Dan, You're Too Radical!

The sprawling compound was quiet.

Dan followed Inohi along a flagstone path through a lush courtyard and finally arrived at the reception hall.

At the entrance,

A handsome man with a small black mole between his eyebrows stood on the steps, arms crossed, waiting for the two of them.

His name was Uchiha Tekka. He had made Jonin just after turning twenty and was Inohi's friend in the Police Force.

Both men followed Yashiro.

"You're Uchiha Dan?"

Tekka looked down at Dan, sizing him up. His first impression wasn't favorable. In a cold voice, he ordered, "Once you're inside, stay quiet and show Lord Yashiro some respect. Understood?"

With that, he walked down the steps and passed Dan.

As he did, he raised one hand and gave Dan's shoulder a warning pat.

However,

Tekka's hand hadn't even reached Dan's shoulder.

A bone in Dan's shoulder suddenly bulged out like an iron spear, shooting straight at Tekka's palm.

"Hiss!"

Caught off guard, Tekka was struck by the bone in Dan's shoulder. He sucked in a sharp breath, clutched his throbbing palm, and staggered back several steps.

He finally fell hard onto his backside.

"Don't touch me."

Dan glanced at Tekka and spoke in a flat voice.

He had trained his bones and muscles until they were as sharp as blades and spears, able to jut out at will—and even automatically counterattack anyone who came at him.

An ordinary person who accidentally touched Dan could be sent flying on the spot.

"Dan, don't get too cocky!"

Inohi helped his friend to his feet and shouted angrily at Dan. But his bluster couldn't hide his fear; he was growing even more wary of Dan.

Dan's Taijutsu was utterly incomprehensible.

Just then,

"Let him in!" a stern voice called from inside the reception hall.

Dan ignored Inohi and Tekka and went straight up the steps into the hall.

As soon as he entered,

He saw a middle-aged man with short brown hair and small eyes sitting upright.

That man was Uchiha Yashiro.

To Dan's surprise,

An old man sat in the corner of the room, half his face hidden behind a mask.

He leaned on a cane with his right hand and rested his left hand on his hip. His face was full of anger as he watched Dan in silence, his eyes scrutinizing him.

Dan recognized him.

Uchiha Setsuna.

He was an elder of the clan.

Years ago, he had incited the clan to rebel, only to be arrested on the Second Hokage's orders and thrown into the Anbu Prison. He had been released just a few years ago.

He was also an important figure in the Radical Faction.

"Dan, I heard about how you helped Inohi capture a spy. I also heard that Clan Head Fugaku took your older sister away from you."

Yashiro spoke first, offering Dan a friendly welcome. "As members of the clan, we should help one another, so I invited you here..."

"You want me to join your faction."

Dan cut Yashiro off and settled back on the sofa. "My brother-in-law leans toward the Moderate Faction when it comes to dealing with Konoha's high command, while you're with the Radical Faction. Is that right?"

Yashiro paused at Dan's words, then answered frankly, "That's right. Our faction believes..."

"Get to the point. What do you want me to do?"

Dan asked bluntly.

Yashiro smiled.

Dan had interrupted him twice, but instead of getting angry, Yashiro admired his directness.

"Looks like you've already made up your mind."

Pleased by Dan's response, he invited him to join their cause.

As it turned out,

Yashiro wanted Dan to attend the Clan Meeting next month and publicly declare his support for their faction. The Radical Faction would then unite to pressure Clan Head Fugaku and force him to take a hard line against Konoha's high command.

That was it?

After hearing Yashiro's plan, Dan shook his head.

"What, you don't want to fall out with your brother-in-law?" Yashiro frowned, his gaze turning cold.

"No. I have a better idea." Dan looked Yashiro straight in the eye, his gaze as sharp as a blade.

In Dan's view,

The Radical Faction was a bunch of useless fools.

In the Original Work, after Shisui of the Moderate Faction jumped to his death, the Radical Faction gained influence. They should have immediately pushed Clan Head Fugaku into leading a coup, but instead they dragged their feet for two whole years.

