Xuanye nodded, conceding Fugaku's point, then changed tack.
"As everyone knows, the First established the ninja village system and distributed the Tailed Beasts for the sake of peace."
"So why shouldn't we cede some land and resources when the Other Ninja Villages invade, and preserve the peace a little longer?"
Anger flashed in Fugaku's eyes. He was clearly displeased by what Xuanye had said.
"And after the Other Ninja Villages have absorbed those resources? They'll grow stronger, then invade the Land of Fire with even greater force!"
"Greed is never satisfied. We'd suffer even worse losses then. A peace built entirely on concessions can't be trusted!"
"Are we supposed to believe wolves will stop eating meat once they've had their fill?"
Fugaku seemed to think Xuanye was hopelessly naive. Why else would he suggest something so absurd?
Xuanye gave a cold laugh. His voice turned icy.
"So the clan leader does understand that principle?"
"Cede five cities today and ten tomorrow, and you might sleep peacefully for one night. But look beyond your borders in the morning, and the enemy is at your gates again!"
"If you understand that, why do you keep giving ground whenever the Konoha High Command tests the Uchiha?"
Xuanye pointed at his eyes. "We Uchiha have the most fertile 'land' in the entire Ninja World."
"And outside, we're surrounded by predators!"
"Yet you, our clan leader, do nothing. You don't even have a line you won't let them cross. All you do is compromise."
Even someone as spineless as Fugaku had a temper when accused of doing nothing but compromising.
"Then what do you suggest? Lead the Uchiha Family into a war against all of Konoha?"
"Do you have any idea how much danger that would put the entire clan in? The name Uchiha might be wiped from the Ninja World altogether!"
Xuanye was unmoved by Fugaku's anger.
"And that's why you keep retreating, letting the Konoha High Command take the Uchiha apart piece by piece?"
Fugaku had no answer.
Xuanye continued, "Root and Anbu Shinobi are almost openly watching the Uchiha Clan Compound now. I don't need to tell you which two men they answer to, do I?"
"And you still naively believe Sarutobi Hiruzen is willing to trust the Uchiha. It's laughable."
"If there were only Root agents outside the compound, I could at least believe Sarutobi Hiruzen had fooled you!"
This time, Fugaku truly had nothing to say.
Root and Anbu agents were different. An experienced Konoha jōnin could tell them apart at a glance.
Fugaku could no longer fool himself into believing that every masked figure outside belonged to Root.
In some respects, Sarutobi Hiruzen and Shimura Danzō were cut from the same cloth. Hiruzen at least cared about appearances and made some effort to keep up the pretense.
Danzō did not even bother pretending. He openly stationed Root Shinobi outside to watch them.
Xuanye had not been unfair when he said Fugaku had no line he would defend.
Fugaku had no clear idea when to resist, when to bare his teeth, or when the clan would have to rebel.
He could even tolerate a Kekkei Genkai falling into outsiders' hands. Xuanye had to wonder whether Fugaku had been under Kotoamatsukami's control all along.
If what happened with Kakashi's Sharingan had happened to the Hyuga Main Family instead, it would not have mattered that a dying friend had entrusted the eye to him. They would have taken it back, no matter what!
They would even have broken with the Konoha High Command to do it!
The cowards of the Hyuga Main Family might stay neutral on many matters, but they knew exactly where their line was and had made it clear to everyone.
No one was allowed to covet their Byakugan Kekkei Genkai!
Not even Sarutobi Hiruzen could overrule that. Once it happened, it could happen again.
If Kakashi could have one Sharingan today, someone else could "inherit" a comrade's Sharingan tomorrow.
Fugaku took a deep breath. "You still haven't told me what you plan to do."
"I will not stand by and let you drag the Uchiha and Konoha into a civil war."
Xuanye shook his head and said something Fugaku struggled to understand.
"Whether we Uchiha actually intend to rebel doesn't matter. What matters is making the Konoha High Command believe that, if pushed far enough, we really will rebel."
"And we have to make them believe how much damage that rebellion would do to Konoha."
Fugaku frowned, trying to grasp what Xuanye meant, but could not.
Seeing Fugaku's blank look, Xuanye explained further.
"Whether Konoha targets us has little to do with whether we possess the Mangekyō Sharingan or how strong we are in battle."
"Ever since the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, the Konoha High Command has guarded against us. It isn't because our clan has too many hardliners or because anyone has said something radical. They're afraid another Uchiha Madara might emerge from our ranks!"
"As long as the Sharingan exists and our clan still has Shinobi, the endless tests and exclusion won't stop. The cause is our name and these eyes!"
"Don't you understand? Nothing you do will matter to people terrified of Uchiha Madara. That possibility alone is enough for them to watch us, shut us out, and perhaps one day destroy the entire Uchiha Family!"
Fugaku was not a complete fool. Once Xuanye laid it bare, he gently closed his eyes. When he opened them again, they held the crimson Mangekyō Sharingan.
It was the first time he had shown his Mangekyō Sharingan to anyone outside his family. Until now, not even his wife, Uchiha Mikoto, had known about it.
"Do you have a solution? You can't truly mean for the entire Uchiha Family to fight Konoha, can you?"
Without realizing it, Fugaku had begun asking Xuanye, a young man, for answers.
He had to admit that Xuanye saw farther and more clearly than he did.
In this respect, Fugaku fell short of the young man.
Now that he understood nothing he did would ever win the Konoha High Command's acceptance, Fugaku felt an urge he had not felt in years: the urge to change things.
And it was not only the Uchiha who needed to change. Konoha did too.
Xuanye was right. As long as the Senju faction held power in Konoha, the Uchiha Family would never rise.
Perhaps Konoha could bear the Uchiha name after all.