Chapter 10

The clan meeting ended without resolution, leaving only chaos in its wake.

With Uchiha Jin and the hardliners gone, Fugaku had no face to stay; he hummed and hawed to the crowd before declaring the meeting dissolved and leaving.

Shisui watched Fugaku’s back, his eyes filled with deeper disappointment.

Even with the Hokage’s help, could he truly suppress Uchiha Jin?

But remembering Uchiha Jin’s words before leaving, he took a deep breath and spoke seriously: “Clan Head, I must see the Hokage!”

“About the Mangekyo Sharingan in Danzo’s hands, I need to find out exactly what happened.”

After speaking.

He didn’t even wait for Fugaku to respond—he vanished with a Body Flicker Technique.

Seeing this, Fugaku’s face darkened.

He had already been seething from Uchiha Jin’s rebuke, and now Shisui showed him no respect—this left him with a rage he could not vent.

Yet he forced himself to hold back, let out a cold snort, and returned home.

Not long after.

An Uchiha entered, kneeling respectfully on one knee: “Clan Head, something’s wrong!”

“All hardliner members—ninja and civilians alike—have relocated near Uchiha Jin’s home. The area has been reconfigured with new defensive barriers, and patrols and countless hidden sentries are now visible inside.”

As he spoke, the Uchiha’s brow was slick with sweat.

Yes!

This behavior by the hardliners was nothing short of a state within a state—and utterly forbidden.

Though the Uchiha were riddled with factions, each unable to sway the others, they still maintained surface unity; otherwise, without any intervention from Konoha’s high command, the Uchiha clan would have collapsed from within…

Now?

Uchiha Jin’s actions shattered the rules outright.

Bang!

Fugaku, just raising his teacup to drink, froze in shock, then hurled the cup to the ground in fury.

“Damn it! Bastard!”

“What does Uchiha Jin think he’s doing? Trying to forcibly split the Uchiha?”

Fugaku’s face was grim, his eyes flickering with murderous intent.

He could not accept it!

He had spent years barely holding the Uchiha together, walking on eggshells, terrified that one misstep would destroy the clan under his own hands.

Now?

That damned Uchiha Jin—doesn’t even ask him to understand, tolerates his petty disruptions, yet dares to split the Uchiha?

And yet,

the Uchiha kneeling on one knee merely bowed his head, offering no rebuttal.

On the contrary,

his eyes flickered with a thread of confusion.

He had heard every word Uchiha Jin spoke at the clan meeting.

Looking back at Fugaku’s rise to clan head, though he earned the nickname “Fierce Eye” on the battlefield, he was pathetically timid when facing Konoha’s high command.

He hadn’t noticed it before, but now, hearing Uchiha Jin’s words, he realized it was true.

Take the Night of the Nine-Tails—the Uchiha had planned to intervene and rescue Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze, but unfortunately, Danzo blocked their path.

He remembered how, back then, the obscure Uchiha Jin had suggested ignoring Danzo’s so-called Third Hokage order, since Minato Namikaze was the reigning Hokage.

But, unfortunately,

Fugaku rejected the proposal, and no one took it seriously.

What happened in the end?

Minato Namikaze died that night, the Uchiha were utterly despised, and were forced to abandon their ancestral lands!

He had often wondered—if they’d listened to Uchiha Jin’s advice, if they’d saved Minato Namikaze, would the Uchiha’s situation be better today?

But there were no “what-ifs.”

After that night, Uchiha Jin became a nobody again within the clan—until he awakened his Mangekyo Sharingan, joined the hardliners, and became their leader just days ago.

He understood why Uchiha Jin never sided with Fugaku: Fugaku was simply too indecisive.

So what now?

Uchiha Inabi’s eyes were clouded with uncertainty. Though he now sensed Fugaku was weak, Uchiha Jin was too extreme—he couldn’t decide.

Sigh.

With a helpless sigh, he decided to wait and see.

“Inabi!”

As he drifted in thought, Fugaku suddenly spoke coldly.

“Yes!”

Uchiha Inabi replied with deep respect.

His eyes even flickered with a glimmer of hope—had Fugaku finally decided to act?

Though he agreed with some of Uchiha Jin’s words, he could never accept the clan’s division; if Fugaku ordered it, he would stand with him.

So what if they fought the hardliners?

The Uchiha fear no battle!

But, unfortunately,

in that hopeful gaze, Fugaku grew conflicted again.

“No, forget it.”

“The Uchiha can’t endure more turmoil. We’ll deal with Uchiha Jin later.”

“Leave.”

“As for the hardliners—pretend Itachi know nothing.”

Hearing this, Uchiha Inabi’s eyes grew even more disappointed.

His clan head was too indecisive—he didn’t know what to say, and finally bowed respectfully and withdrew.

…

In the Uchiha clan grounds,

whispers filled every corner—some claimed Konoha’s concessions were due to Fugaku’s efforts!

But equally,

others credited Uchiha Jin. The entire Uchiha clan was in constant argument.

Only a few clear-headed members sighed in dismay, their resentment toward Fugaku growing stronger.

How could a man who can’t even control his own clan’s voice claim to be Uchiha clan head?

Yet before this dispute could be settled, they discovered the hardliners had carved out their own domain—a village within the clan, a clan within the clan!

Of course,

Uchiha Jin’s speech at the clan meeting had now spread through every Uchiha household.

Konoha’s retreat this time was forced by Uchiha Jin—and Konoha’s high command would surely retaliate.

Some recalled the recent disappearances of Uchiha members and scoffed; others believed it, and began moving into the hardliners’ compound.

And as for this,

the hardliners welcomed them all—after all, they were all Uchiha!

…

In the hardliners’ compound, at Uchiha Jin’s home,

late at night,

Uchiha Jin sat cross-legged on his bed, his Mangekyo Sharingan flickering as he used his ocular technique at minimal intensity.

Ten no Tsukai!

He had accidentally discovered this trick: maintaining the technique at minimal output allowed one unit of ocular power to regenerate into two.

Though the recovery was painfully slow, far inferior to Eternal Mangekyo.

But for a man without a system, no cheat, and no access to weakened Hashirama cells, it was already a remarkably good development.