Chapter 6: Hiruzen Sarutobi Backs Down; The Deal!
"It's useless!"
"Izanagi is an Uchiha jutsu. Did you really think I'd come here without being prepared for it?"
Uchiha Jin's voice was chillingly calm.
The crimson, hexagonal star-patterned Mangekyo spun within his eyes, elevating his dynamic vision to an god-like level. In his sight, Danzo's movements were as sluggish as a crawling insect.
The cycle repeated.
Danzo was killed, then revived. Then killed again.
It continued until the Sharingan eyes embedded in his arm were nearly exhausted. Panicked, Danzo used a Body Flicker to scramble behind Hiruzen Sarutobi.
"Hiruzen, help me!"
On the other side, Hiruzen and the two Elders were already reeling from the shock.
Watching Danzo die and revive, over and over, was a grotesque and terrifying spectacle even for them.
Faced with Danzo's desperate plea, Hiruzen let out a heavy, weary sigh. He stepped forward, shielding Danzo behind his back.
"Uchiha Jin, that is enough!"
Hiruzen shouted, his voice booming with authority. He leveled a serious gaze at Jin. "I will withdraw the Root and Anbu squads currently stationed outside the Uchiha compound. Does that satisfy you?"
"Hiruzen! How can you—?" Danzo gasped, his face twisted in disbelief.
What a joke! He had employed countless dark schemes and used the aftermath of the Nine-Tails' attack to finally back the Uchiha into a corner. Now, with a single sentence, Hiruzen was ready to abandon years of hard-won progress?
But Hiruzen didn't care for Danzo's protests. He snapped back coldly, "Silence! I am the Hokage!"
"Hiruzen... you will regret this!" Danzo hissed through gritted teeth.
Jin's eyes narrowed, a thick, palpable killing intent radiating from his body.
He truly wanted to take this opportunity to end Danzo once and for all. After all, Danzo was the one who struck first. He didn't believe Hiruzen would risk a total civil war with the Uchiha just to avenge a dead man. The current Leaf was too weak; it couldn't survive that kind of internal upheaval.
But Danzo was a coward. The moment he sensed the tide turning, he hid like a rat, showing none of the dignity a "High Command" member should possess.
However, Hiruzen's offer was acceptable. Not only was the village unprepared for a full-scale war, but Jin himself hadn't finalized all his preparations yet. It wasn't the right time for a total break.
"Very well. It's a deal."
Jin nodded slightly.
Without another word to the four people in the office, he turned his back and walked out.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's face was a mask of suppressed fury. He watched Jin's retreating back, his eyes overflowing with a killing intent so dense it almost manifested physically. Yet, he simply picked up his pipe and began to smoke, his mind racing to find a way to break this deadlock.
Danzo spat, "Hiruzen, you are far too soft!"
Even Koharu Utatane, who usually stayed in the background, spoke up with indignation. "Uchiha Jin is too arrogant! We should have used everything we had to eliminate him. How could you agree to withdraw the Anbu and Root from the Uchiha district?"
"I don't agree with this either!" Homura Mitokado added.
Hearing their complaints, Hiruzen's headache only worsened.
These idiots!
When Uchiha Jin was standing right in front of them, Danzo was cowering behind his back, and Homura and Koharu had turned into invisible statues. Now that the man had left, they suddenly found their voices and their "courage"?
He genuinely wanted to punch some sense into these fools. But he knew that the Sarutobi Clan alone couldn't maintain absolute control over Konoha; he needed the support of these three.
Taking a deep breath, he began to explain.
"You three... haven't you realized it yet?"
"Uchiha Jin is fundamentally different from the other Uchiha. He is truly willing to die just to take us down with him!"
"Furthermore, he has the Radicals—the clan's most elite combatants—under his thumb. Setting aside whether my current prestige is enough to mobilize the entire village for a civil war, even if everyone followed me into battle against the Uchiha, the village would be crippled by the casualties."
"How would a weakened Konoha fend off the other four Great Nations?"
"And don't forget!"
"The Radical Faction is currently standing right outside the Sarutobi Clan compound. Do you really want to see my entire clan wiped out?"
Hiruzen's tone was icy. He could tell Jin was dead serious. The boy had already made peace with his own death, and he was determined to drag the Sarutobi Clan into the grave with him as a parting gift.
Eliminate Uchiha Jin? Are you kidding me?
Are you sure you aren't trying to eliminate the Sarutobi Clan instead?
Danzo, Koharu, and Homura fell into a stunned silence.
Uchiha Jin was too extreme. Typical Radicals just shouted slogans and made threats, but this kid actually killed people. He fought with the desperation of a man who had nothing left to lose.
Looking at the silent trio, Hiruzen let out another sigh. "Danzo, start talking."
"What's the story with that arm full of Sharingan? And that 'dying and reviving' trick—what was that?"
"And what did you learn about Jin's Mangekyo abilities during your exchange?"
Danzo knew he couldn't hide the truth any longer. He confessed that the arm was a product of Orochimaru's experiments, though the results were still highly unstable.
The Sharingan? He had harvested them from Uchiha members Root had secretly abducted over the years. Even without the Night of the Massacre, Root never lacked for "raw materials."
As for the resurrection, he explained the forbidden kinjutsu, Izanagi.
Finally, when he spoke of Jin's ocular power, his eyes betrayed a flicker of genuine terror.
"Uchiha Jin's ocular technique is terrifying. It is, quite literally, unstoppable."
"Any ninjutsu it touches is completely dissolved. Once his eyes lock onto a target, no defensive measure—not even high-level barrier ninjutsu—offers even a shred of protection."
"During our fight, he used it sparingly. It's clear that the technique places a massive strain on his chakra and ocular power."
"If we face him again, I suggest we use sheer numbers to exhaust him. Once his ocular power is drained, he's nothing but a waste!"
Danzo's explanation was thorough. Hiruzen frowned as he listened. He had hoped the Wood Style experiments were a complete success, but it seemed they were still just experimental prototypes.
As for Izanagi, he wasn't particularly interested. Not everyone was willing to mutilate their body and graft alien limbs onto themselves like Danzo.
"Wait, something isn't right," Koharu interrupted suddenly.
"Danzo, Uchiha Jin clearly saw that arm full of Sharingan. Why didn't he question it? He didn't even demand their return. That... that doesn't make sense, does it?"
Hiruzen took a long drag from his pipe, his voice sounding hollow. "That only proves how dangerous he is. A man who can ignore the theft of his clan's sacred bloodline is a man with incredible patience—and an even more terrifying ambition."
"Wait, Hiruzen," Danzo said suddenly, a dark glint in his eye. "I have an idea!"
"Actually, there's something I haven't told you. The fact that Uchiha Jin awakened the Mangekyo is likely my doing."
"Uchiha Jin's parents... are currently in the hands of Root!"
"The very next day after Root abducted them, the news broke that Uchiha Jin had awakened his Mangekyo and officially joined the Radicals!"
Uchiha Jin's parents are the ultimate bargaining chip! Would you like to see how Jin reacts when he finds out, or should we move to the next chapter to see his next move in the village?