Facing the suffocating Killing Intent, Uchiha Gen's expression remained calm, seemingly unaffected.
He looked directly at the Root operatives and said coldly:
"The security of this entire village is the duty of the Uchiha Police Force. Yet now, with the Nine-Tails running rampant, someone has dared to forbid us from mobilizing.
And this 'Lord Danzo' you speak of—what are his true intentions? If anything, it looks like he is the one plotting disaster for Konoha."**
"Impudent! How dare you speak of Lord Danzo that way!"
With a sharp shout, a murderous aura surged. A Root operative flickered forward, his katana flashing toward Gen's neck.
Clang!
Steel clashed against steel—the attack had been parried by a shuriken.
"Enough!" a voice thundered. "To raise your blade against a member of the Uchiha, and in front of the Police Force no less—does Root wish to start a war?"
Uchiha Fugaku had appeared at Gen's side with the Body Flicker Technique, intercepting the strike with pinpoint precision. The Root operative was forced backward, retreating to formation.
Fugaku's dark eyes narrowed dangerously at the Root shinobi. "All units return to the Police headquarters. That is an order."
"Clan Head!" several Uchiha protested at once. "The village clearly distrusts us—how can we retreat now?"
"This is not the time for disobedience. Stand down!" Fugaku's tone hardened, his presence radiating authority.
Though frustration burned in their eyes, the Uchiha shinobi reluctantly complied, withdrawing with heavy steps.
In turn, the Root operatives disappeared one by one with silent Body Flickers. Yet Fugaku knew they were still there, hidden in the shadows, watching. Always watching.
With a weary sigh, he turned back—only to find Gen studying him with a conflicted gaze.
Fugaku offered a bitter smile. "Gen, you must wonder why I yield to such unreasonable demands." His eyes shifted to the distant battlefield where the Nine-Tails roared, demolishing entire districts of Konoha. "There are reasons you cannot yet understand."
Then, with a glance toward Gen's mother, Rei, he ordered: "Rei, take the children. Get to the evacuation tunnels."
As Fugaku disappeared to resume his duties, Gen's expression tightened.
**"Clan Head… I actually do understand. The Nine-Tails—the strongest of the tailed beasts—can only be subdued by the Uchiha's Sharingan. Now that it has appeared, the village fears we will seize control of it.
But your concessions won't ease their suspicions. To men like Danzo, every compromise only makes us weaker.
Unity gained through struggle creates strength. Unity built on concession leads only to ruin."**
"Gen, come quickly!" Rei called, pulling Gen back to the present. With his mother and younger sister, he hurried toward the evacuation point.
But even as they ran, Gen felt it—that same sharp, prying gaze on him. A Root operative's eyes, never leaving his back.
---
The cavern echoed with frightened voices as villagers poured inside under the direction of shinobi.
Among the Uchiha who had gathered there, Gen spotted his sister Izumi. She broke into a smile the moment she caught sight of someone in the crowd.
"Itachi-kun!"
She rushed toward the young prodigy, who was cradling a wailing infant in his arms.
"It's alright, Sasuke… don't cry," Itachi soothed gently, rocking his baby brother.
Izumi giggled, reaching out to poke Sasuke's nose. "He's still such a crybaby, isn't he?"
Gen, seated cross-legged in the corner, watched the scene in silence. His brow furrowed.
In his past life, he had never been able to accept Itachi's choice—the massacre of the clan. That betrayal had become etched into his memory.
This time will be different.
From the very beginning, he had resolved to stand against Itachi's path.
Gen's gaze shifted away. This body was only a shadow clone—his real self had already departed.
---
The ground trembled with each thunderous step of the Nine-Tails. Entire blocks crumbled under its claws as Konoha shinobi launched desperate attacks. Explosions echoed, flames lit the night sky, but nothing seemed to slow the beast's advance.
A terrified group of villagers froze as the giant fox's shadow fell over them. Its maw opened wide, gathering malevolent chakra.
"Enma—extend!"
A massive staff slammed into the fox's jaw, forcing it back. The Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, had arrived, Enma at his side and ANBU at his back.
Yet even the Hokage's strength was not enough—the Nine-Tails swatted aside their attacks as though they were nothing.
---
The Uchiha Police Headquarters
From the rooftop, Fugaku's gaze locked onto the beast. His eyes widened.
The Sharingan's tomoe swirled in the Nine-Tails' eyes.
"This… impossible…" Fugaku whispered.
Every awakened Uchiha was accounted for within the compound. So who was controlling the fox?
But the details no longer mattered—the mere sight of the Sharingan reflected in the Nine-Tails' gaze would doom the clan.
The village will blame us. They will never forgive this.
A heavy silence pressed over him. Fugaku's fists clenched at his sides. He could already feel the future slipping beyond his control.
---
Not far from the chaos, atop a giant tree overlooking the battlefield, Uchiha Gen stood. The massive chakra of the Nine-Tails pressed down on him like a mountain.
"What terrifying power… so this is the might of the Kyūbi."
Below, shinobi flickered in from every direction, converging on the fox in a desperate attempt to save their village.
And Gen watched, silent and calculating.