"It's done."
Shisui's calm voice fell like a boulder into every Uchiha heart.
Done? No one knew what exactly he had done.
They had only seen the legendary Mangekyo Sharingan flare, release a power they could not comprehend, and then settle as if nothing had happened—without even the slightest leak of chakra.
Fugaku looked at Shisui, then at Shinju, whose expression had remained placid from beginning to end. The taut string in his chest finally snapped.
He understood.
His earlier thoughts—everyone's heated shouts—were foolish. Laughable.
Here they were, still arguing in a sealed chamber about launching a near-hopeless coup, while the village leadership across town was debating how to crush the Uchiha rebellion. Both sides had already become oil and flame, ready to burn each other to ash.
Who could resolve that peacefully—quickly?
Shinju already had—by means they could neither grasp nor resist, from a higher dimension.
A miracle that resurrects the dead.
A divine will that rewrites intent.
Before those two forces, the Uchiha's vaunted Sharingan, their schemes, their battle strength—were all a joke.
Resist? With what?
Fugaku exhaled a long breath—his last fragment of a clan head's pride, and an unfamiliar release.
He knew the clan's fate had truly turned.
He no longer hesitated.
He stepped out from the crowd, and walked straight to Shinju.
He did not look at his son, Itachi, nor at Shisui, who had just displayed a godlike might. His gaze was fixed only on Shinju.
He put away all pride, all resentment.
Under the stunned eyes of every Uchiha, Fugaku—the man who had led Konoha's foremost clan through decades of open and hidden struggle—bowed deeply to a boy even younger than his own son.
A perfect ninety-degree bow.
"Shinju-sama."
Fugaku's voice was hoarse, yet heavy as stone.
"I, Fugaku, on behalf of the Uchiha, apologize for our folly and arrogance."
"You were right. We were wrong—blinded by power, intoxicated by pride."
"We nearly pushed our clan into an abyss from which there is no return."
Shame lowered every head. If even the clan head admitted fault, who else could cling to defiance?
The hawk-elder Yatsushiro and the hardliners turned ashen. They understood: with this bow, all their ambition had turned to shadow.
Even if they tried to agitate now, what then? March straight to war?
Without meticulous plans and overwhelming top-tier strength, they would only meet defeat. And with the clan itself unsettled, neither Itachi nor Shisui could claim the confidence to win.
Beyond that stood the deeper unknown—Shinju. Forget the powers of Minato and Kushina behind him; Shinju himself wielded unfathomable methods, and his strength was clearly no less than Itachi's or Shisui's. Victory was a fantasy.
The hawks drooped their heads. No more protests.
Fugaku did not straighten. He continued:
"Thank you for giving the Uchiha a choice."
"Now, on behalf of the Uchiha, I will make that choice."
He lifted his head, eyes set with unprecedented resolve.
"The Uchiha will accept the Namikaze house as our liege. We will abandon all unrealistic desires. From this day, we will restrain our people and obey every arrangement made by you and the acting Hokage."
"The Sharingan will no longer be a tool to seize power. It will become the keenest blade to guard Konoha—and to guard the Namikaze."
He bowed again, deeply.
Behind him, every Uchiha—hawks included—finally moved as one.
Without a heartbeat of hesitation, they bowed to Shinju.
"We pledge ourselves to the Namikaze!"
Voices rang in unison through the Naka Shrine courtyard.
That sound marked the moment Konoha's proudest, strongest clan—tempered by blood and fire, awed by miracles they could not explain—lowered their haughty heads.
Surrendered—truly, willingly.
Shinju watched in silence.
Like with Itachi and Shisui, he did not immediately bid them rise.
He wanted this scene engraved into every Uchiha soul.
So they would never forget who pulled them back from the brink.
Who granted them a new future.
Only after a long moment did he speak.
"Rise."
The voice was not loud, but it carried an unquestionable authority.
Fugaku and the clan slowly straightened.
Shinju met Fugaku's gaze. "Your decision is wise. It saved your clan—and yourself."
"From today, the Uchiha Police Force's authority will not be reduced; it can be expanded. I need your eyes to help me keep Konoha in order."
"As for the clan's outstanding shinobi, I will personally recommend them to Father for placement in core units, with the status and respect they deserve."
"What I offer is not alms—it is what should have been yours. The condition is that you first prove your loyalty."
Grace and steel in equal measure.
A step down, and a clear line not to cross.
Fugaku's last misgivings vanished.
"Understood! The Uchiha will follow Shinju-sama's commands!"
Footsteps hurried in from outside the shrine.
A shinobi flickered into the courtyard and dropped to one knee.
"Report! Hokage-sama is leading all of Konoha's jonin here to Naka Shrine!"
The just-calmed Uchiha hearts clenched again.
Was battle inevitable after all? Would the hard-won peace evaporate like mist?
Hokage leading personally? All jonin?
Could it be…
Fugaku looked to Shinju, tense.
But Shinju smiled—the look of one who held every thread.
"Don't be nervous, Fugaku-dono."
"They are not here to condemn you."
"They are here… to apologize."
(End of Chapter)
[Check Out My P@treon For 20+ Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!]
[[email protected]/Draumel]
[Thank You For Your Support!]