[Back when we chose the clan head, one of the idiots who voted for that fool Uchiha Fugaku… was me.]
[How was it that I failed to see back then that he was such a fool?]
Uchiha Yūichirō took a deep breath and forcefully suppressed the frustration and regret in his heart. Then he said loudly, "Clan Head, you're late."
"Our time is short, so let's skip the nonsense. I'll ask only one question: was Uchiha Yoru's transfer order canceled or not?"
Uchiha Fugaku opened his mouth, then stammered, "I…"
Yūichirō gave him no room to breathe and continued mercilessly, "Then it wasn't canceled. In that case, please explain, Clan Head, why the Third Hokage insists that Uchiha Yoru go to the battlefield."
Driven into a corner like this, Uchiha Fugaku truly could not think of any reason he could state in public.
When he felt he had nowhere left to go, he instinctively used the Third Hokage's words as an explanation. "The Hokage's order has already been officially issued. Before I knew how important Uchiha Yoru was, I had already signed and approved it. It is now a formal order."
"To revoke a formal order like that would be harmful to the Hokage's authority. In wartime, we Uchiha cannot do this sort of thing that pains our own people and delights our enemies."
Uchiha Yūichirō was so furious he nearly jumped up. He shouted, "Who said anything about making the Third Hokage revoke the formal order?"
"It's already been a month since the war began after Sunagakure attacked. During this month, the Third Hokage has issued supplementary orders more than once, all of them fine-tuning and supplementing previous orders."
"As I recall, at least half of those supplementary orders were used to recall key shinobi from various clans or specific departments. So why is it that when it comes to our Uchiha clan, suddenly it becomes a matter of revoking an entire order?"
"…" Uchiha Fugaku opened and closed his mouth, completely unable to answer.
What was he supposed to say—that at the time he had been led around by the nose by the Third Hokage and hadn't even remembered that point?
While Uchiha Fugaku was still blanking out, Uchiha Yūichirō suddenly threw out a question with a fatal trap hidden inside it. "Could it be that the Third Hokage doesn't know that Uchiha Yoru is an important member tied to the future of the Uchiha clan?"
Panicked and confused, Uchiha Fugaku replied without thinking, "The Third Hokage does know. I told him everything—Uchiha Yoru awakened the three-tomoe Sharingan, and he was also responsible for teaching and producing thirty-one pairs of Sharingan…"
He could not continue.
Because almost every jōnin present had opened their own three-tomoe Sharingan in shock, and they were all staring at Fugaku with expressions of utter disbelief.
Under that collective scrutiny, Uchiha Fugaku suddenly realized that his greatest mistake was not failing to get the Third Hokage to change the order.
It was that he never should have leaked Uchiha Yoru's intelligence.
At this point, the relationship between the Uchiha clan and the Hokage faction had not yet deteriorated to the point of open irreconcilability. The Uchiha shinobi were not yet so absurdly guarded against the Hokage and Danzō.
But leaking a subordinate shinobi's information to outsiders meant spreading that shinobi's intelligence around.
That was a fatal threat to the shinobi in question.
And this, especially, was a taboo for those in high positions.
If the clan head himself was willing to trade a clansman's intelligence in exchange for benefits, then who would ever dare trust you again? Who would still dare share their own intelligence with you?
And if, as clan head, you could not properly grasp the detailed intelligence of your own clansmen, then on what basis could you assign their work? On what basis could you mediate disputes between them?
What was more, Uchiha Fugaku had handed Uchiha Yoru's intelligence to the Hokage for free, without gaining any corresponding benefit in return.
That was no different from selling out a clansman.
Uchiha Fugaku… were you simply this incompetent, or were your intentions rotten?
Even the jōnin and elders present did not know the details concerning Uchiha Yoru. Hearing the exchange between Elder Yūichirō and the clan head, they were all dumbfounded.
But the jōnin and elders reacted quickly.
Who had taught and produced thirty-one pairs of Sharingan?
Who had that kind of ability?
Uchiha Yoru?
Those useless genin in the ninjutsu and tactics study group?
In an instant, a wave of sharp inhalations swept through the room. All those three-tomoe Sharingan shifted targets at once and focused on Uchiha Yoru.
Almost every Uchiha jōnin was thinking the same thing.
How was that even possible?
Thirty-one pairs of Sharingan.
