"Itachi, what's wrong?"
"Nothing."
Ever since his meeting with the Masked Man, Itachi's resolve to follow the path he had chosen became even stronger.
Although the entire Uchiha Clan would be buried with him, this was all a result of Bai Ye. Now, not only Konoha but also external forces were preparing to act. Everything that guy said about the hidden secrets of the Uchiha, combined with those strange abilities and his claim of causing the Nine-Tails' Chaos, was beyond Itachi's comprehension.
He had experienced the Nine-Tails' Chaos, and such powerful ocular prowess, capable of controlling the Nine-Tails, could only be attributed to the legendary Uchiha Madara, right?
Because of this, he became even more pessimistic.
Returning to the clan, with a bit of concern from Izumi, Itachi looked up at Izumi and asked, "How have you been lately, Izumi?"
It seemed they hadn't seen each other or communicated in a long time, had they?
A fleeting hint of disappointment flashed across Itachi's face. In his view, this path was destined to be a solitary one.
"Very well! Recently, I've been helping the Clan Head generate income for the Uchiha, and now everyone's lives are much better than before!"
As Izumi spoke, a hint of admiration involuntarily flickered in her eyes. She was actually very grateful to Bai Ye, and because of this, she had come to understand him more.
When Bai Ye first took office, she had only heard that he was a radical. Initially, due to her conversations with Itachi, she naturally thought this might make the Uchiha Clan worse off.
But unexpectedly, after Bai Ye took office, he not only reclaimed their original territory but also brought an additional source of income to the clan.
This also gave Izumi, who wasn't very keen on becoming a Ninja, something else to do.
In the past, the Uchiha Clan, besides being Ninja, had very few other things they could do. This meant that if you didn't become a Ninja, or if your family didn't have a Ninja, you would live in extreme poverty.
And Izumi had always hoped to be a virtuous wife and loving mother, not a Ninja.
So, Bai Ye's appearance, in a larger sense, united the Uchiha and gave some Uchiha the chance to survive. Not everyone wanted to be a Ninja, and not everyone had the talent to be a Ninja.
"Izumi, haven't you noticed that the tension between the clan and the Village has been increasing lately?"
Itachi looked at Izumi in disbelief. He had analyzed the situation with Izumi before, so why had she changed now?
"Itachi, actually, this isn't something we should be thinking about. You always think too much. And even if things are tense now, isn't everyone in the clan living better? Itachi, Clan Head Bai Ye actually said something I think is very true: if a family gives birth to you and raises you, and when you grow up, you turn to others to help them deal with your own family, isn't that a kind of..."
Izumi hesitated, glanced at Itachi, and then felt it wasn't good to continue.
She had actually thought at the time that perhaps the clan should do as Itachi said, but when they followed Itachi's advice, they lost their original clan territory, the Uchiha Clan's business got worse and worse, and they had to rely on themselves being Ninja to supplement their household income.
They gained nothing, and their lives got worse and worse. But after Bai Ye took office, no matter how tense the relationship with Konoha became, it never caused any hardship to the people within the clan.
This was also why they were all willing to support Bai Ye.
And Itachi's empty rhetoric gradually made Izumi realize that Itachi wasn't as perfect as she had imagined.
Moreover, Bai Ye was right: how terrifying could the heart of a person who didn't even cherish their own family be?
Itachi wasn't abused as a child. Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Mikoto had been very good to him, and the clan members used to respect him, but he insisted on helping Konoha against the Uchiha Clan.
This also made Izumi somewhat unable to accept it. Did Konoha really have such great magic?
She didn't want to lose her current life, at least the clan members were doing well.
"Izumi, but all of this is only temporary!"
Itachi's expression changed, a rare sight. He had already experienced the Shisui incident. The last time he went to see Uchiha Fugaku, Fugaku also said a lot of things favoring Bai Ye.
Couldn't they see that the Uchiha Clan was already being led into an abyss by him?
"Itachi, even if it's temporary, at least everyone has experienced it, unlike before when everyone lived in hardship. Also, Itachi, I think we should just leave things as they are for now. I'm afraid Clan Head Bai Ye might misunderstand."
