"Clan Head! The village held emergency talks overnight. I heard all the major clans were summoned. Do you know what happened?"
Emergency talks overnight?
All the major clans?
Early in the morning, Fugaku glanced at the speaker, a strange light flickering in his eyes.
It was a member of the younger generation, serving in the Military Police Force—
but one who leaned strongly toward the Hokage's faction.
One of the very few dovish Uchiha.
But why would a dove bring him news like this?
Unless…
Unless the Hokage—or Danzō—had leaked it deliberately?
But that would only intensify the conflict…
Or perhaps that was the point—to provoke the Uchiha into losing patience?
In an instant, Fugaku's expression darkened.
He finally sensed something was wrong.
Turning sharply, he barked, "Notify all the elders. Council chamber. Now."
As for Sasuke still up in the tree, Fugaku glanced once and decisively gave up.
A mischievous child? ✗
The second kid's already broken. ✓
Before long, the Uchiha council chamber was filled with elders.
Some were bleary-eyed from lack of sleep, but most wore expressions of ferocity and barely concealed anticipation.
The most aggressive of the elders—the Third Elder—couldn't restrain himself upon seeing Fugaku.
"Clan Head, calling us together so early… is it finally time for the coup?"
"Yes, the coup! At last! We have thirty-two three-tomoe users, one hundred sixty-eight with two tomoe, and three hundred ninety-eight with one tomoe—everyone is on standby!"
"Clan Head, let's do it! This Konoha is no longer the Konoha we once fought for!"
"Exactly! If the Sarutobi clan can sit in the Hokage's seat, why can't the Uchiha?!"
Whoosh!
That single sentence ignited everyone.
The elders clamored over one another, slamming tables and shouting.
It was as if the next second they'd already storm the Hokage Tower.
"Ahem… perhaps we should hear what the clan head has to say."
One of the few dovish elders coughed lightly and looked toward Fugaku.
Snap.
More than twenty pairs of eyes locked onto Fugaku's face.
Expectation.
The pressure crashed down on him—and for a moment, he was genuinely stunned.
Wasn't this meeting supposed to be about discussing countermeasures?
How did it turn into planning routes of attack and how to seize Konoha?
This… wasn't right.
Yet it also revealed something undeniable—
The Uchiha's resentment had already risen to the surface.
All it needed was a spark.
And now… the spark seemed to have arrived.
"No…"
After a long hesitation, Fugaku shook his head.
"Shisui is injured, and Itachi is tied up with missions. The Uchiha's strength… is still too weak."
But before he even finished, the Third Elder shot back:
"Too weak?"
"Clan Head, do you really not know how the Sarutobi went from a minor clan to one of the great clans of the ninja world?"
That single question plunged Fugaku into silence.
How?
Of course—
by draining the blood of clans like theirs.
"Ha…"
At last, Fugaku closed his eyes and let out a long sigh.
When he opened them again, all hesitation was gone.
Only resolve remained.
He tapped the table and looked at the elders.
"Very well. Three days from now—at dusk."
"In the meantime, recall all clan members on missions."
"All Uchiha are to abandon their assignments and return immediately."
"Yes!"
That single roar sent the entire Uchiha district into an uproar.
It also made many Konoha clans uneasy.
"What's going on? Have you noticed? There seem to be more Uchiha on the streets."
"More than that—I've heard wild laughter at night. A bunch of lunatics."
"You don't think they've all gone crazy, do you?"
"Maybe not, but there are more ANBU patrols lately…"
The murmurs naturally reached Konoha's upper echelons.
Bang!
Bang bang bang!
Inside the Hokage's office.
Danzō hammered his cane against the floor, the loud thuds echoing.
The office, not large to begin with, felt packed.
Akimichi Torifu, Koharu Utatane, Homura Mitokado, Hiashi Hyūga—
the heads of Konoha's major clans were nearly all present.
Aside from a few more hotheaded figures, most simply watched the Third Hokage in silence.
Especially Hiashi Hyūga.
As the head of a major clan, he sensed something big was coming—but had no intention of getting involved.
What did this have to do with the Hyūga?
No matter who won, they'd still need the Byakugan.
Several smaller clan heads thought the same.
They couldn't change the outcome anyway—better to just cheer from the sidelines.
Bang!
Seeing the Third Hokage still silent, Danzō smashed the floor hard enough to crack it, then flung his sleeve and turned to leave.
At the doorway, he stopped, back turned.
"There are things you can't do—but I can."
"As your advisor, it's my duty to eliminate threats for you."
With that, he strode away.
Behind him, the Third Hokage watched his back.
For once, he did not stop him.
After a short silence, Sarutobi lifted his gaze slightly, calmly tapping out his pipe.
"You may all return. In the coming days, help maintain order in the village."
"The Uchiha are part of Konoha. I will neither abandon nor forsake them."
"Where Konoha's leaves dance, the fire shall burn on."
The smaller clans were deeply moved and took their leave.
Moments later, only Sarutobi Hiruzen remained in the office—
and a crow by the window.
"Itachi… have you made your decision?"
"Yes. They plan to launch the coup in three days, at dusk."
"…I'm sorry. I still couldn't satisfy them."
"No, this isn't the Third Hokage's fault. It's the inherent flaw rooted deep in the Uchiha's genes."
The crow turned its head sharply.
"I will eliminate that flaw. But, Third Hokage-sama…"
"Yes?"
"Could you spare Sasuke and Jin? They're… still just children."
Silence fell over the office.
White smoke poured endlessly from the pipe.
So thick it obscured everything.
At last, Hiruzen nodded.
"Sasuke can be spared. As for Jin… I'll need to observe him further."
He then stepped out of the Hokage Tower.
Looking up, he spotted Jin not far away, enthusiastically dragging an ANBU into conversation.
"…That child Jin really does talk a lot," Hiruzen muttered, the corner of his mouth twitching.
He turned to leave—
when Jin's eyes suddenly lit up.
"Oh! Old—uh—Third Hokage-sama, don't go!
Chat for ten minutes?"
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