Friends, Enemies

Naoki could perform Fire Release Ninjutsu with ease, but as he flipped through the other techniques, a strange feeling welled up inside him.

He stood and formed the hand seals recorded in the ninjutsu compendium.

Dog, Horse, Rooster

"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"

As Wind Release chakra poured out, a gale howled through the training ground...

"Hm?"

Naoki was astonished to discover that he had Wind Release chakra.

His previous self had only possessed Fire and Water chakra affinities; he had no affinity for Wind, Lightning, or Earth. Yet now, without having trained much at all, he could perform Wind Release Ninjutsu. Could this mean...

He continued forming hand seals.

"Earth Release: Earth Flow Spears!"

"Lightning Release..."

He performed two techniques in succession, and completed both Earth Release and Lightning Release with ease.

He wasn't sure whether his previous self had already possessed all five chakra natures or whether something had changed after he came to this world. Either way, it was good news. More skills never hurt.

He muttered to himself, "It's just that I don't have much chakra. I'm afraid I won't be able to bring out the full power of all five natures."

It was good news, at any rate. Naoki couldn't be bothered to investigate the reason, and happily began studying the ninjutsu compendium in the training ground.

While Naoki happily practiced his ninjutsu, Uchiha Fugaku was sitting in a meeting at the Hokage Building, looking deeply troubled.

After Naoki left, Uchiha Fugaku had spent a long time thinking, turning over many things in his mind.

The more he thought, the more alarmed he became; the more he thought, the more tormented he felt.

In another world, one without Naoki, he had been swept along by events in a daze. It wasn't until he joined forces with the militant faction of the Uchiha Clan that he finally came to his senses and realized he had already been pushed onto a vehicle called "coup d'état." Whether he moved forward or turned back, he would be crushed.

Now, he had woken up years earlier. He could see the thorny road ahead, but all he felt was helplessness.

He asked himself: what could be done about the clan's predicament, beset by troubles both within and without?

As Uchiha Fugaku sat there, lost in thought, Uchiha Yashiro suddenly nudged him.

Coming back to himself, Fugaku looked up and met the gaze of Akimichi Choza, seated diagonally across from him. Choza was glaring at him.

"Fugaku, do you not want to talk to a rough fellow like me and answer my question, or do you think the Uchiha Clan is blameless and has nothing to explain?"

Uchiha Yashiro didn't know what was going through Uchiha Fugaku's mind, but after years of knowing him, he could tell that Fugaku was unsettled. So Yashiro slapped the table and rose to his feet.

"Choza's question is perfectly reasonable. The Sharingan appeared in the Nine-Tails' eyes. Not only were all of you here shocked by it, but we Uchiha were deeply shocked as well."

"But that's precisely why we need to calmly examine the facts. If the Uchiha really did this, why would we let the Nine-Tails' Sharingan be seen by everyone? Did we plan a disaster that would destroy the village just to mark ourselves as traitors in full view of the public? How is that any different from seeking our own destruction?"

He paused, then continued in an even sterner tone.

"What kind of ocular prowess would it take to control the Nine-Tails? Which of the Uchiha's more than ten Jonin could confidently control it? If we really had that kind of power, why would we have fought and suffered such heavy losses against our enemies in the Third Shinobi World War? Wouldn't it have been far more worthwhile to control a Tailed Beast and sweep across the Shinobi World?"

"But the truth is, the names of the Uchiha who died in the war are still carved into the memorial stone at Naka Shrine!"

Uchiha Yashiro raised his voice again.

"The Sharingan in the Nine-Tails' eyes can only mean that someone deliberately framed us, hoping to use the Nine-Tails Incident to provoke infighting in Konoha!"

"Whatever the truth may be, turning against the entire Uchiha Clan right now is exactly what the mastermind wants. If we start suspecting one another here, we'll have fallen right into that person's trap!"

Akimichi Choza had remained silent. Only after Uchiha Yashiro finished did he slowly shake his head.

"Everything you said makes sense, but it's still just your conjecture, isn't it? Where's the evidence?"

"Is there any evidence that proves such a person really exists?"

Uchiha Yashiro opened his mouth, but said nothing.

That was indeed the weak point in his argument. He could say anything he liked, but he couldn't name Uchiha Madara as the "culprit."

Just as Uchiha Yashiro stood speechless, Sarutobi Hiruzen suddenly spoke.

"There is evidence."

Everyone immediately turned their eyes to Sarutobi Hiruzen, seated at the head of the table.

Their expressions showed surprise, suspicion, anger, and more, but no one dared to openly challenge him.

Ignoring their gazes, Sarutobi Hiruzen raised a hand, and Zo, standing beside him, immediately handed him a document.

"Take a look. This is the Anbu's investigation after the incident..." As he spoke, he passed the document around for everyone to read. "Based on the Anbu's examination of the site and a thorough investigation into the murdered ninja, someone killed the guards and broke into the room when Uzumaki Kushina was at her weakest during childbirth. They took her away and released the Nine-Tails..."

As the document made its way around, everyone gained a clear understanding of what had happened.

Hyuga Hiashi furrowed his brows as he finished reading. "So there really is someone secretly pulling the strings, someone who can use Space-Time Ninjutsu, all to stir up conflict within the village and weaken us?"

"And Minato," Uchiha Fugaku added after reading the document in his hands. "He also fought a battle against Minato."

Akimichi Choza said, "It seems this person has quite the ambitious scheme!"

As everyone debated, Uchiha Fugaku, now composed again, glanced discreetly at Akimichi Choza, then at Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Coming back to himself, he looked around. The head of the Yamanaka Clan, Yamanaka Inoichi, wasn't present, and when Akimichi Choza had challenged him earlier, Nara Shikaku hadn't said a word... Perhaps Choza's opening challenge had been a double act with Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Uchiha Fugaku rubbed the corner of his eye.

He had lost himself in thought because he had seen the Uchiha Clan's true position in Konoha.

Looking at things now, perhaps the Ino-Shika-Cho Clans had been helping Sarutobi Hiruzen put on an act. But could all the other senior and middle-ranking officials who had followed Akimichi Choza into the "charge" have been acting too? Clearly, most people weren't very friendly toward the Uchiha Clan.

The situation was clear. Whether intentional or not, Akimichi Choza's "smoking out the snake" had shown him who his enemies were and who his friends were...

With Sarutobi Hiruzen's intervention, the Uchiha Clan was largely cleared of suspicion in the Nine-Tails Incident. The meeting continued, since nearly half of Konoha had been destroyed and there was still plenty to discuss.

"I'll have the Anbu continue investigating last night's events. Next, let's discuss rebuilding the village's central district..."