In Konohagakure, the Uchiha clan
Fugaku was seated behind his desk, rubbing his temple. The vision of Konoha in flames was still vivid. He had set out to investigate, mobilizing the intelligence unit to its limits, but nothing- not a whisper of anyone making moves in the dark. The attack was coming, and Fugaku was restless; the Uchiha were gradually returning to strength. Not yet ready to deploy at the whims of the kage.
Suddenly, knocking came from outside. " Come in." Fugaku turned to Uchiha Yashiro. " Lord Fugaku, these are the results of those tests. Unfortunately, there hasn't been a positive result even once, my lord." Yashiro bowed in shame.
"No need to bow your head, Yashiro. Follow me; perhaps it's time that ambition is set to rest." Fugaku said, then flickered. The two of them, like shadows, arrived at a small mountain peak hidden in one of the land plots owned by the Uchiha. Activating his Sharingan, a pit opened, leading underground, with lamps flickering, showing a path heading deeper underground. Fugaku and Yashiro descended the stairs, arriving at an underground lab. There, two medical-nin, a man and a woman, were waiting.
" Lord Fugaku," the two bowed in unison. " Inosuke and Sumire, there is no need to bow. What do you have for me?" Fugaku said, taking a seat and looking seriously at the medical-nin.
" Fugaku-sama, the hand you obtained from the enemy during the Uchiha attack did indeed have Lord First's cells, though, as we suspected, they were weaker. Compared to cells collected from Lord First's body, they are about 20 times weaker, but their rejection and consumption of host bodies remain the same.
Out of 200 death convicts, none survived the infusion of the First's cells, even the weakened ones. Subjects eventually turned into wooden husks, prompting disposal." Sumire said, sighing helplessly.
" So, not even one." Fugaku said, ' It seems the wood style is truly not destined for the Uchiha. " I understand. Have you made progress with the other matter?" Fugaku's tone turned stern; the other matter could not fail. It was linked to the survival of the Uchiha after all.
" Yes, Lord Fugaku. We were able to study the yang chakra of Lord First's cells. To be honest, it was unbelievable. To think dead cells had so much yang chakra. I wonder what he was like during his prime." Inosuke said.
"Don't mention such silly things. If Lord Hashirama were truly alive and not so benevolent, there would only be a world of Senju. No Uchiha, no Five Great Villages.
Dispose of all evidence and hand the remaining samples. There is no use in continuing on this path; our efforts will be better served elsewhere."
"But Lord Fugaku, perhaps we should wait a few more years?!" Sumire quickly interjected.
" No, from the beginning this was not a path those who bear the name of Uchiha should take. My father's fear, compounded by the fears of the elders and Uchiha, has made us stray from who we are. We are Uchiha, not Senju. But Uchiha! The Sharingan is what belongs to us. True strength comes from within, or else we will eventually become like Orochimaru, clinging to the power of a ghost, rejecting all that we are." Fugaku said, his Mangekyo Sharingan leaving the two genin speechless.
The two gulped at the sight and pressure; it felt like a sharp blade was held to their necks. Their lives were no longer in their whims.
Fugaku retracted his Mangekyo Sharingan, taking the cells and data; he left along with Yashiro.
Back on the surface, " Lord Fugaku, do you really believe that the Sharingan is our path out of this pit?" Yashiro asked, his voice hopeful.
" Yes, I do. After all, one man proved it." Fugaku responded, his eyes tinged with longing.
" You don't mean…"
" Yes, Uchiha Madara. The ghost of the Uchiha. The man whose ghost haunts the world. Although he wiped out some information when he left. Enough remains. How unfortunate that there is no Izuna for me." Fugaku whispered, ' Perhaps only Itachi could…' His thoughts heavy.
" Who was Izuna?" Yashiro asked, not recognizing anyone by that name.
"Matters of the past. Yashiro, the only way forward is through strength. Strength that eclipses all and beckons reverence from all. Perhaps Madara had foreseen that the union of the clans and formation of the village would bring about such circumstances. Strength from afar can be respected, but strength close enough, without the possibility of not having it, brings resentment. But his decision was wrong.
He was a tree capable of sheltering the Uchiha through all storms. That is what we need right now. A figure strong enough to deter all others. Yashiro, the Uchiha are strong, but we are not as strong as we used to be, not as feared as we used to be. Many within the clan do not wish to accept this; they posture with the arrogance of a tiger but no longer have that strength, and therefore they become despised even further.
Accepting this truth, however, means accepting that the Uchiha name is weak. That our pride is weak, and that cannot be done because we do not know how to be anything else. The village tolerates it because they need our strength as the strongest clan in the village, but that deterrence will only last so long. My Mangekyo has only silenced those like Danzo for so long. Eventually they will become emboldened and try to fade the light from my eyes because just as we know about the Senju, so do they about us.
I sent Itachi away because sooner or later his Mangekyo would have been discovered, and then the threat of two Mangekyo would have forced those like Danzo to act, driven by fear of more Mangekyo appearing and the resurgence of the Uchiha without a Senju clan to keep us in check.
Such is the power of the Sharingan. Let's move." Fugaku flickered towards the village in the distance.