Fugaku's Request
After several days of urgent travel, Xu Fan and his party finally returned to the Hidden Leaf Village.
However, for Sarutobi Hiruzen, there was no time to rest. Immediately upon his return, he summoned the village elders and top officials to convene an emergency meeting.
As for the two Kumogakure envoys, they were temporarily handed over to the Anbu for custody.
Xu Fan had no objection to this. As long as the jinchūriki remained within Konoha's borders, he didn't care who was assigned to monitor them.
Still, Xu Fan didn't head home right away. Instead, he made a stop at the Root headquarters to officially announce that he had assumed control over the organization—following Danzo's fall.
He had more pressing matters to address.
One of them took him straight to Naka Shrine, hidden within the Uchiha clan district.
This particular visit was of great importance to Xu Fan. But before he could enter the shrine, Uchiha Itachi approached him.
Word of the Third Hokage's return had already begun to spread throughout the village—prompting Itachi to act quickly.
"Xu Fan," Itachi called out.
Xu Fan paused in front of the shrine's stone door. He was about to sign in for a mission, but this encounter took priority. There was no time limit on the task anyway.
"Itachi." Xu Fan turned around and regarded the boy standing behind him.
"I've already spoken to my father," Itachi said directly, wasting no time on pleasantries.
Before initiating the conversation, Itachi had ensured that they weren't being followed. This part of the village, close to the Uchiha district, was usually deserted—outsiders tended to avoid it.
"I didn't expect you to return so quickly. How did the talks go? Any progress?"
Itachi's question was laced with hesitation, though his gaze was sharp. He was still a loyal shinobi of Konoha, and the outcome of the negotiations with Kumogakure could determine the difference between peace and war.
At just four years old, he had witnessed the Third Great Ninja War. He knew all too well the horrors of combat.
"It didn't go well," Xu Fan admitted. "The shinobi from Kumogakure still carry themselves with arrogance, convinced they're the strongest in the ninja world. They want us to yield."
He sighed, a troubled look crossing his face.
"The Fourth Raikage has resolved to go to war. Hiruzen is in an emergency meeting with the elders to determine our next course of action."
Then Xu Fan changed the subject.
"What about your father? Now that he knows the truth, where does he stand?"
"Is it the clan… or the village?"
Uchiha Fugaku was in an impossible position. If he sided with the village, he would need to suppress the radical elements within the Uchiha. But if he stood with the clan, he would be opposing his own son.
Fugaku, despite being the clan head, was often pressured and manipulated by the more militant members of the Uchiha.
Xu Fan wasn't hopeful.
Besides, the most dangerous period had already passed. Hiruzen and Xu Fan had both been out of the village, Kakashi and Tenzo were unconscious due to a powerful genjutsu, and Danzo had been eliminated by Xu Fan and Itachi.
Root had taken substantial damage. If the Uchiha clan had chosen that moment to rebel, their chances of success would have been at their highest.
But the clan, isolated on the outskirts of Konoha, hadn't realized this.
And with Itachi keeping them in check, Xu Fan believed the situation wouldn't spiral out of control—at least not immediately.
To his surprise, Itachi gave his father credit.
"It's thanks to my father," he said.
After Hiruzen left the village, the clan's desire to rebel grew stronger. The night before Xu Fan's return, they had nearly marched on the Hokage Residence.
Only Fugaku's intervention—claiming the timing wasn't right—had delayed the plan.
"That's why I came to you," Itachi continued. "The clan has already let two opportunities slip. They don't want to miss a third."
"Hiruzen might be back, but after the exhausting journey, he's vulnerable. The clan sees this as a window."
"They're done waiting for your long-term strategy."
"They plan to launch the coup tonight."
Itachi delivered the news in one breath, but his expression was twisted in conflict.
His father understood him and wanted to support the village.
But Fugaku couldn't silence the voices of dissent within the clan.
"Tonight?" Xu Fan's expression darkened.
In the original timeline, the Uchiha Coup was planned when Itachi was already a captain of the Anbu—around the age of thirteen. That was still a year away from now.
"Do they know about Danzo?" Xu Fan asked after a moment of thought.
"No. Only my father knows," Itachi answered. "I told him everything, but he chose to keep Danzo's death a secret from the clan."
Xu Fan nodded and looked up at the darkening sky.
The coup would begin in just a few hours. If they were going to prevent it, their window was rapidly closing.
"The original plan was to send the Uchiha to the front lines against Kumogakure," Xu Fan muttered. "But if they stage a coup now…"
"Konoha will suffer massive internal losses. The village elders will reconsider going to war."
"Even Hiruzen might change his stance."
Just then, Itachi spoke again—his voice soft, almost trembling.
"I've prepared for the worst."
"Hm?" Xu Fan turned to him.
"If we can't stop them… I'll do it myself. I'll dirty my hands again—but I need your help."
He inhaled sharply, steadying his voice.
Xu Fan instantly understood. Itachi was prepared to make the same choice he did in the original timeline—to massacre his clan for the sake of the village.
But this time, he wasn't making a deal with Danzo.
This time, he was turning to him—Xu Fan.
"The last resort…" Xu Fan muttered, narrowing his eyes.
But Itachi wasn't done.
"There's one more thing," he said.
"My father—Uchiha Fugaku—he wants to meet with you."
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