### Chapter 43: Dominance

"What's with those expressions?"

Itsuki sighed and said, "That makes me lose the desire to continue talking."

"Then don't say it."

Fugaku immediately responded, "Elder Satsuna and I will seriously consider Itachi's matter."

"And what about my opinion?"

Itsuki pointed at his own nose and said, "Clan Leader Fugaku, did I not hit you hard enough earlier? How dare you ignore me?"

Fugaku sneered, "We just fought to a draw, so you can't prove you're stronger than me."

Itsuki, giving him no face, replied bluntly, "A draw? You fought against one of my clones for so long—are you proud of that? Believe it or not, I can beat you up three times a day and still give you one more for a midnight snack."

"You..."

Fugaku was so furious he nearly lost it.

The way Itsuki spoke made it sound like he had Fugaku in the palm of his hand.

But Fugaku still had his trump card!

"Enough! Stop arguing!" Satsuna hurriedly interrupted their quarrel and shot Fugaku a glare.

What's the point of being stubborn?

In the earlier fight, he was clearly being dominated.

Moreover, Itsuki only used Water Release. What if he had used Fire Release?

As a Uchiha, no matter how unserious he seems, Fire Release is undoubtedly his specialty.

During the battle, he left you with some dignity—do you really think he was being considerate?

When did you, Uchiha Fugaku, become so naive?

Even though you hid your true strength, Itsuki still has bandages on his face from the fight.

"Itsuki, tell us your reasoning. Why do you insist on making Itachi the clan leader?" Satsuna asked seriously, "Be serious. Even though you usually seem to be joking around, in reality..."

He didn't finish the sentence.

Actually, he's just as much of a troublemaker as he seems.

I've never seen anyone cause so much trouble!

If Itsuki wasn't so powerful, he'd have been turned into ashes by now, and those ashes would have been scattered again.

Itsuki thought for a moment, then opened a scroll, took out two pieces of paper, and handed them to Satsuna and Fugaku.

"What's this?"

"Ten years!"

"I've compiled all of Uchiha's developments over the past ten years into data."

Itsuki shrugged and said, "From this data, you can see that over ten years, Uchiha's power and economy have been steadily declining."

Fugaku refuted, "That's because of the Shinobi World War. Which ninja clan hasn't seen a decline in strength because of it?"

Itsuki sneered, "Do you need me to summarize the data of the other ninja clans for you?"

Satsuna stopped Fugaku from speaking and looked at Itsuki, saying seriously, "The losses of other ninja clans are certainly smaller than Uchiha's, and there's no way around that. Itsuki, you also know that Uchiha has been targeted."

"Look, look!"

Itsuki spread his hands helplessly, "You guys are making excuses again."

"Is that really a reason?"

"If that's the reason, and we keep getting targeted for a few more decades, will Uchiha be exterminated?"

"As men, we can't make excuses for our incompetence."

"We must be great..."

Fugaku and Satsuna ignored Itsuki and didn't want to dwell on the content of his words. They just silently stared at the papers in front of them.

The constantly declining graph deeply stung them.

Just like Itsuki said, someone in the village has always been targeting Uchiha and has never stopped. Is Uchiha really going to be exterminated like this?

Especially Fugaku, whose face turned dark.

This data was like a slap in the face.

He is the clan leader!

Everyone else can shirk responsibility, but he cannot.

"Don't rely on an armed coup. Even if you were given ten more years, you still wouldn't succeed."

Itsuki tapped on the table and said, "Uh, what's with those expressions? Are you surprised that I know?"

Fugaku coldly replied, "Shouldn't we be surprised?"

It's one thing for you to know about it, but how do you even know the timeline?

Itsuki was even more puzzled and said, "Weren't you all just broadcasting it with loudspeakers? How could I not know?"

"Who broadcasted it with loudspeakers!"

Satsuna laughed angrily.

Do you think we're idiots?

When planning a rebellion, who would shout it out with a loudspeaker?

Itsuki was stunned, "A lot of people know about it, including the Third Hokage. By the time I found out, the news had already passed through several people. You guys..."

His gaze carried a hint of pity.

How foolish!

"Huff!"

The two took a deep breath.

Satsuna coldly said, "For now, we won't consider the armed coup, partly thanks to you, Itsuki."

His words were full of sarcasm.

Because of the recent commotion caused by Itsuki, many people's attention has focused on Uchiha.

Who would dare to make a move at this time?

"Heh, I did it on purpose."

"You... why?" Satsuna looked at Itsuki coldly, "Are you against it?"

"At least, for now, I am."

---

A man named Itsuki said with a smile, "I have my own plan. If you start causing trouble now, I'll be put in a passive position, so I can only delay your plan."

"You have a plan too?" Fugaku asked calmly, "Can you tell me about it?"

Itsuki had strong personal strength and so many subordinates. His power now was something no one could ignore.

"Of course... I can't tell you!" Itsuki looked at Fugaku with an expression as if he were looking at an idiot, "Do I look stupid to you?"

"What does this have to do with Itachi?" Fugaku gritted his teeth and asked coldly, "Do you think everything will change once Itachi takes power?"

"Consider it an experiment!" Itsuki said casually, "Itachi and Shisui both have considerable strength, and they still have room to grow. I don't want them to end up on the opposite side."

"Besides!"

"The Third Hokage is always talking nonsense. I'm sick of listening to him, so let's just support Itachi. I'm curious to see if, by going along with their wishes, the village will still target the Uchiha."

"Sōgi once thought the same way," Setsuna said coldly, "but in the end, he fell into disgrace."

"Don't be so rigid and dogmatic!" Itsuki said helplessly, "Why not cover both bases? On the one hand, go along with the other side and put the Uchiha in a position of righteousness, while quietly preparing for an armed coup."

At this, both of them fell silent.

They were considering the feasibility of this idea.

Moreover, they were worried there might be a trap.

They didn't fully trust Itsuki.

Fugaku hesitated and said, "Itsuki, there are many things you don't understand. Itachi is my son, so as the clan leader, I need to consider the other Jonin..."

"Call a meeting of the Uchiha Jonin!" Itsuki interrupted, "There are only about thirty Jonin in the entire clan. With the Jonin you two control and the seven I have on my side, I want to see who dares to oppose us?"

The two were speechless.

Before they knew it, they had begun playing a more domineering game!

"Still hesitating?"

Itsuki waved his hand and said, "Alright then, let's put it another way. What price would you ask for a vice-clan leader position?"

"What are you talking about?"

The two were momentarily stunned.

"Name a price? What do you think this is? If there really were a vice-clan leader position, it would mean the second-in-command of the Uchiha. You're using money to measure it. Is this a transaction? This is an insult!"

The two were about to explode in anger, but Itsuki quickly spoke again.

"A million explosive tags, is that enough?"

The two who were about to explode suddenly fell silent.

(End of Chapter)