'Hiss!'
A sharp intake of breath shattered the silence in the Hokage's office. Jin's demand echoed like a thunderclap.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes darkened ominously. He drew a long, ragged breath through his pipe, his mind calculating the political cost at lightning speed.
Jin, however, remained a picture of absolute serenity. He stood with his hands loosely clasped behind his back, looking as if he had merely asked for a cup of tea rather than the highly contested, extremely valuable real estate in the center of Konoha.
Fugaku, standing to the side, looked like he was going to be physically sick.
His eyes widened in sheer, unadulterated terror. He had dreamed of reclaiming the Uchiha's ancestral land for years. But he only ever dared to 'dream' it. He knew the brutal reality: once the Konoha Administration seized an asset, they never gave it back. The Uchiha were too weak, and their political capital was non-existent. It was an impossible goal.
But Jin had just dragged that impossible dream into the light and slammed it on the Hokage's desk as an ultimatum.
Fugaku felt no joy, only a bone-deep, paralyzing fear. 'What if the Hokage snaps?' Fugaku thought frantically. 'The tension is already at a breaking point. This extortion will push Hiruzen to declare martial law! The clan will be slaughtered!'
Driven by sheer panic, Fugaku threw himself forward, actively trying to sabotage the negotiation.
"Lord Hokage! I beg you, do not listen to him!" Fugaku pleaded, his voice trembling. "The Uchiha Clan has absolutely no desire to reclaim the ancestral land! Jin is speaking entirely out of turn! Please, disregard his arrogant demands!"
Fugaku's tone was desperate and resolute. In his mind, appeasing the Hokage and preventing a war was the absolute highest priority. He viewed Jin's aggressive negotiation as suicidal radicalism. He would sabotage his own clan's prosperity to maintain the illusion of peace.
Jin's expression remained perfectly neutral, but a flicker of profound disgust flashed in his eyes.
He didn't even bother to argue with the cowardly Clan Head. Instead, Jin smiled mildly at Hiruzen.
"You heard the Clan Head, Lord Hokage," Jin said smoothly, stepping back and spreading his hands in a gesture of helplessness. "He is absolutely right. I am just a lowly Chunin. I clearly lack the strategic vision to comprehend the village's complex dynamics. Therefore, I lack the authority to persuade the clan to resume their policing duties."
Jin shrugged, his tone dripping with weaponized apathy. "I apologize for wasting your time. Since I have no official position and the Clan Head refuses my proposed solution, my hands are tied."
Jin's logic was ironclad: 'If you refuse to pay my price, and you lack the authority to force me, then do not expect me to fix your problems.'
Hiruzen Sarutobi released a long, heavy sigh.
Internally, Hiruzen was thrilled by Fugaku's spineless display. 'If only the entire Uchiha Clan was as pathetic and compliant as you, Fugaku,' Hiruzen thought. Unfortunately, he knew Fugaku's words held absolutely zero weight among his own people. Jin was the only one who could end the strike.
As for the ancestral land...
The territory adjacent to the Hokage Building was prime real estate. Following the Uchiha's forced relocation after the Nine-Tails attack, the Sarutobi clan had quietly absorbed those valuable properties.
However, returning the land was not actually a fatal blow to Hiruzen's power. Over his decades as Hokage, the Sarutobi clan had amassed immense wealth and property throughout the village. They could afford to lose a few blocks.
The original reason for evicting the Uchiha was strategic: Hiruzen wanted them isolated. When the Uchiha lived in the center of the village, surrounded by other powerful clans (especially the Sarutobi), Hiruzen feared that if he ever pushed the Uchiha to rebellion, they would cause catastrophic collateral damage before they could be put down.
But dealing with Jin was different.
Hiruzen recognized that Jin, despite his aggression, was a supremely rational actor. He wasn't a volatile lunatic who would randomly detonate in the village center. Jin would only start a war if cornered. Because Jin operated on logic, returning the land was an acceptable tactical concession.
