Clan Assembly

The Uchiha Clan's assembly was held on the evening of the second Saturday of every month.

It was Shuo Ye's first time being brought there by his father.

He had been too young before. Clan rules stated that children under six could not participate in clan affairs. After turning six, they could follow their fathers and listen in, but only from outside. To earn the right to sit in Naka Shrine's main hall, they had to graduate from the Ninja Academy and become genin.

Takuma walked ahead with steady steps. His back was ramrod straight, utterly different from the slight hunch he wore while eating at home.

"Wait outside later," Takuma said without looking back. "Don't wander around, and don't talk to anyone else."

"Got it."

"If anyone asks, say you came to pick me up and go home."

"Got it."

Takuma paused and glanced back at Shuo Ye.

Under the moonlight, his father's eyes shone brightly.

"Ever since you awakened your one-tomoe Sharingan, some people in the clan have started paying attention to you," Takuma said. "That isn't a bad thing, but remember this—in the Uchiha Clan, being noticed means being expected to do things. It also means being used. Both happen at the same time."

Shuo Ye nodded.

They arrived at the foot of Naka Shrine's stone steps. The shrine stood on a small hill at the westernmost edge of the Uchiha Clan compound, encircled by bamboo groves that rustled whenever the wind blew. There were fifty-six steps. Shuo Ye had counted them before.

People were already seated inside the main hall.

Shuo Ye was placed outside the veranda, separated by a paper sliding door with a crack just wide enough for a little sound to seep through. Takuma pushed the door open and went inside. It slid shut behind him, cutting the light within into a thin line.

Shuo Ye sat down outside, cross-legged with his back straight.

He heard voices.

They were unclear, as though muffled by a layer of water. But he could make out how many people were speaking, as well as one or two familiar voices.

Fugaku's voice came first. Low and steady, every word enunciated with precision, as if he were carving them into stone with a blade.

"...Everyone has seen clearly how the Hidden Leaf Village's upper ranks handled matters after the Nine-Tails incident."

Shuo Ye's fingers tightened slightly.

"The Police Department's authority has been cut back three times. The first was during the second week after the Nine-Tails incident, when the Third Hokage signed an order restricting the Uchiha Clan's patrol range to the area surrounding the clan compound. The second was in the middle of last year, when half of the Police Department's criminal jurisdiction was revoked and priority jurisdiction over cases involving other clans was transferred to ANBU. The third was last month's public security restructuring. On the surface, it was a village-wide policy adjustment. In truth, it targeted—"

Fugaku paused.

"It targeted the three permanent squads we had stationed in the village center."

Another voice cut in. Shuo Ye recognized it as Tetsu Uchiha's. Tetsu was a jōnin of the clan, thirty-seven years old, blind in his left eye. His Sharingan had gone blind on the night of the Nine-Tails attack. He rarely spoke, but when he did, his voice sounded like sandpaper scraping against iron.

"Fugaku, what conclusion are you drawing from all this?"

"The conclusion," Fugaku said, "is already in everyone's heart. I won't discuss conclusions today. Today, I want to discuss this—if it comes to that point, how many members of the Uchiha Clan are willing to stand together?"

Outside the door, a thin layer of sweat seeped across Shuo Ye's back.

He heard silence.

There were probably more than twenty people in the main hall, yet that silence lasted a full five seconds. No one spoke.

Then Fugaku continued.

"I know what you're thinking. Some of you are thinking, Fugaku, have you gone mad? Some of you are thinking, the Hidden Leaf Village is our village, and the Uchiha Clan is part of the Hidden Leaf Village too. Some of you are thinking, my child is still at the Ninja Academy, my wife is pregnant with our second—"

"You think we haven't considered that?" Another voice interrupted Fugaku. Shuo Ye did not recognize this voice. It was older and sharper, like a broken blade that was still being used.

"How many of our people died that night because of the Nine-Tails?" the old voice said. "My son died beneath the Nine-Tails' claws. Not even a body was left behind. Then the people above told me that the Uchiha Clan's 'trustworthiness' needed to be reassessed. Reassessed—trust bought with the lives of our clansmen, and they want to reassess it."

The air in the main hall seemed to freeze solid.

Shuo Ye sat outside, moonlight falling over his face. He watched the thin line of light shining through the crack in the paper door and imagined more than twenty Uchiha Sharingan lighting up at once inside.

"From today onward, Naka Shrine assemblies will be held every three days." Fugaku's voice sounded again, heavier and lower than before, like a stone slowly sinking to the bottom of the water.

"I will continue working on the Police Department side. Everyone here, after you return, take stock of the ninja tools, scrolls, and medicine you can mobilize. You don't need to report it to me—just know what you have."

