Uchiha Setsuna lost control of his strength in a moment of agitation and ended up tugging Uchiha En hard enough to make him wince in pain.
But En still forced himself to endure it and said:
"I discovered a battle today while patrolling the clan grounds."
"When I arrived, the enemies had already vanished. All that was left was a little brat standing there."
"Then... then I was forced to the ground under the pressure of his Three-Tomoe Sharingan, and he left with the Anbu."
As he spoke, he hesitated. After all, getting defeated by a child was a bit humiliating.
But he still knew the difference between pride and priority. After some hesitation, he laid out the whole story.
Uchiha Setsuna looked excited the whole time he spoke, but it wasn't until he heard that the genius had left with the Anbu that he understood why Uchiha En had come to inform him.
A six or seven-year-old with a Three-Tomoe Sharingan—what kind of concept was that? Not once in the thousand-year history of the Uchiha had such a monster existed.
Even awakening the Sharingan at that age would already mark someone as a rare genius. But Three Tomoe?
With talent like that, there was no way he wouldn't awaken the Mangekyō in the future. Uchiha Setsuna refused to believe otherwise.
He couldn't hold back any longer. While ordering his subordinates to investigate Uchiha Hikaru, he also invoked his authority as the Great Elder to call an emergency clan meeting.
As the leader of the Hawk Faction, Uchiha Setsuna had long yearned to seize power back from the Senju Clan and had even tried to incite rebellion among the Uchiha.
Unfortunately, before his plan succeeded, the Second Hokage threw him in prison. He was only released after the Second Hokage died.
His release was meant to pacify the Uchiha and ensure the Third Hokage's smooth succession.
Since being imprisoned, Setsuna had pondered one question again and again: Why can't the Uchiha become Hokage?
Eventually, he found his answer—the Uchiha weren't strong enough.
Sure, most Uchiha with Three-Tomoe Sharingan had reached the level of elite Jōnin, but that strength alone wasn't enough to become Hokage.
Setsuna knew his limits. He would never awaken the Mangekyō.
But now things were different. A Mangekyō candidate had appeared—suddenly, and right in front of him.
Like a drowning man grabbing at the last straw, Setsuna wasn't going to let Uchiha Hikaru slip away.
"Lord Setsuna, we've gathered all the intel. The clan leader and elders have also arrived."
As Uchiha Setsuna dreamed of the future, his steward returned, having completed all the tasks he was assigned.
Everything was ready, only the elder himself remained.
He walked to the meeting hall, pushed open the door, and entered. He hadn't even taken a seat when a snide voice rang out.
"Elder Setsuna, how grand of you. You call a clan-wide emergency, yet you're the last to arrive. Truly... tsk tsk."
Setsuna looked up sharply. The speaker was none other than his usual rival, the Second Elder—Uchiha Ang .
Setsuna represented the Hawk Faction. Uchiha Ang, on the other hand, was the face of the Dove Faction.
Sitting nearby, the Clan Head Uchiha Meitoku , remained neutral as always.
Normally, Setsuna would fire back at such sarcasm without hesitation, but today was too important for bickering.
He simply gave a cold snort and ignored the Second Elder. Instead, after scanning the room, he spoke slowly:
"I called you all here today because something has happened—something that could decide the fate of the Uchiha."
Uchiha Ang paused, realizing that Setsuna was being unusually serious. He refrained from pressing the sarcasm further.
"Today, one of my men, Uchiha En, discovered a genius—the most talented person our clan has seen in a thousand years."
As he spoke, Setsuna pulled out the intelligence file and passed it around the table.
"This file contains all the information we've found on this genius. Take a look for yourselves."
Ang glanced at the first page and saw a photo and name printed at the top: Uchiha Hikaru.
'Uchiha Hikaru... why does that name sound familiar? Where have I heard it before?'
As Ang pondered the familiar name, Setsuna continued with excitement:
"I couldn't believe it myself. The report says this boy—Hikaru—is the child of two Chūnin."
"And he's only six years old. Never received formal shinobi training. And yet, he's already awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan!"
"All of us here know exactly what that level of talent means. The light of the Mangekyō is about to shine once more upon the Uchiha!"
The room erupted into chaos.
All sense of decorum vanished—some even cheered.
"Blessed be the Uchiha!"
"A six-year-old with Three Tomoe—he'll be our Mangekyō! Our clan will rise again!"
"That's right! What Lord Madara couldn't accomplish in his time, this boy will lead us to achieve—he'll take the Hokage's seat!"
Hearing the boy's age, Uchiha Ang suddenly recalled what Uchiha Noboru had told him that morning.
A boy named Uchiha Hikaru, a child the clan had half-abandoned, was being adopted tomorrow by Mito Uzumaki.
'This is bad!'
That memory sent a wave of urgency crashing over him. He quickly flipped through the file in his hands.
As each detail matched what he knew, Uchiha Ang's heart sank.
Even a pacifist like him knew how important the Mangekyō was.
At the time, he'd been glad that Mito Uzumaki was willing to build a bridge of trust, to ease the clan's growing isolation.
He never imagined their future Mangekyō would be lured away in the process.
Naturally, the change in his demeanor caught the attention of everyone in the room.
Setsuna stopped speaking and locked eyes with Ang.
The now-silent hall helped Ang regain his senses. Surrounded by his clanmates' gazes, he gave a bitter smile and said:
"There may be a problem. This boy, Uchiha Hikaru, has already caught the eye of Lady Mito Uzumaki."
Setsuna's eyes widened. He suddenly remembered Hikaru leaving with the Anbu.
As if a light had gone off in his head, he asked urgently:
"What do you mean by 'caught her eye'? Be clear!"
Ang sighed and raised the intel sheet, pointing at the picture of Uchiha Hikaru.
"This child spoke to Noboru and me this morning. He said Lady Mito Uzumaki has already adopted him."
His words were like a bomb going off in the room.
"Unforgivable!"
"How can we let our Mangekyō be taken away? I refuse to accept this!"
"That's right! We'll go confront that Mito woman right now!"
As everyone united in fury, one voice made a bold suggestion—only to instantly silence the room.
All eyes turned toward the speaker, who quietly sank back into his seat, too intimidated to speak again.
Confront Mito Uzumaki? That's as good as asking for a beating.