More importantly, Hiruzen desperately needed the Uchiha back on the streets. The civilian population was blaming the Hokage for the rising crime rates. Hiruzen needed the Uchiha to resume their heavy-handed policing so the civilians would direct their hatred back at the Uchiha. He needed them back in the "cesspool" of public resentment.
Weighing the options, Hiruzen made his decision. He nodded curtly.
"Very well. I agree to your terms," Hiruzen declared. "I will have the ancestral land vacated within three days. In return, the Uchiha must restore the village's security immediately. Are we agreed, Jin?"
Hiruzen cut straight to the point. He had no desire to haggle over details. Returning the land was a small price to pay to shove the Uchiha back into the firing line of civilian anger.
Jin nodded, a faint smile playing on his lips. "Since the Lord Hokage is so generous, I have the leverage I need. I guarantee the Police Force will resume full operations in three days."
"Three days?" Hiruzen's eyes narrowed dangerously. "No. One day. I will have the Sarutobi evacuate the land by tomorrow morning."
"Then I will have the Police Force operational by tomorrow morning," Jin replied easily, matching the Hokage's timeline.
With the deal struck, Jin turned and walked toward the door. He offered no bow, no respectful farewell.
'Respect? Why bother?' Jin thought. Both sides had already drawn their blades in the dark. They only maintained this fragile diplomatic charade because neither possessed the overwhelming force required to obliterate the other without suffering unacceptable losses.
Hiruzen watched him leave, unfazed by the blatant disrespect. Compared to Jin repeatedly slaughtering Danzo and his Anbu guards in the past, a lack of bowing was completely trivial.
Instead, Hiruzen turned his attention to Fugaku. The Clan Head was standing frozen, a bizarre mixture of profound terror and suppressed joy warring on his face.
Hiruzen's eyes flashed with deep contempt. "Fugaku. We are finished here. You may leave."
"Yes, Lord Hokage," Fugaku stammered, bowing deeply before practically fleeing the office.
Fugaku walked back to the Uchiha District in an absolute daze. His mind could simply not process what had just occurred.
'Was it really that easy?!' Fugaku thought, entirely bewildered.
In Fugaku's worldview, Jin's extortion should have resulted in immediate executions. Yet, Hiruzen hadn't even attempted to negotiate the price. He just agreed. Fugaku felt like he was trapped in a surreal dream.
'Does this mean I am a failure? Is Jin truly that much better at this?' Fugaku immediately rejected the thought, his defensive mechanisms kicking in. 'No. Absolutely not. Jin reclaimed the land, yes, but he severely damaged our relationship with the Hokage. This is a fatal mistake. We must keep a low profile and mend the rift, not extort the village leadership. Jin is driving us toward annihilation.'
Arriving at his home, Mikoto immediately greeted him.
"Fugaku, how did it go?" she asked anxiously. "Was the Hokage furious? Did you resolve the crisis?"
Fugaku's face darkened, his irritation flaring. He didn't want to explain his humiliation. Instead, he deflected. "Where is Inabi?"
"I haven't seen him all day," Mikoto replied, shaking her head.
Fugaku's expression turned grim. Inabi was his absolute most trusted confidant and personal bodyguard. He should have been waiting at the estate.
"I need to go out," Fugaku muttered abruptly, turning on his heel.
Mikoto reached out to stop him, but seeing the storm brewing in his eyes, she sighed and let him leave.
Fugaku spent the next hour scouring the remains of the Moderate District. Finally, an elderly faction leader delivered the crushing blow: Inabi, along with his younger sister, had formally defected to the Radical Faction and pledged loyalty to Jin.
Hearing this, Fugaku's face contorted with a chaotic mix of fury, profound humiliation, and utter despair. His right-hand man had abandoned him for a Chunin.
Taking a shuddering breath, Fugaku looked at the elderly elder. "Gather whoever is left," Fugaku ordered, his voice hollow. "Tell them to meet at my home immediately for an emergency meeting. We are in serious trouble."