Before meeting Dan.
Yashiro and Setsuna had discussed testing Dan's stance first, asking him what he thought about the Clan Head, the clan, and the village.
They didn't want to come right out with the Radical Faction's beliefs and scare the kid off.
After all, in their eyes,
a military coup was probably too radical for a young man like Dan, who had lived a comfortable life.
Until now.
After hearing Dan's position, the two realized that their earlier assumptions had been completely wrong.
If
the clan members led by Uchiha Yashiro and Elder Setsuna were the Radical Faction, then Dan was part of the "Suicide Attack Faction." He wanted to drag both the Uchiha and Konoha down with him.
Compared to a lunatic like that, the Radical Faction seemed downright moderate and harmless.
"Me, radical? You're the ones who are too soft." Dan was unfazed by Elder Setsuna's scolding.
"Leave. Now!"
Elder Setsuna glared, pointing his cane at the door. He was so angry that his whole body trembled. "Your ideas are insane. They'll only bring destruction upon the Uchiha Clan!"
Dan shook his head and turned to leave.
Clatter.
The door swung open.
Inohi and Tekka stared after Dan, dumbfounded, unable to say a word.
Dan had barely taken a couple of steps after leaving the mansion when Uchiha Yashiro ran after him and shouted at his back:
"Uchiha Dan, I'll pretend this conversation never happened. Once you get home, if you dare gather people under our faction's name and cause trouble, I'll personally have you thrown in prison!"
In Yashiro's eyes,
Dan's ideas were far too dangerous. The Radical Faction absolutely couldn't be associated with him.
Dan paid no attention to Yashiro's tirade.
As the Radical Faction's leader,
Yashiro was merely a second Uchiha Setsuna, and perhaps even worse.
After interacting with him, Dan was certain these fools could never succeed in a rebellion.
He kept walking, passing the street corner.
Whoosh.
Under a cherry tree, Uchiha Fugaku appeared quietly, as if he'd been waiting there for some time.
"Brother-in-law." Dan was a little surprised and called out to him.
"What happened? Why did Yashiro threaten to have you thrown in prison?"
Even Fugaku's perpetually expressionless face was filled with surprise as he asked his brother-in-law what had happened.
Dan answered honestly. "As you can see, I couldn't see eye to eye with those Radical Faction members, so we parted on bad terms."
Fugaku couldn't help smiling with relief.
He'd been worried for a long time, and now he'd finally heard the answer he'd hoped for from his brother-in-law. At last, he could breathe easy.
"Dan, you did the right thing. If Yashiro and the others give you trouble again, come to me. I'll stand up for you as your brother-in-law."
As he spoke, Fugaku patted Dan on the shoulder.
"Thanks, brother-in-law." Dan nodded.
"Hahaha." Fugaku let out a hearty laugh.
For once, he felt that he and his brother-in-law had grown a little closer.
The two walked along a street lined with cherry trees.
"Dan, I've known for a long time that you're part of the Moderate Faction too, right?" Fugaku asked.
"How did you figure that out, brother-in-law?" Dan asked, puzzled.
"Isn't it obvious?"
Fugaku crossed his arms, as if he could see right through Dan, and laid out his reasoning in detail.
"Dan, you may look bigger and more intimidating than anyone else, but inside, you're gentler and kinder than anyone. Your sister Mikoto told me that.
"Even though you're strong, you don't want to become a ninja. You'd rather live an ordinary, honest life.
"You even moved out on your own, gave up the Uchiha name, and never cause trouble.
"Isn't that enough?"
He fixed his brother-in-law with a sharp look.
"You're right, brother-in-law."
Dan nodded, too lazy to argue. Instead, he went along with Fugaku's words. "I believe that everything the Uchiha have today was given to us by Konoha. No matter what happens, we shouldn't oppose the village. We should always put the village's interests first."
Fugaku stopped walking, his brow furrowing.
"Dan, you're too moderate!"
He looked serious as he warned his brother-in-law. "Remember, being too moderate is a kind of weakness. We have to fight for what belongs to the Uchiha. Otherwise, people will think we're easy to bully. Do you understand?"
Fugaku really was a neutral party.
He didn't want all the clan members to be like Shisui, following the Will of Fire and putting Konoha's interests ahead of the clan's. But neither did he want them to be as radical as Yashiro and the others, provoking an armed conflict with the village.
As Clan Head, he wanted to strike a balance: maintain the relationship with Konoha while fighting to secure as much power for the Uchiha as possible.
But that balance was hard to maintain.
If either the clan's Radical Faction or Moderate Faction gained the upper hand, he'd be swept along with them.
In the end,
when the Moderates outnumbered the others, he became a Moderate; when the Radicals were in the majority, he turned into one of them.
A real fence-sitter.
"You're right, brother-in-law. I'll remember that."
Faced with Fugaku's earnest advice, Dan admitted his mistake.
It was almost funny.
Dan said what people wanted to hear, yet the Radical Faction thought he was too radical, while the Moderates thought he was too moderate.
Fugaku's expression softened.
They chatted a little longer and before they knew it, they'd reached an intersection.
"I almost forgot why I came."
Fugaku collected himself and spoke to Dan solemnly. "It's your sister's birthday tonight. She said that more than receiving a gift from you, she'd like her little brother to come over and have dinner with us."
"...All right."
This time, when his brother-in-law invited him in person, Dan didn't refuse.
"Great."
Fugaku breathed a sigh of relief.
If he failed to bring Dan back with him, he probably wouldn't see his dear wife smile for the next month.
Suddenly, Fugaku seemed to remember something else.
"Oh, right. Itachi told me... your Fitness Gym has another employee who lives and eats with you. Bring her along too."
He said this with what seemed like a meaningful expression.
"Sure. See you tonight." Dan agreed, then parted ways with Fugaku at the intersection.
Surveillance Post.
Itachi was on duty as usual, watching rows of surveillance screens and keeping an eye on the Uchiha Clan Compound.
He'd never said anything about it, but he still felt somewhat opposed to this assignment.
During his shift,
he didn't know what to do with himself. His gaze kept darting from one screen to another.
Suddenly, he saw his uncle, Uchiha Dan, appear in the clan compound and enter a mansion with Uchiha Inohi.
Not long after,
Dan came out alone, only to be stopped by his father, Fugaku. The two chatted by the roadside for a while, apparently getting along well.
What was going on?
Itachi stared at the screen, his mind racing as he tried to work it out.
Before he knew it, it was time to change shifts.
Itachi stood up and hurried off duty, eager to find out what had happened.
At that moment,
neither Itachi nor any of the other surveillance personnel noticed that the image of Naka Shrine on the monitor suddenly warped into a spiral.
It vanished in an instant.
Before you continue