By the time they reached the area near their third mission site, the sky had already darkened. The setting sun bled across the horizon, its light fading fast. After three battles and an entire day of running, everyone was worn out. Uchiha Ankoku signaled for them to rest and set up camp. Some were too tired to speak; others were waiting for Uchiha Kairen to explain what had happened.
Throughout dinner, hardly a word was said.
After finishing his meal, Uchiha Kairen stood up, walked to the campfire, and quietly stamped it out. The orange sparks faded into the night.
"You're all wondering," he said, his voice calm but heavy, "why I had to kill them—why I killed shinobi from the same village."
He looked around the circle, meeting each of their eyes.
"Before answering that, I want to talk about something first—my thoughts about the clan and the village.
The Uchiha and the Senju founded Konoha together. But our ancestor, Madara, grew discontent with how the village was being run. He wanted to lead the Uchiha out of Konoha entirely."
Kairen's eyes glowed faintly in the firelight.
"But the clan didn't want to return to the Warring States Period. Too many had died back then—brothers, parents, children. No one wanted their kids to live in that world again. So they abandoned Madara, refused to follow him into another war."
He paused, then said quietly, "Enraged, our ancestor fought the so-called God of Shinobi—Senju Hashirama. The Valley of the End still stands as the scar of that battle."
"Madara died there. Hashirama was mortally wounded and passed not long after. Before dying, he passed the title of Hokage to his brother, Tobirama Senju.
Now think about it—if your own brother was killed, how would you treat the clan of his killer, even if they hadn't directly taken part?"
His tone darkened. "Their clan head defected. Their clan head caused the death of your brother. Their clan head killed Konoha's guardian deity.
So what did that make us? A cursed clan. A clan of madmen. Even our leader was insane—how could the rest of us be any different? Madness became our supposed destiny."
He clenched his fist.
"With Konoha's protector gone, the other nations saw weakness. The First Great Ninja War broke out soon after. Imagine being a Konoha shinobi back then—how would you feel? Without your clan head, our god of shinobi wouldn't have died. Without him, we wouldn't have been sent to the frontlines. Without him, your family might still be alive."
Kairen exhaled. "Tobirama still feared the Uchiha. He knew it wasn't wise to move against us openly during such chaos.
So he feigned trust. He gave us control of the Konoha Police Force—locking us inside the village walls under the guise of responsibility. Unless there was war, the Uchiha were forbidden from taking missions beyond the village.
He even took Uchiha Kagami as his disciple—pretending to ease the tension while grooming a compliant clan head."
Kairen gave a bitter smile. "And what is the Police Force? It looks powerful, but its so-called authority only applies to civilians and minor clans.
We're a proud people. We acted fairly and refused to bow our heads. We believed our justice spoke for itself. But to the smaller clans and civilians, we looked violent. Arrogant. Dangerous.
Their resentment deepened. The village's hatred toward us grew."
He looked at them one by one. "From the day we graduate the Academy—or even without attending—we're sent straight to the Police Force. Everyone there is Uchiha.
So before we even reach the rank of jōnin, before we become the village's core strength, we have no bonds with anyone outside the clan.
Tell me, then—how do you think others treat us on missions? We're not the kind to flatter or beg for approval. Because we are Uchiha."
At that, Uchiha Retsu and Uchiha Honō listened intently. Uchiha Ankoku frowned deeply, as if trying to digest every word.
Kairen continued, "After the Second Hokage's death, the guards brought back word that Tobirama had passed the title to Sarutobi Hiruzen. But do you think the Senju believed it?
That escort team had Uchiha, Sarutobi, Shimura, Akimichi, and Mitokado members—but no Senju.
They said Tobirama died in battle, but his body was never found. No official decree, no written order—just their word.
Remember—Konoha was founded by the Senju and the Uchiha. The Hokage seat should have stayed between those two clans. When people began saying that out loud, both the Senju and Uchiha started eyeing the title again."
"At the time, Uchiha Kagami had the strongest support. Maybe he didn't want Konoha to fall into civil war, or maybe he was promised something—but he publicly withdrew and endorsed Sarutobi instead.
That act was betrayal. He betrayed the Uchiha. Betrayed the clan's trust. That was the only chance we ever had to change our fate."
"When Hiruzen took office, he knew he didn't have the power to stand alone. So what did he do?
He weakened both the Senju and the Uchiha, while forming a new Advisory Council—filling it with his allies from the escort unit. Notice who wasn't included? Kagami Uchiha and the Ino–Shika–Chō trio's Akimichi Torifu.
And when the First Great Ninja War began, the first Uchiha to die… was Kagami himself, the man who had once stood as Hiruzen's rival. The clan that suffered the most deaths overall? The Senju."
Kairen's eyes dimmed. "The Uzumaki clan could have helped the Senju recover. Mito-hime was still alive then. But what did the Hokage faction do?
They ignored her pleas. The Uzumaki—an entire nation—were annihilated.
