Resolve

Uchiha Compound (2 Days Later)

The sounds of children sparring could be heard echoing across the Uchiha compound. Multiple stages were set up to hold multiple matches at a time, a means to make the ongoing tournament happen more efficiently. Well, it wasn't an official tournament, simply a gathering to celebrate the birthday of a recently minted genius in one of the clan's more prominent families.

The unofficial tournament itself was the entertainment. Uchiha gatherings simply didn't allow children to gather and play as lightly as other clans do. Like the Hyuga, tradition demands that they conduct themselves with decorum. Yet, children were, by nature, rambunctious, so tournaments like these were established to kill multiple birds with one stone. Not only would this keep the kids busy, but it would also center their goals around strength, build their Uchiha pride, give their elders multiple chances to observe their development, and much more.

Aside from this though, there are ceremonies and rights observed by the adults alone, completely separated from the kids.

Inside a large building within eyesight of the ongoing tournament, the more prominent Uchiha clansmen gathered. They had already observed the children for a time and had retreated to have a more adult discussion.

Sitting in seiza positions, facing each other in front of a gathering of five families were two Uchiha. One was the representative of the clan's leadership, its second in command, while the other was the father of the family holding the celebration.

The first one was a young man in his mid-20's. He had short, unkempt, black hair, black eyes, and oddly well-defined eyelashes. He wore a dark blue, high collared short-sleeve shirt and black shinobi pants with white bandages visible on his ankles.

The second was a 6-foot-tall 30-year-old man with straight, shoulder-length dark brown hair with scattered bangs framing his face. He had pitch black irises, lightly tanned skin, and a well-built frame. He wore a black high-colored robe that went down to his knees which had a red and white fan depicted on the back. Under it, he wore a black short-sleeved mesh shirt, dark brown shinobi pants, and black shinobi sandals.

With the tournament going on, they stuck to their more combat-ready clothing, in case they themselves were called to combat. While unusual, celebrations like these often-held spars between adults as well, a way to show the kids something to aspire to.

"Shisui, it's an honor to have someone of your noble stature here. It's a shame the clan head couldn't make it." The older man humbly stated.

Shisui let out a muted chuckle.

"We didn't want to make this overly formal Kirai, so Itachi just sent me here to give my congratulations. After all, if both of us were here, I doubt everyone would be as casual as they are." He goodheartedly explained.

Kirai shook his head in amusement.

"Bah, we've grown too lax. If you give them too much leeway, the children will grow up spoiled. Formality is important." The man chided.

Shisui casually shrugged, dismissing the criticism.

"I get it, but still." His gaze took on a faraway look, his casual smile becoming more profound. "Our ancestors lived in war, bathed in blood daily. They didn't have the luxury to let their children have normal healthy lives, so traditions were built with that situation in mind. Unlike them though, we have the luxury to let them grow up and enjoy their childhoods. That's why he isn't here, to separate the formal occasions from these, where families can gather and have fun together."

Hearing the man's passionate speech, the other members in the room said nothing. For a moment, all that could be heard were the clashing of blades outside. Despite the silence though, no one was surprised. This was a common occurrence within the clan and the current gathering was within the traditionalist faction, while Shisui was the right hand to the clan head, the leader of the reformists.

Verbal spars were common as ideals clashed on the regular. Unfortunately for the people gathered though, they were losing ground and even this tournament was something they barely got through the system. Very soon though, Uchiha birthday tournaments would be abolished and turned into normal family gatherings in a way resembling those held by other, non-ocular-bloodline clans.

Despite his flowery speech and excuse, they knew why he was really here. Itachi needed someone he trusted to be on site to watch them, to make sure this event went on as a casual get together. Basically, he was watching the adults, so the kids could actually have fun, indirectly indoctrinating them into the idea that birthdays should be fun, rather than stiff gatherings.

Kirai sighed, resigned at the sight this genius's naivete. If only Fugaku hadn't given his life stopping the nine-tails. With him as head, perhaps Shisui could've been raised right, as a proud Uchiha with proper values. Not only that, but ALL his children would be under the Uchiha's glorious banner.

What a shame.

Taking a deep breath to steady himself, hiding his dissatisfaction, he replied, "Of course. You've made your stance clear plenty of times. As much as I'd prefer to convince you otherwise, this is neither the time nor the place."

Shisui smilingly nodded, agreeing to postpone their differences for another day.

"Since the two of us agree, why don't we get on to the official ceremony. Might as well get it over with." Shisui casually suggested.

