Acting

He coughed violently several times, and under the tense gazes of those around him, he continued his "revelation."

"He... he suddenly came to see me tonight... said there were some clan affairs... that needed to be discussed... I... I was caught off guard..."

"He... he suddenly attacked! Demanding to know why I... why I didn't support their radical agenda... I rebuked him... for being too young and reckless... for bringing disaster upon the clan... and then he... he struck!"

Uchiha Setsuna "laboriously" raised a hand to point at his bandaged forehead, then gestured toward the chaotic room, his voice trembling with the stinging pain of being "betrayed."

"He... he not only attacked me... but... but forced me to hand over the map of the clan's secret passages and... and some resources... he said... he was going to take those... those young clansmen he had bewitched... and leave Konoha! To... to go defect to another great nation! I... I sternly refused... and then he... he..."

He seemed overcome with anger, gasping for breath before gritting his teeth.

"He knocked me unconscious... snatched the map and the scrolls... he must be... he must have taken those people... and defected! Uchiha Shaoyu... he has defected! He attacked an elder and plundered the clan's classified assets!"

A deathly silence filled the stone room, followed by an eruption of shock, rage, and incredulous clamor.

Uchiha Shaoyu, the clan's recognized genius and one of the hallmark figures of the Hawk Faction, had actually attacked the venerable Elder Setsuna and coerced eleven young elites into defecting from Konoha?!

The news hit like a bombshell, instantly detonating among the Uchiha leadership and Military Police Force members gathered there. It spread with alarming speed, accompanied by the more impactful and specific accusation—"Uchiha Shaoyu defected and attacked Elder Setsuna"—spreading like wildfire throughout the Uchiha compound and inevitably bleeding rapidly into the other sectors of Konoha.

Uchiha Tiandao's face was as dark as the bottom of a pot. A genius defecting and attacking an elder was not only a massive loss for the Uchiha, but a serious incident that the Konoha leadership, already deeply suspicious of the Uchiha, would undoubtedly use as a pretext for further action.

He immediately realized the gravity of the situation far exceeded that of a typical clan conflict.

"Seal the news immediately... no, it's already too late."

He made a swift decision, his voice cold as he issued orders.

"Military Police Force, organize elite squads immediately! Search along every possible route out of the village! At the same time, report this matter... to the Hokage immediately!"

He knew the Uchiha could no longer contain this. Uchiha Shaoyu's defection would, in the most intense and disgraceful way, instantly become a massive scandal and crisis that would shake all of Konoha.

Meanwhile, lying on the floor and continuing to play the part of the weak victim, Uchiha Setsuna felt a flash of extremely subtle, relieved light pass through the depths of his murky eyes, hidden from everyone's view.

The clamor gradually subsided, and everyone turned their gaze toward the clan head, waiting for his decision.

Uchiha Tiandao spoke slowly, his voice steady yet carrying an unquestionable authority that instantly suppressed all the noise.

"Quiet!"

He scanned his surroundings; wherever his gaze fell, the clansmen lowered their heads or averted their eyes.

"Elder Setsuna is severely injured and requires rest. All unrelated personnel, leave the stone room immediately. Do not disturb the elder's recovery."

"Military Police Force, leave two squads behind. One will be responsible for the elder's safety, and the other will immediately seal the scene, impose martial law within the clan, and screen for any suspicious persons or clues, but do not alarm the ordinary clansmen."

"As for the rest, attend to your duties! No private discussions, and under no circumstances is unverified information to be spread!"

His orders were clear and decisive, carrying the responsibility and stability expected of a clan head.

Tiandao possessed a degree of presence that Fugaku, who would come later, still lacked.

Though full of doubt and horror, the clansmen followed his lead and began to exit the stone room in an orderly fashion, leaving behind only the necessary guards and medical staff.

Uchiha Tiandao spoke in a low voice to the several powerful elders who had arrived upon hearing the news.

"Elders, please follow me to the room next door to discuss how to report this to the Hokage. This matter is of great significance and must be handled with caution."

