Hawks and Doves

Although this system was a little improper, facts were facts.

These four lifelong skills had truly helped Uchiha Ran escape death more than once.

Otherwise, with only a Chunin's chakra reserves and a Three-Tomoe Sharingan back then, how could he possibly have killed so many Hidden Mist Shinobi in return?

As for why he had told his teammates to hide first while he drew away the pursuers himself?

The reason was even simpler: how could he let anyone see his life-saving trump cards?

In the ninja world, intelligence was life itself—more precious than even hidden savings!

There were simply too many examples of ninja being easily killed because their intelligence had been exposed.

Like Hidan being buried alive, Deidara being defeated by a battery, and the Six Paths of Pain being taken out one by one.

Standing beside a scenic riverbank, Uchiha Ran looked at the Konoha Bird Forehead Protector in his hand with mixed emotions.

"What use is this forehead protector to me?"

There was no helping it. Behind this brand-new forehead protector lay war and bloodshed.

Although I often stopped at nothing to complete those ninja missions, including but not limited to poisoning, kidnapping, murder, and arson.

I knew I was a good person, someone who yearned for peace.

This messed-up Naruto World, ptooey!

Uchiha Ran could only keep consoling himself. When Heaven is about to entrust a great responsibility to a man, it must first temper his will... What came after that again? Whatever, stay steady and don't panic.

When the sky fell, the tall ones would hold it up. It was just war, wasn't it? It had never looked that terrifying on TV before.

Just lie low.

Even if he went to the battlefield, he only needed to keep coasting through life. When the time came, he would be the first to charge backward.

At worst, he could pretend to be a corpse. That should raise his survival rate a little.

After all, I'm just an ordinary, utterly unremarkable Genin. What more do you want from me?

You can't possibly expect me to take on those dangerous missions with low survival rates, right?

What? My nickname is Konoha Spark, meaning a single spark can start a prairie fire?

That was just other people flattering me. I didn't acknowledge it!

"Captain Ran, several elders have arrived. Elder Setsuna has called for a meeting!"

Just as Uchiha Ran was imagining how he could slack off on the battlefield, Uchiha Inada's goofy voice rang out.

"Meeting, meeting. What the hell is the point of holding meetings all day? If meetings could solve problems, why would we need frontline workhorses?"

"Fine, got it. Keep watch outside."

Though he grumbled nonstop, his body still obediently headed over.

He might be a genius now, valued by the entire clan, but as long as something happened "by accident," even geniuses could fall. For example, their eyes might get stolen, or they might accidentally fall off a cliff.

Uchiha Shisui: Uh... I suspect he's slandering me, but I have no proof.

So, it was better to honestly stick together for warmth.

Because if things followed the original plot of Naruto, being reborn as a member of the Uchiha Clan was not a chosen-one beginning. It was a hopelessly doomed start!

Externally, they faced relentless suppression from the Hokage establishment led by the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi, Pot Kage Shimura Danzō, and others.

Internally, the clan members were arrogant and had no clear understanding of the situation, constantly doing things that would lead them to their own destruction.

There were also several people hidden within the clan who were stubbornly obsessive, like covert mental patients, and could erupt with the Will of Fire at any moment.

In Fan Damingbai's words, they were impossible to guard against.

Therefore, Uchiha Ran's circumstances could not be simply described with the word "difficult." They were difficult beyond difficult.

Fortunately, Uchiha Ran had arrived early enough. There were still many long years before the Uchiha Clan's night of extermination.

Otherwise, he would have run off with a bucket long ago.

Even harder was the fact that he alone knew what would happen in the future.

The Uchiha Clan would be exterminated? If he said that now, it would be an outright rumor. Who would believe him?

It was like saying that Britain, one of the Five Great Nations, had suddenly been wiped off the map—and that America had done it.

Would you believe it?

As it happened, the Konoha Four-Man Group really did it.

They chose destruction over appeasement and guidance. Once this happened, the other four great ninja villages would probably laugh out loud and openly pop champagne in celebration.

Uchiha Ran: In the end, I alone bore everything!

Inside the council hall of Naka Shrine.

The seven remaining elders of the Uchiha Clan all wore grave expressions.

At their head was the representative of the Uchiha Hawks, the man who had dared to launch a rebellion right under the Second Hokage's nose, known as the toughest man in the Uchiha Clan—Uchiha Setsuna!

Of course, he had another identity: acting clan head of the Uchiha Clan, because the previous clan head had died during the Second Shinobi World War.

The designated fourth clan head—Uchiha Fugaku—had yet to officially assume the position.

Or rather, he did not yet have enough prestige to inherit it, so Uchiha Setsuna could only serve as acting head for now.

This meeting had been called because the Third Hokage had just issued war-preparation orders to every ninja clan, and the clans had begun notifying their members after returning.

This matter was also related to Uchiha Ran. The spy he had captured—the Land of Wind's sprinting champion—could not withstand the Yamanaka Clan's secret techniques and spilled everything cleanly.

That immediately put Konoha's Four High-Level Officials, who had been harboring faint hopes, on alert.

After all, having lived through the First and Second Shinobi World Wars, those four were no fools. Besides, they had the assistance of the Konoha Think Tank.

It was easy for them to deduce that the impoverished village of Sunagakure would definitely get back onto the fast track toward war.

"According to news from the Hokage Building, the Third Kazekage has gone missing. Sunagakure has already begun preparing for war, and Konoha and the Land of Fire are very likely to be their targets."

"The Third Monkey has demanded that every ninja clan have at least one-third of its ninja ready in advance. If war breaks out, every clan must mobilize at least three-quarters of its ninja for battle. What does everyone think of this order?"

As soon as those words were spoken, everyone below immediately turned into noisy chatterboxes, buzzing with discussion.

"Oh, war is about to begin? This is a great chance for our Uchiha Clan to earn merit and make a name for ourselves!"

"Sigh, are we fighting again? I wonder how many of our Uchiha Clan members will die on the battlefield this time."

"Sunagakure must have come prepared for this war. If we rashly join the fight, our losses will certainly be severe."

"This is our Uchiha Clan's chance to restore our former prestige. How can we shrink back?"

"Even if a major war breaks out, our Uchiha Police Force cannot go directly to the front lines, can it? What if the village is attacked?"

"Those outsiders always see our Uchiha Clan as a warlike clan, but we are thinking of the village too. Without our powerful strength, Konoha would have been swallowed by other villages long ago."

Everyone debated heatedly, but interestingly, most of those opposed to war were experienced elders who had gone through the First or Second Shinobi World War.

Those advocating war were instead young rookies who had never set foot on a battlefield.

But that was understandable. Young ninja also yearned for glory and merit!