"Grandpa, I'm here to wake you up for breakfast!"
"Alright, I'll be there after I wash up."
Seeing his grandson, Itachi, come to wake him, Isamu smiled warmly.
After washing up and putting on his dark blue robes embroidered with the Uchiha fan crest, Isamu made his way to the dining hall.
"Father!"
The moment he arrived, Mikoto and Senba immediately stood to greet him.
"No need for formalities. You know I've never cared for all these rituals. Sit down."
Isamu took the seat at the head of the table and calmly began eating breakfast.
The rest of the family sat down as well.
"I'm finished. I'm heading out!"
As soon as he finished eating, Itachi stood up.
Isamu looked at him curiously.
"It's only seven in the morning. Does the Ninja Academy start that early?"
"No, Grandpa. Classes don't begin until nine. I'm leaving early to warm up first… some physical training."
"I see."
"Very good."
"Itachi, you're far more ambitious than your father was."
"Grandpa has high hopes for you."
Isamu nodded with satisfaction.
Among the third generation of the family, Itachi's talent might not equal Senba's.
But there was one crucial difference.
Senba possessed incredible talent, yet he devoted himself entirely to Konoha.
Itachi, while perhaps slightly less gifted, possessed genuine determination to keep improving.
As Isamu's grandson, having inherited part of the Sage Body's vitality, Itachi would almost certainly surpass Senba someday—as long as he continued working hard.
Senba smiled awkwardly.
Being criticized by his father in front of his own son was embarrassing enough.
Worse…
He couldn't even argue back.
"Grandpa…"
"How could I compare to Father?"
"You're praising me too much."
Seeing the awkward look on Senba's face, Itachi also felt somewhat embarrassed.
"You don't need to be modest."
"I've never been wrong when judging people."
"As long as you maintain your drive, you'll certainly earn your place in the shinobi world."
"And as long as you don't waste your life being tied down by Konoha like your father…"
"Surpassing him will be easy."
Isamu spoke without the slightest hesitation.
The corner of Senba's mouth twitched.
He clearly wanted to object.
"…"
Seeing the tension rising, Mikoto quickly stepped in.
"Itachi."
"Don't stay here chatting."
"You still have your morning training."
"Hurry along."
"Okay!"
Taking the opportunity, Itachi hurried out of the house.
After watching him leave, Mikoto looked helplessly at Isamu.
"Father, you…"
Before she could continue, Isamu raised a hand.
Stopping her.
"Senba."
"I said you're wasting your talent by tying yourself to Konoha."
"You want to argue?"
"There's no need."
"Everything I said is true."
"I saw long ago that you'd eventually sink into Konoha's muddy waters."
"I warned you."
"You simply chose not to listen."
"Father, Konoha…"
Senba tried to explain.
Isamu immediately interrupted him.
"You don't need to explain."
"You chose your own path."
"Then walk it to the end."
"I won't interfere anymore."
"You're a grown man."
"You don't need your father telling you how to live."
"I thought about it all night."
"Everyone has their own beliefs."
"Forcing mine onto you serves no purpose."
"I've accepted that."
"…Father."
Senba couldn't hide the emotion in his voice.
He had expected another lecture.
Instead…
His father had chosen understanding.
"Don't celebrate too early."
Isamu immediately poured cold water over him.
"I won't interfere with your decisions."
"But don't even think about dragging me into Konoha's camp."
"I was once the leader of the Uchiha."
"I will always belong to the Uchiha Clan."
"I will never become one of Konoha's people the way you have."
"So stop trying to recruit me."
"Understood?"
"…Understood."
Senba sighed in disappointment.
He really had hoped to gradually bring his father over to Konoha's side.
Instead…
His intentions had been exposed immediately.
"A former clan leader?"
"Father…"
"You were actually the leader of the Uchiha Clan?"
"Why have I never heard of that?"
Mikoto looked genuinely surprised.
"I wasn't the leader of the current Uchiha Clan within Konoha."
"I was the leader of the Uchiha Martial Faction."
"So naturally…"
"You wouldn't know."
Isamu answered calmly.
Senba frowned.
His father had mentioned the Martial Faction years ago.
Afterward, Senba had investigated the clan's history himself.
From everything he had uncovered…
His father had simply been an exceptionally powerful shinobi.
Nothing suggested he had ever held authority within the clan.
As for the so-called Great Elder, Uchiha Shinyō…
No historical records mentioned such a person.
Because of that…
Senba had always assumed his father had exaggerated those stories.
Now…
Even this claim about once being the clan leader sounded equally unbelievable.
"The Konoha Uchiha Clan?"
"Father…"
"Are you saying there was another Uchiha Clan outside Konoha?"
The more Mikoto listened…
The more confused she became.
"It's difficult to explain."
"Long before either you or Senba were born…"
"The Uchiha inside Konoha were divided into two factions."
"The Moderate Faction."
"And the Martial Faction."
"Our family belonged to the Martial Faction."
"After my strength increased dramatically, the Great Elder appointed me as its leader."
"My goal…"
"…was to restore the Uchiha Clan's former glory."
"So…"
"I led the Martial Faction away from Konoha."
As he spoke…
A trace of nostalgia appeared in Isamu's eyes.
It was as though he had returned to those distant days.
"Wait a minute."
"Father…"
"Is all of this really true?"
"If the Martial Faction truly existed…"
"Why has no one ever heard of it?"
"Why isn't there a single record anywhere in the shinobi world?"
Senba finally voiced the doubts he had held for years.
The unquestioning child he once was had long since disappeared.
"I told you all of this before."
"Have you already forgotten?"
"Didn't you take a single word I said to heart?"
Isamu looked back at him calmly.
"It's not that I ignored you."
"But what you told me back then sounded unbelievable."
"I've spent years traveling throughout the shinobi world."
"I've searched the Uchiha Clan's records."
"There isn't a single mention of the Martial Faction."
"Even Konoha's own Uchiha archives contain nothing."
"It's not that I don't want to believe you."
"But extraordinary claims require evidence."
"You can't expect people to accept something solely because you said it."
The older Senba was no longer the simple young man he had once been.
Now…
Everything required proof.
Even when the words came from his own father.
After years immersed in Konoha's political world…
Even the once-straightforward Senba had learned to think cautiously and question everything.
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