Kirai's mouth curved into a small grin.

"You'll have no complaints from me." Kirai turned to the group. "Bring the sake."

With the order given, the two waited patiently for the ceremony's elements to arrive.

The Uchiha ceremony they were about to perform was a heavily simplified version of one established during the warring states era. When one of the subordinate's families had an heir worthy of consideration, the parents would re-affirm their loyalty to the main family through a formal ritual.

Whereas in the past, the event was a formal ceremony, an event where the clan head themselves would preside over and all members would attend to give honor to the family who earned it. Now, it was a simple exchange of specially prepared sake with the hosting party and a representative of the clan head. Since Mikoto took over 16 years ago, traditions like these had been simplified heavily for the sake of 'advancement.'

This casual exchange was all that remained of the former grand ritual, the former ceremony of honor.

The two paid no mind to the approaching maid bearing the tray with sake already poured. Well, Shisui didn't.

Kirai's eyebrow twitched visibly to all in the room. Despite his best efforts to maintain his composure, his frustration at the pre-poured sake, another bastardized tradition, was visible for all to see.

Of course, Shisui paid it no mind. He loved his clan, but this was needed. Change was hard and despite this being a party held by the traditionalists, consistency was important. He wouldn't hold a ceremony of old just for them when that policy had already been changed. It wouldn't be long before even this was phased out, allowing family gatherings to become something to truly foster the will of fire, a deep love for family and village, rather than reaffirming the chains binding these people to the main family's banner.

His eyes turned to the maid, who brought the cup of sake to him. As the officiating party, he would drink first and have the maid bring this to Kirai to finish it. Before drinking, he would pour a little chakra into the cup to infuse the sake. The sake, which was specially infused with leaves from the same tree chakra litmus paper is made from, would take in the chakra and the sake's flavor would change depending on the chakra's nature.

The passing of chakra was symbolic of the subordinate taking in the spirit of their master, adopting their will and vision. It didn't have any actual effects on the subordinate's body today, but in the past, the cocktail would influence the mind of the drinker to dilute any individual ambition, making them more malleable to group thought, and more loyal to the owner of the mixed-in chakra. This was one of Mikoto's first changes during her reign. It was also why the clan head's personal presence was no longer necessary, because the effect that required it was no longer there.

Finally, the maid arrived in front of Shisui and presented the tray holding the single, filled sake cup.

Composing himself, making sure to take this next part seriously, he grabbed the presented cup with both hands and slowly brought it to rest just above his lap. Closing his eyes, he let a small portion of his chakra flow into the sake. Almost immediately, small embers and sparks danced out of the sake, lighting up the room for a few seconds before it settled down.

When it returned to its inert form, Shisui brought the cup to his lips and silently drank his share. The small portion of liquid went down his throat, seemingly warming him up as it progressed further into his body. A tingling sensation bit at his insides, an expected reaction with the lightning part of his affinity affecting the sake.

Having finished his share, he moved to place the cup back on the tray.

*Shatter*

The sake cup shattered against the floor, having been suddenly dropped by Shisui.

His body broke into convulsions as he lost control of his motor functions. Any control he had over his chakra was now lost to him. Rather than heed his command, he could feel it slowing down, almost coming to a standstill.

"*Cough* *Cough* W-what…*Cough* Cough* h-ha-ave you *cough*?" He struggled to ask. Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see silencing seals covering the room stemming from a spot right below Kirai's feet.

Kirai looked at him with an arrogant sneer, his eyes looking down at the man as if he were the stupidest child in the world.

"Finally. After all these years, we can drop the façade."

The man stood up from his seated position, keeping his eyes on the boy whose death he'd been craving for so long.

"*Cough* W-why?" *Cough*" Shisui weakly asked, already losing all feeling in his appendages. The numbness was climbing fast.

"Why? Kirai asked disbelievingly. "Do you really not know?"

Shisui couldn't respond.

Kirai continued, "Just look at this ceremony. It's nonsense like this that has dragged our clan's pride through the mud. The policies born of Itachi and Mikoto's reigns disgrace everything our clan stands for, so it's time for a change." His sneer grew into a maddened grin.

"If being a part of Konoha is starving our clan's honor, then it's time for a change of scenery; it's time for our clan to secede from this failed union as a superior sovereign entity."

Shisui could only glare in rage, his eyes remaining in their base form due to his inability to infuse them with chakra. Quickly, his thoughts crawled to a halt as the oxygen supplying his brain diminished below livable levels.

