The Uchiha Clan's Sun

But soon Fugaku Uchiha thought of another problem and said, "How did you get the Elder's men to make a move? The Elder is a shrewd man; he won't let any clue escape his notice!"

"If we're not careful, he might discover our plan!"

"That's easy! I'll introduce you to someone." Uchiha Jin clapped his hands with a smile and said, "Come out, Tobi!"

Fugaku Uchiha was taken aback, but then he was horrified!

To Fugaku Uchiha's astonishment, a strange, vortex-shaped creature slowly emerged from beneath the ground!

"Hello, I'm White Zetsu, you can call me Afei!"

Abi smiled and waved at Uchiha Fugaku, displaying a very carefree personality.

"This, this, this..."

Fugaku Uchiha was quite shocked. He hadn't even noticed that there was such a strange person hiding underground at such close range.

"Alright, Afei, let the clan leader see your abilities!"

Uchiha Jin waved to Tobi and gave the order.

"Yes, Lord Jin, let me think about it... Hmm... I've decided on you!"

Abi bit his finger, then pretended to suddenly realize something, and then, to Fugaku Uchiha's astonishment, he gradually transformed into the likeness of Tekka Uchiha!

"How is this possible!" Fugaku Uchiha exclaimed in utter shock. "His physique, aura, and chakra are exactly the same as Tekka's!"

Fugaku Uchiha knew Tetsuo Uchiha quite well, yet he couldn't find the slightest flaw in Tobi at this moment!

If Fugaku Uchiha hadn't witnessed the whole process firsthand, he would have doubted that the person standing in front of him was actually Tetsuka Uchiha!

Uchiha Jin smiled and said, "This is a disguise technique, an advanced transformation technique that even sensory ninjas and familiar people cannot distinguish!"

"With Ah Fei around, we're the ones who decide where the rumors come from!"

Chapter 112 I'm glad you thought of me, but...

Two days later, early in the morning.

As the sun rose, the villagers of Konoha gathered early in the morning on both sides of the main road at the entrance of Konoha Village.

As early as yesterday, the villagers of Konoha Village received a notice that the ninjas who had won a victory on the front lines of Kumogakure would be returning today, and that they should prepare to welcome them.

The villagers of Konoha were delighted with this. It was their proudest moment.

"Hey, did you guys hear? This time, it's Lord Minato Namikaze leading the team back!"

"Of course I've heard! If it weren't for Lord Minato Namikaze capturing the Fourth Raikage candidate A and the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki of Kumogakure on the battlefield, the war wouldn't have ended so quickly!"

"Lord Minato Namikaze is truly amazing, as expected of the village's Yellow Flash!"

"That's right, that's right... but have you heard about something else?"

"whats the matter?"

"It's about the Hokage! I heard that it was because of the Hokage's previous poor decisions that the village and Sunagakure became embroiled in a protracted war, giving other villages an opportunity to launch a siege against us!"

"I've heard about it too! Apparently, the village has been drained of resources by these wars, leading to a deficit in the village's finances. They don't have the money to pay compensation to the fallen ninjas or rewards to those who made meritorious contributions. That's why they approached the Uchiha clan, hoping they would waive the compensation and rewards. Originally, the Uchiha were just the first clan the Hokage approached; he planned to contact other clans, but because they didn't agree, the matter was dropped!"

"Has the village really fallen into such dire straits? But I heard that the village just recently signed an agreement with the Hidden Cloud Village, making them pay a large sum of money!"

"Idiot, that's not how you do it! Not to mention that the compensation from Kumogakure won't be disbursed for a while, the village also gave up a lot of benefits in its previous agreement with Sunagakure!"

"Huh? How could this happen? Didn't we win?!"

"I heard that the Third Hokage made this decision because he wanted to appease Sunagakure and end the war as soon as possible!"

"But the war has still lasted for so many years! Even after winning, we still have to pay reparations. What about all those ninjas who bled on the battlefield? What kind of logic is that!"

"Heh, that's not all! I heard that yesterday Elder Koharu Utatane also reached an agreement with Iwagakure according to the Third Hokage's wishes. Although Konoha won the war, we also had to give up some of our benefits!"

"Why is this happening? Why did the Hokage make such a decision? Do the elders also share this opinion?"

