Konoha, the Ninja Academy, after school.
Sasuke Uchiha was deeply conflicted. The matter had distracted him all day.
In the end, without even realizing it, he arrived at the training ground where he had agreed to meet Bai Ye.
"You're here?" Bai Ye's voice pulled Sasuke out of his thoughts and back to reality.
He looked up at Bai Ye, his feelings complicated.
"Don't agonize over it. I won't be teaching you much today. Let's just have a chat. Want to sit?"
As he spoke, Bai Ye patted the wooden stump beside him, signaling for Sasuke to sit down.
He had originally intended to start teaching Sasuke, but after seeing Shisui and Itachi today, he had changed his mind.
A trace of confusion crossed Sasuke's face at Bai Ye's words.
"You probably feel awkward asking me to train you right now, don't you? We barely know each other, after all. You might even resent me a little because of what happened with your father.
"So I thought we could talk first. If we both feel it's a good fit, I can start teaching you properly afterward."
After all, if Sasuke disagreed with his ideas,
teaching Uchiha Sasuke now would be a complete waste of time.
Naturally, he had to find out what Uchiha Sasuke thought first.
"I don't have anything to ask you. If that's all, I'm leaving!"
Uchiha Sasuke was about to leave when Bai Ye's words brought him to a halt. "Don't you want to know why your father stepped down as clan leader, or why the Uchiha have such a bad reputation in the village now?"
Well...
Should I leave or stay?!
Sasuke admitted to himself that he had spoken a little too forcefully just now.
But he refused to admit it aloud.
Wouldn't that make him look like a fool?
Putting on a haughty expression and avoiding Bai Ye's eyes, he said, "I... since you insist on telling me, I suppose I can listen!"
Even Sasuke felt embarrassed after saying it.
Seeing him like this, Bai Ye couldn't help shaking his head with a sigh inwardly. Sasuke really was a prickly little thing at this age. It was that lunatic Itachi who had turned him into the person he was at the start of the story.
In fact, the flashbacks from before the story began showed that Sasuke had been quite adorable as a child.
"Let's start with your father. He couldn't change the Uchiha's current situation, which is why he stepped down. That's also why those rumors spread through the clan.
"The clan members have needs of their own. If those needs go unmet indefinitely, of course they'll become dissatisfied."
Ultimately, Uchiha Fugaku's removal came down to the will of the clan.
If Fugaku hadn't kept giving ground, if he had actually secured benefits for the Uchiha, Bai Ye could never have driven him out of office.
"Why did it come to this?!"
Sasuke didn't argue. The rumors circulating within the clan had already made that much clear.
He might have been young, but that didn't mean he understood nothing or couldn't think for himself.
"Because the conflict between the clan and Konoha has escalated. If we keep backing down, disaster will wipe out the Uchiha. We have nowhere left to retreat, so we need to change."
"Change..."
Sasuke murmured the word softly.
He hadn't really felt Konoha's attitude toward the Uchiha all that strongly.
Mostly because he was still quite popular at the Ninja Academy.
But he had heard other clan members complain about how the villagers treated them.
"The Uchiha need change, which is why I was elected clan leader. Fugaku lacked the resolve to break through this situation.
"As for why the Uchiha have such a bad reputation in the village, there are both internal and external reasons.
"Internally, we're proud and bad at expressing our feelings.
"Externally, the Konoha Military Police Force often offends people, and certain people deliberately target us. That's how things ended up this way. Normally, I shouldn't be telling you any of this.
"And I suspect your family wouldn't tell you either. They don't want you involved. But I think that as an Uchiha, you have the right to know.
"So...
"If you want to protect the people, things, or anything else you care about, become stronger. Only strength will let you protect everything you want to protect. That's all for today. Once you've thought it through, you can come find me!"
With that, Bai Ye stood up to leave.
He knew very well that he couldn't be too blunt or radical when speaking to Sasuke.
He had to explain things in terms a child his age could understand.
Watching Sasuke's expression shift back and forth, Bai Ye said nothing more. He patted his shoulder and left.
The moment he turned away, a voice sounded in his ears.
[Ding! Host has successfully influenced Sasuke Uchiha. Uchiha fortune increased by 200 points. Current fortune: -3,800. Fortune rewards have been issued. Congratulations! Obtained: Fire Style: Majestic Destroyer Flame, Fire Style: Great Fire Annihilation, Fire Release: Dust Concealment Technique.]
