The aura was so astounding that it seemed scarcely inferior to a Tailed Beast's!
"Cough, cough... You're Uchiha Mikoto, correct? Did you indeed attack Yeyue Ziyun?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi was a little embarrassed, and deeply displeased as well.
He knew of this Uchiha Mikoto.
She was an orphan of the Uchiha Clan, and her talent was exceptionally mediocre. Apparently, she had only recently awakened her Sharingan.
For those reasons, the girl had none of the Uchiha Clan's characteristic pride. She was gentle instead.
They had actually sent someone like her to probe Yeyue Ziyun. How could he not have noticed?
Was the Uchiha Clan trying to make trouble for him?
In fact, Hiruzen Sarutobi had guessed correctly. The Uchiha Clan had sent Uchiha Mikoto because they also wanted to use the opportunity to test the Konoha High Command's attitude.
They wanted to see what the Konoha High Command would do if trouble really arose.
Even if Konoha sacrificed Uchiha Mikoto when the time came, it would not matter. Her talent was not high, so they could sacrifice her.
But using this to determine the Konoha High Command's attitude toward the Uchiha Clan was extremely important!
Just then, the current head of the Uchiha Clan also arrived.
"Lord Hokage, I've gotten to the bottom of this. Mikoto wanted to test her Genjutsu, so she picked a target at random. She accidentally ended up choosing this Hidden Cloud genius, Yeyue Ziyun."
The Uchiha Clan Head spoke with neither servility nor arrogance.
He had come here to see what Hiruzen Sarutobi would do today.
"Hmph, what an absurd excuse! Fine, I'd also like to test my Lightning Release Chakra Mode on the Uchiha Clan Head. Would you be interested?"
With that, the Third Raikage unleashed his Lightning Release Chakra Mode, shaking the ground until cracks appeared!
When they felt the fierce Chakra emanating from the Third Raikage, everyone present, whether Hiruzen Sarutobi, Koharu Utatane, Homura Mitokado,
or the Uchiha Clan Head, felt the danger.
That aura was already in no way inferior to a Tailed Beast's!
"Third Raikage, this is Konoha Village! You may be the Raikage, but this isn't a place where you can do as you please!"
Seeing the Third Raikage unleash his full aura, the Uchiha Clan Head refused to back down.
His black eyes instantly turned scarlet, and his Three-Tomoe Sharingan appeared.
"Hahaha, interesting! I'd like to see whether the Sharingan your Uchiha Clan is so proud of can keep up with my speed!"
The Third Raikage showed no fear at all and burst out laughing.
He had long wanted to test how far his painstakingly cultivated Lightning Release Chakra Mode had come.
The Three-Tomoe Sharingan would make the perfect opponent!
As for the alliance with Konoha, the Third Raikage was not worried.
The agreed-upon trial tournament had not even begun, yet Konoha had already sent someone to attack Ziyun.
They could do without this alliance!
"Uchiha Clan Head, stand down! This is a matter between Konoha and the Hidden Cloud Village. Do you want to start a war between the two villages over a dispute involving the Uchiha Clan?"
Just as the Third Raikage was about to act, Hiruzen Sarutobi shouted at the Uchiha Clan Head to stop.
"Lord Hokage, the Third Raikage unleashed his Chakra in the Hokage's office, the symbol of Konoha's highest authority! He clearly regards our Konoha Village as nothing!"
Hearing Hiruzen Sarutobi's words, the Uchiha Clan Head also shouted back in anger, unwilling to accept it. At the same time, he found a pretext for his own outburst.
"Uchiha Clan Head, wasn't it your Uchiha Clan that struck first?"
"There's a limit to how unreasonable you can be!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression turned stern, and his Chakra burst forth once more.
Hiruzen Sarutobi was currently in the prime of his life, with his strength at its peak.
Although he was nowhere near as formidable as the "strongest Hokage" he boasted of being, in this era, Hiruzen Sarutobi could still lay claim to being the strongest fighter in the Hokage's village.
"Yes, I understand, Lord Hokage!"
