I Don't Care

"Killing someone means paying with your life. That's a perfectly reasonable demand." Nukai calmly swept his gaze over everyone, as if he had already won. "Why are you all getting so worked up?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen's silence only made the Hidden Cloud envoys more smug. The smiles at the corners of their mouths grew ever more pronounced.

Hyuga Hiashi only watched the Third. Even though this concerned his life and the very foundation of the Hyuga Clan, he still said nothing. He simply waited.

Just then, a clear voice brimming with anger rang out, shattering the suffocating silence.

"Enough!"

Tsunade strode past Sarutobi Hiruzen and stopped in front of Nukai, her amber eyes blazing with fury.

"You bunch of scum are utterly shameless!"

"What kind of bullshit is this so-called armistice agreement? You're just trying to take advantage of us while we're down! What do you think Konoha is? Some pushover you can bully whenever you want?!"

Nukai's expression changed. He hadn't expected anyone to tear off the polite facade so bluntly.

Those who understood the implication might have thought she was insulting another "pushover" as well.

"First it was the Uzumaki Bloodline, and now it's the Byakugan. You bandits never learn, do you? I'm telling you, go back and tell your Raikage this: what the hell does Kumogakure think it is?"

The faces of the Hidden Cloud envoys darkened. Nukai couldn't afford to back down. Otherwise, wouldn't his comrade have died for nothing?

"Lady Tsunade, we only want an explanation... Can you bear the consequences of war?"

"Bear them?" Tsunade sneered. "You've got quite the nerve. Don't try to scare me. The consequences of war are the same for both sides. You should go back and ask your Raikage if he can bear them."

Nukai gritted his teeth. "Lady Tsunade, I'm asking about you."

Tsunade lifted a hand to cover the corner of her mouth. A faint snort seemed to escape between her fingers.

"I can give you the answer right now. I don't care."

"I alone can speak for Konoha and the Land of Fire. But you—can you speak for the Raikage, for Kumogakure, and for the Land of Lightning, and tell me that you don't care either?"

An invisible pressure radiated from her, leaving the Hidden Cloud envoys struggling to breathe. It wasn't caused by chakra, but by the sheer weight of her words.

Sarutobi Hiruzen felt conflicted. Things had come this far. If he continued to hesitate, Konoha's authority would be utterly destroyed, and he, as Hokage, would lose everyone's trust.

He stepped forward and stood before them all. For a moment, he even felt a little like his younger self.

Sarutobi Hiruzen briefly reminisced, then said, "Representatives of Kumogakure, Konoha cannot possibly accept your demands. You're the ones who should show your sincerity and prove that you have no intention of starting a war!"

In an instant, Nukai's face turned deathly pale.

They hadn't expected things to turn out this way. According to the intelligence the Lord Raikage had received, Konoha was at its weakest. The Sannin had left the village, the Fourth Hokage had died, and the village had only just endured the Nine-Tails Incident. There was no way they would dare to go to war again.

But Tsunade, who should never have been here, had suddenly appeared and taken such a hard-line stance. Even the Third...

This... This was wrong... Things weren't supposed to go like this!

Cold sweat began to bead on Nukai's forehead. If Konoha really still had the strength to fight, then Kumogakure's plan had failed completely. Worse, if they went back empty-handed, the Lord Raikage might be loyal to his people, but Nukai certainly wouldn't get off lightly.

Just as the Hidden Cloud envoys found themselves caught between a rock and a hard place, something even more despairing happened.

Hyuga Hiashi, the "person involved," was the first to step forward and declare, "Lord Hokage, Lady Tsunade, no matter what happens, the Hyuga Clan is willing to fight to the death for Konoha! The Hyuga Clan is part of Konoha. Any enemy who dares to offend Konoha must be prepared to pay the price!"

Nara Shikaku followed right after him. "Ino-Shika-Cho stands with you."

The Uchiha Clan wasn't about to let such a rare opportunity pass them by. Fugaku Uchiha said, "The Uchiha are part of Konoha too. If Kumogakure wants a fight, our clan is willing to charge at the very front!"

One after another, the great clans of Konoha declared their support. Large or small, their voices nearly suffocated the Hidden Cloud envoys.

Nukai's expression grew uglier by the second. He looked around, and the panic in his heart intensified.

Unlike Tsunade, he couldn't say something like, "I can speak for the Raikage and Kumogakure."

Nukai forced a smile. "Since Konoha's position is so firm, there's nothing more for us to say. But I hope Konoha won't regret this decision. We'll return now and report to the Lord Raikage."

"Don't let the door hit you on the way out," Tsunade said coldly. "And remember to pass my words on to your Raikage, exactly as I said them."

Under everyone's watchful gaze, the Hidden Cloud envoys slunk away. Sarutobi Hiruzen then ordered the Anbu to follow them and make sure they were escorted all the way out of Konoha.

After the Hidden Cloud envoys had left, Hyuga Hiashi walked up to Tsunade and bowed deeply.

"Lady Tsunade, thank you for speaking up for the Hyuga Clan."

"I wasn't speaking up for you." Tsunade waved her hand. "The Hyuga Clan is part of Konoha, and I'm a Konoha shinobi. That's all."

That's all.

Hyuga Hiashi looked conflicted. Fugaku Uchiha felt the same way.

Perhaps only Tsunade, as a member of the Senju Clan, could say something like that. But...the Senju Clan had disappeared because of it. Was it really worth it?

In a corner not far away, two small figures celebrated their victory.

Hyuga Kiyonari and Hinata Hyuga stood together. They had stayed quietly in the corner the whole time, witnessing everything.

Once the Hidden Cloud envoys had left, Hinata excitedly held out her palm, and Kiyonari slapped it.

"Yeah!"

But beneath her joy, Hinata's eyes still held a trace of worry.

She knew this was only the first victory. The threat from Kumogakure had been temporarily averted, but another enemy was still waiting for her: certain stubborn members of the Hyuga Clan's Main Family.

Although no conflict had broken out in Konoha under Lady Tsunade's leadership, as long as the threat of war with Kumogakure remained, those people would never leave Uncle Hizashi alone.

Hinata gazed at Kiyonari's profile and secretly clenched her fist, her cheeks puffed up like a round little bun.

Kiyonari noticed the change in Hinata's expression and asked with concern, "Hinata, what's wrong?"

"Nothing."

Hinata shook her head. This time, she had no intention of dragging Kiyonari into it.

This was an internal dispute within the Hyuga Clan. The one who should step forward was her, the heir to the Main Family!