The entire hall fell into a deathly silence.
Then—
Among the hawks, Uchiha Yashiro and the others actually began to consider it.
The possibility of marching on the Hokage Tower.
Their eyes grew brighter.
The killing intent in the air thickened.
Scarlet tomoe flickered within their pupils, and a chilling, oppressive aura spread through the hall.
Uchiha Fugaku, who had appeared so composed moments ago, found his mind completely blank.
Uchiha Shisui clenched the hem of his clothes tightly, fingers tense.
At this point in time—more than a decade before the Uchiha massacre—the clan had never truly considered open rebellion.
They had not yet endured the Nine-Tails incident, nor the full weight of the village's suspicion and isolation.
Even Uchiha Mikoto showed a flicker of concern in her eyes.
But it was quickly replaced by resolve.
For a brief moment—
Even the old clan head considered it.
Then, just as quickly, he dismissed the thought.
"Right now, Konoha is surrounded by the other four great nations," he said in a low voice.
"If we commit such an act, then even if we succeed… what comes next?"
He rose slowly, his gaze sweeping across faces filled with fervor and hesitation, before settling on Uchiha Ren.
"When the nest is overturned, how can any eggs remain intact?"
His words carried weight—heavy enough to suppress the rising killing intent.
All eyes turned toward Ren.
He smiled faintly.
"So… as long as the clan's stability can be ensured, Clan Head, you would agree with the idea of attacking the Hokage Tower?"
The clan head's expression changed sharply—
But before he could respond, Ren waved it off.
"Relax. I wouldn't act without absolute certainty."
His gaze swept the hall again.
In wartime, internal conflict would be disastrous.
Unless they could achieve overwhelming results in a lightning strike—
Whether justified or not, the entire village would turn against them.
The clan would suffer greatly.
For now, the priority was clear:
Preserve strength.
Build their foundation.
Wait for the right moment.
If they could weather the Third Great Ninja War—one that would severely drain Konoha—
Then when the time came…
They would have options.
They could confront Konoha head-on.
Or secretly establish a new Uchiha stronghold beyond its borders.
Or—
During the reign of the Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato—
Expose the so-called "darkness of the shinobi world," Shimura Danzō, and uproot the entire faction of Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Remove every obstacle preventing the Uchiha from integrating into Konoha.
All of these paths…
Were viable.
The clan head's expression eased slightly.
Then, from the corner of his eye, he noticed his foolish son staring at him with a look that clearly said—
So you're this kind of person?
His irritation flared again.
Fugaku still hasn't learned to think like someone in power. Courage he has—but strategy? Not enough.
This flaw—
Was common among the Uchiha.
Impulsive.
Hot-blooded.
Prideful.
Traits almost etched into their very bones.
And once the Sharingan awakened—
It only amplified those tendencies.
As for the Mangekyō—
That was often the point where an Uchiha's thinking drifted entirely beyond the norm, toward dangerous extremes.
Examples weren't hard to find.
Uchiha Obito.
Uchiha Itachi.
Both had reshaped their values into something unrecognizable.
Like the saying—
"My heart and actions are as clear as a mirror. Everything I do is justice."
Whether it meant killing their teacher… or slaughtering their own clan—
In their minds, it was all justified.
Necessary sacrifices.
For such people…
Words were meaningless.
Only force worked.
Or better yet—
Eliminate them entirely.
As for persuasion?
Even a one-tomoe Uchiha might not listen—unless you stood far above them in both power and status.
Ren's control over the hawks had never relied on words alone.
It was a balance of pressure and reward.
Authority backed by strength.
And from that—
Loyalty.
Unfortunately… Ren won't give Fugaku much time to grow.
Fine. I'll speak to him privately later—ask him to look after Fugaku. They're still kin, after all.
The events of this clan assembly—especially the shift within the dovish faction—had forced the old clan head to accept reality.
But he hadn't completely given up on Fugaku.
Perhaps—
A war might temper him.
"Ren."
The clan head's voice sounded again, low and steady.
"You're not one for empty words. Tell us your plan."
He looked directly at the young man before him, his tone sincere.
"The Third Great Ninja War… the Uchiha cannot avoid it."
The fact that Konoha's leadership had turned to the Uchiha for reinforcements—despite their constant wariness—spoke volumes about the pressure they were under.
The so-called "strongest Hokage" likely wasn't sleeping well these days.
"I'm well aware."
Ren sat back down calmly, folding his arms as he spoke.
"As I said before—given past precedents, Konoha won't dare send too many of our top fighters to the front lines."
"They'll keep our strongest within the village… to guard against us."
"Their leadership is acting cautiously—afraid of both external enemies and internal threats."
His gaze sharpened.
"But the other villages are closing in. They don't have the luxury of time."
"That gives us leverage."
He looked at the clan head, his tone firm.
"We must secure tangible benefits."
"For example—independent command authority over the Kirigakure front. That ensures our people retain autonomy."
"We cannot allow ourselves to be reduced to expendable pawns—sent to die at the whim of a single order."
He paused briefly, a trace of coldness flashing in his eyes.
"And if we consider things more darkly…"
"Who's to say Konoha's leadership won't use Kirigakure's hands to eliminate us?"
The thought wasn't unfounded.
There had been precedents.
Heroes turned into sacrifices.
All for political gain.
Ren had no illusions about the limits of Konoha's leadership.
His voice grew heavier.
"Or worse—what about 'Root,' under Shimura Danzō?"
"Several of our three-tomoe jōnin have disappeared during relatively low-risk A-rank missions within the Land of Fire."
"We still haven't found the cause."
His words left the hall in deep thought.
Truth, once spoken, tended to spread.
Those who had reached jōnin were no fools.
Even someone like Might Guy, who appeared simple, possessed sharp instincts.
And the Uchiha—
With their three-tomoe Sharingan—
Were not only exceptional in battle, but equally capable of critical thought.
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