"Dead last? Heh. That was just an act," Fugaku sneered. "With Minato Namikaze personally mentoring him—and considering how hard he trained—you really think Obito was just some dropout?"
"After Obito's so-called death, I examined the Sharingan he left to Kakashi… and discovered that he had already awakened the three-tomoe Sharingan at age eleven. With that kind of perception and ability, even if he wasn't quite at Jōnin level yet, he was definitely at least an elite Chūnin. Still think he was just a dropout?"
The room fell silent. No one had anything to say.
Hidden in the shadows, Uchiha Obito smirked. That's right—I'm a genius. Just really good at hiding it. Didn't think the clan head saw through it, though...
"It's a shame," Fugaku continued. "After that plan fell through, I was hoping to have Minato take Itachi as his next student, and place Izumi at the side of the Land of Fire's daimyō to strengthen ties between us and the capital."
"But then... the Nine-Tails attack happened. Minato died. And the entire plan collapsed."
Obito froze awkwardly. Well... that one's on me.Still, if the Eye of the Moon Plan succeeds, it'll all be worth it.
"Clan Head," one Uchiha asked, "is that why you wanted Obito and now Itachi to align with the Hokage faction? To prepare for your own rise to the seat of Hokage?"
"No," Itachi answered for him. "You're all misunderstanding my father."
"Having Obito or me become Hokage was only one part of the plan."
"The true goal… was to gather the Tailed Beasts, unify the shinobi world, and create a world built on love and peace."
"The Tailed Beasts?!"
"Unify the shinobi world?!"
"A world of love and peace?!"
The clan stared in shock. Was the clan head's plan really that ambitious?
"What?!" Madara and Obito were stunned. Could it be… Itachi and Fugaku already know about the Eye of the Moon Plan?
"I actually agree with Lord Madara's ideology," Itachi said seriously. "Only a unified shinobi world can truly end all war."
Madara's eyes lit up. This boy… he understands me.
"There's also the matter of the Ten Tails," Itachi continued. "It's said that the nine Tailed Beasts can be reassembled into the Ten Tails… but only the Rinnegan can control it."
"The Rinnegan?" murmurs spread across the clan.
"It's true," Madara silently confirmed. Only the Rinnegan can control the Ten Tails' immense power.
"At the moment, I've only awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan," said Itachi. "I haven't yet figured out how to evolve it into the Rinnegan."
"But think about it. Our clan's Sharingan can already control the Nine-Tails. So shouldn't we be able to control the others too—One through Eight?"
"My theory is this: If we gather all nine beasts, reform the Ten Tails, and become its jinchūriki… that may naturally trigger the awakening of the Rinnegan. Then, with that power, we can cast Infinite Tsukuyomi, bring all nations under one rule, and create a true, everlasting peace."
"I call this the Love and Peace Plan."
The room exploded.
"Gather the Tailed Beasts?! Reform the Ten Tails?!"
"Awaken the Rinnegan?!"
"Unify the shinobi world?!"
"Create eternal peace?!"
"The Love and Peace Plan?!"
"Oh my god!"
The Uchiha Clan was ecstatic.
So this was Itachi's ambition… no—his vision. Their eyes blazed with admiration.
"Clan Head Itachi, from this day forward, I serve no one but you!" Uchiha Inaho declared loudly.
"Same here! I only follow you!" Tekka shouted.
Itachi's vision… his ideals… his plan… it was overwhelming. Just listening to it made their blood boil. They wanted to rush out right then and start hunting Tailed Beasts.
Watching the fervent reactions of the clan, Itachi standing tall at the center, both Madara and Obito had complicated expressions.
So he's read the Uchiha Stone Tablet, they both thought.He knows about the Eye of the Moon Plan… he just renamed it.
Still, this wasn't a bad outcome. At least the entire Uchiha Clan was now united behind one purpose—gathering the Tailed Beasts. As long as they weren't turning on each other, that was good enough.
"Clan Head Itachi," Hachidai asked seriously, "why are you sharing such a critical plan with all of us? Aren't you worried someone might betray us? Leak the plan?"
"Yeah, wouldn't it be safer if fewer people knew?" Inaho added. "If this gets out, other factions might target us. We're the only ones who can control the Tailed Beasts."
"Right. What if the other villages hear of this? Wouldn't they try to wipe us out like they did to the Uzumaki?" Tekka said worriedly.
"I believe," Itachi said with a hard look in his eye, "that someone already knows."
"WHAT?!" The clan was stunned.
Even Madara and Obito were shaken. Other than us, and maybe Nagato and Zetsu… who else could know?
"Think about it," Itachi said slowly. "Lord Madara tried to unify the world—and was killed."
Madara: "…"
I faked my death, thank you very much.He wanted to correct him, but held back.
"Then came Obito. Same thing. Died under mysterious circumstances. Neither body ever recovered."
Madara: "…"
Yeah, that was me too.
So I sabotaged the Uchiha Clan from the shadows? I'm the mole?
Obito was equally awkward. He and Madara were both still alive, just hiding in the shadows and watching everything unfold.
"And don't forget the Nine-Tails incident. Someone manipulated the Nine-Tails into attacking, blamed it on us, and turned the entire village against us. Forced us to the outskirts."
"If you look at everything together… doesn't it seem like someone's deliberately targeting the Uchiha?"
"Tch…" the crowd inhaled sharply. "When you put it that way…"
"You're saying," Hachidai said slowly, "someone already knew about our clan's plans… and deliberately moved against us? To stop us from rising? Even if it meant killing off our most gifted?"
"Exactly," Itachi replied. "Look at the facts. Uchiha Kagami, Uchiha Shitori—both died mysteriously, far too young. Kagami was only twenty-five."
"Then there's Obito and Shisui. Both died early too."
"Are you seeing the pattern?" Itachi's voice dropped to a cold murmur. "All the victims were our clan's geniuses."
"So logically, the next one they'll target is… me."
The crowd drew a sharp breath.
"Our plan threatens too many interests," Itachi said grimly. "So whoever's pulling the strings in the shadows will stop at nothing to destroy us. One genius at a time. Anything to stop the Uchiha from completing the Love and Peace Plan."