"Yes, he must pay the price!" the third elder of the neutral faction was the first to agree.
"We want justice!" the third elder of the moderate faction also couldn't contain his anger.
This wasn't just about the death of the Uchiha clan's strongest and most promising member. Danzō's actions clearly showed that he held the Uchiha clan in contempt, his prejudice deep-rooted and his hostility profound!
Since compromise couldn't bring them gentle treatment, they could only be firm. Even if it meant death, they would die with dignity, not in shame.
Uchiha Fugaku was actually very angry as well, but his indecisive nature made him reluctant to completely sever ties with Danzō and the Konoha leadership. Therefore, he tried to de-escalate the situation.
"We certainly must seek justice, but we must be mindful of our methods. We cannot be too radical."
"If we are too radical, not only will we lose the moral high ground, but we also won't gain anything."
"Also, I must remind you all, Shisui is dead. There is no proof."
"Based solely on the words Yashiro and the others heard from Shisui, the chances of successfully taking down Danzō are not high."
The others were stunned upon hearing this. He had a point.
"Alas... Shisui was foolish. How could he not think things through?" the third elder sighed.
"Perhaps Shisui wasn't being foolish, but was using his own life to de-escalate the situation."
"He was considering both the clan and Konoha, willing to sacrifice himself. He is truly Kagami's grandson," the second elder said with emotion.
"Hmph, I think he was considering the village more. If he hadn't committed suicide, Danzō would be in a very passive position."
"The Konoha leadership would also be in a difficult position and would have no choice but to severely punish Danzō."
"If we applied enough pressure, we might have been able to get rid of Danzō directly!"
"This kind of thing doesn't just cross the Uchiha clan's line. Would the other ninja clans be willing to see Danzō act so unscrupulously?"
"Not to mention, Danzō has oppressed other ninja clans in the past. The number of clans that haven't joined Root can be counted on one hand," the Great Elder said with a grim expression and a displeased tone.
Uchiha Itachi lowered his head upon hearing this, feeling a sense of disgust.
You old fool, who only knows how to think about the clan, how could you know of Shisui's greatness?
"Alright, Shisui was ultimately the pride of the clan, a meritorious servant. It was very difficult for him," Uchiha Fugaku said with a serious expression.
"Forget it. Although Shisui is dead, this matter is enough to give Danzō a headache."
"As long as we find the Root ninja who participated in the attack on Shisui," the Great Elder said in a deep voice.
"Alas... with Danzō's ruthlessness, I'm afraid they've already been silenced," the second elder said with a grave expression.
"Without direct human testimony, and it's unlikely we'll get physical evidence, this is troublesome," the third elder frowned, the furrow between his brows deep enough to trap a mosquito.
"We must seek justice, but we should plan this carefully," Uchiha Fugaku said after deep thought.
"We can't plan this carefully. We should strike while the iron is hot. Who knows what other changes will occur if we delay?"
"And wouldn't a long-term plan just give Danzō ample time to prepare?"
"My opinion is to immediately spread the news throughout the clan, to arouse a sense of common grievance, and to organize the entire clan to go to the Hokage's building to seek justice," the Great Elder said with a fierce expression.
Perhaps Konoha would take action against the Uchiha clan's ninja, but he didn't believe that Konoha would dare to let ninja massacre civilians in broad daylight, under the watchful eyes of the public.
Moreover, such a scene would be grand enough to attract attention and create huge public pressure on the Konoha leadership, forcing them to deal with Danzō.
Uchiha Fugaku and the others' expressions changed drastically. Wasn't this plan too radical?
This was almost equivalent to completely severing ties.
"No, that's too radical. We can't let the clan's civilians get involved. It's enough for the ninja to participate," the third elder retorted excitedly.
The second elder was also agitated. "That's still too much. I think a hundred ninja would be enough."
"We are going to seek justice, not to cause trouble. The normal operation of the Police Force must be guaranteed."
...
If Kageyama Kogetsu were to choose, he would choose the first option.
As one of Konoha's high-ranking officials, Danzō was already sharpening his knives. What was the point of worrying about face at this point?
They had to put themselves in a desperate situation to survive!
By having the entire clan protest, they could, first, apply the maximum amount of pressure.
