The room fell quiet.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Toyoma's words had landed like a stone in still water, and the ripples hadn't settled yet.
Shisui Uchiha looked at Toyoma. His gaze lingered, thoughtful. Not about what was said, but how to answer it.
What Toyoma said wasn't wrong.
The Uchiha here had managed to hold the situation together at the mist front, but the problem remained. Numbers. There simply weren't enough of them.
The Hokage had given a different choice. Shisui was supposed to go to the Sand border, while the Mist front can be handled by civilian shinobi and other clans.
But Shisui chose otherwise.
The Sand didn't need him. The Mist did. So he came here instead.
And he didn't come alone.
Behind him stood a group of young people. Too young. Most had only recently graduated from the academy.
Some belonged to the Dove faction, while others were descendants of those who had once followed his grandfather, Kagami.
A few even had siblings among them.
They were all Uchiha.
But they weren't ready.
When Toyoma and Uzuku saw them, they didn't hide their reaction. Anger came first, then questions.
Why send them here?
Why bring them to a battlefield they weren't prepared for?
Fugaku had answered without hesitation.
"They will become battle-hardened here."
"They are Uchiha. They can handle it."
Toyoma had nearly lost his temper. For a moment, it looked like he would tear into Fugaku right there, and it took Uzuku and Genzo stepping in to pull him back.
Now that same tension lingered in the room, unresolved.
Shisui exhaled slowly and looked at Toyoma again.
This time, his gaze was steady, clear.
"…You're not wrong saying they are not ready."
A brief pause.
"But—"
The words made a few of the younger shinobi look up.
Toyoma didn't react. He simply watched him.
Shisui's gaze shifted briefly toward the group behind him. Their earlier excitement had faded, replaced by something quieter.
Something more grounded.
"…But that doesn't make this a mistake," he continued. His voice stayed calm, but firm.
Toyoma's eyes narrowed slightly.
"…Oh? Then tell me how."
Shisui nodded once.
"Yes. They're young," he said. "And they chose to come anyway."
This time, he didn't look away.
"If we start treating that as a mistake, then we are insulting their will, their resolve to protect their clan… their village"
No one answered.
"War doesn't wait until someone is ready."
His gaze moved across the tent, passing over each face.
"It just arrives."
The words settled into the silence, not sharp but heavy.
"They came because they believe in the village," he said. "And in the clan."
A faint shift ran through the group behind him. Not pride. Something quieter. Something steadier.
Shisui's eyes returned to Toyoma.
"You see the risk of them being here," he said. " But, I see responsibility in their eyes."
Toyoma didn't respond. His gaze held, unreadable.
"But if we start pulling them back now, what do they learn from that?"
A quiet pause followed.
"They learn to wait. To hesitate. To step back when it matters."
His voice lowered slightly.
"And the next time, they might not step forward at all."
Behind him, one of the younger shinobi straightened, not out of excitement, but resolve.
Shisui noticed. He didn't show it.
"You're worried about how many will survive," he said quietly. "That's fair."
"But sending them back won't change that."
A small breath escaped him.
"It only delays their arrival."
The words didn't soften anything. They weren't meant to.
"There's already a shortage on this front," he added. "And that responsibility falls on us."
Toyoma's expression didn't change, but something in his eyes shifted, just slightly.
Shisui held his gaze.
"This wasn't a perfect choice," he said.
"But it wasn't the wrong one either."
The room fell quiet again.
This time, it felt different.
Toyoma looked at Shisui Uchiha.
'Damn… is this idiocy for real? What the hell is going through his mind?' Toyoma thought as he stared at him with a baffled expression.
Suki, beside him, also looked at Shisui, but her expression was different. Her thoughts were in turmoil, swaying a little after hearing his words.
Toyoma noticed it immediately.
'Not you also?'
A flicker of impatience passed through his eyes.
He looked back at Shisui.
Then he clapped.
Clap. Clap.
"Great."
"Everyone, clap for Shisui's dedication."
A few people shifted, but no one actually moved.
Toyoma kept looking at him and continued,
"Thank you, Shisui, for making it clear to me. And here I was cursing in my mind, thinking, 'why the hell was a dumb brain like you even born in the Uchiha… but now you cleared my doubt.'"
At first, when Shisui saw and heard Toyoma's reaction, he felt a bit relieved. For a moment, he thought he had made Toyoma understand.
But as Toyoma continued, that feeling turned into something awkward.
"No, no, Toyoma," Shisui said, trying to steady it, "you were also thinking about their well-being. That's why you were worried. I understand it."
He gave a small nod.
"It's good that you're not in the dark anymore."
Toyoma looked at him and nodded once.
"You are right, Shisui. I understand you now."
For a moment, it sounded genuine.
Then his gaze fixed on him again.
"But there is one thing I still don't understand. Can you explain it?"
Shisui smiled slightly.
"Yes. You can ask. I will try to explain it."
Toyoma also smiled.
Bright.
But there was nothing warm in it.
"Then tell me something."
He looked straight at him.
"Is this an Uchiha fight… or a village fight?"
The room went silent.
Hearing Toyoma's question, Shisui Uchiha's expression froze. He looked at him again. At first, he had thought Toyoma understood him, but now it was clear. He was being mocked. A faint anger appeared in his eyes.
Toyoma saw that reaction and asked again, his voice steady but sharper, "Tell me. Is this a Uchiha fight or a village fight?"
Shisui held his gaze and replied slowly, word by word, "Toyoma, the Uchiha are part of the village. So this is also an Uchiha fight. You can't separate them."
For a moment, Toyoma just looked at him. Then his expression changed, and his voice rose.
"Then tell me this. Are those bastards from the Mist only fighting us Uchiha? Are we individually the reason for this war?" He took a step closer. "If not, then why the f*ck is only our clan fighting on this border? From children to old men. Answer that."
