Uchiha Lives Matter!

"Chihaya, have you noticed the way those people are looking at us? It's weird."

That morning, Uchiha Koichi got up as usual. After breakfast and a bit of training, he arrived at the Uchiha clan's stronghold, the Police Force Headquarters, ready to begin his routine patrol of Konoha's streets with his partner, Uchiha Chihaya.

But as they walked, he suddenly noticed that the pedestrians on the street were looking at the two of them strangely.

Not only was the usual evasiveness gone from their eyes, but there even seemed to be a trace of... sympathy?

How dare they?

How dare they sympathize with a noble Uchiha?

"You must have seen wrong, Koichi. Who in this village would dare show that expression in front of us? And even if they did, it should be hatred. What the hell is sympathy?"

Beside him, Uchiha Chihaya glanced at his companion with amusement, mocking him for perhaps rewarding himself too much last night and hallucinating as a result.

Unable to believe it and thinking he had seen wrong, Uchiha Koichi even secretly activated his Sharingan. Yet under the Sharingan's exceptional perception, he discovered that he had not been mistaken.

They—mere ordinary Konoha villagers—actually dared to sympathize with him!

"I never thought the Uchiha acted so arrogant and tyrannical in public, yet were secretly oppressed so badly by the village. They even had to rely on the eyes of their dead clansmen just to survive... Sigh, it really makes one reflect."

Rely on the eyes of our dead clansmen?

Aren't our dead clansmen's eyes all preserved in the forbidden grounds, Naka Shrine?

Oh... They must be jealous that the Uchiha clan's Kekkei Genkai could still protect future generations even after its wielder died!

"Isn't that right? Their current privileged status must be the price the village paid to placate them! But if it were me, I'd rather die in battle than let my descendants live on in such a miserable, degrading way!"

Hey, hey, what the hell are you talking about?

The Uchiha's current status in Konoha was earned through the Uchiha clan's own efforts, plus a tiny, insignificant bit of help from our ancestor Uchiha Madara. What are you pitying us for?

At Uchiha Koichi's reminder, Uchiha Chihaya finally noticed that something was off. Folding his arms, he began to listen.

"So it makes sense that the Uchiha have so many freaks! Growing up in that kind of environment, unable to even breathe freely—wouldn't that make you either unstable or perverted?"

Who has a lot of freaks?

Your whole family is full of freaks!

Uchiha Koichi had wanted to rush over, drag these people who had slandered the Uchiha back to the Police Force, and teach them a harsh lesson. But Uchiha Chihaya stopped him.

Having worked together for so long, he immediately understood what his companion meant: listen first and decide how many legs to break afterward.

"But then again, killing someone is one thing. Back when Uchiha Madara defected, the Uchiha clan didn't follow him. Looking at it from that angle, punishing them is one thing, but isn't forcing them this far a bit too much?"

"Yeah! But then again, Lord Hokage doesn't seem like that kind of person."

"Hah! What do you know? Those big shots look respectable on the surface, but who knows how evil and scheming they are behind closed doors?"

Uchiha Koichi actually agreed with that. After all, within the Uchiha's internal ranking of most hated people, Danzo was first, followed by Sarutobi Hiruzen. Neither of those bastards was any good!

"And besides... I heard that Lord Hokage wasn't even the main force behind suppressing the Uchiha."

"Really? Other than Lord Hokage, who else in Konoha could shit on the Uchiha's heads?"

That's right!

Uchiha Koichi and Uchiha Chihaya were puzzled as well. Other than the Hokage, who in Konoha could shit on our heads... Pah! No one in Konoha could shit on the Uchiha's heads!

"I heard that when it came to dealing with the Uchiha, Lord Danzo personally handled most of it!"

"Ohhh~" ×4

They nodded together. "Makes sense. That makes way too much sense!" ×4

"Shimura Bunkyo, I'll fuck your mother!" ×2

Seeing red in every sense of the phrase, Uchiha Koichi and Uchiha Chihaya immediately seized the two men and brought them back to the Police Department.