What was this?!
Three Fire Release Ninjutsu?!
Bai Ye already knew Fire Release Ninjutsu. In fact, he had wanted to learn these three techniques for a long time.
They were Madara Uchiha's techniques, after all, although it was Madara Uchiha who was powerful, not the techniques themselves.
But the clan had no records of them whatsoever.
So Bai Ye had been forced to shelve the idea.
He hadn't expected a simple conversation that influenced Sasuke to yield rewards.
As expected of a character even more important than Uchiha Fugaku. A little influence earned him 200 clan fortune, while removing Uchiha Fugaku from office had only earned 1,000.
Though, if he indulged his twisted sense of humor, Uchiha Fugaku seemed more important after all.
Without that one shudder from Uchiha Fugaku, Sasuke might never have existed.
One of the gods of conceptual powers: sterilized Fugaku...
Getting rewards from Sasuke only strengthened Bai Ye's resolve to keep milking him for more.
And clearly, developing Sasuke's combat strength later on could improve the Uchiha's clan fortune.
Whatever else could be said about Uchiha Sasuke, his sense of clan pride was beyond question.
In the story, he was always going on about reviving the Uchiha Clan, though the final result hadn't amounted to much.
Bai Ye's words had also planted a seed in Sasuke Uchiha's heart.
Perhaps he had harbored a little prejudice against Bai Ye before.
But now, something had changed...
The next day.
The three elders came to see Bai Ye together. He had postponed today's clan meeting until the following day, and they had come to ask what was going on.
"You're saying Hiruzen Sarutobi wants to see you the day after tomorrow?!"
After learning about Hiruzen Sarutobi's move from Bai Ye, the three elders each had their own thoughts.
They had anticipated long ago that Hiruzen Sarutobi would inevitably seek out Bai Ye.
Relations were poor, after all. With the Uchiha suddenly changing their clan leader, there was no way that old fox Hiruzen Sarutobi wouldn't probe their current stance.
"Then what are you planning to do?!" Uchiha Setsuna asked urgently.
He cared more about Bai Ye's position than the other two did.
Hadn't he supported Bai Ye in the first place precisely because of his radical stance?
If a few words with Hiruzen Sarutobi changed Bai Ye's mind now, they would have been better off keeping Uchiha Fugaku as clan leader!
"I'm going to talk to him, but what I intend to fight for won't change. I postponed the clan meeting because I want to hold it after tomorrow's talks. Would the three of you like to come with me?"
Bai Ye's reason for bringing the three along was simple.
Tomorrow's negotiations with Hiruzen Sarutobi would be the perfect chance to make his stance completely clear to them.
It would also stop them from entertaining wild suspicions about his talks with Hiruzen Sarutobi afterward.
If certain rumors were leaked, they might trigger precisely the sort of internal turmoil he didn't want to see.
And the other side was perfectly capable of doing that.
"All right. We'll go with you!"
Uchiha Setsuna was the first to agree. He was the most afraid of Bai Ye switching sides.
Since Bai Ye had invited them along, there was no reason to refuse. The other two nodded their agreement.
At the negotiations the next day.
Inside the Hokage's office, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu were already waiting at the agreed location.
The four had arrived early. Only at the appointed time did Bai Ye arrive with the three elders, Uchiha Hui, Huo, and Setsuna.
"Bai Ye, you're here. It's been years. Who would have thought you'd become the Uchiha Clan's leader? Come in and sit down, Elder Hui, Elder Huo, Elder Setsuna!"
Smiling, Hiruzen Sarutobi invited all four to take a seat.
He and the three elders were old acquaintances, having dealt with one another for so many years.
Bai Ye, however, had surprised him. He had watched Bai Ye graduate and had paid considerable attention to this Uchiha prodigy.
He had thought Bai Ye had no interest in getting involved in these affairs. He hadn't expected to have misjudged him.
"Lord Hokage, I don't think we need so many pleasantries. Let's get straight to business."
Bai Ye was blunt as ever.
The smile on Hiruzen Sarutobi's face instantly froze.
Years of self-control allowed him to recover immediately, but Utatane Koharu frowned beside him and demanded, "Bai Ye, is this your attitude, or the attitude of the Uchiha?"
