Land of Fire.
Yuzuru Uchiha's figure appeared out of thin air. Without pausing, he continued swiftly toward the Land of Rice Fields.
"Hah… remembering the tears of years gone by…"
He hummed a cheerful little tune, clearly in good spirits.
The battle with Sakumo Hatake had given him a far clearer sense of his own strength.
Even relying solely on the dynamic vision of the Mangekyō Sharingan, he had managed to handle most of Sakumo's attacks.
Though his taijutsu and ninjutsu hadn't been enough to seriously threaten Sakumo, Yuzuru didn't care.
Taijutsu and ninjutsu only needed to be sufficient.
His true trump card was Kamui.
Every attack Sakumo had unleashed with his full strength—Yuzuru could have evaded effortlessly with a single phase shift.
If he hadn't been conserving his Dōjutsu Power, he could've killed Sakumo outright with the power of his dual Kamui.
Against the overwhelming might of the Mangekyō Sharingan, a traditional powerhouse like Sakumo was at a natural disadvantage.
At this point, there were few in the shinobi world who could truly threaten Yuzuru's life.
That was the power of twin Kamui—absolute security.
"Konoha must be in chaos by now," he murmured with a grin.
"But this is just the beginning. Let's hope Hiruzen Sarutobi and his friends can hold out for a while longer—it'd be boring if they collapsed too soon."
"And those Konoha villagers who despised the Uchiha… someday they'll learn exactly whose sacrifice bought them their peace."
———
"So that's how it is. Yuzuru Uchiha's strength has far exceeded our estimates."
After hearing Sakumo Hatake's report, Hiruzen Sarutobi's brows knit into a deep scowl.
From Sakumo's description, there was no doubt—the boy possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan.
It was unexpected that after so many years, the power that Madara Uchiha had relied on to end the chaotic world had reappeared.
Damn it!
'Wasn't it just a bit of mistreatment? Couldn't they have endured it for the sake of the village?'
'Was it necessary to go to this extreme?'
As Hiruzen sat in silence, Danzō Shimura's cold voice broke the air. "A brat with a Mangekyō Sharingan can fight Sakumo to a standstill. That kind of power should've been ours to control."
"Hiruzen, the entire Uchiha clan has defected, and the future Nine-Tails jinchūriki has vanished. You must take full responsibility as Hokage!"
Hiruzen rubbed his temples, exhausted.
Of all times, Danzō chose now to score points.
"Enough. What matters now is tracking the Uchiha's movements—and their intentions."
"If another village takes them in and uses them against us, we'll be in deep trouble."
At his words, Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado jumped in immediately.
"Hiruzen, we should send troops to eradicate those evil Uchiha!"
"Yes! That clan has been a menace to the village for too long. It's time we removed that tumor once and for all!"
"But their Sharingan eyes belong to Konoha. We must recover all of them intact."
Hiruzen stared at the pair, unable to hold back a sigh. "You two are forgetting something—the Uchiha are not weak. And now they have Yuzuru, who wields the Mangekyō Sharingan. How do you propose we 'eradicate' them?"
Danzō snorted. "What, the great Hidden Leaf can't handle a single Uchiha clan?"
Hiruzen took a long drag on his pipe. "And what if the other villages don't sit idly by?"
"If they unite against us, like in the previous shinobi wars, what then?"
"Will you and your followers go to the front lines?"
Danzō's expression twitched. "The Root must remain in Konoha to ensure the village's internal security. We can't waste resources in battle."
Koharu and Homura quickly echoed, "Our clans suffered heavy losses in the explosion at the Uchiha compound. We'll need time to recover."
"Then what the hell are you even talking for?" Hiruzen roared, slamming a fist on the table.
The thought of the Uchiha possibly aligning with rival villages filled him with dread.
Before, he hadn't considered the Uchiha particularly indispensable. But now that they were gone, every decision felt like walking on a tightrope.
The council bickered endlessly, each avoiding responsibility, and no resolution came of it.
At last, Hiruzen ended the session with a sigh, instructing Sakumo to lead the Anbu in searching for the Uchiha's new base.
"Sakumo—tell them this: if they're willing to return, Konoha will forgive them. We'll let bygones be bygones."
———
You can't hide fire under paper.
And last night's explosions from the Uchiha district had echoed across all of Konoha.
Within hours, every villager knew the shocking news—
The Uchiha clan had defected. Every single one of them.
But while Hiruzen worried and Danzō schemed, the common villagers reacted quite differently.
The Uchiha had never been popular in Konoha. Most found them cold, prideful, and distant.
So when word spread that the entire clan had left, the general response was… amusement.
"Those arrogant Uchiha finally left? Good riddance! They never contributed anything to the village anyway."
"Exactly. Always acting superior—now Konoha can finally breathe in peace."
"Letting them run off feels too generous. We should brand them as rogue ninja!"
"Konoha doesn't need the Uchiha. I'm drinking tonight to celebrate!"
"If they think this will make us regret it, they're dead wrong. I can't wait to see them crawl back begging like dogs!"
Before long, the Uchiha ruins had become a tourist spot—villagers lined up to see the ashes of the once-proud clan.
Konoha's taverns were more crowded than ever.
It was like a festival—a celebration of the Uchiha's downfall.
———
For the major clans—Shimura, Mitokado, and Sarutobi—the mood was even brighter.
When common villagers left, they lost laborers to exploit.
But when a powerful clan like the Uchiha vanished, it meant only one thing: more wealth and territory to divide among themselves.
Only the Nara clan, known for their intelligence, seemed to recognize the danger.
Everyone else celebrated, blind to what the loss truly meant.
In their eyes, it had always been Konoha that protected the Uchiha— Never the Uchiha who protected Konoha.
T/n:
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