Let the Konoha leadership know that even a cornered rabbit will bite, let alone a famous and powerful clan in the ninja world.
Second, it would surely attract the deep attention of everyone in Konoha, the other ninja villages, and even other countries.
Would Konoha not consider the opinions of the Land of Fire, the other ninja villages, and other countries?
That would be an "allied" nations' shock, and not just one, but a whole group of them!
With both internal and external pressure, what kind of immense pressure would the Konoha leadership face?
With pressure, they would handle the matter with caution and consider the feelings of those applying the pressure. The greater the pressure, the more cautious they would be!
Third, having the entire clan come forward would demonstrate the unity of the Uchiha clan. A united Uchiha was the Uchiha that the Konoha leadership feared the most!
Find a way to use Shisui's death and this clan-wide activity to maintain the general unity of the clan, then continuously deepen that unity, striving to unite the entire clan as one.
As long as they remained generally united and did not stage a coup, giving the Konoha leadership no excuse to act, the Uchiha clan could not be destroyed.
The destruction of the Uchiha clan was the result of the combined actions of Uchiha Itachi, Uchiha Obito, Danzō, and the Root forces.
Without any one of these parties, no matter how severely the Uchiha clan was damaged, they would not have been wiped out to the point of only Sasuke remaining.
...
The Great Elder disagreed, refuting and strongly demanding that they follow his plan.
The second and third elders also disagreed and refuted, quickly joining forces.
The Great Elder was eloquent and held his own against the two of them.
The sound of their argument gave the other three a headache.
Uchiha Itachi's disgust grew stronger. He silently squatted down to tend to Shisui's body.
Uchiha Yashiro wanted to express his opinion. As one of the parties involved, he was barely qualified, but in the end, he did not speak.
He wanted to see what the clan head was thinking...
"Alright, stop arguing."
"I think the second elder's opinion is the most appropriate," Uchiha Fugaku shouted impatiently.
Although Uchiha Fugaku could not act arbitrarily, as the clan head, his words carried the most weight.
"Implementing the second elder's opinion is fine, but I demand that we publicize it along the way and use public opinion to pressure the Konoha leadership."
"If you don't want this to end with nothing after a round of arguing and wrangling, if you don't want Shisui to have died in vain," the Great Elder said stubbornly, his neck stiff and his white beard sticking up.
Uchiha Fugaku, the second elder, and the third elder exchanged a glance and then nodded.
"Then we will prepare immediately."
"Yashiro, go and find Tekka and Inabi. We need to see them, dead or alive."
"Itachi, you are in charge of collecting Shisui's body and preparing for the funeral. We will hold a memorial service in the clan tonight."
After giving the order, the Great Elder felt something was not right and quickly added.
"Clan head, what do you think?"
"Let's do as the Great Elder says," Uchiha Fugaku nodded, thinking it was appropriate.
"Yes."
"Yes."
Seeing that the clan's leaders had reached an agreement, Uchiha Yashiro and Uchiha Itachi spoke up one after another.
"Let's begin. I will go to the Police Force to select available ninja. You select from within the clan. Don't pick those who are too quick-tempered."
"We will gather at the entrance of the clan grounds in fifteen minutes," Uchiha Fugaku ordered.
The three elders nodded and then left together.
"Alas..."
"Itachi, don't blame yourself too much. This was Shisui's choice."
"We were all deceived. He had already made up his mind," Uchiha Yashiro sighed.
"Yes, Senior Yashiro," Uchiha Itachi said with his head bowed, his expression hidden.
"I'll be going now."
After Uchiha Yashiro left, Uchiha Itachi picked up Shisui's body. His head was bowed, his eyes were crimson, and his expression was gloomy.
"Shisui, did you see that just now?"
"Your plan to appease the situation has failed."
"Actually, this time, I didn't want to prioritize the bigger picture either, but what just happened proves that there will only be endless turmoil in the future."
"It's too difficult to stop all of this. Perhaps only when one side completely disappears will the sky clear."
With that, Uchiha Itachi leaped away, carrying Shisui's body, and quickly disappeared.
A White Zetsu, which had arrived during the argument, emerged from a tree. Looking in the direction Uchiha Itachi had left, a strange smile appeared on its face...
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