I, Uchiha: Split Konoha

Chapter 131 The Seeds of Change Have Begun

"At night, while you were being monitored and imprisoned in the office building, I took advantage of the unrest in the village to secretly investigate the Sarutobi clan and discovered that it was all Sarutobi Umeko, the eldest daughter-in-law of the Third Hokage, who was secretly instigating everything."

"At the same time, I also joined forces with other advisors, and although a gag order was issued for Lord Orochimaru's human experiments, I secretly went to Lord Orochimaru's research base and discovered some clues."

"What Lord Orochimaru researches falls under the category of forbidden techniques. According to the records left by my father, these are forbidden techniques of the village and are strictly prohibited from being researched. Only a very few people in the village are qualified to read these forbidden technique records, and the teaching of forbidden techniques requires the consent of at least two advisors."

"How did Lord Orochimaru obtain his forbidden techniques? And everything we did during that time clearly involved Root as well. Root leader Shimura Danzo, and the two advisors that Sarutobi Umeko colluded with—that's a total of three high-ranking officials involved. And how many high-ranking officials are there in the entire Hidden Leaf Village?"

Kakashi Hatake began to recount his investigation and his series of analyses in a low voice, which made Yoru Uchiha even more alarmed. Goodness, the other party has really been busy lately.

As soon as Kakashi finished speaking, Uchiha Shisui gritted his teeth and said, "Brother Yoru, do you know where those kids and ninjas we intercepted went?"

"The Nara family members have returned to their clan, and the children of the Daimyo's mansion have also gone home. The remaining children and ninjas without any identity or background have either been recruited by Root or sent to the most dangerous places on the front lines. How many of them will be able to return?"

It was obvious that Uchiha Shisui and Kakashi had exchanged information beforehand, and at this moment, they seemed to be out of control. Uchiha Yoru gave an extremely forced smile in their eyes.

"Kakashi, Shisui, you must believe in the Will of Fire. Corruption is only temporary. We'll wait for the new Hokage!"

Before Uchiha Yoru could finish speaking, Shisui interrupted him.

"A new Hokage? Is it Sarutobi Shinnosuke? If such a Hokage really appears, then what's the difference between him and the current corrupt high-ranking officials? They're still a bunch of cowardly old guys living in a life of debauchery, enjoying all this thanks to the sacrifices of young ninjas."

Now, Uchiha Shisui seemed to have seen through everything completely. His eyes were filled with extreme disgust, and he even laughed self-deprecatingly, saying, "Brother Night, do you know that while you were being monitored, the Third Hokage sent people to approach me, talking a lot about the Will of Fire, but all he wanted was for me to monitor you?"

"The current Third Hokage is truly corrupt. He has no sense of shame whatsoever. He speaks of the Will of Fire with an open mouth, but he hides in the village and comfortably watches the young ninjas bleed on the front lines."

In Shisui's eyes now, the forced smile on his brother Yoru's face seemed to be the last fig leaf covering the Hokage's higher-ups in the village.

Kakashi Hatake, standing to the side, nodded in a deep, hoarse voice and said, "The Third Hokage may have made many contributions to Konoha in the past, but he has really changed now. He has become obsessed with power and cannot tolerate any dissenting thoughts. I am here to monitor you on the orders of the Third Hokage."

Good heavens, Shisui and Kakashi must have communicated during the time he was under surveillance, thus gaining a deep understanding of the Konoha leadership. Otherwise, how could they have such dark thoughts?

"Kakashi! Shisui! Your thoughts are dangerous right now."

At this moment, Uchiha Yoru looked directly at the two with a solemn expression, "I don't care what truth you two have uncovered, but Konoha cannot withstand any more turmoil. I hope you two understand that."

Kakashi Hatake and Shisui Uchiha fell silent after hearing this. Looking at their expressions, Yoru Uchiha sighed softly and showed an understanding look.

"The village is not as good as you imagined, and I am more heartbroken than you are by this. Orochimaru was forced to leave the village. Although the village leaders bear an unshirkable responsibility for all of this, Konoha is our home, and we are also executioners with our hands stained with blood."

At this point, Uchiha Yoru gave a self-deprecating laugh, looking at the two of them with low spirits, and said, "Moreover, this war won't end so quickly."

Seemingly noticing Uchiha Yoru's unusual expression, the quickest-thinking Kakashi Hatake seemed to realize something and asked in a hoarse voice, "Yoru, have you discovered something?"

Shisui's strength may not be inferior to Kakashi's, and he may even have surpassed Kakashi's genius after awakening the Mangekyou Sharingan at this time. However, in terms of mental fortitude and political acumen, he is far behind Kakashi.

Uchiha Yoru let out a long sigh and sat down in the commander's seat, looking somewhat weak. "The village wants to use the border conflict to weaken Orochimaru's followers. Moreover! According to information from Root, the village is planning to take action against the Uchiha clan after the war ends and things stabilize."

What!

