.
Minato had already used most of his chakra once transferring the Tailed Beast Ball, then again when teleporting both the Tailed Beast Ball and the Nine-Tails itself. Not to mention he fought Obito Uchiha afterward, using the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style twice.
He even summoned the Dead Demon Consuming Seal. While he didn't use it to take any souls, simply calling forth the Shinigami alone drained a massive amount of chakra.
Finally, while sealing chakra for Uzumaki Miyuki, he barely had enough chakra left to maintain the Eight Trigrams Seal. In the end, he was blasted away by the Nine-Tails' chakra—that became the final straw that overwhelmed him.
Minato was undoubtedly strong, but unlike others like Chinya or Kushina Uzumaki, he didn't possess any extraordinary innate reserves of chakra.
Considering everything, it was fortunate that Minato survived at all, merely left unconscious instead of dead.
After explaining Minato's current condition to everyone, Hiruzen continued, "Although we have successfully repelled the Nine-Tails, the cost of our victory has been enormous. We cannot afford to dwell in grief for too long."
Koharu Utatane picked up where Hiruzen left off, "Since we do not know when the Fourth Hokage will awaken, and Konoha has suffered such devastation, the villagers are becoming increasingly panicked."
Moreover, news of the Nine-Tails' Rampage in Konoha must have already reached the other ninja villages by now. Other villages may take advantage of this chaos and make a move against us.
So now we need to choose a proper successor to the Hokage to keep the village stable!
The purpose of today's meeting is to determine who should become the next Hokage."
Several pairs of eyes inside the room fell upon Chinya and Orochimaru.
After the Third Great Ninja War ended, Orochimaru had been widely considered the natural choice for the Fourth Hokage, but Sarutobi Hiruzen forcefully stopped it and instead selected Namikaze Minato as the next Hokage.
Chinya, on the other hand, was recognized by Konoha as being on par with Namikaze Minato in terms of both reputation and strength.
Furthermore, Orochimaru was the student of Sarutobi Hiruzen while Chinya was Orochimaru's own disciple—making both of them thoroughly rooted in Konoha's core traditions.
Thus, some clan leaders believed the Fifth Hokage might be chosen from between Chinya and Orochimaru.
Danzo also noticed a few glances shift toward Chinya and Orochimaru, and his expression soured instantly.
Because Chinya had already completely fallen out with him, Danzo no longer associated with Orochimaru either.
Therefore, there was absolutely no way the Hokage position could be allowed to fall into the hands of Chinya or Orochimaru.
That's when Danzo cut in: "Third Hokage, before choosing a new Hokage, I believe certain matters require someone to be held accountable!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen, Koharu Utatane, and Homura Mitokado all looked toward Danzo simultaneously, puzzled about what mischief he was trying to create.
Danzo pointed his accusation directly at Chinya: "During Uzumaki Miyuki's childbirth, you and a group of Anbu were guarding outside. Why were all those Anbu found dead?
My Root Division inspected those deceased Anbu, and they were all killed with single fatal strikes, yet you emerged unscathed.
Also according to Hiruzen's account, you were present when the Fourth performed the Nine-Tails sealing jutsu. Yet on another battlefield at the same time, you were engaged in combat with two intruders. This means you must've used the Shadow Clone Jutsu.
Although we don't know whether the clone or your real self was fighting, clearly you still had strength to spare. You could have disengaged from that battle against the two enemies and participated in confronting the Nine-Tails, yet you didn't show up until the very end!
Another point—the cave where Uzumaki Miyuki gave birth had seals set up, yet these seals weren't triggered at all. Only three people knew how to enter that cave without setting off its seals: you, the Fourth Hokage, and the wife of the Third Hokage.
So how in the world did the enemy manage to infiltrate that cave, kill the Third's wife and one Anbu guard, and kidnap the Fourth's child?
And...the Nine-Tails suddenly appeared in Konoha, meaning it must've been summoned here through a summoning jutsu. As far as I remember, there was only one person capable of summoning tailed beasts—though he died long ago. And you, Chinya...you're known as the one closest to possessing that same power.
Doesn't this whole situation seem rather suspicious?"
When Danzo finished speaking, everyone's gaze fell upon Chinya.
Chinya looked up at Danzo with a blank expression and asked, "Are you suggesting—based on what Advisor Danzo said—that I colluded with the enemy? That it was me who let them enter the cave to attack Miyuki's child? That it was me who released the Nine-Tails and summoned it to destroy Konoha?"
Danzo snorted coldly, "I'm not the only one who thinks this way. Everything you've done has been suspicious—I have every reason to suspect you!"
Chinya swept his gaze across the surrounding ninja and finally locked eyes with Hiruzen Sarutobi. He asked, "Then what about you, The Third? Do you believe this too?"
Hiruzen replied solemnly, "I naturally trust you, Chinya. But it would help if you could explain yourself."
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