The Coup Ends

Uchiha Fugaku smiled slightly as he looked at the Sarutobi and Shimura clans.

Combined, these two great clans numbered a full thousand people.

In the martial Konoha village, this was still a force that could not be ignored.

Sarutobi Hiruzen and Shimura Danzo could be called the pillars of these two clans.

Yet, after tonight, both of them were dead.

Having lost their leaders, the remaining members of the Sarutobi and Shimura clans had no idea what they should do.

Watching the ninjas of the various clans withdraw one after another, Sarutobi Asuma remained silent for a long time before lighting a cigarette and inhaling deeply into his lungs.

"Uchiha Fugaku, our Sarutobi clan will never submit to your tyranny."

Sarutobi Asuma looked up at Uchiha Fugaku, his stance made clear.

Kill or maim as you please, but expecting me to acknowledge you as Hokage is impossible.

The Shimura clan members standing nearby nodded in succession.

With Shimura Danzo gone, these two prestigious clans were effectively finished in all but name.

Their rise and fall now rested entirely in the hands of the Uchiha clan.

The feeling of having their lives firmly held in the hands of others made both clans feel extremely uneasy.

"Do you know? If I hadn't killed Sarutobi Hiruzen today, our Uchiha clan would not have survived three days," Uchiha Fugaku sneered. "The victor is king and the loser is the villain; that is an eternal truth."

Uchiha Yu leaped down from the Wood Dragon and landed beside Uchiha Fugaku.

"How about it? Should we bury them all?" Uchiha Yu asked.

Although these two clans didn't possess any particularly overpowered bloodline limits, their strength was not weak.

Right now, they must be harboring deep resentment toward the Uchiha.

It would be better to just bury them all in a pit.

Sure enough, Sarutobi Asuma's face turned green.

Uchiha Fugaku was slightly stunned.

Damn, why bury them?

"If we exterminate these two clans now, it will certainly cause turmoil in Konoha. Although we are in a period of peace, the actual dangers are not small," Uchiha Shisui said from the side, taking a deep breath.

The ninja world had already endured three Great Ninja Wars.

These three wars were all conflicts instigated by the major ninja villages to fight for their own interests.

In essence, it was to annex other villages!

The results of these wars were heavy casualties.

Although a brief period of peace had arrived, small frictions between the major villages had never ceased.

The Uchiha clan had just won the position of leader of Konoha through a coup; if they committed any more heinous acts, the other villages might use it as an excuse to attack them in unison!

All to carve up Konoha!

Uchiha Fugaku nodded; he had never intended to start a massacre to begin with.

"Those of you who wish to stay may do so. In the name of the Fifth Hokage and the Uchiha Clan Head, I guarantee that you will not be persecuted in the slightest. You will still hold a legal status within the Land of Fire. Those who do not wish to stay may leave the Land of Fire," Uchiha Fugaku said slowly.

His Sharingan swept across the Sarutobi and Shimura clans.

Sarutobi Asuma snorted coldly, tilted his head, and spat the cigarette butt onto the ground.

"Uchiha, I will be back."

With that, he walked toward the village gates.

Once Sarutobi Asuma left, many from the Sarutobi and Shimura clans followed him out.

"These people will be our enemies in the future!" Uchiha Fugaku took a deep breath.

However, these thousand or so remnants would not be able to amount to much in the short term.

But if they were to seek out other ninja villages to stir up trouble, it would be a nuisance.

"Don't worry, they've lost now, and they will never be able to stand back up again."

Uchiha Yu shook his head.

In his eyes, these thousand ninjas were not actually much of a problem.

Moreover, they were a liability to other ninja villages as well.

At the very least, for the next few years, they would have to keep their tails tucked between their legs.

"Clean up the battlefield! I will succeed as Hokage in one month!"

Uchiha Fugaku said, clenching his fists.

They had paid a heavy price in this battle.

These sacrifices could not be allowed to go to waste.

Uchiha Fugaku was determined to secure the position of Hokage.

The wealth left behind by the fleeing Sarutobi and Shimura clans would also be entirely pocketed by the Uchiha Clan!

This battle was a great victory for the Uchiha!

Outside Konoha.

On the border of the Land of Fire.

Sarutobi Asuma led the remaining members of the Sarutobi and Shimura clans to the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Wind.

After a tense day of traveling, everyone was on edge.

They were terrified that Uchiha pursuers were on their heels.

"Asuma-senpai, where exactly are we going?"

A Sarutobi clansman asked.

Sarutobi Asuma took a deep breath, looking at the boundary marker of the Land of Wind not far away.

It had been left there after the Third Shinobi World War, when Konoha and Sunagakure established diplomatic relations.

"The Land of Wind and the Land of Fire have good diplomatic relations; we need the power of Sunagakure to help us now!" Sarutobi Asuma gritted his teeth and said, "As long as Uchiha Fugaku's position as Hokage is not recognized by other hidden villages, we still have a chance."

Asuma let out a cold snort, clearly still feeling a glimmer of hope.

"If we just go over like this... what will Sunagakure think of us? We certainly won't have any status at all! In their eyes, we're nothing more than a rabble!" A Shimura clansman nearby looked worried.

"As long as we can avenge Lord Third, what does it matter if we have to live under someone else's roof and work like beasts of burden?" Sarutobi Asuma had already steeled himself to endure humiliation for the sake of his goal.

These nearly six or seven hundred ninja would be a thorny issue for any hidden village.

After all, they were ninja from the Land of Fire; it was impossible for them to be wholeheartedly loyal to anyone else.

At best, it would be a relationship of mutual exploitation.

But would they really be so desperate for these six or seven hundred people?

They would certainly be subjected to all kinds of unfair treatment.

Sarutobi Asuma knew this clearly.

But what he wanted to strive for was revenge for the Third.

To restore the Sarutobi Clan and reclaim the position of Hokage.

With the backing of the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, Sarutobi Asuma had a righteous cause.

And he was determined to succeed!

"Land of Wind, I am coming."

Sarutobi Asuma walked toward the Land of Wind.

The not-so-strong Land of Wind had become Sarutobi Asuma's greatest straw to clutch at in this moment.

On Uchiha Yu's side, due to the coup, the Ninja Academy had announced a one-month suspension of classes.

Fortunately, the Uchiha had already persuaded the leadership of all the major clans.

Through threats and inducements.

Basically, every major clan had already acknowledged the legitimacy of Uchiha Fugaku's position as Hokage.

There was no other way; Uchiha Fugaku had told them that if they didn't acknowledge it, he would "plant trees" in their backyards.

If it were you, wouldn't you be afraid?

The Sarutobi and Shimura clans were powerful enough, right? They had been driven out directly.

Furthermore, the information blockade regarding the reserve ninja and civilians had been handled quite well.

Most people only knew that Uchiha Fugaku had become the new Hokage, while the specific details remained vague.

What Konoha needed now was a group of obedient subjects!

As for Uchiha Yu.

Uchiha Fugaku had originally intended to reward Uchiha Yu with one million ryo, based on the standard of an S-rank mission.

But after thinking it over.

Wasn't Uchiha Yu too young right now? What if he got carried away after receiving a million ryo?

In the end, he turned around and took away five hundred thousand ryo.

He gave it the high-sounding excuse, "Dad will save it for you, to use for when you grow up and get married."

Uchiha Yu: "???"

Why did this line sound so familiar?

Sure enough, what goes around comes around!

But fortunately, he had still managed to keep five hundred thousand ryo for himself.

"How should I spend this five hundred thousand ryo?"

Uchiha Yu raised an eyebrow.

He could consider this a small windfall!