The elders nodded with grave expressions and followed Tiandao out of the stone room, which was filled with the scent of blood and conspiracy.

Soon, only Uchiha Setsuna, who was clutching his head, a medical ninja left to attend to him, and two fully alert guards at the door remained in the room.

About twenty minutes later, Uchiha Tiandao returned alone.

He said to the medical ninja and the guards, "You two go out first and guard the entrance. Without my order, no one is to enter. I need to ask Elder Setsuna about some details in private."

"Yes, Clan Head."

The three dared not delay, bowing as they exited and carefully pulling the stone door shut.

Silence returned to the room, save for the steady breathing of Tiandao and the faint, labored gasps of Elder Setsuna on the floor.

Uchiha Tiandao walked over to Setsuna and looked down at him without a word.

A moment later, he suddenly bent down, reaching out—not to help him up, but to brush his fingertips against an inconspicuous, tiny fragment of pottery glaze on Setsuna's cuff, one that had nearly blended into the surrounding dust.

The location of that fragment, the trajectory of the main debris on the floor, and the posture Setsuna claimed to have been in when attacked... contained a contradiction that would be difficult for an ordinary person to notice.

"Elder Setsuna," Uchiha Tiandao straightened his back, his voice flat and devoid of emotion, neither angry nor concerned.

"That's enough. There's no one else here. Stop the act."

On the floor, Uchiha Setsuna's body stiffened almost imperceptibly, and then the "weak" gasping stopped.

He slowly opened his eyes. The murkiness, shock, and grief within them faded like a receding tide, replaced by a glint of cunning.

He did not attempt to stand, remaining on the floor, but turned his head to look at Uchiha Tiandao, the corners of his mouth curling into a faint arc.

"Oh? Tiandao, why do you say that? I did, in fact, take a real hit and bled."

Setsuna's voice was no longer trembling or weak; it returned to its usual aged, gravelly tone, but carried a sense of relaxation that comes after a burden is lifted.

Uchiha Tiandao did not look at him, his gaze falling on the overturned wooden shelf where the trajectory of the scattered scrolls also seemed slightly deliberate.

He said slowly, "If the attacker were Shaoyu, given his strength, the urgency of his goal tonight, and his temperament, he would have either delivered a fatal blow to keep you quiet forever, or incapacitated you cleanly to take you with him or bind you. He would never have left behind such restrained injuries and such an obvious, yet unconvincing, 'struggle' scene."

The entire Uchiha leadership knew Uchiha Shaoyu was a hothead; he wouldn't have known how to hold back.

"This looks more like... you needed it to look like an attack, but one that couldn't be too fatal or too professional, lest it invite further scrutiny."

He paused, then continued, "More importantly, Uchiha Setsuna, you are the shadow leader of the Hawk Faction yourself. Among those in the clan most dissatisfied with the status quo and most distrustful of the Konoha leadership, you rank in the top three."

"At the end of the day, the one who most wants to leave Konoha and the one most eager to take the Uchiha's seeds to find another path is, I suspect, you."

"That child Shaoyu has talent, but without someone supporting him from the shadows, guiding him, and even providing the secret passages and resources that even I might not be fully aware of, it would be impossible for him to organize such a clean defection so quickly, let alone take so many people with him."

Facing Uchiha Tiandao's meticulous, layer-peeling analysis, the smile on Uchiha Setsuna's face widened. He did not deny it; instead, as if relieved, he let out a long "hmph."

"As expected of Tiandao, you see right through it."

He stopped pretending altogether, using his arm to prop himself up and slowly sitting up, leaning against the overturned shelf. Though his movements were slow, there was no stiffness of someone truly suffering from major injuries.

"That's right, I was indeed an accomplice. I provided the map, I handpicked the people, and even this path was one I suggested Shaoyu take."

He admitted it frankly, his gaze fixed on the pitch-black night sky outside the window, as if he could pierce through the darkness.