Uchiha Kai fell into deep thought.
Just as Shisui had said, Sarutobi Hiruzen's agreement had come far too easily.
That, in itself, was suspicious.
His brows furrowed.
The others stayed quiet—
Yes, they all knew their place.
When it came to this kind of strategic thinking, it wasn't their place to butt in.
Perhaps only Nara would have the right to participate.
So for now—
The best help they could give was to stay silent and not disturb his thoughts.
"Shisui, what's going on?" Fugaku lowered his voice to whisper.
"Weren't you always a firm believer in the Will of Fire?
Since when did you start siding with Kai-kun?"
"When did you stop believing in the Will of Fire?"
Clearly, Fugaku couldn't make sense of it.
If it were someone else, fine.
But this was Shisui!
Back then, no matter how hard he tried to persuade him, this stubborn boy remained loyal to Sarutobi Hiruzen, body and soul.
Anyone who spoke ill of the Hokage was Shisui's enemy.
And yet—
After only a few days apart, how had Shisui changed so drastically?
Fugaku was truly curious.
In fact, he wanted to learn.
What kind of magic did Kai possess, to pull back someone who had been brainwashed so thoroughly?
If Fugaku could learn this, he wouldn't feel so much like a fool of a clan head.
He wanted to improve too!
Shisui twitched at the corner of his mouth.
How had Kai persuaded him?
He thought about it, then shrugged helplessly.
"Clan leader, you've misunderstood.
Strictly speaking, Kai-kun didn't try to persuade me at all.
He only posed questions—
Questions that forced me to search for the answers myself.
And when I couldn't answer, he would then explain from every angle.
Power, human nature, profit, resources…
Through Kai's string of questions, I slowly realized just how shallow my old thinking had been.
I had oversimplified the world.
Reality is far more complex than I ever imagined.
As long as people exist, so too does desire.
And that includes myself.
How could desire be summed up by something as simple as a 'Will of Fire'?
Take myself, for example.
My goal never changed: I wanted peace between the village and the Uchiha.
But through Kai's examples, I understood—
That was nothing more than a delusion.
The Uchiha are not isolated!
The Senju's sudden collapse, the destruction of the Uzumaki, the death of Sakumo Hatake…
All of these prove one thing:
The village's hostility toward the Uchiha wasn't because we had done something wrong.
It was simply because we were too strong, controlling too many resources.
If Sarutobi and the elders want to monopolize Konoha, they must eliminate the great clans.
So it was for the Senju, so it was for the Uzumaki, so it was for Sakumo.
And so it will be for the Uchiha.
And my true goal has always been to protect the clan.
Once I realized this truth, I could never again trust Sarutobi Hiruzen."
Shisui's tone was heavy, his eyes filled with deep regret.
Yes.
He even hated his past self a little.
Why had he been so naive, so quick to trust Hiruzen's words?
The Will of Fire?
Heh!
It was just a beautiful fairy tale.
In a world ruled by self-interest, no one could truly be selfless.
Meanwhile, Fugaku fell into silence.
So that was it!
Kai hadn't lectured Shisui.
He had simply posed questions, forcing him to think.
When Shisui couldn't answer, Kai broke things down from every angle.
No wonder.
No wonder Fugaku had never been able to persuade him.
He had never stepped into Shisui's shoes.
And not just Fugaku—
Even Aburame Shibi felt enlightened.
Just then, Shisui seemed to recall something.
"Right, Kai-kun!
When I went to meet Hiruzen at the Hokage building, I overheard an Anbu say they were urgently recalling Nara Shikaku.
And another thing—Hiruzen is bound to investigate.
During our time at the front camp, our squad never actually clashed.
I think this plan of ours is unlikely to succeed."
Hiss—
Kai sucked in a sharp breath.
So Shikaku was being recalled?
That sly old fox… he would be troublesome.
Back when Kai had dealt with those three Uchiha, Shikaku had seen through him immediately.
That was precisely why Nara Kazama had joined his team.
Thinking of this, Kai took a deep breath.
"No. This won't work!
Shikaku isn't easy to fool.
Hiding things from him will be nearly impossible.
So forget it.
We'll change the plan.
We'll go with overwhelming force instead.
Tomorrow, Shisui, you'll rally the clan members who oppose me.
Reveal your Mangekyo Sharingan in front of everyone.
Play the Hokage card—say your backer is Sarutobi Hiruzen.
You're a Mangekyo wielder, and you have the Hokage's support.
Those who refuse to follow me won't be able to resist flocking to you.
Once you've gathered enough, I'll bring my own people over.
We'll fight for real—
The bigger the chaos, the better.
And while we're at it, we'll kill off a batch of those who won't accept me.
During our duel, I'll deliberately injure you. Be ready for it.
When you're defeated, don't hesitate.
Take your followers straight to the Sarutobi compound.
Make it public—let the whole village see you stand with Hiruzen.
At that point, don't hold back.
Tell Hiruzen yourself: you've just awakened Mangekyo, but you're not yet strong enough to beat me.
Those Uchiha who refuse me—
They're useless to keep around anyway.
Who knows when they might stab us in the back.
Better to purge them now and let the Sarutobi house them instead.
And then, Shisui, use your recovery as an excuse to demand compensation—money, supplies, ninja tools, territory.
Keep some for yourself, but send the rest back here in secret.
Force reality onto Hiruzen.
Leave him no choice!
If you fight me in public, if Uchiha blood is spilled—
And Hiruzen still refuses to invest in you, then tell me: what other clan would ever ally with such a Hokage?
Whether he believes it or not doesn't matter.
What matters is, I will have those resources.
Even the Sage of Six Paths couldn't stop me!"
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