"What capacity are you approaching me in?! As Shisui Uchiha, or as Shisui of the Anbu?"
Bai Ye did not rush to answer.
Instead, he asked Shisui a question. Once that question was out,
both Shisui and Itachi fell silent.
They had originally held out a little hope for Bai Ye.
Perhaps Bai Ye was like them?!
As a powerful member of the younger generation, he should have been able to see the situation clearly.
He could not possibly remain trapped in the clan's past forever.
But after hearing Bai Ye's words, how could they fail to realize that things seemed to be taking a bad turn?
Under normal circumstances, Bai Ye would never have said something like that.
"Bai Ye, are you a hardliner?" Shisui stared at him with a conflicted expression.
If Bai Ye really was a hardliner, then why?!
Why would the clan replace Uchiha Fugaku with Bai Ye?!
But if he was not a hardliner, why would Bai Ye ask which side he represented?
"What hardliners, doves, or moderates? There are only two sides here today: the Uchiha and Konoha. Isn't that right?!"
Bai Ye had made himself perfectly clear.
Since Shisui had come here to question him,
he ought to make his own position clear first.
Otherwise, how was Bai Ye supposed to discuss any of this with him?!
He had to keep the initiative in his own hands. If he let Shisui or Itachi lead him around, how would he carry out his plans afterward?!
And indeed, the two were no longer as they had been before.
Now, they were thinking about exactly which side they had come here to represent.
More importantly, it seemed they had never actually considered this before.
Were they representing the Uchiha, or Konoha?
If they represented the Uchiha, were the questions he and Itachi had come to ask Bai Ye really questions an Uchiha clansman would ask?!
If they represented Konoha, then their supposed efforts to resolve the dispute between the Uchiha and Konoha peacefully seemed like complete nonsense.
Viewed that way, whichever side they claimed to favor seemed to be the wrong answer.
"Bai Ye, I've always stood with the Uchiha, but I'm also a Konoha shinobi. I've always wanted to change the relationship between the Uchiha and the village.
It's true that I came to sound you out because you suddenly became clan head.
But I belong to the Uchiha Clan, and I'm also a shinobi of the village!"
Shisui took a deep breath and finally gave his answer.
Itachi said nothing, but his actions made it clear that he agreed with Shisui.
They both wanted to resolve the conflict from the standpoint of both the Uchiha and the village.
"So you became double agents for the village and the Uchiha? Or rather, you've actually already sided with Konoha, haven't you?"
They called themselves double agents.
But their current loyalties actually leaned toward Konoha.
Bai Ye was no fool. How could he let a few words from them pull the wool over his eyes?
Ever since joining the Anbu, the two had been fooled senseless.
How could they still stand with the Uchiha?
At most, Shisui might, but Itachi had long since lost his head.
Wouldn't Bai Ye be a complete idiot if he believed these two stood with the Uchiha?!
"Whatever you say, both we and the village want to know exactly where you stand."
Shisui drew a deep breath. He knew perfectly well that he could not refute Bai Ye's accusation.
He felt that if they kept going around in circles like this, his head would start spinning.
He simply steered the conversation back to the reason they had come.
"Shisui, the relationship between the village and the clan is closely tied to the way people treat one another. Naturally, we'll treat the village the same way it treats the Uchiha."
Bai Ye sipped his tea, then set the cup down and looked at the two opposite him.
Had the Uchiha and Konoha been like this from the very beginning?!
No!
During the First Hokage's time, the Uchiha had not faced nearly so many problems. But once the Second took office, the targeting began.
After the Nine-Tails incident, relations between the two sides had hit rock bottom.
And how had Konoha treated the Uchiha?!
"Hasn't the village shown the Uchiha enough patience?! If anyone else kept shouting about rebellion, would the village keep tolerating it?!
Haven't the Uchiha gone far enough?!
Now that you've taken over, are you planning to lead the Uchiha straight into disaster?!
I thought you would see things clearly, but I never imagined your thinking would be just as narrow-minded as so many people in the clan!!!"
