The Uchiha clan's movements grew increasingly conspicuous.
By now, even other clans had begun to faintly sense something amiss.
Konoha itself gradually slipped into a tense state, one where no one knew how events would unfold—or how far they would ultimately go.
As night fell, Uchiha Itachi arrived silently at the Hokage Tower.
After repeated deliberation, he had already made his decision.
Yet just as he reached the door to the Hokage's office, raised voices erupted from within.
"Hiruzen, we must strike first."
Inside the office, Shimura Danzo was once again locked in a heated confrontation with Sarutobi Hiruzen.
"The Uchiha have gone mad. We can't allow them to continue!"
"And why do you think it reached this point?" Hiruzen roared, slamming his hand against the desk.
"If it weren't for you, would things have deteriorated like this? This is all your doing!"
Listening from outside, Itachi felt a sharp pain twist in his chest.
He truly did not wish to see this scene.
But wishes meant nothing in the face of reality.
"You're too soft," Danzo snapped inside. "How can someone like you be Hokage?"
"Your weakness and indecision will destroy Konoha!"
"Danzo," Hiruzen shouted back, "the Uchiha were once our comrades. Have you truly forgotten Uchiha Kagami?"
Hiruzen was at the end of his patience.
As for the Uchiha, his stance was no longer what it once had been.
Because Konoha now had Ren.
A successor of the Senju with the power of the First Hokage, the decisiveness of the Second, and the techniques of the Fourth—Ren was his greatest asset.
With Ren present, Hiruzen was confident he could handle the Uchiha situation calmly.
With Shisui still alive, Ren and Shisui together could have resolved everything.
But Danzo had killed Shisui.
Even so, Ren alone was more than enough to suppress the Uchiha, regardless of what they attempted.
Hiruzen was certain of it.
Yet Danzo continued to oppose him at every turn.
"I haven't forgotten Kagami," Danzo replied coldly. "But your weakness will doom Konoha. Do you want the village to collapse?"
"Enough!" Hiruzen shouted. "As long as I'm here, you won't act. We have Ren! And don't forget—I am the Hokage!"
Silence fell.
Danzo's face darkened.
Again.
Always that line.
"Fine," he said coldly. "You'll regret this."
He turned and stormed out, slamming the door behind him.
Outside, he brushed past a masked ANBU standing guard.
In his anger, Danzo didn't even recognize who it was.
He snorted and left.
Behind him, Itachi watched his retreating figure in silence.
Back at the Root headquarters, Danzo erupted in fury.
He could not understand why his old friend still clung to hope for the Uchiha.
Of course, he knew the real reason.
One man.
"Ren…"
Danzo muttered the name.
Ren was his asset.
His.
Yet Hiruzen intended to claim him.
Unacceptable.
"The teacher's will must be carried out," Danzo said grimly. "Konoha must be stable. Compromise is weakness."
With Shisui gone, with no one left capable of quietly controlling the Uchiha, Danzo could not understand why Hiruzen hesitated.
The Uchiha would never produce another Madara or Kagami.
So why not eliminate the threat entirely?
"Danzo-sama."
A figure knelt behind him.
Aburame Torune spoke softly.
"Uchiha Itachi has arrived. He requests an audience."
"Uchiha Itachi?"
Danzo sneered.
He despised the Uchiha.
But after a moment's thought, he suppressed his anger.
"Fine. Let's see what game he wants to play."
Moments later, they reached Root's central courtyard.
Itachi stood there alone, surrounded by Root operatives with drawn blades.
Root and ANBU had never trusted one another.
"Uchiha brat," Danzo said coldly. "You wanted to see me?"
"Yes," Itachi replied, lifting his head. His scarlet eyes met Danzo's gaze without fear.
"I'm here to tell you one thing. I will handle the Uchiha rebellion."
"…Oh?"
Danzo paused, then laughed coldly.
"You? Handle it? With what authority? With what ability?"
