Stand Up First

"Heh, is that all you've got?"

Uchiha Akira looked utterly unrestrained as he calmly swept his gaze over the surrounding members of the Hyuga Clan. His scarlet eyes looked down on them as if he did not regard the entire Hyuga Clan as worthy of his attention.

Hyuga Neji's heart pounded wildly.

Admiration and respect involuntarily surfaced in his eyes. He did not know why, but why was he so excited?

"Uchiha Akira, this is the Hyuga Clan."

At the sight of the scarlet Three Tomoe Sharingan, Hyuga Hiashi's expression darkened. He spoke in a grave voice:

"If you cannot give me a reasonable explanation today, I will go ask Uchiha Fugaku exactly what rules the Uchiha Clan follows!"

"I trust that he will properly discipline such an unruly clansman!"

His eyes remained calm.

Yet his words carried unquestionable authority!

"Heh heh, Hiashi, it is fine if you use that line on other people."

Uchiha Akira sneered, finding it laughable. The corners of his mouth slowly rose, his posture arrogant.

"You want to say that in front of our Uchiha Clan? Do you have the right? Do not forget how many Jonin your Hyuga Clan still has, and how many our Uchiha Clan has!"

He looked utterly uninhibited, calling him by name directly!

They spoke of being one of the three great clans on equal footing, but in the end, the Hyuga Clan only benefited from Hyuga Tianren's advanced age. Moreover, the Branch Family and Main Family system had preserved much of the Main Family's strength, which was why the Senju Clan, Uchiha Clan, and Hyuga Clan were known as the three great clans.

But times had changed.

Although the Senju Clan was gone, the Uchiha Clan's combat strength had already returned to its peak!

The Hyuga Clan's Jonin could be counted on one hand, while the Uchiha Clan had more than twenty Jonin. As long as they awakened the Three Tomoe Sharingan, they had stepped into the ranks of Jonin!

"You're courting death!"

Hyuga Hiashi's expression turned ugly. Under the gazes of his many subordinates, he boldly attacked, his fierce palm wind and pressure bearing down on his opponent!

In the blink of an eye.

Uchiha Akira vanished from where he stood and appeared behind Hyuga Hiashi an instant later. His palm rose high, but Hyuga Hiashi reacted with astonishing speed, abruptly turning around at the last moment to block the fatal strike!

The two exchanged over a hundred moves in an instant.

Every strike landed with solid force.

Thunderous booms rang out, as though even the air was groaning under the unbearable strain!

"Damn it!"

Hyuga Hiashi's expression shifted slightly, but his movements grew increasingly frantic. He thought bitterly, How can his strikes carry such terrifying force? It's like Tsunade's monstrous strength. I can't seal his chakra points at all!

Once the Eight Trigrams Palm was fully unleashed,

it could seal an enemy's chakra points and leave them unable to move.

But it was not invincible. If the enemy's physical body was too powerful, or their Chakra reached an extreme level, even the Eight Trigrams Palm would struggle to seal them!

He had even used the Eight Trigrams One Hundred Twenty-Eight Palms just now, yet it had been completely useless!

"What? Is this all you can do?"

Uchiha Akira was eager to continue, growing more excited as the fight went on. "Hiashi, I have only used thirty percent of my strength. I assume you are the same, right? Stop holding back. Let's go all out!"

His face was full of excitement.

A sharp gleam flickered in his eyes.

Hyuga Hiashi: "???"

His movements halted, and horror filled his face!

Uchiha Akira was already before him. His speed suddenly increased severalfold, and Hyuga Hiashi saw only a blur before his eyes.

The next moment, a heavy blow struck his chest. He felt as though every bone in his body was about to crack, and he was sent flying backward like a shrimp!

Could a human truly possess such speed and strength?!

"Huh? Wait, you really were already using your full strength?"

Uchiha Akira's face was filled with confusion and disbelief.

It was as though he could not believe that the Hyuga Clan Leader could be so weak.

Hyuga Hiashi's expression turned incomparably ugly.

Ever since becoming Clan Leader, he had never suffered such humiliation.

But before he could utter a threat, he heard Uchiha Akira's icy, chilling voice.

"Hiashi, this is the first time I am warning you."

Uchiha Akira looked down at Hyuga Hiashi's bedraggled figure from above.

"And it will also be the last."

"My disciple will never be subjected to any unequal treatment. Among those of the same generation, if he loses, I have nothing to say. But if someone wants to use their own power and status to bully others—"

He grinned, revealing a row of dazzling white teeth, and said each word distinctly:

"I do not mind teaching him how to behave using the rules of the Warring States period!"

The rules of the Warring States period?

"It will not happen again."

Hyuga Hiashi's expression changed. At the same time, he said coldly, "But I will also tell Uchiha Fugaku about what happened today. Uchiha Akira, you had better prepare yourself!"

As a member of the Uchiha Clan, he had appeared so brazenly at the Hyuga Clan's Martial Arts Tournament.

And he had shown the Hyuga Clan no respect whatsoever.

He would definitely seek justice over this matter!

He would also report this to Lord Hokage. With the ties the Hyuga Clan had built with the Konoha High Command over the years, as well as his own standing, he believed he could make the Uchiha Clan pay the price!

"Of course. Go ahead."

Uchiha Akira looked unconcerned. Report him to the Uchiha Clan?

What a joke.

He was the Clan Leader's Son's life mentor. Who the hell would dare touch him?!

His utterly lawless, shameless attitude left Hyuga Hiashi at a loss for words.

Damn it!

Was he really this arrogant? Even the Uchiha Clan Leader could not control him?! The Uchiha Clan really did stick together!

No!

He still had to see Lord Hokage!

As Hyuga Hiashi pondered this inwardly, a short figure clad in a cloak walked in.

Though he was not especially tall, he possessed a steady, immovable presence. In particular, the look between his brows made him seem like an old lion that still radiated formidable power despite its age.

"Lord Hokage!"

Hyuga Hiashi's eyes lit up.

"Please uphold justice for our Hyuga Clan, Lord Hokage!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi: "???"

He froze where he stood.

Huh.

Wait.

Why was Akira here too?

And what did Hiashi mean by asking him to uphold justice?

Wait.

Could this have something to do with Akira again?

He had originally planned to visit the Uchiha Clan, but after considering it, he had decided to come to the Hyuga Clan first. After all, the Hyuga Clan was also one of Konoha's three great clans. If the Uchiha Clan was a sharp blade that revealed its edge,

then the Hyuga Clan was a great ship that remained steady no matter the circumstances.

Konoha had gone through so many upheavals, yet the Hyuga Clan had always remained safe and sound.

That showed the wisdom of the Hyuga Clan!

But today, he saw Hyuga Hiashi, the wisest man in the Hyuga Clan, looking utterly disheveled. The white haori on his body was covered in dust, as though he had just taken a beating.

Mm.

His posture was not very good either.

"Mm... Hiashi, stand up first before you speak."

Hiruzen Sarutobi coughed, feeling that he had arrived at a rather awkward time.