I Support You

After hearing Uchiha Yo's words, everyone stared at him in shock. Uchiha Ming had initially thought his mother had told him about how Root ninja had tried to attack them during training, and that Uchiha Yo had ambushed and killed Root ninja for revenge. But the reason he heard left him looking at the child before him as though he were a peer. This child saw farther and thought more deeply than most clansmen and seniors. He was only nine years old! Such a mind was somewhat terrifying.

Just as Uchiha Ming was astonished by the way Uchiha Yo thought at such a young age, a voice broke the silence. "I don't know how you know so much, Yo, but I support you. I'm a pretty simple person. If someone treats me well, I treat them well. I can't really make sense of things like this, but I can tell when the people in the village look at us with unfriendly eyes. Yo, we're good brothers. No matter what you do, I'll support you!" With that, Uchiha Retsu stood up and walked to Uchiha Yo's side. He draped an arm over Uchiha Yo's shoulder and hooked it around his neck in support, then looked toward Uchiha En. Uchiha En pondered for a while before saying, "Just eliminating their underlings doesn't mean much. At most, it weakens them. If, as you say, the Hokage faction's ultimate goal is to wipe out the Uchiha or reduce our numbers to a certain point, then the main decision-makers are still at the top. Although you're right, I think we should keep a low profile for now and not make too many moves. Breaking with the higher-ups too early would put the Uchiha in an awkward position. Still, killing a few Root ninja now and then isn't a bad thing. I support you too. After all, we're family."

Uchiha Ming felt somewhat doubtful. Did young people nowadays all think this way? Retsu's simple devotion to his friends should have been the norm, yet En had such firm views of his own as well. What were they teaching at the Ninja Academy these days? Seeing everyone looking at him, he nodded and said, "There's something you may not know. During that survival training after your team was formed, the higher-ups came to observe you. There were three groups in total, nine people: three jonin and six genin. Six were from Root, while the rest were ANBU. All the Root ninja were killed. After the ANBU discovered us, they withdrew, but after we killed the Root ninja, they monitored us again from a safe distance. Someone was protecting you that time, so you didn't know. Yo, your father was there too. He strongly advocated communicating with the village, and your uncle specifically assigned him to the team protecting you. We deployed seven three-tomoe Sharingan users. The clan places great importance on you. But no matter how highly we value you, you're still too weak right now. Don't share views like the ones you expressed earlier with anyone else until you've grown stronger. One reason is strength; the other is seniority. Without those two, no matter how much you talk, most clansmen won't stand by your side. Focus on improving your strength. I believe the future belongs to you. We'll stand in front of you and block some of the higher-ups' attention. I hope that one day, you can lead the Uchiha out of this predicament and onto the right path. What moved me most was what you said: seek peace through struggle, and peace survives; seek peace through compromise, and peace perishes. Get some rest now. Starting tomorrow, the things you should be thinking about are completing your missions."

Late at night, Uchiha Yo could not sleep. He sat outside the tent on a rock when someone came over to him. It was Uchiha En. Uchiha En said, "Your ideas are dangerous. One misstep, and there'll be no coming back from it. But the Uchiha are already stuck deep in the mire. To be honest, I support you too. I'll help you. I'm still not qualified to play games with the higher-ups, but Teacher Ming brought in Teacher Zephyr. Don't tell me you don't understand what that means. Only when you can speak for an entire clan do you have the right to play the game. Let this chaos end with our generation, so the children of the next generation can also bask in Konoha's sunlight. The Will of Fire is such a beautiful name!" Uchiha Yo smiled. "Yeah. Such a beautiful name."