That represented a sudden one-tenth increase in the Uchiha clan's Sharingan population. That was not a force anyone could afford to ignore.
To gain that much strength just as war had broken out—there could hardly be better news.
Uchiha Yūichirō clapped his hands and shouted, "This is true. I've already seen with my own eyes the thirty-one genin who awakened within the space of a month. Their progress has been tremendous."
Uchiha Shinji also said loudly, "As one of the people who proposed the study group, I can also testify. What Clan Head and Elder Yūichirō have said is true."
A wave of noise instantly swept through the hall.
The Uchiha grew excited.
They began discussing among themselves with rising emotion, imagining how the power of the study group could be used to help even more clansmen awaken the Sharingan.
"So something like this really exists? This is wonderful. I'm sending my idiot son in there. If he can awaken, that'd truly be perfect."
"I wonder if my grandson can get in. He has Uchiha blood too. If he could awaken, I'd have nothing left to ask for."
"The ninjutsu and tactics study group is an Uchiha clan organization. Isn't it inappropriate to let outsiders in?"
"Oh, come on. My grandson may have an outside surname, but he's not an outsider. If he can awaken, wouldn't that make him one of us Uchiha anyway?"
"Hiss… you've got a point there."
Gradually, all the scattered voices began to converge into a single sentence.
"The Uchiha clan is about to rise again."
No one gave Uchiha Fugaku any face at all. From time to time, people even used their ocular power to provoke him, making the clan head more and more uncomfortable, while his presence visibly weakened.
Amid the crowd, Uchiha Yūichirō shot a look at Uchiha Ryūnosuke, then exchanged a nod with Uchiha Shinji. He felt that the emotions of the jōnin were just right tonight. It almost seemed like an opportunity to drag Uchiha Fugaku down from his position.
Just as Yūichirō was about to stand, a great bell sound rang out beside the ears of him, Ryūnosuke, and Shinji. The sound was vast and distant, so imposing that the three elderly Uchiha found themselves unable to move.
All three noticed that the Uchiha jōnin around them were completely unaffected by the sound, still cheerfully discussing matters among themselves.
Only they could hear the bell.
It was genjutsu.
How strange. When had it been cast? How had it targeted them? Why had they of all people fallen into it?
Just as they were overcome with shock, Uchiha Yoru's figure appeared within their field of vision. He shook his head and said, "Now is not the time to pull Clan Head Fugaku down. Please remain silent, the three of you."
"If you have any questions, ask me. Rest assured, no one else can hear what we're saying inside this genjutsu."
Uchiha Yūichirō asked anxiously, "Why can't we overthrow Uchiha Fugaku today?"
Uchiha Yoru did not answer directly. Instead, he smiled and teased, "Elder Yūichirō, you've always been known for caution and suspicion. Why are you in such a hurry today?"
"There is indeed an opportunity tonight to depose Clan Head Fugaku. But doing so would be both meaningless and harmful."
"At present, there is no one in the Uchiha clan who can replace Fugaku, take on the role of clan head, and at the same time win the recognition of the majority of the clan."
Uchiha Yoru lifted a hand to stop Uchiha Yūichirō from speaking and stressed, "Take note—even I am not qualified."
"First, my reputation has only just begun to spread. It has not yet sunk deeply enough into the hearts of the clansmen to produce that natural sense of acceptance."
"Second, the study group members still haven't grown up. They cannot yet serve as my support within the clan. I have no desire to become some lofty puppet clan head."
"Finally, I cannot get a clear read on Clan Head Uchiha Fugaku's strength. We may underestimate his brain, but we cannot underestimate his strength."
Old Shinji hesitated and said, "You mean…"
Uchiha Yoru's expression turned solemn. "I suspect Clan Head Fugaku awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan."
Uchiha Yūichirō's eyes widened. "That can't be possible. If Uchiha Fugaku had awakened the Mangekyō, then why wouldn't he reveal it? With such overwhelming strength to suppress everything, who knows how many problems he could solve."
"Who knows?" Uchiha Yoru himself did not understand. "Maybe the clan head's dōjutsu is especially strange and dramatically changed his personality, turning the former 'Ferocious Eye' into the soft and squishy thing he is now."
"But Mangekyō is Mangekyō. The moment it appears, it becomes a trump card we cannot resist. At the very least, within the Uchiha clan, we have no way at all to oppose a Mangekyō user."
