Perhaps Because He Has No Choice 11: A true strategist does not walk the path laid by the village, for the herd is merely bait for those who know how to hunt….
Perhaps Because He Has No Choice The crowd fell silent, but no one left.
They were all still pondering the question Uchiha Kei had posed.
Until they found an answer, it was clear they had no intention of letting him walk away.
Not only did the crowd fail to disperse, but even more spectators began gathering.
The center of the ceremony celebrating the heroes’ return gradually shifted away from the Hokage Tower and toward the shopping street outside the Uchiha Clan compound.
Those standing farther back whispered Kei’s question to one another.
Does the Land of Fire truly love Konoha?
And what exactly is the relationship between the Land of Fire and Konoha?
Those who understood the answer dared not say it aloud.
Those who didn’t understand debated and speculated among themselves, making the atmosphere increasingly unsettling.
Life rarely goes as one wishes.
Discontent is the norm, not the exception.
Greed and jealousy are human nature, and Kei’s question gave people somewhere to direct the frustrations they had long carried.
Uchiha Fugaku, who had been ready to reprimand Kei, was stunned.
He suddenly couldn’t figure out what Kei was trying to accomplish.
Adults always acted with a purpose.
For the first time, Fugaku couldn’t decide whether Kei was still an immature child…
or an adult with frightening depth.
If he was just a child, then everything he had done today was far too deliberate.
But if he was a calculating adult…
Fugaku couldn’t see his objective at all.
In reality, Kei had already achieved exactly what he wanted.
In an instant, he had shifted everyone’s attention away from celebrating Konoha’s victory on the battlefield and toward the relationship between Konoha and the Land of Fire.
Fugaku’s guess wasn’t entirely wrong.
Kei really was afraid of going to war.
Who in their right mind wants to fight on a battlefield?
Bleeding and dying is something you persuade other people to do.
As for me, Uchiha Kei…
I’ll be the one shouting passionate slogans and convincing everyone else to charge into battle.
I’m destined to be an important figure.
People like me should stay safely in Konoha and direct the course of the war.
As for “You’ve been empowered by the Will of Fire, now hurry up and sacrifice yourself”…
that’s a job for everyone else.
Someone like Orochimaru, however, had already experienced countless wars.
He understood the true nature of conflict.
Having traveled throughout the shinobi world, his worldview wasn’t something Kei could overturn with a few clever questions.
Or perhaps…
Orochimaru had long since found his own answer, one that no longer required anyone else’s approval.
So he simply ignored Kei’s attempt to sway public opinion.
He even casually stole one of his student Anko Mitarashi’s dango skewers and handed it to the eager Itachi Uchiha.
At that moment, discussions of war, nations, and politics were less interesting to him than a child’s sweets.
Minato Namikaze, who was currently enduring the hardships of war himself, had equally firm convictions.
His goal was crystal clear.
Win the war for Konoha.
Everything else was irrelevant.
Whether the Land of Fire truly cared about Konoha didn’t matter.
What mattered was that Fugaku—who had already been persuaded once—had agreed to send more Uchiha shinobi to the front lines.
Now, because of one boy’s words, that agreement seemed ready to unravel.
“Lord Fugaku…
who is this?” It became obvious that Minato, who spent most of his time away fighting on the front lines, had never heard of Uchiha Kei.
“Oh, this is one of the Uchiha Clan’s elders—Uchiha Kei.” Pulled from his thoughts by Minato’s question, Fugaku quickly composed himself.
“Kei is one of our clan’s geniuses…
the future hope of the Uchiha.” Kei nearly twitched.
Twelve years old.
Not even officially registered as a Konoha shinobi.
Sharingan only recently awakened.
Strength barely at an average civilian chūnin level.
So this is what passes for an Uchiha genius…
Whenever the clan wanted to promote someone, that person magically became a “genius.” The difference was that previous prodigies had actually possessed both talent and the clan’s resources.
Kei knew the truth.
Forget being a genius.
He wasn’t even the dead last of the class.
He was simply an ordinary person.
“So you’re Kei.” Minato smiled warmly.
“This is our first meeting.
I look forward to working with you.” His friendliness was so genuine that everyone nearby could feel it.
Kei, however, showed no such courtesy.
“No need to be so polite, Minato.” “The Uchiha Clan naturally owes the Uzumaki Clan the respect it deserves.” The moment he saw Minato, Kei had already made up his mind.
Some people inspired admiration.
Their lives were moving, tragic, unforgettable.
But they were best appreciated from afar.
Like Shisui Uchiha …
Or Minato Namikaze.
