Ultimatum

Three minutes.

The final ultimatum.

Katsuki stood at the bottom of the steps leading to the main hall of the shrine, tilting her head slightly, a smile on her face, looking directly at the elders on the steps.

"Damn it, you arrogant brat!"

"We must never back down, or what will become of the Uchiha's dignity?"

"Where is Fugaku? Why hasn't the clan head shown up yet?"

The old men were in a state of chaos, while the remaining Uchiha clan members who were still able to move were either standing on the steps or scattered on both sides of the approach, but none of them rushed up to attack.

Starting from the destroyed torii gate entrance, more than two hundred clansmen lay dead on both sides of the short fifty-meter-long approach. Jonin, and the rest were Special Jonin and Elite Chunin. Their injuries varied in severity. Although none of them were in mortal danger, they were temporarily unable to move.

"That Katsuki is way too strong! Jonin sent even a Jonin flying like a puppet with a single slap. Tsk tsk, thank goodness I didn't listen to those old men and make a move..."

Otoha didn't think that Katsuki, that jerk, would treat him any special favors.

Just then, cries for help came from not far away.

"Otoha, you little rascal, come here and get me down, my leg is stuck."

Hanging from a tall, old pine tree is a middle-aged man with a broken leg, his injured leg wedged between the broken branches.

"Oh, I was wondering why you looked so familiar. It's Uncle Liu! You're having a good time! I didn't expect you to like this kind of thing..."

"You... you little bastard..."

Sixth Uncle almost choked on his own breath, driven mad by that little rascal Otoha.

"Fugaku, are you really not going to do anything about it?"

The adjutant asked with a worried expression.

"Manage? Why should we manage? Shouldn't it be common sense to clean up your own mess?"

At his large desk, Fugaku sat calmly in his chair, holding a teacup in one hand and flipping through the month's financial report with the other, seemingly oblivious to the ongoing conflict at the shrine.

"Since the elders brought this trouble upon themselves, why should I, the clan leader, have to clean up their mess? They forgot I was even there when they were causing trouble, but now that they've been beaten up, they're crying and begging for help... no, they're arrogantly ordering me to clean up their mess..."

Sweat dripped down the adjutant's forehead, and his heart pounded like a drum.

The elders who sent the man seeking help earlier were extremely rude, clearly having angered Fugaku.

The Uchiha Clan was not entirely monolithic. Fugaku, as the clan leader, actually had a very hard time. Not all the clan members were his supporters, and there were quite a few opponents. However, no one in the younger generation could rival him, so he inherited the position of clan leader without much effort.

However, this is not the end of the struggle; it is merely the beginning.

Those in the council of elders who were unwilling to relinquish their power, those who disapproved of Fugaku's ways, and those who had their own agendas—the opposition—came together and tirelessly fought with Fugaku for power.

This time, it's just yet another struggle.

The elders clearly wanted to take advantage of Fugaku's absence from the family to suppress Katsuki, establish the banner of inviolable family rules, and cultivate their own authority.

"A bunch of senile old fools, do they really think that Uzumaki Katsuki's outstanding performances on the battlefield were all just luck? They haven't been on the battlefield for too long, they've really forgotten how to fight."

With a cold, mocking laugh, Fugaku made no attempt to hide his disgust for those old men.

If it weren't for the obstruction of those old guys, his efforts to implement the changes wouldn't have been so difficult. A group of fools, immersed in past glories and unwilling to face the perilous future of the family, have transformed from heroes who made great contributions to the family in the past into parasites.

"But sir, the shrine is going to be demolished... If this continues, the family's reputation will be completely ruined."

Being able to serve as Fugaku's adjutant, he was naturally an absolute supporter of the Uchiha Clan, so even when faced with Fugaku's terrifying face that commanded respect without anger, he dared to utter a few dissenting words.

"At most, the shrine will suffer some damage to its auxiliary buildings. The main hall, worship hall, offering hall, kagura hall, dance hall, etc., will not suffer any damage. I can guarantee that."

Fugaku's deep, suppressed voice rang out.

The young adjutant looked utterly bewildered, unable to comprehend how the clan head, who had never even stepped out of his office, could possess such undeniable authority over the shrine's affairs... unless...

"It's just a private agreement. I will, as the clan head, acknowledge the marriage between Uzumaki Katsuki and Uchiha Otome. In return, Katsuki will clean up those old fogies for me. I will never allow the future of the clan to be devoured by these parasites. For this, I will even join forces with demons."

"Gulp!!"

The sound of swallowing was exceptionally loud, but Fugaku's coffin-like face remained unmoved. Instead, the adjutant who made the sound was startled by his own words.

Staring blankly at the clan chief who was still intently reviewing the reports, he stood frozen in place, like a clay puppet.

The fact that he was chosen from among many clansmen to serve as Fugaku's adjutant shows that, besides his loyalty, he was also quite intelligent. From Fugaku's few words, he roughly understood the cause and effect.

The clan leader and that Konoha's Calamity Lord had already secretly reached an agreement, easily slipping the Elders' Council, which they thought had outmaneuvered them, into their pockets. By using outsiders, they planned to severely damage the Elders' authority, then clean up the mess and, in the process, win back the loyalty of the clan members...

"Stop overthinking. Even I couldn't have known that those senile old fools would take people to the shrine. There are more than one place for discussions. If they hadn't provoked that bastard Katsuki, how could they have brought this trouble upon themselves? Even that lawless beast wouldn't bite indiscriminately. It's all the fault of those senile old fools."

"As for the shrine... it was completely dragged down by these old guys."

Fugaku gritted his teeth. The Uchiha Clan's territory was vast enough, with plenty of places for meetings, yet they had to cause trouble at the Naka Shrine. A bunch of old fogies...

"... Chieftain, when are we going to clean up this mess?"

The adjutant regained his composure. As a staunch supporter of the clan leader, he quickly solidified his resolve after the initial wavering. Regardless of whether the clan leader's words were true or false, he would not harbor any disloyalty.

Because they firmly believe that the Fugaku clan head is better able to lead the clan to grow and prosper than the elders' council, which is lagging behind the times, some special methods are necessary.

"Time? Let me check."

Fugaku looked up and glanced at the wall clock.

"... Let's set off now, to wipe the butts of our esteemed and wise elders! What an unpleasant job..."

The adjutant followed behind Fugaku, listening to the clan chief's complaints, keeping his mouth tightly shut, making sure not to utter a sound. (To be continued)