Clan Head

On a spring afternoon, Sōken walked beneath cherry trees bursting with blossoms, listening to the soft rustle of the wind passing through their branches. He arrived at an imposing mansion with both gates standing open. Inside, the plants had been beautifully trimmed. At the end of a path paved with blue-gray stone bricks stood a sliding door.

He went inside without ceremony, slid the door open, and called out, "Is anyone here?"

There was no answer.

Sōken took off his shoes at the entrance and stepped onto the wooden hallway. This wasn't his first visit to the clan head. With a grandfather who was an Elder, he had come to the house as a guest several times before. Otherwise, Sasuke wouldn't have called him "Brother Sōken" when they met.

He couldn't claim to know the layout of the house like the back of his hand, but he was familiar with the areas generally used to receive guests. The kitchen and dining room were to the right of the hallway, but there was no sign of anyone bustling about inside. The Matriarch probably wasn't home.

To the left was a room about six tatami mats in size, neatly furnished with a low table and cushions. Sitting right in the middle of it was the current head of the Uchiha Clan—

Fugaku Uchiha.

He was an imposing man, with short black hair and a long face. His impassive features gave him an indescribable air of menace. He wore a dark blue robe, with the Uchiha Gunbai emblem at the center of his back.

"Sōken, come in!"

Fugaku Uchiha spoke.

"Lord Clan Head, sorry to intrude."

Sōken entered the room and sat down on the cushion opposite the clan head.

A teapot and two teacups sat on the low table. Wisps of steam rose from the tea, and green tea stems bobbed in the cups.

"I heard recently that you want to replace me as clan head?"

Fugaku Uchiha got straight to the point, without the slightest hint of tact.

"Oh? You already know, Lord Clan Head? I was hoping to spring it on you as a surprise once I'd revealed my hand!"

"A surprise? More like a shock, wouldn't you say?"

"Isn't there much difference? Surprise, shock... The important thing is to startle you."

"Quit talking nonsense, Sōken. You've always been full of it." Fugaku Uchiha fixed Sōken with his frighteningly stern gaze.

"Since you already know... aren't you angry?" Sōken asked curiously.

It wasn't surprising that Fugaku Uchiha knew what he was up to. The Uchiha Clan wasn't all that large, with only a little over a thousand people. Some things couldn't be kept secret, no matter how much you wanted to. The further along the plan got, the more commotion it caused, so it was inevitable that he'd be found out. Fortunately, Sōken had never planned to resort to underhanded schemes. He intended to take the clan head's position from Fugaku Uchiha openly and fairly.

"If this had happened five years ago, I'd probably have hung you up and beaten you, then sent you to the Border Defense Force so you'd never have time to cause trouble for me again."

Five years ago?

The Nine-Tails' Rampage?

Sōken pondered this. It was true that the lines on the clan head's brow had grown more numerous with each passing year, and the heavy, gloomy air around him had grown ever more pronounced.

"But now... If you really have what it takes to replace me, it might not be a bad thing for me or for the family." Fugaku Uchiha rubbed his temples. The deep circles under his eyes showed that he probably hadn't slept at all last night.

And perhaps it wasn't just last night. The clan head might not have slept well in a long time.

With tensions between the village and the clan growing sharper by the day, how could he sleep peacefully?

If not for that, he might have had more than just Itachi and Sasuke. Perhaps a third child would have been born by now...

"Of course, all of that depends on whether you really have what it takes." Fugaku Uchiha stared at Sōken and spoke, each word deliberate. "If you want the clan head's seat, fine. Come and take it from me. Let's see what you're capable of."

"I won't keep you waiting long, Lord Clan Head."

"Then I'll wait and see."

After that, both men fell silent. Sōken picked up his teacup and sipped slowly, turning his gaze toward the lush garden beyond the veranda. Under the spring sunshine, the plants were thriving. Their owner clearly tended them regularly, trimming every branch and leaf with care. The whole garden was in perfect harmony, with not a single thing out of place.

Just like—

The clan head, who always followed the rules.

"Did you call me here just to expose my ambition, Lord Clan Head?"

Sōken broke the silence first, picking up the teapot to refill his cup.

Fugaku Uchiha pushed his empty teacup toward him.

The cup filled once more with pale green tea. As the table shifted beneath their hands, ripples spread across its surface.

"I called you here..." Fugaku Uchiha gazed at the tea in his cup and spoke slowly. "Last night, I went to see the Hokage. He made it clear, albeit tactfully, that you shouldn't get too close to the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki... More precisely, he wants the entire Uchiha Clan to keep its distance from the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki."

"Was that a threat?"

"Exactly. It was a threat. The Hokage wasn't the only one there. The clan heads of the Hyuga, Aburame, Nara, Yamanaka, Akimichi, Akuma, and Inuzuka were there too... None of them want to see the Uchiha get too close to the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. That night five years ago is still fresh in many people's minds."

"The Hyuga... I thought Hizashi Hyuga's death would have left them resentful of the Hokage!"

"The Hyuga Branch House exists to protect the Main House. In the eyes of the Hyuga Main Family, Hizashi probably deserved to die that way." When the Hyuga Main House and Branch House came up, Fugaku Uchiha showed a rare trace of scorn.

"Then what are you going to do, Lord Clan Head? Punish me for this? The Third himself praised me last night for protecting the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki."

Sōken asked.

"The Hokage praising you doesn't mean I can't punish you."

"That's shameless!"

"I need to give the village an explanation." Fugaku Uchiha paused, then continued, "The Uchiha are part of the village. Anything involving the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki is no longer an internal family matter. The other clans in the village are watching us. If we don't give them an explanation... even the clans that were originally neutral may end up siding against us."

"Neutral clans?"

Sōken laughed scornfully. "I didn't know there were any neutral factions in the village. Aren't their members widely employed by Anbu and Root? How can they be called neutral? I suppose the declining Akuma Clan is the only one Anbu and Root haven't taken an interest in."

"Don't confuse the members who joined Anbu and Root with their clans. Those people can't speak for an entire clan. Shisui joined Anbu too. Does that mean he can speak for the Uchiha?"

"...All right, you have a point. Then... what's the punishment?"