Shisui naturally understood Shinnosuke's concerns.
If things truly escalated to the worst-case scenario, the Konoha that currently appeared peaceful, even flourishing, could be reduced to ruins in an instant. Whether it was the Hidden Cloud or the Uchiha, they were, in strategic terms, merely catalysts.
From a wartime perspective, once an established hegemon like Konoha showed signs of regression, fragmentation, or collapse, all that was missing was someone to fire the first shot. Once Kumogakure pulled that trigger, it was almost guaranteed that the war machines of the Five Great Nations, which had been dormant for only a few years, would roar back to full life.
Retired shinobi? That didn't matter. It had only been a few years since the downsizing. As long as the funding was there, those veterans who had survived the battlefields could be remobilized in minutes. And how would the funding appear? The Daimyos would foot the bill, provided they were promised a sufficient "war dividend."
A collapsing Konoha would undoubtedly be the largest cake on the table, a dividend large enough to justify any conflict. Therefore, if Konoha showed even a glimpse of vulnerability during this period, the current facade of peace would shatter instantly.
Shinnosuke understood this logic; Shisui understood it just as well.
After a long pause, Shisui spoke: "As far as I know, there are no entanglements between the Uchiha and the Hidden Cloud."
Shisui was telling the truth, not merely trying to exonerate his clan. The recent unrest within the Uchiha truly had nothing to do with Kumogakure. The proud Uchiha possessed an immense sense of self-esteem and confidence; they believed that with their own strength alone, they were capable of challenging the Hokage's authority. Furthermore, as one of the founding clans of the Leaf, the Uchiha were historically unlikely to collude with outsiders to dismantle their own home.
The movements of the Hidden Cloud and the behavior of the Uchiha were, in reality, a coincidence. But when two such coincidences intertwined, the implications became chilling.
Shinnosuke nodded. "To be honest, I suspected such a connection at first. But after some investigation and my own judgment, I agree with you. I don't believe the Uchiha would coordinate with the Cloud to do something so mutually embarrassing."
Shisui let out a small sigh of relief, but before he could fully relax, Shinnosuke's voice turned heavy again.
"However, Shisui, the Cloud's movements are real, and the Uchiha's problems are real. Do you see what I'm getting at?"
Shisui froze. A moment later, his expression grew even grimmer. He was a bright man; he understood exactly what Shinnosuke was implying. It didn't matter if there was a conspiracy or not. What mattered was that both parties had developed dangerous ambitions in the same window of time. If those ambitions were acted upon simultaneously, whether they colluded or not... wouldn't the result be the same?
Seeing Shisui's heavy expression, Shinnosuke said, "I've done all the talking. I haven't heard your news yet. What exactly happened that brought you to see me in the dead of night?"
Shisui remained silent for a while, as if organizing his thoughts. Finally, he spoke: "This afternoon, the Uchiha held a clan meeting. I attended. The agenda has... gone off the rails. The younger hawks in the clan believe the Uchiha can no longer stand idly by. They have had enough of the Hokage's lineage isolating and suppressing the clan. As the noble clan that co-founded the village, the treatment the Uchiha receive is heartbreaking. They want Fugaku-sama to lead the clan's strength to force Lord Third to step down, so that Fugaku might become the Fifth Hokage."
Shinnosuke furrowed his brow. "And what is Fugaku-sama's stance?"
"Fugaku-sama..." Shisui hesitated, then said helplessly, "Just as you predicted, Commander... Fugaku-sama seems to be losing control of the clan."
"The younger generation has grown up," Shinnosuke remarked with a touch of melancholy.
By "younger generation," he meant those around the age of Kakashi and Shisui. Put simply, any interest group "ages" over time. An aging interest group is stable and static. This described the Uchiha of previous years, though a deep rift existed between the clan and the Hokage's office, the clan remained "stable." Fugaku and his contemporaries, while disagreeing with the Hokage's methods, would not choose radical action. Instead, they opted for a more "mature and prudent" approach: mutual compromise.
