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JST Chapter 32: Asuma's Dilemma
🕑 Added 2024-08-31 22:14:16 +0000 UTCAsuma is without a doubt, a very particular member of the Hokage line.
As the son of the Third Hokage, his minimum destiny was to be a Konoha advisor, and with a little effort, he could even become an assistant to the Hokage.
But Asuma is not a person who follows the rules.
Asuma had even come to question the underlying logic of the Will of Fire.
So, he was a ninja who had tried to betray his class, which was pretty interesting.
"Where should we go to talk, Asuma-kun? Right here or find a secluded place..." Kazuki stared at the stunned Asuma and said softly.
"Please, please come with me, Kazuki-kun! This is really not a good place to talk!"
Asuma was indeed stunned. He did not expect Kazuki to agree to his request so readily, and his words were still very gentle.
This is the sense of oppression brought by strength.
In Asuma's mind, a peer of his age with Kazuki's power should be someone proud and arrogant. He was prepared to beg Kazuki, but he never imagined that everything would be so simple, that Kazuki would just accept his request...
Asuma took Kazuki to a remote valley outside the Konoha Village. Looking at Kazuki's confused eyes, he scratched his head and explained awkwardly: "It's safer here, Kazuki-kun."
"That old man can use ninjutsu to peek at the people in the village. This is the blind spot I found, and it is also where I usually smoke, so it's safe here. We can say whatever we want..."
Kazuki laughed in his mind. Is Asuma so filial?
It seems that the family relationship of Sarutobi Hiruzen is not harmonious...
Senju Tobirama frowned. Kazuki had just told him that Sarutobi Asuma was Sarutobi Hiruzen's youngest son.
So, what is going on?
The son of the Hokage came to find a genius of Uchiha, and he had to come to such a secluded corner. His tone was even more disrespectful to Sarutobi Hiruzen...
“That monkey... doesn't even know how to be a good father.” Senju Tobirama shook his head, looking like he was disappointed.
“Don’t talk about being a good father when you don’t even have a partner.” Kazuki replied in defense of Hiruzen, before indicating with a look that Asuma could begin with his questions.
Asuma took a deep breath and expressed his inner confusion: "Kazuki-kun, can you tell me what the Will of Fire is?"
“I know you scored very high on the Will of Fire, but do you really believe in it? And if so, why have you chosen to believe in it?”
"Please give me an answer, Kazuki-kun!"
Kazuki looked at the extremely serious Sarutobi Asuma, sighed, and did not answer his question directly, but asked: "Asuma-kun, what is the real confusion in your heart?"
Kazuki sat down under a rock, motioned Asuma to sit next to him, and looked at the prosperous Konoha Village not far away.
"Your father is the third Hokage of the current Konohagakure Village, and the heir appointed by the second Hokage. You grew up next to him, and you should be immersed in the will of fire. Why do you ask such a question?"
Asuma slowly sat down next to Kazuki, and the prosperity he saw in his eyes was so empty in his perspective.
"Kazuki, it is precisely because I am the son of the Third Hokage that I have doubts about the Will of Fire..."
Asuma smiled bitterly, pointed to the Uchiha clan emblem on the corner of Kazuki's clothes, and said self-deprecatingly: "Don't be afraid to make fun of me, Kazuki-kun. If it weren't for your identity as a member of the Uchiha clan, I wouldn't even dare to come and talk to you, even though you are so knowledgeable about the Will of Fire."
"If I ask other people about the doubts I just mentioned, my father will know everything I said the next day, and then either scold me severely or beat me up."
Kazuki laughed. "You are an honest person, Asuma."
"You're right, the situation of the Uchiha clan in Konoha is so delicate that, even if I could gain your father's favor, I wouldn't risk telling him this. After all, that could deteriorate the relationship between you two."
Asuma nodded awkwardly.
Kazuki patted his shoulder, stared at him and said: "It has nothing to do with Uchiha and Konoha..."
"Asuma, I promise you that no one else will know what you said today. I swear on the honor of Uchiha."
Hearing this, Asuma suddenly became serious. "Thank you, Kazuki-kun."
Swearing on the honor of the family is a very reliable guarantee for a thousand-year-old shinobi clan like Uchiha.
