Uchiha Setsuna smiled faintly, then slowly walked back to his chair and sat down.
"Young people really are impatient."
"But since you've said all that, I won't beat around the bush."
Uchiha Setsuna's expression turned very serious as he continued.
"At the clan meeting, were those things you said truly what you think?"
Yan furrowed his brow.
Did he mean the coup, total surrender, or a political marriage?
"Of course. The Uchiha Clan is running out of time. We have to make a choice as soon as possible."
"Oh?" Uchiha Setsuna tapped the table lightly. "Sit!"
"Come tell this old man what you think. Why do you see it that way?"
At the invitation, Yan walked over and sat down without hesitation.
He sat directly across from Uchiha Setsuna, with a table between them.
Then he cleared his throat and said,
"Before the Night of the Nine-Tails, the Uchiha Clan might still have had a chance to coexist peacefully with the Hokage faction."
"But after the Night of the Nine-Tails, there's no chance. There never will be."
"With that as an excuse, even if the Hokage faction wiped out the Uchiha Clan, the other shinobi clans wouldn't say much. At most, they'd feel the sorrow of a rabbit dying while the fox grieved."
Uchiha Setsuna nodded to himself, then continued, "Then why do you think the Hokage faction wants to destroy the Uchiha Clan?"
Yan smiled faintly. Rather than answer, he asked in return,
"Elder Setsuna, how do you think the Uchiha Clan could truly become part of Konoha?"
"Hahaha!" Uchiha Setsuna laughed heartily. "Now you're testing me."
This young man really was interesting—far more capable than Uchiha Fugaku.
Too bad he was so young, and not strong enough to bring everyone in the clan to heel.
At the thought, his laughter soon faded. He continued,
"The Hokage..."
"The Uchiha Clan will only truly become part of Konoha if one of us becomes Hokage."
"But that's impossible!" Yan finished for him.
Uchiha Setsuna nodded in agreement, his expression gradually growing darker.
"Exactly. It's impossible."
"They would never accept a Uchiha becoming Hokage!"
The Hokage was supposedly chosen by vote, but everyone knew the position was decided in advance.
The Second Hokage was the First's younger brother, the Third was the Second's student, and the Fourth was the Third's grandstudent.
Even after the Fourth died, if the Third didn't return to the position, the Hokage would still be chosen between Tsunade and Jiraiya.
Even if every person in Konoha died, as long as the Third and the others were still around, the Uchiha Clan would never be considered.
Yan understood this as well, and teased him,
"Elder Setsuna, I don't need to answer your question now, do I?"
"Hahaha!" Uchiha Setsuna shook his head. "No need. You see things clearly, unlike Shisui and Uchiha Fugaku."
"Now, can you tell me why you came to see me?"
Uchiha Setsuna reined in his emotions and fell silent, as though weighing something.
A breeze drifted through the hall, ruffling his short, graying hair.
He really was getting old.
The Uchiha Clan was running out of time, too.
Uchiha Setsuna sighed inwardly, then looked up at Yan and spoke.
"Yan, can I trust you?"
Yan: "..."
Old people sure talked a lot.
He could guess some of the reasons Uchiha Setsuna had called him here.
He must have decided Fugaku was useless, while Shisui had sided with the Hokage faction and couldn't be relied upon.
Now there was a clan member who could contend with Shisui, hadn't been influenced by Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others, and had a clear view of the situation.
Setsuna wanted to place his bet.
As far as Yan was concerned, he'd be a fool to turn down such support.
He was just about to carry out his own plan, and he needed a lot of people and money.
So he nodded and smiled.
"Elder Setsuna, I'm a shinobi raised by the clan. There's no way I'd become Sarutobi Hiruzen's dog."
"And the Uchiha Clan has no other choice now, does it?"
"Hahaha!" Uchiha Setsuna laughed again, but there was a trace of sorrow in it.
"That's true. The Uchiha Clan doesn't have time to wait for another genius to appear."
To think that the mighty Uchiha Clan, one of Konoha's founding clans, had fallen to this state.
As for Uchiha Itachi, who was also called a genius—
To be honest, Setsuna couldn't trust him.
"I'm getting old. It's only natural that my mind doesn't work as quickly as it used to."
"Yan!" Uchiha Setsuna steadied his emotions and continued.
"You've probably guessed part of why I called you here, but you've seriously underestimated the breadth of my mind."
He stood up and clasped his hands behind his back, fixing Yan with a sharp gaze.
"From today onward, the Radical Faction will support every decision you make."
"Whether you need people or money, I'll provide them."
"If Uchiha Fugaku has any objections, I'll take the pressure off you!"
"But I have just one condition: a Uchiha must become Hokage."
"Do you dare accept that?"
His words, full of authority and boldness, echoed through the hall and struck Yan's heart.
For a moment, he seemed to see the figure who had once dared to lead his clan in defying the Second Hokage.
Yan took a deep breath and stood up, facing Uchiha Setsuna and meeting his gaze.
He answered with absolute confidence,
"What is there to fear?"
A trace of satisfaction flickered in Uchiha Setsuna's eyes. He returned to his chair and sat down.
"Good!"
"Yan, I look forward to seeing what you can do!"
Yan nodded. "Don't worry! Becoming Hokage is my goal, too."
"But it would be best to keep your support for me under wraps."
"Of course!" Uchiha Setsuna replied with a teasing smile. "I'm not a child. You don't need to remind me of that."
"I trust you to handle things, of course!"
Late that night, Yan left Uchiha Setsuna's residence.
After Uchiha Setsuna decided to support Yan with all his strength, he asked him in detail what he thought of Konoha and the Uchiha Clan.
To put it plainly, Yan had to sell him a vision—one that had a real chance of coming true.
This sort of presentation was right up Yan's alley.
So he immediately launched into an animated explanation, laying out one plan after another.
Naturally, the God-Making Plan remained at the heart of everything he said.
Uchiha Setsuna listened, nodding again and again.
It only made him more pleased with the young man in front of him.
He was certain he'd chosen the right person.
A true talent!
On his way home,
Yan stopped and looked up at the vast night sky, his thoughts churning.
Since I can't avoid this, I might as well give it everything I've got.
It'll be pretty interesting to make the world unfold the way I envision it!
Before you continue