The air inside the room tightened.
"If you can't even see that," Toyoma continued, his tone cutting, "then keep your self-sacrificing talk for the village to yourself. Don't drag my clan into it."
His eyes didn't leave Shisui.
"What kind of brainwashing did that Sarutobi creature use on you? To make you bring clan kids here? Do you want to destroy my clan, too? Like the Senju?"
By now, his voice was loud. He stepped right in front of Shisui, face to face. The pressure coming off him was enough to make Shisui instinctively take a step back.
Around them, the others had gone quiet. Some looked away, others stood stiff, not daring to interfere. The sudden outburst had shaken them.
Suki moved quickly and reached toward Toyoma. "Toyoma, calm down," she said, her voice lower than usual, trying not to escalate it further.
Toyoma didn't look at her. His eyes were still locked on Shisui.
An angry roar came from outside the camp.
"You brat, what the hell have you done to my clan?!"
Inside the tent, Shisui Uchiha, Toyoma, Suki, and the others turned toward the entrance.
Footsteps.
Heavy.
Fast.
Then Fugaku pushed his way in.
His face was dark with anger.
Uzuku was right behind him.
Fugaku's eyes locked onto Toyoma the moment he stepped inside.
There was a letter in his hand, already crumpled from how tightly he was holding it.
"What did you do?" he asked, his voice low but shaking with anger.
—
Some time earlier.
Fugaku stood inside his tent, going through reports.
The flap lifted suddenly.
An Uchiha stepped in.
"Sumei?" Fugaku looked up, surprised.
Sumei was one of Mikoto's guards. She usually stayed in the village, watching over Mikoto and Itachi.
Seeing her here was unexpected.
Earlier, she had come with Shisui, and Fugaku had ignored it.
Now she was here again.
That was not normal.
Fugaku straightened slightly.
"What happened?" he asked.
Sumei stepped forward and bowed her head.
"Clan head, Lady Mikoto asked me to deliver this to you."
She took out a letter and held it out.
Fugaku accepted it, a faint frown forming on his face.
There was a brief pause before he opened it.
His eyes moved across the page.
Then stopped.
His expression changed.
Surprise.
Then shock.
Then anger.
His grip tightened around the paper.
The letter crumpled slightly in his hand.
—
Back in the present.
Fugaku stood in the tent, staring straight at Toyoma. The anger in his eyes hadn't faded. If anything, it had grown heavier. The letter in his hand shook slightly as he raised it.
"What did you do?" he repeated, louder this time.
Toyoma looked at him calmly.
"Can you explain what exactly I have done?" he asked, his expression unchanged.
Fugaku's jaw tightened.
"What is this 'merchant clan' nonsense?" he demanded, lifting the letter slightly. "How was something like this decided without my knowledge? Who allowed it?"
His gaze sharpened.
"Do you people even consider me the clan head of the Uchiha?"
Toyoma listened without interruption. He had already understood what this was about, but his face didn't change.
"Clan head," he said evenly, "this was decided by the Hawk faction, along with some neutral members and a few from the Dove faction."
"They chose to form a merchant group under the Daimyo. With permission from the elders and the grand elder."
A brief pause.
"They made that choice under pressure. They didn't have any other path left."
Fugaku's expression darkened as he listened. The explanation didn't calm him. It made it worse.
"Then why was I not informed?" he snapped. "I am the clan head."
His voice rose.
"And why did you choose to work under the Daimyo like this? Have you all decided to betray Konoha?"
For the first time, something shifted inside Toyoma.
Not anger.
Interest.
He caught it.
His eyes were fixed on Fugaku.
"Watch your words, Uchiha Fugaku," Toyoma said, his tone turning sharp.
"Are you looking down on Uchiha working under the Daimyo?"
A step forward.
"Or are you insulting the authority of Daimyo-sama?"
He didn't stop.
"Do you not understand that Konoha is a part of the Land of Fire?"
"Or do you think Konoha and the Fire Nation are separate?"
Another step.
"Are you planning to rebel?"
The questions came one after another, faster, heavier.
Fugaku, who had entered with full force, was pushed back by the sudden turn.
For a moment, he had no immediate answer.
Behind him, Uzuku watched the exchange.
The corner of his mouth lifted slightly.
'…Poor Fugaku.'
Fugaku looked at Toyoma, slightly taken aback by the sudden barrage of questions.
For a moment, he didn't respond.
Shisui Uchiha stepped in.
"Toyoma, that's not what the clan head meant," he said, trying to steady the situation. "He's just angry because he wasn't informed."
Fugaku glanced at Shisui, then back at Toyoma. His expression hardened again.
"Don't change the topic, boy," he said coldly. "First, you answer my question."
By now, Fugaku had already realised what Toyoma was doing. From his past interactions with Toyoma and the grand elder, he understood their method. Twist the conversation. Force the other side into defence.
He wasn't going to fall for it easily.
Toyoma met his gaze without hesitation.
"Clan head," he said calmly, "every Uchiha has the freedom to choose the work they prefer."
"They wanted to move to the Fire Capital and work as merchants, so they did."
A brief pause.
"Or is there suddenly anything different now?"
His tone didn't change.
"Our Hawk faction and the Cat clan have been doing merchant jobs like this for years. There's nothing new in it."
Fugaku frowned.
"Then why not stay in Konoha and do business here?" he asked sharply. "Do you understand what this will do to the relationship between the Uchiha and Konoha?"
Toyoma looked at him for a second.
Then he laughed.
Not loud.
But clear.
"Why would we do business in Konoha?" he said, almost amused. "A poor village that can't even pay its own guard forces properly?"
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"And still expects to take from the Uchiha whenever it wants."
A small pause.
"Do we look like idiots to you?"