While Uchiha Ren and Uchiha Mikoto quietly enjoyed their fleeting moment of tenderness—
Elsewhere, following behind Uchiha Fugaku, Uchiha Shisui walked with a deeply furrowed brow.
Loyalty to the village.
Loyalty to the clan.
The two ideals tangled in his mind until everything felt muddled.
Unable to hold it in any longer, the young Uchiha spoke to the broad figure ahead of him.
"Brother Fugaku… what do you think about what happened at the clan meeting?"
"Think?"
Fugaku slowed slightly. Under the moonlight, his broad shoulders seemed unusually heavy.
He took a deep breath, as if trying to release the weight in his chest.
"From the clan's perspective… Ren is absolutely right."
He paused, his voice lowering.
"But from the perspective of Konoha's leadership… the entire Uchiha clan is guilty beyond redemption."
Shisui quickened his pace, pressing closer.
"Then what should we do?"
"Now that Sister Mikoto has also sided with Brother Ren, those two factions together control nearly three-quarters of the clan."
"With Ren's decisiveness… they could truly carry out an attack on the Hokage Tower."
"They might even succeed in assassinating the Hokage."
Beside them, Uchiha Yakumi and more than a dozen others from their faction turned their attention toward Fugaku.
What Ren and Mikoto had said during the meeting had shaken them deeply.
For the first time, they had seriously considered the relationship between the Uchiha and Konoha's leadership—
From the standpoint of power and reality.
The small favors they had once received in exchange for loyalty…
Now felt increasingly uncomfortable.
Did the Uchiha really need those trivial benefits?
Was Konoha's leadership truly worth such devotion?
If what Ren said was true—
Wouldn't it be better to unite and confront them openly?
The members of the clan head's faction now waited for their leader's answer.
Fugaku was not a fool.
His thinking had simply been shaped—over years—by an environment that leaned toward compromise and closeness with the Hokage's faction.
A kind of ingrained inertia.
He turned his head slightly, looking at Shisui and the others.
"Do you remember something else Ren said?"
Without waiting for an answer, he continued.
"Konoha's leadership is not the same as Konoha itself."
"The Uchiha's enemy is not the entire village… but the remnants of the Senju's influence within it."
"We must unite all forces worth uniting… and strike at those who must be eliminated."
"In the end, we need to understand who our real enemy is."
Words he had once dismissed now resurfaced clearly in his mind.
Standing firmly on the clan's side—
Ren's ideas, though radical, were not without reason.
Shisui frowned, still confused.
"But Brother Fugaku… if Konoha's leadership doesn't represent Konoha, then what are they?"
"If the Uchiha clan head can't command the Uchiha… is he still the clan head?"
Uchiha Yakumi suddenly spoke from the side.
"Even within our clan, divisions exist."
"So why wouldn't a village built from both clans and civilians have its own factional conflicts?"
All eyes turned toward him.
At Fugaku's subtle nod, Yakumi continued calmly.
"Ren said it before—the main internal conflict in Konoha is between the old shinobi clans and the rapidly growing civilian ninja."
"The fallen Senju were devoured by Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others."
"Even the scraps they let fall were enough to make civilian ninja grateful."
"But as civilian ninja grow in number and strength…"
"After securing their own interests, the Hokage's faction has no choice but to turn against the clans."
"And our clan—already at odds with them, controlling the Police Force, and holding significant power—"
"Becomes the perfect target."
The more Yakumi spoke, the more animated he became, his voice trembling with realization.
"With the push from Konoha's leadership…"
"The conflict between the Uchiha and Konoha has become the central contradiction within the village."
Having laid out his thoughts, he exhaled deeply, clarity settling over him.
Then, firmly—
"They intend to step over our corpses and take everything we have."
The weight of his words lingered.
Shisui fell silent.
He didn't fully understand yet.
But that final conclusion echoed in his mind.
Since childhood, whether in the clan or at the academy, what they were taught most—
Was how to kill.
After that—
Love the clan.
Love the village.
But why love them?
How should that love be expressed?
As shinobi—trained to take lives—
What did they truly understand?
For the first time, Shisui felt lost.
"Where the leaves dance, the fire burns eternal…"
he murmured softly.
"The fire will continue to illuminate the village, allowing new leaves to grow…"
"…Is that wrong?"
"The words aren't wrong," Yakumi replied with a sneer.
"The people are."
"The Senju brothers fought on the front lines."
"And now look at Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others—they've become the ones basking in the fire's light, the so-called 'new leaves.'"
"No wonder Ren looks down on them."
"Yakumi."
Fugaku shot him a sharp look.
"Show proper respect to the Hokage."
Then he reached out, placing a hand on Shisui's shoulder.
Of all the younger generation, he valued this boy highly.
After all—
Uchiha Shisui was a descendant of Uchiha Kagami, one of the Second Hokage's trusted guards.
A bridge between the Uchiha and Konoha.
"Shisui, don't overthink it."
Fugaku's voice was steady.
"The path forward for the clan… is for us older ones to decide."
The reassurance helped, if only slightly.
Shisui forced a small smile.
"I understand, Brother Fugaku."
Fugaku nodded, then turned his gaze to the others.
"Once we return, rest where you need to, prepare where you must."
"And be mindful of what should and shouldn't be said."
A brief pause.
Then, firmly—
"For the future of the clan…"
"For the Konoha that belongs to the Uchiha…"
"Let us stand united, crush Kirigakure—"
"And return with glory."
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