"Yes, I heard that Elder Shimura Danzo raised a different opinion, but it was precisely because he opposed doing so that he was suspended by the Third Hokage!"

"The Third Hokage is truly incompetent!"

"Hmph, the Uchiha are really something. The village is already in such a state, and they still have to make things worse for it!"

"They were swaggering around the village yesterday, can't these guys just behave themselves!"

......

The villagers huddled together in twos and threes, gossiping amongst themselves. The various rumors made the ninjas maintaining order look on with strange expressions.

They had also heard a lot of things.

Because of their ninja identity, they knew even more than ordinary villagers!

They could all vaguely sense that a storm was brewing in the village, and no one dared to say anything, for fear of getting caught up in trouble.

"They're here! They're back!"

Just then, a loud shout came from the village entrance, and everyone instinctively turned to look.

At the end of the road outside the village, a group of dusty figures appeared, led by none other than Minato Namikaze, known as the Golden Flash!

"what!!!"

Regardless of what they had been talking about before, the villagers of Konoha erupted in deafening cheers to express their excitement and joy.

The ninjas, who had rushed back from their journey, had forgotten their fatigue and were all smiling genuinely.

Anyway, they're finally home!

......

Meanwhile, inside the Hokage's office in the Hokage Building.

"Bang!" Hiruzen Sarutobi slammed his hand on the desk, glaring at Fugaku Uchiha across from him and yelling, "What the Uchiha are trying to do! They're spreading rumors about me!"

"Are you trying to bring me down so you can take over?"

The anger in Hiruzen Sarutobi's heart at this moment was beyond words.

Hiruzen Sarutobi originally wanted to protect his reputation, so he took the initiative to resign from the position of Hokage to quell the dissatisfaction of the ninjas in the village. Now that such rumors have appeared in the village, what has become of his reputation?

If he were to voluntarily resign as Hokage, it would likely be seen as a dereliction of duty and a breach of ethics, forcing him to step down!

How could he ever face living in this village again!

This time, his tolerance for the Uchiha clan has truly reached its limit.

Upon hearing this, Fugaku Uchiha gave a wry smile and said, "Hokage-sama, please calm down. I am powerless to do anything about this. The Grand Elder has gone mad!"

"Crazy? Heh," Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes flashed with killing intent as he sneered, "Don't even mention him, if this keeps up, I'll go crazy too!"

Upon hearing this, Fugaku Uchiha's expression hardened, and he quickly explained, "Hokage-sama, I didn't think that much about it before, but when the Second Elder and I went to question him, we discovered that the First Elder had been subjected to inhuman torture in Konoha Prison, and his mind had become twisted!"

After a pause, Fugaku Uchiha lowered his voice and said cautiously, "He also said he wants to create a new Konoha!"

"Crack!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi stared at Fugaku Uchiha in astonishment, so shocked that he accidentally broke off a small piece from the solid wood desk!

"What do you think Uchiha Setsuna is up to?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi asked again, somewhat uncertainly.

Seeing this, Fugaku Uchiha quickly said, "Don't worry, Hokage-sama, this is just the First Elder's personal opinion. My Uchiha clan will never collude with him!"

"The Uchiha will always be the Uchiha of Konoha!"

"Please give me a little more time, Hokage-sama. I will convene a clan meeting tomorrow to completely eliminate the Grand Elder's influence!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes flashed with a cold light, but his tone softened as he said, "Fugaku, I'm glad you thought to tell me about this! But I don't like your way of doing things!"

"Your Uchiha clan poses a huge threat!"

"I'm giving you one last chance. If you can do it, then do it. If you can't, then I'll help you do it!"

Fugaku Uchiha quickly and firmly stated, "Please rest assured, Hokage-sama, I will absolutely not be soft-hearted this time!"

"The village needs stability now, and so does the Uchiha clan! I will not allow anyone to disrupt the stability of the clan and the village!"

Seeing this, Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded in satisfaction!

Chapter 113 Adding Fuel to the Fire!

"By the way, Lord Hokage, there's something else I'm not sure if I should say."

Seeing that he had calmed Hiruzen Sarutobi down, Fugaku Uchiha suddenly looked hesitant, as if he wanted to say something but couldn't.

Seeing this, Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes flickered for a moment, and he said, "Fugaku, it's just the two of us here, so let's speak frankly."

