The old man really is biased.
Tsunade couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.
Clearly, this whole thing had been led by Kyoichi. At most, she had just cheered him on, or simply agreed with his plan. Yet in the end, she was the one who got scolded.
She had expected this outco long ago, but when it actually happened, she still felt so simring resentnt.
Then again...
On second thought, it didn’t matter. She was just here to take the bla anyway—whatever the result, it was all the sa.
So be it!
She was taking the fall for Kyoichi.
And besides...
This Hokage business? You could just barely count it as sothing done for Kyoichi’s sake. Taking a few reprimands was no big deal. It wasn’t like the old man could co up with anything new to say.
Outdated thinking, that’s all, Tsunade grumbled in her heart.
The village, anwhile, was in chaos. With the imnse chakra fluctuations from the Gedo Statue, the entire Military Police Force had mobilized, and many sensory-type ninja had rushed out in the night to investigate.
Had Tsunade returned a little later...
The Third Hokage might well have sounded the alarm, putting the entire village on high alert.
There was no way to explain things one by one.
Tsunade took a deep breath, ford hand seals, and—
Summoning Technique!
A massive slug appeared on the training grounds, then imdiately split apart, dispersing into every corner of the village.
Each split slug, following Tsunade’s orders, sought out the ninja patrolling the streets and relayed her ssage. Before long...
Throughout the village, most people had received word.
"Kanda Kyoichi is testing a ninjutsu. It’s not an enemy attack. Everyone, remain calm."
The crowd began to settle down and head back.
But...
Such an explanation clearly couldn’t convince everyone.
It might fool the children, but anyone with a little more knowledge wasn’t buying it—especially those ninja who lived closer to the Forest of Death.
And among them...
Of course, was the Uchiha clan.
Testing a ninjutsu? Who were they kidding!
The first thought that ca to Fugaku’s mind was of the stone tablet hidden in the clan compound. He suspected Kanda Kyoichi was concealing part of the truth.
But...
As the weak party, he didn’t dare confront Kyoichi directly. All he could do was turn a blind eye, pretending not to know.
Still, he was no fool.
That strange, terrifying chakra—whether it was a ninjutsu test or not, he couldn’t say, but it was surely connected to Nagato and the Rinnegan.
"Clan head, shall we..."
"Don’t go looking for death. The Uchiha are already in enough turmoil."
Fugaku sighed, casting a glance at the Elder before speaking. "Whatever the truth is, it doesn’t concern us. Do you understand? Knowing too much isn’t always a blessing."
"Yes, sir!"
The Elder bowed his head and withdrew.
Fugaku could only feel helpless. Both his influence within the clan and his voice in the village were waning. But really...
Could they bla anyone but themselves?
It was their own infighting that had thrown the Uchiha into disarray. Who else could they bla?
As for the matter of the Police Force—
By now, Fugaku fully agreed with Shisui’s proposal back then. He had never once regretted relinquishing control of the Police Force.
The Uchiha might appear powerful and glorious, a noble clan in the eyes of common shinobi, but compared to the strength of an entire village, they were far too small.
And the Police Force’s authority?
It was too great—so great that the Uchiha, as they stood, were never truly qualified to hold it completely.
Even if Konoha didn’t strip them of it, one day, for so reason or another, they would have lost it—or worse, they might have been forced to beg the village to take it off their hands.
So...
Compromise with Konoha was the only correct path.
Otherwise, who knew when the clan might already have been ruined by Madara—
Madara, who no longer even regarded them as kin.
Especially since—
——That man may already have obtained the secret to becoming the Sage of Six Paths.
Fugaku understood this clearly.
That was why he knew: the Uchiha had no strength to challenge anyone right now. All they could do was obediently wait and see if Kanda Kyoichi had any use for them.
If he did...
Perhaps they still had so value, and could hope to earn a small share of the benefits.
Kyoichi, in truth, did need the Uchiha’s help.
But...
Not yet.
The clan was too weak, too divided.
Fugaku himself had quieted down, but when it ca to unifying the clan’s voice, he was useless—indecisive, hesitant, lacking all firmness. The clan elders had already been stripped of their authority, but they still had their tongues.
Fortunately, Kyoichi had never placed much expectation on him.
He looked instead to Inahori to achieve results—to rise up and replace Fugaku as the true leader of the Uchiha.
Of course...
Kyoichi wouldn’t leave Inahori to do it alone.
He would give him a hand.
For example...
White Zetsu cells!
---
The next day, in the Anbu.
Lately, Inabi had been juggling both the clan’s efforts to unify their voice and his Anbu duties—keeping watch on their traitorous kinsn. He truly was running himself ragged.
But...
To be honest, Inabi had no idea what Kyoichi intended to do with those clansn.
Yes, they were traitors. But still, they were Uchiha. Each one was crippled, blinded in one eye or even both—it was pitiful.
In the end...
He decided to speak with Kyoichi.
"You want to save them?"
"Eh? K- Kyoichi-sama, I..."
Inabi faltered, at a loss for words.
He hadn’t expected Kanda Kyoichi to already know what was on his mind, before he even spoke.
"To be honest, I’ve no intention of killing them. But now isn’t the ti to release them. If you can accomplish what I want, then you can take them back."
Kyoichi stopped there.
This was only a shadow clone anyway. With Minato away, the Anbu still needed a steady hand to remain in place.
But for this matter, even a clone was more than enough—it wasn’t anything major.
Inabi hesitated for a mont before asking: "You want to persuade them?"
"Not just them."
"...I understand. Thank you for your guidance."
He bowed and made to leave.
"Oh, one more thing. There’s a type of cell—transplanting it can reduce the strain on outsiders who use the Sharingan. How it will affect your own people, though, is still uncertain. Do you want to try it?"
"...Huh?"
Inabi froze for several seconds.
He hesitated again, then said: "May I... have so ti to think about it?"
"Of course."
Kyoichi nodded.
Inabi bowed and withdrew.
What Kyoichi wanted was a unified Uchiha—one that wouldn’t grow strong only to turn their weapons against him like a pack of white-eyed wolves.
Only then...
Could he truly commit to cultivating them.
And of course...
That cultivation would not be about further developing the Sharingan.
That was the old path.
He wanted to teach the Uchiha sothing new.
It was a new era—yet they still clung to those eyes of theirs, as if without them, every Uchiha was worthless.
In that sense...
Kyoichi actually admired Sasuke.
At the very least, when presented with the chance to awaken his eyes, Sasuke had resolutely chosen to give it up—to rely on his own strength instead.
True, in the end he didn’t entirely succeed in relying solely on himself. But that resolve—that spirit—was worth recognition.
The Uchiha of the new age... should take Sasuke as their model!
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