The Uchiha Had to Act Like the Uchiha

"Just one clan thinks it can take on our entire Kumogakure?"

"You're far too arrogant! You think so little of us Cloud Ninja!"

The Cloud Ninja's fury was plain to see, but the Uchiha didn't waste their breath arguing. They simply unleashed the genjutsu of their Three-Tomoe Sharingan and stepped forward, knocking every Cloud Ninja to the ground.

"What gave you the impression that our clan couldn't take on an entire village?"

The Three-Tomoe Sharingan stared at them like blood-red eyes.

Their fierce presence, combined with Uchiha Fugaku's overly composed expression, weighed on the Cloud Ninja's hearts like a millstone, leaving them speechless.

"If you say the word, we Uchiha Clan will mobilize every last member this instant and show you Cloud Ninja what Uchiha power looks like."

Under Uchiha Fugaku's provocation, the Cloud Ninja fell silent.

Their leader was merely a jonin who had been promoted during the war. He had no authority to plunge his village into another war.

Besides, before they set out from Kumogakure, Dodai had warned them again and again not to botch this mission.

Everyone in Konoha knew about the Uchiha's pride and arrogance.

Normally, when they saw the Uchiha Clan walking around with their noses in the air, they couldn't stand them.

But when the Uchiha Clan faced off against people from another ninja village, showing off their swagger, treating the Cloud Ninja with contempt, then beating them to a pulp without hesitation—

All they could say was: as expected of the Uchiha!

The Cloud Ninja had been sent as an envoy, so there were no particularly powerful figures among them. A group of Three-Tomoe Uchiha completely outclassed them. They even beat up the horses hauling the supplies.

Uchiha Fugaku stood with his arms folded, unhurriedly watching the battered Konoha Ninja.

"We'll take over from here. You can go back."

"We'll make sure our honored Cloud Ninja guests reach Konoha [safely]."

The Cloud Ninja, who had just been so arrogant and provocative, now had only one plea in their eyes: [Don't leave!] [Help me!] Their pleading little glances were impossible to miss.

They wanted to say it out loud, but every time they opened their mouths, the Uchiha crazies beat them even harder. They might be brutes, but nobody had ever said brutes didn't mind getting beaten up.

The Konoha Ninja pretended not to notice.

Almost in unison, they bowed to Uchiha Fugaku, struggling to hold back their smiles as they hurried away.

With the Uchiha practically holding them captive, the Cloud Ninja moved more than twice as fast.

Even the horses, afraid of being beaten again, picked up their pace.

When Konoha's iconic gates finally came into view, the road-weary Cloud Ninja felt their eyes grow misty.

The villagers of Konoha gave the Cloud Ninja odd looks.

Living high in the mountains under constant sunshine had given the Cloud Ninja, as a rule, dark complexions. Combined with their disheveled clothes, they looked more like beggars than messengers from Kumogakure.

Their skin tone did at least make their bruises and swollen faces hard to see.

Sarutobi Hiruzen was a little taken aback when he saw the Cloud Ninja.

But he was a man of wide experience. He silently took a puff from his pipe, then smiled. "Welcome, everyone."

Sarutobi Hiruzen paused, considering his words. "I hope we can reach a consensus on [peace]."

It was a very shrewd way to put it, and the Cloud Ninja, battered in both body and spirit, felt a little touched.

But even with Sarutobi Hiruzen treating them so well, they still gave him no warm welcome.

"We've been ordered to deliver the supplies for reaching a peace agreement."

"But we only recognize the strong. We'll surrender only to Lord Uchiha Yuji."

"May we ask where Lord Uchiha Yuji is?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen's smile gradually stiffened. The Shinobi Hero's gaze grew sharp, and a heavy pressure crashed down on the Cloud Ninja.

But that was exactly what they had wanted.

[No one among the Cloud Ninja can defeat that Uchiha named Uchiha Yuji. But the Uchiha and Konoha aren't one and the same. If we can provoke a clash between the Uchiha and Konoha, we'll have plenty of time to develop.]

[If we're lucky, the Uchiha and Konoha will go to war outright.]

[The future of Kumogakure is in your hands.]

Dodai's parting words still rang in their ears. They had prepared themselves to make the ultimate sacrifice.

"With supplies this paltry, you didn't come here to reach an agreement. You came to insult the Uchiha, didn't you?"

Uchiha Yuji's voice suddenly rang out, breaking the tense silence.

The wall of Uchiha parted in orderly rows, allowing Uchiha Yuji to walk slowly up to the Cloud Ninja.

"Let's go to war."

"We'll end it when Kumogakure is utterly destroyed—or when the Cloud Ninja surrender completely."

"Perhaps it's time for the might of the Uchiha Clan to shake the Shinobi World once more."

Hearing Uchiha Yuji's words, Hyuga Hiashi was stunned. He even wondered if his ears were playing tricks on him.

Even if you're the leader of the Uchiha Clan, isn't it a bit much to start a war so recklessly? Have you given any thought to how your clan feels? Not everyone likes fighting—

In the Byakugan's field of vision, the Uchiha Ninja showed not the slightest hint of fear. Instead, their surging battle lust made them activate their Sharingan almost involuntarily.

These guys weren't afraid at all! They were even eager to fight!

???

The Cloud Ninja were completely dumbfounded, too.

Who reacted to a situation like this by deciding to start a fight at the drop of a hat?

"W-wait! We never meant to insult the Uchiha Clan!" the Cloud Ninja leader said in a panicked rush. "The Uchiha Clan is the largest ninja clan in the Shinobi World and controls the wealthy regions of the Land of Fire, so naturally you have abundant resources."

"Kumogakure just ended a war. These are the best supplies we could gather after doing our utmost!"

Though he looked like a musclebound brute with no brains, the Cloud Ninja leader was surprisingly sharp.

"You've convinced me."

The emotions the Kumogakure Ninja had stirred in him were satisfying enough, so Uchiha Yuji didn't press the matter. He let the Cloud Ninja envoy off lightly.

"I don't care for this little bit of supplies and compensation money anyway."

"Fugaku, take the supplies to the clan compound and distribute them fairly among the villagers of Konoha."

"Let them share in the joy of victory and celebrate the coming of peace."

"Yes, Clan Leader."

Uchiha Fugaku didn't give Sarutobi Hiruzen standing nearby so much as a glance. He led the supplies toward the clan compound.

As the Uchiha Clan acted with such wanton abandon, no one spoke up again.

They only glanced from the corners of their eyes at Sarutobi Hiruzen, whose expression seemed remarkably calm.