You Gotta Pay More!

"Third Hokage, I believe you must give the Uchiha an explanation for this matter."

The speaker was Uchiha Fugaku, who stood beside Uchiha Mirai, his solemn gaze fixed on Sarutobi Hiruzen.

The ANBU behind Sarutobi Hiruzen swallowed hard, sweat already soaking their foreheads beneath their masks.

Panic spread from their hearts like a blazing fire.

They were facing red-eyed maniacs who outnumbered them several times over, led by the Calamity Uchiha, who had slaughtered countless enemies during the Third Great Ninja War.

If the situation spiraled completely out of control and fighting broke out, how many of them would survive?

Even if they survived by chance, Uchiha Mirai's abilities were nearly impossible to defend against.

Several years after the Third Great Ninja War ended, large numbers of ninja in the four great ninja villages still lived under his shadow, with all sorts of bizarre growths appearing on their bodies.

Even among the new generation, the rate of birth defects had risen dramatically.

Did they truly have the courage to bear such terrifying aftereffects?

The Root members behind Danzo were much the same.

In fact, compared to the ANBU, the fear in their hearts was even stronger.

More than a dozen of their comrades' corpses lay around them. As Root colleagues, they understood those Root members' abilities better than the ANBU did.

Especially Aburame Shikuro, who controlled lethal nano venom insects.

Now, he had become a mangled heap of flesh with no recognizable shape.

With such an example right before their eyes, how could they not be afraid?

Sarutobi Hiruzen and Danzo, standing at the front, also sensed the rapid spread of this pessimistic panic.

Although his expression did not change in the slightest, Sarutobi Hiruzen's vigilance had risen to its peak.

Chakra was rapidly refined through his meridians, his battle instincts had long been stretched taut, and the formula for a Summoning Jutsu had already been inscribed in his right palm.

"Fugaku, Danzo was in the wrong in this matter, but I also bear responsibility. I failed to notice Danzo's intentions immediately. Otherwise, I would never have allowed him to commit such an improper act."

Sarutobi Hiruzen looked deeply at Uchiha Fugaku, his tone carrying both apology and concession.

As the esteemed Third Hokage, these words of compromise and apology from him—

Any villager unaware of the full story would likely sigh in admiration at what a fine Hokage Konoha had.

Yet the mockery and disdain in Uchiha Mirai's eyes only deepened.

What a fine "I also bear responsibility."

What a fine "I failed to notice Danzo's intentions."

Sarutobi Hiruzen's words sounded like an apology.

But in truth, he had cleanly distanced himself from the whole affair.

He had dumped all the blame on Danzo, leaving himself with, at most, the charge of being unaware.

Uchiha Mirai shot Danzo a pitying glance.

Tsk, tsk.

As expected of the original scapegoat Hokage.

The ninja world's greatest supplier of blame!

Danzo had clearly noticed where his old friend's words were directed, and a faint anger appeared at the corner of his eyes.

Hiruzen, what do you mean by this?

Are you planning to use me as a shield?

The plan to deal with Uchiha Mirai had your personal approval!

And now you're turning your back on it and pretending nothing happened?

You scumbag!

"Third Hokage-sama, an apology of this level isn't enough. You should know that I almost died under the siege of those Root members!"

Uchiha Mirai patted his chest with lingering fear written all over his face, as though he had yet to recover from the danger just now.

If someone unaware of his reputation saw that pitiful appearance, they might immediately be filled with deep sympathy.

But in Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others' eyes...

Disgusting!

Fucking disgusting!

If you wanted benefits, you could have just said so. Did you have to be this disgusting about it?

Danzo, in particular, nearly had his eyes pop out.

More than a dozen of his subordinates had died!

More than a dozen of them!

And every one of them had been among the elite!

If the dead Root members around them could speak, they would surely be cursing up a storm—especially Aburame Shikuro, whose minced flesh could probably piece together a string of insults.

Sarutobi Hiruzen forcibly suppressed his anger.

As a seasoned politician who had served as Hokage for more than a decade, the political composure he had cultivated over the years allowed him to crush his emotions at once.

A man had to bow his head when standing beneath another's roof.

Especially with dozens of red-eyed freaks glaring at him from all around.

In his entire life, Sarutobi Hiruzen had never been stared down by so many red-eyed freaks. It felt like they were about to glare his underwear to pieces.

He had no doubt that if Uchiha Mirai gave the order, these lunatics would swarm him immediately.

Moreover, he was already at a disadvantage in terms of public opinion, with so many ninja clans watching from nearby.

If he did not handle this properly, his prestige among the higher-ups would inevitably suffer even further in the future.

"Since I bear responsibility for this matter as well, I will make the decision to transfer Training Ground Three, on the southern side of the Forest of Death, to the Uchiha Clan as compensation for this farce."

Taking a deep breath, Sarutobi Hiruzen suppressed the fury in his heart and spoke in a low voice.

"Hiruzen, have you lost your mind?!"

Danzo glared at him.

Training Ground Three was no cheap, second-rate facility.

As a training ground intended for use by the Sarutobi and Ino-Shika-Cho Clans, they had invested an enormous amount of resources into its construction.

The installation of equipment alone—throwing targets, practice fields, and the like—had cost an astronomical sum.

And now they were just going to hand it over to the Uchiha?

"Danzo, shut up!"

Sarutobi Hiruzen glared at Danzo and directly cut him off with a sharp rebuke.

Haven't you embarrassed us enough already?

If you hadn't stubbornly insisted on having things your way, why would I have had to give up such a huge piece of meat?!

Uchiha Fugaku's expression shifted slightly, a trace of shock appearing in his eyes.

They were actually handing over Konoha's Training Ground Three just like that?

Sarutobi Hiruzen was willing to bleed this much?

There were more than a dozen ninja clans of varying sizes in Konoha.

Yet there were only a handful of public training grounds available for clan ninja to train in.

As its name suggested, Training Ground Three was Konoha's third major training facility built in recent years.

The Uchiha Clan Compound had training grounds built by the clan itself, but they were still somewhat inferior to Training Ground Three.

Sarutobi Hiruzen was actually willing to hand such a huge prize over to the Uchiha?

Many clan members behind Uchiha Fugaku began whispering among themselves, excitement visible in their eyes.

Quite a few of them had long heard of the luxurious facilities at Training Ground Three.

With access to such an important resource, the Uchiha clansmen's strength would surely rise even faster.

Among them, only Uchiha Itachi had his brows tightly furrowed. There was not the slightest hint of joy in his eyes, only deep concern.

"Training Ground Three... I never expected the Third Hokage to be so generous. In that case, I will..."

Uchiha Fugaku pondered aloud, intending to accept the compensation on Uchiha Mirai's behalf.

"Isn't the Third Hokage being a little too stingy?"

Uchiha Mirai looked thoroughly displeased, as if he might fly into a rage the next second.

"You think you can fob me off with a mere training ground? Didn't you see how vicious those Root members were? I might even have nightmares when I go home tonight!"

"At the very least, there should be compensation for emotional distress! Nutritional expenses! Lost wages! Give me one hundred million for each of them!"

Uchiha Mirai smiled as he stared at Sarutobi Hiruzen.

A thousand words condensed into a single sentence.

Pay up.

Beside him, Uchiha Fugaku froze stiff.

Sarutobi Hiruzen instantly clenched his teeth.

His eyes turned bloodshot in an instant!