Itachi wanted to say something, but in the end, he just let out a long sigh.
There was nothing to be done!
Previously, clan oversight was lenient, so they could naturally do as they pleased. Now that his father had spoken so firmly, even Hokage-sama would find it difficult to speak on their behalf.
And that was indeed the truth!
Although Ninja Clanss generally have a certain degree of autonomy and the Hokage cannot easily interfere, if a Ninja Clans is slightly weaker, the Hokage can indeed intervene a little in its internal affairs. The Uchiha were in this situation before.
Because of Fugaku's weakness as clan head, Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo Shimura both intervened, which led to the situation with Itachi and Shisui.
But, similarly.
As long as a Ninja Clans can be firm, the Hokage will be in a difficult position!
This is actually why the Konoha Leadership has always tried to divide and eliminate the various Ninja Clanss. After all, he doesn't possess the formidable strength of Senju Hashirama, nor the strategic prowess and Ninja World-class strength of Senju Tobirama.
To wield power, this is what must be done!
Now that Fugaku had suddenly become firm, even Hiruzen Sarutobi had nothing to say. If he were to forcibly interfere in the clan's internal affairs, all the Ninja Clanss would come knocking on his door the very next day.
They might not ally with the Uchiha, but when it came to Ninja Clans autonomy, no Ninja Clans could agree to that.
Because if the Village could interfere with the Uchiha today, it could interfere with other Ninja Clanss tomorrow.
Therefore.
Even though Hiruzen Sarutobi was now trembling with rage, his eyes filled with endless killing intent.
But... at this moment, he could only remain silent!
"Hokage-sama, my apologies."
"Itachi and Shisui have other arrangements within our clan, so starting today, they will withdraw from Anbu and also directly withdraw from the Ninja ranks."
"Of course."
"If the Village is short on Ninja, the Uchiha will provide new clan members to join the Ninja ranks to offset these two positions."
"I have some matters within my clan, so I won't take up any more of your time."
"Farewell!"
Fugaku's expression was calm, his tone neither light nor heavy.
After speaking.
He directly left the Hokage Office with Itachi and Shisui. Hiruzen Sarutobi wanted to say something but chose to keep quiet.
Because—there was no need!
Shisui, a Mangekyo powerhouse, was already crippled. Although Itachi was also a good pawn, he only had the Three-Tomoe Sharingan at the moment, and Hiruzen Sarutobi truly looked down on him a bit.
For a crippled Shisui and an ordinary Three-Tomoe Uchiha, it wasn't worth breaking the rules and falling out with the Uchiha.
Ultimately.
He could only watch Fugaku leave with his people, never speaking again from beginning to end, his face turning even more ashen.
Alas!
With a helpless sigh, Hiruzen Sarutobi relaxed.
Donning the Hokage's robe once more and putting on his straw hat, Hiruzen Sarutobi sat back down behind his desk.
He smoked cigarette after cigarette, the worry between his brows deepening.
"Jin? Fugaku?"
"The situation is getting more and more out of control. I can only hope Danzo's side succeeds!"
"Fail? Impossible!"
"Even without Itachi and Shisui's combat power, Danzo still holds many bargaining chips. That Uchiha Jin bastard is still too arrogant; he dares to step into a trap even knowing it's one."
"But then again, it's quite normal for an Uchiha!"
"However, even a powerhouse like the Third Raikage could be surrounded and killed by Iwagakure. I don't believe Uchiha Jin is stronger than the Third Raikage!"
"That Uchiha Jin bastard will pay the price for his arrogance!"
"Fugaku? Hmph!"
"Even with the Mangekyo, he's still a complete idiot."
"As long as Uchiha Jin's death can be confirmed, the Uchiha will be easy to deal with next!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes flickered.
Only when he had truly thought through these issues did he finally let out a sigh of relief.
Finally.
He took a deep look at the portraits of the past Hokage hanging on the wall, then went to the window to stare blankly at the night view outside, eventually focusing his gaze on the Hokage Rock... In this dark night, the statues of the past Hokage flickered between light and shadow.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's gaze fell on the second statue, the sculpture of his teacher, Senju Tobirama.
"Teacher..."
"I will protect Konoha well and never let the Uchiha lay claim to the Hokage position!"
"Everything, for Konoha!"
...Meanwhile, on the other side.
Outside the Uchiha Clan Compound, in the dark night.
Uchiha Jin leaned against a utility pole. Dim lights illuminated the wide road, and a flock of crows flew out from the dense forest behind him. These were summoning animals raised by the Uchiha clan.
But at this moment, Jin had no mind to look at them.
His brows were slightly furrowed, his eyes flickering, and his mind was deep in thought.
Of course.
He wasn't thinking about the Village and Uchiha's troubles, but rather about the top few individuals in this Ninja World.
First—the Six Paths Sage!
This guy was hidden in the Pure Land, and Uchiha Jin couldn't be sure if he could even come to the Ninja World.
He only showed up once during the Fourth Great Ninja War, and considering his limited screen time, many things had to be guessed!
He really wanted to kill Sasuke and Naruto directly, because protagonists are very uncontrollable. He was afraid that no matter how well he set things up in the early stages, if these two grew up and didn't approve, they would intentionally come to sabotage him.
But, similarly.
If he really made a move against those two, would the Six Paths Sage pop out and smack him to death with one palm?
Throughout Indra and Ashura's reincarnations, they almost always, and only, died by each other's hands. Not once did they die by someone else's hands.
This made Uchiha Jin feel a prickle of unease.
Also, the Three Great Sage Regions were quite strange, especially Mount Myōboku at the forefront. Why were a bunch of toads so concerned about humans?
Everyone isn't the same species, alright?
It's like humans being extremely concerned about the world of ants, even constantly picking out certain ants, then teaching these ants Sage Mode and other techniques, and sending these ants to find the savior among ants—it's ridiculous.
Would humans care if ants went extinct?
No!
So, by the same logic, why was Mount Myōboku so concerned about the human world?
And more importantly, they could perform dream prophecies. Could they prophesy about him?
Besides that, there was Jigen in the shadows, Ōtsutsuki Hagoromo who didn't know whether he was dead or alive, the mysterious Shinigami, King Yama, and Jashin, and the Exchange Office whose origins no one understood. Was it really just supported by Daimyo and nobles?
And the strange power structure in the Ninja World—was it really just because Ninja were too loyal, allowing Daimyo and nobles to climb over their heads?
Were there deeper reasons?
Were there certain masterminds behind the Daimyo and nobles?
Alas!
Thinking of this, Uchiha Jin couldn't help but sigh helplessly.
The Ninja World's waters were still too deep. This was the real reason he didn't dare to easily flip the table but instead cautiously probed.
After all, he was just an ordinary person without a system cheat, and his strength was only at the Mangekyo level. He was truly afraid of messing up the plans of some old schemers and then getting smacked to death by some hidden mastermind!
So, playing it safe was good!