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Konoha's morning should have been filled with the vitality and hope of postwar reconstruction.
Instead, a strange and unsettling undercurrent quietly began eroding the peace of its streets.
At first, it was only vague whispers drifting through the corners of taverns and the gaps between crowds at the marketplace.
"Have you heard...? The Uchiha Clan once produced a terrible traitor..."
"Yeah. I think his name was Uchiha Madara? They say he was unbelievably powerful, but his heart was completely black. He almost destroyed Konoha..."
"The Sharingan... If you use it too much, don't you eventually go insane?"
"Who knows? Those eyes are far too eerie. It's best to stay away from them..."
"..."
At first, these were only scattered guesses filled with uncertainty and hesitation.
But after only two or three days, the rumors spread as though infused with malicious chakra.
They quickly grew, twisted, and expanded, becoming so detailed that they were almost frightening.
"He wasn't just a traitor. Uchiha Madara wanted to destroy Konoha and drag us back from a united village into the Warring States Era of ninja clans!"
"The First Hokage was too kind. He spared Madara out of old friendship instead of killing him. If you ask me, he should never have shown mercy!"
"The Sharingan can see the darkest parts of people's hearts. The more you use it, the colder and more heartless you become until you no longer recognize even your own family."
"Just look at the Uchiha now. They seem more disciplined these days, but when those eyes stare at you... it's still terrifying."
"..."
Like a plague, the rumors spread.
Their speed and distortion far exceeded anything ordinary.
It was obvious that one or perhaps several experienced hands were secretly fueling the flames behind the scenes.
The rumors no longer focused solely on Madara's past.
They gradually began pointing toward the current Uchiha Clan.
"In the end, blood is blood. That's not something you can easily change..."
"It's good that they've earned achievements, but who can guarantee another Uchiha Madara won't appear?"
"The Hokage's position? Let an Uchiha take it? Just thinking about it is frightening. By then, would Konoha even still be Konoha?"
"..."
Fear and suspicion were the easiest emotions to spread.
Many ordinary villagers began looking at members of the Uchiha Clan with strange expressions.
Conversations that had once been natural and friendly became cautious.
Some shopkeepers even unconsciously stopped smiling or quietly moved their goods aside whenever an Uchiha walked past.
The Uchiha were naturally sensitive people.
The atmosphere within the clan compound quickly became heavy with anger.
"Damn it! What kind of nonsense are they spreading?!"
Uchiha Tekka slammed his fist into a training post, sending wood splinters flying.
"It's the Third Hokage! It has to be him!"
another hotheaded clansman gritted through his teeth.
"He can't stand seeing us prosper, so he's resorting to such despicable tactics!"
"Madara was Madara! We're us! Why should our entire clan be condemned because of one man?!"
"Lord Chiya has done so much for the village! Are they all blind?!"
"..."
Resentment rapidly built within the clan.
Many of the younger members were burning with righteous anger.
They wanted nothing more than to rush outside and confront those spreading the rumors.
Some even wanted to use their Sharingan to make those ignorant fools "see the truth."
At the critical moment...
Fugaku stepped forward once again.
Suppressing both his anger and anxiety, he sternly shouted down the emotional clansmen.
"Calm yourselves! No one is to act rashly!"
Standing among them with a grim expression, he forced himself to remain composed.
"This is an obvious provocation! They're trying to anger us into making irrational decisions."
"The moment we strike first, we'll fall straight into their trap! So we're just supposed to let them slander us?!"
someone shouted unwillingly.
"Of course not."
Fugaku's eyes sharpened.
"But we cannot fall into their trap. The Clan Leader already instructed us to wait, observe, and hold our ground."
"Trust the Clan Leader. He definitely has his own plans."
The moment Chiya's name was mentioned, the restless crowd gradually settled down.
Even so, the humiliation and anger remained like heavy stones pressing against everyone's hearts.
Outside the clan compound, Uchiha members carrying out missions or traveling through the village also felt the cold change in the atmosphere.
That silent rejection and fear hurt even more than direct insults.
Yet amid this gloomy fog woven from ancient ghosts and malicious rumors...
Konoha's younger generation...
Those young ninjas who had gradually grown up and learned to think for themselves...
Were the first to step forward with different voices.
While Kurenai Yuhi and Anko Mitarashi were eating together, they overheard several chunin at the next table discussing how terrifying Uchiha Madara had been.
Kurenai frowned deeply.
She suddenly set down her chopsticks, turned around, and spoke in a clear and unwavering voice.
"What's the point of talking about something that happened decades ago? All we know is that Lord Chiya protected the village and ended the war."
"The Uchiha Police Force has also become much more professional over the years."
"The last time my uncle came home drunk late at night, they patiently escorted him home."
"We shouldn't use the shadows of the past to deny the people of today."
Anko froze for a moment.
Looking at Kurenai's serious expression, she nodded and loudly agreed.
"Kurenai's right."
"Suspicion and fear won't solve anything."
"I trust the Uchiha I've seen."
...
Elsewhere, Might Guy was carrying out one of his crazy physical training sessions, walking around the training ground upside down on his hands.
When he overheard two women whispering about the evil nature of the Uchiha, he suddenly flipped upright, flashing his brilliant smile.
"Gossiping about your comrades isn't youthful!"
"Lord Chiya is the man who acknowledged my ninja way!"
"He's both a powerful rival and a respected comrade!"
"I believe in him!"
