My Name Is Naruto Namikaze

CHAPTER WORDS:- 1124

Chapter 13: Night of the Extermination

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But this line of thought lasted only a moment in Naruto's mind.

There were simply too many things that didn't add up.

Watching the raging fire in the distance, which seemed impossible to extinguish, and listening to the now chaotic sounds of Konoha, Naruto's brows furrowed tighter and tighter. Then, after a brief moment, his expression softened.

"No matter the reason, no matter the outcome, what does this have to do with me right now? Better to just go back to sleep."

Naruto smirked bitterly and shook his head. He closed the curtains and returned to his bed.

The spreading fire, along with the faint sounds of fighting and screams carried by the wind, lingered in the background. Naruto thought he could even faintly hear cries of pain and sorrow from that distant part of the village.

But at this moment, Naruto could only be a bystander.

In fact, he didn't even want to be a bystander.

Whether it was because of his current lack of strength or his own position, the downfall of the Uchiha clan had nothing to do with him.

On this bloodstained night, in a world like this, the greatest original sin is simply not having enough power.

Naruto shook his head and, before lying down, took one last long look at the blazing fire through the crack in the curtain. He then crawled back into his bed and closed his eyes.

For Konoha, and perhaps for the entire Land of Fire, tomorrow would bring a completely different reality.

The destruction of its greatest clan—this marked the true beginning of a major ninja village's decline.

The Next Day

The news of the Uchiha clan's annihilation quickly spread throughout the entire village.

As the commotion from the previous night began to circulate, the villagers were all guessing what had happened.

The scent of smoke, the deafening explosions, the faint sounds of fighting and screams, and the blazing fire—anyone who hadn't noticed would have been truly strange. Some people even speculated that it might have been an external invasion or, worse, the start of a new ninja war.

But before such speculation could spread further, the Konoha higher-ups, led by the Third Hokage, quickly announced the truth about the previous night's events.

The explanation given was exactly what Naruto had anticipated.

The official story was that Uchiha Itachi, the clan's most gifted ninja, had colluded with external enemies in a rebellion to overthrow Konoha. When discovered by his own clansmen, Itachi slaughtered the entire Uchiha clan. He was eventually forced to retreat by Konoha's forces.

Having fled the village, Uchiha Itachi was now declared an S-rank rogue ninja.

When this news spread throughout Konoha, it caused an uproar. Over 99% of the villagers and ninja who didn't know the truth were left in disbelief.

A young genius who graduated from the Academy at age seven and became a Chūnin at age ten—Uchiha Itachi was now a traitor who had plotted to destroy Konoha?

Even this revelation alone was shocking.

But what followed, the news that nearly the entire Uchiha clan had been wiped out (leaving only Uchiha Sasuke alive), sent shockwaves through the village.

The Uchiha clan, which held such an important place in Konoha's history and structure, one of the two founding clans of the village, and the strongest ninja clan in the current ninja world, was wiped out overnight?

It wasn't that people didn't believe it—it was that they couldn't believe it.

This piece of news wouldn't just shake Konoha; it was inevitable that, after today, the news would spread beyond the village.

Throughout the Land of Fire.

And across the entire ninja world.

The other four great ninja villages—Sand, Mist, Stone, and Cloud—would undoubtedly start paying close attention. What was the truth behind this event? Had Konoha's strength been affected?

These were the questions that the other villages would focus on most.

For Naruto, who already knew the general plot, the so-called "truth" announced by Konoha's higher-ups wasn't going to fool him.

In fact, Naruto found it almost laughable.

The real truth? What role did the Konoha higher-ups—the Third Hokage, Danzo Shimura, and the two advisors—play in this "truth"?

Naruto knew better than anyone.

At the end of the day, the Uchiha clan certainly bore some responsibility for their own demise.

But the actions of the Third Hokage and Danzo were far from honorable.

And in Naruto's opinion, being dishonorable was one thing.

After all, as leaders of a ninja village, being a little ruthless and manipulative for the sake of the village's interests wasn't necessarily wrong.

But! The most critical issue was this:-

The downfall of the Uchiha clan—especially the events involving Shisui and Itachi—showed just how utterly stupid the Konoha higher-ups were.

Naruto couldn't hide his disdainful thoughts. If the First and Second Hokage knew what kind of incompetence their successors had displayed, they'd probably be rolling in their graves.

but honestly, he really couldn't really say they were in the right either. Hashirama was naive, thinking that peace wouldn't come at a cost, which eventually was done by using the Tailed Beasts as Liasons. Tobirama Isolated the Uchiha's in a misguided attempt to keep the cursed of hatred, just adding extra fuel towards the hatred and anger that the Uchiha's have towards Konoha.

honestly, all three Hokages were at fault for the death of the Uchiha's, and this just motivates him more, to complete his plan.

Despite the Third Hokage often appearing as a representative of the moderate faction and the two advisors seeming to lean toward favoritism, in reality, these three high-ranking officials played roles in the Uchiha Clan Massacre that were no less questionable than the ruthlessness of Danzo Shimura. They were all complicit in this dark and dishonorable event.

Moreover, this massacre diverged slightly from the original events in the manga that Naruto remembered from his past life. Though he couldn't be entirely certain, Naruto speculated that Itachi Uchiha might have inadvertently leaked some clues before he acted, which were then picked up by the Uchiha clan's hardline faction. This discovery likely led to a partial revolt within the Uchiha before the massacre. Otherwise, the large-scale commotion from the previous night would be hard to explain.

It must have been a partial rebellion that was quickly suppressed. Otherwise, it wouldn't make sense how the village announced the massacre so confidently. Konoha's leadership openly declared the destruction of the Uchiha Clan, leaving only two survivors: the missing-nin Itachi Uchiha and the lone child Sasuke Uchiha. This transparency in the aftermath made it clear that the results of the massacre aligned with the original series. Naruto deduced the above scenario from this conclusion.

(End of Chapter)

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