Elder Setsuna grew visibly more excited as he continued to speak, his aged, previously hunched body seeming to physically straighten a bit under the weight of his renewed hope.
"Renka! Did you clearly hear that? This is absolutely not a blind, desperate escape into the wilderness; this is a highly calculated, strategic path to rise again with a crystal-clear goal and an entirely feasible route to victory! Hiro doesn't merely possess the legendary, god-like power of the Mangekyo Sharingan; he possesses the brilliant tactical mind and the grand strategic vision to perfectly match that overwhelming ocular power!"
"Following his lead, I can finally rest easy in my old age! The boiling blood of the proud Uchiha clan will absolutely never cool, and it will certainly much less be tragically extinguished in the shadows; it will undoubtedly burn even more fiercely and brightly in an entirely new, welcoming land!"
"Yes, Elder Setsuna! Yes, Lord Hiro!"
Led directly by Renka, the ten elite Uchiha warriors responded in perfect, resounding unison. Their voices no longer held even a single, microscopic trace of human hesitation, carrying only a blazing, unyielding fighting spirit and a profoundly strong, desperate anticipation for their shared future.
The intense way they all looked directly at Hiro was entirely filled to the brim with absolute, complete trust and the unbreakable, lethal determination to follow him to the very ends of the earth.
Uchiha Setsuna quietly watched this highly emotional, inspiring scene unfold with immense, profound gratification, once again solemnly and heavily placing the ancient storage scroll containing the mapped secret passages directly into Hiro's waiting hands.
"Take this map, guard it with your life, and act with the utmost tactical caution. When you finally reach the Hidden Cloud Village... please look up at the sky and see for me if the roaring lightning there is truly more vibrant and alive than Konoha's fading, dying fire."
He paused for a heavy moment, his raspy voice deliberately lowering with a final, massive entrustment of duty.
"Live on, survive at all costs, and grow exponentially strong. The entire future of the Uchiha bloodline now rests squarely upon your capable shoulders."
Hiro tightly gripped the heavy scroll in his hand and nodded incredibly heavily, his dark eyes resolute. "I will absolutely not fail this sacred trust."
Pale, cold moonlight gently spilled directly through the jagged cracks in the high stone window, softly illuminating the incredibly resolute, hardened young faces of the gathered shinobi.
The heavy, dangerous shadow of permanent defection undeniably still loomed large over their heads, and the long, bloody road lying ahead of them would surely be completely filled with sharp thorns and lethal enemies.
But at this exact, pivotal moment in time, deep within this dim, hidden stone room, a fragile but unyielding seed named rebirth had already violently broken straight through the dark, oppressive soil. It grew rapidly with the characteristic, unbreakable pride and absolute resolve of the Uchiha, aiming straight for the distant, stormy sky where the thunder absolutely never ceased its roaring.
"Hiro has truly, undeniably grown up into a formidable leader," Setsuna thought silently to himself.
Deep within the elder Setsuna's vast memory, although Uchiha Hiro's inherent combat talent had always been universally recognized as utterly peerless—with absolutely no one in the entire, prestigious Uchiha clan able to genuinely compare to his natural growth rate, not even the Clan Head's own highly praised son, Uchiha Fugaku, who was distinctly a full notch below him in raw potential.
But perhaps entirely because of his immense, unchallenged natural talent, the younger version of Hiro had previously possessed a highly impulsive, hot-blooded personality, often acting aggressively without fully considering the complex political consequences. This tragic flaw was exactly why the previous occupant of this body had been so incredibly easily goaded and manipulated by Danzo's shadowy provocations, directly leading him to foolishly attempt the solo assassination of the One-Tails Jinchuriki in a blinding fit of manipulated rage.
"He has highly likely realized some profound, life-altering truths while hovering precariously on the thin boundary between life and death."
Uchiha Setsuna felt incredibly emotional as he looked deeply at the highly steady, deeply wise, and remarkably far-sighted Hiro standing confidently before him. He genuinely felt that this incredibly narrow escape from the grim reaper, although extremely dangerous and nearly fatal, had completely and unexpectedly polished this raw, unrefined stone into a brilliant, flawless gemstone displaying its absolute most brilliant, blinding luster.
The old warhawk could absolutely never have possibly imagined that the young man standing so confidently before him right now was actually already a completely brand-new, unique existence entirely—a flawless, seamless fusion of an otherworldly, transmigrated soul and the heavy, blood-soaked memories of the body's previous owner.
Hiro calmly received the completely undisguised, heavy look of profound gratification and massive entrustment emanating from Elder Setsuna, his highly analytical mind remaining perfectly clear and undisturbed. After a brief, calculated moment of deep contemplation, he finally spoke up to address the room.