However, if an interest group does not dissipate over time, it inevitably generates new vitality through the growth of its youth. Compared to the "Old Guard" like Fugaku, the new generation was significantly more aggressive. As they aged, their needs changed. As children, being a "prodigy" or a "top student" was enough; there was no shortage of resources for kids. But as adults, the desire for higher status and a voice in governance is natural.
The problem was that the "Konoha Power" held by the Uchiha was limited, and the Old Guard occupied most of those seats. Fugaku, for instance, was both the Head of the Clan and the Leader of the Konoha Military Police Force. His supporters held the remaining positions of power within the clan. Since the new generation were their children and juniors, challenging this authority within the rigid hierarchy of a Great Clan was difficult.
Thus, the ambitions of the youth expanded outward. They believed the reason they had no future was because the Uchiha's overall power in the village was too small. But what if Fugaku became Hokage? Wouldn't the Uchiha then control a much larger share of the village's authority? Wouldn't the current "nobodies" of the new generation finally gain the power and status they dreamed of?
This ambition pushed the clan from the bottom up to launch a counteroffensive against the Hokage's lineage. As long as the stagnation of power and the restrictions on the Uchiha remained unresolved, this conflict was bound to explode eventually.
On the other side, the Hokage faction led by Hiruzen was essentially the same: it was a matter of dividing the spoils. The forces gathered around Hiruzen supported him because, as Hokage, he brought them sufficient benefits. To distribute those benefits to the Uchiha now? That would be like cutting flesh off their own bodies. It was impossible.
Ultimately, this was a clash between two massive interest groups. Both Fugaku and Hiruzen understood this. Both tried their best to find a way to break the deadlock, or at least Fugaku did. As for Hiruzen... he was the Hokage, and his level of thinking was a step above Fugaku's. He was a man of immense political acumen.
As Hokage, regardless of whether he could actually solve the Uchiha problem peacefully, he had to fly the flag of "Peaceful Resolution" high. He could not waver. The very foundation of the Hokage's legitimacy was the principle of never abandoning anyone in the village. The Uchiha's reputation in Konoha might be foul, but no one could deny they were people of Konoha. Therefore, Hiruzen had to be seen as the Uchiha's champion.
If he, as Hokage, could abandon or even purge the Uchiha for the sake of interest today, what would stop him from doing the same to anyone else tomorrow? He could never be the one to open that door publicly. Consequently, even as the Uchiha faced annihilation, Hiruzen maintained his "I will protect the Uchiha" stance. How much of that was sincere is hard to say.
Sometimes Diarmuid thought that perhaps Fugaku was simply moved by Hiruzen's "I'll die to protect the Uchiha" act, got played for a fool, and ended up in that tragic state.
Shisui hesitated before asking, "What does Lord Third truly think?"
Shinnosuke pondered and said, "Lord Third has never considered extreme measures to solve this. Rest assured, he hopes to work heart-to-heart with Fugaku-sama to resolve these issues..."
Shisui felt a slight relief, but he also sensed a vague dread. The Lord Third had been shouting that slogan for years and working with Fugaku for just as long, yet the situation only grew worse. It was disheartening.
Shisui was brilliant, but his perspective was ultimately limited. By contrast, Itachi, currently on the front lines fighting Kumogakure shinobi, was already surpassing him. Itachi was capable of thinking from the Hokage's perspective.
After Shisui's eventual death, when the Uchiha's rebellion became inevitable, Itachi realized that Hiruzen might truly have no solution; the attitude he displayed was merely the one he had to display as Hokage. Thus, Itachi despaired and initiated a far more brutal countermeasure: the massacre.
Hiruzen acted as if it were "unacceptable," and then the Uchiha were gone. In a power struggle that spanned decades between two massive interest groups, the Hokage's lineage ultimately had the last laugh.
In this shinobi world, there are no truly "good" people. Everyone's hands are stained.