"Unless, just as I said before, one of us also holds a pair of Mangekyō Sharingan as a hidden trump card."
"A few years from now, when both sides' trump cards cancel each other out, and we hold the advantage on every other level as well, replacing Uchiha Fugaku as clan head will be a matter of course."
Yūichirō took several deep breaths, but still said unwillingly, "Maybe Fugaku never awakened the Mangekyō."
"After all, ever since Uchiha Madara and Uchiha Izuna, the Uchiha clan hasn't had a Mangekyō in a very long time. Why should Fugaku be the one who…"
Uchiha Yoru cut him off and said firmly, "Elder Yūichirō, your guess may also be possible. But we cannot take that risk."
"I ask all of you to remember this well. We are not overturning Clan Head Uchiha Fugaku for personal glory or private gain. We are doing it for the continuation and revival of the clan!"
"The power of the Mangekyō Sharingan is too extreme. Even if there is only the slightest possibility, our recklessness could destroy the clan's hope of revival."
"For these next few years, letting Clan Head Uchiha Fugaku continue leading the clan, then taking over steadily once our own strength is sufficient—that is the best strategy for the clan."
Feeling the firmness of Uchiha Yoru's conviction, Uchiha Yūichirō and Uchiha Shinji both fell silent. Yet inwardly, they recognized him even more deeply.
While the two of them silently worked through their surging emotions, Uchiha Ryūnosuke suddenly spoke up. "I trust Lord Yoru's judgment. I will obey your command."
The other two old men immediately echoed him and expressed their submission as well.
Uchiha Yoru said happily, "Very good. Then tonight we'll let Clan Head off the hook. But the compensation the Clan Head provides must be more than sufficient."
"Elder Yūichirō, please step forward and demand that Clan Head Fugaku obtain the following for me: the Bringer-of-Darkness Technique, the Flying Thunder God Technique, the Impure World Reincarnation Technique, the Shadow Clone Technique, and the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique."
Yūichirō said in surprise, "Except for the Shadow Clone Technique, aren't those all forbidden techniques developed by Senju Tobirama?"
Uchiha Yoru nodded. "That's right. I have a use for them."
Old Shinji chuckled and teased, "How can the future leader of the Uchiha go learn Senju forbidden techniques? Our Uchiha have plenty of powerful forbidden techniques of our own."
Uchiha Yoru laughed. "Didn't you once joke that I'm the Uchiha clan's Tobirama? Hahaha. As Uchiha Tobirama, researching the enemy's techniques is only natural."
"And besides, the Impure World Reincarnation Technique isn't just some forbidden technique. It's a genuine divine art. Tell me, if I actually summoned the real Senju Tobirama and let him take a look at today's Konoha… wouldn't that be interesting?"
Imagining Edo Tensei Tobirama seeing Uchiha Yoru, seeing a Konoha that remained prosperous on the surface yet was declining in strength and riddled with crises, seeing children of seven or eight charging onto the battlefield, the Second Hokage's expression would surely be very interesting.
No—perhaps Senju Tobirama would remain expressionless as ever, hiding everything inside.
After all, aside from the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, no one had ever managed to crack the Second Hokage's expression.
The four of them laughed together.
Though only within the genjutsu.
In the real world, the four of them were merely going along with the crowd, saying various harmless and meaningless things.
By the time dawn approached, the clan meeting came to an end.
Uchiha Fugaku's prestige had taken a heavy blow, but no one proposed removing him as clan head. Instead, everyone tacitly accepted this loss and maintained his authority by agreeing to let Uchiha Yoru go to the battlefield.
After all, most of the jōnin and elders believed that Uchiha Fugaku was more important than Uchiha Yoru.
Because the Uchiha clan, in wartime, urgently needed a clan head to prevent internal division and infighting from causing fatal losses during the war.
Uchiha Yoru represented the clan's future, but the clan's present could not do without Uchiha Fugaku. When the two came into conflict, they could only regretfully abandon the future.
The Uchiha jōnin might not know the phrase "distant water cannot quench immediate thirst," but they understood the principle very clearly.
Of course, in Uchiha Yoru's view, this was simply putting the greater good first.
His own weight and power in the hearts of the clansmen were still too weak. Compared to that, Uchiha Fugaku had become the greater good, while he himself became the price sacrificed for that greater good.
There was nothing particularly bad about it.