Izumi apologized and then turned and left.
She was currently in charge of the Uchiha Clan's finances, a relatively sensitive position. Given Itachi's current situation, she was also afraid that Bai Ye might misunderstand her as leaking information.
For this, she could only apologize. At least for now, she believed that everything Bai Ye did was more trustworthy than everything Itachi did.
Looking at Izumi's retreating back, Itachi opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, he swallowed all his words.
It seemed another former close friend had left him.
Itachi didn't know how he got home, but upon arriving home and seeing Sasuke, the gloom in his heart dissipated considerably at that moment. At least with Sasuke, that was enough.
Others didn't understand him, but he believed Sasuke would!
"Sasuke, did you finish your exam today?"
Itachi asked gently. It seemed he hadn't spoken to Sasuke in a long time. He seemed to have neglected him for too long.
"Uh-huh, Oni-chan, I'm a Genin now!"
Saying this, Sasuke spread his hand in front of Itachi, his eyes sparkling with anticipation as he asked, "Oni-chan, did you prepare a gift for me?"
After coming home today, Bai Ye and his parents had all prepared gifts for him. He also hoped in his heart that his brother would give him a gift, after all, Itachi came home so early today, he must have prepared a gift, right?!
"I'm sorry, Sasuke, I forgot today. Can I give it to you tomorrow?"
Itachi's expression froze. He really hadn't prepared a gift. Too many things had been happening lately, and on his way back today, he had been approached by the Masked Man and Danzo, which made him forget about it.
Now that he thought about it, he felt a bit regretful, but he thought it should be fine if he made it up tomorrow, right?
Upon hearing Itachi's reply, Sasuke's disappointment was hard to conceal.
"Oni-chan, are you busy with clan matters lately? But I heard that Hokage-sama has a lot of opinions about us lately. Oni-chan, why do you still stay in the Anbu? Oni-chan, why don't you join our Uchiha Police Force?"
Sasuke asked curiously. He had actually heard a lot of the recent rumors within the clan.
He had also asked Bai Ye, and he now knew that the relationship between the Uchiha and the Village didn't seem to be very good right now.
"Sasuke, who told you this?"
Itachi's heart sank, and his tone became much harsher. Realizing that his tone seemed to have scared Sasuke, Itachi quickly said gently, "Sasuke, I will handle this matter. You don't need to worry about it."
Was it Bai Ye?
It seemed it could only be Bai Ye...
He felt a bit regretful. Why didn't he stop Bai Ye from taking Sasuke as a disciple back then? If it weren't for that, Sasuke wouldn't be asking such questions, would he?
"Oni-chan, actually, the Clan Head told me that the victor is justice, and we should protect the honor of the Uchiha Clan..."
If one were to talk about Sasuke, he would definitely be considered a staunch Uchiha honor loyalist.
This was also why Bai Ye's ideology was so easily accepted by Sasuke.
"Sasuke, you don't need to worry about such things. I will give you the gift. Oni-chan is a bit tired today, so I'm going to rest first."
Uchiha Itachi stroked Sasuke's hair, then looked up, a hint of pain flashing across his face. Immediately after, the three tomoe in his pupils began to spin wildly, and then a Mangekyo appeared in Itachi's pupil.
Shisui had betrayed the path they had once walked. His parents didn't understand. Izumi also believed that the path Bai Ye took was more correct. Even Sasuke now had the clan on his lips.
He found that it seemed no one understood him anymore.
Since that was the case, then he could only completely eradicate this clan.
He wanted to leave Sasuke alive. Sasuke was still young now and might not fully understand, but when he grew up, he would definitely understand his painstaking efforts!
And he now had the ability to change everything.
Mangekyo.
He hadn't expected it to awaken at such a time. If he could, Itachi wished he would never awaken it in this life. He now only felt as if he had been betrayed by the whole world.
"Bai Ye, are you really going to act?"
"Elder Setsuna, were you just all talk before?"
In the meeting room.
Uchiha King, Uchiha Setsuna, and Uchiha Tetsu, the elders of the three factions, along with the abdicated former Clan Head Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Shisui.
Bai Ye gathered the five of them to discuss the plan of action.
