You Can Rebel, But You Can't *Really* Rebel!

Setsuna Uchiha's eyelids twitched uncontrollably.

Good grief!

I really am a good grief!

You can't talk behind my back, so you're going to talk trash to my face, kid?!

He took a deep look at Shisui, matching the youth before him with a familiar face from his memories.

"This kid..."

"He must be Kagami's descendant, right?!"

"Heh..."

Setsuna Uchiha let out a cold, mocking laugh.

Even when mentioning an old acquaintance from those years, there was not a shred of nostalgia in his eyes, only endless derision.

"I said it long ago: the Konoha leadership cannot be trusted."

"The Senju people never intended for the Uchiha to truly integrate into Konoha from the very beginning!"

"The Police Force was never a privilege bestowed upon us."

"It is a shackle meant to trap the Uchiha clansmen, ensuring that everything the Uchiha do happens right under the noses of the Konoha leadership."

"The reason that operation back then failed..."

Setsuna Uchiha's voice gradually trailed off.

He raised his eyes to see a tall, middle-aged man with a mane of silver hair sitting in the seat across from him.

This man was Jiraiya, who had just left the Third Hokage's office and hurried to Konoha's District 4 South.

Jiraiya had intended to warn Uchiha Shingen in advance that Setsuna Uchiha had been released from prison and that the Uchiha might be on the verge of upheaval.

It seemed he was a step too late.

This monster, who had once vied with the Second Hokage, had already locked his sights on Uchiha Shingen.

"Old man, do you mind?"

Setsuna Uchiha raised his eyes, fixing them on Jiraiya:

"Did Hiruzen Sarutobi send you?!"

"No."

Jiraiya shook his head, took the teapot from the table of his own accord, filled Setsuna Uchiha's cup, and poured himself a drink before speaking slowly:

"I came here to see my student. That kid has a stubborn personality; he's at an age where he needs a teacher's guidance."

"Guidance..."

Setsuna Uchiha looked Jiraiya up and down:

"Hiruzen Sarutobi's ability to teach students is far inferior to his teacher, Tobirama Senju."

"..."

"That's a bit of a personal attack, don't you think?"

Jiraiya's face flushed slightly, and he silently sipped his tea, letting the matter slide.

Bang!

The teacup hit the table with a dull thud.

The relaxed expression on Jiraiya's face vanished instantly, and his eyes, fixed on Setsuna Uchiha, carried an undisguised warning:

"Shingen is my student and a junior valued by Fugaku Uchiha. Whoever dares to lay a hand on him must first consider the consequences."

"I trust you are not such an irrational person."

"Heh..."

A soft chuckle squeezed out of Setsuna Uchiha's throat as he reached out to touch his numb legs.

Decades of imprisonment in Konoha had failed to break his spirit, but they had caused irreparable damage to his body.

He could no longer stand, let alone replicate the god-like speed he had once been so proud of.

His hatred for the Konoha leadership was naturally carved into his very bones.

But this had not shattered his will; instead, it had made him even more clear-headed.

"As you can see, I am nothing but an old man in the twilight of his years, with not much time left."

"Someone wants to use my ashes to ignite this fire that is the Uchiha."

Setsuna Uchiha's lips curled, his smile twisted with bone-deep resentment:

"I refuse!"

Seeing that the expression on Jiraiya's face had not softened in the slightest—and had, in fact, become even more grave—Setsuna Uchiha looked down at the teacup on the table and said:

"For the sake of this cup of tea, consider this my warning to you."

"If one day the Uchiha truly fall, who is next? The Hyuga? Or the Sarutobi and Shimura?!"

"There is an irreconcilable contradiction between the will of the clan and the will of the village."

"Heh~"

Jiraiya fell silent for a moment.

Without waiting for him to speak, Setsuna Uchiha turned his head to look at Uchiha Shingen and the other person in the distance:

"Rest assured."

"I am not petty enough to hold a grudge against a junior of the clan."

"I am simply curious as to what kind of charm this young man possesses, to be so highly regarded by Danzo, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and even the current head of the Uchiha."

Having said this, Setsuna Uchiha said no more, refocusing his attention on Uchiha Shingen.

Seeing Jiraiya approach and seemingly hit it off with the old man, Uchiha Shingen did not take the initiative to step forward.

What he was more concerned about now was what kind of impact the return of Setsuna Uchiha would have on his own laid-back life.

Now that Uchiha Shingen had become gradually familiar with Shisui and understood the kid's temperament, he had fewer reservations about what he said or did.

"Come to think of it, the coup d'état led by Setsuna Uchiha back then was discovered by the Second Hokage before it could even be put into action."

After pondering for a moment, Uchiha Shingen took the initiative to ask about the ins and outs of that coup:

"I fear there was someone who tipped them off."

"And not long after that incident, Kagami Uchiha joined the Second Hokage's personal guard."

"If I recall correctly, the members of the guard left behind by the Second Hokage are all high-ranking officials in the village now, aren't they?!"

"I don't believe for a second that there is no connection between these things."

Uchiha Shingen was in the middle of his spirited explanation when he turned his head and saw Shisui lower his head. He thought for a moment and said:

"Kagami Uchiha is your..."

Shisui scratched his scalp, his expression awkward:

"He is my grandfather."

"Uh..."

Seeing this, Uchiha Shingen stiffly changed the subject:

"If you ask me, when it comes to rebellion, you can shout slogans and you can hold drills, but you must never actually do it, and you certainly must never let people think you are going to do it."

"It's politics, after all."

"If you haven't solved the problem at the negotiating table, then you have failed."

Shisui looked up, bewildered, clearly not understanding a word of it.

Setsuna Uchiha, however, who was standing in the distance, suddenly looked up at Uchiha Shingen, his fingers clenching uncontrollably and crushing his teacup once again.

Bang--!

Tea splashed everywhere, soaking Setsuna Uchiha and splattering onto Jiraiya as well.

Jiraiya looked down at his soaked coat and suddenly regretted coming here.

But given that it concerned the disciple he had just taken under his wing, he had no choice but to come.

Jiraiya silently took out a new teacup and refilled it for Setsuna Uchiha.

"Boring brat, what could you possibly know about politics!"

"If someone hadn't leaked the secret in advance back then, there is no way my plan could have failed!"

"Does Senior Shingen mean that if no one had leaked the secret back then, the coup d'état launched by Setsuna Uchiha might have succeeded?!"

Shisui blinked his large eyes, his face showing a look of pure confusion.

He used to think he could barely keep up with Uchiha Shingen's train of thought, but now it was like listening to a foreign language.

"How could that be?!"

Uchiha Shingen shook his head.

He clearly did not think highly of Setsuna Uchiha's coup attempt back then.

Before Shisui could ask, Uchiha Shingen explained:

"It's not that it was impossible to succeed, but even if the coup had succeeded, then what?!"