Given the relationship between Uchiha Fugaku and Shimura Ryozhen, there was naturally no possibility of them stopping for a "friendly chat" the two groups merely passed each other in silence.
Fugaku and his two companions headed toward the Konoha Police Department, while Ryozhen and his group made their way back to the Shimura compound.
"He really can endure," Ryozhen thought to himself as they walked.
Their encounter had not been a coincidence. Ryozhen had planned it, knowing exactly when Fugaku would pass through that street. He had positioned himself there on purpose, hoping to test the Uchiha leader.
He wanted to see if, after repeated oppression by the village, Fugaku would finally lose his temper.
But once again, he was disappointed.
Fugaku had not taken the bait. He remained calm and composed, displaying the same deep restraint he always had.
"I wonder if you'll still be able to endure what's coming next," Ryozhen smirked coldly at the thought of the next phase of the plan.
As long as the Uchiha Clan existed, the suppression from Konoha's higher-ups would never stop.
Not long ago, under the direction of Advisor Danzo, the Shimura Clan had begun secretly coordinating with other families to strip the Uchiha of their duty overseeing the village's gates a move aimed at further weakening their position.
By managing the gates, the Uchiha controlled who entered and left Konoha. This gave them significant influence over trade caravans, from which they received lucrative "dividends."
Once they lost this responsibility, those profits would vanish, and the Shimura Clan, along with its allies, would step in to claim them.
"Once their primary source of income is cut off, I don't believe they'll be able to endure anymore," Ryozhen thought with anticipation.
He was already looking forward to the upcoming council meeting.
At that meeting, the Shimura Clan and its allies would formally propose the removal of the Uchiha from their gatekeeping role.
He was eager to see Fugaku's reaction—would he explode with fury, or continue to suppress his anger?
Fugaku had chosen restraint every time before.
But this time, it would strike at the very foundation of the Uchiha's survival.
Ryozhen didn't believe they could hold out much longer.
And once the Uchiha broke, Shimura's objective—and that of the Konoha leadership—would be achieved.
To the village elders, the Uchiha were a ticking time bomb. After all, they once produced Uchiha Madara, a traitorous ninja who had nearly destroyed the village.
The Nine-Tails incident had only reinforced this belief.
Of course, they couldn't openly attack an innocent clan.
If they did, other clans would grow suspicious. After all, no one could guarantee their own clan wouldn't be next.
Thus, a plan had formed: suppress the Uchiha until they were driven to rebel. Once they did, the village would have just cause to eliminate them.
Ryozhen had to admit Fugaku was remarkably patient.
Despite the repeated pressure, he kept his composure and even managed to suppress dissent within his clan.
Yes, the higher-ups were already well aware of the voices of rebellion within the Uchiha.
In fact, they had been waiting for it.
This time, Ryozhen was convinced the Uchiha wouldn't be able to bear the pressure.
Even if Fugaku himself remained restrained, others in the clan wouldn't.
They would push him to take action.
From the moment this plan began, the fate of the Uchiha Clan was already sealed.
---
Meanwhile, on the road to the police department, Fugaku's eyes flashed with a subtle, icy gleam.
"Shimura Ryozhen..."
If he wanted to change the current predicament of the Uchiha Clan this cycle of suppression and marginalization he would have to deal with those in power who harbored open hostility toward them.
Ryozhen was clearly one of them.
And though Ryozhen held a high position within the Shimura Clan, his standing was far below that of Danzo Shimura. That meant he had far less protection.
A perfect target to start with.
Fugaku had made up his mindvRyozhen would be his first move.
"How should I do it?"
He considered two options for eliminating Ryozhen.
The first was to place a bounty on his head in the black market, offering a large reward to rogue ninjas and missing-nin willing to carry out the assassination.
This method was discreet. If successful, it would completely separate the incident from the Uchiha.
The downside? It was expensive.
Ryozhen was a jōnin of elite caliber. Bounties for such targets weren't cheap.
For reference, Asuma Sarutobi's bounty in the original timeline had reached thirty-five million ryo though Asuma also had the added status of being one of the Twelve Guardian Ninja and the son of the Third Hokage.
Even so, to put a bounty on Ryozhen, the minimum cost would be around twenty million ryo.
The second option was to secretly mobilize Uchiha elite shinobi and carry out the assassination internally.
Cheaper, yes. But far riskier.
If the operation failed or left behind clues, the village's ANBU would surely investigate and if the Uchiha were implicated, the consequences would be devastating.
"Bounties are safer, but costly. Internal assassination is cheaper, but harder to conceal. Still, as long as it's done carefully, the risks can be managed."
In the end, Fugaku chose the second method assassination.
Paying twenty million ryo for a single target wasn't a problem for the Uchiha.
But Ryozhen was not the only threat.
There were many others in Konoha who viewed the Uchiha with hostility. To truly defuse the clan's crisis, he would have to deal with all of them.
If he relied solely on bounties, even the Uchiha's deep coffers wouldn't suffice.
Eventually, internal assassinations would be inevitable.
So why not start now?
Yes, it was risky. But with enough secrecy, the plan could work.
And Fugaku had already decided he would personally carry out the first assassination.
With his Kage-level strength, the chances of failure were minimal.
And the odds of exposure, even lower.