Before Her Husband?

It was obvious that Mikoto Uchiha was still groggy with sleep. When she saw Genkawa Uchiha enter, she seemed not to have fully come to her senses. She rubbed her eyes before finally sitting upright.

"Genkawa, you're back."

As she spoke, Mikoto Uchiha covered her mouth and yawned again, her face showing clear exhaustion.

Genkawa Uchiha nodded and sat down before the low table, looking at the woman across from him.

Fatigue was written all over her face, and she no longer seemed to possess her usual fresh beauty. Yet she was still a beauty, and her mature charm could not be concealed.

"Why did you come here at this hour? Shouldn't you be at home keeping your child company?"

Mikoto Uchiha shook her head, took several dishes from the basket beside her, and set them on the low table.

"I'll warm the food for you."

She was about to rise, but Genkawa Uchiha stopped her.

"No rush."

Mikoto Uchiha obediently sat back down and looked at Genkawa Uchiha, but did not speak again.

For a moment, silence filled the room.

"Did Fugaku Uchiha send you to speak for him?" he asked.

Mikoto Uchiha pressed her lips together and remained silent.

"Looks like he did."

Genkawa Uchiha nodded and continued, "So, you came to persuade me?"

Mikoto Uchiha certainly knew that the village intended to relocate the entire Uchiha Clan from its current grounds and choose another place for its new clan territory.

Since she knew and had still come here, her intentions were naturally obvious.

"Fugaku has his own difficulties."

That was all Mikoto Uchiha could say.

Genkawa Uchiha nodded. "I understand. And then?"

Mikoto Uchiha lowered her eyes, her hands lightly clutching the fabric over her knees as though the words were difficult to say.

"Genkawa, can you think about the clan? The Uchiha Clan is truly in a difficult position right now. We have no other choice."

Genkawa Uchiha merely nodded again, quietly watching her.

After speaking, Mikoto Uchiha cautiously studied his face, seemingly hoping to find something there.

But unfortunately, Genkawa Uchiha's gaze remained as calm as ever. Her words had not stirred any anger in him, as though he had heard something completely unrelated to himself.

"Sure enough, getting married changes people."

Genkawa Uchiha suddenly said something inexplicable.

Mikoto Uchiha lowered her head at those words, her eyes turning slightly red.

She remembered the first few years she had spent with Genkawa Uchiha.

Although Genkawa Uchiha had been young then, he had not yet become as cold and distant as he was now. He had only been somewhat more aloof than ordinary children, and he had been close to her. He had been nowhere near as ruthless as he was now.

But after she married, and later became the Clan Head's wife, some things changed.

She did not know when it had started, but the relationship between them had gradually grown distant.

Although whenever Mikoto Uchiha saw Genkawa Uchiha, he still joked with her as he had in the past, sometimes even making her blush, she knew very well that it was only an appearance.

Some things beneath the surface had already changed.

"Mikoto, I'm glad you came today. But I'm very dissatisfied with what you just said to persuade me."

Genkawa Uchiha took out some sake, poured himself a cup, and began eating the side dishes on his own.

"The Uchiha Clan's affairs have nothing to do with me. I don't care whether the Uchiha Clan is having a hard time."

"Genkawa..."

"Let me finish."

Genkawa Uchiha gently set down his chopsticks, stared at Mikoto Uchiha, and spoke again.

"When Konoha was founded, the First Hokage was fine. He held no ill will toward the Uchiha Clan. At the time, the Uchiha desired peace and stability, which in turn helped Konoha develop."

"When the Second Hokage took power, Madara Uchiha had already defected, and the First Hokage's life had been shortened because of it. The Second Hokage naturally distrusted the Uchiha Clan."

"By the time the Third Hokage came to power, he lacked the Second Hokage's abilities. His rise had also been abrupt, and he could not win everyone over in a short time, so he could only decentralize power. Unfortunately, the several Hokage Advisors in power were all disciples of the Second Hokage, so they directly inherited his ideas and remained highly wary of the Uchiha."

With every point Genkawa Uchiha made, Mikoto Uchiha's face grew a shade paler.

