The Old Patriarch's Change of Attitude

The entire great hall fell into a deathly silence, and immediately after, Uchiha Yashiro and the other members of the Hawk Faction began to truly consider the possibility of storming the Hokage Building. Their eyes grew brighter and brighter, and their killing intent grew heavier and heavier!

The scarlet tomoe revealed in their excitement filled the entire room with a cold, murderous aura.

Uchiha Fugaku, usually composed, had his brain go completely blank, while Uchiha Shisui nervously clenched his fists at his sleeves.

With more than a decade left until the Uchiha Clan Downfall, the Uchiha, who had not yet experienced the Nine-Tails Incident and the subsequent ostracization by the entire village, had never once considered rebelling as a clan.

Uchiha Mikoto's eyes flashed with a hint of worry, but it was quickly replaced by a resolute light.

Even the old clan leader was contemplating the possibility, but he quickly dismissed the thought and shouted in a low voice—the sound was not loud, but it was like cold water poured into a pot of boiling oil.

"Currently, Konohagakure is being eyed covetously by the four great nations. If we were to commit such an unrighteous act, even if we succeeded, what would become of us?"

He stood up slowly, his gaze sweeping over every fanatical or hesitant face before finally settling on Uchiha Ren.

"When the nest is overturned, no egg remains intact!"

His voice carried a heavy weight that suppressed the restless killing intent in the air.

The eyes of everyone present turned in unison toward Uchiha Ren, only to see the corners of his lips curl upward.

"In other words, provided that the clan's stability is guaranteed, you agree with our proposal to storm the Hokage Building, Clan Leader?"

Before the old clan leader, whose expression had changed drastically, could open his mouth to refute—Uchiha Ren knew the other party wouldn't agree right now—he immediately changed the subject.

"Rest assured, I would never do anything without absolute certainty."

He scanned the room, his gaze passing over every face, whether excited or uneasy.

If there is infighting during wartime, and one cannot achieve the effect of a blitzkrieg—

Regardless of whether they were in the right or wrong, the entire Konohagakure would become the enemy of the Uchiha, and the clan would inevitably suffer a terrible fate.

The top priority was to preserve the clan's strength, accumulate their own foundation, and wait quietly for a favorable opportunity.

As long as they successfully survived this Third Shinobi World War, which would leave Konohagakure severely weakened, and waited until the time was ripe—

Whether it was confronting Konohagakure head-on, or using a feint to hide their true intentions while establishing a new base for the Uchiha outside the borders.

Or, during the tenure of the Fourth Hokage Namikaze Minato, tearing off the mask of that piece of trash, the "Darkness of the Shinobi World" Shimura Danzō, suppressing the Sarutobi Hiruzen faction with all their might, and pulling out the tumors that prevented the Uchiha from integrating into Konohagakure by the roots...

These were all excellent choices.

The old clan leader's expression softened. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed his own foolish son looking at him with an expression that said, "So this is the kind of person you are," and his anger flared up.

"Fugaku, this child, his mindset has yet to shift to that of a leader. He has courage but lacks strategy; he needs time to be nurtured."

This kind of character flaw was extremely common throughout the Uchiha clan.

Impulsive, impatient, and obsessed with saving face.

These were the bad habits that were born into the very bones of almost every Uchiha.

If they awakened the Sharingan, it was even worse, and the Mangekyo Sharingan almost certainly meant that the Uchiha had completely transcended ordinary human thinking and headed toward an extreme.

For example, Uchiha Obito and Uchiha Itachi—these lunatics had completely reshaped their own values.

Just like that saying: My heart and actions are as clear as a mirror; everything I do is for justice.

Whether it was killing their master and mistress, or killing their parents and kin.

In their worldview, these were all "sacrifices and costs" that had to be paid for the sake of "truth and justice."

When dealing with these animals, one must strike with a heavy fist, or even use another, more extreme method to destroy their distorted values once more and reshape their personalities.

The simplest way was to kill them.

As for simple preaching?

Even a one-tomoe Uchiha might not listen—unless your strength and status far exceeded theirs.

Uchiha Ren was able to hold the Hawk Faction in his grasp by using both the carrot and the stick.

Then, by leveraging his status, he naturally gained their loyalty.

"It's a pity that Ren won't give Fugaku much time to grow..."

"Forget it, I'll have a private talk with Ren and ask him to look after Fugaku in the future; they are all kinsmen after all."

The series of events at the clan meeting, especially the shift in the Dove Faction's stance, made the old clan leader somewhat resigned, but he didn't completely feel that Uchiha Fugaku was a failure.

Perhaps after a war, he would be able to be reborn?

"Ren."

The old clan leader's deep voice rang out, "You are not a man who just shouts empty slogans. Tell us your thoughts."

He looked up at the sharp-edged young man, his tone sincere.

"The Third Shinobi World War, the Uchiha... cannot avoid it."

The high-level officials of Konohagakure had set their sights on increasing troops by using the Uchiha, whom they guarded against and feared would grow too strong if they fought too much. This showed just how much pressure they were under; that "Strongest Hokage" probably couldn't even sleep well at night.

"I naturally understand this point."

Uchiha Ren sat back in his original seat calmly, folded his arms, and analyzed coldly.

"Just as I said before, with the precedent already set, the experts within the clan haven't left Konohagakure, and they wouldn't dare mobilize too many powerful individuals to the front lines for fear of us causing trouble."

"The current high-level leadership of Konohagakure must be acting with extreme caution."

His gaze was sharp, his voice steady, "Yet the other ninja villages are pressing in step by step, leaving them no time to deliberate further."

"This gives us room to negotiate with the Konohagakure leadership."

Uchiha Ren looked at the old clan leader and said earnestly, "We must secure tangible benefits. For instance, independent command over the Kirigakure front and maximum autonomy for our clansmen; we must never allow a single dispatch order to treat us as cannon fodder to be sacrificed at will."

He paused slightly, a flicker of coldness crossing his eyes, "To be even more cynical, who can guarantee that the Konohagakure leadership won't use the hands of Kirigakure to slaughter us?"

Just like the hero of Sunagakure, the wielder of Scorch Release known as Pakura, who was collectively decided upon by the Sunagakure leadership as a bargaining chip for reconciliation with Kirigakure, only to be ambushed and killed by Kirigakure ninja as a sacrificial lamb.

Uchiha Ren dared not underestimate the moral bottom line of the Konohagakure leadership, his tone deepening.

"What's more, could that Root organization, controlled by Shimura Danzō, directly strike at us from the shadows?"

"Many of our clan's Three Tomoe jōnin have disappeared inexplicably within the Land of Fire during low-risk A-rank missions, and we still haven't uncovered the reason why!"

After these words, most of the Uchiha fell into silent contemplation.

The truth always becomes clearer through debate.

No one who can become a jōnin is truly dull-witted.

Even a ninja who appears rough like Might Guy possesses a keen "beast-like intuition."

As all-around ninja, the Three Tomoe Uchiha naturally possess exceptional critical thinking skills alongside their superior combat intelligence.