The Third Hokage has been leading the village of Konoha for a long time. As a young man, he proved himself to be the perfect candidate. His teacher was the Second Hokage and handpicked him to take over the position. When Hiruzen Sarutobi chooses to retire, he decided Minato Namikaze should take over his position although the death of Minato forced him to come out of retirement.
His long stint as the Hokage forced him to make some horrible decisions. Despite being remembered for his immense wisdom, he made a number of questionable choices when he was working as the leader of his village.
10 He Didn't Take Asuma Or Konohamaru's Feelings Into Consideration
Hiruzen may have been considered an amazing Hokage, but he had a more strained relationship with the members of his family. He had a falling out with his son, Asuma, that lasted past Hiruzen's death. His grandson is so overlooked that Hiruzen ends up the victim of a series of failed assassination attempts.
While Naruto passes off Hiruzen's grandson as a joke, the interactions help show how Hiruzen treated his family. Hiruzen didn't take Asuma or Konohamaru's feelings or thoughts into consideration. He was too busy running the village to care about his family.
9 Despite The Darkness That Existed Inside Orochimaru, Hiruzen Continued To Train Him
Orochimaru was one of three young ninja Hiruzen was assigned to teach. Hiruzen saw a lot of himself in Orochimaru. As a youth, Orochimaru showed a lot of the genius and ingenuity that made Hiruzen famous.
Despite the darkness that existed inside the young man, Hiruzen continued to train him. Hiruzen would recognize that Orochimaru would make a poor choice for a successor to the Hokage. If he had recognized that sooner, he would have saved the village a lot of problems in the future.
8 He Allowed Young Children To Take Part In The Deadly Chunin Exams
When Team 7 signed up to take the Chunin Exams, they might have assumed it would be similar to the tests they took at school. They would be wrong. The Chunin Exams were shrouded in mystery and darkness.
There was danger lurking around every corner during the Chunin Exams. Young ninja, like Naruto, were pitted against more experienced ninja from other villages. The Chunin Exams were a deadly ordeal, and Hiruzen allowed young children to take part in this trial.
7 He Didn't Keep His Promise To Minato & Kushina About Naruto
Naruto's parents died on the very day he was born. Minato died in part due to his efforts to protect Konoha and its citizens. As they were dying, they made Hiruzen promise to protect Naruto and regard him as a hero. Hiruzen did put forth an effort to have the village view Naruto as a hero.
After all, Naruto had lost so much. However, Hiruzen didn't do much to provide for the young orphan. Naruto grew up with nothing, knowing nothing about the parents who loved him so much. The village did practically nothing for the child of one of its former leaders, a leader who died protecting the village. Surely Hiruzen could have done something to better provide for Naruto.
6 He Allowed The Treatment Of The Uchiha Clan To Worsen Under His Leadership
After the Nine-Tails attack, the Uchiha were left holding the bag. With their Sharingan abilities, someone from the Uchiha Clan could have easily controlled Kurama. It turns out one of the clan's members were responsible for the attack, but the Uchiha didn't know that.
The clan was forced to segregate from the rest of the village. The clan members were kept under close observation so that they would never again rise up against the village. The Uchiha became increasingly angry at their treatment and eventually choosing to rise up against the village. Hiruzen allowed the treatment of the Uchiha to worsen under his leadership.
5 He Increased Tension Within The Village By Selecting Minato As His Successor
Hiruzen chooses Minato to become the next Hokage. That decision ruffled a few feathers; some didn't like the fact that Hiruzen chose someone so young to become the next leader; The Uchiha felt slighted by the choice of someone outside their clan; Danzo felt overlooked once again.
The choice resulted in some rising tensions that partially turned Konoha into a powder keg. The politics of the situation might have existed no matter who Hiruzen chose. There may have been a better choice or a way to smooth over tensions. Still, Hiruzen didn't make the village feel cohesive with some of his choices.
4 His Death Reflected Poorly On The Organization Of The Village
On some level, Hiruzen chooses to die. When he was pitted against the two previous Hokage and Orochimaru, he chose to use a technique that would end his own life. Someone as smart and skilled as Hiruzen should be able to come up with a better plan.
He left behind a village in a poor state. There was no clear successor to take over his role. After Minato's death, he never chose another person to lead the village after he died. His death made the village look weak. Better planning on his part would have made a transition period better.
3 He Couldn't Stop Orochimaru & Allowed Him To Escape
When people began disappearing in Konoha, Hiruzen began to investigate. To his disgust, his favorite student was behind the disappearances. Hiruzen would find out that Orochimaru had been experimenting on people.
Hiruzen was forced to confront Orochimaru, but he couldn't make himself bring the criminal to justice. Hiruzen allowed Orochimaru to escape. This decision would allow all of Orochimaru's future actions, which would eventually facilitate Hiruzen's own death and Sasuke's defection. One small action would cause a lot of problems for Konoha.
2 He Didn't Stop Danzo's Corrupt Actions
Hiruzen had grown up with Danzo and considered the man one of his oldest friends. Danzo was always jealous of Hiruzen's skill and was desperate to gain power. Danzo wanted to become Hokage but was always passed over.
Danzo's jealousy and desperation for power would cause a lot of issues for Konoha. His decisions caused division in the village. He was directly responsible for the deaths of the entire Uchiha Clan. Despite all this, Hiruzen didn't hold Danzo responsible for his actions. Danzo was allowed to remain free and continued to manipulate events.
1 He Let Danzo Create Root Despite How Immoral It Was
In a scene exclusive to the anime, Hiruzen is shown giving permission to Danzo to start the organization known as Root. Danzo held the rights to exclusively run the organization however he saw fit. Without any additional oversight, Danzo was allowed to do whatever he wanted to Root's members.
A lot of Root's members were taken from their families and clans. These individuals were intensely trained and most members valued loyalty to Danzo above anything else. They would remain loyal to him no matter what else was happening.