In the Uchiha Clan guest room.
Uchiha Fugaku received Kakashi, the Anbu sent by the Hokage.
He had already learned that the Cloud Village was going to attack the Leaf Village, and the Third Hokage was ordering them and the Hyūga Clan to dispatch a combined force to resist the invasion.
At the same time, Fugaku cautiously sensed the meaning behind the other's words and couldn't help but say with emotion.
"What do you mean? Are you saying only our two clans are to be sent out to fight alone? Has Lord Hokage not notified other families to assist us?"
Kakashi could only report truthfully.
"As far as I know, Lord Hokage did not have me inform any other families, so that should be the case."
Although he also disagreed with Lord Hokage's decision, this was Lord Hokage's will.
After relaying the message, he left immediately.
After Fugaku received the confirmation, he fell silent, his expression turning a bit grim.
'A great war with the Cloud Village, and he's only letting our two clans fight.'
'Even if our two great clans join forces against the Cloud Village, we are still no match for an entire ninja village.'
'A village's ninja force numbers in the thousands, even tens of thousands.'
'They probably have one or two hundred at the jōnin level. It's not something our two clans can withstand.'
'The Uchiha Clan and the Hyūga Clan combined have fewer than 50 jōnin. Although the enemy won't send all of them to the battlefield.'
'But even half of their jōnin being deployed is terrifying. I must find Ryōsuke.'
'He is the one who will revitalize the clan. Even facing such a predicament, he should have a way to deal with it.'
As for why he didn't ask the Third Hokage for support.
'What if he just retorts that this is trouble the Uchiha Clan stirred up, and we should handle it ourselves?'
'Then the Uchiha Clan would truly be put in a bind.'
'This move by the Leaf Village's upper echelons is clearly a sign of ostracizing our Uchiha Clan.'
'They even want to use a war between villages to deplete the strength of our Uchiha Clan.'
'Our Uchiha Clan has no other allied forces in the village.'
'Now I finally understand Ryōsuke's so-called "war of public opinion." If the Uchiha Clan's reputation were a little better, we might truly have forces willing to aid our clan.'
He had no way to handle this matter now. 'I can't just lead the Uchiha Clan onto the battlefield like this, can I?'
He sent someone to ask Ryōsuke to the meeting room.
After Ryōsuke received the clan head's message, he immediately rushed to the meeting room and asked.
"Clan Head Fugaku, I wonder what you've called me here for?"
Fugaku informed Ryōsuke of all the news Kakashi had brought, including the Cloud Village's impending attack and the village's decision to only send the two clans to fight, and also that Uchiha Ryōsuke was required to participate.
Ryōsuke was also a bit dumbfounded when he heard this news. 'It's understandable that I have to go to battle. After all, I captured his son and put him in the Uchiha prison. Targeting me is understandable.'
'But during a village war, at a time that concerns the fate of the entire Land of Fire and Leaf Village, he's actually making such a muddle-headed move?'
'Isn't this trifling with the future of the Leaf Village?'
'If we suffer a crushing defeat, the Leaf Village will also pay an extremely heavy price.'
'All I can say is, this is still the Third Hokage I'm familiar with. Many of his actions are incomprehensible to me.'
'Even if the Uchiha and the Leaf's upper echelons are in conflict, at this critical juncture, he can't do something that destroys his own Great Wall, can he?'
He looked at the clan head.
"Lord Clan Head, what do you think we should do?"
Fugaku was stunned. He was the one who didn't know what to do, which was why he had come to ask Ryōsuke.
"I have no solution for this, which is why I called you here."
Ryōsuke was speechless. 'You're the clan head!'
'But since he's letting me decide.'
"Then there's no need to overthink it. Let's just go straight to war."
'In the original story, Uchiha Madara was able to fight against the 100,000-strong Allied Shinobi Forces.'
'I, Ryōsuke, can't do that now, but I will be able to in the future.'
'Right now, when I open the fifth of the Eight Inner Gates, I am even stronger than Might Guy opening the sixth gate at his peak. Without a doubt, I am already at the Super Kage-level.'
'As far as I know, at this stage, not a single Kage from any of the great ninja villages is Super Kage-level.'
'Whether it's the Third Hokage, who is called the "Strongest Hokage," he's actually someone who couldn't even handle Orochimaru. How could he be Super Kage-level?'
'The Strongest Hokage still has to be Senju Hashirama.'
'Even Orochimaru himself personally admitted that Senju Hashirama could subdue him in an instant.'
'As for the Fourth Raikage, he lost his left arm just dealing with Sasuke.'
'No matter how you look at it, he can't be considered Super Kage-level, but he does have strength.'
'As for the Mist Village, in the current situation, that Fourth Mizukage is probably already being controlled by Obito. He can't be considered Super Kage-level either.'
'And I have, without a doubt, already stepped over the threshold of the Super Kage-level.'
'Peak Might Guy opening the sixth gate could defeat the Akatsuki's Kisame Hoshigaki.'
'Although I can only open five gates, I am a cut above Might Guy with six gates open. So, naturally, I have entered the Super Kage-level.'
'As for whether I can reach the peak period of the "five greats"—Senju Hashirama, Uchiha Madara, Naruto, Sasuke, and Obito.'
'Of course, this peak period doesn't include the Six Paths peak period for Uchiha Madara, Naruto, Sasuke, and Obito. There's no comparison there.'
'Although my strength is great with five gates open, I feel it's still not enough to reach the level of the seventh gate of the Eight Inner Gates.'
'These few people are undoubtedly all Super Kage-level. Taking on several Kage-level figures at once is no pressure for them.'
'So, according to my own conjecture, fighting two strong, high-tier Kage-level opponents is still completely fine.'
'As long as the Cloud Village's high-level combat power is eliminated, the war will naturally be over.'
'His Uchiha Clan is destined to win.'
Uchiha Fugaku, however, hadn't expected Ryōsuke to be so calm after hearing this news, and to even plan to go to war directly under such unfavorable conditions.
'There is likely only one reason he would do this: his strength has already reached an unfathomable level.'
'Back when their Uchiha Clan was at its peak, they didn't fear the power of an entire nation at all. Even one as strong as the Cloud Village, they wouldn't have feared in the slightest.'
'That was the era of Uchiha Madara.'
'It's a pity that guy, in the end, abandoned the family and defected from the Leaf Village.'
Just at this moment, a clansman came to the meeting room.
"Clan Head, the Hyūga Head is here to see you."
Fugaku hadn't expected the Hyūga Head to come. 'He must have received the order to go to war from the Third Hokage.'
'It seems he is also panicking; otherwise, he wouldn't have come to find me so quickly.'
"Please show him into the guest room."