"Mm."
Sensing Fugaku's silent plea, Ren's expression didn't change. He gave the slightest nod—so casual it could've been mistaken for nothing.
Fugaku exhaled in relief.
To be honest, this was the first time in his life he'd stood in front of Konoha's high command with his back straight, speaking without fear.
It felt… intoxicating.
In the past, as the Uchiha clan head, even a single sentence in front of the elders had required caution. One wrong word and Konoha's leadership would find a reason to tighten the leash—fabricate a charge, squeeze the clan's resources, push them deeper into the corner.
But—
Konoha's leadership was still Konoha's leadership.
When they truly snapped, Fugaku alone couldn't withstand it.
In the next breath, under the stunned eyes of Hiruzen, Koharu, and Homura, Fugaku abruptly stepped forward—completely ignoring the kunai in the elders' hands—and made a formal, sweeping gesture toward Ren.
A gesture that could only mean one thing:
Please step forward.
Please take over.
"…What?" Hiruzen's eyes narrowed.
The anger on Koharu and Homura's faces faltered into confusion.
"What are you doing, Fugaku?"
"Damn you—are you playing games with us?!"
Koharu and Homura finally lost what little restraint they had left.
Their eyes flashed cold.
They lunged in from both sides—left and right—moving with the ruthless speed of veterans.
Hiruzen's gaze sharpened as well. His right hand lifted, ready to give the command—
ANBU were already in position outside. If he ordered it, they would swarm in instantly.
The mask was off.
If diplomacy was dead, then the fastest way to regain control was simple:
Capture Fugaku.
Break him.
Extract the truth.
Fugaku only laughed.
He crossed his arms.
And didn't even try to defend.
It was blatant provocation.
"You're looking down on us?" Homura snarled, fury twisting his face.
Koharu and Homura drove their kunai straight toward Fugaku's eyes—fast enough to take out the Sharingan before he could blink.
If you despise them—
then you lose what makes you Uchiha.
But just as the blades were about to bite—
A vast, overwhelming pressure erupted from Ren.
No warning.
No gradual rise.
It detonated like a storm breaking open the sky.
In an instant, that aura shot upward—straight through the Hokage Tower—and spread outward like a tidal wave.
The building shuddered.
The air warped.
Even the space around them seemed to ripple, as if the world itself had flinched.
A king's will.
A presence that demanded the heavens bow.
A force that made everything beneath it feel small.
This wasn't chakra.
This wasn't genjutsu.
This was Conqueror's Haki—pure dominance.
Ren had never fully released it before.
Not once since fusing Whitebeard's template.
But standing in front of Sarutobi Hiruzen…
His patience finally snapped.
He'd never felt any real belonging to Konoha.
Even after transmigrating into the Uchiha and awakening the system, he hadn't tried to "save the plot" or steer destiny.
He only wanted to check in quietly, stack power, take a few wives, and when the Fourth Shinobi World War arrived—
step onto the stage as an unrivaled force and stun the entire world.
But Konoha chose this.
The Uchiha were going to be exterminated.
And Ren wasn't Shisui.
He wasn't Itachi.
He wasn't going to swallow it.
So—
after ten years of restraint—
he exploded.
BOOM—!
Under Ren's precise control, the crushing pressure—laced with his disgust and fury—hammered down on Koharu, Homura, Hiruzen…
and on every ANBU lying in wait around the tower.
"What… is this?!"
"Ren—how can he release this kind of pressure?!"
"Impossible!"
Koharu and Homura froze mid-lunge, their bodies locking up like puppets with cut strings.
Even Hiruzen's eyes widened in disbelief.
Then—
the weaker ones didn't even get a second to understand.
A ringing roar filled their skulls.
Their bodies trembled.
And they stood there, blank, rigid—
before collapsing like felled trees.
"This isn't genjutsu…"
"It's raw… pressure…?"
Koharu and Homura's aged faces twisted in horror.
They had never imagined a human being could emit a presence like this.
Ren looked at them without emotion.
"Hmph."
That single sound—barely more than breath—
shattered what remained of their composure.
In their minds, a massive white-bearded figure appeared—fist raised, carrying a force that could end the world—
and it was coming straight for them.
The elders' spirits cracked.
Buzz—!
Their consciousness snapped.
A heartbeat later, their eyes rolled back.
They dropped.
Thud—thud.
Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado hit the ground first.
Outside the tower, ANBU fell in waves—most of them unable to resist at all.
Only a few elite jōnin-level ANBU managed to stay standing.
Even so, when they recovered enough to breathe—
they stared at the Hokage Tower, faces pale, hearts hammering.
They weren't idiots.
They knew exactly where that pressure had come from.
From inside the Hokage's office.
From the man the Hokage had just ignored.
From—
Uchiha Ren.
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