At first, Fugaku didn't dare get too close to Naruto.
The Uchiha clan's standing in Konoha had become incredibly precarious—
Not enough power to influence the top, yet just enough to antagonize everyone else.
Their authority over the Konoha Military Police only made things worse.
They'd clashed with nearly every major clan in the village.
And ever since the Nine-Tails incident, the fact that the beast seemed to react to Sharingan put Uchiha at the center of suspicion.
So they were pushed to the village's edge, right by the outer boundary.
One step from being outsiders.
The tension only escalated from there.
Things were getting so bad it was like everyone in the village wanted them gone.
And Fugaku could tell—
Someone was behind it all, deliberately stirring conflict.
He knew what was happening…
But he couldn't do a thing to stop it.
Konoha's higher-ups were exploiting the Uchiha's pride and isolationist mindset to drive them further away.
And it was working.
Then, just to make things worse—Uchiha Shisui, their ace, had mysteriously disappeared a year ago.
Most likely dead.
And most likely—Konoha was involved.
The voices of the Uchiha hardliners grew louder by the day.
Even as the clan head, Fugaku was barely able to hold them back.
Enemies outside. Rebellion inside.
Fugaku had been stretched to the breaking point for two years.
And then he snapped.
> "Screw it. We're already this deep. What's the worst that could happen?"
> "If it all burns, so be it."
His son Itachi had joined the ANBU as a bridge between Uchiha and the village's leadership.
All Fugaku could do was stall for time.
> Drag it out. Buy a day. Then another. If it comes to it, we'll go down swinging together."
> "Burn it down. I'm tired."
So when Naruto started showing up, Fugaku stopped resisting.
And surprisingly—Naruto reminded him of the Uchiha.
Both were heroes, yet both had become pariahs.
Naruto saved the village at birth.
The Uchiha helped build it.
But what did they get?
Suspicion. Hatred. Control.
Just like the Uchiha, Naruto was ostracized, feared, and seen as a threat.
Mikoto, for her part, didn't need convincing.
Naruto was the son of her old friend Kushina, and her motherly instincts burned every time she saw the boy's quiet smile.
She never dared speak against her husband's cautious distance before—but now that the door was open?
She welcomed Naruto with open arms.
---
"So you want to help the Uchiha?"
Minato's voice echoed in Naruto's heart.
By now, he'd gotten a read on Naruto's personality—
The boy didn't do anything without reason.
He never wasted effort.
And he didn't build ties without purpose.
> "Of course," Naruto replied without hesitation.
Not out of obligation to the clan.
But to Fugaku and Mikoto.
They were the only ones who helped him when the rest of the village turned its back.
If he could protect them—and maybe save a few others in the process—then so be it.
But helping all of the Uchiha?
Too much.
> "They're too fragmented. Too paranoid. Some might even think I'm sabotaging their plans," Naruto said bluntly.
> "And let's be real… It's the Uchiha. You never know what they're thinking."
---
"Why help them, though?" Minato asked.
> "Call it a debt. Or maybe I'm just sick of this village's hypocrisy."
Naruto's eyes narrowed.
> "Konoha's habit of pushing its own people off a cliff… rivals the Mist's bloody graduation system."
In canon, when Uchiha were wiped out, why didn't Cloud swoop in and take advantage?
Pure luck.
Minato didn't live to protect the balance.
Sarutobi was old.
Danzo? Only good at scheming.
The elders? Too busy agreeing with each other to lead.
The elite Jonin? Too green.
> "If Raikage had half a brain and teamed up with Sand… Konoha would've been toast."
---
"If you were still alive," Naruto said, "Uchiha wouldn't be in this mess."
Minato sighed.
> "A month before I died, I was already planning reforms with Fugaku," he admitted.
"The plan was to take power away from the Military Police and offer Uchiha a seat in the Clan Council."
> "If that had gone through… maybe this wouldn't have happened."
Minato wasn't like Tobirama. He wasn't poisoned by paranoia about Uchiha.
He didn't carry a "must eliminate Uchiha to save the village" complex.
He genuinely believed in uniting all clans. Even Uchiha.
---
"Can you really help them, Naruto?" Minato asked.
> "Nah," Naruto said flatly.
"They're screwed."
> "No cure. No hope. Just let 'em die."
Minato: "(⊙_⊙;)…"
Not the answer he expected.
> "Wha—? Why?!"
Naruto counted on his fingers:
> "Option A: Submit to the village."
> "Option B: Coup d'état."
Neither ends well.
---
Let's break it down:
Option B: Start a war?
Yes, Uchiha have Sharingan.
Three tomoe? Cool.
But how many Uchiha actually have fully matured Sharingan?
Very few.
Not to mention half of the clan doesn't even have chakra strong enough for proper combat.
Even if each 3-tomoe Sharingan user is worth a Jonin…
> What happens when 10 Jonin gang up on one?
Boom. GG.
A single clan cannot take on an entire Hidden Village.
Kaguya clan tried that once.
Only one guy made it out alive—Kimimaro.
Unless Madara comes back from the dead?
It's just delusion.
---
Option A: Surrender and grovel?
The higher-ups already want Uchiha gone.
Even if you kneel, they'll just delay the execution.
Death is the endgame, either way.
---
Minato sighed again. "So… there's nothing we can do?"
> Naruto smirked.
"Come on, Fourth. You're not that dumb."
> "You already saw all this coming before you died."
> "You're just playing dumb so I feel smarter, huh?"
Minato scratched the back of his head in embarrassment.
> "Heh… caught me. Gotta let you have the win sometimes, right?"
> "By the way, Naruto… are you really only eight?"
> "I turned nine this year."
PS: Access advance chapters at
https://www.patreon.com/c/NanamiTL