Warlock Invasion of Naruto.

In the firelight, the shadows cast by the iron bars of the prison were imprinted on Hiruzen Sarutobi's face, intertwining with the wrinkles that covered his face, like crisscrossing ditches in a field, making him appear even older.

"Hiruzen, what's with that expression?!" Danzo frowned as he looked at Hiruzen's guilty expression.

He doesn't need sympathy.

"Danzo, we've all grown old." Hiruzen Sarutobi couldn't help but sigh. Time waits for no one. If he were young, how could he be so hesitant and indecisive?

Our era is not over yet!

Danzo said with a resolute expression.

Once the Wood Release experiment is fully completed, his body will be able to regain its former glory. Even if he only gains one-tenth of the First Hokage's power, it will be enough for him to make a comeback.

......

Outside the Uchiha clan's territory.

With his little schoolbag on his back, Sasuke had finally shaken off Naruto's pestering ways and his steps home became much lighter. He couldn't wait to show Itachi his grades; this time, his brother had no reason to say "next time" to him.

This was something that had been agreed upon long ago, and Itachi had repeatedly assured it.

However, when Sasuke returned to his clan's territory, he discovered something strange.

The Uchiha clan's territory is quite large, and with thousands of ordinary clan members, they are able to achieve a certain degree of self-sufficiency within the clan, with various shops available.

But now all the shops selling clothes and food are closed, and even the uncles and aunties who used to greet Sasuke every time he came home from school are gone. All the houses in the entire clan area are closed.

"What happened? What...did something happen?"

Sasuke looked puzzled.

Although there are usually fewer clan members when the Uchiha hold clan meetings, it shouldn't be that there's not a single person on the entire street, not even children his age.

Moreover, only those who have opened their eyes are qualified to participate in the clan meeting; there will be no exceptions.

Thinking of this, Sasuke panicked and quickly ran towards home.

"What exactly happened?"

Why are you making us leave Konoha?

"Were the Uchiha clan driven out of the village?"

"Why should we leave!"

"We Uchiha are the founding fathers who worked alongside the Senju clan to establish Konoha. We are heroes. Why are we being treated like this!"

"Fugaku, it's all because of your weakness that Chiho and other radical ninjas have completely broken with the village!"

"You owe us an explanation!"

When Sasuke was about a street corner away from his house, he heard a commotion.

He quickened his pace, running breathlessly across the street, and what came into view stunned him.

Hundreds of Uchiha clansmen surrounded the entrance to his house, shouting excitedly as if they were denouncing something.

His father, Fugaku, could only look apologetic and remain silent when criticized by the uncles and aunts who had previously treated him well.

Sasuke's favorite older brother was also being pulled and pushed by some ninjas, and he didn't even try to fight back.

"Get out of the way!"

"Stop! Don't treat my brother like this!"

Sasuke excitedly rushed into the crowd and squeezed his way to the very back.

By the time he finally managed to squeeze his way to Itachi, his backpack was gone, and his clothes had been torn by the excited crowd.

"Sasuke?" Itachi was stunned when he saw Sasuke's disheveled appearance.

"Let go! Let go of your brother!"

Sasuke punched the ninjas surrounding Itachi with all his might.

When the Uchiha saw young Sasuke's pitiful state with tears streaming down his face, they also let go of Itachi's hand.

"Brother!" Sasuke hugged Itachi tightly, wiping away his tears as he asked, "Brother, what happened? Is what they said true? Is the Uchiha clan going to be driven out of the village?"

"I'm sorry, Sasuke." Itachi's eyes flashed with deep self-reproach. He had failed to strike a balance between his clan and the village, and he had failed to prevent the Uchiha clan from splitting apart.

"Everyone, this is the decision of Clan Chief Chiho, and also the choice of many clan members themselves. The Third Hokage did not stop it. The clan members voluntarily left the Uchiha clan and joined the Land of Whirlpools."

Seeing that his youngest son had returned, Fugaku did not remain silent any longer, but tried to explain again.

"What do you mean the third generation didn't stop it!?"

"We won't listen!"

"Why not execute Danzo!?"

"So many people have left, what are we going to do? If we stay in the village like this, how will we be able to live with other people in the future?!"

Fugaku's explanation failed to satisfy the remaining Uchiha clan members.

The Uchiha were the strongest ninja clan in Konoha and the founding members of the village. As the clan head, Fugaku bears an undeniable and enormous responsibility for how the village has come to this point.

Now, the clan leader Chiho has taken away more than half of the Uchiha clan members, and the number of ninjas among them accounts for two-thirds of the total number of Uchiha ninjas, of which nearly three-quarters have awakened their Sharingan.

Moreover, they only now realize that the Uchiha clan actually has four powerful members who have awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan, three of whom are from the Uchiha clan that left Konoha.

If the Uchiha clan had this power, why didn't they launch a coup, kill Danzo, force the Third Hokage to abdicate, and take control of the clan themselves?

As ordinary members of the Uchiha clan, they generally got along well with other ordinary people in Konoha. Moreover, because they were backed by the powerful Uchiha clan, they enjoyed better treatment than ordinary villagers.

