Araki's demands could not have been more outrageous.
Whether it was Tsunade or Namikaze Minato, both were pillars of Konoha as it stood today.
Yet he opened his mouth and demanded that Konoha hand over one of them. It was truly an outrageous demand.
But negotiations were all about asking for the sky and settling on the ground. That was only natural.
As the saying went: aim high, and you would get something middling; aim middling, and you would get something low.
Negotiations between two nations were an extension of war. Was it not perfectly normal to approach them with the essence of military strategy?
Besides, it would have been one thing if someone else had come.
But since it was Sarutobi Hiruzen...
If they gave him a good scare, perhaps they might really gain something unexpected?
A few secretive crooked schemes spun through Araki's mind.
And sure enough.
When Araki clearly pointed out that Namikaze Minato had participated in that assassination, Sarutobi Hiruzen's heart skipped a beat.
Because they really had done it.
Although Namikaze Minato had later returned to report that the mission had failed and that the Third Mizukage had escaped with injuries.
He had not expected Mist Village to remember it so clearly, much less to directly identify Namikaze Minato.
Given Minato's reputation at the time, that should not have been possible...
Sarutobi Hiruzen was somewhat perplexed.
Otherwise, could they not have simply thrown out a couple of nobodies and settled the matter?
Sarutobi Hiruzen fell into a brief silence.
If Araki had known what he was thinking at that moment, he would have offered them a moment of silence.
If it had been the real Third Mizukage, he probably truly would not have recognized Namikaze Minato.
First, Minato really had not possessed much international renown