"The terms offered by the Uchiha clan will absolutely satisfy you!"
"Oh?"
Hearing Uchiha Fugaku's confident declaration, Aiden Sarutobi raised an eyebrow.
Interest sparked in his eyes as he leisurely sized Fugaku up from head to toe, clearly intrigued.
"Go on," Aiden said with a faint smile.
"Let's hear it."
Fugaku clenched his jaw internally.
He knew it.
The conditions the clan had prepared beforehand clearly wouldn't be enough to impress the boy in front of him.
If he wanted to win this—
he'd have to add more weight.
"Aiden-sama," Fugaku said decisively,
"the Uchiha clan is willing to hand over a commercial district near the core area of the village."
"Completely. As a gift to you."
"And in addition, we will assign five Uchiha jōnin to serve under your command."
"What do you think?"
The offer wasn't bad.
The Uchiha commercial district was extremely prosperous, with mature infrastructure and steady income.
But those five Uchiha jōnin?
Aiden wasn't impressed.
Five jōnin sent to 'serve' me?
Are they bodyguards… or spies placed at my side?
Seeing the faint disinterest in Aiden's eyes, Fugaku panicked.
He immediately blurted out his trump card.
"The Uchiha clan is also willing to form a marriage alliance with the Sarutobi clan!"
This was something Fugaku had clearly thought through in advance.
Although the Uchiha generally kept their bloodline tightly controlled, there were exceptions—
like Uchiha Hazuki.
Normally, once a child awakened the Sharingan, they were required to return to the clan.
But if the marriage alliance was with the Sarutobi clan—
then any Sharingan awakened would naturally belong to the Sarutobi family.
This condition finally made Aiden nod in satisfaction.
And the moment he did—
Hyuga Hiashi's expression darkened.
Compared to the Uchiha, the Hyuga clan's system guaranteed that their bloodline never flowed outward.
They absolutely did not allow women to marry out.
Because unlike the Sharingan—
the Byakugan awakened in nearly every Hyuga.
Marrying out meant creating another Hyuga clan.
At that moment, Hiashi felt a genuine headache coming on.
Before Fugaku revealed his final condition, Hiashi had still been confident.
Now?
Not only were the Hyuga's prepared terms inferior—
that single marriage alliance had outright checkmated him.
Just as Hiashi was thinking desperately, Fugaku sneered.
"What's wrong?"
"Does the Hyuga clan have nothing prepared?"
"Or are you looking down on Aiden-sama?"
That provocation lit a fire under Hiashi.
Whether he got the advisor position or not was one thing—
but if the Hyuga clan offended Aiden Sarutobi?
That would be catastrophic.
"Hmph!" Hiashi snorted.
"Fugaku, what are you being smug about?"
"This little offer is worth bragging over?"
He turned toward Aiden.
"Aiden-sama, you still remember my daughter, Hinata, don't you?"
"She was the one you rescued years ago—from those street thugs."
Fugaku's heart sank instantly.
He could clearly see interest flare in Aiden's eyes.
And sure enough, Hiashi pressed on.
"These past few years, Hinata has never stopped thinking about you."
"So today, as her father, I'll make the decision myself."
"I will formally betroth my daughter Hinata to you, Aiden-sama."
"She'll come over tonight."
"Along with the Hyuga clan's dowry."
The moment those words fell—
Fugaku was completely stunned.
Damn it.
He had thought Hiashi was an upright, traditional man.
Turns out—
this so-called paragon of virtue was ruthless.
For a mere advisor seat, he was willing to offer up his own daughter.
"Good, very good!!"
"Hiashi Hyuga, you shameless bastard!"
"You're really playing this card?!"
Hiashi, on the other hand, felt indescribably satisfied.
"What?" he shot back.
"You can arrange a marriage alliance, but I can't marry off my daughter?"
"If you've got the ability—go have a daughter yourself."
That single sentence struck like a fatal blow.
Uchiha Fugaku fell completely silent.
If only he hadn't ended up with two sons—
would Hiashi really be this arrogant?
As for Aiden—
He accepted Hiashi's offer without hesitation.
Living together would be perfect.
He could slowly help Hinata overcome her habit of fainting from embarrassment.
Otherwise, what was the point?
If she passed out before anything even started, where was the fun in that?
Seeing that both sides had laid out their terms, Aiden stopped wasting time.
He casually tossed two advisor uniforms onto the table.
"All right," he said.
"The advisor seats are yours."
"But—"
His gaze shifted to Fugaku.
"Advisor Fugaku."
"From now on, you'll listen a bit more to Advisor Hiashi."
Fugaku's vision went dark.
Hiashi, meanwhile, smiled warmly.
"Of course, Aiden-sama."
"I'll take my leave."
"Tonight, I'll have my clansmen escort Hinata over."
With that, Hiashi stood and departed.
Fugaku had no choice but to follow, offering a stiff farewell before leaving in haste.
As he turned away—
his eyes lingered on Izumi for a brief moment.
The two men returned to their respective clans.
Within the Hyuga clan, cheers erupted when the price paid became known.
As for Hinata—
her face turned crimson, and she nearly fainted on the spot.
Seeing this, Hiashi's guilt eased considerably.
She likes him anyway.
A perfect win–win.
Over in the Uchiha clan, however, the atmosphere was completely different.
"Damn it! Hiashi that bastard!"
"We're the foremost dōjutsu clan—
and now we have to listen to the Hyuga?!"
"This is outrageous!"
Amid the furious shouting, one elder muttered softly—
"Maybe if the clan head had a daughter…"
The words were quiet—
but painfully sharp.
Fugaku's already foul mood turned pitch-black.
His stern face darkened like a stormcloud.
"Who said that?!"
"Have the guts to speak—then step forward!!"
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