I know,” Namikaze Minato said with a nod.
Although he had stepped in because he wanted to seek justice for Nohara Haruto, he would not blindly favor Haruto either.
Since that incident had already happened, he would not deny it.
The Inuzuka Clan head nodded and continued,
“In the end, this matter began because Nohara Haruto attacked one of my clansmen first.
And even if we did send two clan members to retaliate, with you there, that boy wasn’t injured in the end, was he?”
“What do you mean by that?”
Namikaze Minato narrowed his eyes, his voice carrying clear displeasure.
According to the Inuzuka Clan head’s logic, were they supposed to be the ones at fault now?
Just because Haruto had not been injured, did that mean the Inuzuka Clan’s secret attack was no longer wrong?
Sensing the shift in Minato’s mood, the Inuzuka Clan head hurriedly explained,
“That is not what I mean.
I am not saying our Inuzuka Clan did nothing wrong.
I am only saying that both sides bear responsibility in this matter.”
“My younger brother acted rashly because he was worried about his son.
In a moment of impulse, he made a mistake.
Fortunately, no serious consequences came of it, did they?
After all, the only person who truly suffered injuries in the end was my nephew, Inuzuka Hirono.”
“Since you personally came to our Inuzuka Clan today, Minato, I assume you also do not want this matter to become too serious.
In that case, why don’t we settle it peacefully in private?”
It had to be said that the Inuzuka Clan head did have some brains.
He knew this was not the right time to make the matter worse, so in just a few sentences, he softened the tense atmosphere that had been building.
He understood that continuing to deny the Inuzuka Clan’s secret retaliation was useless now.
Instead, it was better to lay out the faults on both sides.
That way, it would seem as though both parties were in the wrong, and even Namikaze Minato could not stand entirely on the moral high ground and condemn them without restraint.
After hearing the Inuzuka Clan head’s words, Minato’s expression eased slightly.
He had indeed come here personally to resolve the matter.
To him, protecting Konoha’s peace was the most important thing.
Since the Inuzuka Clan had already recognized that they were partly at fault, he did not intend to cling to the matter forever.
“Then let’s do this,” Minato said.
“As long as Inuzuka Yū personally apologizes to Nohara Haruto, this matter ends here.”
After all, Nohara Haruto had only caused Inuzuka Hirono minor injuries.
But the Inuzuka Clan had secretly sent people to kill Haruto.
In Minato’s heart, the Inuzuka Clan had still gone far too far.
“You want me to apologize to that brat?!
Absolutely impossible!”
The moment Minato finished speaking, Inuzuka Yū exploded.
Bloodshot veins gradually filled his eyes.
His son had been stabbed full of bloody holes.
Even now, Hirono was still covered in wounds, lying in bed and unable to get up.
That brat named Nohara Haruto, meanwhile, was still alive and perfectly fine, without even a scratch.
And now they wanted him to apologize to that brat?
How could that be possible?!
This time, even the Inuzuka Clan head did not refute his younger brother.
He fell silent where he sat.
An apology could be a small matter, but it could also be a big one.
If viewed lightly, it was nothing more than a single sentence.
It would not hurt anyone.
But if viewed seriously, once Inuzuka Yū apologized, it would not merely damage his personal dignity.
It would damage the dignity of the entire Inuzuka Clan.
Today, an ordinary civilian genin dared to injure his nephew like that.
Tomorrow, wouldn’t anyone dare climb onto the Inuzuka Clan’s head and trample them?
If that happened, how would the Inuzuka Clan continue to hold its head up in Konoha?
Seeing Inuzuka Yū’s hardline attitude, Minato realized he had not recognized his mistake at all.
He would not even agree to something as small as an apology.
This was simply ignoring Konoha’s rules.
The arrogant, overbearing attitude of the Inuzuka Clan finally pushed even the usually good-tempered Namikaze Minato to the edge of fury.
“Ha… haha.
Good.
Good, very good.”
Namikaze Minato narrowed his eyes.
His gaze turned cold, and his expression became even uglier.
He said “good” several times in a row, but anyone could hear the anger buried in his voice.
“Your Inuzuka Clan truly is impressive.
Inside Konoha, relying on your clan’s power, you dare secretly attack a Konoha shinobi and still refuse to recognize your mistake.”
“This is Konoha.
Do you really think that just because you are the Inuzuka Clan, you can act lawlessly inside the village?”
For a moment, the atmosphere grew tense again.
The pressure from both sides rose to its peak.
Neither party chose to back down.
Invisible sparks seemed to clash in the air, and the smell of gunpowder filled the entire meeting hall.
For Namikaze Minato to loudly rebuke them inside the Inuzuka Clan’s own meeting hall was no different from slapping the entire clan across the face.
The Inuzuka Clan head had already grown dissatisfied.
Earlier, he had remained calm and backed down repeatedly only because Namikaze Minato had recently gained a strong reputation in the village.
At such a young age, Minato had already become an elite jōnin, and he was also the disciple of Jiraiya, one of the Sannin.
That was why the clan head had tolerated him again and again.
But his tolerance had brought no return.
Instead, Namikaze Minato continued to challenge the Inuzuka Clan’s bottom line.
The Inuzuka Clan might not be the largest clan in Konoha, but they were not some soft persimmon that anyone could casually squeeze.
His voice turned cold.
“Our Inuzuka Clan will absolutely not apologize.”
The Inuzuka Clan head’s words were like a great beam of light to Inuzuka Yū.
With his brother’s support, Yū’s confidence immediately surged.
He raised his head high, and the way he looked at Namikaze Minato carried a bit more contempt.
His words became even more arrogant.
“That’s right.
Our Inuzuka Clan will never apologize!”
“Heh.
What kind of thing is that Nohara Haruto anyway?
He actually wants me to apologize to him?
He’s nothing more than a civilian ninja, yet he dares provoke our Inuzuka Clan?
He truly doesn’t know the height of heaven or the depth of earth!”
“So what if we sent people after him today?
Forget merely wanting to teach him a lesson—even if I really had him killed, what of it?!”