Two-Level Reversal

The root of the Uchiha clan's annihilation lies in the Nine-Tails Incident.

The Uchiha seem to exist apart from the village.

These two sentences bounced back and forth in Tsunade's mind. A chilling thought sprouted like a seed, then broke through the soil.

If this is truly the case... the Uchiha... were they... by Konoha... Hah!

"Bang!"

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

"Old man, shall we talk about the Uchiha?"

What is the most sensitive topic?

For a common worker, it is a pay cut.

But for the Third Hokage, it is talking about the Uchiha.

Sarutobi Hiruzen remained silent for a long while before he finally spoke: "The Uchiha issue... it is a long story."

Tsunade pulled up a chair and sat down, propping her legs up on the desk: "That's perfect, I have plenty of time."

Sarutobi Hiruzen lit his pipe and took a deep drag, a sigh drifting out mixed with the smoke.

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

"Afterward, Danzo and the Root immediately moved to contain the Uchiha clan. It wasn't until the Nine-Tails Incident subsided that Fugaku cooperated with the Anbu to conduct an investigation within the clan, only then preliminarily ruling out suspicion."

In truth, they simply hadn't found any evidence.

Tsunade frowned deeply: "In other words, the person controlling the Nine-Tails was not an Uchiha?"

"I don't know," Sarutobi Hiruzen shook his head, "We don't know who he is, or even what truly happened that night."

"Kushina's labor was arranged outside the village, protected by barriers, guarded by Anbu on the outside, with Biwako and Minato on the inside. Yet, it was only after the Nine-Tails had been out for quite some time that Minato finally arrived to seal it."

"The only 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's reconstruction, we collectively decided to move the Uchiha residential district from the center of the village to the outskirts."

So that was it.

Kiyonari did not understand the Nine-Tails Incident; his impression of the Uchiha came from his own daily observations. Of course, he hadn't been wrong about anything.

It was just that before the Nine-Tails Incident, the villagers' negative emotions toward the Uchiha were more a matter of daring to be angry but not daring to speak. But after the incident, seeing the Uchiha isolated and helpless, that suppressed dissatisfaction erupted, reaching the point of a backlash.

Furthermore, because of the rumors of the "Demon Fox," Kushina's child ended up bearing a portion of the resentment directed at the Uchiha due to the Nine-Tails.

But regardless, as one of the two founding clans of Konoha, the villagers' attitude could at most affect the Uchiha's reputation; it should never have reached the point of total annihilation.

The root of the annihilation, as the Drift Bottle suggested, was that the Nine-Tails Incident caused the Uchiha and Konoha to drift apart, eventually sliding into an abyss where trust had completely collapsed.

"Old man, you drove the Uchiha to the edge of the village based on nothing but suspicion?" Tsunade expressed her dissatisfaction.

Honestly, he was stubborn to begin with, and now this decision had backed him into a corner from both sides.

"Suspicion is the most formidable enemy." Sarutobi Hiruzen's voice seemed filled with helplessness.

She could understand the old man's situation at the time: the Fourth and his wife had died in battle, the Sannin had left the village, even his wife was... and he had to shoulder the heavy burden once more. The successive blows had made his nerves sensitive and fragile, making it difficult for him to trust the Uchiha again.

But understanding is one thing; as Hokage, letting the situation develop to this point was his responsibility.

"The Uchiha feel they have been treated unfairly and believe the village is full of prejudice against them. Meanwhile, the villagers, shadowed by the Nine-Tails Incident, are full of wariness and fear toward the Uchiha."

"Give me a break," Tsunade scoffed, piercing through his words without mercy, "Old man, are you still using the word 'villagers' to hide the truth?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen was momentarily speechless. He could only skip over this sharp question and continue: "And now, a dangerous idea has emerged within the Uchiha clan. They intend to use radical means to change the status quo—namely, to seize the position of Hokage through a coup d'état. Fortunately, there are still some rational people within the Uchiha clan."

He paused, a hint of relief appearing in his eyes: "Shisui Uchiha and Itachi Uchiha. These two young men have not been blinded by prejudice; they are still willing to act as a bridge of communication between the Uchiha and Konoha."

"Shisui is powerful, known as Body Flicker Shisui. He loves the village deeply, and he loves his clan just as much. He has been working hard to reconcile the contradictions between the two, hoping to find a peaceful solution."

"And Itachi," Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression became complex, "He is even more special. Although young, his thinking is exceptionally mature. He can look beyond the limitations of his clan and view problems from a higher perspective; he possesses the mindset of a Hokage."

For Sarutobi Hiruzen personally, he admired Itachi Uchiha the most.

Because if the situation truly reached the point of no return, Itachi Uchiha would be the one ninja capable of making the final decision to stand on the side of Konoha.

What he craved was not the gain or loss of a single clan, but the peace of Konoha, and perhaps even the peace of the entire ninja world.

Shisui Uchiha and Itachi Uchiha.

Tsunade noted these two names. She would not believe Sarutobi Hiruzen's words alone, even if he were the Hokage.

Moreover, the Uchiha clan certainly wasn't limited to just these two seeking other paths. Hadn't Fugaku Uchiha attended the banquet she held?

As clan head, he certainly wouldn't want the Uchiha and Konoha to reach the point of drawing blades against each other; once force was used, there would inevitably be casualties among his clansmen. But if it truly came to that, as clan head, Fugaku would undoubtedly firmly support the coup.

Yet, the old man had never once mentioned Fugaku, which meant that trust could not be established between the two of them. But Fugaku was willing to trust her, even taking the initiative to show goodwill. She should find an opportunity to speak with Fugaku alone.

Tsunade let out a long sigh and took her feet off his desk: "Old man, you really have given me a difficult problem."

Sarutobi Hiruzen took a deep drag from his pipe and urged her again: "Tsunade, there really isn't much time left. Once you handle the Uchiha matter, you should succeed as the Fifth Hokage."

Tsunade did not answer directly, instead continuing to harp on the Uchiha topic: "The Uchiha issue is, at its core, a matter of trust. Do you expect that group of proud people to bow their heads first? The village must show sincerity first."

With that, she turned and walked away. But at that very moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen's hand holding the pipe froze. He slowly lowered the pipe and called out to stop her.

He looked at her, his lips trembling, his throat seemingly blocked by something, unable to speak for a long while.

Finally, he raised the hand holding the pipe and pointed at her, his arm shaking from extreme agitation.

"Ku... Kumogakure, perhaps... they will give us an opportunity!"

War!

No one is more adept at war than the Uchiha!