Mourning, Remembrance, and a Prelude

November 1.

The aftermath of the Nine-Tails' Rampage had finally been cleared away. Those twenty-odd days had been enough for Konoha to emerge from the immediate aftermath of the battle.

Of course, restoring everything to how it had been would take more time.

At the Memorial Stone.

The long-delayed memorial ceremony finally began.

Everyone in Konoha had dressed in black and pinned on white flowers. In orderly succession, they offered their deepest condolences for the relatives, comrades, friends, neighbors, and strangers who had died.

The Uchiha Clan was no exception.

They were among the first groups to step forward and pay their respects.

They followed directly behind the Third.

Uchiha Hui had originally had no intention of attending.

First, he had not known the dead well. Second, he was currently just an ordinary Uchiha ninja. He could always come after the main procession had finished.

But because Uchiha Fugaku was there, Hui had been dragged into a rather conspicuous position as well.

And here...

Uchiha Hui saw many familiar figures.

First among them was the Third.

The longest-serving Hokage, a man celebrated with such illustrious titles as the "strongest Hokage" and the "Shinobi Hero," was not yet as aged as he would be when the story began.

But in all honesty...

He was already showing his age. At a glance, he looked like an old man in his twilight years, posing no threat whatsoever.

Behind the Third...

Uchiha Hui also spotted Konoha's Three Great Families: the Nara Clan, the Akimichi Clan, and the Yamanaka Clan.

These three clans had deep ties to the Sarutobi Clan. They had joined Konoha at its founding because of the latter, and to this day, they maintained the tradition of having the Sarutobi Clan present earrings symbolizing their "bond" to members of their clan heads' lineages when they came of age.

Uchiha Hui was not particularly familiar with the ninja currently leading these clans.

So...

They did not exchange any words.

As his gaze wandered, Uchiha Hui spotted Konoha's second most prominent clan, the Hyuga Clan, which also possessed a special bloodline.

The man at the front was presumably Hyuga Hiashi. Beside him stood his younger twin brother, Hizashi Hyuga.

The Hyuga Clan's expressionless faces seemed perpetually stiff and solemn.

Unlike the Uchiha Clan, however, they did not draw resentment from anyone else. It was as though their "indifference" and the Uchiha's "aloofness" were entirely different things—the former acceptable, the latter repulsive.

That was rather interesting in its own way.

One after another, Uchiha Hui spotted most of the ninja clans within Konoha.

And by then...

The Uchiha Clan's turn to pay their respects had more or less ended.

They needed to step back and make room for others.

The ceremony lasted a long time.

Once most people had finished offering their condolences and paying their respects, the Third, who was currently overseeing the village, stepped onto the raised platform and began commemorating everything they had lost.

"Wherever leaves dance, fire will burn. The fire's shadow will illuminate the village and allow new leaves to sprout. Only when a ninja wishes to protect those they cherish most will their true strength emerge..."

The Hokage's speech was deeply moving.

Even Uchiha Hui felt something stir within him as he listened from below. From an outsider's perspective, this Hokage, who devoted himself wholeheartedly to the village, was unquestionably worthy of respect.

But as an Uchiha...

Uchiha Hui could not help criticizing his hesitation and indecision in certain matters.

Still, regardless of all that...

This old man had already devoted everything he had to Konoha.

If Uchiha Hui remembered correctly, the Third had also lost his wife during the Nine-Tails' Rampage. Yet he seemed never to have brought it up.

As Uchiha Hui maintained his solemn silence, the Third's speech gradually drew to a close.

"Ninja are those who fight to defend their village and their loved ones, even at the cost of their lives!"

In conclusion...

The Third voiced his deepest conviction.

And those words...

Were clearly a conviction he had always upheld.

"I will submit a request to the daimyo. As the Third, I will take up the duties of Hokage once more and protect Konoha until a new Hokage emerges!"

"Hm?!"

Uchiha Fugaku, who had been keeping his head lowered, abruptly looked up.

Hyuga Hiashi of the Hyuga Clan and several others reacted similarly.

As the village's current generation of leaders in their prime...

Although they had already suspected that the Third would return to power, hearing him announce it himself still shook them.

Especially Uchiha Fugaku.

