Compromise! Ino-Shika-Cho on the Edge of a Cliff!

At that moment, Hyuga Hiashi, who had thought he held the upper hand, grew a little grim.

He was reluctant to admit it.

But deep down, he knew perfectly well that Bai Ye was right.

Unless the Hyuga remained obedient dogs forever, what had happened before would very likely happen again.

Yet that was not what the Hyuga Clan wanted.

But taking on all of Konoha was absolutely out of the question.

Hyuga Hiashi took a deep breath, steadied his emotions, and looked at Bai Ye. "You make a good point, but in my eyes, it's still not enough!"

He admitted he had no way to deny this.

Because what Bai Ye had said was the truth.

But that was not enough!

It might be a case of the pot calling the kettle black.

Still, he felt that the Hyuga Clan's current circumstances were far better than the Uchiha Clan's.

So what Bai Ye had said did stir some resentment in Hyuga Hiashi.

But he would not let Bai Ye dictate the entire conversation.

"What about an alliance?"

"An alliance?"

A flicker of surprise crossed Hyuga Hiashi's face.

He had considered plenty of possibilities.

But he had truly never imagined Bai Ye would propose an alliance.

The Uchiha actually wanted to ally with the Hyuga?!

"Impossible. Neither clan would ever agree!"

Hyuga Hiashi shook his head. He could not agree to that.

The two clans had a bitter rivalry over which was the foremost clan in ocular techniques.

And now Bai Ye was proposing an alliance?!

How was that possible?!

"All it takes is for you and me to agree."

"Can you speak for the Uchiha?"

"Can't you speak for the Hyuga?"

At those words, Hyuga Hiashi suddenly smiled.

This fellow...

It looks like he's even more capable than I thought. He actually united the Uchiha without making a sound.

On second thought, it made sense. Everything Bai Ye had done so far had brought the Uchiha tangible benefits.

Naturally, they would be more willing to follow his lead.

"Then what would we Hyuga gain?!"

"It's not about what the Hyuga would gain. I'll help you accomplish something you've always wanted to do: abolish the Branch Family's Caged Bird Seal system."

Bai Ye's words exploded like a bomb in Hyuga Hiashi's heart.

He had imagined many benefits Bai Ye might offer him.

But he had never expected Bai Ye to bring this up!

Had anyone else been the clan head, a proposal to resolve the Caged Bird Seal issue would have sent them into a rage, and they would have told Bai Ye to get lost.

But Hyuga Hiashi was different.

He genuinely wanted to resolve it.

Ever since Hizashi Hyuga's death, he had wanted to change the system governing the Main Family and the Branch Family.

Yet he had never revealed that desire or told anyone about it. How did Bai Ye know?!

"And most importantly, don't you think that unless we break the current power structure, neither of our clans will ever get a turn at being Hokage?!

"They said we would all be people of Konoha once we joined, but what happened in the end?!

"The position of Hokage will never belong to us.

"The First Hokage was Hashirama Senju. The Second Hokage was Tobirama Senju, Hashirama's younger brother.

"The Third Hokage was the Second Hokage's disciple, and the Fourth Hokage was the Third Hokage's grand-disciple.

"If this continues, the position of Hokage will have nothing to do with us. If we want a new distribution of power and benefits, we have to break the existing order.

"We Uchiha intend to become Hokage!"

He wanted to be the one calling the shots in Konoha!

Being Hokage might be exhausting.

But to change the current situation, he had to reach the highest seat of power.

Otherwise, no matter who became Hokage, relations between the Uchiha and the village would never be all that harmonious.

"If you were speaking to me today as Hokage, I would agree. But what standing do you have right now?"

Hyuga Hiashi took a deep breath, his gaze turning scrutinizing as he looked at Bai Ye.

Bai Ye made a fine argument.

But everything he was offering right now was an empty promise.

His only aim was to hitch the Hyuga Clan to his war chariot.

"I can return the land to you Uchiha, but we Hyuga won't climb aboard your war chariot. At least, not now. Not unless you show me you have a chance of achieving this!"

After a moment of silence, Hyuga Hiashi finally decided to return the land to Bai Ye.

They had not taken much in the first place. It was all on the outskirts, little more than a token seizure.

Once Bai Ye had enacted reforms and united the Uchiha's thinking, Hyuga Hiashi had prepared himself to return it.

