The unusual stirrings within the Uchiha naturally caught the attention of Konoha's leadership.
Koharu furrowed her brows and spoke: "Those people… could it be they can't hold back any longer? What is Fugaku doing? Why has he allowed the Uchiha to grow so restless? Didn't Hiruzen tell him to keep the clan under control before leaving?"
Her expression carried clear displeasure as she continued: "And Uchiha Setsuna—that old bastard just never rests. I still don't know why Hiruzen ever let him out back then."
Beside her, Homura pondered for a moment and was just about to speak when a sudden voice cut in.
It was a very young voice, muffled by the mask that concealed its owner's face: "Honored Advisors, you can send me into the Uchiha to investigate."
As the voice rang out, both Homura and Koharu turned their gazes toward the short-statured Anbu shinobi standing not far away.
Homura still remembered clearly Hiruzen's warning.
Just as he was about to shake his head, he felt Koharu's hand rest on his shoulder.
Startled, Homura turned to see Koharu step forward, moving past him, and speak directly to the Uchiha before them: "Itachi, go take a look. Report back immediately with any news. Remember—do not expose yourself."
"Because of that extremist brat Keizumi's prophecy, you've already become an enemy to nearly everyone within the clan. If your tracks are revealed… I fear you won't be able to return."
Uchiha Itachi lowered his head slightly.
"Yes!"
With a flicker of his form, he vanished.
Homura stared at Koharu, deeply puzzled.
"What are you thinking? Itachi is also a very unstable factor!"
Koharu's gaze turned faint and cold.
"Using one unstable factor to counter another—doesn't that work out just right? For Konoha, this isn't necessarily a bad thing."
Homura rubbed at his brow, a headache setting in.
If Hiruzen were here, a single word from him would have been enough to make Koharu drop this idea.
But he himself had no way of swaying her. After all, there was no hierarchy of rank between them.
Helplessly, Homura muttered, "Let's hope Itachi can stay rational."
...
When night finally fell—
Every Uchiha clansman had gathered inside the main hall of the Naka Shrine.
Each face in the crowd carried its own expression: solemn, tense, grim, or excited, as they all sat upright in formal posture.
At the head of the hall sat two cushions. On the left knelt Uchiha Fugaku. On the right knelt Uchiha Setsuna.
A low murmur of whispers flowed among the clan members.
"Why suddenly hold a clan assembly? Is it about the election of a new clan head they mentioned before? Or is it because of what Uchiha Keizumi did?"
"Who knows…"
"Why are Elder Setsuna and Clan Head Fugaku seated as equals? Could it be… they really are choosing a new head?"
"Heh! Uchiha Fugaku has always refused to hand over that beast of a son. To protect a creature who will one day bring about the destruction of the Uchiha—such a man truly doesn't deserve to be our clan head."
"And Uchiha Setsuna isn't much better! Look at him—how many years does he even have left in him? An old relic like that leading the Uchiha? Might as well pick me instead!"
"Why hasn't the meeting started yet? Isn't everyone already here? We've been waiting at least ten minutes!"
"Not everyone. Isn't that cushion over there still empty?"
"…"
Sitting on equal ground with Fugaku, Setsuna cast a sidelong glance at him and asked in a low, eerie voice: "Fugaku, aren't you going to start?"
Fugaku shifted his gaze onto Setsuna, his face stiff and expressionless.
"Elder Setsuna, weren't you the one who summoned everyone here? Since you possess such ability and prestige, it should be you who speaks."
Setsuna let out a cold snort.
Since the masks had already been torn away, there was no need for courtesy.
His eyes fell upon the empty cushion in the crowd, his expression darkening.
"There's still one brat who's late!"
Fugaku replied evenly: "Keizumi is in the Capital of the Land of Fire. He can't make it back. Or is it that the mere absence of the little girl by Keizumi's side is enough to make Elder Setsuna take things so seriously? To delay the clan meeting?"
"It seems Keizumi's deterrence really is formidable. Even though he's not in Konoha, just a single follower at his side is enough to make Elder Setsuna hesitate."
The sharp, mocking words made Setsuna's face twist with sudden ugliness.
A surge of irritation welled up in his chest, unbidden.
Just as he was gritting his teeth to snap back, a crisp, youthful voice rang suddenly from outside the shrine: "Apologies—I'm late."
All eyes turned at once, and there stood Uchiha Izumi, her young face carrying a trace of weariness as she stepped into the Naka Shrine.
Everyone could see that the girl's body was spattered with blood—yet it clearly wasn't her own.
As she stepped inside, the faint smell of blood slowly spread through the shrine's main hall, making more than a few Uchiha inexplicably tense.
To many, Uchiha Izumi, a believer in [Absolute Justice], had already become one of Uchiha Keizumi's representatives.
Whenever she appeared, people could not help but be reminded of Keizumi.
The murmurs among the clan fell silent.
