Two Reversals

The roots of the Uchiha Clan Massacre lay in the Nine-Tails Incident.

The Uchiha seemed to exist outside the village.

Those two sentences kept ricocheting through Tsunade's mind. A chilling thought took root, then broke through the soil.

If that's true... then the Uchiha... were... by Konoha... Hah!

Bam!

Tsunade shoved open the door to the Hokage Office, a cold smile still on her face.

"Old man, let's talk about the Uchiha."

What was the most sensitive subject?

For an employee, it was a pay cut.

For the Third, it was talking about the Uchiha.

Sarutobi Hiruzen was silent for a long while before he finally spoke. "The Uchiha problem... it's a long story."

Tsunade pulled over a chair and sat down, then propped her legs up on the desk. "Perfect. I've got all the time in the world."

Sarutobi Hiruzen lit his pipe and took a deep drag. A sigh drifted out with the smoke.

"Three years ago, the Nine-Tails suddenly broke free of its seal and attacked Konoha. That night, many people saw the Nine-Tails... with the Sharingan in its eyes."

"Danzo and Root immediately took control of the Uchiha Clan. It wasn't until after the Nine-Tails Incident had been brought to an end that Fugaku cooperated with the Anbu to investigate the Uchiha compound, preliminarily clearing them of suspicion."

So they hadn't found any evidence at all.

Tsunade furrowed her brow. "In other words, the person controlling the Nine-Tails wasn't an Uchiha?"

"We don't know." Sarutobi Hiruzen shook his head. "We don't know who he was, or even what exactly happened that day."

"Kushina's delivery was arranged outside the village, in a place protected by a barrier. The Anbu guarded the outside, while Biwako and Minato were inside. But Minato didn't arrive until well after the Nine-Tails appeared, and then he sealed it."

"The one thing we can confirm is that the Sharingan appeared in the Nine-Tails' eyes, and the Sharingan is a Kekkei Genkai unique to the Uchiha. After the village began its reconstruction, we jointly decided to move the Uchiha compound from the center of the village to its outskirts."

So that was it.

Kiyonari didn't know much about the Nine-Tails Incident. His impression of the Uchiha came from his own observations. Of course, he hadn't been wrong.

Before the Nine-Tails Incident, the villagers' resentment toward the Uchiha had mostly been the kind they were too afraid to voice. But after the incident, when they saw the Uchiha left isolated and without support, that repressed resentment burst out—so fiercely it seemed to rebound from rock bottom.

And some of the resentment the Nine-Tails had stirred up against the Uchiha had also fallen on Kushina's child, because of the rumors calling him the "Demon Fox."

But no matter what, as one of Konoha's two founding clans, the Uchiha might have suffered damage to their reputation because of the villagers' attitude, but it could never have gone so far as to warrant exterminating the clan.

As the Drift Bottle had said, the roots of the Uchiha Clan Massacre lay in the Nine-Tails Incident, which drove a wedge between the Uchiha and Konoha. In the end, their mutual trust collapsed completely, and they plunged into an abyss.

"Old man, you pushed the Uchiha to the edge of the village based on nothing but suspicion?" Tsunade voiced her displeasure.

Honestly, the clan had already been stubbornly set in its ways. This decision had only left them trapped between two walls.

"Suspicion is the most formidable enemy." Sarutobi Hiruzen's voice held a hundred shades of helplessness.

She could understand the old man's predicament at the time. The Fourth Hokage and his wife had died in battle, the Sannin had left the village, and even her mentor... He had to shoulder the burden all over again. One blow after another had left his nerves raw and fragile, making it difficult for him to trust the Uchiha again.

But understanding why he'd done it didn't change the fact that, as Hokage, letting things reach this point was his responsibility.

"The Uchiha feel they've been treated unfairly, and that the village is prejudiced against them. The villagers, meanwhile, are still haunted by the Nine-Tails Incident, and are full of wariness and fear toward the Uchiha."

"Oh, give me a break." Tsunade scoffed, exposing him without mercy. "Old man, are you still hiding behind the word 'villagers'?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen was at a loss for words. He could only sidestep the pointed question and continue. "Now, a dangerous idea has taken hold within the Uchiha Clan. They intend to change things through drastic means—in other words, seize the Hokage's position in a coup. Fortunately, there are still some level-headed people among them."

He paused, a trace of relief in his eyes. "Shisui Uchiha and Itachi Uchiha. Those two young men haven't been blinded by prejudice. They're still willing to act as a bridge between the Uchiha and Konoha."

"Shisui is powerful, and is known as Body Flicker Shisui. He loves the village, and he loves his clan. He's been working hard to ease the tension between them and find a peaceful solution."

"As for Itachi..." Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression grew complicated. "He's even more exceptional. He's young, but remarkably mature in his thinking. He can look beyond the limits of his clan and see things from a broader perspective. He has the mindset of a Hokage."

Personally, Sarutobi Hiruzen admired Itachi Uchiha most of all.

Because if things truly reached the point of no return, Itachi Uchiha was the one who could make the hard decision and stand with Konoha.

He sought neither his clan's gains nor losses, but peace in Konoha—and even peace in the Shinobi World.

Shisui Uchiha and Itachi Uchiha.

Tsunade committed the names to memory. She wouldn't take Sarutobi Hiruzen's word for it alone, even if he was the Hokage.

Besides, they weren't the only ones in the Uchiha Clan looking for another way forward. Hadn't Fugaku Uchiha attended the banquet she'd hosted?

As clan head, he surely didn't want the Uchiha and Konoha to come to blows. If they resorted to force, his clansmen would inevitably die. But if it came to that, as clan head, Fugaku would also have to stand firmly behind the coup.

Still, the old man hadn't mentioned Fugaku at all. That meant the two of them couldn't build trust. But Fugaku was willing to trust her, and had even reached out in goodwill. She should find a chance to speak with him alone.

Tsunade let out a long sigh and lowered her feet from his desk. "Old man, you've certainly given me a tough problem."

Sarutobi Hiruzen took a deep drag from his pipe and urged her again. "Tsunade, we really don't have much time. Once the Uchiha matter is settled, take up the mantle of Fifth Hokage."

Tsunade didn't answer directly. Instead, she clung to the subject of the Uchiha. "When you get down to it, this is a problem of trust. Do you really expect those arrogant people to make the first move? The village has to show its sincerity first."

With that, she turned to leave. But at that very moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen's hand jerked around his pipe. He slowly lowered it and called out to her.

He looked at her, his lips moving, but it was as if something had caught in his throat. For a long while, he couldn't speak.

At last, he raised the hand holding his pipe and pointed at her. His arm trembled with excitement.

"Kumogakure... Kumogakure might give us an opportunity!"

War!

No one was better at war than the Uchiha!