That easy? This Hiashi...

Bai Ye gave Hyuga Hiashi a surprised look.

He still had more to say.

He had been thinking that if Hyuga Hiashi refused, he had other, less conventional tactics available.

The Uchiha would focus solely on attacking the Hyuga Clan and do nothing else. He would prepare two coffins, one for himself and one for Hyuga Hiashi.

But Hyuga Hiashi's attitude also made Bai Ye realize that he probably wanted to stay out of this dispute.

And his earlier words had struck home.

He had rubbed salt in Hyuga Hiashi's wounds, reminding him how Konoha had treated the Hyuga Clan before.

Now Hiruzen Sarutobi wanted to use Hyuga Hiashi and his people as weapons again.

Naturally, Hyuga Hiashi would not stick his neck out.

The Uchiha Clan was no longer under Uchiha Fugaku's control. Its recent changes had made Hyuga Hiashi realize that things might truly be different from before.

"Then I'll send someone over later to discuss the details. I'll keep the promise I made to you."

With that, Bai Ye stood and took his leave.

Watching him go, Hyuga Hiashi sighed. Even he did not know whether his decision was right or wrong.

But asking him to hold off the Uchiha Clan?!

What a joke!

He was not doing that!

Besides, he could sense that Bai Ye's strength might already have reached Kage Level.

If Bai Ye went mad and led the Uchiha against the Hyuga Clan, they would end up being the suckers.

This was a matter between Hiruzen Sarutobi and the Uchiha. What did it have to do with the Hyuga Clan?!

They had not forgotten how they had been screwed over before.

Hyuga Hiashi had never forgotten any of it.

So even if Hiruzen Sarutobi wanted them to step up now, he would never lead the Hyuga Clan into battle against that pack of lunatics.

The Uchiha Clan had already been driven to the edge of a cliff. They were capable of anything. Besides, Bai Ye had been right.

Am I really willing to accept this?!

Back then, the village could still have kept fighting. The Hyuga Clan had even offered to take the lead, and even the Uchiha Clan, despite their strained relations, had said they could fight!

Yet Hiruzen Sarutobi had overridden every objection and ultimately chosen to smooth things over!

Did he really not understand what Hiruzen Sarutobi had been thinking?!

How could Kumogakure have had any strength left to fight?!

The Third Shinobi World War had only recently ended, and friction between Kumogakure and Iwagakure had continued unabated.

How could Kumogakure possibly have gone to war with Konoha then?!

Unless they wanted both sides to suffer.

Under those circumstances, both Bai Ye's strength and his words left Hyuga Hiashi unable to refuse.

Since Hiruzen Sarutobi had made life difficult for him before, he would make life difficult for Hiruzen Sarutobi now.

Besides, Bai Ye was right. To change all this, they had to break the existing framework.

Minato Namikaze should have been the one to change it all.

But in the end, Minato Namikaze had died.

And why should the Hokage's line of succession always remain on the Senju side?!

Although Hyuga Hiashi did not believe Bai Ye could become Hokage.

He very much wanted to see whether Bai Ye could truly take that step.

That was why he had returned the land to Bai Ye.

Then he would see what Hiruzen Sarutobi and Konoha planned to do next!

After Bai Ye left, the elders came to Hyuga Hiashi and immediately asked, "How did it go, Hiashi?!"

"I gave it back."

"You gave it back?! You actually gave it back?"

Wait, what?!

The elders were dumbfounded!

He had just given it back?

No, hold on...

Hadn't he given in a little too quickly?

"There's no need for our Hyuga Clan to get involved in this, is there?!"

"I actually feel the same way, but the Uchiha..."

Quite a few of them simply felt that they could not afford to lose face over this.

That was why they had been unwilling to return it.

They valued their pride, but their relationship with Konoha was not particularly close either.

After all, the incident involving Hizashi Hyuga had happened only recently.

They might believe it was the Branch Family's duty to protect the Main Family.

But that was an internal matter. Hiruzen Sarutobi forcing one of their people to die was an entirely different story.

"He knows what to do. The Uchiha are no longer under Fugaku's control. All we need to do now is watch!"

Having said that, Hyuga Hiashi offered no further explanation.

Thinking back on Bai Ye's words, he now felt a little anticipation himself. Can he do it?!

At the Hyuga Clan's gates.

Once Bai Ye stepped out through the Hyuga Clan's gates.

