Night settled over the village, the moonlight piercing through trees branches.
Itachi returned to the Uchiha compound, his thoughts weighing on him. He found his father sitting quietly, sipping tea. "Father," Itachi began, "Have you been spending much time with the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki lately?"
"Naruto?" Fugaku lowered his cup. "He's a good kid." A touch of warmth entered his voice. 'If it weren't for that boy,' Fugaku thought, 'I'd still be drowning in worry over the clan's future.'
"Father..." Itachi paused. Seeing his father's dismissive air, Itachi knew he had to be more direct, "Is the clan getting too close to the Jinchuriki?"
"Who do you think you are talking to!?" Fugaku's voice was a low, sharp snap. He stared hard at his eldest son. "In what capacity are you speaking to me right now? As my son? Or as a member of the Anbu?"
He leaned forward slightly. "Are you warning me? Your father? The head of the Uchiha clan?"
"Itachi. Remember who you are. You are an Uchiha."
Fugaku's anger wasn't unfounded. From his perspective, Itachi had overstepped. Yet, from Konoha's standpoint, Itachi's warning was perfectly reasonable.
Itachi took a slow breath. "Forgive me, Father. That was disrespectful."
'Has it really come to this?' Fugaku wondered grimly. 'Can Konoha no longer wait? For the clan's last hope... for Sasuke... I have to accelerate the plan.'
Itachi watched his father, considering another angle entirely. 'Father's been different lately... less stern. The worry lines on his face aren't as deep. And this connection to Naruto, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki...' Then it clicked.
'So the Uchiha can't hold back any longer?' he thought. 'They intend to control the Jinchuriki... control the Nine-Tails itself? Use its power for a coup... So many people will die. I have to act quickly.'
They stood worlds apart, seeing the same situation through entirely different lenses, father and son arrived at vastly different conclusions, their words missing each other entirely. With their own hidden purposes driving them, the conversation ended abruptly.
Unseen currents pulled taut beneath the surface, casting a shadow over the whole of Konoha.
Time trickled by, day after day.
Both the Uchiha Elders and Konoha's Advisors seemed poised, waiting.
The stalemate continued until the voices of the clan's War faction finally drowned out Fugaku's authority. Having exhausted their patience with Konoha, the Uchiha were indeed plotting a coup.
At Konoha, acting on intelligence received, confirmed the unrest, and plans were drawn up to move against the Uchiha clan soon.
--**--**
"Itachi." The voice came from the shadows. A figure emerged, black robe, orange spiral mask. "Your clan is preparing to make its move."
"Those arrogant fools," the masked man continued, his voice dripping with disdain. "They have no idea their choice leads only to the grave."
"Always the same. Shortsighted, grasping... they never learn."
Itachi stared at him, the man from the night the Nine-Tails rampage. He had approached Itachi some time ago. Their objectives, however different their reasons, aligned on one terrible point: the Uchiha clan's annihilation.
Itachi said nothing, methodically wiping his katana clean as the masked man spat his venom against the clan.
"When will you act?" The masked man's tone shifted seemingly finished venting, his tone returning to its usual calm. "As we agreed, I will assist you."
Itachi paused his polishing. "Tonight. Sasuke will be training late at the grounds."
"Such a considerate older brother," the masked man chuckled, a dry, rasping sound. "Can't bear for him to see the slaughter? He'll know soon enough."
"My goal is his Sharingan," Itachi stated flatly, his face blank. "As you said, only the eyes of a sibling can unlock the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan. I look forward to claiming that power."
"Is that so?" The masked man tilted his head slightly. "Such power is... intoxicating. You may find you develop a taste for it." He didn't press further, simply watching Itachi through the single eyehole of his mask.
Whatever the reasons, after tonight, the Uchiha clan would be reduced to history. Only three would remain in the entire world: Obito Uchiha, Itachi Uchiha, and Sasuke Uchiha.
--**--**
Elsewhere, within the Uchiha compound...
"The Flying Thunder God Guiding Thunder seals are set," the former Hokage continued. "Everything in the Land of Whirlpools is prepared. We can begin whenever you are."
"Tonight," Fugaku sighed, his gaze lingering on the familiar lines of his home, a pang of sadness tightening his chest. "I can't hold back the war faction any longer, and Konoha is poised to strike. There's no room left for reconciliation."
"Naruto and I will remain here tonight, to help."
"Naruto?" Fugaku frowned. "Is it safe for him? Isn't it too dangerous for him to stay? If anything goes wrong..."
Minato shook his head gently. "Don't worry about Naruto. The power he holds... it's more than you imagine."
It seemed fate itself had converged on this single night. Konoha's leadership, the masked man, and Fugaku's desperate gamble, all set to unfold under the same moon.
The streets lay silent, deserted under the dim yellow glow of the lamps where moths fluttered. High above, the moon hung full and blood-red.
An ominous crimson. Just like the night the Nine-Tails rampaged.
Fugaku tilted his head back, looking at the sky, a knot of unease tightening in his gut. Something felt wrong.
He took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. "Let's begin."
Under Fugaku's quiet direction, Uchiha clan members slipped from the shadows, stepping onto the complex seal array laid out on the ground, for Flying Thunder God Guiding Thunder. A flicker of light, the brief flare of the seal activating, and they vanished into the night.
One hundred and twenty men, women, and children. A fraction of the clan's full strength, yet a significant number, more than many smaller clans possessed in total. These were the ones Fugaku could reach, the ones he knew he could trust with this secret exodus. They were the vanguard, the seed carriers for the Uchiha's future.
With tensions between Konoha and the Uchiha stretched to the breaking point, conflict felt inevitable. If the worst happened, these hundred and twenty were the clan's only hope for survival.
Fugaku watched until the last figure disappeared, the seal fading, and only then did he allow himself a quiet sigh, releasing some of the tension gripping him.
Now, only the most fervent war hawks, the uninvolved civilians, and Fugaku's own family remained within the compound walls.
"I need to try and talk to the others who remain," Fugaku said, turning back to Minato. He wouldn't leave yet. "If I can convince any more... I may need your help again in a few days."
He was still the clan head. They were all Uchiha. How could he abandon hundreds of his own people without trying? Hundreds of lives hung in the balance.
"Don't worry, Fugaku," Minato assured him. "Leave it to me."
The words had barely left Minato's mouth when the night's fragile peace shattered.
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