While Uchiha Anlan and Uchiha Mikoto were enjoying the sweetness of their pure love, Uchiha Shisui, walking behind Uchiha Fugaku on the other side, had his young brows tightly furrowed.
The ideals of loyalty to the village and loyalty to the clan were practically turning his brain into a bowl of mush.
Unable to hold back, the young Uchiha looked toward the broad back silently walking ahead of him.
“Big Brother Fugaku, what do you think about what happened at the clan meeting?”
“Think?”
Fugaku’s footsteps slowed.
His broad shoulders looked particularly heavy beneath the moonlight.
He took a deep breath, as though trying to exhale all the pent-up frustration in his chest.
“From the clan’s perspective, Cousin Anlan was absolutely right…”
Fugaku paused, his voice growing heavier.
“But from the perspective of Konoha’s higher-ups, our entire Uchiha clan is guilty of grave sins.”
“Then what are we supposed to do?”
Shisui quickened his steps and pressed closer.
“Now that Big Sis Mikoto has also taken Anlan’s side, the combined strength of the two factions accounts for three-quarters of the clan.”
“And with Anlan’s powerful ability to execute his plans, they really could launch an attack on the Hokage Building and carry out their plan to assassinate the Hokage.”
Uchiha Yakumi, Fugaku’s capable aide, along with more than a dozen other Uchiha from their faction, turned their gazes toward them.
The words spoken by Uchiha Mikoto and Uchiha Anlan during the clan meeting had been nothing short of earth-shaking.
Looking at things from the perspective of shinobi and strength, they had forced everyone to seriously reconsider the relationship between the Uchiha and Konoha’s higher-ups.
The minor favors that the Dove faction and the clan leader’s faction had painstakingly earned from Konoha’s higher-ups suddenly looked awkward no matter how they viewed them.
Did the Uchiha really lack those petty benefits?
Were Konoha’s higher-ups really worth having the Uchiha press their hot faces against cold backs?
If what Uchiha Anlan had said was true, then perhaps it would actually be more comfortable to unite as one and openly oppose Konoha’s higher-ups.
The Uchiha of the clan leader’s faction were all waiting for the young heir they served to give them an answer.
Fugaku was not simply an idiot.
His thinking had merely fallen into a blind spot.
It was an ingrained way of thinking born from years of living in an atmosphere that favored compromise and closeness with the Hokage faction.
It was much like how, in his previous life, most Chinese men thought before and after marrying: they had to shoulder the pressure of the family.
After all, what they constantly heard and witnessed in their daily lives was that a man should treat his other half well and that the man was supposed to be the pillar of the family. This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
Of course, there were also bastards such as abusive husbands.
But were there more bastards like that, or more responsible, honest men?
That was practically the same as looking for a normal person within the Uchiha clan.
Put another way, it was like looking for an honest person among Black people.
“Does everyone still remember something else Cousin Anlan said?”
Fugaku turned his head and looked at Uchiha Shisui and the others before answering his own question.
“Konoha’s higher-ups are Konoha’s higher-ups. Konoha Village is Konoha Village. The Uchiha’s enemies are merely the parasites left behind by the Senju clan, not the entirety of Konoha.”
“Unite with every force that can be united. Strike at the enemies who must be eliminated.”
“In the end, we have to recognize who our true enemy is.”
Words that had previously gone in one ear and out the other were becoming increasingly clear in Fugaku’s memory as the Hawk faction’s advantage continued to grow.
Looking at everything purely from the clan’s perspective, his cousin’s position might be radical, but it was not without reason.
Shisui asked in confusion, “But Big Brother Fugaku, if Konoha’s higher-ups don’t represent Konoha, can they still be called Konoha’s higher-ups?”
“Can the Uchiha clan leader not command the Uchiha, and still be called the clan leader?”
Uchiha Yakumi suddenly spoke from the side.
“There are still disputes within our own clan. How could a shinobi village jointly established by shinobi clans and civilians possibly have no factional struggles?”
Everyone turned to look at him.
Under Fugaku’s subtle signal, Yakumi, who had dealt with the Hawk faction more than anyone else among them, calmly analyzed the situation.
“Lord Anlan said that the primary internal contradiction within the village is between the old shinobi clans and the increasingly powerful civilian shinobi.”
“The fallen Senju clan has been thoroughly exploited by Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others. Even the scraps that accidentally slip through their fingers are enough to make civilian shinobi grateful to the Hokage.”
“But as the number of civilian shinobi gradually increases and their overall strength continues to grow, once the interests of the Hokage faction are secured, they can only turn their attention toward the shinobi clans within the village.”
“And our clan has deep conflicts with the higher-ups, controls the entire Police Force, and possesses enormous wealth. Naturally, we became the ideal target.”
The more Yakumi spoke, the more excited he became, his voice trembling with the thrill of sudden enlightenment.
“With the encouragement of Konoha’s higher-ups, the conflict between the Uchiha and Konoha has become the primary internal contradiction within Konoha.”
After voicing his entire analysis, Yakumi felt as though his mind had been completely cleared.
A sense of clarity filled his heart.
Finally, he delivered his conclusion with absolute certainty.
“They intend to trample over the corpses of the Uchiha and take everything we have!”
Especially Yakumi’s final declaration, which continued to echo in his mind.
Whether in the clan district or at the Ninja Academy, children were taught mostly how to kill.
The second lesson was to love their clan and love their village.
But why should they love them?
And how were they supposed to love them?
As shinobi who knew little beyond how to take lives, what could they truly understand?
And so, Shisui fell into confusion.
“Wherever the leaves of Konoha dance, fire also burns without end. The light of the fire will continue illuminating the village and causing new leaves to sprout.”
He murmured,
“Could that be wrong, too?”
“There’s nothing wrong with those words. The only thing that’s wrong is the people.”
Uchiha Yakumi sneered.
“The two Senju brothers personally led from the front and fought on the front lines. Now look at Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others. They’ve become the ones basking in the light of the fire, the ‘new sprouts.'”
“No wonder Lord Anlan looks down on them.”
“Yakumi, regardless of our feelings toward the Hokage, we still need to maintain the most basic respect for him.”
Fugaku glared at Uchiha Yakumi before reaching out and patting his little brother on the shoulder.
He thought highly of this promising young member of the clan.
Moreover, Uchiha Shisui was a descendant of Uchiha Kagami, who had once been one of the members of the Second Hokage’s escort unit.
He was also a bridge between the Uchiha and Konoha’s higher-ups.
Fugaku spoke solemnly.
“Shisui, don’t overthink things.”
“As for the path our clan will take, just leave that to your older brothers and sisters to decide.”
The elder brother’s reassurance helped Shisui reluctantly gather his thoughts, forcing a faint smile onto his lips.
“Big Brother Fugaku, I understand.”
Fugaku nodded slightly and turned his gaze toward the Uchiha around him.
“After everyone returns, get some rest if you need it, and make whatever preparations are necessary.”
“At the same time, everyone knows what should and shouldn’t be said.”
“So, for the future of our clan, and for the Konoha that belongs to the Uchiha, let us unite as one, crush Kirigakure, and return home with glory!”