Countless eyes watched both him and the Hyuga Clan.

The Uchiha's demand to reclaim the land that had originally belonged to them had already caused an uproar.

Bai Ye's visit had undoubtedly drawn all that attention here.

Within the Uchiha Clan, everyone was waiting for Bai Ye's return.

Shinobi and civilians alike.

This concerned the interests of every one of them.

After all, living in this out-of-the-way corner was completely different from living in their former central district!

The moment Bai Ye entered the clan grounds, Uchiha Hui and the others immediately crowded around him. "How did it go?! Did they refuse?!"

He felt he might be a little pessimistic, but that seemed like the natural outcome.

"If that bastard refuses, we'll fight our way in and take it back!!!"

With his fiery temper, Uchiha Huo clearly felt that failing to reclaim it would be a humiliating blow to their pride.

They would have to do something to regain some dignity.

"The Hyuga Clan has agreed."

"What?! They agreed?!"

Uchiha Setsuna stared at Bai Ye, his eyes wide with disbelief.

Wait, what?!

They had already braced themselves for failure.

And now he was saying he had actually succeeded?!

"Yes. I had a friendly discussion with the Hyuga clan head. He agreed that the land does belong to us Uchiha and is willing to return it."

"That's our clan head for you!!!"

"Does this mean we really have a chance to move back there?!"

"We finally won't have to live in this corner anymore!!!"

As the news spread, cheers rang out throughout the Uchiha Clan.

The news likewise spread throughout Konoha at lightning speed.

The Hyuga Clan also came forward and announced that they could return this land to the Uchiha, confirming beyond doubt that the two sides had reached an agreement.

At that moment, no one in the Hokage's Office was more anxious than Danzo.

He glared furiously at Hiruzen Sarutobi and demanded, "Sarutobi, look what you've done!!! Are you satisfied now? The Hyuga Clan has agreed to return this land to the Uchiha!

What are you going to do now!!!?"

As soon as anyone else returned the land, their four clans would have to follow suit.

Hiruzen Sarutobi had already promised as much.

Konoha's layout had already been finalized.

In the past, they could have moved a little to the side and still remained in a fairly central district.

But if they moved out now, they would have no choice but to live in that out-of-the-way corner where the Uchiha were!!

Never mind his own reluctance-even his clan members would refuse.

"That bastard Hiashi..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi took a drag on his pipe, a hint of unease weighing on his mind.

He had never expected Hyuga Hiashi to agree to this.

After all, relations between the Uchiha and the Hyuga had never been particularly good.

Was it because of that incident?!

Hiruzen Sarutobi quickly recalled what had happened before and thought that the Hyuga Clan apparently still wasn't very obedient.

Hiashi clearly understood what he was trying to accomplish, yet insisted on opposing him anyway.

"Sarutobi, just tell me what we're going to do now?!"

Danzo could no longer contain himself.

What were they supposed to do now?!

Surely you owe me an answer, Hiruzen Sarutobi?!

"Only the Hyuga Clan has agreed. Aren't there still others who haven't?! Handle it yourself as you see fit!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed and spoke slowly.

Danzo understood the hint. He nodded and replied, "Fine! I'll handle it myself!"

A cold sneer flashed across Danzo's face. So Hiruzen Sarutobi couldn't resolve this anymore?

He was ready to let me take action, then!

Fine!

If he wanted me to do it, I'd do it!

At the Ino-Shika-Cho Three Families.

"What do you think, Shikaku? The Hyuga Clan has given theirs back. What should we do? Should we return ours to the Uchiha?"

Their clan grounds occupied part of the Uchiha's land. If they reduced their holdings, what remained would probably just barely be enough.

But as staunch allies of the Sarutobi Clan, wouldn't it be a little inappropriate to do that now?!

"They've really handed me a tough problem! The Uchiha Clan Head will probably come knocking soon. The Hyuga Clan has dumped the problem in our laps!! What a pain!!!"

Shikaku Nara frowned and rubbed his brow, feeling a headache coming on.

Neither choice looked good now.

As staunch allies of the Sarutobi Clan, the Ino-Shika-Cho would naturally be better off refusing to return the land.

But the Uchiha of today were no longer the Uchiha of the past.

If they refused, something he didn't want to see might well happen. After all, if the other side went berserk, their losses would be considerable.