Tit for Tat

The night was as dark as ink; the moonlight, though white as snow, seemed stained crimson by the scarlet Sharingan below.

At the Uchiha assembly, candle flames flickered uneasily, illuminating faces suppressed with rage.

The air was thick with the restless aura of chakra, as if a single spark could ignite the entirety of Konoha.

Elder Setsuna, who had been silent for a long time, finally stepped into the center of the clan gathering.

His frame remained gaunt, but his Sharingan burned like a raging fire, flashing with a heart-stopping brilliance.

Setsuna slowly scanned the crowd, and wherever his gaze fell, the clansmen straightened their backs, their Three Tomoe spinning silently in their eyes.

"Clansmen of the Uchiha..." His voice was hoarse and low, yet it echoed through the ancestral hall like the rumble of thunder before a storm.

"How much longer must we endure?!"

His cane slammed heavily against the floor, sending wood splinters flying. Elder Setsuna suddenly raised a hand, pointing toward the Hokage Rock outside the hall, his voice rasping.

"Ever since the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, we have been pushed step by step into a dead end!"

"The Police Force? Hah, that is nothing more than a shackle they have locked around our necks!"

"We maintain order in Konoha, yet we receive only the villagers' scorn."

"We guard the peace of the village, yet when our own kin are murdered, we cannot even secure justice!"

"Danzo!!!" Elder Setsuna's voice rose sharply.

"That despicable old thief dared to lay hands on our clan's young child within our own territory!"

"And the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi..."

Setsuna dragged out the tone with mockery.

"He merely confined him for a few days and brushed the matter aside! Is this the fairness of Konoha? Is this the justice of the Hokage?! Is this their Will of Fire?!!!"

"Clansmen, answer me, are you willing to accept a Konoha such as this?!"

"No!!" the clansmen roared in response, the sound wave nearly blowing the roof off.

A flicker of ruthlessness flashed in Elder Setsuna's Sharingan. He stepped forward abruptly and shouted, "And our clan's genius, Uchiha Shisui... he is dead!"

"He died in obscurity! The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, didn't even dare to announce the killer! Why?"

"Because they are afraid! Afraid of our Uchiha rage, afraid of the power of our Sharingan!"

The clansmen below the stage heard Shisui's name and shouted in a fury: "Kill! Kill! Kill!"

"Fugaku!" Elder Setsuna turned abruptly, his Sharingan fixed directly on their "good" clan head.

Elder Setsuna's voice dropped low at this moment: "What are you still hesitating for? Do you intend to watch with your own eyes as the Uchiha clan is wiped out?!"

At this, Fugaku, who had been sitting to the side, could no longer hold back. He slammed his hand against his chair and questioned Setsuna: "Elder Setsuna, you are openly inciting the emotions of the clansmen; what is your intention?"

Setsuna, standing on the stage, looked at Fugaku and let out a cold snort.

"Fugaku, I should never have agreed to let you become clan head. If it had been anyone else, we would not be in this situation today."

"I have only one goal today. Fugaku! Hand over the original version of the Flame Explosion Technique. Only then will our Uchiha clan have hope."

"To continue as we are is nothing more than a slow death."

Setsuna was actually deeply annoyed that Chuanhe still refused to hand over the original version of the Flame Explosion Technique to him.

The current situation was clear to anyone, even those who weren't ninjas; it was already an arrow on the bowstring.

In truth, Chuanhe's reasoning was simple: he just didn't want too many people to know about the original version of the technique, nothing more.

Fugaku, standing to the side, was stunned by these words.

According to his understanding, it was impossible for Chuanhe to refuse an opportunity to spread this technique, which meant the original version of the technique truly had no flaws.

Thinking of this, Fugaku revealed a faint smile.

Because he understood that perhaps his sons, Sasuke and Itachi, might actually survive.

Setsuna, seeing Fugaku's expression, became extremely angry.

The clansmen below were whispering among themselves, as they had no idea that this technique even had different versions.

"The original version?"

"Never heard of it. Could it be even more powerful?"

"Judging by the name, it doesn't sound very strong, does it?"

Setsuna scanned his surroundings. This assembly consisted of all the elite clansmen with Three Tomoe.

