The Uchiha Clan's Future Rests on Him, I'm Not Interested in Money

"Uncle Fukuyama, I've been short on money lately, so I won't stand on ceremony." Uchiha Dan's expression had already cleared from stormy to sunny as he said earnestly, "I'll count this as a favor. I'll remember it."

He truly was rather short on money. After all, his research project was about to begin, and without money, he could hardly take a single step.

But through this change in attitude, he was also telling Uchiha Fukuyama that he had accepted his apology and was extending goodwill in return, expressing his willingness to bury the hatchet.

"What about those injured men..." Uchiha Fukuyama asked tentatively. "To be honest, I'm still rather worried."

"I understand. It's only natural. Don't worry, I'll head to the hospital and put in some overtime right now. I guarantee all seven of them will return to the Uchiha Clan safe and sound."

"Thank you so much. In that case, I won't disturb you any longer!" Uchiha Fukuyama finally set his mind at ease and left with Uchiha Fugaku.

Once they had left the door and walked more than ten meters away, Uchiha Fukuyama's expression instantly turned cold.

This was what he was truly like in everyday life. His so-called smoothness was merely a means, something he put on for others when necessary.

Unfortunately, Uchiha Fugaku had only learned his cold and steady side, not his smooth side.

"Father..." Seeing how quickly Uchiha Fukuyama's expression had changed, Uchiha Fugaku was somewhat puzzled.

"Speak!"

"Father, in my eyes, you have always been a proud man. But today, you..."

"Disappointed?" Uchiha Fukuyama asked.

Uchiha Fugaku said nothing, but his expression had already given him the answer.

Seeing his son's reaction, Uchiha Fukuyama felt disappointed as well.

His son only appeared intelligent and mature. But now, it seemed that his intelligence and maturity were merely superficial.

"Fugaku, remember this: Dan bears the Uchiha name." Uchiha Fukuyama said earnestly. "Lowering yourself a little before a junior of your own clan is not that humiliating."

"But he no longer belongs to the Uchiha Clan..." Uchiha Fugaku argued.

"Fugaku, you need to change your mindset." Uchiha Fukuyama reminded him. "Let me ask you this: why was Uchiha Dan expelled from the Uchiha Clan?"

"Did he commit some grave mistake? Or did his parents commit some offense?"

"Didn't they say he violated the clan rules?"

"Which clan rule?"

"Well..." Uchiha Fugaku did not know the hidden details and was unable to answer for a moment.

"I can tell you clearly: neither was the case," Uchiha Fukuyama said bluntly.

"Uchiha Dan never committed any wrongdoing."

"His parents died for Konoha, and before their deaths, they had earned illustrious merits."

"Then why was he expelled from the Uchiha Clan in the first place?" Uchiha Fugaku asked in confusion.

"It was not I who wanted to expel him. Kagami Uchiha insisted that he had personally witnessed Uchiha Dan violate the clan rules, and he was determined to expel him. He was even willing to fall out with me over it."

"You saw the division within the clan yourself."

"At the time, the dovish faction led by Kagami Uchiha held great power. For the sake of the clan's stability, and under pressure, I ultimately expelled Dan. But in my heart, he has always been one of us."

"Of course, although Kagami Uchiha took all the responsibility upon himself, I suspect this was also the intention of the Second Hokage, the Third Hokage, and all of Konoha's high-ranking officials."

"The reason is simple. Dan's talent frightened them."

"Can you imagine it? Someone who had not trained for even a second in seven years could effortlessly defeat eight clan ninjas and even comprehend the Flying Thunder God Technique on his own."

"Once he rose to fame, Kagami Uchiha would be nailed to the pillar of shame in the clan's history."

"After what happened today, I finally understand. The future of the Uchiha Clan will likely rest on Uchiha Dan."

"Why do you say that, Father?" Uchiha Fugaku immediately felt displeased.

The clan's future rests on him? Then what am I?