Once the day came that Uchiha Yoru himself became the greater good of the Uchiha clan, then naturally it would be Uchiha Fugaku's turn to be sacrificed for that greater good.
…
Uchiha Fugaku's victory at the clan meeting had been inevitable, but it had also been the result of someone pushing matters at a crucial moment.
That person was Uchiha Setsuna.
The old man had directly asked Uchiha Yoru, "If you leave the clan, can the ninjutsu and tactics study group continue operating on its own? Can the genin still awaken their eyes?"
Uchiha Yoru knew he meant no good, but he still answered, "Yes. Both."
Without Uchiha Yoru's guidance, it would become ten times harder for new students to enter tranquil concentration while practicing the standing meditation. But ten times the effort could still make up for it.
Without Yoru's preparation, the medicinal cuisine the students received would change from delicious food into life-threatening herbal soup. But it could still be swallowed. And the Akimichi clan's grilled meat would still taste the same as before, so there would still be enough nutritional supplementation.
The moment they heard such a clean answer from the founder of the study group, most of the jōnin who had still been wavering no longer hesitated and chose the clan head.
Since Uchiha Yoru had already passed all his methods on to others, and since the study group could already operate on its own, there was no longer any need for him to personally supervise and lead it at every moment.
As for guilt toward Uchiha Yoru, it couldn't be said that none existed. But he would need to return alive from the front lines first. Only then, as a living Uchiha jōnin, would he have the qualifications to receive everyone's compensation.
The result of the clan meeting represented a simple fact.
The overwhelming majority of those present did not yet regard Uchiha Yoru as one of the members they truly valued.
Yes, Uchiha Yoru now possessed the three-tomoe Sharingan. But these veteran jōnin still did not recognize him as someone qualified to stand on equal footing with them.
At the end of the day, in the understanding of Uchiha Fugaku, the elders, and the jōnin alike, Uchiha Yoru was still a subordinate.
For him to be sacrificed for a superior such as the clan head was, in their view, only natural.
That was why Fugaku could so easily decide to sacrifice Uchiha Yoru. And why the jōnin could so easily agree.
The result of the clan meeting was in line with Uchiha Yoru's expectations.
But being willing to go along with something and being forced by others into agreement were absolutely two different things.
In his heart, he marked Uchiha Setsuna down with a thick, heavy stroke.
[Old bastard, you're looking for death.]
Under Uchiha Yoru's instruction, Uchiha Yūichirō also chose to agree. He merely took the opportunity to make one demand: Clan Head Fugaku must provide the specified forbidden techniques to Uchiha Yoru as compensation for the sacrifice he was making for the greater good.
The Uchiha jōnin all believed Elder Yūichirō was truly putting the greater good first. Not one of them felt that the demand was excessive.
Even though they all knew that exchanging with the Third Hokage for those forbidden techniques would be difficult and would cost the clan head dearly, using that as compensation for the mistake he had made was only appropriate.
Uchiha Fugaku readily agreed.
…
"What?" Uchiha Shisui asked in surprise. "You think Clan Head Fugaku won't be able to obtain those forbidden techniques?"
Uchiha Yoru answered with certainty, "Most likely, he won't."
"Of course, if he can get them, that would be for the best. But even if he can't, it doesn't mean we gain nothing."
"At the very least, Uchiha Fugaku's incompetence and the Third Hokage's hostility will both be displayed even more clearly. As long as three or four jōnin can come to see reality for what it is, then we gain three or four more people worth fighting for. That's not a loss."
Uchiha Shisui frowned and asked hesitantly, "Big Brother Yoru… don't you think… don't you think you're viewing the Third Hokage a little too negatively?"
Uchiha Yoru smiled and replied, "That has nothing to do with whether the Third Hokage is good or bad. This is a matter of position."
He continued, "We already discussed this before. The Third Hokage's collective view of the Uchiha clan is that of a political enemy. There's no dispute about that, right?"
"Mm. That's beyond doubt."
"Then if your political enemy comes to you with benefits in hand and wants to exchange them for forbidden techniques specifically developed to deal with them, would you be willing to make that exchange?"
"Of course not. They're political enemies, after all… Wait. Big Brother Yoru, are you saying those forbidden techniques were specifically developed to deal with us Uchiha?"
"Ah. Maybe the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique wasn't. But the other three definitely were."
"How is that possible?"
"Why not? Let me explain…"
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