Itachi and Sasuke Understood Everything

As the father of Itachi Uchiha and Sasuke Uchiha, as well as the head of the Uchiha Clan, Fugaku Uchiha was naturally no ignorant fool.

There were many things he understood perfectly well but could not put into words.

Outside the clan, he was the head of the Uchiha Clan. Everything he did concerned the clan's honor, so he could not speak freely.

Even within the Uchiha Clan, there were two factions.

One was the radical faction. They had long had enough of the oppression from Konoha Village's upper ranks, led by the Third Hokage. They wanted to rise up and rebel against Konoha. Even if they could not replace its leadership, they at least wanted to defect from the village and gain the respect they deserved.

As a clan with formidable combat strength, the rulers of other ninja villages would naturally be happy to take in Uchiha Clan ninjas.

If this place wouldn't keep them, another place would!

The other side was the conservative faction. Though they too had complaints about what Konoha's upper ranks had done, having lived in Konoha Village for so long, they had grown attached to it. Even after suffering all kinds of unfair treatment,

they had no desire to leave. They only wanted to endure in silence.

The open and covert struggle between the two factions had also grown increasingly intense.

As clan head, Fugaku Uchiha was one of the few moderates in the clan.

He did not believe either the radicals or the conservatives were absolutely right.

As the head of the Uchiha Clan, he naturally had to take responsibility for every clansman and fight for their greatest interests.

From the current situation, the conflict between the Uchiha Clan and Konoha Village was not beyond reconciliation.

At the very least, Hiruzen Sarutobi's high opinion of Naruto Uzumaki showed as much.

Naruto Uzumaki truly had a chance to become Hokage, and the Third Hokage had not come to talk to him about keeping his distance from Naruto.

Given Hiruzen Sarutobi's suspicious nature, if he had neither come to their door nor dropped any hints,

that meant he had tacitly approved of his son, Sasuke Uchiha, associating with Naruto.

By the time Naruto Uzumaki truly grew up, the Third Hokage would basically be at retirement age. The Konoha advisors, Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane, might also be about to retire.

Even Danzo Shimura, the leader of Root who was particularly hostile toward the Uchiha Clan, might retreat behind the scenes.

When that time came, Konoha's upper ranks would undergo a major reshuffle.

From Sasuke, he had learned that Naruto was mature and steady, and knew how to handle interpersonal relationships.

He would not favor one friend at another's expense. Therefore, if Naruto really became Hokage and Sasuke was his friend, the Uchiha Clan might truly have a chance to return to the center of Konoha's power.

They did not need to gain immense power. As long as they could receive the respect they deserved within the village, that would be enough. Thus, Fugaku Uchiha now wanted to place his bet on Naruto Uzumaki and gamble on that possible future.

Today also happened to be a family dinner. With no outsiders present, and with Sasuke and Itachi both being children he dearly loved, Fugaku spoke so many heartfelt words to them.

"Father, has the conflict between our Uchiha Clan and the village really reached the point where it cannot be reconciled?" Itachi asked anxiously.

At this time, Itachi cared deeply about both the Uchiha Clan and Konoha Village's safety.

Though Sasuke was still young and did not understand so many things, hearing that the Uchiha Clan had not been treated well in Konoha Village inevitably made him frown.

He too looked at Fugaku Uchiha with curious eyes, hoping to hear that the Uchiha Clan could still be saved.

Under their expectant gazes, Fugaku Uchiha shook his head and said, "No, Itachi, Sasuke. Our Uchiha Clan can still be saved!"

When Fugaku Uchiha said this, uncertainty lingered in his voice. He did not know whether relying on a child like Naruto still offered hope, or whether it was truly feasible.

But this was already the best possible outcome Fugaku Uchiha could think of.

The radicals' fate would undoubtedly be for Hiruzen Sarutobi to declare that the Uchiha Clan had defected from Konoha Village. Before they could even leave the village, they would likely be hunted down by Konoha's ninjas and meet the tragic end of total extermination.

As for the conservatives, the outcome would undoubtedly be that, under Hiruzen Sarutobi's long-term suppression, the Uchiha Clan would gradually weaken until it finally vanished from Konoha Village's history.

"Father, please tell us this path forward!" At this moment, Itachi desperately wanted to save both the village and the Uchiha Clan.

"This may all depend on you two brothers!" Fugaku Uchiha looked at them with a grave, earnest expression.

"Us? Father, please explain more clearly!" Itachi froze for a moment before asking in confusion.

"Especially you, Sasuke. I believe you both know what happened at the previous opening ceremony." Fugaku brought the subject back to the opening ceremony.

Both Itachi and Sasuke nodded, but they did not understand why he had brought up the opening ceremony.

"After the opening ceremony, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, personally acknowledged that Naruto Uzumaki possessed the potential to become Hokage. The heads of Konoha's major clans also recognized Naruto's performance and had their children associate closely with him!"

"This was also secretly permitted by the Third Hokage. Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi, Kiba Inuzuka, Shino Aburame, Hinata Hyuga—these are all children from major clans."

Only now did Sasuke understand that his class was full of talented people with significant backgrounds in Konoha Village.

"But Father, what does that have to do with Naruto? If Naruto becomes Hokage, will our Uchiha Clan be saved?" Sasuke asked in confusion.

