"Shisui, you must have heard some of the rumors spreading through the village about the Uchiha Clan these past few days."
Hiruzen Sarutobi's tone was calm but grave. "I'm already sending people to investigate their source. I will not allow anyone to deliberately slander the Uchiha Clan."
Shisui smiled politely, though his expression carried faint tension. "That's reassuring to hear. Thank you, Third Hokage, for your concern. My clan is deeply angered by these rumors."
"I understand," Hiruzen said, nodding. "The village also knows that the Uchiha were wronged. However, you must realize that these whispers likely began with the families of those who died during the Nine-Tails' attack that night. Many blame the Uchiha because of what they saw."
Shisui's gaze lowered. He knew what Hiruzen was referring to.
"The Sharingan," he said quietly. "Because the Nine-Tails' eyes bore the mark of it."
Hiruzen's expression darkened. "Precisely. That is why the Uchiha Police Force was not deployed that night. If the villagers learned of that connection, it would have caused panic. We couldn't allow it. I hope you understand, Shisui. The decision was made to protect the village."
"I understand," Shisui replied seriously. "But many of my clansmen don't know the truth. They only see that we were excluded—and they're furious."
Hiruzen sighed, his features softening. "Your grandfather, Uchiha Kagami, believed deeply in the Will of Fire. He was a man whose heart embraced not only his clan, but the entire village. He was a bridge between Konoha and the Uchiha—a role I now hope you can inherit."
Shisui's expression hardened with resolve. "Don't worry, Lord Hokage. I'll do my best to make the Uchiha and the village understand each other."
From the shadows outside the Hokage's office, Uchiha Gen silently watched the exchange, a cold smile tugging at his lips.
So, it begins…
To the untrained eye, the Third Hokage appeared as nothing more than a benevolent old man—wise, calm, and endlessly patient. But to Gen, who knew too much, that image was merely a mask.
A great villain cloaked in virtue.
Or perhaps, he thought bitterly, Hiruzen's kindness was real—at least to those who didn't threaten his authority.
Then there was Danzo Shimura—Konoha's shadow, the so-called "Darkness of the Ninja World." Second only to Hiruzen in political power, yet a man feared by every clan in the village.
In Danzo's mind, he and Hiruzen were two sides of the same coin: Hiruzen ruled in the light, while he worked in the dark. But Gen saw the truth differently. To him, Danzo was nothing more than Hiruzen's black glove—an extension of the same will.
Whenever Konoha needed to silence dissent, Danzo acted. Whenever the act was done, the Hokage's office withdrew his leash, pretending ignorance.
Gen remembered it all too clearly from his previous life. In every instance where Danzo moved, it was with the Hokage's tacit approval. Every assassination, every manipulation, every whisper of conspiracy—all sanctioned under the same banner of "for the sake of the village."
The world of Naruto, he realized, had never been as simple as the anime had portrayed. The so-called "Will of Fire" was only a brighter mask over a festering rot.
Gen had once thought the Uchiha massacre unjust, but now, seeing it firsthand, the cruelty of it all burned in his chest.
The Uchiha Clan had borne prodigies like Uchiha Obito and Uchiha Itachi, yet they had been cornered, distrusted, and ultimately destroyed by their own village. Between the schemes of Madara and Black Zetsu, and the hostility of Konoha's Elders, the Uchiha were doomed before they even realized it.
The Elders—Hiruzen, Danzo, Homura, and Koharu—were the same kind of people: men and women who would sacrifice anyone to protect their power.
Gen's suspicions, once mere echoes from another world, solidified after the tragedy of Hatake Sakumo, the White Fang of Konoha.
Sakumo's name once inspired fear across the entire shinobi world. A man whose skill and valor rivaled even the Sannin, he had turned the tide of countless battles during the Second Shinobi War. And yet, he was cast down—not by enemies, but by his own village.
After the war, discontent toward Hiruzen had grown within Konoha. Many believed he had grown too lenient, too indecisive. Among those whispers, calls for Sakumo to become the next Hokage grew stronger.
And then came the mission—the one Sakumo abandoned to save his comrades. The details were meant to be top-secret, known only to the upper echelons of command.
Yet somehow, the entire village learned of it overnight.
Ordinary villagers—who should never have known the mission even existed—were suddenly condemning Sakumo as a traitor who had endangered Konoha. The media, the council, and even other ninjas turned their backs on him.
And the Hokage's office? Silent.
They simply watched as a hero who had once protected them from the world's greatest threats was driven to despair.
Gen clenched his fists.
Now, years later, history was repeating itself.
The Uchiha were being blamed for the Nine-Tails' attack, ostracized, and forced to the edge of the village—just as Sakumo had been forced to his end.
The only difference was scale.
"The Elders never learn," Gen muttered under his breath. "And the Uchiha will pay the price once again."
He looked toward the Hokage's office, where Shisui was still speaking earnestly, unaware of how he was being used.
"The Will of Fire…" Gen scoffed. "More like the will to control."
With that, he turned and disappeared into the shadows.
The storm that would consume the Uchiha had already begun to form.
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