An Inevitable Struggle

"Shisui, I imagine you've heard some rumors in the village about the Uchiha Clan lately.

"I have people investigating the source of those rumors. I will never allow anyone to deliberately slander the Uchiha Clan."

Shisui smiled happily. "That's wonderful. Thank you for your concern, Third Hokage-sama. The clan is extremely angered by these rumors."

"I understand. The village also knows that the Uchiha Clan has been wronged in this matter.

"However, I hope you understand as well. The reason these rumors appeared may be related to the relatives of those who died on the night of the Nine Tails' rampage.

"After all, the Police Force truly did not appear that night. Grief drove the families of the fallen to place their resentment upon the Uchiha.

"The village will do its best to comfort them, but for certain reasons, it cannot explain to everyone why the Police Force was not deployed. So I hope you can understand the village's position."

Uchiha Shisui's expression turned serious. "Third Hokage-sama, I understand. It was because of the Sharingan mark in the Nine Tails' eyes."

Hiruzen Sarutobi said sternly, "Correct. That was why the village made that decision at the time. I hope you won't blame the village."

Uchiha Shisui said, "I understand, but many clan members do not know the truth and are deeply angry with the village."

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed, then said, "Shisui, your grandfather Kagami's vision was not confined to the clan. He held the entire village in his heart and was a steadfast believer in the Will of Fire.

"He made great contributions to connecting the village and the Uchiha Clan. Now, I also hope that you can become a bridge of communication between them."

Shisui's face was resolute. "Don't worry, Third Hokage-sama. I will definitely make the Uchiha and the village understand each other."

So they had already begun brainwashing Uchiha Shisui.

Faintly overhearing the conversation between the Third Hokage and Shisui, Uchiha Yuan could not help but reveal a cold sneer.

It had to be said that Hiruzen Sarutobi's first impression was that of a kind old grandfather, someone who easily made others feel close to him.

But Uchiha Yuan knew very well that this was merely one side Hiruzen Sarutobi showed to the world.

The truly wicked often wore the mask of loyalty. He was exactly that kind of person.

Or perhaps that side of Hiruzen Sarutobi was real as well, provided that you did not threaten his power.

Shimura Danzō was known as the Darkness of the Shinobi World. In Konoha, he stood below only one man and above all others, a shadow looming over every Ninja Clan in the village.

In Shimura Danzō's heart, he considered his relationship with Hiruzen Sarutobi one of cooperation. Hiruzen Sarutobi was Konoha basking in the sunlight, while he was the Root hidden in darkness.

However, Uchiha Yuan believed that Shimura Danzō was merely Hiruzen Sarutobi's black glove. To put it less politely, he was Hiruzen Sarutobi's chamber pot.

Whenever they needed to suppress the village's Ninja Clans, they let Shimura Danzō act. When they did not, they took back Root's authority.

Uchiha Yuan had reached this conclusion based on impressions from his previous life.

In his memories from his previous life, whenever Shimura Danzō wanted to make a move against someone or something, he had to go to the Hokage's Office. Once the Third Hokage rejected him, all he could say was, "You'll regret this, Hiruzen." He had no power to oppose him at all.

This, in turn, confirmed that every action Shimura Danzō took had the approval of the Hokage's Office.

This was a real world. The youthful passion of the anime had only been Naruto Uzumaki's story.

The bits of conspiracy and darkness only briefly revealed in the anime were the true theme of this world.

When Uchiha Yuan watched the anime in his previous life, he had always felt somewhat unwilling to accept the Uchiha Clan's downfall.

Within the Uchiha Clan were Uchiha Obito and Uchiha Itachi, a pair of disastrous prodigies. Outside were the exclusion, suppression, and hostility of Konoha High Command, along with the schemes of Uchiha Madara and Black Zetsu.

Among them, the suppression and hostility of Konoha High Command had absolutely been the fuse that ignited the clan's downfall.

Uchiha Yuan could not trust Konoha High Command.

Because whether it was Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi or Shimura Danzō, the Darkness of the Shinobi World, they were the same in Uchiha Yuan's eyes: people who would stop at nothing for power.

If those had merely been Uchiha Yuan's speculations while watching the anime in his previous life, then after Konoha's White Fang Hatake Sakumo committed suicide, he became certain of his judgment. From then on, his gaze toward Konoha High Command turned cold.

Hatake Sakumo was a powerful ninja. The name White Fang intimidated the entire Ninja World.

He possessed tremendous prestige and high status in Konoha. During the Second Shinobi World War, he repeatedly crushed the offensives of several major ninja villages, leaving them with an unforgettable impression of terror.

After the Second Shinobi World War, dissatisfaction with Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi in Konoha steadily rose, and calls for him to step down grew louder by the day. Among them, the calls for Hatake Sakumo to succeed him as Hokage were the loudest.

Then came the incident where Hatake Sakumo abandoned a secret mission against an enemy ninja village in order to save his comrades.

Uchiha Yuan had personally experienced the uproar of public opinion at the time. Rumors were everywhere, and all of Konoha was filled with voices condemning Hatake Sakumo.

Yet Uchiha Yuan had smelled a strong stench of conspiracy behind it all.

First of all, Hatake Sakumo and his team had been carrying out an S-rank secret mission. How had it been exposed so easily?

Ninja missions were never made public. Even with ordinary missions, regular ninja generally did not know what missions other ninja had undertaken.

And Hatake Sakumo was, after all, a member of the high command. How could even ordinary villagers know the details of his mission?

Second, the public condemnation directed at Hatake Sakumo had erupted without warning. In an instant, the entire tide of opinion branded him as someone who had harmed the village's interests.

Just like now, the slanderous rumors targeting the Uchiha had suddenly appeared in the village and spread throughout Konoha almost overnight.

From this, Uchiha Yuan knew that someone had surely organized and orchestrated it behind the scenes.

From beginning to end of the White Fang incident, Hiruzen Sarutobi and the other higher-ups had not spoken a word. They had simply watched as a hero who once awed the Ninja World was reduced to someone despised by everyone.

The Uchiha Clan's current situation was actually somewhat similar to Hatake Sakumo's tragedy.

Because of their formidable strength, the Uchiha had been feared by Konoha's upper echelon ever since the time of Second Hokage Senju Tobirama.

As the Senju Clan declined, the Uchiha's power began to threaten the Hokage Lineage's control over Konoha's authority.

Thus, Konoha High Command began openly and covertly suppressing the Uchiha, continuously pushing them out of the village's Center of Power.

Naturally, the Uchiha were unwilling to be suppressed and subjected to such humiliating treatment.

Thus, the conflict between both sides deepened by the day.

As a modern man who had received higher education, Uchiha Yuan knew very well that the struggle between the Uchiha Clan and Konoha—or rather, Konoha High Command led by Hiruzen Sarutobi—was unavoidable.

Because the essence of their struggle was a struggle for power. One side wanted to preserve its existing authority, while the other wanted to reclaim its rightful place.

Therefore, neither side could possibly yield.

In other words, the Night of the Uchiha Clan Downfall would still come. Only the outcome then remained unknown.

Because Uchiha Yuan was here.