"That's none of your concern," Itachi said flatly.
"The result will satisfy you. I will be more thorough than you were with Shisui."
The air froze.
Danzo's chakra surged violently.
"Think carefully before you speak."
"I know exactly what I'm saying," Itachi replied calmly. "I'm not here to argue the past. I'm here to make a deal."
"A deal?"
Danzo narrowed his eyes.
"Speak."
"I will eliminate the Uchiha problem entirely," Itachi said. "In return, Uchiha Sasuke must live."
"…That child?"
Danzo was genuinely surprised.
So this was his condition.
"If I refuse?"
Before the words fully left his mouth, Itachi's eyes changed.
The three tomoe twisted into a pinwheel.
Mangekyō.
Danzo's pupils shrank.
So this child had awakened it as well.
"I'll say it again," Itachi said, his voice devoid of emotion. "I will solve the Uchiha problem. Sasuke lives."
"I will also enter Akatsuki and gather intelligence for Konoha."
"For the village, I can make sacrifices."
"But this is my only condition."
"And Ren… isn't at your side tonight, is he?"
Silence stretched.
Finally, Danzo nodded.
"Sasuke will live. I guarantee it."
Itachi turned and left without another word.
Watching his back, Danzo's expression darkened.
Threatened by an Uchiha.
If not for the Mangekyō—and the cost of Izanagi—he would have killed the boy then and there.
"Mangekyō Sharingan…"
"Just like the teacher said," Danzo muttered. "They really are madmen."
One week later.
Outside Konoha, Obito, wearing Madara's guise, addressed the Akatsuki.
"The time is set. We move tonight."
Despite his words, the group's enthusiasm was muted.
Few of them truly obeyed him.
With his identity increasingly suspected, Obito no longer cared.
As long as he never admitted it, it didn't matter.
"Inside Konoha will be dangerous," he said. "But I'll ensure everyone gets out."
Orochimaru laughed softly.
"Fine. It's been a while since I visited Konoha."
Pain, Konan, Kakuzu, Sasori, and Jūzō nodded indifferently.
Jobs were jobs.
"Our target may include Ren," Obito added, irritation slipping through.
He hated hearing that name.
Once, he had plunged Konoha into chaos alone.
Now, merely approaching it felt like stepping into a grave.
"Still," he continued, forcing confidence, "the Uchiha will act as well. They'll draw Konoha's forces."
"Either Konoha protects the Uchiha—or abandons them."
"Either way, we win."
What Obito didn't mention was his true aim—
To bind Itachi to Akatsuki forever.
In an abandoned underground laboratory, Ren stood with Kabuto and Shisui.
"Preparations are complete," Kabuto said. "But evacuation will be difficult. The compound is too large."
"How many casualties do you expect?" Shisui asked urgently.
Ren considered.
"I want the Uchiha to be remembered as loyal to Konoha."
Kabuto frowned.
"You mean… no rebellion?"
"There is a traitor," Ren said quietly. "Someone within the Uchiha contacted Akatsuki—not to rebel, but to wipe out the clan."
Shisui went pale.
Ren handed them a scroll.
Akatsuki's movements. Hired assistance.
Kabuto understood immediately.
"You're using Akatsuki to restore the Uchiha's name."
"Yes."
"Akatsuki attacked. Konoha defended."
"That's all history needs."
"And Danzo?" Shisui asked.
Ren smiled.
"This time… he won't escape."
Night fell.
Emergency drills trapped the academy students.
Outside, alarms wailed.
Prisons erupted.
Fires spread.
And within the Uchiha compound—
Itachi began to kill.
Men.
Women.
Children.
Old.
Young.
No exceptions.
Blood soaked the streets.
From the shadows, Obito watched in silence.
Even he felt cold.
"Enough," he said. "We have our own tasks."
Then—
A voice spoke calmly behind him.
"Looking for me?"
Obito froze.
Ren stood there.
The night of annihilation had truly begun.
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