The day the Nine-Tails' Rampage broke out.
At that moment.
Kushina Uzumaki was close to giving birth. Minato Namikaze had ordered the Konoha Military Police Force to remain on high alert, so the Uchiha were busy, with many people coming and going through their compound.
The Uchiha compound lay in the heart of Konoha, slightly to the south.
This place was called Naka Shrine.
As the home of one of the village's powerful clans, it had always been surrounded by dense woods and low walls, separated from the other streets by just the right distance.
Most houses in the area were traditional Japanese buildings, with dark wooden walls and gray-tiled roofs whose eaves curved slightly upward.
Afternoon sunlight filtered through gaps in the canopy, casting dappled light and shadows on the ground.
An occasional breeze blew through with a rustle.
Uchiha Fugaku stood outside the headquarters of the Konoha Military Police Force, holding a logbook and reviewing the patrol records from the past few days.
Beside him stood Uchiha Tekka, another member of the Konoha Military Police Force.
Fugaku's gaze lingered on the logbook for a moment before he handed it back to Tekka.
"The patrol routes need adjusting for the next few days. The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki is about to give birth, so stay away from the eastern area. It'll draw suspicion."
There had been a precedent for the Sharingan controlling the Nine-Tails, so the Uchiha Clan's leadership was strictly prohibited from freely approaching the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.
Tekka took the logbook and frowned.
"Hah. Those people in the Hokage's faction are petty and suspicious. If we really had something in mind, would we need to resort to something so dirty?"
"Watch your words."
Uchiha Fugaku gave him a reproachful look, and he could only shut his mouth sullenly.
"The Hokage