Facing Byakuya's extortion, Hiruzen Sarutobi was unwilling to give in, but he still had no choice but to agree.
Hiruzen knew perfectly well that Byakuya was openly extorting him.
And his son was still in Byakuya's hands.
He had no choice but to pay.
So Hiruzen decided to pay up first, appease the Uchiha Clan, and rescue his son. He would have plenty of opportunities to deal with the Uchiha Clan later.
"One hundred million, right? I agree..."
"Bring Shin'nosuke Sarutobi up..."
Hiruzen suppressed his anger and spoke to Byakuya.
"Lord Hokage, there's no need to rush..."
"En, go with Lord Hokage and get the money first..."
Byakuya spoke to Uchiha En, who stood beside him.
Byakuya knew perfectly well that Hiruzen was a shameless old schemer.
It was entirely possible he'd go back on his word.
"Yes... Lord Byakuya..."
At Byakuya's words, Uchiha En sheathed his Ninja Sword and went over to Hiruzen.
"Lord Hokage, please lead the way..."
"Hmph... Take him to the Sarutobi Clan to get the money."
Hiruzen snorted and ordered an Anbu beside him to take Uchiha En to collect the money.
As for Byakuya, Hiruzen, and the others, they stood facing one another in silence.
But the steadily increasing Negative Energy made it clear to Byakuya that Hiruzen was anything but calm. He was furious.
A short while later, Uchiha En returned with a storage scroll in his hand.
"Lord Byakuya, we got the hundred million..."
Uchiha En said excitedly, handing the storage scroll to Byakuya.
It was the first time Uchiha En had ever seen so much money.
And it had been extorted from the Hokage himself.
As expected of Lord Byakuya. He was incredible.
"Excellent!... Go bring Shin'nosuke Sarutobi here..."
Byakuya took the scroll and spoke to Uchiha En.
"Yes... Lord Byakuya..."
Without hesitation, Uchiha En headed for the interrogation room.
A short while later, Shin'nosuke Sarutobi was brought out.
After being beaten for so long, Shin'nosuke was in a terrible state.
As soon as he saw Hiruzen, Shin'nosuke shouted.
"Father, save me! Kill Byakuya!..."
"Byakuya actually dared to capture me. You can't let him get away with this..."
Shin'nosuke continued shouting.
But before he could finish, Byakuya slapped him across the face, sending him crashing to the ground.
"You damned rogue ninja! How dare you act so arrogantly..."
"You must be looking to die..."
Byakuya then drew his Ninja Sword and held it against Shin'nosuke's throat.
"Lord Hokage, this rogue ninja actually dared to frame me..."
"Would you like me to kill him for you?..."
"With the Anbu's skills, I'm sure they can still extract useful information even if all that's left is his head..."
Byakuya looked at Hiruzen as he spoke.
"Don't... Don't do it..."
"Hand him over to the Anbu. They'll handle it..."
Seeing the Ninja Sword at Shin'nosuke's throat, Hiruzen spoke nervously.
He was genuinely afraid Byakuya might slip and actually cut off his son's head.
"Lord Hokage, are you sure you don't need my help?..."
"My Ninja Sword is very sharp. I can make sure his head stays intact..."
Byakuya continued watching Hiruzen with a teasing look.
"N-no need..."
Hiruzen knew Byakuya was mocking him.
But to save his son's life, he had to stop Byakuya, even if it meant humiliating himself.
"What a shame..."
"You can have him..."
Byakuya put away his Ninja Sword and kicked Shin'nosuke hard.
With a scream, Shin'nosuke flew through the air.
The Anbu hurriedly stepped in and caught him.
"Let's go..."
Hiruzen immediately ordered them to leave.
Now that his son had been rescued, he didn't want to stay here a moment longer.
He was afraid that if he stayed, Byakuya would make him explode with rage.
"Lord Hokage, you'd better keep a closer eye on your son from now on..."
"If I catch him again, I can't guarantee he'll leave the Security Force in one piece next time..."
Byakuya continued taunting Hiruzen as he left.
"Hmph..."
Furious, Hiruzen didn't even look back as he walked away.
[ Ding! Hiruzen Sarutobi is furious: +700 Negative Energy, Ninjutsu +20...]
Seeing the Hokage and Anbu slink away, all the Uchiha Clan members cheered.
"Wow... That was amazing!..."
"Lord Byakuya is incredible! He actually got the Hokage to back down..."
"Yeah! I've never seen the Hokage and Anbu leave in such disgrace before!..."
"Only Lord Byakuya can lead the Uchiha Clan to rise again..."
One after another, the Uchiha ninja spoke with pride.
Back when Uchiha Gen was clan head, the Hokage always kept the Uchiha under his thumb.
The Uchiha ninja had all felt deeply frustrated.
Now Byakuya had actually extorted the Hokage. It was incredible.
Thinking back to when Uchiha Gen was clan head, then seeing Byakuya standing up to the Hokage...
What was Uchiha Gen even worth?
"Is this the Third Hokage!? Wasn't he known as the Ninja Hero? He gave in so easily..."
Uchiha En said excitedly.
"Ninja Hero!? Tch! Now he's the 'Ninja Coward'..."
Byakuya said with disdain.
Hiruzen had become Hokage through genuine strength; he really had been Kage Level.
But after becoming Hokage, he'd thrown himself into political maneuvering and neglected his strength.
You could say Hiruzen had gone from the once-great "Ninja Hero" to the "Ninja Coward."
"Ninja Coward!? Hahaha, that's a great title!..."
Hearing Byakuya's words, Uchiha En joined in the laughter.
"All right, divide this money among yourselves!..."
"We're the foremost noble clan in Konoha. We should carry ourselves like one..."
Byakuya opened the storage scroll, and a mountain of money appeared before them.
The Uchiha Clan was Konoha's foremost noble clan, yet every one of them was poor. It was hardly fitting for a great clan.
"Yes... Thank you, Lord Byakuya..."
"Lord Byakuya is just too good to us..."
Hearing that they were getting money, the Uchiha ninja were all thrilled.
After rescuing his son, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, went straight to the Ninja Hospital.
"Doctor, how is Shin'nosuke?..."
Hiruzen asked anxiously.
"Lord Hokage, don't worry..."
"Shin'nosuke only suffered superficial injuries. His bones are unharmed, and his ninja career won't be affected..."
The doctor promptly explained Shin'nosuke's condition.
"Phew... That's a relief..."
Hearing that Shin'nosuke's ninja career wouldn't be affected, Hiruzen let out a sigh of relief.
"However, Shin'nosuke's injuries are quite serious. It looks like he was beaten for some time, and he's also somewhat traumatized..."
"It would be best to let him rest for a while..."
The doctor continued.
"Damn Uchiha Byakuya! Evil Uchiha..."
Hiruzen cursed Byakuya in his heart.
If not for Byakuya, his son wouldn't have been so badly injured.
"Come!"
As Hiruzen spoke, an Anbu appeared before him.
"Keep the Uchiha Clan under close surveillance, twenty-four hours a day..."
"Especially Uchiha Byakuya's movements..."
"I want every piece of information on Uchiha Byakuya!..."
Hiruzen gave the Anbu his orders.
In Hiruzen's eyes, Uchiha Byakuya had become a major threat.
He wanted to learn everything about Byakuya and find an opportunity to eliminate him.
Before you continue