"Sit down first," Senba gestured with his hand, his fingertips tracing the patterns of the teacup. The glaze shimmered with a warm glow under the morning light, yet his knuckles were slightly white from the force of his grip.
Aka and En quietly retreated half a step toward the door, leaving the space to these five brothers who had not been of one mind for a long time; only the ninja swords at their waists maintained a silent vigilance.
Yue He, Cang, and Yan took their seats in turn, and the five cushions around the tea table were finally filled—for the first time in ten years. As soon as Yue He sat down, he couldn't help but speak: "Big Brother, Xiuyue said you have a major matter to discuss. Could it be about the clan..."
Before he could finish, Senba raised his hand to cut him off.
Senba picked up the cold teacup and took a sip, the bitter taste spreading from the tip of his tongue to the depths of his heart. He remained silent for a full three breaths, his gaze slowly sweeping across each familiar face, as if trying to fill the ten-year void.
"I called you here today to confess something to you." Senba's voice was deeper than usual, carrying a raspiness settled by the years. "Ten years ago, when I suddenly announced my retreat into neutrality and stopped interfering in clan affairs, it wasn't because I was disheartened, and certainly not because I feared those Elders—it was because I saw through the hypocrisy of the Village. I originally intended to take our lineage and join Elder Setsuna's Radical Faction."
"What?!" Hefeng sat up straight abruptly, his teacup clattering against the edge of the table with a sharp 'ting'. Yue
He raised an eyebrow, his fingers unconsciously tapping the tabletop—he had long felt that his brother's retirement back then was suspicious. The 'Uchiha Sovereignty' advocated by the Radical Faction had always aligned with his brother's youthful ideas.
Cang's brows furrowed slightly as he reached out to press down on the Kunai at the corner of the table, while Yan sighed softly, a flash of 'as expected' realization crossing his eyes.
Senba ignored his brothers' reactions, his gaze drifting toward the wisteria flowers outside the window, as if seeing the scene from ten years ago: "But before I had the chance to contact Setsuna, Danzo Shimura came to my door."
His voice suddenly dropped, carrying an irrepressible tremor. "He held two photographs in his hand. One was of Shine practicing with a Kunai at the Ninja Academy, and the other was of Shisui, who had just learned to walk, smiling while clutching my finger."
"He said that if I dared to set foot in the Radical Faction, Shine would 'accidentally' die in an Iwagakure trap during his next mission; and since Shisui was so talented, he would be sent into the Root Organization to be 'well-trained'—and you all know what kind of state he would be trained into."
Senba's fist slammed heavily onto the tatami under the table, his voice filled with a humiliation that hadn't dissipated in ten years. "He forced me to retreat behind the scenes, forbidding me from managing clan affairs or consulting with you privately, otherwise he would move against the two children."
"That bastard!!" A furious roar erupted as Uchiha Yue He slammed the table, splashing the dregs of tea everywhere. His eyes instantly turned crimson, the Three-Tomoe Sharingan spinning wildly in his sockets, and the Chakra around him surged uncontrollably, making the window paper tremble.
"That is my own nephew! The only child my brother entrusted to us on his deathbed!"
Images from ten years ago rushed into Yue He's mind: he had knelt before Senba's door holding the newly orphaned Shisui, crying like a child. It was Senba who knelt down, gently patted Shisui's head, and said, "I will raise him from now on."
It was Senba who stayed by the bedside feeding medicine until dawn when Shisui had a fever in the middle of the night.
It was Senba who, despite the pressure from the Moderate Faction, insisted on hiring the best Genjutsu teacher for Shisui.
At that time, he had only just become a Ninja himself and didn't have the ability to raise Shisui! It was Senba who reached out in his most desperate moment to raise his biological brother's son to adulthood!
Because of this, Yue He's respect and trust for Uchiha Senba were even higher than for his own biological brother!
But he never expected that his once-powerful cousin would be threatened to such an extent because of his own nephew!
"I'm going to slaughter that old geezer!" Yue He stood up abruptly, reaching out to draw the ninja sword at his waist, the scabbard and belt letting out a sharp, grating sound.
His eyes were bloodshot as ten years of doubt, anger, and guilt toward his brother exploded instantly—back then, he had even complained that Senba was "cowardly," only to realize now that his brother had shouldered all the hidden blades alone.
"Yue He! Sit down!" Senba's voice rose sharply, carrying an unquestionable authority.
His gaze was as calm as a cold pool, locking onto Yue He. "If you rush out now, you won't be killing Danzo; you'll be sending yourself and Shisui to your deaths! The Root Organization's spies are all over Konoha. Do you think you can get near him by yourself?"
"Big Brother!" Yue He roared with reddened eyes, but his movements gradually stiffened when he saw the suppressed bloodshot veins in Senba's own eyes.
Only then did he realize that his brother's temples were already tinged with frost; ten years of silence had worn away not just his sharp edge, but also the light hidden in his eyes.
"Sit down." Senba's voice softened slightly, but it still carried weight. "I'm telling you this today not to make you throw your lives away, but to tell you—we have endured for ten years, and it's time to strike back."
The veins on Yue He's hand gripping the hilt bulged, but he eventually sat back down in frustration, his ninja sword hitting the tatami with a 'clatter'.
Uchiha Cang hadn't spoken the entire time, but his hands on his knees were already clenched into fists, his knuckles white and small beads of blood seeping from between his fingers. He was the most composed of the five, yet he had also been the first to support Senba's "retirement" back then; his guilt now burned more fiercely than his anger.
Uchiha Yan sighed softly and reached out to set the overturned teacup upright. His fingertips brushed against the tea stains on the table's edge, his eyes full of worry: "Big Brother, Danzo is ruthless. If we strike back rashly..."
Before he could finish, Senba interrupted him.
"It's not rash." Senba looked up, his gaze sweeping over the five men before finally landing on Shine.
The youth looked up at the right moment, the crimson Mangekyo flashing in his eyes for a fleeting second, causing the pupils of Yue He and the other two to shrink simultaneously in shock.
A cold arc finally curled at the corner of Senba's mouth: "Ten years ago, I didn't have the confidence to resist; but now, we do."
The living room fell silent instantly, save for Yue He's heavy breathing..
Outside the window, the wisteria flowers swayed gently in the wind, petals falling onto the windowsill, but no one was in the mood to notice this tranquility—ten years of endurance and grievance, at the moment the truth was revealed, had finally transformed into a prairie fire of revenge, and Shine's Mangekyo eyes were the very fuse that would ignite it...
Advance chapter available on pãtrêon Got1808