The moment the Fourth Raikage stepped forward and inquired about the fate of his captured shinobi, the three clan leaders present exchanged a knowing glance. It was clear that he genuinely cared about the lives of the people he had brought with him. And that was exactly what they were hoping for.
Ryosuke was the first to speak, his tone calm but laced with an undercurrent of authority.
"Clan Leader Fugaku, Lord Hiashi, what are your thoughts on how we should deal with the captives from the Hidden Cloud Village?"
Hiashi, the Hyūga patriarch, answered first, his voice cold and without hesitation.
"This war was instigated by the Cloud Village. Many among both the Hyūga and Uchiha have died because of their aggression. I propose we execute these captives to avenge our fallen."
In reality, the casualties had been minimal. Even injuries were surprisingly few, thanks to Ryosuke's strategic foresight and overwhelming power.
The Fourth Raikage's expression shifted instantly. These were his elite forces—some of the best Hidden Cloud had to offer. If all of them were to perish here, it would be a devastating blow to their village, one that might cripple their strength for years to come.
Realizing the danger of the moment, he quickly dropped all pride and spoke earnestly.
"This entire war was Cloud's mistake. We're willing to offer compensation. Please, grant us some leniency."
He wasn't just being humble—he was desperate. Now wasn't the time for ego.
Ryosuke noted the sincerity in his tone and replied with a calm nod.
"Then tell me, what kind of compensation does the Cloud Village propose?"
Seeing an opening, the Raikage's face lit up with hope.
"We're prepared to offer five hundred million ryo as compensation."
That was nearly the entire annual budget of the Cloud Village. Their average yearly expenditure was around six hundred million ryo, so this offer was massive—equivalent to sustaining tens of thousands of shinobi for an entire year.
Surely that would be enough.
But Hiashi scoffed.
"Only five hundred million? Do you take us for fools? Do you think the lives of all these ninja from your village are worth so little? Or do you believe we're too easy to appease?"
Ryosuke had no interest in the five hundred million either. He had a different number in mind—one far higher.
"Lord Hiashi speaks the truth," Ryosuke said. "Frankly, the Fourth Raikage is being stingy."
He turned to the Raikage with a cold, calculating look.
"You're offering five hundred million for the lives of the Raikage himself, the two-tailed and eight-tailed jinchuriki, dozens of elite jōnin and chūnin? You're joking."
"I could sell all of you on the black market and get more than that."
He leaned in slightly.
"In fact, I'd say the Raikage and the two jinchuriki alone are priceless."
"And then there are the rest—jōnin, chūnin, all highly trained shinobi. Just five hundred million? Frankly, it feels like you're mocking me."
The Raikage felt a wave of humiliation wash over him. The implication that they could be sold as merchandise—treated like cargo—was more than insulting. The black market was a vile place, known for harvesting shinobi bodies for experiments or information extraction. And they were still alive. If sold, their value would skyrocket.
If that happened, it would go down as one of the darkest tragedies in the history of the shinobi world.
Fugaku nodded in agreement.
"I support Ryosuke's proposal. Selling them on the black market would easily fetch sixty billion ryo."
"With so many elites gone, the Cloud Village would crumble. The Land of Lightning itself might fall into the hands of the Land of Fire."
The Raikage's face twisted in disbelief and rising panic. They had once planned to invade the Leaf Village and possibly seize Fire Country's territory. Now, the tables had turned, and it was these men—Uchiha and Hyūga—talking about conquering his homeland.
"You can't do this," he growled. "It's too cruel. The Third Hokage would never allow such a thing!"
He clung to that hope—that the Hokage's obsession with peace and appearances would shield him and his people.
But Ryosuke just looked at him with disdain.
"The Hokage's word means nothing here. It's the Uchiha and Hyūga clans that decide your fate now."
"You are our prisoners, not the Hokage's. Understand that."
The Raikage fell silent. He had no counter. He could see clearly now—these two clans held all the power in this moment. The Hokage had lost control of them.
But then, an idea struck him. Something he'd been holding onto.
"I have some information," he said suddenly, "that might reduce the compensation."
Ryosuke raised an eyebrow, interested.
"Oh? And what kind of information might that be?"
The Raikage began to explain the letter—how it had originally been addressed to his assistant Mabui, then passed along to him. He told them the content without omission.
As the details spilled out, both Hiashi and Fugaku's faces darkened. Someone had leaked their battle strategies to the Cloud. No wonder they'd sent so many elite shinobi, even the Raikage himself and two jinchuriki. And someone had explicitly demanded Ryosuke's head.
Even worse—they had proposed future peace negotiations in exchange for this betrayal.
Who else but someone from Konoha's high command could authorize such a treacherous deal?
Even Hiashi, who normally refused to believe in conspiracy, felt a chill of disbelief. Could there really be a traitor among the Leaf Village's top brass?
But then he clenched his fists and scowled.
"No," he snapped. "Stop trying to drive a wedge between us and the village leadership."
"You have no proof. You're just trying to divide us."
The Raikage raised his hands in defense.
"I'm not lying! The letter was originally delivered to Mabui. I had nothing to do with it. I'm just telling you what happened."
Hiashi narrowed his eyes.
"How do I know you're not making this up?"
"After all, your village tried to kidnap my daughter once. And you demanded we hand over the 'culprit' to cover it up. Don't think I've forgotten that disgrace."
To him, this was clearly another of the Cloud's schemes—an attempt to sow discord among the Leaf's most powerful clans and their leadership. Divide and conquer.
And he wasn't falling for it.
Konoha's leadership, after all, mostly consisted of the Second Hokage's students. Men of principle. Loyal to the village.
Why would they ever betray it?
The Raikage's face turned red with frustration.
"Then ask Mabui yourself!" he barked. "She and I didn't conspire—this wasn't planned. At the start of the war, we didn't think we'd lose. There was no reason to set this up ahead of time."
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