"Hiashi Hyuga, does the Hyuga clan intend to betray the village?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi perhaps knew his position as Hokage wouldn't last much longer, and his true nature was finally beginning to show. Or perhaps he simply wanted to suppress the major clans to pave the way for Shinnosuke Sarutobi. Regardless of his motives, right from the start of the meeting, he aimed his spearhead directly at the Hyuga clan.
"Of the 500 million ryo in military funds the Hyuga clan was supposed to bear, you have unexpectedly only handed over 200 million," Hiruzen said coldly. "Hiashi, I think you owe me an explanation."
Hearing Hiruzen's words, a bitter smile appeared on Hiashi's face.
Although the Hyuga were known as Konoha's second-largest clan—and people even used to compare them with the Uchiha in the past—in reality, they were far less glamorous than they appeared on the surface. Like the original Uchiha clan, while the Hyuga compound wasn't entirely isolated from the village's center of power, it wasn't exactly close either. They didn't have many businesses in the village and were frequently suppressed by the Shimura and Sarutobi clans. Managing to maintain their prestigious facade until now was mostly due to exhausting the legacy left by their ancestors.
Scraping together 200 million ryo in just a few days was truly the Hyuga clan's absolute limit.
However, looking at Hiruzen's unyielding expression, Hiashi smiled bitterly to himself. If he didn't provide an explanation today, this matter wasn't going to blow over easily.
'I should just accept the Caged Bird seal tonight,' Hiashi thought grimly. 'That way, even if I die, the secrets of the Byakugan won't be leaked. If the clan head dies in battle, the Hyuga clan will finally have given an answer to both the village and the Hokage.'
After a moment of heavy silence, Hiashi stood up, just about to express his bleak intentions to Hiruzen.
At that exact moment, Jie Uchiha and Fugaku Uchiha strolled into the conference room, leisurely taking their seats in the spots reserved for the Uchiha clan.
Seeing the perfectly calm faces of Fugaku and Jie, a sudden surge of resentment welled up in Hiashi's chest. They were both Konoha clans. Why was the Uchiha clan exempt from contributing military funds, while the Hyuga had to shoulder a staggering 500 million ryo? Was it simply because the Uchiha were strong and arrogant enough? Was it like picking the softest persimmon to squeeze—did the village only exploit the obedient clans?
The moment this thought crossed his mind, Hiashi's blood boiled, and he spoke without thinking. "Why doesn't the Uchiha clan have to pay a single cent, while the Hyuga are forced to pay 500 million?!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, Hiashi snapped back to reality. Cold sweat instantly soaked his back.
Hearing this, the other clan heads—who had been watching the Hyuga's predicament like a theater play—slightly opened their mouths in shock. Was this meeting really going to be this intense right from the start? Hiashi was a true warrior, daring to confront a furious Hokage and provoke the mighty Uchiha clan all at once.
Unsurprisingly, Hiruzen's face immediately darkened. The gloom on his features was palpable as he spoke in a low, threatening voice. "What? Does Clan Head Hyuga have a problem with my decision?"
Hiashi's face turned deathly pale. He forced a stiff smile, hurriedly trying to backtrack and explain.
But before Hiashi could speak, Jie Uchiha feigned surprise and interjected. "Five hundred million ryo?" Jie said smoothly. "As expected, in the Hokage's eyes, the Uchiha are undeniably the number one clan. Even the money given to us is double what the Hyuga received."
Jie nodded as he spoke, looking at Hiruzen with the warm gaze of someone who had just found a kindred spirit.
However, no one was paying attention to Jie's gaze. Everyone in the room was completely frozen, processing his words.
The money given to the Uchiha clan was double what the Hyuga had?
Given money? Double?
So, while the village was desperately short on military funds, Hiruzen had assigned a strict financial quota to every shinobi clan in the village. Yet, when it came to the Uchiha clan, not only were they not assigned a quota, but they were actually paid one billion ryo?
The moment this realization hit, a spark of pure fury ignited in the eyes of every clan head present. They needed an explanation.
Hearing Jie's words, Hiruzen's eyes widened in sheer disbelief. 'How could Jie Uchiha... how dare he just blurt that out?'
In Hiruzen's mind, the Uchiha clan had reaped a massive benefit. Logically, they shouldn't be broadcasting this fact to the world. Because of this assumption, Hiruzen had felt completely safe in boldly pressuring the Hyuga clan, using them to kill the chicken to scare the monkeys and suppress the momentum of the other major clans.
But Jie had actually exposed the entire deal. And he did it in front of everyone, exposing the truth of the Uchiha taking the village's money while all the clan heads were gathered! Was Jie really not afraid of pushing the Uchiha into the eye of the storm, making them the target of every other clan's jealousy and rage?
But Hiruzen quickly realized that whether the Uchiha faced trouble or not was no longer important. He was the one in massive trouble now.
Initially, as long as the Uchiha deal remained a secret, the Hyuga clan would serve as the most miserable example. Even if the other clans were reluctant to pay, seeing someone worse off than them would keep them from complaining too much. But with the Uchiha clan as a comparison, the psychological balance of every clan was instantly shattered.
Why should they contribute both blood and treasure, while the Uchiha clan actually got paid? And it wasn't just a small amount. It was a full one billion ryo—enough to fund an entire front of the war.
And it wasn't just the clan heads glaring at him. Hiruzen could feel two cold, piercing gazes staring daggers into his back. He hadn't forgotten that the one billion ryo he gave the Uchiha was scammed right out of the hands of Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado. And he hadn't just scammed them out of one billion; he had fleeced his old teammates for a total of two billion ryo.
"Lord Hokage, my Hyuga clan demands an explanation," Hiashi said, the veins on his forehead bulging. His fists were clenched so tightly he was afraid that if he lost control for even a second, he would march up and unleash an Eight Trigrams One Hundred Twenty-Eight Palms right into Hiruzen's face.
"Lord Hokage, the Gekko clan also wants an explanation," Unkaku Gekko followed up closely.
"The Kiyama clan feels the same."
With the Hyuga clan taking the lead, in the blink of an eye, more than half the clans in the conference room were demanding an explanation from the Hokage.
After a long silence, Shikaku Nara, wearing a highly complicated expression, asked in a deep voice, "Lord Hokage, the Nara clan also wishes for an explanation."
Seeing Shikaku Nara speak up, the remaining clans immediately followed suit. In an instant, apart from the Uchiha, every single clan in the room was demanding answers.
"Hiruzen, I believe we need an explanation as well," Koharu and Homura said together, their faces incredibly cold.
Surrounded by enemies on all sides, becoming the target of everyone's unified ire—even his two oldest friends turning against him—Hiruzen's heart plunged into pure panic.
"Guh... guh..."
Suddenly, Hiruzen's hands and cheeks twitched violently. His eyes rolled back into his head, and he collapsed over the table.
"Lord Hokage!"
"Lord Hokage, what's wrong?!"
"Hiruzen!"
"Lord Hokage, you still haven't given us an explanation!"
'He just fainted?'
Jie and Fugaku exchanged a glance, their eyes full of surprise. Following Danzo's 'Death Escape', had Hiruzen Sarutobi just pulled a 'Fainting Escape'?
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