But he was the only one who hadn't called Uchiha Hui; he wanted to keep this matter hidden, as it was the most important future of their Uchiha clan.

Not even Uchiha Madara had possessed such strength at this age.

Setsuna took a deep breath and shouted loudly: "Clansmen, the difficulty level of the original version of this technique is only D, which means every clansman with chakra can learn this technique in a short amount of time!"

"What?!"

"How is that possible..."

"It's actually only D-rank!"

The entire scene grew even more chaotic, while Fugaku, standing to the side, remained silent.

Under normal circumstances, as the "Clan Head," he would be required to hand over this technique at this moment.

Instead, Fugaku revealed a faint smile.

Setsuna, who had been watching Fugaku the entire time, was incensed to see him smiling: "Fugaku!!! Are you still refusing to see reason? It seems I have no choice but to..."

However, Fugaku interrupted Setsuna mid-sentence.

"No, I agree. Elder Setsuna, this is the scroll you wanted." Fugaku calmly handed over a scroll.

Setsuna took the scroll with a look of suspicion, but after studying it carefully, a smile appeared on his face.

That's right, this was the genuine article!

Yet, still dissatisfied, he said to Fugaku: "Fugaku, why did you only agree today? If you had accepted it earlier, things wouldn't have reached such an extreme point."

It was as if the sun had risen in the west; even the Militant Faction felt things had gone too far.

"Tekka, take this scroll and ensure it is kept safe."

"Yes, Lord Setsuna." Tekka's form of address had shifted quietly.

Not a single Uchiha present felt that anything was amiss.

They had long harbored resentment toward Fugaku's weakness; if it was going to come to this, why wait until now?

Since this scroll was destined to be brought out eventually, why not do it sooner?

Things would not have escalated to today's outcome.

Having obtained the scroll, there was no turning back for them; they could only prepare for battle within an extremely limited timeframe.

"Clan Head Fugaku, do you have any other instructions for us useless clansmen?" Setsuna's icy words struck Fugaku's face, one by one.

Every Uchiha present stared at Fugaku in unison with their Three Tomoe Sharingan.

At this moment, Fugaku slowly stood up, his three tomoe spinning rapidly within his eye sockets, transforming into a brand-new pattern.

Setsuna's pupils contracted sharply.

"What I want to say is that you have all been deceived; the true mastermind is someone else."

At this moment, every Uchiha clansman in the assembly fell into silence.

Mangekyou Sharingan!

Their Clan Head actually possessed those legendary eyes!

"Chuanhe is the true culprit..."

The scene was deathly silent; no one dared to refute him, and even Elder Setsuna lost his voice.

Under the pressure of the Mangekyou, they finally calmed down.

But at this moment, Setsuna uncharacteristically refuted Fugaku, even though his voice trembled.

"No... impossible, there is no way Chuanhe is the problem. Do you know that Uchiha Hui possesses the Three Tomoe! He is only six years old! And he possesses the Flying Thunder God Technique!"

"He cannot be the problem!"

At this, the surrounding clansmen began to whisper among themselves.

Fugaku also frowned. He had intended to reveal the truth now so that even if they were to die, they would die with their eyes open.

But Hui's Three Tomoe left him deeply shocked.

If he truly were a spy, then why...

Fugaku's understanding of the Sharingan was profound. This meant that Chuanhe's emotions must have been genuine.

Fugaku suddenly realized that the entire incident had fallen into a fog he could not see through.

As for the Flying Thunder God? In the face of the Three Tomoe Sharingan, he subconsciously ignored it.

"It is indeed not Chuanhe." A familiar voice drifted over.

Shisui walked slowly from behind the clansmen, his own strange Mangekyou Sharingan open. He was still in the state of Impure World Reincarnation.

The surrounding clansmen seemed to be pushed aside by an invisible force, involuntarily clearing a path for him.

Yet, each and every one of them was exceptionally agitated; Shisui! He wasn't dead!

"This is all a deception by the Konoha high-ups! My apologies, everyone, this is also my fault; all of this is one massive misunderstanding!"

The entire assembly fell into absolute silence, with only pairs of Three Tomoe Sharingan spinning incessantly.