Their spiral emblem—the one on our own headbands—was a symbol of friendship between Konoha and Uzushiogakure. And when their country was destroyed, we sent only a token rescue team—barely a dozen shinobi."
He shook his head. "Konoha has the best intelligence network in the world, spending fortunes every year. Yet somehow, we 'learned too late.' Late enough that all we could do was collect bodies.
That's why the remaining Uzumaki survivors never came to Konoha. They don't trust us. We betrayed our allies—the ones who had bled beside us during the war.
When they see our headbands now, what do you think they feel? Joy… or hatred?"
Kairen's tone turned cold. "The Third Hokage took Tsunade as his student to curry favor with Mito-hime. But did he ever truly teach her? None of her jutsu came from him. It was politics—nothing more.
Tsunade was tricked into staking her clan's last strength on the battlefield.
And after the Second Great War? The Senju were almost wiped out. Their young clan head was blown apart—literally, nothing left but ash."
He stared into the distance. "Who's next, then? Who else stands as a mountain above these usurping clans? Mito-hime and the Uchiha.
Mito-hime is old. She's been used as the cornerstone to suppress us. But when she's gone, who will keep the Uchiha in check? No one."
He took a slow breath. "A single Uchiha, at equal strength, is unmatched in the ninja world. Everyone knows that.
So what do they do? Our geniuses vanish mysteriously. Some are killed in accidents. Others never return from missions.
All of this traces back to Root—and to Shimura Danzō. He's the loudest voice pushing the 'Uchiha threat' narrative.
He's a master of manipulation—if there's ever a rumor that harms someone's reputation, it spreads through the village within hours. That's his doing.
I've long suspected that the missing geniuses from our ranks… were assassinated by him.
The only reason we're still alive is because our leaders—our clan heads, our teachers—have been silently protecting us at great cost."
His gaze hardened. "The Uchiha's enemies have never been other villages. Our enemies are here—inside Konoha, standing behind us on the battlefield.
That's why I killed those Root shinobi. Anything that weakens our enemies, no matter how small, must be done."
"The path to changing our clan's fate," he said, voice steady and cold, "is not through submission. It's through struggle.
Peace is our goal—but conflict is the means. Peace is relative. Struggle is absolute. Only through struggle can true peace exist."
He looked at them all. "If you seek peace through compromise, peace dies. If you seek peace through struggle, peace survives."
The camp fell silent.
Everyone stared at him, stunned.
Uchiha Ankoku had thought his attack on Root was just revenge for the ambush on their training field. But now, hearing his words, he looked at Kairen not as a child, but as an equal.
He was only nine years old… yet he saw farther and deeper than most adults in the clan. It was terrifying.
Then Retsu spoke, breaking the silence. "I don't know how you learned all this, Kairen, but I support you.
I'm a simple guy—if someone treats me well, I treat them well. I can't wrap my head around politics, but I can tell when the villagers look at us with hate. You're my brother, and whatever you do—I'm with you."
He walked up, put an arm around Kairen's neck, and grinned at Honō.
Honō hesitated for a moment before speaking. "Just cutting down Root operatives won't change much. It'll only weaken them a little.
If what you're saying is true, the Hokage faction's endgame is to erase or diminish the Uchiha.
We should stay quiet for now. Don't move too fast. If we break with the leadership too early, the clan will be cornered.
But killing a few of those bastards in Root? I'm fine with that. I support you too. After all, we're family."
Uchiha Ankoku watched the three young ones and sighed inwardly. Are kids today really thinking like this?
"Back when your squad was first formed," he said after a pause, "during the survival exercise—the higher-ups were watching.
There were nine of them in total—three jōnin, six genin. Six from Root, the rest from the Anbu.
The Root operatives you killed were completely wiped out. Anbu withdrew but continued observing from a distance.
You didn't know this, but you were being protected. Kairen, your father was among the guards—he's one of the few who still believes in dialogue with the village.
Your uncle personally placed him in that squad to protect you.
We dispatched seven three-tomoe Sharingan users that day. The clan values you greatly.
But remember—right now, you're still too weak. Don't repeat words like these to others, not until you've grown strong enough. Without power or seniority, even if you speak the truth, no one will stand by you.
Focus on strength. The future belongs to you.
You said something that struck me deeply: If peace is sought through struggle, it will endure. If peace is sought through compromise, it will perish.
Now rest. Tomorrow, your real trials begin. Complete the mission."
Night deepened.
Kairen couldn't sleep. He sat outside his tent, on a cold stone, staring at the dark forest.
Footsteps approached. It was Uchiha Honō.
"Your thoughts are dangerous," Honō said quietly. "One mistake and there's no turning back. But the Uchiha are already sinking.
Honestly, I support you too. I'll help you however I can.
Ankoku-sensei called Ze-sensei to join us—you know what that means. Only those who can speak for the clan have the right to play this game.
Let's end this chaos in our generation, Kairen. Let the next one grow up under Konoha's sunlight again.
'The Will of Fire,' huh? Sounds beautiful."
Kairen smiled faintly. "Yeah… beautiful indeed."
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