"I believe in the trust and friendship forged through sweat!"
His booming voice overflowed with unquestionable passion, leaving the two whispering women speechless.
Meanwhile, Nohara Rin and Shizune were helping at Konoha Hospital when they also heard similar rumors.
With a gentle but unwavering voice, Rin spoke to one of the injured patients spreading them.
"Please don't say things like that."
"Obito is my teammate."
"He's also a member of the Uchiha Clan."
"He's kind, passionate, and has always dreamed of becoming Hokage so he could protect everyone."
"Most members of today's Uchiha Clan are just like him."
Standing beside her, Shizune quietly nodded before adding,
"Uncle Dan once told me that Lord Chiya introduced the idea of 'enforcing the law with compassion.'"
"Many of us have personally experienced that."
"We can't deny an entire group because of one person's past."
The most eye catching scene came from Hatake Kakashi and Uchiha Obito.
After hearing people slander his clan, Obito became so furious that he was about to activate his Sharingan and confront them.
Kakashi immediately grabbed him.
"Idiot."
"Calm down."
Though his usual dead fish expression remained unchanged, his tone carried rare seriousness.
"If you run out there and start fighting now, you'll only make things worse."
"But they're saying things like that!"
Obito's eyes had already turned red.
"Proving yourself through actions is far more effective than arguing with your fists."
Kakashi looked calmly at him.
"Did you forget what Lord Chiya said before?"
"'Integrate into the village. Protect the villagers.'"
"Everything your clan has done these past years is obvious to everyone."
"It won't all disappear because of a few rumors."
After a brief pause, he looked toward the people watching nearby.
His voice became louder.
He was speaking to Obito...
But also to everyone else.
"My father once taught me that you judge a person by their actions, not by where they come from."
"Teacher Uchiha Chiya ended the war and protected the village from endless conflict."
"Uchiha Obito is my teammate."
"Every mission, he risks himself to protect his comrades. Those are the things I've seen with my own eyes."
"As for Uchiha Madara from decades ago..."
"When he abandoned the village, not a single member of the Uchiha Clan followed him. He was nothing more than a rogue ninja."
"If you're going to condemn the entire Uchiha Clan because of Madara... That simply isn't right."
"Uchiha Madara has nothing to do with the Uchiha we know."
Kakashi's words carried considerable weight among the younger ninjas.
His calm objectivity became like a sharp kunai, instantly piercing through the vague fear surrounding them.
Obito looked at Kakashi.
Then he looked at the villagers around them, many of whom had begun thinking after hearing Kakashi's words.
The anger within him gradually transformed into something far more complicated.
He forcefully wiped his eyes before shouting,
"That's right!"
"We Uchiha aren't like that! I'll become Hokage!"
"I'll change everyone's opinion! I'll show all of you what a true Uchiha really is!"
The voices of these young ninjas were still somewhat immature.
But they represented Konoha's future.
They represented a new generation no longer bound by the grudges of the past.
Their questions and their courage became rays of light, slowly dispersing the fog of suspicion covering the village.
What they believed in were the things they had personally experienced.
The Uchiha Police Force was no longer cold and arrogant.
Uchiha Chiya possessed mountain-like strength and reliability that ended the war.
Their Uchiha comrades were kind and passionate people.
"Law enforcement should have compassion."
The ideal Chiya had once spoken of was quietly proven true at this very moment.
Those small changes...
Those years of gradual integration...
Had finally become the ballast that steadied the ship when the storm arrived.
The rumors still slithered through the darkness.
But beneath the sunlight, more and more people began remembering.
They began thinking.
The Uchiha they personally knew...
Really didn't seem anything like the Uchiha described by those rumors.
And the man they respected...
Lord Uchiha Chiya...
Was certainly not the Uchiha Madara of the past.
Deep within the Uchiha clan compound...
Chiya stood quietly in the courtyard, watching two slender figures busily moving about.
The passionate red-haired Kushina watered the flowers.
The gentle black-haired Mikoto trimmed the branches.
The two women smiled brightly, their casual movements naturally intimate with one another...
During these past few days...
Chiya had thoroughly enjoyed his happiness.
Best friends.
Best friends indeed!~
They should be together!~
Only then could one plus one become greater than two!
As their relationship grew closer...
Joy and happiness naturally followed...
Chiya withdrew his gaze.
His eyes fell upon the table before him, where Uchiha Fugaku was meticulously reporting the recent situation.
Did Chiya truly know nothing about the Uchiha Clan's actions?
Of course he knew!~
He had simply allowed them to act.
Because the Uchiha were, after all, a clan.
This was simply the clan acting of its own accord.
As he listened to Fugaku report on the increasingly rampant rumors outside and the younger generation of ninjas stepping forward to defend the Uchiha...
There was still little change in Chiya's expression.
Only the faintest trace of a smile appeared at the corner of his lips.
"Look, Cousin Fugaku."
Chiya spoke softly, his gaze seeming to pass through countless walls toward those vibrant figures in the center of the village.
"The seeds of change we planted within the Uchiha all those years ago..."
"They've already sprouted."
"All we need now..."
"Is time."
"And patience."
"The more Hiruzen Sarutobi behaves like this..."
"The more it proves his weakness and his fear."
"With his own hands..."
"He's burying the old era that he desperately wants to protect."
"As for us..."
"We only need to quietly wait for dawn."
"The ninja themselves will speak for me..."
"And they will speak for the Uchiha."