Until the clan was massacred.

When it came down to it—

Although the Radical Faction publicly opposed Shisui, deep down, they still hoped that he, the clan's strongest fighter, would lead the Uchiha coup forces.

Once Shisui was gone, they no longer had the nerve to keep shouting about rebellion, at least for a while.

The so-called Radical Faction—

They seemed brimming with martial spirit, but in reality, they were pathetic.

So,

Dan had decided on the spur of the moment to rile them up and see if they had any guts.

Hearing that Dan had a better idea, Yashiro's expression softened a little.

"In that case, let's hear it."

But then,

Dan slowly rose to his feet and said something shocking:

"I think Uchiha Fugaku is indecisive. He can't unite the clan, and he keeps backing down and compromising with Konoha's high command. He isn't fit to be Clan Head.

"I, Uchiha Dan, am willing to put duty before family. At next month's Clan Meeting, I'll lead the call to impeach him and drive my brother-in-law from his position as Clan Head."

At those words,

Uchiha Setsuna, who had been silent until then, looked up with a gleam in his eyes.

Yashiro was even more astonished. Before Dan spoke up today, even he, the Uchiha's second-in-command, had never considered such a drastic move as impeaching the Clan Head.

If Fugaku really stepped down, who would take his place?

Was Yashiro supposed to become the new Clan Head?

Just as Yashiro's emotions began to surge, Dan gave him the answer.

"Then you people in the Radical Faction will have to nominate me together and make me the new Clan Head of the Uchiha."

Looking down at Uchiha Yashiro, Dan spoke as if it were only natural.

But the truly shocking part came next.

"After that,

"I'll lead the Uchiha clan's elite straight into the Hokage Building and launch a decapitation strike against Konoha's high command.

"I'll hang the heads of Hiruzen Sarutobi, Shimura Danzō, and the others at the village gates, leaving their corpses to bake in the sun for three days and three nights.

"I'll make all of Konoha bow to the Uchiha."

Dan laid out his plan.

Four words summed it up: simple and brutal.

"Would that... actually work?" Yashiro asked, still reeling.

Dan spoke with conviction:

"Even if it doesn't work, we can only go all in. We don't have much time left. An armed coup should be launched quickly; strike first. If we wait too long, Konoha will lay a net that leaves us nowhere to run. Then the clan will be doomed."

Just like the Uchiha in the Original Work.

Konoha hadn't needed to risk a single soldier. It had used Itachi, a traitor, to wipe out hundreds of Uchiha, sparing neither the old nor the young, men nor women.

After a full minute of silence,

Yashiro finally came to his senses. He took a deep breath and tried to reason with Dan, his expression grave.

"Dan, our Radical Faction does advocate using force against Konoha's high command, but I think we need to plan this carefully and make thorough preparations. You... you're too reckless."

Even if they rebelled,

Yashiro and the others had only ever considered surrounding and taking control of the Hokage Building, forcing the Third Hokage to step down, and reclaiming the power and status that rightfully belonged to the Uchiha.

They had never considered killing all of Konoha's high command.

After all,

That would be tantamount to making enemies of everyone in Konoha.

Dan didn't seem to see it that way.

"Even if it means mutual destruction, the Uchiha should be ready to drag Konoha down with us.

"As long as fighting breaks out, even if the Uchiha clan is wiped out, Konoha will be left gravely weakened. The other four great ninja villages will seize this golden opportunity and rush to overrun Konoha.

"Worst comes to worst, the Uchiha and Konoha can perish together."

Dan spoke without expression.

It was as if neither the fate of the Uchiha clan nor Konoha's survival had anything to do with him.

He just wanted to watch the chaos.

"Enough!"

Dan's words finally pushed Uchiha Setsuna past his limit. He slammed his cane against the floor, stood up, and berated Dan:

"Uchiha Dan, you're too reckless!"