Heresy

Uchiha Fugaku seemed to have been waiting for these words for a long time; his voice was even slightly choked with emotion.

"The Uchiha clan is willing to go through fire and water for this. If necessary, I am willing to head to the battlefield myself!"

Kei was momentarily confused as to what had come over Fugaku.

However, Orochimaru soon dispelled Fugaku's excitement.

"Heh, Minato just got back, haven't you congratulated Lord Fugaku yet? He recently managed to track down dozens more of his clansmen!"

Just because Kei didn't understand didn't mean Orochimaru didn't. Although the Uchiha clan participated in the war, they were always broken up and integrated into various front lines.

But if Fugaku, as the clan head, were to go to the front, he would inevitably become a commanding officer.

That was something the Hokage's faction did not want to see.

"My apologies, how rude of me. Congratulations, Lord Fugaku, on finding your lost clansmen. With their addition to the front lines, Konoha's war efforts will surely be unstoppable."

It was unclear if Minato understood the subtext, but he still proceeded to request support for the front lines from Fugaku.

With Orochimaru's interjection, Fugaku seemed to finally remember something, and he looked somewhat disappointed.

When Minato first made the request, Fugaku hadn't had time to think it through; he had only seen an opportunity for the Uchiha to return to the upper echelons. By commanding a front and earning military merit, the Uchiha would regain their voice in Konoha.

But the moment Orochimaru spoke, Fugaku remembered that the Minato before him was merely a potential future Hokage—his words didn't carry the final authority.

Yet, long-term suppression had made Fugaku so desperate that he couldn't help but wonder: what if? What if Minato was representing the genuine sincerity of the Hokage?

Perhaps the front lines were truly so desperate that Konoha needed to huddle with the Uchiha for warmth.

After all, this was no longer the era of the First Hokage!

Therefore, Fugaku decided not to refuse Minato's request.

"As long as Konoha needs it, the Uchiha will spare nothing."

Having received Fugaku's affirmative answer, Minato was satisfied. Regardless of the fact that this was a social occasion, he pulled out a map and spoke bluntly.

"Lord Fugaku, I hope the Uchiha can support us with another one to two hundred ninja to head to the Land of Water front. Shisui of the Uchiha clan is there, and the situation is becoming increasingly tense."

Fugaku played along, observing the map seriously, his demeanor reflecting the gravity of the campaign.

Minato's invitation was a serious request, while Fugaku's cooperation was a calculated internal deliberation.

He weighed whether he had a chance to lead the men to the front, and considered in what context he would later recount the Uchiha's hardships.

Only Orochimaru and Kei exchanged a knowing smile.

Orochimaru knew Minato's words held no real weight, and Uchiha Kei knew that Fugaku couldn't scrape together one or two hundred ninja capable of fighting for Konoha on his own.

Watching these two, who had no actual influence on the direction of the war, discuss its future so earnestly, neither Kei nor Orochimaru had the heart to interrupt.

Orochimaru and Kei couldn't even be bothered to listen to what Minato and Fugaku were discussing.

After a few minutes, neither Orochimaru nor Kei felt comfortable excusing themselves, so they shifted their interest to watching Oboro and Anko compete in a dumpling-eating contest.

As for that brat Uchiha Itachi, he looked on with envy at the dumpling-eating while simultaneously yearning to join his father's discussion, appearing quite conflicted.

Finally, the awkwardness came to an end.

"Lord Fugaku, I leave the front lines to your clansmen."

"Rest assured, Minato-kun."

The two seemed to have finally reached an agreement.

Immediately after, Fugaku's expression turned stern.

"Kei-kun, have your clansmen head to the Land of Water front. Tell them to follow Shisui's command; Shisui needs your help."

This sentence almost made Kei laugh out loud.

What the hell? How did the discussion go in circles only for the task to fall on my shoulders?

"How much are you paying?"

If he had a few Orange Cards in his hand, Kei would have definitely flipped on Fugaku, but since he didn't, he decided to offer a subtle reminder.

My lord, times have changed. I have no obligation to listen to you.

Kei felt this was a matter of course, but many people present did not see it that way.

This included the ninja who had just returned from the battlefield.

How could one mention money when it came to defending the village? One earned corresponding mission completion rates for military merit, which led to promotions, which then allowed one to become a higher-ranked ninja and earn more money.

The village had already provided the platform for promotion; how could one start asking for money before even reaching the battlefield?

"Kei-kun, what kind of talk is that? Have you forgotten Konoha's system?"

The atmosphere turned awkward.

