Chapter 70: The Clan's Future, ZhiShui's Gift (34)

"Is the situation getting worse?"

Inside the Clan Leader's residence of the Uchiha Clan, Uchiha Fugaku's expression appeared somewhat stern.

The others who were also in the room with him likewise wore rather serious expressions.

This time, they are indeed facing a considerable challenge!

Uzhibo ChaNa wants to retrieve the Sharingan that belongs to Obito; honestly, this is not a bad thing.

The clan's bloodline must not fall into outsiders' hands, let alone be taken by non‑Uchiha, which is inherently justified.

The ANBU named Ao from Mist Village is now wanted by Hyuga and even the entire Leaf Village.

If he is encountered outside, the response will inevitably be the Leaf's most ruthless attack.

But Kakashi is truly different; he doesn't understand those guys like Uzhibo ChaNa—why doesn't he properly think about Kakashi's identity?

Of course, perhaps they have already thought about it, but to them it doesn't matter.

Because in their view, the Uchiha will inevitably reclaim the Hokage position, even if it requires the most extreme means!

"Clan Leader, there is only one week left."

Uchiha JiuXin, seeing Uchiha Fugaku's uncharacteristic expression, thought for a moment before speaking to remind him.

He is an elder of the family's Dove Faction, and in fact the one who truly controls the Dove Faction.

He and Uzhibo ChaNa belong to the same generation, but back then he chose a starkly opposed stance and left the Leaf with Madara Uchiha.

"I know, how many elders support us?"

Uchiha Fugaku sighed, then asked.

Within the Uchiha Clan, besides the Dove Faction and Eagle Faction, there are also some elders who choose a neutral stance.

These elders would normally fully support the Clan Leader; that is their way of survival.

However, this time it involves the bloodline issue, so these neutral elders also have their own thoughts and judgments.

"Probably there are fewer people than ChaNa."

Elder JiuXin shook his head; he also seemed in a bad mood.

Some people have not yet taken a stance; no one knows what they think. Normally he might not care, but now it is a critical period.

If a Sharingan could be used to bridge the clan and the Leaf, in his view that would be entirely worthwhile!

"Clan Leader, there is another matter to report, namely the issue of Uzhibo BaDai."

"Hmm? Has BaDai been found?"

As the head of the Police Department, Uchiha Fugaku naturally knew about Uzhibo BaDai's disappearance.

A clan's elite, and also a police squad captain, suddenly disappearing struck him as rather unbelievable.

Now hearing Elder JiuXin mention it, he couldn't help feeling curious.

"They haven't found him; he remains missing to this day."

Elder JiuXin shook his head, and his expression grew somewhat solemn.

"However, Clan Leader, Orochimaru's recent reputation hasn't been good; I'm worried,"

"Damn it!"

Uchiha Fugaku instantly grasped JiuXin's meaning, making his already unsightly expression even more grim.

Orochimaru's suddenly terrible reputation is something to be pleased about, but coupled with BaDai's disappearance, everything turned for the worse.

He could even imagine what Uzhibo ChaNa would do over there, yet he could not stop it.

The clan's elite have all vanished, and the prime suspect is Orochimaru.

As the Clan Leader, you don't proactively seek an explanation; do you also intend to stop the clan members from discussing and spreading it?

One can imagine that if he truly does that, his situation would become even worse!

Although he has the Clan Leader's authority, the clan has experienced a back‑stab like Madara Uchiha's, and he doesn't want to go that far.

"Clan Leader, perhaps we could talk with them privately during the clan council."

Uchiha JiuXin also understood Uchiha Fugaku's dilemma, but he would not bring up such matters.

Of course, Madara's departure does owe him some credit.

"A private talk?" Uchiha Fugaku frowned, "What do you mean"

"The clan council only allows elders and the Clan Leader to attend, no others are admitted."

Uchiha JiuXin nodded and said no more.

Uchiha Fugaku understood what that meant: a private discussion not made public.

That implies he must make further compromises and concessions in private, so that Uzhibo ChaNa feels satisfied.

Only then might this guy stop pressing further.

