Feeling the fanatical admiration and reverence in the gazes of the Uchiha below him, Uchiha Ren felt very satisfied.
The Uchiha clan had always been like this—
as long as you were one of their own and stronger than them, you naturally gained the right to speak.
It wasn't just the ordinary Uchiha shinobi below. Even Elder Uchiha Setsuna and Uchiha Ya were now looking at Ren differently.
The sternness from earlier had disappeared.
In its place was a trace of burning excitement.
Ren dismissed the Susanoo aura and oppressive pressure surrounding him. Looking at Setsuna and Ya, he said coldly:
"Elder Setsuna, Elder Ya—what do the two of you say?"
Unlike the ordinary clan members below, Setsuna and Ya held considerable authority within the Uchiha clan. Ren needed a clear answer from them.
Otherwise, if these two old foxes secretly opposed him while pretending to cooperate, they would only create trouble later.
So Ren had already laid out two paths for them:
Either obey and work under him properly, remaining part of the clan's unified front.
Or… go meet the Sage of Six Paths.
Setsuna and Ya exchanged a glance. Both clearly understood the hidden meaning in Ren 's words.
Setsuna's eyes burned as he spoke.
"Ren , if you want the Uchiha to have only one voice in the future, that's not a problem. In fact, what the Second Elder and I intended to do today was quite similar."
"But before we make a decision, you should at least tell us—"
"What exactly is your voice?"
Uchiha Ya glanced at Uchiha Fugaku, who stood behind Ren , before speaking as well.
"Ren , you've certainly given us a surprise today."
"But if you want to convince everyone, force alone isn't enough."
Unlike many other Uchiha, Setsuna and Ya had reached the position of elders because they had brains to match their strength.
The power Ren had displayed already dispelled most doubts.
But without understanding his true intentions, they would not blindly follow him into the darkness.
They had their own plans as well.
"That's exactly what I'm about to explain."
Ren swept his gaze over them before turning to the entire Uchiha clan below and speaking loudly:
"Everyone, I want to ask you three questions."
"What are the needs of the Uchiha clan?"
"What is the stance of the Uchiha clan?"
"And who are the enemies of the Uchiha clan?"
As soon as the words fell, the crowd reacted in different ways.
Some fell into deep thought.
Some were full of confusion.
But most simply looked lost.
They had never considered such questions before.
Setsuna frowned and said in a deep voice:
"Ren , if you have something to say, say it directly. Why bother with all this roundabout talk?"
As the representative of the Radical Faction within the clan, Setsuna had always been hot-tempered and disliked complicated rhetoric.
Ren snorted lightly.
"If you can't even figure out these three questions, how can you possibly see the road ahead?"
"That's also the reason why after arguing for so many years, the clan has still failed to unite as one."
Ren knew that only by making everyone see the real problem could they establish a shared goal.
And only with a shared goal could the entire clan move in the same direction.
So some things had to be explained clearly.
However, seeing the confused expressions of the Uchiha below, Ren knew it was unrealistic to expect them to reach conclusions on their own in such a short time.
He would have to spell it out himself.
"Since no one has any ideas yet, I'll share my perspective first."
After pausing briefly, Ren continued:
"First question—what does the Uchiha clan need?"
"Back in the chaotic Warring States Era, it was the Uchiha clan and the Senju clan who together founded Konohagakure."
"For this, the Uchiha clan even contributed the territory we had ruled for thousands of years—without compensation."
"In terms of seniority and contribution, the Uchiha should be one of Konoha's founding elders and one of its true ruling powers."
"But what is the reality?"
"The reality is that nearly every member of the Uchiha clan has been confined within the Konoha Military Police Force."
"That in itself wouldn't be a problem."
"When it was first established, the Konoha Military Police Force held significant authority and was one of Konoha's core departments."
"But as departments like the ANBU, Root, the Konoha Interrogation Division, and the Barrier Team were established…"
"…the Military Police gradually lost most of its real power."
"It has now become a marginal department within Konoha—handling nothing but trivial disputes every day."
"At the same time, because of various suppressions from the village leadership, the Uchiha clan never received any corresponding compensation."
"As a result, in all the village's true power departments, there is not a single Uchiha."
"And the Uchiha clan itself has gradually become a marginalized clan within Konoha."
"To put it bluntly—"
"The Uchiha clan's position in Konoha right now is like a toilet."
"When the village needs it, they take it out and use it."
"When they don't, they throw it aside like garbage."
"And that is absolutely unfair to the Uchiha clan!"
Ren 's words resonated deeply with the Uchiha present, filling them with indignation and anger.
Because this was the truth of their situation.
Of course, the Uchiha clan's current predicament wasn't solely the result of the village's suppression.
A large part of the blame also lay with the Uchiha themselves.
Logically speaking, whenever the village established new departments that stripped authority from the Military Police, the Uchiha should have demanded other powers in exchange.
That would have been the normal exchange of interests.
But the Uchiha clan had acted like complete fools.
They allowed the village to carve away their authority piece by piece, never realizing something was wrong.
That was why the Uchiha had gradually withdrawn from Konoha's core decision-making circle.
With political awareness like that, it would be a miracle if Hiruzen Sarutobi and the other old foxes didn't toy with them.
Naturally, Ren would never point out his own clan's stupidity in front of everyone.
So he didn't mention that part at all.
After giving the clan members some time to digest his words, Ren continued:
"So the Uchiha clan's need right now can be summed up in six words."
"Fairness. Fairness. And damn it—fairness!"
"We need the village to give the Uchiha clan a fair environment."
"A fair channel for advancement."
"And fair treatment."
"We need the village to return fairness to the Uchiha clan!"
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