Chapter 22 – The Plan
"You don't think so?!" Uchiha Itachi wasn't stupid. The reason he hadn't considered allies before was simply that he never intended to seek help from others. But now it was different. With Izaya's reminder, Uchiha Itachi naturally understood the implication. It was nothing more than allying with other clans in Konoha to jointly resist Danzō's oppression.
But even as Uchiha Itachi realized this, the conflicted expression on his face didn't lessen in the slightest. After pondering for a moment, he changed his tune… "But many of these clans are loyalists of the Third Hokage. We have no way to win them over…" After voicing his concerns, Uchiha Itachi also felt somewhat troubled.
Indeed, Izaya's method was definitely a very good one, but in this situation, Uchiha Itachi felt quite helpless. After all, this matter wasn't simple… At its core, the fundamental reason the Konoha leadership wanted to eliminate the Uchiha clan was to suppress their growing power and prevent a rebellion. And why did the Uchiha clan choose to rebel? Simply because they felt oppressed by the Konoha leadership…
To put it simply, it seemed like an endless cycle. The Konoha leadership believed the Uchiha clan was going to rebel, so they wanted to destroy them. But the Uchiha clan believed Konoha wanted to destroy them, so they planned to rebel. Although interests and power struggles were intertwined, this was essentially the reason for the mutual distrust between Konoha and the Uchiha clan, eventually leading to the Uchiha massacre in the original story.
And this wasn't the only reason for Uchiha Itachi's lack of confidence… Although the Uchiha clan was a top-tier wealthy clan in Konoha, the suppression and suspicion from the leadership had gradually lowered the clan's once-high profile. While this reduced the Uchiha clan's visibility, it also left them without any allies. So when Izaya mentioned the word "ally," a conflicted look flashed across Uchiha Itachi's face. It was like knowing the solution to the problem, but for some reason, being unable to use it…
"We don't need to win them over…" Izaya initially thought Uchiha Itachi would easily guess what he meant after the reminder, but clearly, he had overestimated him… Looking at the somewhat confused and conflicted Uchiha Itachi, Izaya stopped being cryptic and said slowly, "The allies we're looking for aren't those people…" As he spoke, he wrote the word "Hyūga" on the ground…
"What?!" Upon seeing the word written by Izaya, a flicker of surprise crossed Uchiha Itachi's face. He immediately said, "The Hyūga clan would never interfere with our Uchiha clan's affairs. I'm afraid it's impossible for them to become our allies." After all, in Uchiha Itachi's understanding, although the Hyūga clan was powerful, they were very low-key and basically never interfered with Konoha's internal decisions. So… Uchiha Itachi was so surprised when he heard Izaya's proposed ally was the Hyūga clan.
"How can you know if you don't try?" Seeing Uchiha Itachi's strong reaction, Izaya stood up and continued, "Sometimes, things aren't as they appear on the surface. Do you think the Hyūga clan is truly content to remain dormant in Konoha like this?"
"But even if the Hyūga clan agrees to be our allies, what about my father's side…" Finally, Uchiha Itachi voiced his doubts to Izaya. In truth, from the moment he learned his father had decided to lead the Uchiha clan in betraying Konoha, Uchiha Itachi had been deeply conflicted. In Itachi's eyes, while Konoha wasn't perfect, it was definitely a good village. At this moment, Uchiha Itachi yearned more for peace. On one side was his own family; on the other was the peace in his heart…
Before speaking with Izaya, Uchiha Itachi had been struggling with this internally. Now, after seeing Izaya's proposed solution, Uchiha Itachi finally voiced what was in his heart…
"Of course, that problem must be resolved through peaceful communication." After answering Uchiha Itachi's question, Izaya continued on the topic: "In my impression, the Hyūga clan is very low-key, but they aren't necessarily content with that. In fact, if not for Konoha's severe suppression of the Hyūga clan, they would never stay within their compound so obediently as they do now."
"However, if Konoha eliminates the Uchiha clan, the Hyūga clan will become Konoha's largest clan. In that situation, would they really help us?" After listening to Izaya's analysis, Uchiha Itachi voiced his concern.
"'When the trees in the forest grow too well, the wind will destroy them.' We don't need to worry about that at all!" Seeing that Uchiha Itachi still didn't grasp his meaning, Izaya shook his head helplessly and said directly, "Leave this to me. You only need to do one thing."
"What is it?" Uchiha Itachi asked immediately.
Seeing that Izaya didn't answer right away, Uchiha Itachi went straight up to him, looked at him with curious eyes, and continued, "Could it be… I should persuade my father not to rebel?"
"No, you can't do that." Izaya never intended for Uchiha Itachi to persuade Uchiha Fugaku to abandon the idea of rebellion, because it was absolutely impossible for Uchiha Itachi alone to accomplish this. The reasons mentioned earlier were indeed the core reasons for the Uchiha clan's rebellion, but the direct cause of the head-on conflict between Konoha and the Uchiha clan was Uchiha Fugaku's incompetence… one of the characters Izaya despised the most in all of Naruto. That's why Izaya wouldn't let Uchiha Itachi do such a futile task.
"It's not that?!" As Izaya spoke, Uchiha Itachi was also surprised. The only thing he could think of was that…
"What I need you to do is buy as much time as possible. It's best to temporarily stabilize both Danzō and your father." Looking at the dazed Uchiha Itachi, Izaya directly stated what he needed him to do, then continued, "The more time we have, the greater our chances of success. And I'll also have enough time to win over the Hyūga clan…"