"Come on! Come on!"
Hundreds of chakra-laden shinobi poured into the Uchiha compound, their combined killing intent vibrating through the night air. At the forefront stood Hiruzen Sarutobi, clad in a tight black battle suit, his weathered face set in grim determination. On either side of him loomed his advisers, Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane, both radiating sharp, watchful auras.
"Fugaku," Hiruzen barked, voice like steel. "Are you truly planning a coup against Konoha?"
The Uchiha clan leader met the Hokage's gaze without flinching. A hush fell across the gathered shinobi. Even the veteran clan heads—Hyuga Gensuke, Nara Shikaku, Akimichi Choza, Yamanaka Inoichi—shifted uneasily, sensing how close the situation was to erupting into bloodshed.
Before Hiruzen could continue, Uchiha Fugaku dropped a statement so heavy it seemed to shake the compound itself.
"You are mistaken, Hiruzen," he said, voice calm but ringing with conviction. "From beginning to end, the Uchiha have taken no steps toward a coup."
Gasps rippled through the watching crowd. Danzo's eyes narrowed, his expression dark as storm clouds.
"The village was built by both the Uchiha and the Senju," Fugaku went on. "That is an undeniable fact, no matter how hard you try to bury it. Yet for decades you have treated us as dangerous insects—suppressing us, isolating us, stripping us of honor and trust."
Danzo snapped, unable to hold his tongue. "Enough of your self-pity, Fugaku. You and your clan are the greatest threat to Konoha's peace!"
Cold light flashed in Fugaku's spinning Three-Tomoe Sharingan as he turned a piercing glare on Danzo. But he did not strike. Instead, he faced Hiruzen once more.
"We Uchiha have always loved Konoha," Fugaku declared. "But you have hidden our contributions and branded us a danger to the village. If that is how it must be, then we will leave Konoha and spare you your fears."
Shock froze the Hokage's advisers. Danzo's mouth worked soundlessly. Around them, the various clan leaders exchanged startled looks. Leave the village? Not a coup?
The neutral clans—Hyuga, Inuzuka, Kurama—hesitated, silently signaling their members to hold position. If the Uchiha truly intended only to depart, was it worth the lives it would cost to force a confrontation?
Hiruzen's stern expression softened a fraction. "Fugaku… what do you mean by leaving?"
Fugaku's answer was steady. "Over fifty years ago our ancestors joined Hashirama Senju to found this village in hope of peace. The First Hokage promised all clans the freedom to come and go. Yet we have been treated as pariahs. There is no longer a place for us in Konoha. Still, we will not raise arms against the land we have cherished for generations. Allow us to leave, and we will seek a new home. That is the Uchiha's final act of kindness. Push us further, and we will not remain passive."
Though Fugaku's tone was courteous, a quiet menace coiled beneath his words. In truth, every Uchiha present already viewed Konoha as an enemy. Fugaku's speech was a calculated gambit to buy time and to drive a wedge between the Hokage faction and the more independent clans.
Outside the compound, the number of Konoha shinobi swelled past three hundred. If battle broke out, the hundred-odd Uchiha would be overwhelmed, and their planned withdrawal doomed. Fugaku's only chance was to convince Hiruzen to stand down.
---
Hokage Tower – Meanwhile
Far from the tense standoff, Hyuga Neji faced a far different threat. His pale eyes locked on the masked man before him—Uchiha Obito.
Even alone, Obito's power was legendary. On the night of the Nine-Tails' attack, he had annihilated the Anbu guarding Kushina and subdued the Nine-Tails with a glance. His space-warping Kamui made him nearly untouchable, and the Hashirama cells within his body granted frightening resilience. Even the Fourth Hokage's Rasengan had failed to leave more than a superficial mark. Worse, if cornered, the spare Sharingan hidden beneath his mask could trigger Izanagi, rewriting reality itself to cheat death.
Killing him outright was nearly impossible.
Still, Neji thought, remaining unharmed is another matter.
Kamui's great strength lay in defense and escape, not overwhelming offense. If Neji could counter its tricks, he might survive—and perhaps even drive Obito away.