"Elder Setsuna, the overarching strategic plan is now firmly set in stone, but the physical, logistical matter of actually executing a flawless defection is highly complex and absolutely still requires meticulous, rapid preparation on all our parts."
Setsuna gave a firm, understanding nod.
"Hiro, immediately after you return to your quarters, you must prepare yourself as quickly and efficiently as humanly possible. Absolutely do not delay or hesitate for even a single second."
Elder Setsuna gave his absolute final, stern instructions, his aged, tired eyes entirely filled with a deep, unconcealed, fatherly concern for their safety.
Hiro nodded in acknowledgment, his glowing crimson gaze slowly and deliberately sweeping over Renka and the other nine elite operatives standing at attention. His vocal tone remained incredibly steady, carrying a heavy, distinct hint of absolute, unalterable decisiveness.
"Everyone, carefully and silently return to your respective homes immediately upon leaving this safe house. Exactly as I just previously stated, make the absolute most streamlined, efficient preparations possible. You are to bring only your lethal weapons, essential ninja tools, highly concentrated survival supplies, and your most valuable, personal ninjutsu scrolls."
"In exactly two hours from now, precisely at two in the morning, you are all to silently assemble directly under the shadow of the Abandoned Watchtower located at the far southeast corner of the Third Training Ground, positioned right behind the Hokage Rock monument."
"Yes, Lord Hiro!"
The ten highly trained operatives responded in perfect, hushed unison, but a fleeting, tiny hint of natural tactical doubt briefly flashed through their sharp eyes because Hiro entirely didn't seem to mention his own specific, personal logistical arrangements for the rendezvous.
"Elder, I absolutely need to take one more specific person with me on this journey."
Hiro slowly turned back around to directly face Setsuna, his voice incredibly clear, commanding, and undeniably firm.
"My brother, Shisui."
The tense ambient air remaining in the small stone room instantly froze slightly at the unexpected declaration. The specific name Uchiha Shisui was absolutely not unfamiliar to any of the highly trained Uchiha elites currently present in the hidden base.
He was Hiro's brother, sharing the exact same bloodline. Although the boy was only six or seven years old at this current point in time, he had already remarkably displayed truly extraordinary, terrifying ninja talent and an incredibly precocious, mature temperament far beyond his physical years. Vastly more importantly to the current situation, the young boy extremely, unconditionally admired and entirely relied on his brother for guidance and survival.
Elder Setsuna deeply pondered the massive logistical complication for a long, tense moment.
"That young child, Shisui... his inherent natural talent is indeed absolutely amazing, perhaps even rivaling your own at that age, and his personal character remains entirely pure. But he is vastly too young for this, and the bloody path of defection is exceptionally, lethally dangerous for a seasoned veteran, let alone a child. Willingly taking him along..."
However, as a deeply experienced, hardened veteran of the proud Uchiha clan, Setsuna was incredibly well aware of the clan's inherently fierce, unbreakable loyalty to their immediate kin, and therefore, he wisely did not outright refuse Hiro's absolute demand.
"It is precisely and exactly because the long road ahead of us is so incredibly dangerous that I absolutely cannot, in good conscience, ever leave him entirely alone and unprotected within the hostile walls of Konoha," Hiro stated firmly.
Internally, Hiro ruthlessly calculated that he absolutely did not want to foolishly leave behind such a terrifyingly formidable, future weapon for Konoha's manipulative elders to brainwash and utilize against him; the legendary mind-control ability of Kotoamatsukami was so fundamentally, conceptually overpowered that he genuinely didn't even know if his own enhanced mind would eventually fall victim to its absolute commands in the future.
Besides that grim tactical reality, what if he eventually, desperately needed a compatible blood relative to successfully awaken the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan in the distant future... although, thanks to his current unique physical state, he didn't really face the immediate, tragic risk of progressive blindness.
"Shisui is a proud child of the Uchiha and my own flesh and blood. The paranoid suspicion and the systematic, brutal suppression coming directly from the Konoha higher-ups toward our people will absolutely only deepen and become more violent after our sudden disappearance tonight. If I selfishly leave entirely alone and Shisui remains trapped here, exactly what kind of horrific fate will he inevitably face in the dark future?"
"To be constantly monitored by the Anbu, psychologically manipulated by Danzo, and completely exploited as a mindless weapon for the village? Or, exactly like the rest of our passive clansmen, to gradually and painfully suffocate to death in an increasingly, suffocatingly oppressive political environment? I absolutely cannot and will not ever tolerate that horrific possibility."