"Understood," Uchiha Fugaku sighed, "I will consider it carefully."

For a moment, he truly felt that what he, as Clan Leader, had done was quite stifling.

But now that things have come to this, there seems no better solution—

"Is the gap between me and my senior really that big?"

Following Yuzhi into the forest interior, ZhiShui's mind was still fuzzy.

He had considered that he might lose, but he never imagined he would lose in such a terrible way!

Ninjutsu can't compare, and his taijutsu, without his knowledge, had a detonator seal stuck onto his wrist.

If this were in actual combat, he would already be dead!

And the speed he prides himself on is, in reality, just a tie with others.

Most importantly, it's hard to say which of the two is actually faster!

"What kind of genius am I, then?"

Although Zhisui's heart was full of gloom, they didn't feel any resentment.

A loss is a loss; they wouldn't make excuses for themselves, and they now held even more respect for Yuzhi.

"This is how a Leaf Village hero should truly be!"

Thinking to themselves, Zhisui and Yuzhi entered deep into the forest behind the clan's mountain, and it was only there that Yuzhi stopped.

"Although I don't know what you want to talk about, I suspect what you have to say won't be something simple."

Yuzhi shrugged at Zhisui, still keeping a smile.

"Of course, I might be wrong, but there's no one here, so you can relax a bit."

"Yes, senior."

Zhisui steadied their mind, not refuting Yuzhi's words, because that was exactly what they thought.

Now that no one was around, it was indeed a good place to discuss important matters.

"Actually, senior, there's a question that has been troubling me, preventing me from ever understanding.

Just as you said before, we are family; we are all members of the Uchiha Clan.

Clearly we are all the same, sharing the same bloodline, yet why are our relationships discordant?

Whether it's me and you, or Elder Uzhibo JiuXin and Elder Shana, it seems the same.

Senior, could you enlighten me?"

Zhisui's question made Yuzhi's eyebrows twitch slightly.

It's not that the question is hard; rather, it's an excellent opening to employ his verbal evasion.

In the original work, whether Zhisui told Leaf Village officials about his Mangekyou Sharingan ability or ultimately abandoned his post and committed suicide, he seemed to have a serious mental illness.

But it cannot be denied that he truly had both the village and the clan in his mind.

So using the clan as a hook for a verbal evasion on Zhisui might be a good choice.

Especially since one of his subplots involves confronting the clan's leadership; if we can muddle his thoughts without causing further trouble, that would be a boundless merit.

"Good question, Zhisui."

Yuzhi thought of this and spoke directly.

"Actually the reason is simple; have you ever considered what education you received as a child?"

"In other words, what is the phrase the elders told you most often, the one you will forever keep in mind?"

"A phrase to keep in mind?"

Zhisui pondered; he was raised by Elder Uzhibo JiuXin, and that elder always made him remember that.

"Protect the clan's honor, and reunite the clan and the village peacefully."

"Good idea, but do you know what Elder Shana said to me most after I activated the Sharingan?"

Yuzhi nodded; the Pigeon faction's ideas still favored the clan.

Although they advocate non‑violence and think everything must be peaceful—a foolish stance—but not so foolish as to abandon the clan entirely.

"I don't know, senior."

"Elder Shana told me most often that the clan's honor is above all; for the clan's honor we must use any means necessary."

Zhisui was stunned by this; these are completely different philosophies, and Elder Shana's view is far too extreme, isn't it?

Suddenly, Zhisui seemed to grasp Yuzhi's purpose in saying that.

After all, he's not foolish; he can still understand some questions.

"Senior means," Zhisui asked tentatively, "that it's caused by differing philosophies?"

"To put it nicely, it's a clash of ideas; to put it bluntly, they're fighting each other for control of the clan."

Yuzhi didn't continue a slow explanation; instead, he gave Zhisui a strong dose.

"I believe you can see that, actually, there are many people who follow Elder Uzhibo JiuXin and many who follow Elder Shana.

These people support and side with them because of the beliefs they advocate.

Just imagine, if some matters required a vote, wouldn't the side with more people find it easier to express its views and attitude?"

