Word traveled quickly.
The Two-Tails Matatabi had been sighted on the border between the Land of Lightning and a war-torn neutral zone. A beast of living fire and chakra, rarely seen, never captured. The opportunity was clear to Si Feng.
A meeting was called inside the newly claimed Uchiha council chamber, where Si Feng now sat at the head of a long obsidian table. Uchiha banners draped behind him, and his Mangekyō Sharingan shimmered like a blood-red crown.
"Our target is Matatabi," he announced. "The power of the One-Tail alone is not enough. We need more."
His words were met with eager murmurs. Just days ago, dozens of Uchiha shinobi battle-hardened warriors and jōnin had returned from distant fronts, answering his summons. The compound swelled with strength, loyalty, and purpose.
But not all welcomed this new order.
At the end of the hall, Uchiha Fugaku stood with arms crossed, his expression unreadable. A respected veteran and tactician, Fugaku had been the presumptive successor before Si Feng's rise.
"You risk too much," Fugaku said coolly. "Seizing another Tailed Beast will provoke not only the Raikage but the entire shinobi world. And you have no right to lead this clan without challenge."
Si Feng rose slowly, the room going quiet.
"Then challenge me."
In the center of the compound, before the eyes of dozens of Uchiha, Fugaku and Si Feng faced off. The fight began as a blur of speed and precision fire jutsu clashing, shuriken colliding midair. Fugaku's Sharingan was strong, refined.
But Si Feng's was born of blood, war, and sacrifice.
With a surge of power, his Susanoo roared to life, a colossal warrior of glowing crimson armor. Fugaku leapt to evade, but Si Feng's chakra control and Mangekyō perception turned the tide. A single crushing blow from the spectral titan brought Fugaku to his knees.
Si Feng stood over him, unshaken. "We don't need caution. We need domination."
Fugaku coughed blood and bowed his head. "Then the clan is yours."
Back in Konoha, the tension thickened.
Sarutobi sat in the shadows of the Hokage's office, eyes tired, staring at a scroll marked with reports from their spies.
"The Uchiha are consolidating," he said. "They've broken from the chain of command. Fugaku's been defeated. And they're targeting another Tailed Beast."
Danzo's voice was like poison. "We strike now or lose everything."
The advisors debated. Attack now? Negotiate? Watch and wait?
But one thing was clear: the Uchiha were no longer a division of the village. They were a rising nation of their own, with a leader who didn't fear the gods only sought to surpass them.
Far away, near the edge of the Land of Lightning, Si Feng gazed at the burning night sky.
"Matatabi…" he murmured, sensing the tailed flame stirring in the distance. "You're next."