"Hmm... Now that my Mangekyō Sharingan is finally awakened. Time to take a couple of days off!"
Uchiha Renzo stretched lazily as he exited his mental space, muttering to himself. After tidying up his research base, he used teleportation to return home to Konoha.
Just as he returned to his house, a knock came at his door.
With a quick scan using his sensory abilities, Renzo detected the presence of an Uchiha clan member.
It was Uchiha Kage, one of Fugaku's close aides—almost like his shadow.
"What's the matter?" Renzo asked directly as he opened the door.
"Lord Renzo, the Clan Head requests your presence," Kage said respectfully, bowing slightly.
Renzo's status within both the Uchiha clan and Konoha had skyrocketed. His immense strength had earned him the nickname "The Twin Star of Konoha", alongside Namikaze Minato, and others even called him "Konoha's Thunder God."
Of course, Renzo couldn't care less about these titles.
He was well aware that behind his rising reputation were the schemes of the Uchiha clan and Danzo.
As long as he remained powerful, no sneaky tricks could shake him.
And if things ever got too troublesome, he wouldn't hesitate to flip the table and lead those willing Uchiha to leave Konoha—or even the Land of Fire—altogether.
That was the confidence his Mangekyō Sharingan granted him.
If before he was just a solid Kage-level fighter, now he was confident he could take on Madara—of course, without the Rinnegan.
As for Danzo, that scheming old rat?
He was probably trying to manipulate Renzo's reputation to drive a wedge between him and the Third Hokage.
Or maybe Danzo had sensed something off about Renzo's connection to Sarutobi Asuma.
"Got it. I'll head over now."
Renzo nodded at Kage before setting out for Fugaku's residence.
As he walked through the Uchiha district, many clan members greeted him with enthusiasm:
"Good day, Lord Renzo!"
"Renzo-sama, you're so cool!"
Some respected him, some admired him, and some were simply relieved to have such a powerful ally in their clan.
Renzo found their warmth pleasant.
"Honestly, this clan isn't as bad as the village makes it out to be."
"Sure, some among them might be extreme, but when you've been systematically oppressed for so long, isn't it natural to be resentful?"
"If Konoha keeps pushing the Uchiha into a corner, should they really be surprised when they push back?"
In the original timeline, the Uchiha were wiped out not just because of Itachi and Shisui's misguided loyalty, but also because they simply weren't strong enough.
If any of the Uchiha had reached the power level of Madara or Hashirama, would anyone have dared to deny them the Hokage seat?
Of course, Madara was unfortunate to have Hashirama as a rival and Tobirama as an enemy.
Had things gone slightly differently, he might've ruled Konoha instead.
Upon arriving at Fugaku's residence, Renzo was immediately welcomed inside.
"Renzo, you're here! Come, take a seat!" Fugaku greeted warmly, standing up to receive him. "Also, no need to be so formal with me. Just call me Fugaku-nii."
Renzo chuckled and sat down. "Alright, Fugaku-nii, what's this about?"
He hadn't been keeping up with the latest village or clan matters since he'd been focused on training and research. Most of the time, he even had shadow clones handle the training sessions for Asuma, Kurenai, and the others.
Just then, Uchiha Mikoto entered, carrying a tea tray. She gracefully placed a cup of tea in front of both men before settling beside Fugaku with little Itachi, who was barely two years old.
Fugaku took a sip of his tea before speaking. "You might not have heard yet, but...Kiri has declared war on Konoha."
Renzo raised an eyebrow. "Oh? I haven't been paying attention, but I can't say I'm surprised. It was bound to happen sooner or later."
He looked at Fugaku and said, "The Third Hokage has ordered the Uchiha Clan to mobilize, hasn't he?"
Right now, Konoha was running out of manpower.
Saying the village was at its breaking point might be an exaggeration, but the shortage of troops was real.
After more than a year of war, the losses had been massive.
And now, fighting against both Iwa and Kumo at the same time? The pressure was immense.
Of course, the Third Hokage deploying the Uchiha Clan wasn't just about military necessity—he clearly wanted to weaken them.
At this point, the Hokage's faction and even some ninja families had suffered significant losses. But the Uchiha? Because they had been restricted from going to the front lines, they had taken far fewer casualties.
At this point, neither the Third Hokage nor Danzo cared whether the Uchiha gained merit or not.
They just wanted to throw the clan into battle—both to hold back Kirigakure and to see the Uchiha suffer losses.
That way, they could rest easy.
After all, whether the Uchiha actually accomplished anything on the battlefield didn't matter.
If necessary, they could just smear their contributions later.
"That's right," Fugaku nodded. "Looks like you figured it out. The Third Hokage wants our Uchiha ninjas to serve as the main force in the Land of Water battlefield."
"As for his real intentions? I'm sure someone as sharp as you can see right through them."
Renzo nodded. "It's just the same old routine—depleting the Uchiha Clan's forces while using us to hold the line for the village. Otherwise, why would they send Uchiha to fight against Kiri?"
"Everyone knows the Uchiha specialize in Fire Release and the Sharingan."
"But both of those are countered to some extent by Kirigakure."
Water Release naturally suppresses Fire Release. And Kirigakure's Hidden Mist Jutsu severely weakens the Sharingan's effectiveness.
"Exactly!" Fugaku nodded, both frustrated and angry.
Clearly, his resentment toward the Third Hokage and Danzo had been building for a long time.
"Honestly, asking for my opinion won't help much," Renzo said with a shrug.
"You should know that I'm technically on 'vacation,' which is just a polite way of saying I've been sidelined. The Third Hokage and Danzo won't send me to the front anytime soon."
"For now, all the Uchiha can do is be cautious and minimize casualties. Losing too many people won't do us any good."
Fugaku nodded repeatedly.
But off to the side, little Uchiha Itachi was quietly observing Renzo, his eyes filled with curiosity and an eerie sense of maturity.
Renzo noticed and couldn't help but think, "Is this kid really some kind of genius from birth?"
"He's barely a toddler."
Still, Renzo only gave it a moment's thought before refocusing on his conversation with Fugaku.
His tone shifted as he looked at Fugaku meaningfully. "This is also an opportunity for the Uchiha. Or rather, an opportunity for you, Fugaku."
Fugaku frowned, staring at Renzo. "What do you mean by that?"
"Exactly what I said." Renzo wasn't bothered by Fugaku's reaction.
He casually took a sip of tea and continued, "The Uchiha Clan's problems aren't just external. There are internal issues too."
"The external ones, we all know."
"But internally, Fugaku, you haven't been clan leader for long. You don't fully control the Uchiha yet, let alone have a unified clan vision."
"There are multiple factions within the Uchiha."
"The First Elder, Second Elder, Third Elder… all of them have their own agendas."
"The clan is split into hawks, doves, and neutrals. And their attitudes toward Konoha vary wildly."
"In my view, before the Uchiha can escape this crisis and move forward, the first step isn't dealing with the village."
"It's unifying the clan's stance!"
"You can't let certain fools ruin things at critical moments. And you definitely can't allow some naive opportunists to sell out the clan's interests to outsiders!"
"If those elements aren't dealt with, then Fugaku, no matter what you try, changing the Uchiha's fate will be impossible."