Both of them showed expressions of shock. They could understand that Orochimaru's followers were being targeted, but the fact that the village had already begun to take action against the Uchiha clan once the border was stable, while the border was still in a state of turmoil, seemed somewhat incomprehensible. However, after thinking about Orochimaru's fate, they began to understand.

The village is now corrupt, and any uncontrolled forces will be targeted.

"Konoha was founded by the Uchiha and Senju! How dare they! Back then, it was we Uchiha and Senju who took in Sarutobi and Shimura, and now our retainers have turned on us and want to betray their lord!"

Shisui may be very strong, but he is far inferior in this aspect. This statement alone could easily cause misunderstandings. It's just that Kakashi is easygoing and didn't mind, plus he also saw the decay of the village.

With Shisui's worldview changed, he was filled with pride for the Senju clan that founded Konoha and for his own family. He even regarded Konoha as his own private property. However, at this moment, he was filled with anger.

The arrogance of the Uchiha clan is ingrained in their bones, and at this moment, Shisui finally revealed the unique arrogance of the Uchiha, looking at the matter with anger.

Shisui now sees Konoha as the private property of the Uchiha clan, while Kakashi is relatively calm. Although Shisui is somewhat obsessive and morbid, he is someone who is willing to sacrifice for the village.

"Night, what are your plans?"

The composed Kakashi raised his head, revealing his single, lifeless eye, and asked in a low voice. He didn't believe that Uchiha Yoru, whom Orochimaru, the Sannin, considered his successor, would sit idly by and wait for his doom.

Upon hearing this, Uchiha Shisui also showed excitement, staring intently at his older brother, Yoru. His personality was the kind that placed his hopes on others. After Orochimaru was driven out of Konoha, under the endless repression, he placed almost all his hopes on his older brother.

It can be said that Shisui was a born ninja, but he was never a leader, as can be seen from his suicide attempt by jumping off a waterfall in the original work.

Uchiha Shisui was a powerful ninja, but not a competent clan leader.

Shisui's gaze was nothing unusual, but Kakashi Hatake's gaze silenced Uchiha Yoru. Although Kakashi was currently in his darkest hour, an analysis of his character from the original work led to the conclusion that he was no ordinary person!

Putting aside Kakashi and Might Guy's bizarre slacking off during the Chunin Exams, the fact that he later became the Sixth Hokage is enough to prove that his vision and mind were never those of a simple ninja.

An ancestor from a previous life once said that one lie requires countless lies to cover it up, but a lie is always a lie, and it will eventually be exposed.

After a long silence, Uchiha Yoru slowly raised his head and looked at Kakashi and Shisui. Their mentality had developed too quickly, so quickly that he was caught off guard. Now he could only take the risk and test them.

"All of this is unfair to the ninjas fighting on the front lines. They are still young. Sarutobi Shinnosuke is the commander-in-chief on the border of the Land of Lightning, while Sarutobi Asuma enjoys the guidance of the village's elite Jonin and is enjoying everything behind the scenes."

"The ancestors of the Uchiha and Senju clans founded Konoha for peace, and it shouldn't become a machine for the greed and selfishness of some. I intend to protect myself first by harboring bandits, and then change the village!"

Raising bandits to respect themselves?

There was no such saying in the ninja world. Shisui looked somewhat bewildered, while Kakashi Hatake seemed to have figured something out from the words and couldn't help but show a look of shock. He had never thought that the other party would solve the problem from this angle.

After all, this solution had never appeared in the ninja world before, leaving them completely bewildered. Uchiha Yoru, however, explained it to the two of them with a serious expression.

"During the Third World War, I witnessed a scene while on a mission in a small country. Due to the impact of the war, merchants had to pay several times the usual fee to hire ninjas to escort their goods. It seemed that these hired ninjas had secretly reached some kind of deal with the local bandits. The battles between the two sides were very restrained. Although there were battles every time, neither side ever really eliminated the other."

"Because if the ninja eliminate the bandits, then the journey in this area will be smooth sailing. Merchants will no longer need to spend a lot of money to hire them, and the ninja will lose their means of livelihood. Similarly, if the bandits eliminate the ninja, then the next batch of merchants will hire stronger and more ninja to escort them. The ninja and the bandits are almost tacitly restrained, and this tacit understanding even reveals a strange rule in the chaotic world."

As he listened to Kakashi Hatake and Shisui Uchiha recount a story, Yoru Uchiha gave a bitter smile. "I don't know if this is the right thing to do, but I know that ending this war will come at a terrible price. They are all ninjas who followed Orochimaru-sensei and never made a mistake. They survived the Third Shinobi World War, but now they can only remain on the battlefield, while other ninjas can enjoy peace in the village. It's so unfair to them."

"I also have my own selfish motives. With the war over, the village's target will be the Uchiha clan, who are suspected of the Nine-Tails' attack. Then it will be another incident like Orochimaru's, and I don't want to go through that again. Right now, I just want to accumulate strength and then change the corrupt village!"

After Uchiha Yoru spoke his mind, Kakashi and Shisui fell silent. The incidents involving White Fang and Orochimaru were a painful reminder of Konoha's suffering. The fact that just two Kage-level shinobi had caused such a stir meant that the Uchiha clan, being the strongest clan, would likely cause an even greater upheaval.

