"Right now! Immediately tell me the secret behind your sudden surge in power. Do that, and I'll consider forgiving your actions just now. Otherwise, I'll personally throw you into the ANBU prison!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi, finally abandoning his grandfatherly act, barked coldly at Rukawa.
This kid clearly had no respect for him. Trying to recruit him was impossible now—so why not switch tactics?
Better to leverage this little bastard's reckless behavior and force him to reveal the secret to his insane power.
Hiruzen's heart burned with curiosity.
How did a seven-year-old suddenly gain the power to one-shot jōnin?
"Ha! You want to know? Sure, I'll tell you—but you have to trade something for it," Rukawa said with a grin.
"Oh? What is it? If I have it, I'll gladly give it to you!" Hiruzen's eyes lit up with excitement.
So easy. A child is still a child—just a bit of coaxing and the secrets start flowing. So gullible.
Around them, every villager and shinobi watching held their breath and strained to listen.
Rukawa's grin widened as he looked at Hiruzen's eager old face.
"That thing I want... is your head. Give me your head, and I'll tell you everything—right here, right now."
The entire crowd went dead silent.
Did he really just say that… to the Hokage?!
This guy has a death wish!
Everyone stared at Rukawa as if he were insane. Even hardened shinobi had never dared say anything like that to the Hokage.
Hiruzen's face turned completely black with rage. Despite his deep patience and years of emotional control, he was trembling.
What made it worse was that, for a moment—just a moment—he felt killing intent flash from a few people around them.
As a seasoned Kage, he immediately noticed. Some bastards actually considered... handing over his head!
Rukawa didn't care. After all, he was going to fall out with Hiruzen anyway during the upcoming Uchiha Massacre.
Might as well piss the old man off now and enjoy it.
So, with a lazy stretch and a smirk, Rukawa added:
"Well? What's it gonna be, old man? Deal or no deal?"
"Shut your mouth!"
A loud, rough voice rang out from the crowd.
Someone couldn't hold it in anymore and decided to stand up for their beloved Third Hokage.
Everyone turned to see who was so brave (or stupid) to speak out after what just happened to the ANBU leader.
In the distance, a bald-headed uncle was puffing out his chest, glaring fearlessly at Rukawa.
The space around him instantly cleared out—nobody wanted to stand near a guy asking for death.
Still, the bald uncle sneered at everyone else.
"What are you looking at?! That brat insulted our great Hokage! What's wrong with me speaking up for justice?"
"What?! Judging by your look, you're going to hit me now, aren't you?"
"Well, I'm warning you—I'm a civilian! Ninja aren't allowed to touch civilians in Konoha!"
He stood tall, like his status was a holy shield.
Indeed, Konoha had a law: shinobi were forbidden from harming civilians. Violating it brought not just punishment, but social disgrace.
To some, civilian status became a kind of "get-out-of-trouble" card.
Just like this guy, who was now fantasizing about being rewarded by the Third and maybe getting a nice job as a housekeeper in his mansion.
His future was so bright—until it wasn't.
In a blur, Rukawa appeared in front of him.
WHACK!!
The man's face twisted grotesquely from the sheer force of Rukawa's slap.
"Uchiha Rukawa! Have you no shame? You dare strike a defenseless civilian?!"
Hiruzen roared in fury.
"He ran his mouth. He deserved it. Also—I'm not a ninja yet. I haven't even graduated from the Academy."
Rukawa withdrew his hand, expression calm as ever.
Everyone froze.
Wait... this monster kid... isn't even officially a ninja?!
Which meant—that law didn't apply to him.
The bald uncle trembled on the ground, bloodied and humiliated.
"Y-You... You've got no shame! You'll never die a good death!"
"Ha. So not only are you foul-mouthed, you're stupid too."
Rukawa sneered, knelt down, and grabbed the man's jaw.
"Stop it! Rukawa! Stand down at once!"
Hiruzen charged forward, trying to stop him.
Rukawa ignored him. CRACK!
He crushed the man's jaw cleanly.
The crowd scattered again, fear etched on their faces.
This kid... is a demon in a child's body.
"Uchiha Rukawa! You've crossed every line! You're a cancer in Konoha!"
Hiruzen was now standing just four meters from him, his rage nearly boiling over.
Rukawa only chuckled.
"You should be grateful that guy was just a civilian... or I'd have crushed his skull instead."
He stood upright, eyes calm—completely undisturbed by the chaos.