A low chuckle rumbled from behind the swirling orange mask. "Little mouse," Obito said, voice cold. "Unfortunate that you crossed my path."
He drew a heavy iron chain from his belt, its links rattling as he calmly fastened the cuffs to his wrists. The deliberate movements spoke of supreme confidence, as if Neji were hardly worth notice.
Neji inhaled deeply, focusing his Tenseigan. A shimmering black chakra rosary appeared before him, spinning with gravitational energy.
The instant Obito lashed out with his chain, Neji moved. The rosary darted forward like a shooting star. Neji twisted aside, the chain slicing only empty air—then the sphere passed harmlessly through Obito's body.
A cold hand clamped onto Neji's shoulder. Space warped, a swirling vortex pulling at him. Kamui, Obito thought with triumph. Once inside, he's mine.
But a sudden repulsive force exploded outward. Obito was hurled back, crashing through the chamber wall. The chakra rosary zipped after him, tugged by an invisible gravity well. Neji's plan had worked flawlessly, his Tenseigan's precise control of attraction and repulsion exceeding even the legendary Rinnegan.
The walls rumbled with muffled booms. By the time Neji steadied himself, Obito had already slipped into his pocket dimension. Neji exhaled, disappointed. So close…
A shimmer in the air signaled Obito's return. This time, the masked man's single eye burned with wary respect. "Impressive," he admitted. "Few can injure me at all."
That brief clash had revealed two unexpected abilities: the Deva-Path-like repulsion and the ominous black sphere that seemed to erase matter itself. Even Obito, veteran of countless battles, felt a flicker of fear—something he had not known since facing the Fourth Hokage.
"You have reason to be proud as well," Neji replied evenly. "Surviving my constant attacks is no small feat."
Obito tilted his head. "It seems neither of us can finish the other. Why continue wasting time? Whatever your goal is, you don't want it ruined."
Neji kept his expression neutral but allowed a silent sigh of relief. He still needed to secure the Scroll of Seals, and prolonged combat would only hinder him. He gave a small nod.
Together they approached the heavily warded archive chamber. Obito slipped through the door with Kamui's intangibility; Neji followed by sending his chakra sphere forward to shatter the lock.
Inside, rows of shelves brimmed with forbidden jutsu scrolls and classified research. To one side, refrigeration units held cultured tissue samples—including unmistakable Hashirama cells. On a raised platform lay the prize: the massive Scroll of Seals itself.
Neji's heart pounded, but he kept his focus. "The scroll of seals is mine," he said quietly. "Take whatever else you want."
Obito studied him for a long moment, then shrugged. The scroll's techniques were powerful but notoriously difficult to master, and Konoha surely kept backups. Better to avoid another draining fight. "Fine," he agreed.
Neji moved first, unrolling the scroll just enough to confirm its authenticity. Obito methodically swept the shelves clean and warped the Hashirama samples into his personal dimension. Neither hindered the other; each had their own mission.
---
Back at the Uchiha Compound
Fugaku's declaration continued to ripple through the assembled clans. If the Uchiha truly intended only to leave, the calculus changed. Attacking them would mean heavy casualties for a conflict that might never have been inevitable. And who could say what alliances might form later? After all, the great villages had fought and reconciled before—Sunagakure itself had once been an enemy and was now an ally.
Kurama Kumogakure finally broke the uneasy silence. "Hokage-sama," he said gravely, "Uchiha Shisui is not present."
The statement tightened every chest in the courtyard. Shisui, the prodigy who had awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan at a young age, was more fearsome than even Fugaku. If he learned that the other clans had helped suppress his people, their vengeance would be swift and merciless.
Even the usually loyal Ino–Shika–Cho leaders exchanged troubled glances. Aligning blindly with the Hokage might invite a personal vendetta from one of the most dangerous shinobi alive.
The night deepened, heavy with tension, as the fate of the Uchiha—and of Konoha itself—hung in the balance.
---patreon (Obito_uchiha)