Watch Closely-This Is How You Start a Rebellion

Uchiha Qiantang had to explain. "This is a tragedy for the Uchiha Clan and a tremendous loss. The clan has been busy handling the aftermath and stabilizing the situation these past few days, so we were unable to inform Lord Hokage in time. We hope you'll forgive us."

Hiruzen Sarutobi quickly composed himself and said gravely, "This is truly heartbreaking news. Clan Head Fugaku was in the prime of his life and one of Konoha's pillars. What exactly happened?"

His question went straight to the heart of the matter, his gaze sharp as he scrutinized the four people before him.

A mere illness couldn't have taken a Uchiha in the prime of his life.

Uchiha Yashiro and Inabi's bodies tensed almost imperceptibly for an instant. Uchiha Qiantang slowly raised his eyelids. All three looked toward Uchiha Du Yang in unison, but none of them spoke.

When no one seemed willing to answer, Hiruzen Sarutobi continued to steer the conversation. "The Uchiha Clan has been through a lot, yet you've still sent representatives this time, willing to speak candidly with the village. That's a good thing."

"Konoha has always been the shared home of every clan. The village has always taken the Uchiha's reasonable requests seriously."

He tried to guide the conversation toward manageable topics, such as the Military Police Force's authority, expanding the compound, or giving the clan a greater role in politics.

However, something happened that Hiruzen Sarutobi found unbelievable: Uchiha Du Yang stepped to the front, directly passing Uchiha Qiantang, while Uchiha Yashiro and Inabi made no attempt to stop him.

Then Uchiha Du Yang said the first thing that made Hiruzen Sarutobi wonder if he'd heard correctly:

"First, please allow me to formally inform Lord Hokage that, following an emergency vote by the Uchiha Clan elders and with the approval of the clan's majority, I, Uchiha Du Yang, will serve as acting clan head from this day forward, until a new clan head is formally chosen according to clan rules."

"What?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's head snapped up, his eyes flashing as he fixed Uchiha Du Yang with a hard stare.

And he wasn't the only one. The Anbu shinobi had all heard it too.

Had the Uchiha lost their minds? How could they make a mere youngster their clan head? What on earth had happened?

But Uchiha Du Yang wasn't finished. "Second, based on our clan's reassessment of the current situation and our careful consideration of the past and the future..."

Du Yang paused, his gaze passing over the portraits of the past Hokage on the office wall, then the Kage Rock outside the window, before settling once more on Hiruzen Sarutobi's darkened face. He enunciated every word:

"I, Uchiha Du Yang, in my capacity as the newly appointed acting head of the Uchiha Clan, hereby formally declare on behalf of all Uchiha clan members that, from this day forward, the Uchiha Clan voluntarily withdraws from the Hidden Leaf Village and severs all alliance, affiliation, and obligations with Konoha.

"Our clan will relocate from our current compound within the agreed timeframe. From then on, the Uchiha Clan will have no further ties to the Hidden Leaf Village."

These were words he'd wanted to say for so long. At last, today, he'd spoken them aloud.

"Are you kidding me?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi shot to his feet, his face contorted.

Withdraw from Konoha?!

Voluntarily sever all ties?!

Relocate?!

They'd assumed the Uchiha had come to continue submitting to them. They'd never imagined that their newly chosen clan head would say something even more extreme than a rebellion.

This was rebellion. Plain and simple.

To say the Uchiha were withdrawing from the Hidden Leaf Village and severing their alliance—did they think he, the Hokage, didn't exist?

"Uchiha Du Yang, do you know what you're saying? Who gave your clan permission to do this?" The Third Hokage's voice rose sharply, thunderous fury befitting a man long accustomed to authority radiating from him in a powerful wave. "The First and Uchiha Madara founded Konoha together. The Uchiha are an indispensable part of Konoha. You can't just decide to leave!"

In the small Hokage's office, dozens of icy presences locked onto Du Yang. They belonged to the elite Anbu, directly under the Hokage's command.

At a single glance from the Third Hokage, they would attack at once.

Behind Du Yang, Uchiha Yashiro and Inabi tensed all over, their hands resting on their tool pouches as if ready to act at any moment.

Uchiha Qiantang still kept his eyes lowered, like an ancient stone statue.

"Lord Hokage, please calm your anger," Du Yang said unhurriedly. "Our shared founding belongs to the past. Forgive my bluntness, but since the Nine-Tails Incident, all the Uchiha have felt in Konoha is suspicion and ostracism."

"Konoha sees the Uchiha as a threat, and the Uchiha see Konoha as a cage. If the Uchiha stay in Konoha, what purpose can it serve besides deepening hatred and leading to even more bloody conflict?"

He took a step forward and said with complete seriousness, "Konoha would no longer have to keep watch over the Uchiha day and night, and the Uchiha would no longer have to endure this oppression. Wouldn't that be a better outcome for both sides?"

The Third Hokage retorted sternly, "Ridiculous! The Uchiha Clan's bloodline limit and power, not to mention the land you've lived on for generations, are all closely tied to Konoha."

"If you leave, where do you think you'll go? Where could you go? The Shinobi World won't let a single clan establish itself so easily."

"That's a problem for the Uchiha to face, not something Lord Hokage needs to worry about," Du Yang replied, leaving no room for argument. "Haven't the Uchiha shed enough blood for Konoha over the years? We'll take only what belongs to us, and we promise that from now on, the Uchiha and Konoha will regard each other as foreign villages and refrain from attacking one another.

"We'll wipe the slate clean."

Du Yang paused, then added:

"Of course, if Konoha insists on viewing the Uchiha's departure as betrayal and tries to stop us by force, then everyone in my clan, myself included, will have no choice but to defend our right to make our own choices at any cost—even if that means taking up arms against you."

At that moment, Shimura Danzō appeared abruptly in the Hokage's office and urged the Third Hokage, "Hiruzen, what are you waiting for?"

"Do you see now? This is the Uchiha you've always wanted to deal with openly."

"Fugaku has barely been laid to rest, and they've already rushed to put forward some unknown youngster, brazenly declaring that they're leaving."

"This isn't withdrawal. It's an outright rebellion, a provocation and betrayal of Konoha."

At the same time, more chakra signatures appeared. Root operatives had quietly taken their positions as well.

Since this high-ranking Konoha official had been hiding nearby from the very beginning, he'd likely been waiting for Fugaku to arrive so he could seize him immediately.

Danzō pressed on. "Hiruzen, we can't let them split Konoha, and we can't let them take their Sharingan with them. Give the order now, right here."

"Execute these four Uchiha traitors on the spot."

"Then mobilize every available force and purge the Uchiha Compound at once."

Like a judge pronouncing sentence on the Uchiha, Danzō declared with iron certainty, "The Uchiha were bound to rebel sooner or later. Now they already have."

"While they're leaderless and in disarray, wipe out this menace in one blow and be rid of it for good."

Even the deeply calculating Danzō was unusually agitated.

But the moment Danzō appeared and showed his true colors, the corners of Du Yang's mouth lifted slightly.

The two most important stars of today's show had arrived.

What he wanted to say to Konoha and the Uchiha was:

"Watch closely. This is how you rebel. I'll only demonstrate it once."

Du Yang would use his own methods to make Danzō kill the Third Hokage and plunge Konoha into chaos.