That morning, rumors about the Uchiha clan continued to rage throughout Konohagakure.
At the same time, however, new whispers had begun circulating, diverting a small portion of the villagers' attention.
The Uchiha clan leader, Uchiha Fugaku, and the Second Elder, Uchiha Ya, had been summoned early in the morning by ANBU shinobi to the Hokage Tower.
They had remained inside Hiruzen Sarutobi's office for nearly three hours before finally leaving.
Fugaku's expression remained calm and indifferent.
But Uchiha Ya's face was dark with fury.
The two hurried back to the Uchiha Clan Compound, heading straight toward the residence of the Great Elder, Uchiha Setsuna.
"Damn it! There are even more ANBU squads stationed outside the compound now! What exactly are they trying to do?!"
"The rumors outside are getting worse and worse! They're completely disrespecting the Uchiha clan! Won't the Third Hokage do anything about it?"
"Have the Third Hokage handle it? Heh… Don't you know? Those rumors were spread by the village leadership themselves! They want Clan Leader Fugaku to give up the clan's compensation payments and rewards!"
"How could they do such a thing?!"
"Hmph! There's nothing they wouldn't do! Just watch—those ANBU outside the compound might storm in at any moment!"
"We have to fight back!"
"Right! Fight back!"
Along the way, groups of Uchiha clan members had gathered in small clusters, venting their anger.
Among them were also members of the Radical Faction, seizing the opportunity to win support and stir the emotions of the clan.
"Damn it!"
Seeing this scene, Uchiha Ya's anger burned even hotter.
Earlier, the Third Hokage had summoned them to the Hokage Tower and revealed the results of the Konoha Interrogation Division's investigation.
Originally, Uchiha Ya had believed the whole affair was merely an accident—a failed attempt by Hiruzen and the village leadership to suppress the Uchiha that had spiraled out of control.
But he never expected the truth to be far worse.
The situation had actually been secretly fueled by members of the Uchiha clan themselves.
The realization filled him not only with anger—but also with deep fear.
Fortunately, the war in the Shinobi World had not fully ended yet.
Because of this, Hiruzen and the other village leaders were hesitant to ignite another conflict.
Otherwise, the Uchiha might truly have been doomed this time.
After Hiruzen's conversation—a careful mix of threats and reassurance—Uchiha Ya no longer cared about Fugaku's stance.
The moment they left the Hokage Tower, he dragged Fugaku straight toward Uchiha Setsuna's residence.
He intended to confront the elder directly.
Uchiha Ya simply could not understand how Setsuna's vision could be so shortsighted.
All he ever talked about was launching a coup.
If the Uchiha truly had any chance of succeeding in a rebellion, then why would Uchiha Ya endure the humiliation imposed by Hiruzen and the village leadership?
The Uchiha clan might be the strongest clan in Konoha, but even so, they stood no chance against the entire village.
Take the Hyūga clan, for example—they were only slightly weaker than the Uchiha.
And the combined forces of the Ino–Shika–Chō alliance were not much weaker either.
Even if the Uchiha mobilized their entire clan, they could only muster several hundred shinobi.
But the total number of shinobi in Konoha exceeded ten thousand.
Faced with such a massive disparity, how could people like Uchiha Setsuna fail to see reality?
It was utterly absurd.
Uchiha Ya quickened his pace.
Soon, he and Fugaku arrived at Setsuna's residence.
Without even knocking, Uchiha Ya pushed the door open and walked straight inside.
At that moment, Uchiha Setsuna was discussing matters in the living room with several members of the Radical Faction.
Seeing the furious Uchiha Ya and the silent Fugaku enter, they were momentarily surprised.
"Clan Leader! Second Elder!"
The radical members bowed respectfully.
"Everyone leave!"
Uchiha Ya suppressed his anger as he waved them away.
"The clan leader and I have important matters to discuss with the Great Elder. No one is to approach!"
The radical members hesitated slightly and looked toward Setsuna.
"Leave," Setsuna said calmly, waving his hand.
"Yes."
They quickly withdrew from the room.
Once their footsteps faded into the distance, Uchiha Ya could no longer restrain himself.
He stepped forward and demanded:
"How dare you?!"
"At a time like this, you pull something like this! What exactly are you trying to do?!"
Setsuna was momentarily stunned.
But he quickly misunderstood the accusation, thinking Ya was referring to his efforts to rally clan support.
He snorted coldly.
"Everything I've done has been for the sake of the Uchiha!"
At the side, Fugaku's eyes flickered with surprise.
Then he quietly sat down, remaining silent as if observing from the sidelines.
"For the sake of the Uchiha?"
Uchiha Ya's voice rose with anger.
"You're pushing the entire clan toward destruction!"
"If you truly cared about the Uchiha, you wouldn't be talking about launching a coup!"
Setsuna laughed coldly.
"If we don't rebel, should we simply allow Hiruzen and the others to keep suppressing us?"
"Ever since Madara-sama left the village, that 'inherently evil' Tobirama Senju has been targeting the Uchiha both openly and secretly!"
"He treated us like livestock, confining us inside the village!"
"And after Hiruzen took power, he not only inherited Tobirama's will—he intensified it!"
"Look at the Uchiha now compared to the Warring States Period. How much weaker have we become?"
Compared to the Warring States era, although the Uchiha population had increased slightly, the proportion of shinobi within the clan had drastically declined.
In the past, the Uchiha could practically be described as a clan of warriors.
Now, less than one quarter of the clan were active shinobi.
And in terms of quality, the difference was even more glaring.
Some Uchiha genin graduating from the Ninja Academy today might not even defeat a six-year-old Uchiha child from the Warring States era.
Part of the reason was the peaceful environment brought by the village system.
But the more significant cause was the various restrictions imposed by Konoha's leadership.
For example, the Konoha Military Police Force confined the Uchiha to internal village duties.
This both reduced the opportunities for training shinobi and limited the resources the clan could use to cultivate them.
From this perspective, the modern Uchiha clan was indeed far weaker than their ancestors.
Setsuna's expression twisted with anger as he continued:
"And don't forget—the Uchiha were one of the founders of Konoha!"
"I accepted that the First Hokage came from the Senju clan."
"But why was the Second Hokage also from the Senju?"
"Now the Senju clan has faded away, yet the Third Hokage ended up in the hands of the Senju's followers!"
"Is that fair to the Uchiha?!"
"At the very least, it should be our turn to become Hokage!"
"If they refuse to give it to us…"
"Then we'll take it ourselves!"
"All I want is to reclaim what originally belonged to the Uchiha!"
"What's◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇
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Setsuna's voice grew colder.
"I've already made up my mind."
"Either we succeed… or we perish!"
"If the Uchiha cannot reclaim the Hokage position…"
"Then we'll build our own!"
"We'll create a New Konoha!"
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 70 chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/Sagamaster789