Chapter 11

"Well? Do you have nothing to explain?"

The lid of the teacup was half-ajar, and steam curled upward from the rim. In the hazy mist, Uchiha Madara's downcast eyes appeared increasingly unreal.

"I gave you seven days to reflect. What is the result?"

The person kneeling opposite remained silent, tongue-tied.

"Aside from me, who else could hold back Senju Hashirama? Or perhaps, you could? A figure of that caliber entered the Land of Lightning, yet your Intelligence Gathering Department didn't receive a single scrap of information. If the Uchiha were to be wiped out in one fell swoop one day, I suppose I would only be able to collect your corpses, wouldn't I?"

Uchiha Etsu's face turned pale, his head bowing lower and lower. "It is my failure. Please, Clan Head, punish me."

"Punishment is meaningless. Think hard about how you will make up for this!"

"And what about you, Second Elder?" Madara turned his head, his voice cold. "State your reasons. You pride yourself on your exceptional intellect, Second Elder; I trust you will provide this Clan Head with a good one."

Uchiha Tai bowed slightly in apology. "My oversight."

"Oversight? Oh? You, who could deduce the internal strife within the Hyuga upper echelons from the slightest clue. You knew of Senju Tobirama's exact movements that very morning. With such judgment, you surely didn't miss certain circumstances. Otherwise, I wouldn't have 'happened' to run into Senju Hashirama, would I? Heh. Though talent is hard to come by, have I been too indulgent with you?"

For the first time, Uchiha Madara was this blunt. Shedding his usual indirect style, his words pierced straight to the heart, exceptionally sharp. "Attend to your own duties; do not do things that are unnecessary. It is your brain that I value—you should be clear on that."

Otherwise, with Uchiha Tai's aptitude—only having awakened the Two-Tomoe—he would never have sat in the position of Second Elder.

Uchiha Tai coughed unnaturally a few times.

"Being smart is a good thing, but don't be too smart." Madara's sharp gaze swept over him. "Looking at you, you haven't reached that point yet. If one day you truly become senile, with your wisdom, Second Elder, you should step down and yield to the worthy, so as not to waste my appreciation for you."

Uchiha Tai was silent for a moment, then suddenly said, "A move to break the deadlock is imperative. My Lord, the stance you have given us is too ambiguous."

Beside him, Uchiha Etsu wore a look of confusion.

Madara understood, saying, "Very well, you aren't senile yet. Then do you remember what I said on my first day in office? The Clan Head enjoys absolute authority. Elders may propose, they may question, but I do not accept opposition." Staring into his eyes, he spoke with indescribable coldness. "I am aware of everything you have done. You may inquire, you may execute, but who gave you the power to act behind my back!"

Uchiha Tai finally lowered his head. "I overstepped."

A murderous pressure swept over them as a warning. The two men opposite could not stop trembling; sweat soaked their backs, and Uchiha Tai almost failed to hold back his Sharingan. Madara withdrew his aura, returning to his usual detached expression. "This once, and never again."

He had almost forgotten this was a world where might made right. Looking at the two submissive men, he began to reflect: had he been too gentle? Had he let the Hyuga clan and his own elders think they could negotiate with him?

"Who is the person in charge of the Land of Wind?"

Uchiha Etsu breathed a secret sigh of relief—the Clan Head had finally returned to normal! "It is Uchiha Soshu."

"Remove him. You will take over that side personally to atone for your mistakes."

He then turned to Uchiha Tai. "As for you, three months' salary—go to Min Yue to receive your penalty."

The inner corridors were winding and secluded. Along the way, dappled light leaked through the tree shade, and the climbing wisteria was already dotted with tiny purple buds.

The scenery was worth admiring, but neither of the two walking side-by-side had the heart for a stroll.

Uchiha Etsu, being younger, could not hold his tongue. "What exactly have you been hiding?"

Uchiha Tai kept his hands tucked away. "You handle half of the clan's external affairs; you know the state of the clan as well as I do."

Uchiha Etsu was responsible for the clan's economic affairs on the surface and handled intelligence gathering in the shadows, so of course, he understood the current situation. Since Uchiha Madara officially took over, the clan had progressed by leaps and bounds. By the third year, they had complete control over the Land of Lightning; by the fifth, they were steering the world's situation in their desired direction; by the seventh, they forced the strongest nation, the Land of Fire, to retreat, suppressing the momentum of the Senju clan along with it. It could be said that in terms of vision, wisdom, popular support, and strength, Uchiha Madara was perfect and unprecedented.

In recent years, the Uchiha's influence had seeped into every aspect, far exceeding what a mere ninja clan required. Though the specific goal was unknown, the upper echelons could sense that Uchiha Madara's ambitions were vast, and since it seemed beneficial to the clan, they supported him fully.

But after all, they had previously been a pure ninja clan, and they could not change overnight. The clan system was too closed-off; their education prioritized martial arts over academics, blindly digging into physical potential. While their combat power might be sufficient, they were severely lacking in the economic, strategic, military, and research talent that the current situation demanded. When managing their influence, they often found themselves overextended, forced to absorb people whose loyalty could not be fully guaranteed.

It could be said that while the Uchiha clan appeared powerful on the surface, a massive crisis lay hidden within. Coupled with the Senju clan entrenched in the north, the Uchiha's expansion northward was hindered. Even if the Land of Fire had been forced to step back under Madara's machinations, it was, after all, merely a step back.

The clan's development had hit a bottleneck.

There were ways to solve the crisis, but the one with the greatest benefit and least damage was to expand their influence, maintain the clan's powerful momentum to sustain the loyalty of those within the interest system, and then use time to test the flaws in the system, constantly weeding people out until their influence was finally consolidated. For this, the Uchiha had to move north, and the road north would inevitably run into the Senju clan.

Time—the most critical thing was time!

If the bottleneck was not broken and the Uchiha's development stagnated, the entire system might collapse in an instant.

Wealth is sought in danger; succeed and live, fail and die.

Those who did the work naturally saw these conditions most clearly. And Uchiha Tai, as one of the few clever ones, thought more than others and was even more cautious and worried.

Uchiha Etsu pursed his lips, displeased. "That is not what I asked you."

"On the day of the Spring Festival, the Clan Head encountered Senju Hashirama in Muyun City."

Uchiha Etsu was shocked. "You did that?!" The Senju leader had arrived on Uchiha territory without them knowing; no wonder the Clan Head was so angry.

"I don't have that much ability." Uchiha Tai shook his head. "...Well, perhaps a little. The probe was a last resort. It shouldn't have come to this, but should we be courting, suppressing, or utilizing the Senju? The Lord not only delayed taking action but his stance was unclear, which greatly affected our next steps."

"Regardless, deliberately withholding information is a grave crime!" Uchiha Etsu lowered his voice.

"We are managing an entire clan, not just thugs who bury their heads and follow orders," Uchiha Tai said. "Elders oversee various affairs; we are both helpers and checks. For the sake of the clan, we must be clear on the Clan Head's stance."

"I trust Lord Madara." Not the Clan Head, but simply because he was Uchiha Madara.

Uchiha Tai sighed. "Forget it. Consider it my overthinking."