"I... I just feel like this might be too hasty?"
A hint of embarrassment flashed across Uchiha Setsuna's face. In truth, he had mostly been all talk before. Although he constantly spoke of rebellion, he hadn't taken much substantive action.
Now, hearing Bai Ye say that, he was actually a bit tempted, but wasn't there supposed to be a plan?
"It won't be too hasty. We have three pairs of Mangekyo. We'll win easily."
"Huh?! Since when did we have three pairs of Mangekyo?!"
No!?
What the hell are you talking about?
Uchiha King was stunned.
How did he not know they had three pairs of Mangekyo?
However, when the three of them saw the three on the opposite side simultaneously activate their Mangekyo, and seemed to see even more complex patterns in Bai Ye's eyes, with even stronger ocular power, the three elders were a bit dizzy.
"Holy crap!!?! You all have Mangekyo!!?!"
"Are you even human?! You're still hiding this from us?!"
"I take back what I said before. We are conservatives, but our conservatives believe that the radicals are too conservative and should be even more radical!!!"
You guys have Mangekyo, and three pairs of Mangekyo, just say it!
They had never fought such a rich battle before!
If they had said so earlier, why bother with radical, conservative, and neutral factions!
They were the Uchiha faction!
"Actually, our neutral faction has always been on the Uchiha's side!"
"What else is there to say! Just fight! No need to prepare!"
Uchiha Setsuna's old face flushed with excitement. He now wished he could just directly carry Hiruzen Sarutobi's head and walk onto the streets of Konoha!
Who the hell told me that the Uchiha Clan had three pairs of Mangekyo!
"Then let me start by saying, I have already reached an agreement with the Hyuga. In about these two days, I will make my move against Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo Shimura, Utatane Koharu, and Homura Mitokado.
Then, after this, they will support me in becoming Hokage. However, the interests of the other four families need to be given to the Hyuga Clan as a benefit for them helping us block the other families, and they will also firmly stand on our side. It's just that if they want to choose the next Hokage, we will need to support them.
Furthermore, during the battle, your priority is to protect the ordinary people within the clan. You don't need to interfere in the battle. This time, we are not in a full-scale war with Konoha, but rather fighting against those four individuals and their factions."
From the very beginning, Bai Ye had no so-called plan.
Because the strength was already completely overwhelming. At this point, even Nagato might not be his opponent with the Eternal Mangekyo, right?
"Alright, then what are we afraid of? Let's just fight!"
"When do we make our move?"
"I think tonight would be fine. I request a one-on-one fight with Danzo Shimura!"
He had been annoyed with Danzo Shimura for a long time.
Moreover, now that even the Hyuga Clan had been persuaded by Bai Ye, what were they waiting for?
"Not today. First, protect the people within the clan. Also, do not leak this information. We will act when preparations are complete. I not only want to eliminate them, but I also want to reveal all the things they have done. I want to become Hokage, but I don't want to become a Hokage with an illegitimate origin!"
Although he could rely on his military might to become Hokage, Bai Ye didn't want his path to becoming Hokage to be criticized.
Rebel and make everyone submit with powerful military force.
So, what he wanted to do was actually to make Hiruzen Sarutobi's reputation utterly ruined.
As long as their reputations plummeted, then everything he did would be just. In the eyes of others, he merely overthrew a senile Kage.
"You're right. Letting them die so easily would be letting them off too lightly!"
"Then let's do as you say, Bai Ye. We'll go make the arrangements!"
Listening to Bai Ye, the elders also agreed that he was right.
They needed to ensure that not too many people within the Uchiha Clan died due to this rebellion.
That's why Bai Ye had them prepare first.
Speaking of which, this didn't seem like a rebellion for them, but rather a righteous army!
"I always feel like we're doing something incredible."
Fugaku sighed. A few months ago, he wouldn't even dare to imagine this.
The Uchiha might actually become Hokage. So, this time it should succeed, right?!
Within the clan.
As the arrangements were made, many things were systematically completed.
And Itachi finally reached an agreement with Danzo and Obito: to eliminate the Uchiha in exchange for his brother's life.
The murderous aura in Konoha was felt even by the civilians.