Ninety percent?
Uchiha Shisui felt his heart stir.
Brother Ren had never been someone who acted without confidence. If he said he had a ninety percent chance of success, then his stance on the matter was already obvious.
Thinking this through, Shisui spoke up.
"In that case, I support the more aggressive approach. Without destruction, there can be no reconstruction."
Indeed, Shisui had only asked about Ren 's confidence to gauge his attitude. And now, he would unconditionally support any decision Ren made.
Even if Shisui didn't fully understand every decision Ren made, he believed the problem wasn't that Ren was wrong—it was simply that his own perspective hadn't reached that level yet.
Fugaku frowned slightly.
"The entire shinobi world is in turmoil right now," he said. "I think it would be better to choose the safer option, to avoid making a grave mistake."
Although he had already begun considering stepping down as clan head, Uchiha Fugaku was still the leader of the Uchiha clan for now.
As long as he held that position, every decision he made had to take the entire clan into account. Naturally, that meant many constraints.
Ren understood Fugaku's personality and didn't take it personally.
He smiled.
"Opportunities like this don't come twice. Personally, I also prefer the aggressive approach."
"Clan Head, the vote is two to one now."
Fugaku froze.
Ren had clearly cornered him.
And since Shisui was obviously siding with Ren , Fugaku didn't have a better alternative.
Suddenly, Fugaku's eyes shifted. He grabbed Itachi, who was standing nearby, and pulled him forward.
"There are four people here, not three. Itachi may be young, but we shouldn't ignore his opinion."
The sudden move left Itachi flustered. When Ren and Shisui both turned to look at him, he became even more nervous.
"Alright," Ren said after a moment, shrugging. "Itachi, what do you think?"
"I…"
Itachi hesitated.
Although he had listened to the entire discussion and roughly understood the situation, asking him to give his own judgment was difficult.
After all, Itachi was only five years old right now. Even if he was precocious, he wasn't a monster.
"Don't be afraid," Fugaku said encouragingly. "Just say what you think."
Truthfully, Fugaku didn't expect Itachi to offer profound reasoning.
He only intended to rely on their father-son relationship to secure Itachi's vote, allowing him to argue further with Ren .
But Itachi instead glanced at Shisui.
When he saw Shisui nod slightly, Itachi hesitated before saying,
"I believe Brother Shisui won't be wrong."
Fugaku: "???"
Fugaku stared at his son in disbelief.
"HAHAHAHA!"
Ren burst into laughter.
"Clan Head Fugaku, it's now three to one. Even if you add Mikoto to the vote later, it'll only be two to three. The result is already decided."
"Damn it…"
Fugaku ground his teeth as he glared at Itachi.
What a truly filial son!
Itachi avoided meeting his father's gaze and quietly stepped a few paces away.
Since childhood, Fugaku had always been a strict and dignified patriarch in Itachi's eyes.
Shisui, on the other hand, was both mentor and friend.
Although Itachi respected his father deeply, when it came to ideals, he naturally felt closer to Shisui's way of thinking.
So this time, he had simply followed his heart.
Ren waved his hand.
"Alright, Clan Head Fugaku. It's a good thing that Itachi has his own thoughts. No need to blame him."
"As for whether we choose the aggressive or cautious approach…"
"Why don't you wait until I explain all the advantages and disadvantages first before making your decision?"
The whole "vote counting" thing had only been Ren 's joke.
Rather than forcing Fugaku through numbers, Ren preferred for him to stand on his side willingly.
Only then would Fugaku be able to act without hesitation.
Fugaku nodded.
"I would also like to hear your reasons for choosing the aggressive strategy."
Ren began calmly.
"Let's start with the cautious approach. It might allow the Uchiha to avoid this crisis, but it doesn't actually solve the underlying problem."
"On the contrary, as time passes, the hidden contradictions will continue to accumulate."
"And eventually, they will explode all at once."
"When that happens, the situation will be far worse—and we'll be completely on the defensive."
"At that point, the Uchiha truly might be beyond saving."
"But if we detonate the situation ourselves now, and prepare properly, we can control everything."
Fugaku frowned.
His expression was still serious, but inwardly he had already begun to waver.
Just as Ren said—the problem already existed.
It would have to be solved sooner or later.
Better to act proactively now rather than be forced later.
Ren continued,
"As for the aggressive approach—it only sounds extreme compared to the cautious one."
"As long as the three of us cooperate properly, my ninety percent estimate is actually conservative."
"The remaining ten percent is only because I don't like making absolute claims."
Fugaku asked seriously,
"So what exactly do we do?"
Ren smiled.
"It's simple."
"First, we secretly encourage the rumors, intensifying the contradiction between the clan and the village."
"Then we use the opportunity to cleanse the clan internally, eliminating unstable elements and uniting the Uchiha into a single force."
"After that…"
"It becomes a political game with Hiruzen and the others."
Ren 's smile faded as he spoke more seriously.
"When the time comes, we'll bring every contradiction between the clan and the village into the open."
"And we'll directly ask Hiruzen Sarutobi one question—"
"Does Konoha still need the Uchiha clan or not?"
Fugaku hesitated.
"Would that really work?"
Ren sneered.
"Clan Head Fugaku, you must remember something."
"The Uchiha are not only the most powerful clan in Konoha…"
"We are also the most powerful clan in the entire shinobi world."
"Forget the other villages for a moment."
"If the entire Uchiha clan relocated to Kumogakure, do you think those thieves who are always stealing bloodline talents would welcome us or not?"
"In other words…"
"The Uchiha have never been without a way out."
"Once the conflict is fully exposed, the ones without a retreat will be Hiruzen and the others."
"Tell me—would Hiruzen really dare to force the entire Uchiha clan to leave at this critical moment when the war hasn't even fully ended?"
"I'm not underestimating him."
"If Shimura Danzō were the Third Hokage, they might gamble everything in desperation."
"But Hiruzen Sarutobi?"
"He will compromise."
"He can only compromise."
"And when that time comes—"
"No matter how many rumors exist in the village about the Uchiha…"
"The Hokage himself will step forward to defend us."
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