And since the Police Department was the Uchiha clan's stronghold, once prisoners confessed there, it was basically the same as the entire Uchiha clan knowing.

Very quickly, the news swept through the entire Uchiha compound like a whirlwind.

Thus...

"Clan Head, are the rumors in the village true? Did we really trade the Sharingan of our deceased clansmen for the peaceful lives we have now?"

"Clan Head, I refuse to accept this! Why, after making such enormous sacrifices, do people in the village still look at us that way?"

"Clan Head, lead us to charge again, Clan Head!"

At noon, a huge crowd gathered outside the residence of Uchiha Homura, the Uchiha clan head. They had not even eaten before surrounding the place, clamoring to demand an explanation from their clan head.

Among them were children who had just begun ninja training, youths who had just awakened their Sharingan and experienced its power, and elderly people who had lived through the Warring States Period, who had truly witnessed Uchiha Madara's heaven-shattering power and remained immersed in the Uchiha clan's former glory.

They could not understand why, after waking up one morning, their clan had suddenly become an outcast within Konoha.

Although they had always known they were unwelcome in the village, they had never cared. They had strength. They had their innate Kekkei Genkai. In the eyes of these proud Uchiha, everyone else's gossip had merely been the howls of the weak.

But now it was different. With the situation turned completely upside down, the Uchiha clan had instead become some rare creature that needed others' pity?

How could they possibly accept that?

Driven by extreme rage, quite a few clansmen even awakened their eyes on the spot. Pairs of scarlet Sharingan stared at the clan head's residence, awaiting his response.

"Homura, how do you intend to deal with this?"

Inside the clan head's residence, several elders who had received the news long ago sat before Uchiha Homura, waiting for their clan head's response.

"Don't forget, the village still hasn't given us an explanation for Kagami's death!"

"Why was it that, as fellow students of the Second Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen became Hokage, Shimura Danzō became the Hokage's advisor, and even Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura became consultants, while the genius of our clan died without so much as a whisper?"

"They were all disciples. Why was the difference so vast? Why had the village still not granted Kagami an honorable posthumous reputation?"

"Uchiha lives matter!"

Uchiha Homura, the current clan head, silently looked at the intelligence report on his desk, as well as a secret letter from an anonymous Minister of Foreign Affairs in the distant Land of Water. Countless thoughts rose within his mind.

Should he endure it quietly as always?

Or should he seize this opportunity and gamble everything?

"Clan Head, someone from the Anbu has arrived."

At such a critical moment, an Anbu visitor undoubtedly meant they were conveying the Hokage's will.

So Uchiha Homura held his position for the moment, wanting to see exactly what the village had to say about this matter.

"By order of Lord Hokage, the Uchiha clan is to swiftly dispatch personnel to clarify the rumors within the village. Within three days, the Hokage does not wish to hear any similar remarks in the village."

The visitor wore the typical Anbu attire. Yet he radiated an icy aura, like an emotionless puppet, mechanically relaying the Hokage's order.

"...That's it? There are no other instructions?"

Uchiha Homura and the elders listened. They had thought that, at the very least, the village would offer them some comfort. But the "Hokage's" order was so brief and clear, consisting entirely of a cold command to dispel the rumors, without the slightest room for interpretation.

The Anbu ninja seemed to sense that something was wrong. Yet for some reason, rather than softening his tone, he stepped forward and pressed them even harder.

"Hm? Does the Uchiha clan intend to defy orders? Do you think the village's sword is not sharp enough?"

Uchiha Homura had originally intended to smooth things over. But seeing this scene, recalling the elders' words, and thinking of all the unjust treatment the Uchiha clan—one of Konoha's founding clans—had suffered over the years, the string of reason in his mind snapped instantly.

Scarlet flashed through his eyes. He kicked the table over in fury and roared:

"Our swords have never been dull!"

"To hell with keeping the peace. It's time to settle every score!"

"The Senju are dead. The Uchiha shall rise!"