"There are some things you should know now." Uchiha Fukuyama sighed. "When we get back today, father and son need to have an honest talk. I believe you'll understand once you've heard everything."

"But remember, Fugaku: as the head of a clan, so long as you can achieve your objective, saving face is sometimes not so important." Uchiha Fukuyama continued to instruct him.

"You've liked putting on airs since childhood, and you care far too much about face. You're afraid that even smiling once will make you lose the dignity of the young clan head. That is not a good thing."

"A person who wants everything usually ends up with nothing."

"Take today's matter, for example. If I wanted to save face and get things done at the same time, it would have been impossible."

"Uchiha Dan is no ordinary person. What he said to you in prison had an obvious purpose. Did you think he truly wanted to throw everything aside and fall out with us?"

Uchiha Fukuyama pointed out, "He was merely expressing his attitude while flexing his muscles, all while demanding the greatest possible benefits."

"But from beginning to end, you could not even understand what he was saying. He led you around by the nose the entire time, yet afterward, you instead thought he was not steady enough, that he was like a madman who did not play by the rules at all."

"So who exactly was the one who lacked composure?"

"Fugaku, remember this: feigned composure is not true composure. Only composure in one's heart is real composure. Your performance today disappointed me greatly."

"So you should reflect on yourself properly."

Uchiha Fugaku nodded in response, though whether he had truly taken the words to heart was another matter.

Seeing Uchiha Fugaku's reaction, Uchiha Fukuyama could only shake his head inwardly.

Why was this guy so stubborn? He could only hope that once Fugaku learned of the crisis the clan was currently facing, he would change somewhat.

"Big brother, you're amazing! I admire you so much!"

At home, Namikaze Minato looked at Uchiha Dan with sparkling eyes.

After he had expressed his desire to become Hokage, Uchiha Dan had told him—

A person in power had to have methods. A Hokage could not do the job well on passion alone.

He had also said that he would give Namikaze Minato a lesson when the opportunity arose.

And how long had it been? He had already given him a proper lesson—and it had been a live demonstration.

"Alright!" Uchiha Dan rubbed Namikaze Minato's head and smiled. "Go over everything that happened today and write a reflection. I'll check it when I get back tonight."

"Mission guaranteed!" Namikaze Minato shouted.

"You brat!" Uchiha Dan scolded with a laugh. "Just open these gifts yourselves. If there's anything you like, take it!"

"But Uchiha Fukuyama definitely catered to our tastes. There should be things in there meant for girls, so leave those for me. I want to give them to someone."

"Hehe..." Namikaze Minato wore an expression that said he understood, then happily began opening the gifts.

Uchiha Dan shook his head with a smile, then used Flying Thunder God and vanished from the spot, reappearing in his own office at Konoha Hospital.

"Why haven't you gotten off work yet?" Uchiha Dan asked when he saw Tsunade yawning boredly and stretching.

"I was waiting for you!" Tsunade immediately perked up and smiled. "And I thought I'd lend you a hand while I was at it."

"How did you know I'd come?" This time, Uchiha Dan was surprised.

"I guessed!" Tsunade said smugly. "During dinner, I saw Uchiha Fukuyama personally take his son and a bunch of gifts to see you, so I guessed you'd reconcile with them."

"You little schemer, tell me—how much did you get out of them in the end?" Tsunade asked curiously.

"Not much. Just a pile of gifts and banknotes worth 30 Million Silver Taels."

"How much?" Tsunade shot to her feet in shock.

"It wasn't that much. Why are you so surprised?" Uchiha Dan said with a humblebrag. "And after all that, Uchiha Fukuyama even thanked me!"

"You..." Tsunade rolled her eyes at Uchiha Dan. "I've always been curious—how much money have you saved over the years?"

"Not much. Including these 30 million, about 300 Million, I guess!" Uchiha Dan said with a smile. "I've saved it all for Uncle and Auntie. After all, I'm not interested in money."

"300 Million?" Tsunade cried out again in disbelief.