Seeing the man's imminent death, Kirai turned to the others.

"Do it. The dye is cast, and we must be swift. The Hyuga are already in position." The others nodded as one group moved to stand behind their partners, each of them holding kunai coated in a sickly yellow substance.

Despite his diminished thoughts, Shisui's eyes widened in incomprehension. Five groups of husbands and wives resolved themselves for the ultimate sacrifice. Neither the standing nor the seated looked scared, each of them resolved, especially the seated; their eyes were as steel. Realizing what was about to happen, he thought,

'They would go this far? Were… they that adamant about returning to the days of old?'

As thoughts faded from his body and the last breaths left his lungs, Shisui's thoughts still couldn't wrap his head around why they believed this was worth it.

Returning to the families, in one quick motion, the standing members stabbed their kunai into the seated member's shoulders.

Within seconds, the stabbed victims burst into cries of agony, their pained wails filling the building. Were it not for the silencing seals, all of Konoha would've heard them. Unlike Shisui, who had to be killed quickly due to his high threat, these family members were being slowly liquified from the inside. Not only that, but the venom intentionally triggered the most extreme pain responses in the body, forcing them to go through the greatest agony they'd ever experienced.

The standing members moved around their victims and shakily knelt to look them in the eyes, sharingan active. They would watch their spouses' last moments and imprint their agony into their memory forever, eternally cementing the conviction that led them to this necessity.

Over the seconds of their lovers' agony, each of their eyes rotated, their triple tomoe sharingan slowly forming a new shape, a unique pattern birthing with it new possibilities, new strength. Yet, while the initial goal was achieved, they maintained their eye contact, allowing the swell of emotions to forcefully develop their eyes to further stages. While evolution could normally take years, prolonged emotional stress could shorten the process into days, hours, and in extreme cases like this, even minutes.

Eventually, the process was done and all that were left in the room were Kirai and five newly minted widows, three males and two females. The maid had slipped out during the screaming, moving to inform the Hyuga of the Uchiha's status. Thankfully for them, the silencing barrier allowed entry and exit without allowing sound through, an expensive Uzumaki seal drawn decades ago.

The first widow was a man with waist-length black, spiky hair and black eyes. He had a lithe figure covered by a black Uchiha high-collared kimono shirt and white pants.

The second was a man with the same color hair and eyes but having short hair with a low fade. Unlike the others, his body was massive, showing his prowess as a taijutsu specialist. He wore a dark blue Uchiha high-collared kimono shirt and black pants. From the kimono shirt's design, it was clear that it was meant to be easily removed in combat.

The final one had neck-length brown hair with black eyes and wore a black Uchiha high-collared shirt with black pants. His physique was more like the first, being lithe and built for speed.

The three were Itama, Hideyoshi, and Satsuma respectively.

The first female had loose, shoulder-length black hair with black eyes, while the second's hair was the same length, but tied into a chestnut brown ponytail. Both wore the black-knee-length version of the high-top Uchiha outfit in a similar manner to Kirai. The first had a rather modest physique, while the second was the opposite, having a bountiful figure that would rival even the slug princess. They were Zena and Lisa respectively. They were also fraternal twins.

Stepping over their dead spouses, the five widows walked to address Kirai. Despite the tears of blood streaming down their face, they didn't falter, looking their leader in the eyes.

"Damn… I guess *sniff* there's no going back *sniff*… is there?" Lisa jokingly asked through her sniffles.

"No" Satsuma stated, his face frozen into a focused, stern expression despite the tears streaming down his face. If it weren't for the tears, it'd be impossible to tell he'd just killed his beautiful wife, the love of his life. "We are resolved. Our duty demands no less."

The other five nodded in acceptance.

Seeing them processing this better than expected, Kirai's eyes hardened.

"I am sorry it's come to this. Unfortunately, we don't have the time to properly mourn them. Had the damn Hyuga not lost control over their branch clan, I would've preferred a setting to give us more time. Unfortunately, we don't have that luxury, so this was our best option. Let's clean this up quietly and start the operation."

"Right!" The five replied simultaneously. Despite their emotional turmoil, none wanted their loved ones' sacrifices to be in vain.

Kirai raised his right hand, palm up. A seal shaped like the Uchiha fan formed on its surface.

Suddenly, the same seal appeared on the hands of the others. Not only them, but on the hands of multiple other Uchiha within the compound. In their ears, Kirai's voice became clear.

With everyone listening, he gave the order.

"The time has come…" He ominously stated.

"Execute Order 66."