The Fifth village Hokage:Uchiha Douhuan

Chapter 13: The Midnight Visitor

After leaving Yamanaka Inoichi's flower shop, Uchiha Douhuan returned to the Uchiha Clan's compound.

He didn't rush back to his house but went directly to Uchiha Fugaku's residence.

Fugaku was a little surprised by the late visit from Douhuan but still invited him inside.

After Uchiha Mikoto served them tea, she left the living room.

Fugaku studied the young man who had forcefully taken the position of clan leader. He had no complaints about Douhuan's rise to power. In fact, he was secretly relieved that someone had stepped up to take over the Uchiha Clan, a task he had grown tired of. After Douhuan took charge, he quickly unified the clan and silenced the voices of rebellion. The way he handled things was impressive, even to Fugaku.

"Douhuan, the police department has already put up the notice about recruiting civilian ninjas as you instructed. However, there seems to be hesitation among the villagers, so only a few ninjas, mostly freshly graduated genin, have signed up today," Fugaku said.

"That's enough for basic patrols. Genin are fine for that kind of work," Douhuan replied. "And with the clan's ninjutsu on offer, we won't have trouble attracting more people."

"You have a good sense of it, but Douhuan, I've already calculated the finances. If we continue at this rate, the clan's funds will last no more than three months before we have to sell off assets," Fugaku said.

"I've told you not to worry about the money. I've already secured it. We should be receiving a contribution in the next few days," Douhuan replied after sipping his tea.

Fugaku raised an eyebrow. "Then why are you here tonight?"

Douhuan put down his cup and smiled. "I came to talk about Itachi."

"Itachi…" Fugaku sighed. "I've heard about what happened at the Shimura clan's gate today. It was my mistake to send him to the Anbu so quickly."

"Sending him to the Anbu wasn't a bad thing," Douhuan said. "But sending him to the battlefield so soon was truly a mistake."

"You think so?" Fugaku asked, glancing at Douhuan.

"Itachi is a child prodigy. But you exposed him to the dark side of this world too soon. He's an excellent thinker, but when his knowledge doesn't support the heights of his thoughts, it can only lead to disaster," Douhuan said. "I once heard a wise man say, 'Learning without thinking is labor lost; thinking without learning is perilous.' It's the same principle."

"It's ultimately my fault as a father," Fugaku sighed, turning his gaze to the closed door. "Since you're here, come on out."

The door to the living room opened, and Uchiha Itachi entered, still dressed in his Anbu uniform.

"Father, Douhuan," Itachi greeted them, bowing.

"There's no need for such formalities when we're not on duty," Douhuan said with a wave of his hand.

"Douhuan, I hope you heard what he just said," Fugaku added.

Itachi lowered his head and remained silent.

Seeing his son's reaction, Fugaku sighed. As a father, he wasn't good at communicating with his son. Itachi's worldview had already been shaped, and words alone wouldn't suffice to change anything.

"I have something I want to ask," Itachi finally broke the silence.

"Go ahead."

"If one day, the clan and the village are forced to clash, what would you do?" Itachi raised his head and looked directly into Douhuan's eyes.

"There won't be such a day as long as I'm here," Douhuan replied calmly.

"But if it really comes to that?" Itachi pressed.

"Itachi, step back," Fugaku ordered in a low voice, anger creeping into his tone.

Douhuan smiled faintly. "The village sent a nine-year-old child to the battlefield. It was my clan's bloodline that gave me the ability to survive."

"If such a day really comes, I will do everything I can to stop you!" Itachi said, his gaze intense as he stared at Douhuan.

"Uchiha Itachi, you're being too disrespectful," Fugaku said, his anger boiling over.

Although Fugaku had suspected Itachi's loyalty to the clan had wavered, he hadn't expected him to be so direct. Even Fugaku, with his usual composure, couldn't help but be furious.

"It's fine," Douhuan said, signaling Fugaku to stay calm. Then he turned to Itachi with a smile.

"Itachi, you're the clan's genius. I believe you'll have eyes like mine someday. But you won't be able to stop the tide of fate. Of course, you might not understand what the tide of fate is yet. When you do, you won't be troubled by such questions anymore."

Douhuan stood up and turned to Fugaku. "Fugaku, I won't take up any more of your time. Please take care of the police department's affairs."

Fugaku nodded without a word.

Douhuan left the room, and by the time he returned to his small house, it was already past midnight.

The new residence prepared for him by the clan was still being arranged, so for now, Douhuan would remain in his small quarters.

Douhuan lit a lamp and began meticulously maintaining his ninja sword.

As a high-ranking ninja, it was unusual for Douhuan to be living in a modest room of less than 30 square meters. But this small living space was a result of the money he had poured into his chakra-infused blade, named Jilei.

"Since you're here, show yourself," Douhuan suddenly called out while cleaning the blade.

No response.

"If you don't die with this blow, I don't know, but you'll definitely have to pay me for the cost of this house," Douhuan smiled slightly as electrical sparks appeared on the surface of his chakra sword.

A figure dropped from the rafters. It was none other than the white-haired figure Douhuan had encountered earlier that day—Kakashi Hatake.

"I thought you'd come a bit later, Kakashi-senpai," Douhuan said with a smile as he sheathed his sword. "Please, have a seat."

Douhuan gestured for Kakashi to sit at the opposite end of the table and began preparing tea.

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