Bang!
Shimura Danzō was furious. He slammed his cane hard against the floor.
His face was frighteningly grim.
He turned to look at his old friend, the Third Hokage.
Suppressing his anger, he asked, "Hiruzen, the Leaf needs a new direction. You—"
"Why did you frame Uchiha children during this chaos?"
But before he could finish, the Third Hokage pointed at him and demanded,
"Frame the Uchiha..."
Hearing that, Shimura Danzō's breath caught.
He instinctively ignored the words "children" and focused on "Uchiha" and "frame."
He framed the Uchiha almost every day!
Otherwise, how could the reputation of one of the Leaf's great clans have gone downhill so quickly?
But which incident was Hiruzen talking about?
Never mind. It didn't matter. He had indeed done it.
Prejudice in people's hearts was a mountain.
But—what if people themselves accepted that mountain as a given?
"Hiruzen, why... are you bringing this up now?"
Danzō's voice quieted, though he still tried to defend himself.
"Those naturally evil Uchiha brats—are you saying you'd let them destroy the village?"
Thump, thump, thump.
Seeing that his old friend hadn't changed a bit, Hiruzen was exhausted.
He took out his pipe and tapped it on the table to stop him.
"Enough! What the village needs most right now is harmony, not infighting!"
"But don't forget, the Nine-Tails' eyes today were clearly—"
Danzō retorted, his expression displeased.
But before he could finish, he was interrupted again.
"I said enough!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen rose abruptly and stared straight at Danzō.
"You need to understand: I'm the Hokage!"
The authority he had cultivated over years as Hokage pressed down on Danzō in full force.
That final sentence was like the last straw that broke the camel's back.
It ignited all of Danzō's resentment.
He whipped his cane aside and snapped, "You'll regret this, Hiruzen!"
Bang!
With that, he turned and stormed out!
The three people left in the room fell silent for a moment. Then Utatane Koharu ventured to ask,
"Hiruzen, could there be a problem with the framing of the Uchiha?"
"Danzō may pull plenty of strings behind the scenes, but he still has the village's interests at heart."
"Who else would be so hostile toward the Uchiha besides Danzō?"
The Third Hokage slapped the table and demanded,
"Are you suggesting a two-year-old child went into the barrier by himself?"
Thump.
That left them both completely silent.
In front of the Uchiha Clan compound,
Uchiha Jin's little legs were moving at a furious pace.
With the Light as a Swallow trait boosting him, his coordination had reached a whole new level.
He could even break free of the standard ninja running pose in Naruto—the one where they held their arms straight back at an angle to keep steady while taking tiny steps.
And he—
Was swinging his arms and legs with all his might.
Swinging them in alternating motions.
Perfect form, nimble steps!
He was almost as fast as an adult man!
Of course, it would have been perfect if you ignored his height.
Tap.
One step landed.
When he saw the iconic War Fan emblem of the Uchiha Clan, his steps came to an abrupt halt.
He immediately returned to his earlier manner.
Then he silently crept into the compound.
After the Nine-Tails' rampage ended, the Anbu who had been stationed here as guards had already left.
The clan members who had come to cause trouble had left too.
Some were drinking; others were sleeping.
Faintly, there were sounds that made one blush.
Only one person remained at the entrance.
Uchiha Fugaku.
The Clan Head's eyes were deep as he silently watched the outside.
His eyes gradually turned bloodred, the Three Tomoe slowly spinning within them.
The thick scent of smoke and war filled his nostrils.
"The Uchiha Clan... have we really become this feared?"
The situation was already so dire, yet the village could still spare some of its forces to keep the Uchiha under watch!
He sighed and turned to leave.
But as he turned, his Three Tomoe suddenly caught sight of a small figure.
The child was tiptoeing along, sneaking inside.
"Jin? Why has that child slipped out?"
He paused when he saw who it was.
His youngest son—now, technically, his second son—was usually taciturn.
He liked to be alone when he had nothing to do.
Because of that, the other clan members thought he was antisocial.
He didn't like socializing.
So why had he suddenly snuck out tonight?
Curious, Fugaku followed him.
In a shadowy corner, Jin thought, Just as I expected. He followed me.
Then he stayed in the shadows by the wall, quietly waiting for his father.
This mysterious Mangekyo wielder.
As Clan Head, he possessed the Mangekyo, yet stood by while his own son slaughtered the clan.
Jin couldn't say whether that was right or wrong.
After all, you only understood the weight of it and the difficulty of such choices once you became a father.
As Fugaku drew closer, Jin could clearly feel an oppressive force bearing down on him.
"Jin, why did you come out? Couldn't you sleep?"
Perhaps he had been Clan Head for too long. Even when Fugaku spoke, he sounded somewhat stern.
There was little of the gentleness a father should show his son.
No wonder your two sons are both so rebellious.
Uchiha Jin shook his head and explained,
"My room collapsed."
"Hm?!!!"
Fugaku's eyes twitched, and he hurriedly looked into the compound.
Only then did he notice that Jin's room had somehow lost its main beam.
And he, the Clan Head and the boy's father, hadn't noticed at all!
None of the other clan members had noticed either.
He sighed, his face showing a hint of guilt. "I'm sorry, Jin. How about Father fixes it for you tomorrow?"
"For now, go sleep in Father's room."
As he spoke, he reached out to pick Uchiha Jin up.
But would Jin agree?
They hadn't even talked for ten minutes!
He squirmed, trying to escape Fugaku's grasp.
But without Chakra, there was nothing a little child like him could do.
He could only watch helplessly as Fugaku picked him up, carried him to a room, and turned to leave.
Watching Fugaku's back, Uchiha Jin had no choice but to use his secret weapon. He called out,
"Under the third leg of the table in the shrine!"
Thump.
Fugaku's hand paused slightly as he shut the door.
"In the flower bed by Mother's window."
Tap.
Fugaku turned around, his gaze distant.
"And in the lower-right corner of the cabinet in this room—"
"Stop!" Fugaku hurried over and cautiously glanced toward the bedroom next door. In a low voice, he asked, "How do you know about all this, you little brat?!"
His voice was quiet, but he spoke extremely quickly.
There was even a hint of anger in it.
He had completely forgotten the stern Clan Head he'd been a moment ago.
See? Now he was staying to talk!
Jin grinned slyly and patted the edge of the bed. In a babyish voice, he said, "Come on, sit."
"You'd better explain all of this—"
Uchiha Jin waved his hand, cutting his father off. "Father, you wouldn't want Mother to find out about your secret stash, would you?"
With that, he patted the edge of the bed again.
The meaning was clear.
"You little brat!"
Uchiha Fugaku's Three Tomoe Sharingan turned slowly.
He gritted his teeth, but in the end, he sat down obediently.
At that moment, in front of Uchiha Jin, he seemed as innocent as a child.
And now, Jin finally saw the traits on Fugaku!
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