He slowly shifted his piercing gaze toward Renka and the other nine operatives.
"Taking Shisui along with us tonight will indeed undeniably add some logistical, physical burden to our rapid escape, but he is incredibly sensible, highly disciplined, and will absolutely never do anything to hold everyone back during a combat situation. Furthermore..."
Hiro paused briefly, letting the heavy weight of his next words settle.
"His latent combat potential might honestly be far, far beyond our current, limited imagination. The grand, glorious future of the Uchiha clan absolutely shouldn't just rest solely on our tired shoulders; securing the survival and growth of the next generation is equally, fundamentally important to our ultimate victory."
Renka was predictably the very first one to bravely speak up, firmly nodding his head in absolute agreement.
"Shisui is an incredibly good, disciplined kid and he is vastly, remarkably smart for his age. If we take him with us, we will all simply take strict, rotating shifts looking out for his safety on the road. Securing one more living family member inherently means securing one more vital source of future strength for our clan."
From this exact night onward, Uchiha Hiro would be their absolute, unquestioned leader. In a highly dangerous, totally unfamiliar military village like the Hidden Cloud, only by strictly following a brilliant, overwhelmingly powerful leader like Hiro could they ever possibly ensure they wouldn't simply be chewed up and violently devoured by the resident shinobi, so Renka naturally supported Hiro's command one hundred percent without hesitation.
The other elite Uchiha warriors also quickly and firmly chimed in with their vocal support. Under the heavy, terrifying shadow of high treason and defection, the innate, biological bonds of shared blood and family seemed especially, profoundly precious to them all. Taking and fiercely protecting one more highly talented Uchiha seed effectively meant preserving one more bright, burning hope for their collective survival.
Elder Setsuna, clearly seeing the unified, unbreakable resolve of the entire group, no longer attempted to politically oppose the decision, only letting out a very long, highly exhausted sigh into the quiet room.
"You are undeniably right. I simply didn't think the complex matter entirely through. For that incredibly talented child, Shisui... strictly following your path tonight might truly be his absolute best and only viable way out of this rotting village. Only, exactly how will you manage to quickly convince him to leave his home? He is incredibly young; can his developing mind realistically handle such an incredibly sudden, massive, and traumatic upheaval to his life?"
"Shisui trusts me completely with his life."
Hiro's vocal tone was absolutely full to the brim with unwavering, ironclad confidence.
"He is vastly more perceptive and emotionally intelligent than the vast majority of his sheltered peers, and he can undoubtedly, much better understand the true, grim meaning behind our sudden leaving. I will carefully and precisely explain the harsh political reality to him, at least partially, so he understands the stakes. But our window of opportunity is incredibly tight; I absolutely must return to the compound immediately to secure him."
Having perfectly integrated all the vivid, emotional memories of the body's former occupant, he was incredibly, intimately well aware of the profound, unbreakable familial bond existing between Shisui and himself.
He smoothly turned his attention directly back to Renka and issued his final, authoritative order in a low, dangerous voice.
"Renka, you are now officially responsible for meticulously coordinating everyone's rapid evacuation preparations to absolutely ensure that absolutely nothing goes wrong tonight. In exactly two hours, waiting directly at the abandoned watchtower, I absolutely expect to see every single one of you, and I will be there with Shisui. I will not accept a single person missing from our ranks."
"Yes, sir! Please rest absolutely assured, Lord Hiro!" Uchiha Renka immediately straightened his spine into a perfect, rigid military posture, his dark eyes showing nothing but absolute, unquestioning obedience to his new commander.
Hiro smoothly turned and gave a final, incredibly deep, highly respectful bow directly to Elder Setsuna. "Elder, please, I beg of you, take the utmost care of yourself while remaining behind within the hostile walls of Konoha. We... we will absolutely meet again in the future."
"Be incredibly careful on the dark road ahead of you." Elder Setsuna weakly waved his scarred, weathered hand and deliberately turned his face away, actively choosing to no longer look directly at Hiro, acting exactly as if he were deeply afraid his overwhelming, fatherly emotions would visibly leak out entirely too much.
Hiro hesitated absolutely no longer. His dark, cloaked figure rapidly blurred out of focus, seamlessly and flawlessly blending directly into the pitch-black night exactly like a completely intangible ghost as he sped silently back toward his family home.
He was moving incredibly, blindingly fast, his activated Sharingan glowing ever so faintly in the deep darkness, allowing him to precisely, flawlessly avoid the heavy visual sweeps of the patrolling Anbu black ops and the active Military Police Force, slipping through their nets exactly like a silent, invisible fish swimming effortlessly through the deepest shadows.