The Land of Fire.
Konohagakure.
Outside the Uchiha compound, the air was thick with killing intent, saturated with the sharp scent of blood.
Numerous Root and ANBU squads lay in wait, every nerve stretched tight. Their gazes were sharp and cold as they closely monitored the Uchiha district, while remaining wary of any disturbance in the surrounding area.
In the past, even when rumors of Uchiha rebellion circulated, security had never been this intense.
Everything had changed because of one man.
Uchiha Jin.
A boy who had been quiet since childhood, unremarkable in temperament, with academy grades that hovered slightly above average. A textbook Uchiha who, just one month ago, had suddenly awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan.
…
Late at night.
Deep within the Uchiha compound stood a secluded residence with three inner courtyards.
Security here was airtight. Patrols moved openly through the grounds, while hidden sentries occupied treetops, shadowed corners, and rooftops. The one thing they all shared was the crimson glow of active Sharingan.
Inside the reception hall, the atmosphere was heavy and restrained.
There were only seven or eight people present, yet every one of them was a core figure within the radical faction.
Creak.
With a faint sound, the doors to the hall were pushed open.
A Uchiha dressed in a black haori bearing the flame fan emblem stepped inside and dropped to one knee. His eyes gleamed with three tomoe.
"Lord Jin. Elder Setsuna."
"The Seventh Squad has completed its mission. Three Root teams were eliminated."
"We were intercepted by an ANBU jonin squad during the operation. They were dealt with as well. All enemies were completely destroyed. The battlefield was erased. Even the Yamanaka clan will be unable to extract any information."
The Uchiha's eyes were filled with unrestrained arrogance.
As his report concluded, laughter erupted throughout the hall.
Excitement was written plainly across every face.
"Excellent. Truly excellent."
One Uchiha rose to his feet, his body trembling with exhilaration. "This is what it means to be Uchiha. Fugaku never should have been allowed to become clan head."
Others nodded in agreement without hesitation.
It was clear that their resentment toward Fugaku had been building for a long time.
"Fugaku was never fit for the position. I regret ever supporting him."
"Since he took over as clan head, we have done nothing but retreat. On the battlefield, Uchiha casualties are the highest, yet the village pretends not to see it."
"After the Nine Tails incident, we were forced to abandon our ancestral lands. Now the village openly monitors us without restraint."
"Fugaku? Hmph."
"Jin should be the clan head."
Voices overlapped, each filled with anger and bitterness.
It was enough to show just how far the Uchiha had been pushed.
Uchiha Setsuna sat quietly among them. Though his face was lined with age, the violent aura surrounding him had not faded in the slightest. His eyes were dark and difficult to read as he finally spoke in a hoarse voice.
"During Tobirama Senju's era, the Uchiha were disliked, but we could still protect ourselves. Ever since Fugaku became clan head, our situation has worsened at an alarming pace."
"Being overly cautious toward outsiders would have been one thing. Instead, he failed to maintain control within the clan itself, allowing it to fracture into moderates, centrists, and radicals. Worse still, figures like Shisui and Itachi emerged."
"Fortunately, the Uchiha have not been abandoned by fate. Jin appeared."
"This old man has grown tired. From this moment on, Jin will serve as the leader of the radical faction."
Cheers erupted instantly.
No one raised an objection.
It was obvious that everyone present had long since lost patience with Fugaku.
Yet seated at the head of the room, the young man at the center of it all showed no sign of excitement.
He was Uchiha Jin.
A reincarnated soul from another world.
He had not arrived recently. He had been born into this world more than a decade ago.
He possessed no system and no miraculous advantage. He grew steadily, step by step, relying solely on discipline and caution. Fortunately, his bloodline potential was respectable.
Though he was not considered a prodigy among the Uchiha, he was still regarded as a capable shinobi within Konoha.
He had never considered hiding his abilities or lying low. He simply did not have the privilege to do so.
The Third Shinobi World War had already begun during his academy years. Being sent to the battlefield was inevitable. Concealment was impossible.
And unlike the stories recorded in the original timeline, Konoha's surveillance was suffocatingly strict.
The barrier team monitored the village around the clock. ANBU and Root moved endlessly in the shadows. Orochimaru and Danzo frequently acted in secret. Even Hiruzen Sarutobi abused the Telescope Technique.
Trying to hide would have been suicide.
Over the years, Jin had few friends. Even though he was a contemporary of Kakashi and Obito, he deliberately avoided Minato Namikaze.
He entered the Military Police Force as expected, survived the war, and continued cultivating his strength in silence.
Until one month ago.
His parents vanished.
Jin knew exactly what had happened.
They had been taken by Root.
He had seen it with his own eyes while returning from late night training.
Despite memories from another life, these people were his parents. That bond was real.
And so, on that night, his Mangekyo Sharingan awakened.
The shock was overwhelming. He lost consciousness immediately, which was why he failed to save them.
His Mangekyo abilities were exceptionally rare.
In that moment, all he wanted was destruction.
His left eye awakened a power known as Susanoo Sovereign, an ability associated with absolute annihilation. Once activated, it ignored all defenses and erased its target entirely, including time and space.
Because Jin understood the fatal flaw of the Mangekyo, his right eye awakened Amanotsune.
A power tied to time itself, capable of reversing his own temporal state.
Consumed ocular power could be restored as well.
With proper mastery, Jin suspected it could even allow him to move through past and future, an enhanced form of Izanagi.
However, this was not an Eternal Mangekyo. While his right eye could restore the power of his left, it still consumed its own strength.
Yet because it was bound to time, it possessed a terrifying advantage.
Recovery.
Given enough time, it could naturally generate ocular power.
For other Uchiha, Mangekyo power was finite.
For Jin, it was renewable.
Originally, he had planned to escape.
The plan was simple.
During missions, he had quietly prepared multiple false identities outside the village. His intention was to leave with his family before the night of the massacre.
If they avoided Konoha's first wave of pursuit, news of the Uchiha massacre would spread, forcing other villages to react.
In recorded history, the attempted kidnapping of Hinata occurred during that same period.
Konoha would be forced to reinforce its borders, leaving no manpower to hunt him down.
He would take his family to the Land of Snow, far from the endless conflicts of the shinobi world.
But Root acted first.
They shattered his preparations.
And ignited his fury.
Did they truly believe he would endure this quietly?
To save his parents, knowing Fugaku would never act, Jin revealed his Mangekyo and joined the radicals. He personally planned several operations.
Only now had he fully taken control of the faction.
At that moment, he drew in a deep breath.
Looking at the Uchiha around him, their faces filled with reverence and fervor, Jin stood.
"Empty formalities are meaningless. From today onward, I am the leader of the radical faction."
"I promise to lead you to victory. I promise to reclaim the dignity that was taken from us."
"I…"
He was interrupted by a knock at the door.
Another Uchiha entered.
"Lord Jin. Elder Setsuna."
"The clan head has issued an order. An emergency clan meeting is to be held immediately."
Silence fell.