Uchiha Kai didn't bother giving face.
Why should he?
The masks were off. The Uchiha had already crossed their storm, already risen to a height where they could clash head-on with the village elders.
So why hide? Why pretend?
His words were sharp and deliberate—three blades in one.
First, he cleared himself of blame.
Then, he struck back.
Finally, he shook the Hokage's prestige.
Sarutobi had thrown shade? Fine. Kai would return it twice as hard.
And the truth? Everyone could see it.
It was Hiruzen who had spoken first. So why shouldn't Kai retaliate?
The Third Hokage's eyes darkened. His body trembled with suppressed fury. But in the end, he drew a long, ragged breath and forced it down.
He glared at Kai with eyes like knives, before letting out a laugh that carried no warmth.
"Heh… my thanks for the concern."
"But don't worry—I can still hold this seat a while longer."
"Your good intentions, Kai, I'll remember them. But let's return to the matter at hand."
"What happened here? Will someone explain to me—their Hokage—what exactly has taken place?"
His tone was low and drawn, his words dripping with restraint.
Yes. He knew. He couldn't crush Kai here and now. Not yet.
So he swallowed his rage and turned the page.
Kai only shrugged.
If Hiruzen wanted to retreat, so be it.
There was no need to beat the old man bloody in front of everyone. Unless he could end him right here, hammering him too hard would only cheapen himself.
A leader knew when to stop.
The grand hall fell into silence.
Eyes flickered. Expressions tightened.
Both sides—Sarutobi's faction and the Uchiha's allies—looked toward Kai with newfound weight.
Because the truth was undeniable.
Uchiha Kai had risen.
In the whole of Konoha, there was no one else who dared to speak to the Hokage like this.
Not even clan heads. Not even Hyuga Hiashi himself, who bowed and scraped whenever faced with the Hokage's authority.
But Kai?
He mocked. He scorned. He stood equal.
Especially for the Hyuga.
Until today, even knowing of the Uchiha's rise, they hadn't fully believed it. That was why Hiashi had dared to strike at Aya.
But now—
Watching Kai face down the Hokage without flinching, they finally understood.
This was real.
This was dominance.
Even Aya herself felt her chest swell.
The Hyuga clan had always loomed in her heart like a mountain, an unshakable prison.
But in Sarutobi's eyes, the Hyuga were nothing more than jesters. Even their clan head bowed low before him.
And yet—here was her man.
Facing the Hokage, and forcing him to choke down humiliation.
Her man!
Moments ago, she had felt fear in the bloody hall. But now?
All gone.
With Kai standing in front of her, Aya's heart overflowed with calm, with pride, with fire.
"Forgive us, Hokage-sama!" Hiashi bowed deeply, voice strained. "We did not expect this matter to escalate and disturb you. This was the Hyuga's failing."
"This incident… was a misunderstanding."
He forced the words through pale lips, every syllable laced with bitter humility.
Unlike Kai, Hiashi would never dare bare his fangs at the Hokage.
And after witnessing Kai's clash with Sarutobi, he dared even less.
The Uchiha could not be offended.
Not when they stood as equals with the Hokage.
And so—even with his clan bloodied, even himself broken—Hiashi chose to bend.
Because to the Hyuga, survival meant being the wallflower, the fence-sitter.
Grovel if you must—but never offend either giant.
The other Hyuga in the hall seethed. Their faces twisted with rage and humiliation.
But they, too, knew better.
When even the Hokage was forced to swallow his anger before Uchiha Kai, what hope did they have?
They clenched their fists, swallowed their pride, and endured.
Because they could not afford otherwise.
Hiruzen's brow creased.
He was far from pleased.
But he forced himself to continue, turning cold eyes on his old comrade.
"Koharu. Your aid, if you please."
Koharu Utatane's lips tightened. She was not happy—but she was not about to expose cracks before outsiders.
So she nodded, moving to Hiashi's side.
Mystical Palm Technique!
Chakra surged, bathing him in green light.
Flesh knitted. Wounds closed. Even his shattered right hand began to regenerate, cells dividing with furious speed.
Five minutes passed—
And a new hand grew, trembling but whole.
Kai's eyes narrowed slightly.
The Mystical Palm Technique…
It was no joke. A top-class A-rank medical jutsu, just beneath the forbidden Creation Rebirth and the slug sage arts.
So the old woman wasn't entirely useless after all. No wonder she ran the Konoha Hospital.
"Elder Koharu, my thanks," Hiashi bowed again, humiliated but alive.
She only shook her head, turned away, and returned to Hiruzen's side.
As for the other mangled Hyuga? Not worth her time.
Not even Hiashi had been worth her effort—she'd only moved because Hiruzen willed it.
And Hiruzen pressed on.
"Clan Head Hiashi!"
His voice was low, his tone cutting.
"You claim this is a misunderstanding. Very well. But I ask you now, for the last time—"
"Do you want me to pursue justice for you?"
"I will give you one final chance."
The weight of his words slithered through the hall, tempting, twisting.
Yes.
He wasn't stupid.
Even without the details, he knew.
This had Uchiha's fingerprints all over it.
If it were merely Hyuga business, he wouldn't have cared.
But if there was a chance—any chance—to strike at the Uchiha?
He would not let it slip.
To read the full FanFic, head over to Patreon:
patreon.com/WhiteDevil7554