Chapter 200 – The End
"I don't know why… but with Uchiha Shin gone, I suddenly feel a kind of emptiness."
Inside Uchiha Fugaku's residence, by the familiar pond, Kei and Fugaku sat facing each other. Uchiha Jun knelt at their side, quietly preparing tea.
Fugaku held up a porcelain cup, gazing at the pale-green tea within. A sigh escaped him, faint but heavy.
The feeling was strange—subtle, yet real.
For half a year, Shin had been his greatest rival. And now, just like that, the man was dead. Not even by his own hand. The sense of imbalance in his heart was difficult to describe.
Perhaps, he thought, it was a blessing. One great obstacle had been removed; from here on, many matters would become far easier.
After all, the true power of a "spiritual leader" was never their sword, but their ability to rally people, to set clear principles and a direction for others to follow.
Such a person could be far more terrifying than a thousand—or ten thousand—ordinary shinobi.
Without them, an army was nothing but loose sand. With them, that same army became a storm.
"Is it the lack of a worthy opponent that unsettles you?" Kei exhaled softly. "If that's really the case… then I must say, you're not much of a partner."
"I know, Kei-kun. I know." Fugaku didn't take offense at Kei's bluntness. He only sighed again. "I'm just reflecting, that's all. No matter what, Shin had been close to my father. He was once close to me too. I never thought it would end like this…"
Kei remained silent. He'd heard fragments of Fugaku's history with Shin. A shame, really—once a bond, slowly corroded over time, until it hardened into irreconcilable conflict.
They had chosen different camps, different circles of interest. Given their positions, there had only ever been two possibilities: cooperation… or enmity.
Now, the outcome was clear. Fugaku had won. That was the only reason he could sit here peacefully today.
Had he lost, he might still be "clan head" in name, but he would have lost everything in truth.
"Enough. It's over now. Let's just announce to the outside that a fire broke out within the clan." Fugaku shook his head, unwilling to dwell on it any longer. Then he looked up at Kei.
"Kei-kun… may I ask you something?"
"Go ahead," Kei nodded. He wasn't sure what Fugaku wanted to know, but he saw no reason to refuse.
"What do you intend to do next?" Fugaku took a long breath. "Today, I'd like to finally understand your vision. We haven't sat down like this to talk in a long while."
"My plan?" Kei arched a brow. "I've never hidden anything. Our plans are already in motion, step by step, aren't they?"
Of course Kei understood what Fugaku was really asking. But he had no intention of laying everything out. Some matters had to be adjusted as time moved forward—plans shaped by countless unpredictable variables.
It wasn't that he distrusted Fugaku. Rather, some truths were too far ahead of their time—like the Nine-Tails Incident.
Kei already knew it was coming. He even knew how to stop it. But for his own aims—and to force the Uchiha to finally reveal their stance—he had no intention of preventing it.
Still, seeing the weight in Fugaku's gaze, Kei realized that refusing to say anything at all would only create more trouble later.
After a moment of thought, he decided to share something that was at once intriguing and vague—something that might inspire Fugaku, yet reveal little of the full picture.
If you want to know, Kei thought with a faint smirk, then let's see how you choose to handle it.
"You know what I mean, Kei-kun." Fugaku's tone grew solemn. "I've done everything you've asked of me, but I need direction. A clearer path."
"The Uchiha's future? Or how we'll seize greater influence once the Fourth Hokage takes office?" Kei gave a faint, mocking smile. "Clan Head, your mind does jump rather far ahead."
"I am the head of the Uchiha," Fugaku replied steadily. "I must think ahead. I must bear that responsibility."
"And you, Kei-kun—you're my partner. Soon, you'll be head of the Police Force. This is your responsibility as well."
"…So the clan head really does trust her that much." Kei's gaze slid toward Uchiha Jun.
Fugaku's confidence in her was obvious. That alone forced Kei to reassess his own view of her.
There were only two reasons a man like Fugaku would place such trust in a woman: either she possessed true ability… or she was his lover.
Kei decided it was safer to assume the former. A man like Fugaku had little room for indulgence in times like these.
