Chapter 209: Uchiha Akira's Dominance—War Compensation Multiplied Tenfold!

"Akira, don't you think your behavior just now was a bit too much? With just a few words, you've practically thrown Iwagakure into chaos!"

In the negotiation room, Ōnoki spoke again, clearly frustrated by Akira's earlier actions. This was the second time he voiced his displeasure. The first time had been a public announcement, warning his people not to fall for Akira's words. But now, this complaint was personal.

"From Konoha's perspective, if Iwagakure falls into disorder, it's beneficial for us, isn't it? It's the same reason why you've tried to kill me twice. Isn't it just common sense?" Akira's voice was cold. "And from my personal perspective, after two assassination attempts from you, with my girlfriend still lying in a hospital bed back in Konoha, I wouldn't mind seeing Iwagakure burn."

Now that they were behind closed doors, Akira didn't hold back. His words were sharp, expressing his deep hatred for Ōnoki. After all, anyone who had been targeted the way Akira had would harbor resentment.

He wasn't Naruto, after all.

In the original story, when Pain unleashed his devastating Shinra Tensei on Konoha, even knocking Hinata to the brink of death and killing Jiraiya, Naruto still found it in himself to forgive Pain.

Later, during the Fourth Great Ninja War, facing Obito, the one who killed his parents, Naruto's attitude remained the same—"I forgive you."

But Uchiha Akira? He knew he'd never be able to do that.

He was just a regular person, with love, hate, and revenge all running through his veins. Wasn't that normal?

"Sigh..." Ōnoki let out a deep sigh after hearing Akira's words.

When he had decided to target Uchiha Akira years ago, he knew there would be consequences. But now that both assassination attempts had failed, it was time for him to face the consequences.

"Fine, I admit that I, this old man, was wrong. I offer you my sincerest apology." Finally, Ōnoki bowed deeply, a formal apology to Uchiha Akira.

"Hmph..." Sasuke, watching Ōnoki bow, could barely contain his anger. This old man had tried to kill Akira not once but twice! Now, seeing Ōnoki in this position felt like justice being served.

"Wow, Lord Akira is truly incredible. To force a Kage to apologize like this!" Karin's eyes were practically glowing with admiration. This was exactly the kind of power and dominance she idolized—true "boss energy."

On the other hand, Konan and Kakashi seemed relatively unfazed. Of course, Kakashi's face was hidden behind his mask, so it was hard to tell what he was feeling.

Ōnoki's apology—was it genuine? Only a fool would believe that.

This was politics, plain and simple.

If time could be reversed, Ōnoki would likely choose to target Akira again, given the same circumstances. The apology was nothing more than a calculated move, a way to placate Akira for now. Maybe Ōnoki thought that if he played the part of a remorseful old man, Akira's anger might lessen, and he could negotiate for lighter war reparations.

As for his pride as the Tsuchikage? In high-stakes politics, pride was a trivial matter. Only the weak and powerless cared about saving face.

"Akira, I truly believe the old man has realized his mistake!" Naruto chimed in, addressing Akira earnestly.

"You've got to be kidding me…" Akira and Kakashi both rolled their eyes simultaneously.

Naruto's trusting nature was almost too much to bear sometimes. Akira had known from the original story that Naruto was a bit of a fool at times, but this was next-level gullibility. He reminded Akira of the First Hokage—a mix of ridiculous optimism and innocence.

Kakashi, meanwhile, couldn't help but shake his head internally.

Uchiha Akira was undoubtedly the strongest candidate to become the Sixth Hokage. Among the younger generation of Konoha, only Sasuke and Naruto could compete with him for that title. But seeing Naruto's naive attitude, Kakashi knew that Naruto had probably disqualified himself from that race.

With such a naive outlook, how could Naruto ever become Hokage?

"Alright, Ōnoki, let's stop playing these games," Akira said, ignoring Naruto's remarks. He turned his attention back to the Tsuchikage. "You hired the Akatsuki to attack Konoha during the Jonin Exams. Your Iwagakure shinobi are now considered war criminals in our village."

"You've been defeated, and you're harboring war criminals. So, tell me, how much compensation are you prepared to offer?"

Akira wasn't interested in dancing around the subject anymore. He came to Iwagakure with one goal in mind—to demand reparations.

"We've prepared three thousand shuriken, two thousand kunai, eight thousand explosive tags, eighty million ryo, and various supplies," Ōnoki said, laying out the terms and handing over a written list of items to Akira.

But Akira didn't even glance at the list. His lack of interest was clear, leaving the Iwa higher-ups exchanging nervous glances.

"What... What is this?" Ōnoki asked, confused by Akira's attitude. "Aren't we here to negotiate war reparations? Why aren't you even looking at the offer?"

"This?" Akira finally spoke, his voice dripping with disdain. "Is this what you call reparations? It looks more like you're trying to throw scraps at a beggar."

"Excuse me?" Ōnoki's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Multiply the compensation by ten," Akira declared firmly.

"Ten times!?" Ōnoki nearly jumped out of his seat, shouting in disbelief.

He had expected some tough negotiations, maybe even a request for double or triple the initial offer. But ten times? That was outrageous!

"This is just compensation for the attack on Konoha, not for some full-scale war between nations!" Ōnoki protested.

"Fine," Akira said nonchalantly. "If you won't pay, then I'll just make sure Iwagakure suffers the same losses as Konoha did. I've got my team with me—we can replicate the damage perfectly."

Akira's words were a thinly veiled threat.

"No, no, no. A tenfold increase is out of the question!" Ōnoki shot back, shaking his head. "There's no way we can agree to that!"

"Well, I'm saying tenfold. Not a single ryo less," Akira replied, his tone just as resolute.

Both sides were testing each other's limits. Neither expected to resolve this on the first day. The negotiations were heated, with neither side willing to budge, and in the end, the talks broke down.

"It seems these negotiations are going to take a few more days," Kakashi remarked as they settled into their lodgings.

"Of course. That's how these things usually go," Akira replied calmly.

"Akira, asking for ten times the compensation—don't you think that's a bit much? Shouldn't we lower our demands a little?" Naruto asked.

Naruto had wanted to jump in and help during the earlier argument, but Sasuke had stopped him every time.

"Naruto, we can't back down that easily. Think about the villagers who were hurt or killed during the attack. Do you really want to dishonor their memory by letting Iwagakure off the hook?" Akira asked, his gaze sharp.

Naruto fell silent, unable to argue against that.

His heart bled for the innocent people who had suffered during the attack. Letting Iwagakure off lightly would indeed feel like a betrayal to those who had died.

But Naruto's aversion to war only deepened as he thought about it.

"Idiot," Sasuke muttered from the side, rolling his eyes.

"Haha, who knew the Nine-Tails' Jinchūriki would be so naive?" Konan commented, somewhat amused by Naruto's innocence.

"Naruto, you want to become Hokage, right? But tell me, how can you lead the village if the people don't respect or trust you?"

"Being Hokage isn't just about sitting in an office. You need the love and support of the people first," Akira said.

"And you think Iwagakure looks pitiful right now? Don't be fooled by appearances. The only reason they're putting on this act is because they failed in their attack on us. Imagine what would've happened if we hadn't been able to defend Konoha. What then?"

Naruto's world was shaken by Akira's words. It was his first real lesson in the ugly truth of politics.

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

"Excuse me, Lord Akira? My name is Zitu . May I have a moment of your time?" came a voice from outside.

"It looks like someone took my words to heart and is ready to act on them," Akira thought to himself with a grin.

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Next bonus chapter if we reach 200 Powerstone

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Note: If you are interested, you can read up to chapter 270+ at patreon.com/Emik01.