The conflict between the two had been brewing for a long time.
Initially, Uchiha Fugaku had dismissed him outright—after all, a waste with ninja talent but no skill in ninjutsu wasn't worth his attention.
Had it not been for the other's contact with the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, Fugaku believed their paths would never have crossed.
Yet, against all odds, Uchiha Kin had somehow turned things around.
To maintain stability within the clan, Fugaku had refrained from taking any unnecessary action.
Kin, the so-called "genius inventor," had even become a representative figure of the Uchiha—and Fugaku felt no jealousy over it.
Even Elder Hokaku's wariness of Kin hadn't moved him to act.
But Kin showed no respect for the Hokage. In him, Fugaku saw no love for the clan, no loyalty to the village—only the detachment of an outsider.
And so, Fugaku resolved to correct Kin's twisted path.
The Uchiha creed was simple: the weak submit to the strong.
He would use strength to set things right.
Evil could never triumph over justice.
Fugaku's gaze locked onto Kin's crimson Sharingan, the three tomoe spinning rapidly.
A pity.
Before these eyes of his, all resistance was futile.
The moment their eyes met, the battle of the Sharingan began.
Genjutsu took hold.
The world drowned in crimson.
The two stood facing each other, and in the next instant, countless kunai, shuriken, and iron spikes clashed in the scarlet void.
Soon, Kin's weapons far outnumbered Fugaku's, pressing him back.
Fugaku frowned. Black flames erupted across the crimson world—
Only to be extinguished by a sudden downpour of blood-red rain.
With a sweep of his hand, Fugaku summoned a horde of monstrous beasts charging at Kin.
Kin stomped the ground, and towering earthen spikes erupted, impaling the creatures mid-stride.
One spike shot up beneath Fugaku, piercing through his body.
His pupils contracted, his Sharingan dilating in shock.
A new world materialized.
Kin's figure plummeted from the sky, while Fugaku stood unharmed above, watching coldly as he fell.
Then, Kin's Sharingan dilated in turn, and another world took shape—
A space of absolute darkness.
Fugaku stood frozen, unable to see his own hand before his face.
Wounds began appearing across his body, blood seeping from each gash.
He dropped to one knee, clutching his eye as the three tomoe in his Sharingan spun wildly, on the verge of merging—
Then slowed abruptly.
Back in the real world, Fugaku tumbled from the telephone pole.
He barely caught himself, landing in a crouch, one hand pressed to his eye.
"That's it?"
Kin looked down at him, disdain dripping from his voice.
The battle of Sharingan genjutsu had reached its conclusion.
Fugaku had lost. Utterly.
"How... is this possible?"
This was the power of the Mangekyō—a three-tomoe Sharingan awakened by it was leagues beyond an ordinary one.
The difference lay in the potency of the pupil's power.
Yet against Kin, he'd been crushed.
There was only one explanation.
"You've awakened those eyes too?" Fugaku's voice was low, disbelieving.
How old was he? Not even fifteen, and already with the Mangekyō?!
Fugaku had unlocked his at eighteen—should he just kill himself in shame now?
"You mean the Mangekyō Sharingan? Nah, I don't have that."
Kin shrugged.
His prowess came entirely from the Heavenly Demon Art's enhancement of his ocular power.
"Impossible!" Fugaku's disbelief deepened.
Losing to someone without the Mangekyō felt like having his entire life's convictions shattered.
That was the Uchiha's ultimate power.
He'd hesitated to use it earlier, ultimately choosing to hold back.
But even so, a mere three-tomoe shouldn't have been able to oppose him.
"Your blind faith in those eyes made your defeat inevitable."
Kin had never put stock in the Mangekyō's power. Sure, a pair could forge a Kage-level fighter overnight.
But if he couldn't awaken it, it might as well not exist.
And he was absolutely not bitter about it!!!
Just like the Sharingan—unlocking it was nice, but not having it hadn't hindered him much either.
Watching Fugaku's three tomoe spin and connect, Kin wasn't blind to what came next.
The Mangekyō Sharingan.
Fugaku refused to believe Kin could overcome this.
But before he could act, darkness surged from Kin's body, swallowing Fugaku whole.
Within the void, Fugaku found himself immobilized, as if bound by shadow possession.
Something hard coiled around him, sapping his chakra.
"What... is this?!" His voice was hoarse.
It felt like a Kekkei Genkai—but since when did the Uchiha possess such an ability?
"Guess."
Kin's voice echoed through the darkness.
"Going to use Susanoo? If you do, you could break free of this darkness. Maybe even crush me easily."
Kin knew his limits. The combination of darkness and Wood Release could restrain most shinobi—even elite jōnin might struggle.
But against a Kage-level opponent, especially one wielding Susanoo, it wouldn't hold.
That power was a qualitative leap, beyond what his Dark Walker Technique could contain.
His Wood Release wasn't strong enough yet either.
But activating Susanoo here would announce the Mangekyō's existence to the entire village.
Wouldn't that only deepen the rift between the clan and Konoha?
Fugaku would never take that risk.
"You win."
He lowered his head in defeat.
The darkness dissipated.
Kin looked down at Fugaku, his gaze cold, devoid of any kinship.
"Even a dog should know who it can and can't bite."
The mockery in his tone was unmistakable.
Fugaku remained silent. He was used to Kin's sharp tongue by now.
As Kin turned to leave, Fugaku spoke again.
"Uchiha Kin... if I were to pass the clan leadership to you, could you lead the Uchiha?"
This time, he wasn't speaking as the Third Hokage's ANBU.
But as the future head of the Uchiha.
The sense of defeat Kin had inflicted was too overwhelming.
He wasn't sure he could fulfill Elder Hokaku's request—to find an opportunity to kill him.
This clansman, younger than him, wielded such terrifying power. Fugaku wasn't even certain Susanoo could ensure Kin's death.
Kin paused, glancing back over his shoulder.
"Indecisive, blind to reality, self-righteous, swayed by others—you're unfit to lead. You'd only drag the Uchiha to ruin."
The future had already proven that.
In the end, it would be Fugaku's own son who severed the clan's destiny.
"But what I want, I'll take for myself."
Kin had no interest in handouts. If he desired something, he had the strength to claim it.
"I, Uchiha Kin, don't need some beaten dog to toss me its bones."
"I'm not that desperate."
...
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(End of Chapter)