Prepare for Both Possibilities

Don't overthink it.

The outcome of this incident was already clear.

As the mastermind, Tobirama Senju only had to eliminate Uchiha Raimon, the clan elder, and he could use the opportunity to make the Uchiha Clan dependent on Konoha, like a loyal dog.

Even if they remained unruly,

without their estates to supply them, they would have to rely on missions from Konoha to survive, no matter how disrespectfully they spoke of the village.

Back in my previous life, even people who never studied knew that when an army marched, its supplies came first.

Food was the lifeline of an army, the foundation of everything.

It was the basis for any force's operations.

But in this life,

the Uchiha Clan was shockingly careless about food.

The moment they started living a little more comfortably, they forgot the hard times they had once endured.

They had to remember that during the Warring States Period, they had fought other clans day in and day out over food.

And now, if not for Elder Uchiha Raimon's vehement opposition, they would probably have sold their land long ago to make a quick profit.

By then,

never mind the Uchiha Clan wanting to go into business.

Whatever they wanted to do,

the village could levy huge taxes on them for any reason, grinding the Uchiha Clan's bones to dust.

It could claim that it was all for the village's benefit.

It could even impose restrictions specifically on the Uchiha Clan, drawing up laws to keep the Uchiha Clan in check.

In short,

in Uchiha Tenshu's telling, the Uchiha Clan would have no estates or food reserves, and most of its commercial profits would be eaten up by taxes. They would be able to survive only by taking missions and risking their lives for Konoha. If they disobeyed the village, they would have no missions to take.

How terrifying!

"What you're saying is too frightening! What they're doing is practically going to destroy the Uchiha Clan completely..."

Uchiha Raimon replied in shock. But then he recalled how Elder Uchiha Ming had always yielded to Konoha, how he'd demanded all manner of concessions from the clan, and how he'd acted at every clan meeting. Most of the time, he simply kept quiet. But whenever he did speak, he always took the opposing side.

And it wasn't just once.

It happened every time.

It was as if their policies were at odds by nature.

Even when Ming was merely supporting someone else's proposal, he always ended up opposing Raimon. But if Raimon looked at him as a traitor, then all his actions made sense.

Of course he was a traitor!

He wanted to persecute the clan.

He was willing to sacrifice the clan for his own gain.

He opposed Raimon just for the sake of opposing him, making his choices by constantly undermining Raimon's authority.

Having lived through the Warring States Period and made it to the present, Raimon had always acted to strengthen the Uchiha Clan's foundations and prepare its military forces for the wars that might come at any time, to ensure the clan's strength never waned. But now that they lived in the age of villages, were the interests of his clan and the village truly aligned?

Or was it that,

for the sake of the village, the clan had to be sacrificed?

Uchiha Raimon couldn't help thinking of the friendship between Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha. In the end, Hashirama Senju had killed Madara after declaring, "Anyone who threatens the village will not be spared—not a brother, not a friend, not even my own child!"

A glint flashed in Uchiha Raimon's eyes. He grasped the significance of it and suddenly seemed to understand.

"I see. I see!" Uchiha Raimon murmured. He seemed to have figured something out.

"Alas, if the clan traitor is Uchiha Ming, this is going to be difficult to deal with!"

A trace of hesitation crossed Uchiha Raimon's pale face. He didn't know how to handle the matter properly.

Compared to the other elders in the clan,

Uchiha Raimon could use various methods to catch them off guard and quietly kill them.

Afterward, he only had to inform the clan.

He wouldn't need to care what Konoha thought.

After all, even with the Hyuga Clan's system of slavery, and Hashirama Senju being such a bleeding heart, neither of them had intervened.

That was proof enough of how fundamental clan autonomy was.

But Uchiha Ming, the Second Elder, was the one in charge of communicating with the village on the clan's behalf.

He handled everyday contact with other clans and the village, as well as dealings over the interests of the clan. What's more, he had a son, Kagami Uchiha, who had been sent to study under Tobirama Senju.

If Raimon killed him,

Tobirama Senju would inevitably act.

The Uchiha Clan, with its current strength, would be helpless against Tobirama Senju, backed by Hashirama Senju.

"To prove his loyalty, Uchiha Ming has even handed his son, Kagami Uchiha, over to Tobirama Senju. Surely you know how Tobirama Senju feels about us! He's a ruthless man who'd love to see every last one of us dead. If he gets the chance to wipe us out, someone like him, consumed by hatred, will take it!"

"He hasn't acted yet only because he wants to sow discord within our clan and wear us down bit by bit."

"Once the time is right, he'll make his move!"

Uchiha Tenshu declared with certainty.

"Besides, even if you can let go of your hatred, can the members of the Senju Clan really let go of theirs?"

"If they truly come for revenge, can the Uchiha Clan stay on its guard forever? I've heard that while a thief can strike for a thousand days, no one can guard against one for a thousand days. If we fail to make certain preparations, we'll regret it for the rest of our lives."

Uchiha Tenshu voiced his grave concern.

This was the first time he had deliberately overstepped a little and revealed his thoughts in front of someone else.

"What's more, we don't necessarily have to kill Uchiha Ming, this traitor in plain sight, right now."

Knowing Uchiha Raimon didn't want the clan thrown into turmoil, Uchiha Tenshu continued to urge him on.

"On the contrary, keeping this traitor in plain sight will let us see how the Senju Clan really feels about us."

"It'll also lull the Senju Clan into a false sense of security. Then we can turn the tables and find out what they really think of the Uchiha Clan, so we can prepare in advance."

Uchiha Tenshu's words caught Uchiha Raimon's attention.

"You mean..."

Uchiha Raimon looked at him.

"Why don't we prepare for both possibilities?" Uchiha Tenshu held up both fists in front of him.

"Prepare for both possibilities!"

Uchiha Raimon really didn't understand what he meant.

"That's right!" Uchiha Tenshu nodded and said, "If the Senju Clan can let go of its hatred and truly wants to reconcile with us, then we really don't need to leave Konoha. But we still need to take precautions. As the saying goes, don't harbor the intention to harm others, but never fail to guard against others. Don't you agree, Elder Raimon?"

"Mm! Well said!" Uchiha Raimon replied approvingly. "That's exactly how our Uchiha Clan should be. Don't harbor the intention to harm others, but never fail to guard against others. Those words are right up my alley! All right, go on."

"Mm!"

Uchiha Tenshu nodded and continued, "So no matter what the Senju Clan plans to do to us, we must never give up our ability to protect ourselves. Whether it's the food reserves from our fields or our stockpiles of weapons, we must never rely on Konoha's vendors as our main source. We need to secure our own supplies so we won't be at anyone's mercy."

"These are things the Uchiha Clan has always done. We must keep doing them and never give them up."