On the platform, Fugaku's eyes flickered with a trace of complexity as he murmured inwardly:
This child… she's completely taken on Keizumi's shape.
And all of this, in one way or another, was connected to him as clan head.
If back then he had stopped the girl from choosing Keizumi as the Police Force's examiner…
Perhaps her path in life would not have turned out this way.
She would never have severed ties with Itachi.
"Hmph! Some juniors treat the clan assembly less and less seriously—no sense of time at all!"
Uchiha Setsuna gave a cold snort, then declared to the crowd: "Tonight's clan assembly—officially begins!"
...
"Troublesome, huh…"
Not far from the Naka Shrine, Kakashi and Might Guy crouched side by side on the thick branch of a tree, peering through the dim moonlight at the shrine in the distance.
With his drooping, dead-fish eyes, Kakashi said helplessly: "They must be using some kind of sound-sealing barrier. Nothing from inside is getting out—we can't hear a thing."
Might Guy stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"How about we just walk in openly and listen from inside?!"
Kakashi's mouth twitched.
"What astonishing wisdom you have."
To walk into an Uchiha clan assembly—
Only this muscle-bound, hot-blooded fool could think of something like that.
Step through the door, and the very next moment, they'd be thrown out.
And with such extreme tempers in the Uchiha, who knew if they wouldn't simply kill them outright? The two of them might not walk out alive.
"…Huh?"
Suddenly, Kakashi clamped a hand over Guy's mouth, his gaze fixing on a small shadow in the distance.
"That's… Anbu attire?!"
Most of the Anbu had been taken away by Hiruzen, with only two left behind in Konoha.
One was himself, Hatake Kakashi.
The other—was Uchiha Itachi.
"Uchiha Itachi…" Kakashi frowned. The one already branded as a 'traitor' by the clan actually dared to appear here, in the very heart of Uchiha territory?
What was he here for?
"Guy, keep your eyes on him." Remembering Keizumi's 'Clan Extermination Prophecy,' Kakashi spoke in a low voice: "Don't let him do anything reckless. This kid is even more extreme than Keizumi."
In Kakashi's view, while Uchiha Keizumi's methods were extreme, at least they were in pursuit of Absolute Justice.
Everyone Keizumi killed had deserved death.
Not one of them was innocent.
But Itachi was different. Kakashi had, of course, heard of the so-called 'Clan Extermination Prophecy.'
What he could not understand—was why Uchiha Itachi, in the future, would annihilate the entire Uchiha clan.
Even if many of the Uchiha shinobi were far from good men, weren't there still countless civilians among them—women, children, the elderly?
To slaughter even the innocent…
And his own kin at that.
To kill his father…
To kill his mother…
Kakashi had witnessed much of the world, yet he still could not comprehend such an act.
He added in a low voice, "Correction—Itachi isn't just extreme in his actions. His mind might not be entirely sound."
Elsewhere—
The three clan heads of the Ino–Shika–Chō were also watching the Uchiha compound.
It was obvious.
The Uchiha radicals' intent to stage a coup could not be hidden from the eyes of other Konoha clans. The moment unrest stirred within, it naturally drew attention.
"Taking advantage of Keizumi, the Hokage, and the Anbu all being absent… They wouldn't actually make a move now, would they?" Akimichi Chōza narrowed his eyes and said helplessly, "I really don't want to go up against a bunch of guys with Sharingan."
With one hand in his pocket, Nara Shikaku spoke up, "Keizumi killing the Daimyō may have made the radicals realize they can't wait any longer."
"For a Uchiha coup to succeed, they'd need the support of the nobles and the Daimyō. Now that Keizumi has utterly antagonized them, the radicals are left with no way out but to stake everything."
Yamanaka Inoichi, face expressionless, said flatly: "If the Uchiha make a move, the Yamanaka clan will step in to stop them."
Shikaku looked at him in surprise.
Inoichi explained, "Such a foolish coup will only bring about the deaths of countless innocents. Whether they are villagers in Konoha or civilians within the Uchiha themselves, all would be caught up in the bloodshed. If it were Keizumi, he would take action as well."
"…I see."
Shikaku let out a small laugh.
"True enough. Since we've already chosen the side of [Absolute Justice], it's only natural to uphold justice."
He patted Inoichi's shoulder.
"Don't worry. Since you've made your decision, the Nara clan will stand right behind you."
Chōza chuckled.
"The Akimichi clan as well."
"But still—"
At that moment Shikaku added slowly, "I don't think the real issue lies with the Uchiha radicals. For their coup to succeed, they'd need recognition from the entire village. They'll likely avoid harming civilians as much as possible."
"The real problem is Uchiha Itachi." His tone grew grave.
"He's a clan member with a very unstable mind. Keizumi is gone, the Hokage is gone, and Fugaku is likely preoccupied with the clan's turmoil. Right now, it seems no one is keeping him in check."
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