"If we're going to act," Tetsu cut in, "when will it be?"

"It hasn't been decided."

"Then how long are we going to keep discussing it?" Tetsu said. "Every meeting is just 'wait and see' and 'wait a little longer.' Are we waiting until the Third Hokage sends all of us to guard the gates?"

"Tetsu." Fugaku's voice suddenly turned cold. "Do you trust me, or do you trust your temper?"

The main hall fell silent again.

This time, the silence lasted even longer.

Shuo Ye pressed his fingers into the gaps between the floorboards. The wood was old and lined with cracks. His fingernails caught in one of them, fitting perfectly.

He remembered the Naruto plot analysis posts he had read in his previous life. The root cause of the Uchiha Massacre was, in essence, a spiral of collapsing trust—the Nine-Tails incident created a rift between the village and the Uchiha Clan, and every response afterward only widened that rift. Fugaku wanted to resolve matters through negotiation, but the clan's hardliners could not wait. And Danzo—

Danzo had never openly appeared from beginning to end. He did not need to. He only needed to wait in the shadows, wait until the conflict between the Uchiha Clan and the village fermented beyond repair, then reap everything in one stroke.

Shuo Ye closed his eyes briefly.

He knew how this would end. In the Naruto storyline, the Uchiha Massacre took place in the autumn of that year. Itachi, under Fugaku and Mikoto's gaze—

Don't think about it.

He opened his eyes.

The meeting in the main hall continued. Fugaku was talking about "the attitudes of the other clans in the village." When he mentioned the Hyuga Clan, his tone noticeably grew heavier—the Hyuga Clan was an ancient clan like the Uchiha Clan, but after the Nine-Tails incident, they had chosen to fully cooperate with the village's arrangements, even voluntarily surrendering part of their clan's autonomy.

"What do you all think of the Hyuga Clan's choice?" Fugaku asked.

"Cowards," someone muttered.

"No," Fugaku said. "They are clever in another way. It is simply a kind of cleverness the Uchiha Clan cannot learn."

The meeting continued until late at night.

Shuo Ye sat outside for more than two hours. His legs went numb three times, but each time he gritted his teeth and endured without moving. He knew that if he made a sound, his father would come out and send him home—then he would not get to hear any of this.

A little after ten, the doors of the main hall opened.

Clan members emerged in twos and threes. Some looked livid, some grave, while others wore no expression at all, though their steps were quicker than usual.

Fugaku emerged last.

He stood at the shrine entrance and watched the clan members descend the stone steps. Moonlight fell across his face. Its sharp features made him resemble a statue that had been worshipped for too long, finally cracking for the first time.

When Takuma came out, he saw Shuo Ye sitting by the veranda.

He froze for a moment, then said nothing. He only nodded and turned toward the stone steps.

Shuo Ye followed.

The two walked along the path through the bamboo grove without speaking. The bamboo leaves rustled loudly in the wind, masking their footsteps.

When they reached the entrance to the clan compound, Takuma stopped.

"How much did you hear?"

"A lot," Shuo Ye said.

Takuma was silent for a while.

"What do you think?"

Shuo Ye looked up at his father. Moonlight shone in Takuma's eyes. There was no red glow of the Sharingan there, only a father looking at his child.

"I think," Shuo Ye said, "no matter what happens, you'll protect Sasuke and Mom."

Takuma's expression shifted slightly.

"And you too."

"I know."

"Any other questions?"

"One."

"Ask."

"If the village and the Uchiha Clan go to war—whose side will you stand on?"

Takuma looked at him.

For a long time.

"I'm in the middle," Takuma said. "I hope I won't have to choose."

Then he pushed open the door to their home.

The living room lights were on. Ayano sat on the sofa, the tea before her already cold. Sasuke was asleep at the low table, still clutching a pen in his hand.

Ayano took one look at Takuma's expression and asked nothing.

As Shuo Ye passed through the living room toward his room, he paused.

He looked back at his father and mother's silhouettes—Takuma sat beside Ayano, reached over to pick Sasuke up, and carried him toward the bedroom. Ayano's fingers rested lightly on the back of Takuma's hand.

He closed his bedroom door.

He sat by the window, looking at the bamboo grove beneath the moonlight.

The countdown was no longer counting down. It had become positive—the event was happening now, on this very night, slowly and irreversibly moving forward in every corner of the Hidden Leaf Village, amid different clans, different interests, and different fears.

Shuo Ye placed a hand over his chest.

His heartbeat was steady.

The heart from his previous life had been beating in this body for seven years now. Seven years—enough time for him to forget most things from that life, except the ones that mattered most.

Such as the date of the massacre.

Such as Itachi's tears.

Such as Sasuke's eyes afterward.

He closed his eyes.

"It's really... coming."