As Dodai's words fell, his aura suddenly surged, his eyes fixed intensely on the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Behind him, the elite ninjas from the Cloud Village also unleashed their chakra, eyes locked onto the Third Hokage and the ninjas beside him, each gripping their weapons tightly.
The ones accompanying him for the negotiations were the most loyal ninjas of the Cloud Village. At Dodai's command, they would be ready to attack.
Kakashi and the others standing behind Sarutobi also tensed up, prepared to protect the Hokage at the first sign of aggression from the other side.
"Can you all be quiet? It was your people who broke into the Hyuga clan and tried to kidnap their future heir!" Sarutobi Hiruzen said, sensing the change in atmosphere, and spoke slowly to Dodai.
"Broken into the Hyuga clan?" Dodai frowned at Sarutobi, replying word by word, "Just because you say our people infiltrated the Hyuga clan, does that make it true? Are you framing the Cloud ninjas?"
"They indeed broke into the Hyuga clan! Many Hyuga clan members and Anbu can testify to this!" Sarutobi Hiruzen frowned. He knew Dodai was seizing this opportunity to make a big deal out of it, but he had to keep his cool and respond.
"Hmph! We are in Konoha, and you don't get to decide the truth of the matter!" Dodai shot a fierce glare at the crowd. He continued, "When you want to put the blame on someone, there are always excuses!"
Dodai was now shaping himself and the Cloud Village as the innocent party.
"We, the great Konoha, do we need to accuse you of having bad intentions just because you refuse to admit it!" Sarutobi Eisuke stood up, feeling frustrated. He had been scolded all night by the Third Hokage for not managing his guards properly.
If they had patrolled at night, the ninjas wouldn't have had a chance to take advantage of the situation.
Eisuke was fuming, so he took out his anger on Dodai.
He usually acted arrogantly in the village, showing no restraint, and even now, he treated Dodai with an air of superiority, as if looking down on a subordinate.
His stance was as if he were addressing someone beneath him.
"Who are you? I'm here to speak with your Hokage; you have no right to interrupt!" Dodai glared at the young fool of the Sarutobi clan, his eyes filled with contempt and disdain.
If he were in the Cloud Village, he would have long since taught this ignorant brat a lesson.
"You," Sarutobi Eisuke was furious and wanted to argue back.
"Enough, Eisuke, step back!" Finally, the Third Hokage spoke up to stop Eisuke from continuing. He looked at Dodai and said, "Dodai, you don't believe what this old man is saying? It was your Cloud ninja who attempted to kidnap people from the Hyuga clan, causing this mess!"
"You're also from Konoha, so naturally, your words are biased towards Konoha. Why should I believe you?" Dodai showed no respect for Sarutobi Hiruzen and added, "Our Cloud ninjas just arrived in Konoha. How could we possibly know the location of a major clan and go after their heir?"
Thus, the negotiations between the two nations reached a stalemate.
Neither side was willing to back down, and Dodai from the Cloud was even more aggressive, insisting that Konoha had killed their ninja.
"How do you explain that your Cloud ninja attacked members of the Uchiha clan?" In the back of the group, Nakahito Kishibei spoke up, looking at the aggressive Dodai.
Having participated in yesterday's battle with the Cloud ninja and saving Uchiha Kinya and his son, Sarutobi Hiruzen made an exception to allow Nakahito Kishibei to attend the meeting.
He was dissatisfied with Dodai's blatant distortion of the facts, which prompted him to speak out.
"Did you capture the one who attacked the Uchiha?" Dodai asked Nakahito Kishibei, his tone deliberate. He continued, "You didn't kill that ninja who attacked the Uchiha, did you? Leaving no witnesses?"
In truth, Dodai felt a pang of regret while saying this; those were Cloud's most loyal ninja. Were they all lost?
"Of course not. I found the two ninjas who attacked the Uchiha, but they managed to escape in the end!" Nakahito Kishibei shook his head, but then confidently added, "However, when I fought those two ninja, they used Lightning Release!"
"Heh... Lightning Release? Just because they used Lightning Release doesn't mean they're Cloud ninja!" Dodai sneered and then turned his gaze to Sarutobi Hiruzen.
"Third Hokage, it's not enough that you've killed our Cloud ninja; now you want to pin another crime on us?"
"If that's the case, there's nothing more to discuss!"
Everyone failed to notice that upon hearing that the two Cloud ninja who attacked the Uchiha had escaped, Dodai visibly relaxed.
At least those two ninja were still alive.
"Dodai, how do you want to resolve this?" Sarutobi Hiruzen signaled for Nakahito Kishibei to step back. Taking a puff from his large pipe, he frowned deeply, not expecting the Cloud ninja to be so adamant in denying their crimes and so aggressive.
"It's simple!" Dodai looked at Sarutobi Hiruzen and said each word clearly, "Hand over the murderer who killed our Cloud Village ninja. I want to see his corpse!"
"Impossible!" Sarutobi Hiruzen shook his head firmly. If he agreed to this, it could incite hatred from the Hyuga clan and even threaten his position as Hokage.
This situation could not happen.
"Impossible? Then we won't discuss peace anymore. Prepare for the Land of Lightning to declare war on the Land of Fire!" Dodai remained aggressive and stood up, heading towards the exit.
Now was not the time for negotiations.
However, Sarutobi Eisuke and the others blocked the doorway, seemingly ready to fight the Cloud Village ninjas.
"What's the matter? Is killing my Cloud Village ninja not enough? Do you want to slaughter us all?" Dodai glared at Kakashi and his group, rebuking them.
He was not afraid of death or battle.
If they dared to attack, they would resist with all their might, ensuring that the reputation of the Land of Lightning remained intact.
"Dodai, is there no room for reconciliation?" Sarutobi Hiruzen asked, feeling a bit frustrated. This should have been an opportunity for Konoha to take the initiative, but now it was the Land of Lightning and the Cloud Village that held the upper hand.
This was becoming complicated!
"Reconciliation? If you hand over the person who killed my Cloud Village ninja, then we can discuss other matters!" Dodai snorted coldly and forcefully pushed past Sarutobi Eisuke, taking his subordinates out of the meeting room.
As he reached the door, Dodai stopped and added, "I'm only giving you one day. By this time tomorrow, I want to see the murderer of my Cloud Village ninja!"
"If not, then Konoha should prepare for our declaration of war!"
With that, Dodai led the Cloud Village ninja away, leaving the Konoha ninjas looking worried.
"Damn it... They clearly wanted to steal the Byakugan from us, yet they won't admit it!"
"Hmph, those guys just refuse to acknowledge the truth even when they're facing death!"
"They're truly shameless!"
"If war is what they want, then we from Konoha are not afraid of any opponent!"
The ninjas behind Sarutobi Hiruzen were full of energy and had survived the Third Great Ninja War, so they naturally feared no conflict.
However, as discussions continued, some of their words began to stray off course.
The advisor, Koharu Utatane, cleared her throat twice and said firmly, "Doesn't Hinata Hiashi know that the Cloud Village came for negotiations? They even killed a Cloud ninja, putting us at a disadvantage in the talks!"
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