Was He Waiting for Us to Go Over There...

Uchiha Shisui, Konoha's Body Flicker, was also the pride of the Uchiha Clan.

Therefore, compared with Uchiha Itachi, they trusted Uchiha Shisui more.

Now that Uchiha Shisui had not appeared, that alone proved there was considerable truth to it.

This left them conflicted.

They had wanted to immediately launch the coup after seeing the Susanoo wreak havoc in the Village Center.

But given the current situation, it would be better to follow the original plan: capture the Jinchūriki, forcibly break the seal, and let the Clan Head control it.

"Clan Head, what do you think?"

"Clan Head..."

The clan members all looked toward Fugaku Uchiha.

Fugaku Uchiha was rather weak-willed, timid and overly cautious in his actions.

As the Clan Head, he should have placed the interests of his clan members above those of the village. That was the duty of every clan head.

Yet he treated the village and the Uchiha Clan as equals, even placing the village above the Uchiha Clan, because he actually worried that controlling the Nine-Tails would cause massive casualties in the village.

He had never considered using control of the Nine-Tails to threaten Konoha's higher-ups and improve the treatment of the Uchiha Clan.

Even during the Night of the Massacre a year later, when faced with Uchiha Itachi's extermination of the clan, he did not even have the will to resist.

It was as though he regarded the lives of his clan members as his own private property.

If he endured, the Uchiha Clan could endure.

If he died, the Uchiha Clan could die.

For such a weak Clan Head, if Madara Uchiha were to see him, his killing intent would probably be even more terrifying than after seeing Black Zetsu's true face.

If he did not tear Fugaku Uchiha into ten thousand pieces, it would be an insult to the Uchiha name.

At this moment, Fugaku Uchiha did not disappoint the crowd and made his usual compromise.

He glanced at the tense Anbu around him. No joy or sorrow could be seen on his stern face as he slowly closed his eyes.

A few seconds later, his broad shoulders seemed to sag as he said, "Let's go back."

Upon hearing this, the clan members opened their mouths as if they wanted to speak, but not a word came out. Only the furious redness on their faces showed the grievance in their hearts.

Fugaku Uchiha turned and went back.

The clan members had no choice but to disperse, yet their gazes kept drifting toward the Raging Red Skull Giant in the Village Center.

Susanoo...

Even though Uchiha Itachi had said that the Clan Member wielding that Susanoo was a five-year-old child, they could not help but reveal looks of envy and longing.

A faint voice seemed to echo in their hearts: "That is what an Uchiha should be!"

Uchiha Itachi and the Anbu members both breathed a sigh of relief.

However, when that Susanoo began moving toward the Uchiha Clan, they all panicked.

The Uchiha Clan, on the other hand, became excited.

Though the Clan Head of the Uchiha Clan was standing right beside them, their eager, expectant gazes fell upon the Raging Red Skull Giant drawing ever closer.

Unfortunately, the Raging Red Skull Giant dissipated midway.

This left the Uchiha Clan somewhat disappointed.

Fugaku Uchiha took one look, then turned and went back.

By all rights, everyone else should have followed Fugaku Uchiha's example and gone home.

Yet no one left.

Even after the Susanoo vanished, they continued staring in that direction, waiting for someone to appear.

About half an hour later, an Uchiha Clan Member with especially sharp vision suddenly shouted in delight.

"It's Shisui!"

"Shisui is back!"

Uchiha Itachi breathed a sigh of relief.

With Uchiha Shisui back, the situation could be brought under control.

The Anbu members, however, grew tense.

Uchiha Shisui was a member of the Police Force. In their eyes, aside from Fugaku Uchiha, the Uchiha Clan Head, he was the most influential person.

The slightest misstep could lead to serious consequences.

And those serious consequences were exactly what the Uchiha Clan Members hoped for.

Soon, they saw Uchiha Shisui walking over with a little boy in his arms.

The delighted expressions of the clan members froze.

Words seemed caught in their throats. They could not even say, "Shisui, you're back."

They looked at Uchiha Shisui's calm yet sorrowful expression, then at the little boy, whose eyelids twitched and trembled as though from extreme exhaustion.

The Uchiha Clan's powerful eyesight also meant they could see more than others.

It also meant they could discern the truth faster than ordinary people.

Even without anyone telling them, they saw it.

Jinghuo Uchiha, this five-year-old little boy, really was the one who had awakened the legendary Susanoo.

Yet someone like him had returned unconscious.

They could not help recalling the sight of the Raging Red Skull Giant walking toward them.

Could he have been waiting for us to go over there, while we never did? The thought could not help surfacing in the minds of the clan members.

From then on, it spiraled out of control, and the guilt in their hearts surged like a tide.

They stepped aside, as though making way for a severely injured hero. The air was filled with silent sorrow and guilt.

Not one of them dared look at the unconscious Jinghuo Uchiha.

"Shisui, Jinghuo...?" A questioning look appeared in Fugaku Uchiha's eyes.

Uchiha Shisui turned his head. In his only remaining left eye, the Three-Tomoe Sharingan brimmed with formidable eye power.

Eye power of this level was no longer something an ordinary Three-Tomoe Sharingan could possess.

There was only one possibility!

Fugaku Uchiha was utterly shocked.

Could Shisui also...?

At that moment, Uchiha Shisui spoke: "Clan Head, in a few days, I have something I want to discuss with you."

No sorrow or joy could be heard in his voice. It was utterly calm.

So calm that it was frightening.

"Alright." Fugaku Uchiha gave a slight nod.

He also had something he wanted to discuss with Uchiha Shisui.

Uchiha Shisui left alone, carrying Jinghuo Uchiha in his arms.

The clan members stood where they were, their faces full of guilt.

Before long, they scattered one by one.

Yet even deep into the night, when the Uchiha Clan Land was pitch-black, many clan members lay in their beds, unable to fall asleep for a long time.

All sorts of chaotic thoughts kept surfacing in their minds.

The Raging Red Skull Giant wreaking havoc in the Village Center like a god of war;

Fugaku Uchiha's compromise;

Jinghuo Uchiha, unconscious and so exhausted that Uchiha Shisui had carried him back;

The relieved smiles of the Anbu members;

The Raging Red Skull Giant suddenly walking over from the Village Center.

These scenes played endlessly in their minds, converging into a single question—"Was he waiting for us to go over there?"

The night was deep, but no one slept.

Many Uchiha Clan Members in their twenties, thirties, and even fifties could not stop their eyes from reddening with tears.

That question kept echoing in their minds.

"Was he waiting for us to go over there...?"

"He must have been waiting for us to go over there..."

Whenever they thought of Jinghuo Uchiha facing all of Konoha's ninja alone, with not a single Uchiha Clan Member behind him,

their hearts felt unbearably stifled, unbearably painful.

The moisture in their eyes gathered into tears and streamed down.

Gradually, faint sobbing could be heard in the darkness.

At the same time, there came the sound of slaps striking cheeks.

Along with words of regret.

"I'm sorry..."

"I'm sorry..."