The power of the Mangekyō Sharingan needed no explanation. Shinobi below Kage-level simply had no way to resist it.
Even Kage-level powerhouses would find the Mangekyō Sharingan extremely troublesome to deal with.
The Uchiha being hailed as the strongest clan in the shinobi world was not without reason.
"Yusuke… have you really made up your mind to replace the clan head?"
Uchiha Inabi voiced the last doubt in his heart.
There were indeed many within the clan who were dissatisfied with Clan Head Uchiha Fugaku—but Yusuke had never been one of them.
The clan head's household had just produced a stunningly talented junior, yet Yusuke suddenly stepped forward to compete for the position of clan head.
To Inabi and Tekka, this truly felt abrupt.
"I don't want to either—but there's no other choice."
Uchiha Yusuke shook his head, his gaze unwaveringly firm.
Uchiha Fugaku had treated him well. He had even shielded Yusuke from quite a few overt and covert attacks.
As one of the two most outstanding geniuses of the Uchiha's younger generation, Yusuke was frequently targeted by Konoha's higher-ups.
Whenever he left the Uchiha compound, ANBU would be assigned to monitor him.
If not for his status as vice-captain of the Police Force, Danzo's Root might have already moved against him directly.
If Uchiha Fugaku were capable of properly guiding the clan, Yusuke wouldn't have minded following him.
Unfortunately, Fugaku had always been indecisive. A man like that was simply unfit to lead the Uchiha clan in the current situation.
"Uchiha Fugaku doesn't even understand where the clan's real problems lie!"
"He only knows how to keep compromising with Konoha's higher-ups, letting the conflict between the clan and the village intensify again and again. If this continues, the destruction of the Uchiha is only a matter of time!"
Uchiha Yusuke lifted his head and let out a long breath.
The Uchiha clan's predicament wasn't as simple as being targeted by Konoha's leadership.
The Police Force's law enforcement duties were bound to offend people. Konoha's major clans—and even civilian shinobi—basically all harbored hostility toward the Uchiha.
Even if the Uchiha successfully seized power through a coup, no one would support an Uchiha becoming Hokage.
Public sentiment had always been firmly in the hands of the Hokage's faction.
In the past, it was the Senju brothers. Now, it was Konoha's leadership headed by Hiruzen Sarutobi.
The Uchiha lacked the support of the masses—this was the root of the problem.
After the Second Hokage passed away, Hiruzen Sarutobi shamelessly slapped the title of "Strongest Hokage" onto himself.
In Yusuke's eyes, it was nothing but a joke.
When Hashirama and Madara were active, who dared to jump out and boast?
After the Twin Gods fell, even Senju Tobirama—who mastered almost all Water Release and forbidden techniques—perished together with the Gold and Silver Brothers of Kumogakure.
And then, all kinds of exaggerated titles sprang up like bamboo shoots after the rain.
"Demi-God" Hanzō of the Salamander, "Strongest Hokage" Hiruzen Sarutobi, "Strongest Kazekage"…
What was laughable was that most of the shinobi world actually believed these titles.
Only people like the Third Tsuchikage Ōnoki—those who had once danced on that battlefield—could remain clear-headed.
Uchiha Fugaku had never once thought about changing Konoha's perception of the Uchiha.
He naïvely believed that as long as they could coexist peacefully with Konoha's higher-ups, the crisis facing the Uchiha would gradually dissolve.
Unfortunately, that was absolutely impossible.
Why did Konoha's leadership target the Uchiha?
Was it a misinterpretation of the Second Hokage's will? Or was it because the Uchiha were arrogant and unruly?
At the end of the day, it was nothing more than fear of—and greed for—the Uchiha's power.
When the Nine-Tails rampaged years ago, the entire village of Konoha was left helpless. Yet the Uchiha's Sharingan could easily control a tailed beast.
Just imagine—if Konoha's Jinchūriki ever fell under Uchiha control, could the current leadership still guarantee their power and status?
A man is innocent—but a treasure is a crime.
Whether or not the Uchiha harbored rebellious intentions didn't matter.
What mattered was that once the Uchiha did rebel, no one would be able to stop them.
Those old men weren't particularly strong, but they were obsessively attached to the power they held.
Minato Namikaze became the Fourth Hokage, yet Hiruzen Sarutobi still clung to real authority like a retired emperor.
As for Danzo—no matter who became Hokage, he was always Konoha's shadow emperor.
To someone like Danzo, any power he couldn't control was a threat.
If it couldn't be used by him, then it had to be suppressed, marginalized—or destroyed.
Over the past two years, quite a few Uchiha clansmen had gone missing without explanation.
In Yusuke's estimation, most of their corpses were probably lying somewhere inside Danzo's Root.
According to the original timeline, it wouldn't be long before Danzo launched a sneak attack on the Uchiha prodigy known alongside Yusuke as an equal—
"Shunshin" Shisui.
There were only four years left until Uchiha Shisui's death.
By now, Danzo had surely already transplanted Sharingan and was secretly practicing the incomplete Uchiha forbidden technique—Izanagi.
The power of the Sharingan itself was the original sin.
If it were even the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, Yusuke believed coexistence would still be possible.
Tobirama was immensely powerful. He had once defeated Uchiha Izuna even after Izuna awakened the Mangekyō.
With strength like that, Tobirama had confidence in controlling the Uchiha—naturally, he wouldn't resort to excessive targeting.
But Hiruzen Sarutobi and Shimura Danzo?
No chance.
Just thinking about the Sharingan's ability to control tailed beasts was enough to make their scalps tingle.
Hiruzen Sarutobi might have carried the title of "Professor," but the aged Hokage had to gamble his life just to seal away Orochimaru's arms.
As for Shimura Danzo—he was even worse.
Stabbing Susanoo with a kunai, sealing half a bridge at the cost of his life… baffling actions not even worth mentioning.
When facing Uchiha Shisui, "Shadow Hokage" Danzo could only take a beating. He was caught in genjutsu in a single exchange and only managed to steal one of Shisui's eyes through a sneak attack using Izanagi.
Even with all of Root mobilized, they still couldn't kill Shisui—who ultimately escaped and chose suicide.
Incompetent, yet dreaming of controlling everything.
Konoha's higher-ups were truly laughable.
As for the Uchiha clan, although their shinobi were undeniably powerful, most clansmen had developed the fatal flaw of blind arrogance. Coupled with the authority granted by the Police Force, the clan had grown excessively inflated.
They had already become the target of everyone's arrows—yet still didn't know how to rein themselves in.
An Uchiha like this not being targeted and suppressed by Konoha's leadership would be the real surprise.
If the Uchiha wanted to change the current situation, they had to unite the entire clan and point all their guns outward—toward a single enemy.
Strength above all—this was the truest reflection of the shinobi world.
Seeing how resolute Yusuke's attitude was, Inabi and Tekka said no more.
They had already harbored plenty of dissatisfaction toward Uchiha Fugaku. As long as Yusuke himself had no doubts, they were willing to follow him to the very end.
Uchiha Yusuke calmly gave them his instructions.
"Secretly make contact with the clansmen willing to follow me."
"At tomorrow's clan meeting, I will formally challenge for the position of clan head."
...