This brat...
Utatane Koharu was deeply displeased. Did he not understand the Uchiha Clan's position in the village?!
How could he still be so arrogant?!
"What? If a vicious dog snarls and barks at you, are you supposed to smile at it?"
Bai Ye cast Utatane Koharu an indifferent glance, nearly making her explode with rage.
What?!
Was he calling them dogs?!
How could Utatane Koharu possibly accept that?
"What? Did your past talks with Fugaku give you the illusion that the Utatane Clan was some great noble clan too?"
Before Utatane Koharu could react, Bai Ye's next remark made her fists clench beneath the table.
This brat!!!!
She took a deep breath, glaring at Bai Ye. Before she could speak, Hiruzen Sarutobi hurriedly stepped in to smooth things over. "Clan Leader Bai Ye, Konoha and the Uchiha have never been enemies.
"There's really no need for us to take things this far, is there?
"Aren't we sitting here together to find a solution to the problems between the Uchiha and the village?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi could tell he couldn't let Bai Ye keep talking.
He genuinely hadn't expected Bai Ye to throw convention out the window like this. He was nothing like Hiruzen had imagined!
Uchiha Fugaku would never have opened with such confrontational remarks!
"Of course. We Uchiha have always been willing to talk!"
Bai Ye nodded, and Hiruzen Sarutobi inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.
Meanwhile, Utatane Koharu's heart filled with contempt.
Well, well, well!
Weren't you acting so tough just a moment ago?!
And now you want negotiations after all?!
Heh... you expect to negotiate with that attitude?!
If she found an opening later, she would make sure to give Bai Ye a thoroughly unpleasant time.
Utatane Koharu had thought Bai Ye had some backbone.
So this was all he amounted to?!
"Then let's begin. First, return the clan grounds that originally belonged to the Uchiha, or compensate us for their equivalent value."
Bai Ye stated his demand without the slightest hesitation.
Although Hiruzen Sarutobi had mentally prepared himself for this,
since Shisui had already mentioned the matter to him,
he still felt stunned when Bai Ye actually voiced the demand.
You really had the nerve to ask for that?!
"That was the compensation your Uchiha provided for the Nine-Tails' Rampage. Uchiha Fugaku agreed to it at the time. What exactly are you trying to say now?!"
Mitokado Homura could no longer sit still.
Was this some kind of joke?!
The Mitokado family lived there!
If they gave it up, where was the Mitokado family supposed to move?
Back to that remote little corner they had lived in before?!
As for compensation!
They couldn't afford to compensate them at the current market value either!
There was no way he would agree to Bai Ye's demand.
"Exactly. Surely the Uchiha aren't such sore losers? This was already agreed upon. Are you going back on your word now? Besides, everyone saw what happened during the Nine-Tails' Rampage."
Danzo spoke calmly.
He narrowed his eyes, gazing at Bai Ye without a flicker of emotion, and felt a touch more contempt for him.
If this was all he had, wouldn't this brat be even easier to handle than Uchiha Fugaku?!
This was the clan leader the Uchiha had chosen?!
"By 'agreed upon,' do you mean you divided everything up and then informed us? As for the Nine-Tails' Rampage, does the fact that it had the Three-Tomoe Sharingan in its eyes prove the Uchiha were responsible?!"
"If it wasn't the Uchiha, who else could it have been?!"
Utatane Koharu immediately barked her challenge.
Was this guy really going to try to argue his way out of something like this?!
"Do only the Uchiha have the Sharingan?!"
"Don't they..."
Utatane Koharu's words caught in her throat, and she suddenly found herself unable to continue.
Because that really wasn't true. Kakashi had a Sharingan too.
And Utatane Koharu felt as though there was something hidden behind his words.
Danzo, meanwhile, felt a flicker of foreboding deep down.
He stared at Bai Ye, trying to catch even the slightest change in his expression, but to his disappointment, Bai Ye's face remained calm, betraying nothing.
A bead of cold sweat slid down Danzo's forehead, and his unease grew. Did Bai Ye know something?!
No!!!!
Absolutely impossible!!!!
He had kept what he'd done so secret. How could Bai Ye possibly know?!
That secret could utterly ruin him!!!
Before you continue