Danzo: I've Seen Through Everything!

Time passed second by second. The wait was long and unsettling.

Even Danzo, with his iron nerves, was starting to feel restless. He couldn't help rubbing his brow with one hand, while the other tapped rhythmically against the armrest.

Tap!

Tap!

Tap!

A flurry of hurried footsteps approached from the darkness.

Several Root shinobi strode into the hall and knelt before Danzo.

"Lord Danzo, the Uchiha Clan Meeting tonight has ended. Nothing unusual happened during it."

"Nothing happened?"

Danzo furrowed his brow.

That wasn't the answer he'd expected. It hadn't even crossed his mind as a possibility.

He had seen for himself the barely concealed malice Setsuna Uchiha held toward Konoha's High Command while in prison. There was no way he'd imagined it.

How could someone like that do nothing at an Uchiha Clan Meeting?!

"Was the intelligence wrong, or are the Uchiha hiding something?!"

"No."

The Root shinobi who had delivered the report shook his head.

"A barrier around Naka Shrine blocked the reconnaissance shinobi from spying."

"Although we don't know exactly what happened, no Uchiha shinobi were injured before or after the Clan Meeting."

"That's enough to show that Setsuna Uchiha and Fugaku Uchiha didn't have a direct confrontation during the meeting, at least."

"That's impossible!"

Danzo dismissed the suggestion without a moment's hesitation.

"One is the Uchiha's former leader, and the other is their current head."

"One is a hard-line hawk who hates Konoha, while the other is a dove trying to work with Hiruzen."

"There's no way those two didn't clash!"

"Something must have happened at the Uchiha Clan Meeting that we don't know about. Keep investigating. I want to know everything that happened before and after it!"

"Wait!"

Another Root shinobi suddenly stepped forward and handed Danzo a report on that night's mission.

"I remember something happening that seemed worth noting."

"After the Uchiha Clan Meeting, the Uchiha shinobi didn't leave together. They came out in several groups."

"Setsuna Uchiha and Fugaku Uchiha were alone in Naka Shrine for a while."

"The two of them spoke in private..."

Danzo lowered his eyes to the mission report handed over by the Root shinobi assigned to watch the Uchiha.

Flip! Flip! Flip!

The pages turned quickly, and the events surrounding the Uchiha Clan Meeting flashed before Danzo's eyes.

As he read, the corners of his mouth slowly lifted.

"I see. Now I understand!"

Everyone present looked up, waiting for Danzo to continue.

"The two of them spoke in private, but then left the shrine separately. And each took away one of Konoha's recent prodigies. That's enough to show their negotiations didn't go well."

"Perhaps..."

Danzo narrowed his eyes and glanced at the report as he continued.

"Fugaku Uchiha even made a concession. Otherwise, he'd never have let Setsuna Uchiha take Uchiha Shingen, a prodigy with such exceptional talent who was naturally close to Konoha!"

"That means Setsuna Uchiha wants to cut off the possibility of cooperation between Konoha and the Uchiha."

"In other words, Fugaku Uchiha came out of the Clan Meeting on the back foot. My plan has already succeeded halfway!"

"With Setsuna Uchiha around, there's no chance Hiruzen can win over the Uchiha!"

Oil Woman Ryoma was taken aback by this explanation.

Something about it seemed off, but he couldn't put his finger on what. He spoke cautiously.

"Lord Danzo, we still have no evidence to support your theory."

"That's true."

Danzo nodded, accepting Oil Woman Ryoma's point. Then he gave an order to the Root shinobi before him.

"Return to Naka Shrine and see if you can find any clues."

"Yes!"

The shinobi scattered like birds and beasts, returning to the area around Naka Shrine to look for clues.

Four hours later.

The Root shinobi who had been searching for clues returned to the base with several completely warped kunai.

"We found these near Naka Shrine."

"Although they were found more than ten kilometers from the shrine, their trajectories indicate that they were thrown from inside it."

"We also found matching small holes in the shrine's outer wall."

Danzo picked up one of the kunai. It felt icy cold in his hand, but the corners of his mouth curled upward.

"This is the evidence!"

"Looks like Fugaku Uchiha and Setsuna Uchiha didn't merely fail to reach an agreement. They came to blows."

"From the results, Fugaku Uchiha must have suffered quite a loss."

"Just wait."

"It won't be long before the Uchiha's internal conflict erupts!"

"Patriarch, was it really wise to leave Shingen with Setsuna Uchiha?!"

Konoha Military Police Force.

After leaving Naka Shrine, Uchiha Yakumi had returned here with Fugaku.

He'd been worried the entire way, and now he finally couldn't hold back any longer.

Fugaku Uchiha didn't answer. He simply picked up the teapot from the table, poured Uchiha Yakumi a cup, then slowly sat back down.

"Why are you drinking tea at a time like this?!"

Seeing that Fugaku showed no reaction, Uchiha Yakumi grew even more anxious.

"Patriarch, Shingen is still young. If Setsuna Uchiha's ideas influence him and he follows the same path, all the favorable circumstances we have now will go to waste!"

Fugaku Uchiha remained unruffled. He took a small sip of tea before answering.

"No matter what he wants to do, I'm confident I can keep him in check. Besides, Elder Setsuna's presence might actually be a good thing for us."

"What do you mean?!"

Fugaku Uchiha set down his teacup and looked up at Uchiha Yakumi.

"Who do you think had Elder Setsuna released?"

"Danzo?!"

Uchiha Yakumi replied instinctively. When Fugaku shook his head, he froze and blurted out:

"Surely it wasn't the Third Hokage?!"

"That's right. It was the Third Hokage!"

Fugaku Uchiha nodded.

"The only person in Konoha with the authority to release Elder Setsuna early is the Third Hokage. He probably thinks this will make me side with Konoha for good."

"I see..."

Uchiha Yakumi was taken aback. He sensed that there was more to it, but a veil of fog seemed to cloud his understanding. The Uchiha situation seemed increasingly inscrutable.

Seeing this, Fugaku Uchiha patiently explained.

"The situation within the Uchiha is clear now."

"If nothing happens to Shingen-kun, the conflict between the Uchiha and the village will be completely resolved in a few years, or ten at most."

"We need to look ahead to that time and consider how to win more benefits for the Uchiha."

"Elder Setsuna is a card the Hokage is playing—and one I want in my hand too!"