Zhisui stared blankly at Yuzhi; this was a question he had never considered.

But thinking carefully, Yuzhi's words seemed entirely correct; could this be the root of why the clan has become like this now?

He was still a bit puzzled; looking at Yuzhi, he whispered, "Senior, why doesn't the Clan Leader do something?"

"Clan Leader?" Yuzhi blinked.

"That's right, senior."

Zhisui nodded seriously.

"The Clan Leader commands the clan; since this situation has arisen within the clan, why doesn't he try to do something?"

"That's a good question, Zhisui."

Yuzhi shrugged, then reached out and patted Zhisui's shoulder.

"The Clan Leader could indeed do something if he could integrate all the voices.

By seeking common ground while respecting differences, the clan might become more united, but unfortunately he does not.

Perhaps he lacks the ability, or perhaps he simply doesn't want to."

"Why... why?"

Zhisui was somewhat confused; making the clan better should be what the Clan Leader ought to do, right?

Even without ability, one should try; how can he simply not want to?

"You're still young; many things you might not understand yet."

Yuzhi shook his head and said softly.

"For the Clan Leader, sometimes clear factional struggles within the clan are far better than everyone being overly harmonious."

Especially, both of these factions have serious problems, and each is especially extreme.

"Both are especially extreme?"

The Clan Leader's inaction already left Zhi Shui a bit bewildered, and Yuzhi's words now left Zhi Shui even more confused.

No matter how you look at it, it should be Elder Shana who is more extreme; how does Elder Jiuxin become extreme according to Yuzhi's claim?

"That's right, they are both very extreme."

Yuzhi nodded.

"Elder Shana has always believed that Leaf Village was founded by the Uchiha Clan and the Senju Clan together, yet to this day Leaf Village has never had a Uchiha Hokage.

Moreover, he emphasizes that any means are acceptable for the family's glory; it's hard to imagine where the family will end up if this continues into the future.

Elder Jiuxin, on the other hand, advocates integrating into Leaf Village peacefully, preferring that all matters be resolved through communication and negotiation.

But Zhi Shui, do you still remember how the negotiations between Leaf Village and Rock Village were conducted when we were in Grass Country?

Zhi Shui nodded; he participated in that operation, so he naturally knows how fierce the clash was during the negotiations.

"To ensure you have the right to negotiate and communicate, you must first have the strength that makes the other side willing to negotiate with you."

Yuzhi sighed, and his tone became somewhat serious.

"Without the guarantee of force, without the conviction to pick up a weapon and fight the enemy when you must resist, peace can never be attained!"

Elder Jiuxin's idea is not to ensure peace; it is fundamentally an extreme compromise."

A great figure once said, seeking peace through struggle preserves peace, while seeking peace through compromise destroys peace.

Wherever this sentence is placed, it never becomes outdated in any era!

Zhi Shui is now completely bewildered; he didn't expect that he only wanted to know why the family had split.

The answer he received was itself shocking to him; how did the family become like this?

He now feels as if his own convictions are on the verge of collapsing.

"Alright, we've talked too much today."

Just as Zhi Shui was in a daze, Yuzhi smiled at him.

"You can take my words as a joke; I say it casually, and you can just listen casually as well."

In the future, whenever you have a problem, you need to think more and reflect more; don't always judge issues based solely on appearances.

Also, don't believe everything others say, regardless of who it is.

"Senior." Zhi Shui came to his senses, hesitated as he looked at Yuzhi about to leave, and asked, "What will become of the family in the future?"

"We'll see, who knows?"

Yuzhi shook his head, then muttered softly.

"Perhaps in the future, there will be two people who can change the family."

"Two?" Zhi Shui stared blankly at Yuzhi.

"Exactly."

Yuzhi nodded, then extended a finger to point at Zhi Shui, and then pointed at himself.

"Perhaps one is you, and the other is me."

【Side Quest Completed: Counter Zhi Shui's challenge, defeat him and leave a sufficiently deep impression】

【Rewards:】

4K3 updates, seeking first order

(End of Chapter)