Everyone who heard these words was dumbstruck. The Third Hokage was actually a traitor? This was truly explosive news, and many found it impossible to believe. The Third Hokage was, after all, the person with the highest status in the village. Even if the Uchiha Clan possessed immense military power, they weren't the highest authority. What reason would the Third Hokage have to do such a thing?
"Is this for real?"
"Why would he do that?"
Those who had drawn closer earlier began to speculate.
"A lot of people know about it now. This came out of the Clan Head meeting."
"To be honest, it sounds absurd, but that's the truth."
"As for the reason... well, you know the Uchiha Clan has never been valued by the higher-ups. Especially after the Second Hokage died. This was likely just internal village infighting."
"As for the Hyuga family, it might be because they didn't follow the Third Hokage's arrangements during the Cloud Village incident, which earned them the displeasure of the top brass."
Hearing these reasons, the crowd felt it was utterly ridiculous. Would he really disregard the village's interests for such petty reasons? Is this the quality a village's supreme leader should have?
"This is simply nonsense! How could the Third Hokage do something like this?"
"How could the brilliant Second Hokage choose such a successor? What a massive blunder."
"Exactly. The village actually produced a rogue Kage. This is a first in the ninja world. I'm afraid the village won't have any reputation left in the Land of Fire. The Daimyo might even cut our military budget because of this."
The crowd was filled with righteous indignation. Originally, Konoha's funds were distributed by the Fire Daimyo. This time, the Daimyo would definitely have an excuse to reduce Konoha's budget.
However, the newcomer spoke with confidence. "I don't think it'll come to that. You have to realize that although the Third Hokage is a disgrace, the Uchiha Clan is still here. In the future, the person who ascends to the position of Hokage will surely be an Uchiha. Given the Uchiha's strength, how could they allow the budget to be reduced?"
"Even if the Daimyo wanted to cut it, it wouldn't be that easy."
Upon hearing this, everyone felt relieved, and their expressions relaxed.
"That's true. But under Uchiha leadership, what kind of place will Konoha become?"
Others were naturally curious but couldn't quite imagine it. However, one thing was certain: they probably wouldn't be bullied by other ninja villages like before. Because the Uchiha Clan was powerful, any other major nation wanting to invade the Land of Fire would have to seriously weigh their own strength.
Back at the clan compound, Uchiha Ryosuke was invited by Uchiha Fugaku for tea. Fugaku had prepared a pot of fine tea long ago, waiting for Ryosuke's arrival. He was ready to discuss their next move.
The next step was actually very clear. It was nothing more than choosing a new Hokage candidate at the Clan Head meeting in seven days. Within the clan, only Ryosuke and himself were eligible. No one else was possible. After all, he was the Clan Head, the second most important person in the Uchiha Clan after Ryosuke.
Thinking of this, he felt a surge of excitement. Ryosuke usually spent most of his time training, and as for private matters, Fugaku didn't want to interfere. Naturally, the person to take the Hokage seat would be him. Moreover, Ryosuke didn't like the trouble of handling administrative affairs, whereas Fugaku actually enjoyed such things.
Thinking that he was about to become the Fifth Hokage and that even his name would be carved onto the Hokage Rock... The Uchiha Clan would finally fulfill their long-held wish, and he would reach the peak of his life. Perhaps even the future Hokage positions would be dominated by their Uchiha Clan. He felt very content.
Ryosuke arrived at Fugaku's house shortly after and sat down to drink the fine tea. There were two cups, so naturally, one was his, and he didn't stand on ceremony.
He asked while drinking, "Clan Head Fugaku, is there something you wanted to see me about?"
Fugaku went straight to the point. "Ryosuke, at the upcoming Clan Head meeting, I expect the heads of every clan will choose our Uchiha Clan to take power. I doubt the Fire Daimyo will object either. Do you want to take the position of Hokage?"
Actually, if Ryosuke chose to take the position himself, Fugaku would be willing to follow. Ryosuke had more advantages than him—at least his combat power and reputation were stronger. He could lead the village and the Uchiha Clan toward better development.
Ryosuke thought about it seriously. He did briefly consider taking the position just for the experience. But the busy work of a Hokage would surely bore him. He probably wouldn't last a few days before wanting to resign, and then wouldn't he become the shortest-reigning Hokage in history? He didn't want that kind of reputation.
Therefore, there was no need to take the seat. They just had to pick a clansman for it. Originally, Ryosuke thought highly of Uchiha Shisui, but Shisui was already dead. Now, there was only one suitable candidate.
"I don't need to take the position. You should do it, Clan Head Fugaku."
"I still need to cultivate to gain even greater power and serve as the backbone for the village and the Uchiha Clan. After all, the ninja world is not peaceful."
Fugaku was secretly delighted to hear that he could take the position. But when Ryosuke mentioned that the ninja world wasn't peaceful, he couldn't help but frown. He remembered the genjutsu Ryosuke had cast on Nara Shikaku, which seemingly showed Shikaku a terrifying scene and successfully convinced that loyal supporter of the Third Hokage to join the Uchiha Military Police Force. He asked curiously, "Ryosuke, what exactly do you mean by 'not peaceful'?"
"With your current strength from opening the Eight Inner Gates, you're at least comparable to the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama. Who in the ninja world could possibly be your match?"
"There shouldn't be any more of those 'beyond-standard' powerhouses in the ninja world now, right?"
Whether it was the Kage of other villages, their combat power was only on par with the Fourth Raikage, or even weaker. For instance, Onoki of the Stone Village possessed the Kekkei Tota: Particle Style. In terms of ability, he might even be stronger than the Fourth Raikage, but he was old now, and his actual combat power might be inferior. As for Rasa of the Sand Village, he felt like just a mediocre Kage. The Fourth Mizukage of the Mist Village could also only be considered mediocre.
A village's Kage represented the world's top power. Yet Ryosuke dealt with the Third Hokage like an adult hitting a child; the Third Hokage had no ability to resist.
Ryosuke didn't look at him but instead gazed into the distance. He thought of future enemies: Orochimaru and the Rinnegan-user Nagato Pain were just small characters. But the later Six Paths Uchiha Madara and Six Paths Uchiha Obito... those were not easy characters to deal with. It was just that the enemy hadn't launched their plan yet, so he wasn't in a hurry; he still had time to develop. Even the later Otsutsuki Clan would be formidable enemies, but fortunately, that would happen much later.
He didn't feel that rushed; he just needed to keep training step by step every day.
He spoke slowly, "The waters of the ninja world run deep. Even strength comparable to Senju Hashirama isn't enough."
Fugaku was shocked. Could strength comparable to Senju Hashirama still fail to protect the safety of Konoha and the Uchiha Clan? But Senju Hashirama was known as the Ninja God. Could there really be power in the ninja world that surpassed someone like Senju Hashirama?
He truly couldn't believe it and had never heard of such a thing. If these words hadn't come from Ryosuke, he wouldn't have believed them at all. Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara were like true gods; their beyond-standard power could directly change the terrain. Even destroying Konoha with a single strike would be easy for them.
Now that Ryosuke said there was even greater power, it had to be true. He had no reason to lie. Fugaku asked in surprise, "What kind of strong enemies will there be in the future?"
Ryosuke smiled. "I wouldn't call them strong enemies exactly, just ones I must deal with seriously. You don't need to worry about that. Just focus on managing the village well."
"After all, this is where our Uchiha Clan resides. It is our home."