"It's hard for me to give you an answer right away. I need a few days to think it over, but in any case, I will give you an answer."
Sarutobi Hiruzen weighed it for a long time before speaking with difficulty. The matter was simply too significant; even as Hokage, he could not sort out the pros and cons in a moment.
Uchiha Mai stared at Sarutobi Hiruzen for a long while before putting away his fishing gear, adjusting his straw hat, and turning to leave. Sounding thoroughly bored, he said, "I'm leaving.
I'll await your answer. What a bore. I couldn't catch a single fish. What a bore."
He had been sitting there for quite some time. Though he had mainly come to discuss matters with Sarutobi Hiruzen, failing to catch even one fish still left him somewhat annoyed.
The more Uchiha Mai thought about it, the angrier he became. As he walked away, he glanced at the lake from the corner of his eye and pointed a finger. Chakra transformed into several threads and shot toward a few large fish weighing three or four pounds in the water.
He wrapped them up, curled his finger, and pulled them ashore before tossing them into the fish basket at his waist.
Now that was fishing. Turning chakra into threads was a technique typically used only by highly skilled puppet masters.
But with Uchiha Mai's current level of strength and his Sharingan, unless his attributes truly could not support it, he could master most special techniques at a glance.
Sarutobi Hiruzen watched Uchiha Mai's departing back and knew that, no matter what, he had to give Mai an explanation: either fairness or a place as Hokage candidate.
People with the habit of using special cheating methods because they could not