"Since it's settled… the reinforcement unit will depart in three days."
Hiruzen Sarutobi took a deep drag from his pipe before delivering the final decision.
"No problem."
Senju Suzuki nodded without hesitation.
Ryujin glanced at him briefly, a faint thought crossing his mind.
Is this old man brainwashed…?
After all, Hiruzen wasn't just suppressing the Uchiha.
The Senju weren't exempt either.
And yet—
Instead of resentment, Suzuki showed complete compliance.
Almost… excessive.
What was the benefit of blindly serving Konoha?
If anything—
History had already proven the outcome.
The Senju Clan—
Had declined even faster than the Uchiha.
The Uchiha had at least survived into a later era.
But the Senju?
By the time the next war came—
Only one remained.
Tsunade.
An entire clan…
Reduced to a single survivor.
Tragic.
Blind loyalty led nowhere.
Ryujin withdrew his thoughts.
"If there's nothing else, I'll be taking my leave."
Without waiting for a response, he stood and walked out.
There was no point in staying.
Everyone in that room—
Excluded the Uchiha.
But that was fine.
From the moment he was born into the Uchiha—
His path had already diverged from theirs.
And perhaps—
That very pressure…
Was what pushed him forward.
Because whether it was Hiruzen…
Or Danzo…
Both stood at the Kage level.
Ryujin's Mangekyō Sharingan was powerful—
Extremely powerful.
But it wasn't perfect.
Not yet.
Until it evolved into the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan—
There would always be risk.
And if he intended to rebel—
Those two…
Were obstacles he would inevitably have to face.
…
After returning to the Uchiha district, Ryujin immediately summoned the elders.
A selection of elite shinobi was quickly made to accompany him to the battlefield.
Everyone understood Hiruzen's intentions.
But they had no choice.
The timing…
Was not yet right.
The Uchiha still had preparations to complete.
A plan—
One that, when executed, would cripple Konoha's high command by removing a Kage-level force.
But it required time.
And until that plan was ready—
Rebellion had to wait.
So this order from the Hokage—
Had to be followed.
Even if it meant enduring it for now.
"Clan Head… please be careful on the battlefield."
The elders spoke with genuine concern.
They had watched him grow up.
To them, Ryujin wasn't just a leader.
He was family.
Secretly, they had even assigned additional Jōnin to operate in the shadows—
Not for Konoha—
But to protect him.
Ryujin smiled faintly.
"I'll be fine."
That was why—
He saw the Uchiha as his own.
Because they treated him the same way.
The discussion continued for quite some time, covering deployment strategies and battlefield coordination.
After the elders left—
Ryujin trained for a while.
Then rested.
Three days.
Not long.
Time passed in the blink of an eye.
And on the night before departure—
Mikoto came to see him.
"Clan Head… I—I want to go to the battlefield with you."
She looked up at him, gathering all her courage as she spoke.
She knew the danger.
She understood the risks.
But still—
She wanted to go.
Because she was afraid.
Afraid of losing him.
Her parents had died in war.
She feared war—
But she feared losing the last person she cared about even more.
Ryujin looked down at her, his expression softening slightly.
"Mikoto… you've grown strong."
"But the battlefield is not a place for you."
"As the Clan Head, I cannot put my people in unnecessary danger."
"Especially you."
He gently patted her head.
"But…"
She hesitated, her voice trembling.
"Clan Head, I…"
Ryujin interrupted her gently.
"Keep training."
"When I return… I want to see you create fifty shadow clones."
"If you can do that…"
"I'll give you a special reward."
Mikoto froze for a moment.
Then slowly nodded.
"…Okay."
Perhaps it was because they shared the same fate—
Orphans in a cruel world—
That Ryujin paid her a little more attention than others.
And perhaps—
That was why she had grown up so well.
Not far away, the Uchiha shinobi preparing for departure couldn't help but whisper among themselves.
"Our Clan Head… is really gentle."
"Yeah… strong, talented, and kind. Completely different from the previous leaders."
"He's perfect. In every way."
"…If I survive this war, I'm confessing to him."
"…If we survive."
The voices gradually faded.
Among the gathered shinobi, there were both men and women.
Though male ninja were the majority—
Female ninja were not uncommon.
But on the battlefield—
None of that mattered.
Man or woman—
If you couldn't kill your enemy—
You died.
That was the only rule.
Even the Uchiha—
With all their power—
Were not immune to death.
Because other villages…
Had monsters of their own.
This—
Was war.
The cruel reality of the Second Great Ninja War.
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