If Senju Tobirama were alive and in his prime, such rude and cutting words would have been met with swift punishment. He would have quickly reminded the young man about the importance of respecting his elders.
But things were different now.
He didn't have all his power.
And facing someone he wasn't sure he could beat, he needed to be careful with his words.
"I thought you knew how to respect your elders. It seems Monkey didn't teach you properly," Senju Tobirama said, a slight frown on his face, referring directly to Sarutobi Hiruzen, Sarutobi Ryo's father.
"Respect has to be earned. People who use their age to abuse others don't deserve it, Second Hokage, don't you think?"
Sarutobi Ryo shot back without hesitation. His words were a thinly veiled insult, stopping just short of directly mocking Senju Tobirama.
From the moment they met, the air crackled with hostility, making Tsunade break out in a cold sweat.
She had been spoiled and pampered her whole life, learning to gamble with her grandfather, Senju Hashirama, at a young age.
If she had to name the person she feared most as a child, it would probably be this white-haired man … her Great-Uncle Senju Tobirama.
Sarutobi Ryo, however, didn't even give her Great-Uncle any respect, which genuinely surprised Tsunade.
Come to think of it, this wasn't the first time he'd been so bold.
Considering how he 'd used those cruel methods to take away what was most important to her, she could see him doing something like this...
Still, her Great-Uncle was no pushover. How would this fight play out?
"You seem very unhappy with the way things are in Konoha," Senju Tobirama said, his face hardening.
The pointless opening remarks and failed attempt to scare him meant it was time to get down to business.
The reason he secretly contacted Sarutobi Ryo was simply to change his plans and actions, and bring Konoha back to its "brightness."
Senju Tobirama knew this wouldn't be easy.
He had some freedom, thanks to his Impure World Reincarnation body.
After all, this body couldn't die.
Combined with unlimited Chakra and the Flying Thunder God Technique , he could handle almost anything.
In other words, even though he hadn't had time to make the Impure World Reincarnation perfect, he was ready enough.
This gave Senju Tobirama the confidence to come here.
"Times are changing, and some things need to be thrown away like trash, so we can move forward," Sarutobi Ryo stated plainly, suggesting that many of Senju Tobirama's old ideas and ways were wrong.
"Trash?"
Senju Tobirama's eyebrows furrowed.
"What do you know..."
What could a young man like him understand?
Did he even know that the Uchiha clan was inherently evil?!
Did he know …
"I may not know much..." Sarutobi Ryo replied directly, "But I understand that the Uchiha clan is also a Member of Konoha, and that's enough."
Sarutobi Ryo went straight to the heart of the matter.
For Senju Tobirama, the biggest problem was how the Senju faction treated the Uchiha unfairly.
That's all it came down to.
Everything else was just details.
If the Uchiha issue was fixed, the other problems would disappear.
"Once bitten, twice shy. You were beaten by Uchiha Madara in the past, and it left a deep scar..."
Sarutobi Ryo started to explain the real reason behind Senju Tobirama's actions against the Uchiha.
"Basically, you couldn't beat Uchiha Madara, and you didn't want to accept it. You were also afraid another Uchiha Madara would appear. That's why you took all those measures to hurt the Uchiha clan..."
Forget about the Uchiha clan being inherently evil.
If that were true...
The Aburame Clan, who lived with bugs in their bodies, would be an even more evil, anti-human clan.
The Akimichi Clan, who got stronger the more they ate and could turn into giant Ultraman-like figures and destroy cities, would also be an evil clan.
If you want to blame someone, any excuse will do.
If you wanted to hurt a clan, you could find countless reasons.
Otherwise, over 70% of the ninja clans wouldn't have disappeared from history during the Warring States Period.
It was simply because clans like the Aburame and Akimichi weren't strong enough.
They couldn't even touch Uchiha Madara.
So...
Senju Tobirama wasn't afraid of those clans, only the Uchiha clan.
Deep down, it was just a fear of not being strong enough.
Plus, he was weak himself.
But he couldn't stand seeing others succeed.
While this was human nature, Senju Tobirama had taken it to a whole new level and acted on it.
This was a bit narrow-minded.
It would be fine if he were just an ordinary ninja.
But once he took power and became Hokage, it was clear what kind of harm he could cause.
Sarutobi Ryo, who also had a dark side, never hesitated to use his own mind to understand Senju Tobirama's evil.
"Hmph!"
Having his past exposed and the heart of the matter revealed left Senju Tobirama speechless.
Especially since Sarutobi Ryo had spoken so directly, which went against the polite rules of Japanese society.
How could he get away with being so disrespectful?
The answer was:
Respect was for those who deserved it, not for everyone.
Besides...
"What, you're not convinced?"
Sarutobi Ryo raised his eyes and challenged Senju Tobirama directly.
He planned to do things his way and keep doing so until he achieved his goal.
This was just like how Senju Tobirama had acted as he pleased in the past.
"What, do as I say, not as I do?"
His constant taunts seemed to completely oppose Senju Tobirama.
This direct confrontation made Tsunade swallow hard.
This was too reckless...
However, even more shocking things were yet to come.
"In my opinion... your understanding of the Will of Fire isn't good enough... or perhaps..."
Sarutobi Ryo raised an eyebrow.
"The Senju clan, with such a narrow mind, must be an Inherently Evil clan!"
Good heavens.
Tsunade thought, Good heavens!
This ability to label people… was the best in the Ninja World.
"I, Tsunade, have never seen anyone more shameless than my Great-Uncle Senju Tobirama!"
"In that case, we can only get rid of the Senju clan, and then... with Tsunade, whose Uzumaki bloodline has diluted most of it, but still has half Senju blood... recreate a Senju clan."
Sarutobi Ryo didn't hide anything, openly calling the Senju clan an evil clan in front of Senju Tobirama.
Don't ask him why.
That's just what he wanted to do.
Those who used unfair means and power to oppress others, whose methods were cruel... would eventually be treated the same way.
Today was the proof.
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[T/N:
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