A sharp breath cut through the silent forest.
The masked Uchiha shinobi had just finished exchanging information with the Root operative. Turning his head slightly, he performed one last scan of the surroundings. His senses stretched outward, searching for even the faintest disturbance—chakra fluctuations, movement, anything unusual. But there was nothing. The forest remained still, quiet, undisturbed.
Satisfied, he prepared to leave.
Then, without warning, a shadow flickered in front of him.
Before his instincts could fully react, a figure had already appeared out of thin air. The moment the masked ninja saw that face, his pupils shrank violently, and a chilling sense of danger exploded in his mind. Every instinct screamed at him to retreat, to escape immediately.
But it was already too late.
Those crimson eyes rotated slowly, and in that instant—before even a complete thought could form—Ryujin moved.
A single strike landed.
The impact detonated against his chest like an explosion, sending his body flying backward with terrifying force. He tore through multiple trees, snapping thick trunks as if they were nothing more than brittle branches, before crashing heavily into the ground. Blood burst from his mouth as his internal organs shattered under the sheer force of the blow. His body twitched once… and then stopped responding entirely.
He couldn't even activate his Sharingan.
Just one strike.
A Jōnin-level Uchiha—reduced to a dying husk.
Lying there with blurred vision, he struggled to keep his eyes open. Through the haze, he saw Ryujin approaching him step by step. There was no urgency in his movement, no aggression in his expression—only calm indifference. Yet that calmness was precisely what made him so terrifying.
Those scarlet eyes glowed faintly in the dim forest light, devoid of emotion, as if they were looking at something already dead.
A deep, suffocating fear gripped the man's heart.
Not fear of death… but fear of something far beyond his understanding.
This… is the Clan Head's power?
For the first time, he truly understood the gap between them.
He had always considered himself an elite—a high-ranking Jōnin within the Uchiha Clan, someone respected, someone powerful. But in front of Ryujin, all of that meant nothing. He wasn't even worthy of resistance.
His lips trembled as he tried to speak, but the moment he opened his mouth, blood poured out uncontrollably. His body had already reached its limit.
Ryujin stopped in front of him, bent down slightly, and picked up the fallen mask. With a casual motion, he wiped the blood from his hand, his expression remaining completely unchanged.
"I hate traitors," he said flatly. "Especially those who betray their own clan."
The words struck deeper than the blow itself.
The man's eyes widened in horror. He understood instantly—Ryujin knew everything.
But how?
He had hidden perfectly. Born within the Uchiha Clan, raised within it, living his entire life without drawing suspicion. There had never been a mistake, never a trace.
So how could he have been exposed?
Ryujin gave him a brief glance, as if the answer wasn't worth explaining.
"If you're curious," he said calmly, "you can take that question with you to hell."
There was no hesitation, no intention to elaborate. To Ryujin, the truth held no value for the dead.
He turned and walked away.
Within a few breaths, the man's body went still, his eyes frozen wide open, his expression locked in terror. His life faded completely.
But in his final moment of awareness, clarity came.
It wasn't that he had hidden well.
It was that he had never been hidden at all.
From the very beginning, he had already been exposed.
Every piece of information he passed… every meeting… every exchange—it had all been known.
And allowed.
By Ryujin.
This was never Danzo's plan.
It was Ryujin's.
A trap from the start.
A carefully crafted illusion.
And he had been nothing more than a disposable piece.
That was his final realization before darkness consumed him.
Deep beneath Konoha, inside a heavily guarded underground base, a figure sat in silence.
Shimura Danzo.
An intelligence report lay before him, and as he read it, his visible eye narrowed slightly, a cold gleam flashing within it.
"Hmph… the Uchiha are planning a rebellion?"
A slow smile spread across his face, filled with calculation and malice.
"They're truly seeking their own destruction."
To him, this was not a crisis.
It was an opportunity.
"The threat Tobirama-sensei failed to eliminate…" he murmured softly, "…will finally end in my hands."
Killing intent seeped into the air around him.
"The Uchiha… are a cancer. And now, it's time to erase them completely."
Unlike Hiruzen, Danzo had never believed in compromise. He desired peace, yes—but only a peace built upon absolute control. And now, the Uchiha had given him the perfect justification.
If they chose to rebel, he would unite all of Konoha against them—every clan, every force—and crush them without mercy.
To him, this wasn't coincidence.
It was fate.
Hiruzen might hesitate.
But he wouldn't.
This time, he didn't even inform him.
Act first. Report later.
Of course, he wouldn't make the first move. He wasn't reckless. The Uchiha had to strike first—only then would everything he did be justified.
What Danzo didn't know… what even Hiruzen didn't know… was that every piece of intelligence they had received had been deliberately fed to them.
By one man.
Uchiha Ryujin.
As Ryujin walked through the quiet streets of the Uchiha district, his thoughts shifted naturally.
Perhaps… he should establish his own force.
Hiruzen had ANBU. Danzo had Root. Other Kage had elite personal units. These organizations weren't just for protection—they gathered intelligence, carried out assassinations, and operated in the shadows with ruthless efficiency.
If he were to become Hokage one day, handling everything personally would be inefficient.
Tedious.
A personal shadow force would be necessary.
Lost in thought, he soon arrived at his residence.
At the entrance stood an elderly Uchiha, waiting quietly. The moment he saw Ryujin, he stepped forward respectfully.
"Clan Head."
Ryujin recognized him immediately—Uchiha Mu, one of the senior elders.
"What is it?" Ryujin asked calmly.
Mu hesitated for a moment before speaking carefully.
"Clan Head… after discussion among the elders, we believe you have reached the appropriate age for marriage."
Ryujin's brows lifted slightly.
Mu continued, choosing his words with care.
"If you select a suitable woman within the clan, it will not only ensure the birth of a talented heir… but also serve as a form of cover. A marriage could lower Hiruzen Sarutobi's vigilance and prevent suspicion toward our plans."
He paused briefly before adding,
"This matter concerns the future of the clan."
Silence lingered between them.
Ryujin's gaze deepened slightly as he repeated,
"…Marriage?"
For the first time—
A different kind of complication appeared in his path.
Not war.
Not enemies.
But something far more troublesome.
A political chain.