"Brother Ye, do you mean to deliberately leave the enemy unattacked, or to keep the opposing forces in check to make your own position more important?"

Although Uchiha Shisui deeply resented the corruption of the higher-ups, he also did not want to start a civil war. Therefore, he was shocked by his older brother's novel idea, but upon closer examination, it seemed to make a lot of sense.

Uchiha Yoru nodded with a wry smile after hearing this, "That's right. As long as the war on the front lines continues, the village won't be able to spare the resources to start a civil war."

Kakashi Hatake was secretly alarmed, but he couldn't help but show his admiration. "York, the Third Hokage has planted countless spies on the front lines. One of the Third Hokage's missions was to have them secretly sow discord among the Uchiha clan once the situation on the front lines stabilized."

Uchiha Yoru was shocked upon hearing this. This time, he was genuinely telling the truth, without any pretense. After the initial shock, he felt a chill run down his spine and couldn't help but gasp, exclaiming in horror, "The Third Hokage has some impressive skills."

"The split within the Hyuga clan has shown the Konoha leadership how to weaken bloodline clans. Since I have accepted my teacher's followers, I must also accept the infamy he bears. I will use this as an excuse to incite a split within the Uchiha clan."

Kakashi Hatake no longer trusts the Third Hokage and has even betrayed the Hokage's leadership. Similarly, Kakashi's willingness to trust Yoru Uchiha stems from his personal experience of everything.

Orochimaru, one of the legendary Sannin, was abandoned by the higher-ups due to the consequences of his actions, as well as the matter of his father, Sakumo Hatake.

Uchiha Yoru's unwavering belief in the village moved him deeply. Furthermore, Uchiha Yoru, who inherited the power of the Uchiha clan and Orochimaru, one of the Three Legendary Sannin, was already worthy of his consideration.

At the same time, deeply dissatisfied with the village's decay, Kakashi Hatake chose to find like-minded companions to change Konoha.

The village was his home, and he never thought of defecting. Faced with his decaying home, all he could think of was change, or what he called reform. Konoha needed reform! It needed a new Hokage to change everything that was decaying.

"Kakashi, it seems you've also received the Third Hokage's orders to find an opportunity to sow discord."

Upon hearing this, Shisui became even angrier, but he felt more self-deprecating. The ugliness and darkness within the village caused him even greater pain.

"Kakashi, Shisui, I don't know if the road ahead leads to an abyss or something else, but I firmly believe in only one principle!"

At this moment, Uchiha Yoru stared intently at the two, his eyes blazing with unwavering conviction. "Konoha today is just as you see it, controlled by corrupt and aged people. They have lost their fighting spirit and are now intoxicated by power. I want to change that! Therefore, I need to acquire more power so that I can change the village!"

"I once swore an oath! If the village is corrupt, I will do my utmost to become the new Hokage of Konoha, and I will personally change everything! When I become Hokage, the darkness over Konoha will no longer exist, and I will personally welcome the return of Konoha's hero."

At this moment, Uchiha Yoru's eyes shone with fanaticism and determination as he stared intently at Shisui and Kakashi, declaring, "The name of the hero White Fang will be engraved on the village's memorial stone, and Orochimaru-sensei, burdened with infamy, will be vindicated!"

When Uchiha Shisui and Kakashi heard these words, coupled with Uchiha Yoru's resolute gaze, they seemed to resonate with each other on a spiritual level and find their direction.

Uchiha Shisui, needless to say, was a powerful ninja, but his personality meant he never had a backbone in such important matters and would only place his hopes on others.

Kakashi Hatake, however, showed a look of understanding. He was not a pedantic person. As someone who would become the Sixth Hokage in the future, he naturally had a mind that knew how to make choices. Although he was still immature, he had never lacked this kind of mentality.

Sacrifice is required to do anything. Too many heroes have sacrificed themselves for the decay of the village. Now, only reform can change the village. But he had no direction and no power to change everything. But today, Uchiha Yoru gave him a hope.

With his status as the founder of the Uchiha clan in Konoha, coupled with the power (and influence) inherited from Orochimaru, one of the Three Legendary Sannin, he could be considered to have a connection to the Hokage lineage, and it seemed that he might actually succeed.

"Night! Change requires sacrifice. I hope you can truly lead Konoha to peace and to the true Will of Fire!"

Kakashi Hatake responded with a sincere voice, and when Yoru Uchiha saw that Kakashi had chosen to help him, a smile immediately appeared on his face. Looking at Kakashi and Shisui, he smiled.

"No! It's not just me, it's us together!"

The resolute voices echoed within the simple tent. No one could have imagined the profound changes that the unwavering belief in reform held by these three young ninjas with Sharingan would bring to Konoha and the ninja world.

Although it's a war scene, I still want to tell you that it's the same rhythm and scenes you're familiar with, haha.

However, it will include some battle scenes and some storylines about cultivating and gathering forces.

(End of this chapter)