Feeling sympathy for them was enough.
Getting close to them?
Absolutely not.
Because people like them always carried tragedy wherever they went.
If they weren’t sacrificing themselves…
They were sacrificing those around them.
Trying to save people whose lives were destined for sacrifice required paying an unbearable price.
Without becoming someone standing at the absolute pinnacle of the world…
That price simply couldn’t be paid.
So Kei deliberately pointed out Minato’s other identity.
“Everyone else may treat you as the Hokage’s successor.” “But in my eyes…” “You’re simply a son-in-law of the Uzumaki Clan.” Minato had married Kushina Uzumaki for love.
Choosing to join the Uzumaki family out of love was an act of respect toward one of the shinobi world’s most renowned clans.
Although the Uzumaki Clan had been nearly wiped out, Konoha still bore their clan crest as the symbol on its uniforms.
Respect was only proper.
No one in Konoha truly viewed Minato as someone who had “married into” another family.
They simply regarded it as a marriage founded on love.
The dead deserved respect.
And besides…
Showing respect often came with benefits.
Why not?
Still…
No matter how people tried to dress it up, marrying into another family was exactly that.
The title of son-in-law clearly marked the distinction between a great clan and a commoner.
The moment Kei decided he would never become friends with Minato, he also decided to draw a clear line between them.
He refused to believe Minato had no pride whatsoever.
Wouldn’t anyone be angered by such a public slight?
If it had been Kei…
He certainly wouldn’t have tolerated it.
People like Kei often judged others by themselves.
When something benefited them at another’s expense, they assumed everyone would act the same way.
Yet when they themselves stood to lose, they hoped others would empathize instead.
Kei knew he was that kind of petty person.
Minato wasn’t.
He merely scratched the back of his head awkwardly and laughed.
“So Kei already knows my wife?” There wasn’t the slightest trace of anger over being called a son-in-law.
Only the bashfulness of a newlywed.
At the same time, the respectful way Minato referred to his wife subtly conveyed another message.
Since Kei had no intention of becoming close…
Minato wouldn’t force the matter.
The conversation naturally came to an end.
The villagers continued quietly discussing Kei’s question.
Minato searched for another way to secure more clan reinforcements for the front lines.
Kei, meanwhile, simply wanted to go home and eat dinner.
Unfortunately…
Today seemed determined not to let him off so easily.
The Uchiha Clan was like a leaky barrel.
Every time you finally solved an external problem…
Someone inside would immediately create another.
After happily accepting the dango skewer “bribed” to him by Orochimaru, Itachi Uchiha once again felt the warmth of the Will of Fire.
“Brother Kei.” “Our Uchiha Clan lives in Konoha.” “So it’s only natural that we shed blood for our country.” “If you’re worried about the dangers of the battlefield…” “I’ll go in your place.” Children often possessed an unfortunate kind of honesty.
While Fugaku was still trying to decipher Kei’s motives…
Itachi’s instincts had already reached a simple conclusion.
Brother Kei was genuinely afraid of going to war.
And Itachi sincerely wanted to take his place.
That way…
He could help his father…
And free Brother Kei from his worries.
It seemed like the perfect solution.
Kei nearly wanted to slap this little traitor into next week.
Just as expected of a child raised with the Hokage’s way of thinking.
Always helping the Hokage solve problems.
Do you even realize how many headaches you’re removing for him?
Of course Itachi didn’t.
And Kei had no intention of enlightening him.
Ignoring Itachi completely, he turned to Fugaku instead.
“Lord Fugaku.” “I think Itachi should spend some time seriously studying the history of our clan.” Fugaku had become thoroughly frightened by children’s innocent remarks.
Today had been one lesson after another.
The generation gap truly existed.
He simply couldn’t keep up with Kei’s train of thought anymore.
Whether he understood it or not…
This discussion could wait until they returned home.
He hurriedly agreed.
The villagers, however, finally believed they had found a way to counter Kei.
They still couldn’t answer his question.
But they absolutely couldn’t lose to a mere child.
“That’s right!
The Land of Fire raised all of us!
Yet your clan lives on its soil and still refuses to fight for it?” “Traitors!
Get out of the Land of Fire!” “The Uchiha should get out of Konoha!” The crowd had found a new outlet for their emotions.
Ironically…
It had been another Uchiha who had handed it to them.
Once again, they seized what they believed to be the moral high ground.
Kei’s expression finally darkened.
If they wanted to play this game…
Then he had no reason to hold back anymore.
“You really are limited by your upbringing.” “You know absolutely nothing about the history of the Uchiha Clan.” “You ignorant rabble.”