Perhaps the Uchiha ninjas were suppressed and ostracized in Konoha, but they were not.

As a result, most of the Uchiha ninjas have now left, which will inevitably cause the Uchiha's status in Konoha to decline sharply.

Given their past history of splitting up, it's certain that ordinary people like them won't have an easy time in Konoha in the future.

As for why they didn't leave with the clansmen who had left Konoha, it was because they were used to the peaceful life in Konoha.

Konoha proved its strength with its victories in the three Shinobi World Wars.

The Uzumaki clan was wiped out at the beginning of the Third War. Although the current Uzumaki clan has two top-tier experts, Shiraha and Kushina, they don't have much foundation. If war breaks out, they are very likely to suffer the same fate as the Land of Whirlpools, having their homeland raided and destroyed while their elite troops are out fighting.

Moreover, even if Bai Yu makes nice promises, if he goes there and isn't treated well, he won't be able to leave the Land of Whirlpools.

After all, once you leave Konoha, there's no turning back.

In short, they only want to enjoy the same rights as before and do not want any changes.

Chiho, who caused all this, has already led her clansmen to pack their bags and prepare to go to the Land of Whirlpools. The only person they can blame is the former clan leader, Fugaku, who has chosen to stay in Konoha.

Even if it doesn't help, someone still has to bear the consequences of their anger and dissatisfaction.

As the clan leader, Fugaku, who did nothing, naturally became the first target and the object of everyone's anger.

Sasuke watched his father being criticized by everyone without saying a word, and he was unhappy and wanted to stand up for him, but Itachi stopped him.

Just then, an even more excited commotion suddenly erupted from behind the crowd.

"The water has come!"

"It's Shisui!"

"Get out of the way!"

The Uchiha clan members surrounding the entrance to Fugaku's residence parted to make way for them.

Shisui walked solemnly to the center of the group, approached Itachi and Fugaku, and greeted them. "Lord Fugaku, Itachi. Chiho asked me to consult the clan members again."

With that, Shisui turned to the remaining members of his clan: "If you have changed your minds and are willing to leave with us, then go and pack your things now. Just bring enough food and clothing for the next two days of travel; the Land of Whirlpools will prepare everything else in advance."

"traitor!"

"Why did you do this?! Why did you betray us?!"

"Why didn't you kill Danzo?!"

"What's so great about the Land of Whirlpools!?"

"We will not leave Konoha!"

Zhi Shui's words instantly drew away most of the criticism, and everyone turned their attention to him.

Originally, Shisui was a perfect figure in the eyes of the Uchiha people: powerful, gentle, and full of kindness to everyone.

However, now that Shisui is facing a crisis, he has chosen to leave Konoha just like Chiho, leaving his clan members who remain in Konoha in a very awkward situation.

"I'm sorry, but this is perhaps the best outcome for the Uchiha clan." Shisui bowed deeply to everyone with an apologetic expression.

For Shisui, he loved the Uchiha clan, and every member of the clan was his family.

But at the same time, he also loves Konoha, and every villager is like family to him.

However, the conflict between the clan and the village had reached an irreconcilable point, and because of Danzo's affair, the two sides were now irreconcilable enemies, making internal strife almost inevitable.

As Chiho and Issei said, in order to resolve the conflict, the village must first make changes, which requires the higher-ups to have great courage to tolerate the Uchiha clan.

However, the key issue is that the village is waiting for the Uchiha clan to change first.

Both sides are waiting for the other to make the first concession.

And when the Uchiha clan began to back down, the higher-ups became even more demanding, wanting the Uchiha clan to make even greater changes, forgetting that in the beginning, the Uchiha wanted the higher-ups to change first.

From the very beginning, it was the relentless pressure from higher-ups that completely pushed the Uchiha clan to the opposite side.

The Uchiha clan simply wants the higher-ups to return to their former state. If even that cannot be achieved, there is no point in further negotiations.

Even if Danzo is eliminated and the Third Hokage is forced to abdicate, and a new Hokage is appointed, it won't be easy to reach a consensus with the Uchiha clan in a short time.

If any friction or confrontation occurs during this period, it could easily lead to even greater conflict.

Moreover, while the Uchiha and Senju did rely on their formidable strength to establish Konoha during a chaotic era, they could not simply win over the people by resorting to violence when resolving internal problems.

Moving to a more suitable environment for the Uchiha clan to live in is not necessarily a bad thing for the Uchiha clan now.

As Issei said, the Uchiha were too strong, but not strong enough to make everyone submit to them.

Now, most of the Uchiha clan's power has left Konoha. The remaining Uchiha clans in Konoha are still considered a major ninja clan compared to other ninja clans, no less powerful than the Hyuga and Sarutobi clans. However, they are no longer as powerful as they once were, to the point of inflating one's ego.

The Uchiha clan members who remain in Konoha have essentially proven their attachment to and loyalty to the village, and pose little threat to the village or its leadership. Therefore, the weakening of the Uchiha's strength is actually a good thing for them.

The crowd could not understand Shisui's ideas, nor could they understand the ideas of Chiho and other radicals.

In their view, it's like parents and children arguing. No matter how much the child makes a fuss, it's not like they would actually run away from home and never come back, right?