Uchiha Ryōsuke's face also turned serious. The village wanting a cut of his money? That was impossible.
He spoke coolly.
"How could the Hyūga Head say such a thing? This war was won through the desperate efforts of the Hyūga and Uchiha clans. The village didn't contribute one bit. I won't give them a single coin of this money."
Fugaku was in complete agreement.
"Yes, that's right. I support this idea."
"They can forget about getting a cut."
Hyūga Hiashi understood their firm stance and thought it over carefully.
This was an enormous fortune. If a portion was given to the village, his Hyūga family would also lose a lot of money. More importantly, Konoha's upper echelons had left his Hyūga Clan disheartened and disappointed.
Although the leadership was at odds with the Uchiha Clan, this battle concerned the entire village. It was also a matter of survival for his Hyūga Clan. Yet Konoha's leadership had ignored their life and death, insisting that the two clans go into battle.
This wasn't just targeting the Uchiha Clan; it was targeting their Hyūga Clan as well.
If things had gone badly, it was possible their Hyūga Clan would have been devastated.
Since they wouldn't help the Hyūga Clan, the Hyūga Clan had no obligation to give the village anything in return.
Although doing so meant the Hyūga Clan would be in opposition to Konoha's leadership, it didn't matter.
'The Uchiha are so strong. With the Uchiha Clan at the forefront confronting Konoha, the pressure on our Hyūga family won't be as great.'
Thinking of this, he also said, "Ryōsuke, I agree with you. It's just that, as for the split, our Hyūga Clan will take just two-tenths."
As the Hyūga Clan, they still had their pride.
To an outsider, it might seem that in a two-clan alliance, his Hyūga Clan should indeed take four-tenths, or even five. But only those who knew the inside story would understand.
Based on their contributions, two-tenths was the most his Hyūga Clan deserved.
Two-tenths was already a sufficiently large sum. Adding the 200 million ryō in compensation from the Cloud Village, his Hyūga Clan had reaped a huge harvest this time.
With the support of so much money, the clan's influence would develop better, and their ninja would be trained better.
After this battle, his Hyūga Clan would absolutely have the abundant capital to become a great clan, renowned throughout the ninja world in the coming years.
Fugaku was very happy to hear Hiashi's agreement.
'It seems this Hyūga Head knows what's good for him and won't bow to Konoha's leadership.' He felt a bit of frustration thinking about how he himself used to submit to them.
But he couldn't be blamed. Before Ryōsuke's meteoric rise, he was the only one in the Uchiha Clan who could withstand the pressure from Konoha's leadership. That alone was quite an achievement for him.
But now with Ryōsuke, everything was different. Even if Ryōsuke wanted to challenge Konoha's leadership right now, he, Uchiha Fugaku, would charge forward without hesitation.
Ryōsuke saw that Hyūga Hiashi would only accept two-tenths. 'Two-tenths is what the Hyūga Clan deserves; it doesn't show any special consideration from the Uchiha Clan.' He immediately disagreed.
"If the Hyūga Head feels that four-tenths is too high, then let's make it three. The Hyūga family also contributed. It was your Byakugan reconnaissance that saved us from enemy sneak attacks."
"Furthermore, the Hyūga Clan also suffered casualties on the battlefield. I hope the Hyūga Head can also use the ransom money obtained to properly console the injured and provide for the families of the fallen."
He had to give them some of this money today. Otherwise, the Hyūga Clan might just remain neutral in the future.
Although he could use military force to annihilate Konoha's leadership right now, that method was too crude. What he wanted was a Leaf Village that belonged completely to their Uchiha Clan.
And that would inevitably require the support of other clans.
Even if Fugaku, who was at the side, didn't understand why Uchiha Ryōsuke was giving the Hyūga family so much money—after all, even one-tenth was a terrifying 600 million ryō—he now supported Uchiha Ryōsuke unconditionally. He chimed in.
"Ryōsuke is right. This money is what the Hyūga Clan deserves."
Seeing that both of them were so insistent, Hyūga Hiashi could only agree.
"Alright, then my Hyūga Clan will accept three-tenths."
'It's true that many clansmen were injured or sacrificed in this war. With this money, I can be more generous in consoling the clansmen and providing for the families of the fallen.'
He now felt a bit grateful to Uchiha Fugaku and Ryōsuke.
Compared to the disheartening actions of Konoha's leadership, the Uchiha Clan was undoubtedly more considerate.
'How come I never realized the Uchiha Clan were such good people before?'
Ryōsuke was very happy to see him accept.
'After taking his money, he probably won't be standing on Konoha's leadership's side anymore, right?'
To make the Fourth Raikage obediently spit out the money, Ryōsuke thought of a way. He looked at the Hyūga Head and said.
"This time, to make the Fourth Raikage accept these rather harsh conditions, we'll have to trouble the Hyūga Head to play the 'bad guy' well."
Hyūga Hiashi paused for a moment, then understood his meaning.
He would play the bad cop, and Ryōsuke would play the good cop.
He had no good impression of the Cloud Village and was happy to make things difficult for them. He readily agreed to Ryōsuke's idea.
After a thorough discussion, they had someone bring the Fourth Raikage over.
At this moment, the Fourth Raikage was securely tied up.
Looking at the surrounding ninja from his village, his face was filled with shame.
Because of his incompetence, the ninja from his village had been wiped out in one go. Even the Tailed Beasts, the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails, had been captured.
He didn't know how they would be dealt with.
If they were all lost here, the Cloud Village wouldn't just be 'devastated'—it would be at a moment of life and death. Those bastards from the Stone Village would definitely not show any mercy. The two villages were already mortal enemies. They would certainly take this opportunity to launch a large-scale invasion of the Cloud Village.
At that time, the Cloud Village would be like a thatched hut in a storm, in danger of collapsing at any moment.
Just then, several Uchiha clansmen came to the bound Fourth Raikage and carried him directly into the main camp.
The Fourth Raikage's expression was grim. Looking at the three people before him, he spoke first.
"Say it. How does your Leaf Village plan to deal with us?"
This was what he cared about most right now.
If possible, he was willing to pay a large compensation in exchange for the safety of the Cloud Village ninja.
That was the only way for the Cloud Village to survive.
It would prevent the village from reaching a life-or-death crisis because of his own erroneous decision to start this war.