"Clan Leader, have you forgotten Danzo..."
"How dare you call Danzo-sama by name!"
Clang!
A Root operative tore the sword from his back and lunged at Gen, murderous intent bursting off him.
Genjutsu: Shackling Stakes!
Gen's eyes snapped open, the tomoe in his Sharingan spinning into three. His gaze caught the Root shinobi mid-charge freezing him in place, blade raised and body rigid.
The man had special jōnin-level strength, decent by Root standards. But against Gen's Sharingan, he was powerless. One look was all it took.
Though Root and Anbu wore identical masks, their designs weren't fully opaque. The eye slits were translucent. Otherwise, they'd be blind in combat.
Idiot, Gen thought coldly. A textbook brainwashed drone. No saving this one.
"Gen… your Sharingan evolved?"
Fugaku's voice broke the silence. He hadn't even reacted to the Root ninja's fall; his eyes were fixed instead on Gen's fully-formed three tomoe.
The three-tomoe Sharingan was the pinnacle of the clan's current power. Most of the jōnin here carried only two. Only a handful bore three.
Fugaku feared Danzo. He feared Root. But he wasn't so weak as to cower without resistance.
Root had struck first. The Uchiha wouldn't sit and wait to be beaten down.
"Yes," Gen said lightly. "It happened while I was working under Orochimaru-sensei."
A shadow of grief crossed his face, as though recalling something unpleasant.
The others nodded with quiet understanding. Everyone here knew the agony tied to evolving the Sharingan.
"As long as you endured," someone murmured.
Fugaku's gaze sharpened. "What was it you wanted to say?"
Gen straightened, his tone heavy. "Clan Leader… if I remember correctly, Danzo was stripped of his position as Hokage's Assistant by both the Third and Fourth Hokage, wasn't he?"
Root's so-called 'commander'? At best, the leader of a subdivision under the Anbu, one level beneath the Police Force itself.
Gen had never taken the title seriously. He didn't even take the Hokage's assistant seriously.
Only the Hokage's word mattered.
"Even if his title hadn't been revoked," Gen pressed, "as head of the Police Force, one of Konoha's Six Major Departments, are you required to obey the orders of an assistant?"
He Paused then added, "I've never heard of such a rule. We obey the Hokage. Not his lackey."
A collective hiss cut through the chamber. Fugaku and the other Uchiha jōnin stiffened.
Too sharp. Too blatant. If Danzo ever heard these words, he'd mark Gen for death.
Gen knew it. And yet… the Mangekyō was so close now. He could afford arrogance. For once, it felt good to stop hiding.
And he wasn't wrong. Danzo wasn't Hokage's Assistant anymore.
No law bound them to his command.
As for revenge? What was there to fear? With Orochimaru's shadow at his back, Fugaku's hesitant support beside him and above all, his own growing strength, he was untouchable.
The room slowly shifted. Some of the jōnin's eyes gleamed with fire. This was the Uchiha way; obey the Hokage, and no one else.
Fugaku coughed, awkward. "Gen, while true, we must still show proper respect for the elders of the village."
Gen dipped his head without hesitation. "Understood. I'll be more careful with my words."
Fugaku nodded faintly, still weighing the dilemma; obey Danzo's order to stay put… or defy him and march into battle.
Danzo's power had waned. But not forever. With his influence over Hiruzen and the other advisors, crossing him could still bring disaster down on the clan.
Gen almost winced. Fugaku truly believed obedience would earn Danzo's favor. He didn't see that submission only invited further demands.
The only thing Danzo respected was strength. Push back hard enough, and Hiruzen himself would rein him in.
Gen's voice cut through the hesitation.
"Clan Leader. We must go. For four reasons."
"One, maintaining order is the Police Force's duty. And right now, the Nine-Tails is chaos itself."
"Two, we need to see with our own eyes whether the Sharingan gleams in its eyes."
"Three, if it does, then it falls to us to fight hardest to prove our innocence."
"Four, with so many Sharingan together, we may influence the beast, lessening casualties, saving villagers, and sparing Konoha devastation."
"Every clan is on the front lines. And yet Konoha's strongest clan sits idle? What do you think the others are saying right now?"
The chamber rumbled with agreement. Jōnin nodded fiercely, pride sparking in their eyes.
"Clan head, we must go!"
Even Shisui spoke firmly, his eyes unwavering.
Fugaku swept his gaze over his clansmen, saw their determination mirrored back—and finally set his jaw.
"Then..."
Boom. Boom. Boom.
The ground shook. A chain of explosions thundered across the night.
The Nine-Tails had begun firing miniature Tailed Beast Bombs and they rained directly toward the Uchiha compound.
Flames erupted skyward, lighting the darkness like noon. Shockwaves blasted down the streets, wind slamming against their faces, forcing them to shield their eyes.
For a heartbeat, the Uchiha jōnin froze. Then anger burned hot.
Their people had mostly evacuated already, but the clan compound itself was being torn apart. Property could be rebuilt. But their history, their pride—it was being trampled.
Thankfully, the Uchiha treasury and jutsu archives were buried deep underground. The clan's legacy would survive.
"Move out!" Fugaku barked through clenched teeth.
In an instant, black silhouettes streaked into the night.
Gen exhaled softly. So much time wasted talking. In that span, countless shinobi, villagers… property—all gone.
If blame had a name, it was Danzo. This blood was on him.
Fugaku, at least, had chosen. And maybe, in this chaos, lives could still be saved.
Gen followed after them, Sharingan glowing in the firelit dark.
Behind them, the Root operative finally broke free of the genjutsu. He stumbled back toward headquarters, dread curdling in his gut.
Fear. Nerves. Proof that Root conditioning hadn't erased every trace of humanity.
If feelings were truly gone… what would Danzo even be?
Boom. Boom. Boom.
The Nine-Tails unleashed another barrage, blazing orbs crashing across Konoha.
The sky glowed red with fire, the entire village bathed in the fox's wrath.