Fugaku Was at Fault, So Are the Rest of You Innocent?

The voice, cold with fury, sent a shiver through everyone's hearts. Their gazes turned toward Fugaku Uchiha at the same time.

Fugaku Uchiha's expression immediately darkened. Even if he was no longer the clan head, there was no need to use him as an example, was there?

"Don't look at him. He bears responsibility, but are all of you here really so spotless?"

"At the very least, you bear forty percent of the responsibility."

"A clan may obey one person, but it is never one person's clan."

"Don't think I don't know that some of you here have already started siding with outsiders, thinking of becoming the Hokage's dogs."

Upon hearing this, Fugaku Uchiha could no longer maintain his expression. He raised his head in disbelief.

I already gave you the position of clan head, yet you keep dragging me out to be flogged. I'm your cousin, at least.

Uchiha Kyu ignored Fugaku Uchiha's resentful gaze.

So what if he said a few things about him? If he had not transmigrated here, the Uchiha Clan would have been exterminated.

"I can overlook all your past sins, but if I discover anyone betraying the clan and colluding with enemies again, I will never forgive him. The clan will not forgive his entire family either."

Uchiha Kyu warned the traitors present. Nothing was more hateful than betrayal.

Those who had guilty consciences did not dare raise their heads, their hearts filled with unease.

"Now that I am taking over as clan head, who supports it? Who opposes it?"

"This subordinate swears loyalty unto death to the clan head."

Uchiha Ying was the first to drop to one knee, pressing his fist to his chest as he swore loudly.

"This subordinate swears loyalty unto death to the clan head."

Huo Uchiha and the others shouted in unison, their momentum soaring.

The uneasy clan members looked at one another, unsure what to do for the moment.

However, some quick-witted ones seized the opportunity. Without another thought, they dropped to one knee and loudly swore their loyalty.

With one person setting the example, those behind him rushed to swear loyalty to the clan head one after another.

Fugaku Uchiha stared blankly at the scene. When he had still been the clan head, these people had not worn such faces.

Where were those ugly faces from before, when they had indignantly demanded this and that from him?

Is this the authority brought by strength?

The quiet Uchiha Itachi compared his father with his cousin. The contrast was immediate, and he gained some understanding of what strength truly was.

Uchiha Kyu swept his gaze across the clan members who had pledged loyalty. He knew full well that some of them were not sincerely submitting, but were merely being forced by the situation.

Still, that was enough. Completely controlling the Uchiha Clan was only a matter of time.

"Now, in the name of the clan head, I formally issue my first order."

"From this moment on, no clan member may leave the compound until the ban is lifted."

"Yes, Clan Head."

This clan meeting had been simple. Uchiha Kyu had not issued many orders, only forbidding clan members from leaving the compound.

After all, he had turned Konoha into a complete mess. Several clans had been slaughtered by him, and any clan members who went outside would most likely never return.

This was all thanks to the traitors within those clans. Otherwise, he could not have obtained so much intelligence on them and easily wiped out most of their younger generation.

In this world, benefits were the easiest way to breed traitors. In particular, the traitors of the Sarutobi Clan had chosen to sell out vast amounts of clan intelligence because they wanted to rise through the ranks.

This was also an important reason why Uchiha Kyu had spared no expense in hiring Akatsuki to successfully massacre the Sarutobi Clan.

The news that the Uchiha Compound had been placed under martial law immediately reached Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Uchiha Kyu slept most soundly that night, but Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others could not sleep at all.

Konoha had been thrown into chaos by the Uchiha Clan.

Compensation for damaged homes, pensions for dead and injured civilians, pensions for dead and injured ninja, casualty lists from every clan—all of it had to be handled by Konoha's upper ranks.

What gave Minato Namikaze and Hiruzen Sarutobi the greatest headache was not even that. The clans targeted by the Uchiha had actually joined forces and planned to launch a purge against the Uchiha Clan.

Konoha's upper ranks wanted to agree more than anyone else.

Konoha's upper ranks were also the ones least able to agree.

There was only one reason: the Uchiha Clan had two pairs of Mangekyō Sharingan. Once war began, it would be impossible to wipe out the Uchiha Clan in a short time.

If the ninja villages of other nations learned of this internal conflict, merely imagining the disastrous situation was enough to make Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others' scalps tingle.

Yet if they did not agree, the pressure from those united clans was not something Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others could withstand either.

Although the Hokage faction had cultivated a large number of civilian ninja, clan ninja still formed the most important part of Konoha's core structure.

Once they lost the support of those ninja clans, Konoha's fate was easy to imagine.

"This scheme to drive a wedge between us... that boy cannot be allowed to live."

The exhausted Hiruzen Sarutobi leaned back in his chair, gazed at the moon outside the window, and let out a deep sigh.

Only after promising numerous benefits did Hiruzen Sarutobi barely manage to suppress the dissatisfaction of those clan heads.

"Lord Third, should we bring back Jiraiya-sensei and Lady Tsunade?"

For the first time, Minato Namikaze felt powerless, and he rarely found himself doubting his own abilities.

"Send the Anbu to look for them."

"Understood, Lord Third."

The next morning, Konoha's streets were filled with white mourning banners hanging from every household.

Some civilians had died after being caught in the fires, but even more had been killed by people trying to fish in troubled waters and loot amid the chaos. The human heart was sinister.

However, Uchiha Kyu did not care about any of that. So what if some people died? There were plenty of civilians in the Land of Fire who wanted to settle in Konoha.

"These are all confidential clan documents concerning the clan affairs the clan head needs to handle. If there is anything you do not understand, you can send someone to ask me."

Fugaku Uchiha personally carried the confidential documents concerning the clan to Uchiha Kyu's home, afraid that his young cousin would not know how to handle them.

"Do you hate me?"

Uchiha Kyu casually flipped through the confidential documents, then lifted his eyes to look at Fugaku Uchiha, who stood obediently before him.

A trace of relief appeared on Fugaku Uchiha's already troubled face. He gave a bitter laugh.

"To be honest, I did at first."

"But during last night's gathering, I suddenly understood. Perhaps if I continued occupying the position of clan head, I truly would have led the Uchiha Clan into the abyss."

Fugaku Uchiha took a deep breath, faced his heart directly, and said truthfully, "At least up to now, you have been right."

After saying that, Fugaku Uchiha saw Uchiha Kyu rise and extend a hand toward him.

"Since you think I'm right, I invite you to help me. You won't refuse, will you, Cousin?"

The sorrow on Fugaku Uchiha's face vanished. He revealed a smile not seen in many years and tightly grasped that hand.

That clasp was like duckweed drifting in water finally reaching shore.

"Cousin, we are family. Whatever you need, I will always be the first to charge forward. I will never retreat."

"Good. It's a deal."

"Then I'll leave the clan affairs to you."

"From today onward, a new position of clan head assistant will be established beneath the clan head, responsible for assisting the clan head in handling clan affairs."

Uchiha Kyu patted his shoulder with a smile. This arrangement should suit Fugaku well.

"I'll leave this place to you. I'll be going now."

"You..."

When Fugaku Uchiha turned around, Uchiha Kyu had already vanished from sight.