UTBW: Ch. 48

Under the perception of Armament Haki, there wasn't a single living enemy ninja left.

"It's about done." Junichi sheathed Oni-me and returned to the main road.

---

Hiruzen and Danzō stood with furrowed brows, anxiously waiting for news.

This battle, neither of them could afford to lose. They had both put all their trump cards on the line!

"Someone's coming back." Suddenly, Danzō narrowed his eyes, spotting several figures running toward them from afar.

"Oh? Not bad eyesight," Hiruzen casually praised.

Danzō's heart tightened at the words, not daring to look at Hiruzen. He couldn't tell if that comment had a hidden meaning. Shisui's right eye had already been implanted into his right socket, merely hidden under bandages.

"Something's wrong." Hiruzen suddenly spoke, his voice grave.

"What is it?" Danzō froze for a moment, then looked up, and his expression immediately tensed.

The three figures running toward them, their movements were frantic and unstable, as if something terrifying was chasing them from behind, making them stagger and repeatedly glance back in fear.

"Hokage-sama!" When the three spotted Hiruzen, their faces lit up with joy.

Something was off!

Hiruzen and Danzō both frowned even deeper. Among the three, two were Sarutobi clan ninjas, and one was from the ANBU, though his mask was nowhere to be seen.

Yet the joy on their faces wasn't normal, it was the desperate relief of survivors!

"What happened—" Hiruzen started to ask.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Three pairs of demonic, scarlet Sharingan eyes suddenly appeared behind them. Three Uchiha ninjas quickly caught up to the fleeing men, their swords wreathed in flames as they slashed viciously.

"Stop!" Hiruzen's eyes widened in fury, and he roared.

But the Uchiha ninjas didn't listen. On the contrary, their slashes grew even fiercer. As the blades came down, the fleeing ninjas, already terrified out of their minds, barely raised their kunai to block.

But the flaming swords easily tore through their weak defenses, slicing through their necks, searing flesh into charred meat.

"Urgh..." The three clutched their throats in terror and collapsed in agony. Moments later, they stopped breathing.

"I told you to stop! Are you deaf?!" Hiruzen bellowed, his voice violent and terrifying, overflowing with killing intent.

Even Danzō at his side couldn't help but shiver. For a moment, it was as if the battle-hardened, awe-inspiring "God of Shinobi" of the past had returned.

"Oh? Were you talking just now?" one of the Uchiha feigned confusion, digging at his ear with a mocking smile. "Ah, well, I usually don't even bother listening to all that Will of Fire stuff, so ignoring you for a moment seems pretty normal."

"Yeah, yeah, as the Hokage, you will surely understand, right?" another Uchiha said, grinning.

"Not that it matters even if he doesn't." The third Uchiha sneered. "They're already dead. All we can do is ask you to take good care of the orphans they left behind, just like you took care of the Fourth's kid."

Boom!

Their words struck Hiruzen like thunderbolts, exploding inside his mind. His heart shook violently, and his face turned pale, then green.

These three Uchiha had absolutely no respect for him, they completely disregarded him and even mocked him with sarcastic jabs!

"If there's nothing else, we'll be leaving now," the three Uchiha said with a wave, swaggering back toward their compound. "Don't forget to collect the bodies."

"Oh, actually, there's no need to rush," one of them added with a smirk. "Our Fire Release techniques are strong, the corpses will stay warm for quite a while. Take your time... Hahaha!" Laughing arrogantly, the three strolled back inside.

---

The group of waiting ninjas all stood there, faces dark and eyes filled with rage. But no one dared to move. Because the Uchiha had chased down and killed their people, right up to the very edge of the clan grounds.

This meant something major had definitely happened inside. The forces they sent in... were probably... The waiting ninjas exchanged uneasy glances, communicating silently with their eyes. A deep sense of foreboding filled their hearts.

"Huff..."

Hiruzen took a deep breath. It took him a while to calm down and regain his composure before he said steadily, "The Uchiha killed our men. Looks like we lost the battle inside."

"Then what do we do now?" Danzō asked urgently, his face tense.

"We can't fight anymore," Hiruzen analyzed calmly.

"What did you say?" Danzō's eyes widened in disbelief. "I sent most of my forces in! And now you're telling me we can't fight? How can you say that!"

"What else can we do?" Hiruzen turned and glared at him, shouting, "Do we have any more people to send in?"

"Isn't there still the rest of the village's ninjas?" Danzō grumbled in dissatisfaction.

"You think they'll listen?" Hiruzen let out a bitter laugh, speechless. "Even the Ino-Shika-Chō, just getting them to stabilize the village is already pushing it."

"The Hyūga, Aburame, Inuzuka, and the various groups, you really think they'll obey and charge into the Uchiha grounds?"

After hearing this, Danzō was even more furious and confused. "How could they dare disobey?! You're the Hokage!" Hiruzen felt drained, too tired to even argue.

Being Hokage didn't mean you could force people into a suicide mission under the banner of 'righteousness.' The Hokage needed the support of the people. Without support, someone else would just take the position. And honestly, ever since he returned to the Hokage seat, there had already been a lot of dissatisfaction festering within the village.

"If you know I'm the Hokage, then follow my orders." Hiruzen said, suppressing Danzō's protests.

"You..." Danzō stared at Hiruzen, stunned, unable to understand why he was backing down.

Hiruzen didn't look at him again. Instead, he turned to the nearby ANBU and issued a command. "By the authority of the Hokage, I order, cease all attacks. Initiate peace talks with the Uchiha."

"Peace talks?" Danzō repeated in shock, utterly confused.

"Trust me." Hiruzen looked at him deeply. "This battle is already over."

Unless he could rally every ninjas and every clan in Konoha to join the fight together, but that was impossible.

No one would agree.

Unless the Uchiha clan openly rebelled, killing Konoha ninjas in full view of everyone. Only then could they unite under a common cause and exterminate the Uchiha.

Danzō gritted his teeth in anger.

"What's with that look, Danzō? Didn't you say I am Hokage, so listen to your Hokage!" Hiruzen coldly snorted and continued issuing orders to the ANBU, "Summon all the jonin in the village. Have them gather here. Call Koharu and Homura. Send messages to Jiraiya and Tsunade, tell them to return immediately."

One command after another was issued. The ANBU and Sarutobi clan members present finally breathed a sigh of relief.

If the Third Hokage had forced them to continue the attack earlier, many of them would have seriously hesitated.

Thankfully, he had changed his mind.