Seeing that Hiruzen Sarutobi was serious, the Uchiha Clan Head stiffened and could only withdraw his Sharingan.
But when he looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi, a trace of hatred appeared in his eyes.
You in the High Command were clearly the ones who told us to probe Yeyue Ziyun.
Now that something's gone wrong, this is your attitude? You're even putting my Uchiha Clan in its place in front of outsiders?
We did your dirty work, and now we have to take the blame too.
Well done, Third Hokage. You've got some nerve!
Seeing this, even the Third Raikage was stunned.
He had intended to attack, but he also deactivated his Lightning Release Chakra Mode.
He could not understand why Hiruzen Sarutobi had lost his temper with the Uchiha Clan.
Wasn't the Uchiha Clan known as Konoha's strongest clan?
Why did the Hokage treat the head of the strongest clan this way?
And in front of a Kage-level ninja from another village, no less.
It seemed Konoha Village was not united after all.
As for Ziyun, he nearly burst out laughing.
The Uchiha Clan Head had been humiliated by his own Hokage in front of outsiders, yet he had actually swallowed it. How spineless.
"Third Raikage, I'll send someone to investigate the Uchiha Clan's sneak attack on Yeyue Ziyun thoroughly. I hope this won't affect our alliance."
Seeing the Uchiha Clan back down in public, Hiruzen Sarutobi was very pleased, and his tone softened considerably.
When he looked at the Third Raikage, an "amiable" smile appeared on his face again.
After all, quite a few Konoha Ninja were present. He was sure that the sight of him berating the Uchiha Clan Head would leave a deep impression on them.
This both weakened the Uchiha Clan's reputation and enhanced his own prestige, killing two birds with one stone.
"Third Hokage, did you join forces to put on a show of feigned suffering for us?"
"The Uchiha Clan's sneak attack on Ziyun is right in front of us. Does it still need investigating? You must give us an explanation for this."
The Third Raikage was not satisfied simply because Hiruzen Sarutobi had rebuked the Uchiha Clan.
On the contrary, his mind was perfectly clear.
If he let this go now, it would surely come to nothing.
So there had to be a resolution now!
In other words, Ziyun could not be attacked for nothing. The Hidden Cloud had to get something out of this.
At his words, the Konoha High Command members present all frowned.
This Third Raikage might be all muscle, but his mind was not lacking in the slightest. He was nothing like the simple-minded brute Danzo had described.
It probably would not be so easy to fob him off over this.
"Then what does the Third Raikage want?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice turned serious as well.
With that, the Third Raikage turned his gaze to Ziyun.
"It's not for me to decide. Ziyun was the one attacked, so let him decide!"
At those words, the Konoha High Command members present were taken aback again.
This Third Raikage really was shrewd beneath his rough exterior.
After all, the matter was neither especially serious nor trivial. No one had been killed or injured, after all.
It would hardly look dignified if word got out that the highest leaders of two villages had spent ages arguing over it.
Having the person who had been attacked state his own demand for compensation was both proper and reasonable.
"It's simple. Since someone from the Uchiha Clan accidentally probed me while trying out a Ninjutsu, I happen to want to try out a new Ninjutsu and probe them too. As for my target, how about the Uchiha girl who attacked me?"
"An eye for an eye. That's fair, isn't it?"
Ziyun said after a moment's thought.
At his words, Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes lit up.
Yeyue Ziyun has another new Ninjutsu? And he wants to test its effects on Uchiha Mikoto?
Isn't this exactly what we wanted, delivered right to our door?
Just as Hiruzen Sarutobi was about to readily agree, Ziyun spoke again:
"But let me make this clear first. My new Ninjutsu is pretty powerful. Someone could accidentally die, so you'd better prepare yourselves."
"If she dies, I won't be responsible."
As soon as he finished speaking, Ziyun felt Mikoto shrink back beside him.
This harmless-looking boy is so scary.
Chapter 16: Uchiha Mikoto's Chilling Disappointment [Please Send Flowers and Rating Votes!]