Fugaku simply dismissed this as the naivety of an ignorant child. As expected, there is no need to keep someone so immature in a high position. It seems I need to get in touch with Uchiha Danjo; that kind of mature and steady character is the true pillar of the Uchiha clan.

That was what Uchiha Fugaku thought.

But Kei disagreed.

"Konoha's system? I'm afraid you all have forgotten what a ninja actually is."

The art of conversation is simple: do not get bogged down in what the other person is saying; instead, pull them into your own familiar linguistic environment. If they talk to you about systems, you talk to them about heritage.

For a moment, no one understood what Kei was getting at.

Seeing no reaction, Kei began his monologue.

"Ninjas, by nature, are merely powerful tools. Tools of war, at that."

Language requires the support of expression and gesture. As he spoke, Kei walked forward, lifting his head slightly as if explaining to Fugaku, though his words were meant for everyone present.

"When ninjas first emerged, they shattered many things. One of those was the fact that ninjas, being powerful yet non-productive, would naturally occupy vast social resources. This encroachment was not like that of the nobility, who were enfeoffed by the Daimyo. It clearly encroached upon the Daimyo's power, and thus, ninjas became unstable elements in the eyes of the Daimyo."

He gently clasped his hands behind his back and looked up at the sky, his eyes filled with reminiscence. Uchiha Kei seemed to be telling a story unrelated to himself, yet it was a story that a group of ninjas—who studied martial arts but never literature—found incredibly fascinating.

Because no one had ever told them where ninjas actually came from.

"In that era, to limit the growth of ninjas, the Daimyo stopped at nothing. They used emotions as shackles to keep ninjas from acting recklessly, and dangled carrots to keep them in a constant state of slaughter, leaving them no time to stop and wonder why they existed in the first place."

"That was the chaotic era, the so-called Warring States period."

A breeze blew through, drawing everyone in. At that moment, it seemed as if a Warring States period of their own had risen in each person's heart.

No one interrupted Kei's narrative, and he continued slowly.

"So much time has passed, yet no one has truly pondered why ninja conflicts, fought as clans, were limited only to other ninjas. They would affect commoners, but they never targeted them."

"Everyone takes it for granted that ninjas cannot harm commoners. Could someone please tell me who exactly instilled this notion in us?"

What was originally meant to be an order from Fugaku—hoping to give Kei, a newly promoted clansman, a chance to lead the Uchiha to glory on the battlefield and earn more opportunities for his kin—had now turned into an interrogation of the crowd by Uchiha Kei.

"Absurd! Noble ninjas naturally disdain bullying the weak; such acts are held in contempt."

"Exactly, exactly!"

"That's right! The weak draw blades against the weak, while the strong draw blades against the stronger. This is the Ninja Way!"

Following Kei's question, various high-minded responses erupted one after another.

It made it seem as if Kei were the only villain among them.

Yet, Kei responded with a smile.

"But the starting point of that long-lasting Warring States period was survival, wasn't it? And for the sake of survival, shouldn't one stop at nothing?"

Kei posed the question again.

"Impossible. We are the guardians of the Land of Fire. Noble ninjas cannot commit such despicable acts."

At this, the rebuttals continued, but there was also a great deal of silence.

The older the person, the more silent they became.

Kei understood that standing on the moral high ground grants one the right to speak, while the immoral dare not voice their own selfishness.

But Kei did not care; he only wanted to understand what ninjas lived for.

"But who defined these moral constraints? Under the premise of racial survival, is there anything that cannot be done? People must survive, after all."

"What you are doing is too despicable."

"That's right, we aren't living in that era anymore."

Kei shook his head slightly and said, "We have never lived in a peaceful era. It is only because ninjas have huddled together for warmth that they have secured a brief peace for everyone. Those wandering ninjas and missing-nin in the ninja world still do the things you find contemptible. And they, too, are merely trying to survive."

"Then those wandering ninjas and missing-nin deserve to die."

Kei smiled.

He hadn't started this to make ninjas get along; he was here to spread rebellious thoughts. Whoever wanted to argue could argue; he only wanted to make more people fall silent.

"I am not here to discuss morality with you. I am simply telling you what the wars between ninjas are actually for."

A chance encounter between big shots had been turned by Kei into a dialogue between himself and those who had returned from the battlefield, yet still did not know why they fought.

"Of course, it's to protect Konoha! To protect the Land of Fire!"

"But why must we protect the Land of Fire?"

"Because it is our motherland!"

Grand and empty ideals floated once again over Konoha, as the ninjas of the village seemed intent on convincing Kei, the heretic.