A Good Show Begins

Uchiha Shisui loved the village more than anyone else, and he loved the Uchiha Clan more than any of its members.

Only a genuine, burning love could serve as the catalyst for awakening the Mangekyō.

And when two equally important loves came into irreconcilable conflict, even reaching the point of crossing swords, the result was endless pain.

According to the original story, Shisui would be torn apart by the conflict between the village and the clan, trapped in endless mental anguish. After his final efforts failed, he would throw himself into a river and take his own life.

But now,

The data and theories Uchiha Chen had presented separated the village from its leadership. They redefined the Hokage, once the very symbol of Konoha, as "the Sarutobi Clan's leader—a high-ranking official who was neither strong enough nor fit for the job."

When virtue and position didn't match, disaster was sure to follow.

The village, once on equal footing with the clan, had now been replaced by Sarutobi Hiruzen and the Sarutobi Clan. The scales in Shisui's heart immediately tipped out of balance.

Who even were the Sarutobi Clan? He barely knew them.

Night fell. The cold wind of late autumn howled, bringing a bone-deep chill. Uchiha Chen and Shisui finished their conversation and headed back to the clan compound along a mostly deserted road.

Shisui walked with a furrowed brow, silent all the way, lost in thought.

"Shisui!"

At a fork in the road inside the compound, Uchiha Chen stopped and slipped a hand into his robe. He wanted to take out the evidence he'd collected against the Sarutobi Clan and fan the flames of Shisui's hesitation.

"Huh?"

Shisui answered absentmindedly. He immediately formed hand seals and set up a soundproof barrier, then turned to Uchiha Chen with a grave expression.

"Big Brother Chen, we can't discuss assassinating that old bastard, the Third, inside the clan compound!

"My Kotoamatsukami is a very special technique. If I seize the right moment, I might be able to deal with him easily and prevent bloodshed between the village and the clan!

"First, we need to create an opportunity for me to be alone with Sarutobi Hiruzen."

Wait, what was all that about?

What had he missed? How had they jumped straight to assassinating the Third Hokage?

Uchiha Chen stared at Shisui, eyes wide with disbelief.

"Shisui, were you thinking about how to assassinate the Hokage the whole way here?"

"Not exactly. Half the time, anyway. The other half, I was thinking about how the Hokage Faction's relationship with the clan had changed over time."

Shisui was perfectly frank, seemingly unaware of how treasonous his words sounded.

"Big Brother Chen, you were right. That old bastard Sarutobi is to blame!

"The First made peace with the Uchiha and founded Konoha. The Second took my grandfather as his student. Even the Fourth took Obito as a student.

"Only the Third has always been prejudiced against the Uchiha.

"Now that the Third has returned to power, he's a menace to both the village and the clan! The future will only have hope if we replace him with a Fifth Hokage who isn't prejudiced against the Uchiha."

Watching Shisui talk about making Sarutobi Hiruzen's "head explode," Uchiha Chen suddenly felt that the autumn wind was unbearably cold. His hands and feet went numb.

The Uchiha research goat, Uchiha's master butcher, Senju Tobirama, had once said:

When an Uchiha understood love and then lost it, their brain would produce a special kind of Chakra, which would spur their Sharingan to evolve.

And that Chakra would make an Uchiha love more deeply and hate more purely!

Ordinary people's love and hate had limits, no matter how intense their feelings were, and they eventually faded. The Uchiha were different.

The stronger an Uchiha's Eye Power, the more extreme their emotions and the more stubborn their thinking.

And once they changed, they would only swing a full 180 degrees in the opposite direction, hurtling from one extreme to another. There was no middle ground.

"Shisui, don't take things to extremes!

"The situation hasn't reached that point yet. It really hasn't!"

Uchiha Chen smacked his lips and had no choice but to reason with Shisui instead.

"If you do that and get caught, the village and the Uchiha will be completely at odds, with no room left to turn things around.

"I said all that earlier because unity can be preserved by struggling for it, but seeking unity through concessions will destroy it!

"I didn't mean we should risk the destruction of the village and the clan by attempting an assassination!"

"I know. I wouldn't do anything unless I was sure I could pull it off!" Shisui changed the subject and pointed at the documents in Uchiha Chen's robe. "What's that? Is it for me?"

With that, Shisui casually took the stack of evidence against the Sarutobi Clan from Uchiha Chen, whose movements had stiffened.

"Shisui..." Uchiha Chen started to say, then stopped.

It was late at night, but in the hazy moonlight, Uchiha Shisui's Sharingan could still make out the tiny writing on the sheets of paper.

How could a clan of thousands not have a few bad apples? Did he think Konoha was paradise?

Stealing men's wives, seizing their land, embezzling and accepting bribes.

These were all true incidents, but this "little essay" Uchiha Chen had prepared especially for the occasion focused almost entirely on cases where the perpetrators had escaped serious punishment.

The documents shattered the Hokage-shaped halo Shisui had placed around Sarutobi Hiruzen.

"How could Konoha not decline under the leadership of vermin like this?

"Absurd! Simply absurd!"

Uchiha Shisui let out a long sigh. Then he turned to Uchiha Chen and gave him the same sunny, cheerful smile as always.

"Don't worry, Big Brother Chen. I won't do anything reckless! I trust you. Whatever we do next, I'll follow your lead."

"Absurd! Simply absurd!"

At Konoha's first Jonin meeting since the Night of the Nine-Tails, the atmosphere was more tense than ever.

At the head of the long table, Danzo had just shouted in fury. His tightly clenched hand dug long gouges into the ironwood tabletop, and the two Hokage Advisors were scowling as well.

Of Konoha's four top officials, the only one who could barely keep calm was Sarutobi Hiruzen, dragging hard on his pipe.

"Uchiha Fugaku, how dare you?"

Danzo's eyes looked ready to burst into flames. He spat out each word, his chest rumbling with every syllable. He was furious beyond measure.

"How dare you slander a former Hokage? Are you trying to start a rebellion?"

Normally, Uchiha Fugaku cowered like a rabbit whenever he saw Danzo. But now, he replied without a hint of emotion.

"Watch your words, Hokage Advisor. I'm only voicing a suspicion.

"I suspect that after Madara died, a high-ranking official who enjoyed researching forbidden techniques and conducting human experiments stole his body and Sharingan, eventually causing the Nine-Tails Incident a few days ago. I'm not accusing the Second."

Researching forbidden techniques, conducting human experiments, a high-ranking official—how was that any different from naming him directly?

Was Fugaku going to add white hair and red eyes, too, just to make it obvious?

Danzo's face darkened further.

Conspiracies, meddling in the Shinobi World, suppressing the Uchiha—he admitted to all of it, and even took pride in it.

But if there was still one pure corner deep inside his filthy heart, one moonlight-white ideal, it was his mentor and idol, Senju Tobirama!

He would never allow these evil Uchiha brats to slander his teacher. Even if it were true, it had to be false!

Shimura Danzo's face flushed purple-red. He slammed his hands on the table, rose to his feet, and drew the long sword at his waist.

"Uchiha Fugaku, how dare you insult Teacher Tobirama? Do you think I'm so old I can't even lift a sword anymore?"