"Yes, Sasuke. The reason lies with you. If you become good friends with Naruto, or even brothers who would risk their lives for one another, then with Naruto's personality, he definitely will not treat you poorly. Once he becomes Hokage, you may very well become one of the village's high-ranking leaders. Then our Uchiha Clan will regain its respect!"

Itachi instantly understood Fugaku Uchiha's meaning. If the Third Hokage suppressed the Uchiha Clan, then they only needed to replace him with a Hokage who would not. Once Konoha's upper ranks underwent a major reshuffle, the Uchiha Clan's standing would be reshuffled as well. This truly was the most prudent method.

"But Father, how can we be sure Naruto will definitely become Hokage?" Itachi Uchiha still asked in confusion.

Fugaku Uchiha looked at Mikoto Uchiha, who had remained silent the entire time. Her expression had been unpleasant all along. She had likely recalled certain old friends and events they had experienced together.

Using his gentlest tone, Fugaku said, "Mikoto, you should know this best. Tell the children. This is a not-so-secret secret known only among Konoha's upper ranks and some influential jonin."

Mikoto, who was still feeling melancholy, heard Fugaku call for her and decided not to hide it from the children any longer.

She said, "That is because Naruto's identity is far more special than you imagine."

"Naruto's identity is special? Isn't Naruto an orphan? Could it be what the children in the village often say—that he's a demon fox? Naruto can't really be a demon fox, can he? Or could he be some illegitimate child of Konoha's upper ranks? Or... could he be the Hokage's son?" Sasuke blurted out a string of possibilities, then rejected them one by one, feeling none of them could be true.

Yet Fugaku Uchiha and Mikoto Uchiha stared directly at Sasuke.

Seeing this, Itachi Uchiha seemed to have guessed something. Even his voice trembled, for the truth he had inferred had already exceeded the limits of his understanding.

In a trembling voice, he said, "Could it be that Sasuke really guessed correctly? Naruto... is the Fourth Hokage's son?"

"How could that be, Brother? Naruto is an orphan. How could he be the Fourth Hokage's son? Right, Father? Mother?" Sasuke did not take Itachi's deduction seriously at all, but Fugaku Uchiha and Mikoto Uchiha silently nodded.

"No way... Naruto really is the Fourth Hokage's son? Brother, how did you guess that?" Sasuke's worldview was shattered at first, then he asked Itachi.

"Sasuke, Father and Mother's words already told us that Naruto's identity is special and that he has a chance to become Hokage. Usually, that means he has an extremely close relationship with the Hokage. So he is very likely the Hokage's relative."

"Also, Naruto has blond hair and the Uzumaki surname. I remember that the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, also had blond hair, and his wife was named Kushina Uzumaki. She had the Uzumaki surname as well. So I guessed that Naruto should be their child!" Itachi explained why he had made that deduction.

Mikoto nodded as well and finished Itachi's thought. "Minato, Kushina, and I were ninja from the same class, so naturally I knew about the two of them. Naruto really is their child."

Fugaku added from the side, "Several years ago, on what had originally been a quiet night, Kushina Uzumaki went into labor. Kushina Uzumaki was the Nine-Tails' jinchuriki. Someone with the Uchiha Clan's unique Sharingan appeared from nowhere and broke into Kushina Uzumaki's delivery room."

"They released the Nine-Tails, which began destroying Konoha's buildings. It was because of this suspicion that the Uchiha Clan was ordered not to mobilize and could only protect the villagers. The Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, used his own life to seal half of the Nine-Tails within himself. Before Kushina Uzumaki died, she sealed the remaining half of the Nine-Tails inside Naruto Uzumaki. From then on, Naruto officially became the new jinchuriki."

"But what no one expected was that Naruto Uzumaki, who should have been the orphaned child of heroes, was ordered by Hiruzen Sarutobi to have his identity concealed. No one was allowed to reveal it, so Naruto became an orphan in public. After that, the Uchiha Clan suffered endless criticism within the village. Naruto, too, gradually grew up amid the villagers' constant hatred."

At last, Itachi Uchiha and Sasuke Uchiha understood everything.

So there had been so many things in Konoha that they had never known.

"I understand, Father. For the sake of harmony between the Uchiha Clan and Konoha, I will protect Naruto Uzumaki whenever I have the chance!" Itachi spoke first. He had already entered the ANBU, and after staying there for some time, Hiruzen Sarutobi might very well assign him to protect Naruto.

When that time came, he would definitely protect Naruto properly. Naruto was the future hope of the Uchiha Clan.

"Me too, Father. From now on, I'll get along with Naruto properly. Naruto will be my best friend from now on!" Sasuke also understood Naruto's importance to the Uchiha Clan.

He had not disliked Naruto to begin with. On the contrary, he had vaguely wanted to get closer to him.

Now that he understood these things, he decided to put aside his somewhat tsundere personality and take the initiative to befriend Naruto.

Seeing that Itachi Uchiha and Sasuke Uchiha were both so sensible and so invested in the Uchiha Clan's future,

Fugaku Uchiha and Mikoto Uchiha felt greatly relieved.

"Our Uchiha Clan will definitely get better!"