But after hearing this, Senju Tobirama snorted coldly.
If it was another Uchiha who said such a thing, he could barely believe it...
But if the person who swore was Kazuki, Senju Tobirama felt that the credibility of this was about the same as the strength of his oath on the honor of the Senju clan. In short, it can be said that the bottom line is very flexible.
"Hey, did I accidentally scold myself..." Senju Tobirama was stunned and realized the blind spot.
"Kazuki, it is because my father is the Hokage, and my brother is the head of the ANBU that I can see and hear many things in this village that others cannot see..."
Asuma took out a wrinkled cigarette from his pocket, lit it skillfully, took a deep breath, and said vaguely: "Do you know the Root?"
"It's a division of the ANBU, controlled by Shimura Danzo, the Hokage's advisor. He had some friends, some were from common families, others from shinobi clans, but all of them were selected by the Root."
Kazuki nodded. "Isn't it a good thing to be selected by the ANBU?"
Asuma Sarutobi exhaled a puff of smoke. "Good thing? They disappeared from Konoha from then on. I asked their elders, but their families said they were dead, and their eyes were full of hatred and unwillingness."
"I don't think that my friends want to join the so-called Root. Their dream was to become Hokage..."
Kazuki was silent and nodded slowly.
This is indeed the style of Shimura Danzo, kidnapping the geniuses he values and brainwashing them when they are young to make them tools.
Not only civilian shinobi, but even shinobi clans find it difficult to resist Shimura Danzo's demands.
Hearing Danzo's name, Tobirama's expression darkened, not quite sure what to think.
"Not only that, Kazuki-kun, as an Uchiha, you should have heard of Wood Release, right?"
As if because of Kazuki's serious oath, Asuma's words became bolder: "Orochimaru, Shimura Danzo and my father once conducted human experiments for Konoha to replicate the Wood Release of the First Hokage."
"At the beginning, this project was official and formal. Many members of the Senju clan volunteered to sign up and actively cooperated with this research. Even many civilian shinobi also volunteered to join in."
Kazuki waved his hand and said slowly: "Asuma, There is nothing wrong with human experiments. The village and your father also want to strengthen the village's power. It does not violate the will of fire. After all, it is voluntary. "
Asuma shook his head slowly.
"Later, this experiment was stopped. I don't know the specific reason, but I heard that the success rate was too low, and many shinobi were killed or injured."
Kazuki nodded in understanding. "Sacrifice doesn't always bring rewards, Asuma."
"The power of the First Hokage is so tempting that any Hokage would try to replicate Konoha's past glory. Only this time they were unsuccessful, which means nothing in particular."
Asuma sighed heavily. "Kazuki-kun, I understand what you said, too."
"But, after the experiment was stopped, some of the shinobi with Senju bloodline that I remembered disappeared in Konoha inexplicably. Where did they go..."
"Did they go to the Root, or did they continue to sacrifice in this secret experiment? I want to know, did those shinobi who disappeared later volunteer?"
"And the blackmail of the Root and the secret human experiments are just the tip of the iceberg."
"These, are they all in line with the Will of Fire? "
Kazuki narrowed his eyes, patted Asuma on the shoulder, and said slowly: "So, what you are really confused about is..."
"In ninja school, the Will of Fire you learned is presented as something pure, just, without a single blemish."
"And because of your family and background, you have seen the darkness buried deep in the village, which conflicts with the Will of Fire learned by most Konoha shinobi and makes it even more difficult for you to understand what the Will of Fire is. "
Asuma nodded vigorously, and Kazuki's summary touched his heart.
If you have never seen the light, you can endure the darkness.
And Asuma has seen the darkness and has a heartfelt doubt about the light in front of him.
As an independent-thinking young man, Asuma had his own ideals, but his background had provided him with a fragmented vision that left him in confusion and pain.
"Asuma, give me one..." Kazuki did not answer Asuma's question, but asked him for a cigarette.
Asuma nodded silently, lit a fire for Kazuki, and relit one for himself.
The son of the Hokage and the genius of the Uchiha clan.
This strange combination sat on the top of the mountain, watching the hustle and bustle of Konoha, smoking silently.
