It was well past midnight.
Yan Uchiha and Fugaku sat at the tea table in the living room at home.
"How are you feeling?"
Yan poured a cup of tea and passed it over, asking with a smile.
Fugaku took the cup, his smile strained.
He shook his head and sighed.
He wasn't putting on an act.
Tonight had truly opened his eyes!
All the way home, Fugaku had been wondering what he could have done if he had been in Yan Uchiha's position, stuck in that awful situation.
He had thought it over several times, and he could see no way out except to take the loss.
He would have had to meekly admit fault, put on a smile for the Hokage, and beg Hiruzen Sarutobi to let him off.
In the end, he would probably have had to agree to some outrageous conditions from the Hokage, paying a frighteningly steep price.
Then Hiruzen Sarutobi would have considered that backing the Uchiha into a corner wasn't good for the village either, and taken the opportunity to let the matter drop.
The Uchiha would have suffered a loss and still had to thank the Hokage for showing mercy.
That was the only way out Fugaku could think of!
Yet he had never imagined that, with Yan Uchiha handling things today, the situation could take such a turn.
Those people had clearly belonged to Root, but Hiruzen Sarutobi hadn't even dared acknowledge it.
In the end, he had actually accepted that they were spies and even had to praise the Uchiha for doing the right thing before he could bring tonight's affair to a close.
Even the three ANBU captured during the day had been beaten so badly by the Uchiha that they probably wouldn't be able to work as ninja