"Fine," Kei tapped the table lightly, a smile tugging at his lips. "Since you want to hear it—and since you trust her enough to listen in—let's begin. Tell me, Clan Head, do you know how a village is divided internally?"
"…Divided?" Fugaku frowned. He didn't understand why Kei was bringing up something that seemed so strange, nor how to answer.
"I don't. What do you mean?"
"It's simple," Kei dipped a finger into the tea and traced a box onto the table. "Think of the village as a society. Within this frame lies everyone. Like that pond outside—we're just the fish swimming within it."
"And what of it?" Fugaku sighed.
"You know, my dream was always to leap beyond the pond. To sit quietly in the pavilion, sipping tea, watching the fish stir the water below.
"But I know now—that was naïve. Almost no one truly escapes the pond. At least, not me."
Fugaku shook his head. Once, his wish had been to flee that "cage." But now he understood he could never escape.
He had merged with the pond itself. He could not live without its water.
A fish outside the water… is nothing but a corpse.
Even with all his ambition, Fugaku knew the truth: he could not hold power and remain untouched by its burdens. Not unless some great upheaval came… not unless—
"No one can simply leave," Kei interrupted smoothly. "But we can hide behind the pond's surface. Guide it. Shape it. Change it."
Kei wasn't as pessimistic as Fugaku. He smiled faintly and continued sketching on the table.
"The village can actually be divided in two different ways: horizontally, or vertically."
"Horizontal… and vertical divisions?" Fugaku lowered his head to study the drawings. The moment he saw them, his pupils widened in shock.
Kei had drawn two identical boxes—the framework of the village. But the dividing lines within each were different.
As Kei wrote a few words inside the separated sections, Fugaku suddenly understood. He finally grasped what Kei meant by 'guiding it, changing it.'
"You… when did you come up with this?" Fugaku's voice trembled ever so slightly, though he quickly forced himself back into composure.
"Then tell me—what kind of choice do you think the Fourth Hokage will make?"
"No matter what he chooses, our role is the same: to weave the Uchiha into the fabric of it." Kei smiled thinly.
"Bloodline clans, commoner shinobi, those in power, or those under control—
as long as we strike the right balance, there will always be benefits to seize.
After all, we are neither the very top… nor the very bottom."
"I see…" Fugaku drew a long breath. "Then, Kei, can you lay out the correct strategies for both possibilities?"
"Not yet." Kei shook his head and rose to his feet.
"Because it all depends on the Fourth Hokage's choices—and his attitude.
I like making plans, but I won't bind myself to them. There are too many variables.
Adapting to circumstances—that is what a shinobi must do."
With that, Kei gave one last glance toward Uchiha Jun, then turned and left.
Fugaku sat in silence, watching him until he disappeared beyond the doorway. Then, slowly, he poured the remaining tea from his cup across the table, washing away Kei's diagrams.
He didn't bother warning Jun to keep quiet—he knew she was clever enough to understand what must never be spoken.
Looking up at the falling snow, Fugaku's mind drifted back to Uchiha Shin, to the final words they shared before his death.
Snowflakes swirled through the air. Shin knelt upon the ground, his blade already pressed against his stomach.
His face was calm. Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at Fugaku, who also held his sword ready.
Then Shin smiled faintly and spoke:
"Fugaku… it's been a long time since I called you by name. Don't blame yourself, and don't carry the burden. This is my honor… and it is yours as well."
"Yes, Uncle Shin."
Fugaku nodded, sighing softly. "I will never forget your teachings. But the fledgling has already grown. Uncle Shin… when we meet again in the Pure Land, I hope it will be at a tea table—sharing a quiet conversation."
"It will be. In death, there are no grudges, no tangled interests." Shin's smile deepened.
"Kei… he is strong, and far-sighted. I haven't known him long, but I can see—he has greater ambition than most."
"I know, Uncle Shin," Fugaku said quietly. "I have always known."
"Good. Then be cautious of him. I'll prepare the tea in the Pure Land, and wait for you. Come tell me then—how the Uchiha's future unfolds."
"I will… I promise I will."