Discussion (Seeking Follow-ups)

Inside the Hokage's office.

"Uchiha Hideto, what exactly is going on here?"

Shimura Danzō wore a displeased expression as he questioned Uchiha Hideto, who had come to report the news.

"You said the Uchiha Clan was making a major move, but isn't this move a little too major?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen, standing nearby, remained silent, continuously puffing on his pipe.

Yet his expression clearly conveyed the same sentiment; he simply found it inconvenient to say so outright.

Mitokado Homura, Utatane Koharu, Nara Shikaku, and the others in the office likewise stared at Uchiha Hideto with strange looks.

Faced with everyone's questioning, Uchiha Hideto remained full of confidence.

"Please rest assured, Lord Hokage and elders. While I do not know the full details of Uchiha Yan's plan, I understand part of it."

"He wouldn't dare fight!"

"You're that confident?" Shimura Danzō still did not believe him. Pointing at Uchiha Hideto, he raised his voice.

In such a short span of time, the Uchiha Clan had seized another two hundred-plus people. Every one of them was injured, blood streaming from their bodies.

They were clearly prepared to fight to the death.

And this meant they did not dare fight?

"Please rest easy, Elder Danzō!" Uchiha Hideto straightened his back, his expression solemn. "I guarantee it with my life—Uchiha Yan absolutely does not dare to fight."

"If you do not believe me, take a close look at those villagers below. Aside from a little physical suffering, none of their lives are in danger!"

Upon hearing this, Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others looked down through the window.

Sure enough, though the villagers below were bruised and swollen and covered in blood, it only looked frightening.

Many of them were even full of energy as they hurled curses.

Then they received a savage beating.

"Do you understand now, my lords?" Uchiha Hideto smiled faintly. "Uchiha Yan merely wants to force you to make concessions. He does not want to rebel."

Shimura Danzō sneered. "Then what are we afraid of? I'll gather Root right now and take the Uchiha—"

"Danzō!"

Before he could finish, Sarutobi Hiruzen exhaled a ring of smoke and cut him off.

Then he turned to Nara Shikaku.

"Shikaku, what do you think we should do next?"

Nara Shikaku frowned and pondered for a moment.

It had to be said that Uchiha Yan had chosen an excellent time for this operation.

Although the Third Shinobi World War had ended, the conflict between Konoha and Cloud Village continued, and the pressure at the border was immense.

Uchiha Yan did not want to fight, and likewise... Konoha did not want to fight either.

Once civil war broke out, the Uchiha Clan would certainly be doomed, but Konoha would also suffer tremendous losses.

Once word spread, Cloud Village would surely send a large army across the border. The other three great nations naturally would not just stand by and watch.

By then, Konoha would truly be on the verge of destruction.

With that in mind, Nara Shikaku ran through his thoughts, then lightly coughed twice.

"Lord Hokage, this is what I think."

"Since we know Uchiha Yan does not want to fight, the initiative is back in our hands. But he has, after all, coerced nearly a thousand villagers. We cannot simply ignore it."

"We can negotiate with him first and test his bottom line."

As he spoke, Nara Shikaku paused and turned toward Uchiha Hideto.

"This... ah, do you know what Uchiha Yan wants by making such a huge commotion?"

Uchiha Hideto nodded. "I do."

"He wants autonomy."

"He wants the Hokage to designate an area of Konoha for the Uchiha Clan, to be managed entirely by the Uchiha. No one may interfere, including the Anbu."

Everyone's expressions changed drastically.

"He must be dreaming!" Shimura Danzō said viciously.

Autonomy was far more outrageous than even the Hyuga's village within a village.

No matter what the Hyuga did, they were only making a fuss within their own clan. But the Uchiha Clan wanted to become Konoha's second government.

There was no way they could agree to such terms.

However, Uchiha Hideto shook his head and looked gravely at Sarutobi Hiruzen.

"That condition is Uchiha Yan's bottom line. He caused such a massive disturbance for this very reason."

"If you refuse, he would rather fight to mutual destruction with Konoha."

Shimura Danzō narrowed his eyes and fixed Uchiha Hideto with a dangerous gaze.

"Your defection wasn't deliberate, was it? Your goal was to help Uchiha Yan persuade us over the matter of autonomy."

Uchiha Hideto remained composed as he met Shimura Danzō's gaze.

"Elder Danzō, I know you don't believe me, but my loyalty to Konoha has never changed. Otherwise, I wouldn't have betrayed the Uchiha Clan to bring you this warning and give you time to prepare."

"Who knows?"

"Enough." Sarutobi Hiruzen waved a hand. "Setting Hideto's loyalty aside for now, we should first consider whether to agree to Uchiha Yan's demands."

Mitokado Homura frowned. "Is there no other way? We can't really let the Uchiha Clan act this recklessly."

Utatane Koharu echoed, "That's right. Once we open this precedent, what if the other Ninja Clans follow suit?"

Just as everyone was at a loss.

Nara Shikaku suddenly spoke up. "Actually, this condition isn't impossible to accept!"

Shimura Danzō and the others' expressions changed.

Just as they were about to question him, they heard him continue.

"But we need to impose some restrictions."

"What restrictions?" Sarutobi Hiruzen asked.

But Nara Shikaku did not explain directly. He shook his head and said, "Let's speak with Uchiha Yan first and see whether there's any room for negotiation."

Sarutobi Hiruzen frowned and drew in a breath before nodding.

Out of trust in his adviser, he did not press for details.

"Fine."

"Kakashi..."

As soon as he spoke, a young ninja with a head of silver hair suddenly appeared before them.

"Go tell the Uchiha Clan to have Uchiha Yan come to the Hokage Building for a talk."

"Yes!"

Kakashi answered succinctly, then vanished from the spot in an instant.

He turned into a blur and rushed toward Uchiha Yashiro and the others outside.

Before long, he returned to the Hokage's office.

"Lord Hokage, Uchiha Yan isn't among the people outside. Uchiha Yashiro is leading them."

"He said Uchiha Yan will not enter the Hokage Building. If we want to negotiate, we should do so in the open area outside."

"..."

Listening to Kakashi's report, Sarutobi Hiruzen's brows twisted together like two knotted ropes as he puffed on his pipe one drag after another.

The slowly rising smoke was like a heavy veil, making the atmosphere stifling.

After a long while, Sarutobi Hiruzen finally seemed to make up his mind. "Then we'll go to the open area outside and find a way to rescue those villagers first."

Everyone rose and followed Sarutobi Hiruzen outside.

[Side Quest 2: Completed]

[Reward: Choose any two types of chakra and fuse them into a Kekkei Genkai]

[Please select the chakra attributes required for fusion as soon as possible]