He discreetly glanced at Uchiha Hui a short distance behind him, then closed his eyes heavily.

That night...

He had discussed many things with this younger clansman.

But nearly all those matters had rested on the premise that the Third would reclaim the Hokage position.

Uchiha Fugaku had not truly wanted the Third to take charge of Konoha again.

Because if he did...

Fugaku would really have to begin the Uchiha's path to salvation, just as he and Uchiha Hui had discussed.

Hui, did you really foresee all this?!

Countless thoughts flashed through Uchiha Fugaku's mind. Finally, he looked at the Third standing on the platform, and a startling light blazed in his eyes.

The Third seemed to sense something.

His gaze turned toward the Uchiha Clan.

Then...

He saw Uchiha Fugaku's serious expression. A trace of complicated emotion seemed to flicker through his heart, but in the end, he remained composed.

However...

Within the Uchiha Clan's crowd...

A figure soon caught the Third's attention.

Standing in the middle of the crowd, neither at the front nor the back, was a tall young man with both hands in his pockets, his entire presence shrouded in gloom.

If he had to describe it...

The young man seemed much like Danzo had once been.

Moreover, he stood out even among the Uchiha Clan, markedly different from the surrounding Uchiha ninja whose emotions could be guessed at a glance.

But soon...

The Third withdrew his gaze and turned toward the Hyuga beside them.

In the entire Uchiha Clan...

There were few people he needed to watch closely. Uchiha Fugaku was one, Uchiha Setsuna was another, and the renowned Shisui Uchiha counted as half of one.

Aside from them...

No one else in the Uchiha Clan currently warranted much of his attention.

After the Third announced that he would soon resume his duties, all of Konoha erupted with excitement once more. Much of the gloom left by the battle seemed to lift.

Such was the reassurance brought by the "strongest Hokage."

However...

In a shadowy corner that no one noticed...

A figure glared bitterly at Hiruzen Sarutobi on the platform, gripping his cane so tightly that it creaked.

"Hiruzen, you will regret this!"

Shimura Danzō delivered his "catchphrase," then turned and left, a measure of resolve in his retreating figure.

That night.

Uchiha Hui returned home.

During this time...

He had sought people out for intense sparring every day.

Unexpectedly...

His strength had already improved enormously.

Name: Uchiha Hui (+)

Identity: Chunin of the Uchiha Clan, Konohagakure, Land of Fire

Reputation: 9,798 points

Kekkei genkai: Sharingan (two-tomoe 98%), Shikotsumyaku (22%)

Ninjutsu: Clone Technique (proficient 13%), Substitution Technique (proficient 56%), Transformation Technique (practiced 95%), Body Flicker Technique (expert 1%), Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique (expert 21%), Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique (proficient 9%), Hidden Mist Technique (practiced 65%), Earth Release: Fissure Palm (practiced 83%), Demonic Illusion: Shackling Stakes Technique (practiced 93%), Shadow Clone Technique (practiced 55%), Earth Release: Double Suicide Decapitation Technique (practiced 33%), Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet (beginner 77%), Earth Release: Earth Clone (practiced 12%)

Less than a month had passed.

He had already raised his strength to roughly the level of an elite chunin.

Of course, that only meant he was equivalent to an elite chunin on paper. In actual combat, his performance could definitely rival that of an ordinary jonin or a special jōnin.

Since the opponents he had fought had all been chunin...

So...

Even Uchiha Hui himself was not entirely sure where his limits lay.

And it was not something he could simply estimate.

After today, the Third's return to office will be on the agenda. That means the assassination attempt shouldn't be far off, should it?

Lying in bed, Uchiha Hui began considering his current situation.

And this assassination attempt...

Would also be his first chance to see whether Uchiha Fugaku had changed.

If Fugaku truly had the courage to change...

Then Hui would do his best to help him save the Uchiha.

But if Fugaku remained as ineffectual as he had been in Hui's memories...

Then...

Sorry.

Uchiha Hui might really have to start preparing to flee Konoha.

Although his strength was currently improving rapidly...

He could hardly take on the entire village alone, could he?

He was not some born killing machine.

He simply wanted to live a peaceful, pleasant life.

Scheming against others and trading killings was not the life he wanted.