Uchiha Itachi could no longer stop himself from speaking.
Nothing Bai Ye had said since they approached him had explicitly declared his allegiance.
But by now, Uchiha Itachi had realized exactly where Bai Ye stood!
He was a hardliner.
A hardliner through and through.
He had simply never shown it before. Now that Bai Ye had taken over, did that mean the conflict between the Uchiha and the village had become irreconcilable?!
If so, what had all their efforts to change things amounted to?!
Bai Ye knew nothing of those efforts, yet he was ready to tear everything down and start over the moment he took office. Could the Uchiha as they were now really survive civil strife in the village?!
Besides, the Uchiha had absolutely no chance of winning. Could he not see that?!
"Are the Uchiha born with a love of rebellion?! Or have they been driven to it?
Ever since the Second Hokage, the Uchiha have been targeted. The Konoha Military Police Force ostensibly gave the Uchiha authority, but it also made them offend everyone in the village.
It made everyone begin to isolate the Uchiha. That targeting didn't stop after the Third took office. Danzo acted openly, while Hiruzen Sarutobi tripped us up behind the scenes.
I won't even get into the Hokage position. As one of the clans that founded Konoha, the Uchiha don't even have a chance to enter the upper leadership.
After the Nine-Tails incident, the homes that originally belonged to our Uchiha Clan were all seized by clans like the Sarutobi and Shimura, while we were driven to a corner of the village, watched and suspected.
Itachi, since you're not narrow-minded, why don't you make up for all those losses? Get compensation for the clan and make everyone stop monitoring the Uchiha.
Then, if anyone in the clan still talks about rebellion, you won't need to act. I'll deal with them myself. How about it?!"
When Bai Ye finished, he fixed the two with an unwavering stare.
After that declaration, neither of them knew what to say.
What could they say?!
Compensation?!
Bai Ye was merely recounting what had happened between the Uchiha Clan and Konoha from an objective standpoint.
It did seem that all the land once belonging to the Uchiha Clan had become the property of the Shimura and Sarutobi clans.
Even now, the clan had received no compensation. That was one reason the Uchiha were so resentful.
Not only had their homes been seized, but they were also suspected and watched. Anyone would probably lose their mind under those circumstances.
"Bai Ye... shouldn't we take the first step so... both sides can take a step back?!"
Even Shisui lacked confidence as he said that.
He did not know why, but after hearing Bai Ye put it that way, he suddenly felt he understood why the Uchiha had become like this.
But...
Now was not the time to dwell on that understanding. Resolving the conflict between the Uchiha and the village was still the most important thing.
Everything else was secondary.
"Shisui, do you still not understand?! Haven't the Uchiha been backing down all along?!
First, we gave up our right to enter the upper leadership. Why can every shinobi in the village become part of Konoha's leadership except the Uchiha?!
After the Second introduced the Konoha Military Police Force, the Uchiha surrendered their right to enter the upper leadership.
And then what?!
Countless Uchiha were killed or wounded in the Second Shinobi World War and the Third Shinobi World War. But did we complain afterward?! Did we demand anything? We didn't, did we?!
Starting with the Third Hokage, the targeting of the Uchiha only grew worse. We gave up our land, and received no compensation in return.
Even afterward, we remained under constant surveillance. Shisui, tell me, how much further are the Uchiha supposed to retreat?!
How much further do you think the Uchiha should retreat?!"
Bai Ye paused for a few seconds after speaking, then continued without giving them time to respond. "According to this so-called Will of Fire, even your clan has to come second to the village. Then tell me, who has actually done that?!
In the village today, apart from the Senju Clan, which obeyed the First Hokage and integrated itself into Konoha,
has any other clan integrated itself into Konoha?!
All this talk of integrating into Konoha and doing everything for Konoha is just pretty words.
What resources did the Sarutobi Clan and Shimura Clan originally have? How many benefits have they claimed since Hiruzen Sarutobi became Hokage and Danzo became the Hokage's aide and leader of Root?!
