Allies? The Uchiha

"Da-da-la-da, da-la~ Hmm?" Uchiha Fugaku had been happily shopping for all sorts of things when he suddenly felt someone watching him.

As the head of the Uchiha Clan, he instantly grew wary.

After all, he was currently sitting idle at home. Who would stare at him so brazenly?

Turning his head, he saw a child watching him.

Short white hair, along with a strikingly handsome face.

Someone from the Hatake Clan?

I think his name was... Sōkyū Hatake?

Granted, the Uchiha Clan was not particularly friendly toward members of other clans. They could even be called quite distant.

But he still recognized the Hatake Clan's distinctive features. In particular, he seemed to remember seeing this boy at the funeral of the Konoha White Fang, Hatake Sakumo.

"Sōkyū... Hatake? Did you need something from me?" Uchiha Fugaku regarded Sōkyū Hatake impassively, a trace of suspicion deep in his eyes.

After all, hardly anyone in Konoha wanted anything to do with the Uchiha Clan these days!

"Clan Head Fugaku, what has you so happy today?" Rather than answering Uchiha Fugaku's question, Sōkyū Hatake spoke in an almost teasing tone.

"Things are all right. Did you need something?" Uchiha Fugaku asked bluntly. He had already been shut out anyway, so someone watching him was rather unusual.

"Nothing much. I just heard that your wife is six months pregnant and came over to congratulate you, Clan Head Fugaku," Sōkyū Hatake said.

As expected of the father of Lord Itachi and Uchiha Sasuke, he certainly had a commanding presence.

"Thank you. If there's nothing else, I still have some shopping to do," Uchiha Fugaku said impassively, his expression warning strangers to keep their distance.

"Nothing else. I'm just a little curious." A smile appeared on Sōkyū Hatake's lips.

"Curious about what?" Uchiha Fugaku did not quite understand what Sōkyū Hatake meant.

Were children these days all this precocious? Why was everything coming out of his mouth so hard to understand?

"Curious about... how the Uchiha Clan lost its seat on the Council of Elders," Sōkyū Hatake said calmly.

"What do you mean?!" Uchiha Fugaku frowned, a fierce aura erupting from him.

Although the Uchiha Clan still ostensibly held a seat on the Council of Elders, anyone with eyes knew that Uchiha Fugaku had not attended a council meeting in who knew how long.

"Nothing much. I just wanted to ask... Clan Head Fugaku, do you still want to reclaim your seat on the Council of Elders?" Sōkyū Hatake regarded Uchiha Fugaku calmly, his eyes seemingly trying to convey something.

"I abide by the village's arrangements." Rather than revealing his true feelings outright, Uchiha Fugaku watched Sōkyū Hatake cautiously.

Who knew whether Hiruzen Sarutobi had sent him to sound me out?

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. To think that Fugaku of the Wicked Eye is so obedient now. You really are... nothing like I imagined." Sōkyū Hatake spread his hands, looking at Uchiha Fugaku with some amusement.

"What, doesn't the Hatake Clan lack a seat on the Council of Elders now too?" After a moment's thought, Uchiha Fugaku spoke directly.

The difference between the Hatake Clan and the Uchiha Clan now was that the Hatake Clan had no one to attend, while the Uchiha Clan wanted to attend but could not.

There was a fundamental distinction between the two.

"Our Hatake Clan has already received permission to attend the Council of Elders Meeting," Sōkyū Hatake said outright. This was no secret, so there was naturally no need to hide it.

Presumably, after today, Hiruzen Sarutobi would spread the news that Sōkyū Hatake of the Hatake Clan would represent his clan at the Council of Elders Meeting.

This was something that could lift people's spirits, and Hiruzen Sarutobi would naturally not pass up the chance to publicize it.

"The Hatake Clan? You?" Uchiha Fugaku stared at Sōkyū Hatake in disbelief. How could that be possible?

"Yes, me."

"Impossible. How old are you..." Uchiha Fugaku suddenly paused mid-sentence. If he remembered correctly, the Sōkyū Hatake before him was only five, yet he spoke with the air of an old man.

"It is me. And I was also thinking that once I attend this Council of Elders Meeting and establish myself, I'll need some allies," Sōkyū Hatake said outright. What he needed was far more than a mere seat on the Council of Elders.

In fact, his idea was to turn all of Konoha upside down.

Hiruzen Sarutobi? Shimura Danzō? Utatane Koharu? Mitokado Homura?

In Sōkyū Hatake's eyes, these people were not particularly troublesome.

But if Sōkyū Hatake wanted to climb higher, military achievements were indispensable.

After all, following the Third Shinobi World War, power in Konoha would undergo a reshuffling.

Hiruzen Sarutobi would step down, and Minato Namikaze and Orochimaru would begin competing for the position of Fourth Hokage.

As for him, if he had military achievements, then whatever else happened, he would at least have nothing to worry about when it came to having a say.

"Allies? So you intend to make the Uchiha Clan an ally of your Hatake Clan?" Uchiha Fugaku understood Sōkyū Hatake's intentions after only a little thought.

Wasn't he simply trying to make the Uchiha Clan a partner in an alliance?

"Of course, it won't be just the Uchiha Clan." That single remark from Sōkyū Hatake sent a tremendous shock through Uchiha Fugaku.

Seriously, what made this child think he could do that?

Did he think he could overturn Konoha's power structure with a few words?

"So?"

"So I need allies. Clan Head Uchiha Fugaku, your... Mangekyō Sharingan has also started... losing its vision, hasn't it?" Sōkyū Hatake looked at Uchiha Fugaku with a smile, then turned and headed toward the Hatake Clan Compound.

"?!?!" Stunned by Sōkyū Hatake's words, Uchiha Fugaku trembled slightly. How did this person know that he had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan?

After all, only his wife, Uchiha Mikoto, knew that he had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan. He had not even told anyone else in his clan, let alone this five-year-old Sōkyū Hatake!

Watching Sōkyū Hatake's figure recede into the distance, Uchiha Fugaku moved his lips. Immediately afterward, Sōkyū Hatake stopped walking.

But he paused for less than two seconds before setting off again, gradually walking out of Uchiha Fugaku's sight...

Only Uchiha Fugaku remained there, holding baby lotion and diapers...