Fugaku Uchiha hesitated for a moment, then, as if he had made up his mind, said, "Hokage-sama, although most of the rumors about you in the village were spread by the elder, our investigation has revealed that there seems to be someone else secretly stirring things up!"

Upon hearing this, Hiruzen Sarutobi narrowed his eyes slightly and asked in a cold voice, "Who?"

Fugaku Uchiha gritted his teeth and said, "Those people seem to be Root ninjas under Elder Danzo!"

This is not something Fugaku Uchiha is talking nonsense about.

After rumors about Hiruzen Sarutobi spread throughout the village, it was indeed true that someone was taking advantage of the chaos and releasing a lot of dirt on Hiruzen Sarutobi!

Although the other party acted very secretly, after an investigation by Tobi's subordinate White Zetsu, Uchiha Jin quickly discovered that the mastermind behind those people was Danzo of the Dark Shimura!

Danzo Shimura seemed to want to take this opportunity to completely smear Hiruzen Sarutobi, so he threw almost all the mud at Hiruzen Sarutobi, which accelerated the spread of rumors.

Although he didn't know Shimura Danzo's true purpose, Uchiha Jin, after some consideration, went along with the rumors and mixed in some words praising Shimura Danzo, putting Shimura Danzo in the open and creating a stark contrast with Sarutobi Hiruzen!

Hiruzen Sarutobi remained expressionless, seemingly unconcerned about what Fugaku Uchiha had said, or perhaps he had expected it all along.

"Lord Hokage, I..."

"Alright, let's leave it at that!"

Just as Fugaku Uchiha was about to say something more, Hiruzen Sarutobi raised his hand to interrupt him.

Hiruzen Sarutobi said, "I have my own plans for Danzo's affairs, you don't need to worry about them! You just need to take care of your own Uchiha affairs!"

"By the way, before your Uchiha matter is resolved, I think it's best if you Uchiha don't wander around the village!"

You know what I mean, right?

Hiruzen Sarutobi's gaze was intense, causing large beads of sweat to appear on Fugaku Uchiha's forehead.

"Understood!" After a moment of contemplation, Fugaku Uchiha sighed softly and said, "I will keep the clansmen in check during this time!"

"That's good," Hiruzen Sarutobi exhaled a smoke ring and said, "That's all for now. I still have to meet with the ninjas returning to the village today, so I won't keep you any longer!"

"Yes!"

Seeing that Hiruzen Sarutobi had given him the order to leave, Fugaku Uchiha wisely stood up, bowed, and then turned and left the Hokage's office.

Once Fugaku Uchiha's footsteps faded into the distance, Hiruzen Sarutobi's previously calm expression suddenly turned gloomy.

"Somebody come!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi tapped the table.

"Lord Hokage!"

Sarutobi Shinnosuke appeared in the Hokage's office and knelt on one knee to bow to Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, setting aside all formalities, asked with a dark expression, "Is what Fugaku Uchiha said true?"

Sarutobi Shinnosuke said, "According to the Anbu's investigation, besides the Uchiha Elder's doing, there is indeed another group of people secretly stirring up trouble."

“They acted very secretly, and we couldn’t catch them at first, but later, with the Uchiha’s deliberate guidance, we found out their identities!”

"They are indeed Root ninjas under Elder Danzo!"

"Heh," Hiruzen Sarutobi sneered, "It seems my old friend is eager for me to step down!"

Sarutobi Shinnosuke frowned slightly and asked with some doubt, "Father, why would Elder Danzo do this? It wouldn't benefit him if you stepped down, would it?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi glanced at Shinnosuke Sarutobi. For his son to abandon all formalities and ask him questions in such a tone, it seemed that Shinnosuke truly couldn't understand Danzo Shimura's thoughts.

Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head slightly and explained, "You don't understand. Danzo desperately wanted the Hokage position, but he also knew that as long as I was still in this position, he would never have a chance!"

"Moreover, in recent years, the ideological clashes between him and me have become increasingly significant, and I have imposed many restrictions on him, which is why he wants me to step down from the position of Hokage!"

After a pause, Hiruzen Sarutobi took a deep drag of his cigarette before continuing, "Orochimaru was originally the most promising candidate to become the Fourth Hokage, so Danzo had been trying to get closer to Orochimaru for a long time and had done a lot of things together with him."