Kazuki was sitting in the Nakano Shrine beside Itachi and Shisui. He could feel the heavy tension in the air. As his eyes wandered, he saw that Izumi was also sitting in the other row; she looked very nervous and kept her head down.
'It's probably her first meeting too,' Kazuki thought.
"Well then, let's begin." Fugaku stood up from his seat and turned toward everyone in the hall. "As you all know, Itachi has officially joined the ANBU. He has already begun carrying out missions."
A quiet cheer echoed through the shrine.
"Now we have a pipeline connecting our clan with the center of the village. We will now be able to investigate properly," Fugaku continued. "Itachi," he said, and Itachi stood up. "What have you noticed since joining the ANBU?"
Itachi said, "It is a fact that the people of the village are wary of the Uchiha clan and do not think well of us."
Fugaku nodded, and people started talking among themselves.
"But," Itachi continued, "that said, I don't feel any active hatred, no persecution of the clan. At best, I believe their feelings are the sort of worries and jealousies rather than hatred or resentment."
Fugaku's eyes twitched upward. "This worry and jealousy you mention can come together and be twisted into a bigger emotion."
The other people present started to chatter, as if agreeing with what Fugaku had said.
Itachi clenched his fist and said, "If you add on backward predictions like that, anything can be reduced to a negative phenomenon!"
Fugaku's trusted retainer, Yoshiro Uchiha, suddenly stood up and said, "Hey, Itachi, you're siding with the village, aren't you? Whose ally are you anyway, the village's or the clan's? Maybe your judgment's a bit dull after joining the ANBU. Getting a little full of yourself?"
Kazuki, who was sitting beside Itachi, thought, 'Damn, this is getting serious. Should I intervene?'
Noticing the rising tension, Fugaku tried to change the topic. "Now, don't fight among yourselves; we have a new member today."
Everyone's attention shifted to Fugaku again.
Fugaku looked at Kazuki and said, "Everyone, please welcome Uchiha Kazuki. He is a prodigy on par with Itachi. I've seen his skills myself."
Kazuki stood up. As everyone looked at him, he heard someone mutter, "He will be a great asset in the coup."
'Like hell I'm gonna help you in the coup,' Kazuki thought in irritation.
"Hello, everyone. I am Kazuki Uchiha. I'll be in your care from now on," Kazuki said.
Yoshiro stood up and asked, "So, Kazuki, what are your opinions on the discrimination that the Uchiha clan faces?"
Kazuki thought, 'It is true that the Uchiha clan faces discrimination. The Konoha Military Police Force was founded so that they could keep the Uchiha out of the central affairs of the village. Then, they were suspected of the Nine-Tails attack and relocated to the outskirts of the village. Regular people do harbor hatred toward the Uchiha, but I should stay a little neutral so that Itachi and Shisui don't think I'm like the others.'
"I agree with Itachi. The people of Konoha don't discriminate because they hate the Uchiha clan; I think it's a feeling of jealousy or fear that drives their discrimination," Kazuki said without hesitation.
"What are you saying? Are you with the village or with the clan?" Yoshiro shouted at him.
Kazuki replied calmly, "I am a member of the Uchiha clan. I just said what I have noticed. Can't I even state that?"
Yoshiro was about to say something when Fugaku stopped him. "Stop it, you two. We are all part of the same clan here."
"Leader," Yoshiro said as he sat down, disappointed.
The meeting went on for some time. Several members suggested the idea of a coup d'état, and most of the people present supported it, while some simply didn't have an opinion.
After the meeting ended, Kazuki stepped outside with Itachi and Shisui.
Once they were on the streets of the Uchiha compound, Shisui looked at Kazuki and said, "Hey, I'm Shisui. Itachi has told me about you. He even said you defeated him."
"I'm sure Itachi was holding back in our spar," Kazuki replied, rubbing the back of his head.
"So, you are also against the coup?" Itachi asked.
"Yeah. I don't think the coup will be successful, and even if it is, a war will break out," Kazuki replied.
Kazuki's thoughts were a little different, 'The coup would never have succeeded. I just don't want to regret later that I could have saved so many innocent people but I didn't even try, and also, I don't want Itachi to go through the same fate."
Shisui said, "That's exactly what we think. Let's all try to prevent the coup, or at least delay it as much as possible."
Kazuki thought, 'So, they aren't telling me about them being double agents. I guess I'll have to win their trust first.'
The next day, Kazuki was alone in a training ground, practicing his kenjutsu.
'Oh, I forgot to ask Itachi about the Sharingan. I really need some advice.'
Kazuki then activated his Sharingan. It was the first time he had activated it inside the village outside of the Nakano Shrine.
What Kazuki saw left him speechless.
'Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu.'
Kazuki released a large ball of fire and walked toward what he had seen. On the ground, there were several burned insects. Kazuki closed his eyes, focused his chakra, and sensed someone running away.