She found it difficult to imagine that Genkawa Uchiha, a child who had never even attended the Ninja Academy, could see these matters so clearly.

If you can't find it by searching the book title, try searching the author. It may simply have been renamed!

The more she realized this, the more uneasy she became.

Then Genkawa Uchiha continued, "Until the Nine-Tails Incident, when the Nine-Tails, controlled by the Sharingan, caused enormous damage to the village. That only made everyone in the village more dissatisfied with the Uchiha Clan, leading to the Uchiha Clan's current awkward situation."

Mikoto Uchiha instinctively said, "Since you understand all this, why..."

"Mikoto, are you asking why I won't help the clan?"

Mikoto Uchiha had no answer.

"It's simple."

Genkawa Uchiha smiled instead.

"Because every last Uchiha is a lunatic. Every one of them is a shockwave."

Having spent time with Genkawa Uchiha, Mikoto Uchiha naturally knew what "shockwave" meant. Even with the strange atmosphere, she could not help blushing.

That insult was far too filthy.

"Of course, that isn't just an Uchiha problem. The Hyuga Clan is full of shockwaves too. And Konoha's number one shockwave has to be Shimura Danzō."

As he spoke, he shook his head.

"In this kind of environment, with the Uchiha Clan's current way of doing things, they have no future at all."

"The village will gradually restrict the Uchiha until it eventually drives them into a point of no return."

"So instead of trying to persuade me, you should go persuade the clan members. Have them give up the Police Force, give up their unnecessary pride, and truly integrate with the villagers. Then work upward from there and force the village leadership to change. Maybe then there'll still be a chance."

After saying that, Genkawa Uchiha found it amusing and shook his head again.

"Forget it. Pretend I said nothing, Mikoto. Just treat it as a joke."

But Mikoto Uchiha's emotions were complicated, and she was deeply shaken.

The boy before her truly seemed unbelievable.

"How... did you come up with all that?"

Genkawa Uchiha did not hide it.

"It's simple. Watch more, think more, analyze from small and simple matters, then use the details to understand the bigger picture. My house has plenty of records, covering major and minor events from Konoha's founding up through more than a decade ago."

There was suddenly something different in Mikoto Uchiha's gaze as she looked at Genkawa Uchiha.

"That's the way a Hokage thinks."

Genkawa Uchiha gave her a speechless look.

It was only a simple analysis of the situation. Why call it Hokage thinking? That was what was bad about the Ninja World.

The room fell silent again, leaving only the sounds of Genkawa Uchiha eating and drinking.

Mikoto Uchiha watched him with a slight furrow in her brow, as though thinking about something.

Second by second, time passed. Genkawa Uchiha had already eaten half the food when, as though she had finally made up her mind, she quietly moved to his side and sat close against him.

Genkawa Uchiha was slightly surprised, but said nothing.

Then Mikoto Uchiha used another pair of chopsticks to pick up some food, supporting it with her hand as she brought it before Genkawa Uchiha.

This actually left Genkawa Uchiha at a loss.

What did this mean?

A honey trap?

Using this to test an official?

Who could withstand a test like that?

Without any psychological burden, Genkawa Uchiha opened his mouth and ate it. Then he felt Mikoto Uchiha lean into his arms.

"Mikoto, have you finally come to your senses? You know there's no future with a guy like Fugaku Uchiha?"

As he spoke, he could already smell the faint fragrance drifting from her body, mixed with a light milky scent that was exceptionally pleasant.

Just then, a faint sound came from outside.

The two of them looked toward it and saw that someone had appeared in the courtyard at some point, staring into the room with a livid face.

Fugaku Uchiha!

He had somehow climbed over the wall without making much noise, clearly not wanting to be discovered.

Considering what he had said at the clan meeting, as well as the Uchiha Clan's current situation, it was not strange for him to appear here.

He had obviously come to speak with Genkawa Uchiha in private about something.

But... Mikoto Uchiha's body had gone stiff.

Only then did Genkawa Uchiha remember the state they were currently in.

This... right in front of her husband?

If you can't find it by searching the book title, try searching the author. It may simply have been renamed!

At the request of many readers, an ad-free VIP membership feature is now available.

Click to view