"Lady Tsunade, Lord Jiraiya, help!!!"
The instant Tsunade and Jiraiya appeared, Uchiha Chen's eyes lit up. His Three-Tomoe Sharingan vanished at once, leaving him with the pupils of an ordinary person.
Uchiha Chen's eyes shone as he waved his arms wildly.
Come on, with two powerful allies like these right here, why should he have to fight for himself?
When it was time to borrow someone else's authority, he'd do just that. When it was time to wave a big banner, he'd wave one.
"Whoosh!"
Tsunade and Jiraiya had been leaning against either side of the gate. The moment they heard Uchiha Chen cry for help, they exchanged a glance,
as if afraid the other might beat them to it. Then, in the next instant, they appeared on either side of Uchiha Chen.
"Lady Tsunade, Lord Jiraiya, having you two by my side makes me feel so safe!"
Uchiha Chen looked at them, overcome with emotion. He was just about to grab their hands.
Even Uchiha Itachi, standing behind him, gave an almost imperceptible nod, agreeing with Uchiha Chen.
Although Uchiha Itachi had gained some understanding of Uchiha Chen's abilities, the other side still had a lot of people.
With Jiraiya and Tsunade here, there was no need to worry about that anymore.
"Chen, don't worry. With me, the Toad Sage, here, who would dare hurt you?"
Jiraiya turned to Uchiha Chen, raised his brows, and said with a grin.
Jiraiya was more than happy to use this chance to get closer to Uchiha Chen.
"Hmph! If anyone wants to lay a hand on Uchiha Chen, they'll have to get past my fists first!"
Jiraiya had made his stance clear, and Tsunade wasn't about to fall behind. She raised her fist, then swept a sharp gaze over Uchiha Sanhe and the others. She looked ready to start a fight at the slightest provocation.
The jōnin and chunin who had surrounded them were so frightened that they stumbled backward.
Seeing his subordinates act so spinelessly, Uchiha Sanhe was so furious he could barely speak. All he could do was angrily fling his sleeve, though there was nothing he could do about it.
"You... Honestly!"
He stamped his foot in frustration, then looked at Uchiha Chen, who was grinning at him.
The anger in his chest flared even hotter, but he could only ask unwillingly,
"That brat already refused to become your student. Why are you still protecting him?"
Uchiha Sanhe truly couldn't understand what made Uchiha Chen so special that Tsunade and Jiraiya would protect him like this.
"Heh, that's none of your business. I just like the kid. Even if he won't be my student, he can still be my friend. I, Jiraiya, won't stand by and let anyone bully my friends!"
Jiraiya glanced at Uchiha Sanhe, still looking nonchalant. Yet an invisible pressure began to spread from him toward Uchiha Sanhe and the others.
"You'd better leave now, or I'm afraid I won't be able to control my fists."
Tsunade narrowed her eyes, her entire body radiating danger.
"Fine, fine, fine. The Konoha Sannin, huh? Impressive. I'll remember this. Let's go!"
Feeling the imposing presence of Tsunade and Jiraiya, Uchiha Sanhe instinctively shrank back and took a step away.
He had already decided to back down, but he still habitually tossed out a threat before calling to his subordinates and turning to make a hasty retreat.
"Hold it. Did I say you could leave?"
Just then, Uchiha Chen's voice rang out.
"Uchiha Chen, what else do you want?"
Uchiha Sanhe spun around in a rage, his eyes practically spitting fire and his teeth nearly grinding to dust.
"You broke my gate. You promised to pay me one billion ryo, and you still haven't paid up. Trying to welsh on the deal?"
Uchiha Chen pointed at the ground, watching Uchiha Sanhe with a faint smile.
"I don't have that much money on me. Once I get back, I'll naturally have someone bring you the one billion ryo!"
Uchiha Sanhe's body began to tremble uncontrollably. He was furious!
This... was actually real?
Tsunade and Jiraiya had thought Uchiha Chen was just making trouble to get under Uchiha Sanhe's skin. After all, they'd only broken two doors. How could the compensation possibly be one billion ryo?
But Uchiha Sanhe's answer left them both stunned.
Then Jiraiya and Tsunade looked at Uchiha Chen differently and gave him a thumbs-up at the same time.
How could their expressions be described?
Shock, mixed with a hint of... admiration?
"Heh, talk is cheap. If you go back and renege, I'll be the one losing out, won't I?"
Uchiha Chen folded his arms. He had no intention of letting Uchiha Sanhe off the hook.
"I, Uchiha Sanhe, always keep my word. I never go back on it!"
"Really? I don't believe you..."
"You... What do you want, then?"
"Unless you put it in writing, then sign it and leave your fingerprint!"
"You!!!"
At that moment, Uchiha Sanhe wanted to throw caution to the wind, charge over, and take Uchiha Chen down with him.
But when he saw Jiraiya and Tsunade standing there like two towering mountains, the thought was snuffed out immediately.
In the end, he could only grit his teeth and force out a few words,
"Fine! I'll write it!"
"That's more like it. Go ahead, then!"
Uchiha Chen could barely contain his laughter. The corners of his mouth stretched almost to his ears.
"But... I don't have any paper or a pen..."
Uchiha Sanhe stared at his empty hands, dumbfounded. His voice was full of helplessness.
"Heh, I've got paper and a pen!"
Jiraiya chuckled and flipped his hand. A pen and a scroll appeared in it.
Uchiha Sanhe took the scroll and brush and let out a deep sigh,
"Mm, good. No tricks, no word games, and you left your fingerprint. You can go!"
After carefully reading the scroll Uchiha Sanhe handed over, Uchiha Chen tucked it away, satisfied. Then, beaming, he invited Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Uchiha Itachi into the inner residence.
Uchiha Sanhe stared hard at their retreating backs. Only after they had disappeared did he turn and walk silently toward the gate.
Every step felt unbearably heavy. The wound on his thumb, where he'd bitten it to leave his fingerprint, throbbed faintly.
Uchiha Sanhe's subordinates only dared to carry the still-unconscious Uchiha Hikari along behind him, slowly and without a word.
As soon as they stepped outside, Uchiha Sanhe's face turned ashen.
He'd just remembered that he hadn't brought Uchiha Chen before that lord this time. That meant he'd have to pay the one billion ryo himself.
There was no way that lord would reimburse him.
One billion ryo—that was more than half his life's savings!
It hurt. It hurt so much!
"No!!!!"
"My money!!"
Uchiha Sanhe threw his head back and howled. His eyes rolled back, and he nearly passed out.