Chapter 71: Negotiation
For some reason, the Third Hokage felt a growing sense of unease in his heart.
"Could something have gone wrong on Danzo's side?" he wondered silently.
According to the plan, Root was supposed to seal off the Uchiha district with a barrier, isolating all communications until the mission was complete. Until Danzo returned with a report, Hiruzen could only wait in silence.
He reached for the pipe on his desk and took a long draw, letting the smoke curl slowly from his lips. It was the only thing easing his anxiety.
"I really must be getting old," he muttered with a sigh. "Even a plan this foolproof is making me so restless…"
Hiruzen chalked his nervousness up to age—though deep down, he wasn't so sure.
Suddenly, his eyes snapped open.
"Who's there?"
He felt it—an unfamiliar chakra signature had just entered the building.
A flock of crows burst through the window of the Hokage's office, flapping wildly as they circled the room. In a swirl of feathers and chakra, they slowly coalesced into two figures: Yusuke and Itachi.
The moment Hiruzen saw the crows, a sense of foreboding settled over him. After all, crows were closely associated with the Uchiha clan.
Because the operation to eliminate the Uchiha was highly classified, Hiruzen had temporarily recalled the Anbu that usually guarded him in the shadows. He had assumed that, within Konoha, no one would dare touch him.
Now, faced with Yusuke standing directly before him, the Third still kept a calm expression—but the sudden dilation of his pupils betrayed the shock within.
"Oh? Yusuke… I thought you were out on a mission. Why the sudden return?" he asked casually.
"And Itachi as well—what pressing matter brings the both of you to the Hokage Tower at this hour?"
The Third Hokage's voice was calm and measured, as though nothing unusual had happened tonight.
Yusuke couldn't help but admire the old man's composure. Hiruzen truly was a seasoned fox—able to feign ignorance with such poise, even in the face of crisis.
But that was exactly what Yusuke had hoped for. After all, Hiruzen still held real power in Konoha. If things escalated now, there would be no turning back.
Such was the ugly nature of politics—so long as the final layer of civility wasn't stripped away, both sides still had room to maneuver.
"Lord Third," Yusuke began stiffly, his tone deliberately cold, "something very serious happened tonight. I wonder—have you heard anything?"
Tonight, he hadn't come to make peace. He had come to negotiate—to fight for his clan's political survival. As the wronged party, he had to show strength.
Hiruzen, unfazed by the uncharacteristic rudeness, simply furrowed his brow and replied with a puzzled look:
"I'm afraid I don't know what you're referring to, Yusuke. What happened?"
Yusuke gave a cold chuckle, then launched into a detailed account of Root's operation that evening.
He described how Root attempted to exterminate the Uchiha clan in secret, and how Shisui—deemed a traitor to his people—had been personally executed by Yusuke. He claimed that the body had been reduced to ash.
This, of course, was a calculated lie—meant to mislead Hiruzen into thinking that Shisui's Sharingan had been destroyed.
As expected, Hiruzen didn't question it. He had no knowledge of the conditions needed to evolve the Mangekyō into the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan. In his eyes, the only value in Shisui's eyes was the powerful Kotoamatsukami genjutsu.
Just as Yusuke finished speaking, he gave Itachi a subtle nod. The younger Uchiha stepped forward and placed a bundle—about the size of a human head—on the Third Hokage's desk. With practiced calm, he unwrapped it.
Inside was Danzo's severed head, his lifeless face frozen in a mask of rage and unwilling defeat.
Hiruzen's eyes trembled slightly. It took every ounce of willpower to suppress the emotions boiling inside him. The man now reduced to a head on his desk had been his comrade since childhood.
Taking a deep breath, the Third slammed his palm onto the desk with a loud bang.
"Root has grown far too unruly… To think they would commit such an atrocity behind my back! From this day forward, Root will cease to exist!"
It was a declaration made more for appearances than effect. Hiruzen knew very well: if Yusuke and Itachi were here, and Danzo's head was already in their hands, then Root had likely already been wiped out.
Still, he pressed on with another question, his tone shifting:
"Yusuke, weren't you on a mission in the Land of Rain? How is it that you're back in the village so suddenly?"
That was the question that truly weighed on his mind.
Yusuke responded coldly:
"Of course Danzo wouldn't have expected it—but if I want to return to the clan at any time, nothing can stop me."
It was a bluff. Yusuke was trying to give the impression that he could come and go freely, that his clan was never left vulnerable.
Then his expression darkened. His voice lowered into a dangerous growl, and he stared at Hiruzen with killing intent:
"But this mission to the Land of Rain… it was assigned by you, wasn't it? Don't tell me you were part of Danzo's conspiracy."
For a brief moment, Hiruzen felt something he hadn't felt in a long time—fear. The look in Yusuke's eyes gave him a sense of powerlessness, of being up against something he couldn't hope to contain.
"Just how strong has he become…?" he wondered.
Still, he put on a remorseful expression and replied:
"Sigh… The target of that mission was one of Root's informants. I assumed it was a standard operation. I had no idea it was part of Danzo's scheme to remove you."
"But… it's fortunate you weren't caught in it—and that you returned in time to save the entire Uchiha clan."
Having absolved himself of blame, Hiruzen's tone softened.
"You've been through a great ordeal. Even Fugaku… gave his life. I suggest you return to your people and help them calm down."
"Tomorrow morning, I'll publicly announce Danzo's crimes and give the Uchiha clan a formal explanation. I'll also visit personally to represent the village and offer reparations for your losses."
But Yusuke wasn't about to let it end so cleanly.
His voice was cold and unrelenting:
"Lord Third, this isn't something that can be swept under the rug. This is about the very survival of the Uchiha clan. Surely you don't expect us to just let it go?"
Hiruzen's expression hardened, his eyes locking onto Yusuke's. His voice dropped low:
"Then what is it you want?"
He understood now—Yusuke wasn't here just to make accusations. He was here to bargain.
Yusuke answered slowly, clearly and without backing down:
"If we don't receive a proper response, the Uchiha clan will not stand down."
"Then tell me," Hiruzen said grimly. "What is it you're demanding?"
Meeting the Hokage's gaze, Yusuke calmly laid out his conditions.
"First—our clan's current compound is too exposed. That's what gave Danzo and Root the opportunity to strike. We must be relocated back to our original position within the village."
"Second—every Uchiha who was wounded or killed tonight must be compensated at the highest level of village standards."
"Many of our buildings were destroyed in the fighting, but since we'll be relocating soon, I suppose that saves the village a bit of reconstruction cost."
These two demands were just the beginning—baseline conditions that Yusuke knew the Third could hardly refuse.
But it was the next set of demands… that would reveal Yusuke's true intent.