Why don't they dissolve their own clans and integrate themselves into Konoha? They keep demanding sacrifices from other clans while taking no responsibility themselves. They enjoy all the authority but bear none of the consequences.
Do you really think these people's so-called peaceful resolution is genuinely peaceful?!
Are you going to wait until they set their sights on the Uchiha's Sharingan?
When they say they need our Sharingan so the Uchiha can live peacefully with the village, will you personally gouge out your clansmen's eyes and hand them over?!!!
The Uchiha have always been part of the village. We don't need to integrate into it at all. The other clans are no different from us. What makes them so special?!
So stop preaching that Will of Fire nonsense. The clans came first, and then the village. Those ideas of yours are utterly naive!!!!"
Bai Ye felt terrifyingly powerful right then!
He had to admit, the more he spoke, the more fired up he became!
Bai Ye knew Hiruzen Sarutobi's routine all too well.
"They talk about bringing peace between the village and the Uchiha, but what have they actually done for peace?!
They distrust the Uchiha, monitor the Uchiha, seize the Uchiha's property without offering any compensation, and continue to isolate the Uchiha even now.
Public opinion in the village has always been against the Uchiha, too. Are you telling me they aren't pulling strings behind the scenes?!
They keep saying they want to repair relations with the Uchiha, but everything they do targets us. Is that what you mean when you say the village wants to repair its relationship with the Uchiha?!
Don't you find it ridiculous yourselves when you say that?!"
Bai Ye really wanted to laugh!
They kept talking about repairing relations with the Uchiha.
But look at everything they actually did!
If Konoha had shown even a shred of decency, would the Uchiha have gone to such extremes?!
Who would rebel for no reason?!
Had they repaired the relationship?!
As far as he could see, Minato Namikaze had wanted to.
But unfortunately, he had died young.
Besides, given Danzo's personality, there was no way he would leave the Uchiha to live peacefully in the village!
"If the Uchiha had truly wanted to rebel back then, they would have left with Madara long ago. Why would they have stayed in Konoha?! Everyone longs for peace. Nobody wants themselves or their loved ones to die.
But when one day they realize that if they don't rebel, they'll die sooner or later anyway, why blame them?!
The village is refusing to let them live. It's not that they wanted to rebel from the start."
Nobody wanted to destroy the place they lived in from the outset.
Why had Madara left alone back then, without any Uchiha following him?!
Because everyone was sick of war. After experiencing peace, nobody wanted to be displaced and homeless again as they had been before.
So Madara had failed.
Nobody had been willing to leave with Madara. Of course, the most important reason was that Madara had lost-lost to Hashirama Senju.
In truth, it was not the Uchiha who had always sought rebellion. It was Konoha that was forcing them to rebel.
If the Uchiha were given no way to survive, what else could they do before they died?!
Wasn't that just like the Kaguya Clan in Kirigakure?
Everyone called the Kaguya Clan lunatics, but without Obito's Blood Mist Policy, they would never have rebelled.
After saying all this, Bai Ye did not speak again.
He had said just about everything he wanted to say.
Now it depended on how they understood it.
If they still clung to their previous beliefs after hearing all that, there was nothing Bai Ye could do.
Nobody could wake someone who was pretending to sleep.
The so-called village was nothing more than a collection of shared interests.
Everyone had founded the village together, and wherever there were people, there would be self-interest.
Even relatives had their own interests, let alone other people!
Wasn't the Uchiha's current situation Konoha's own creation?!
If the Uchiha had never been targeted in the first place, would they have ended up like this?!
At that moment,
both Shisui and Itachi looked troubled, especially Itachi.
He desperately wanted to find arguments to refute Bai Ye, both to strengthen his own convictions and to convince himself that his thinking was absolutely correct.
But although he came up with many reasons, he ultimately rejected every one of them.
Whatever he said, whether he called Bai Ye narrow-minded or anything else, everything Bai Ye had said was true.
He had not exaggerated at all, and that was what made it utterly impossible to counter...
Before you continue