Panic Room

-6:55 PM-

(Nakano Shrine)

The entire Uchiha clan was there, deep underground at the secret meeting place beneath the seventh tatami mat from the far right. Well, almost anyway, they had left a few to make it look like nothing was amiss. As it was, only those who possessed the sharingan were present. Odd.

Itachi sat near the front, his gut inwardly churning as he stared at his father. Shisui sat a row behind him, his stance uneasy. They had been waiting for the meeting to concur for almost two hours, as those who were invited had to enter the shrine at different times to not raise suspicion.

His mother sat to the side, resolutely ignoring everyone's gaze. They had to ensure that the clan head's family looked unified, but that was all it was — a charade. They hadn't really spoken much this past few months. Itachi was only there because Shisui had cornered him and Shisui was there to make sure that Itachi stayed in the meeting (and spy on the clan, but that's another matter entirely). His mother, on the other hand…

Itachi wasn't really sure anymore. Rumors had circulated about his parents' marriage falling out. Whispers and accusations of affairs followed Mikoto's back. Like a wildfire, they were spurred even further by Fugaku's continued indifference.

At last, his father finally stood at the front of the shrine, not before sparing a final glance at the Clan Elders seat behind him. They were curiously empty, which was unusual considering the urgency of the meeting.

"My family," Fugaku started. "This evening we will discuss many things of great importance."

Fugaku stared at the assembled crowd, his eyes as hard as a stone. "You all remember the night, seven years ago, when the Kyūbi attacked the village, and the Fourth Hokage sacrificed himself. I am also sure that you all have heard about the rumors that it was the Uchiha who perpetrated the attack, despite the fact that it was the Third Hokage and his council who ordered the Uchiha to purely protect the citizens and avoid the Nine-Tails."

Murmurs picked up around the room. Itachi had also heard about said rumors, of course. Everyone had. Despite not liking where the speech was going, Itachi couldn't help but admit that his father had a point. Regardless of individual trials and tribulations, members of the Uchiha were commonly regarded as power-hungry and selfish, an ultimate attribution error at its finest.

"The Uchiha are blamed for a crime we did not commit," Fugaku continued. "Each one of you remembers how our clan was relocated to the outskirts of the village, how the power of the Police Force was allocated to the ANBU, how our clansmen are systematically denied promotion outside of the Police Force. We were the founders of this village and one of its pillars, but the village continuously stumped our growth and we are now reduced to glorified nursemaids. To add more salt into our injuries, our houses are shadowed and spied on, as if we are mere cattles, not entitled to our own privacy."

The Uchiha were whispering and muttering amongst themselves, their anger palpable.

"I want to do right by my family," Fugaku said, his voice low and sorrowful, but also full of anger at the same time. "But I have no more options. I have appealed to the Hokage and his council. I have brought this up at meetings with other clan heads. None of these have worked and I have no more ideas on how to help the Uchiha."

Fugaku roamed his eyes over the crowd, lingering for a fraction longer on his wife and eldest son.

"Whispers and calls for revolution have been brewing, whispers that it is time for Senju lapdogs who have ruled Konoha since its inception to be put to rest. But what would happen afterwards, after the blood has been shed and the dust has settled? If we fail, we die. If we succeed, we will be met with resistance. If we leave, they will hunt us down. We are a clan of proud warriors, but a civil war is not something that any of us is keen to leave as the Uchiha's legacy."

When the noise level started increasing, Fugaku held up his hand for silence.

"My friends, I know you are enraged. I assure you, so am I," he said. "I am a man who is out of options, but I will not let myself be desperate. And thus, I must ask of you an enormous, unfair sacrifice. Put your trust in me and help me secure our clan's future. Be patient, and then we will have the chance to prove our innocence. If, and only if, by then Konoha still refuses to give us what's rightfully ours, we will bring them down."

Before anyone could react, a sharp crack rang through the room, followed by a long, thundering growl. Blast of pressure and heat waves rolled off of their skins before quickly dissipating into the air.

A rumbling thunder echoed inside the room not a second later as the old structure above them collapsed. The enforced concrete around them shuddered and the ceiling shook, causing the lone light bulb to explode and dust particles to descend onto the tatami mat beneath their feet.

"The Nine Tails," murmured Naori-san, a retired ninja from the Sannin's generation.

All noises immediately died down and everyone was instantly on their feet, their sharingan spinning.

Itachi gripped his mother's sleeve, his fingers trembled ever so slightly. "Mother, you need to lift the seal. Let me retrieve Sasuke and Hideyo."

Fugaku and Mikoto exchanged a look, their mangekyō glowed eerily in the dark. The matriarch then formed a half ram sign, making security seals engraved along the walls and ceiling visible.

"Structural integrity is at 60%," she informed, her voice tinged with panic. "Naori-obasan, is there another… another bijūdama coming? What about survivors?"

The older woman tilted her head for a second before shaking her head grimly. "Nothing that I could sense, but the beast is definitely advancing. There are some signatures in our compound, if faint, but I could barely feel any lifeform at the blast epicenter."

Shisui smiled wryly, though his composure was betrayed by his rapidly palling skin "See, living in the outskirts is not so bad, after all."

Fugaku raised his brows and Itachi elbowed his cousin's side. Hard.

The older teen grimaced. "Bad timing. Sorry."

Itachi surveyed his eyes over the deadly silent room, noting how everyone was already in their shinobi garbs. "Either way, we couldn't stay down here forever. This might be our only chance to prove that we have nothing to do with any of the Nine-Tails' attacks."

Itachi turned towards the Clan Head. "What's your order, Father?"

Fugaku gave his eldest son an appraising look.

"Shisui-kun, lead those with chūnin rank to aid the evacuation of civilians. Teleport as much as you're able and join the fighting when needed. Izumi-kun, go to our compound and check on the survivors. Take those who are injured to the hospital if we still have one. If not, patch them up and get them to shelters. Those who have medical training please go with Izumi and then join Shisui's team afterwards.

"Naori-san, you are our most proficient sensor. Please be our eyes and coordinate our movements, inform us where we could be of help. Everyone already has their own wireless radio, but I expect you all to adhere to our communication protocol and not overload our voice channel.

"Those above the chūnin rank, coordinate with the Jōnin Commander to defend the village. Mikoto and I will be at the village gate to help the Hokage subdue the beast, hopefully long enough until it could be sealed into a new vessel. Whatever happens tonight, remember that you are an Uchiha warrior. May the uchiwa fan rouse the flame of your will. That is all, dismissed."

Everyone gave their salutes and immediately flickered out not a second after Mikoto unlocked the seal.

Itachi lingered.

"What about Sasuke and Hideyo?"

Mikoto wrapped a reassuring arm around him. "The orphanage is on the other side of the village. They are as safe as they can be."

Itachi pursed his lips.

"Itachi, you are a jōnin now and you already have your order. Learn to set your priorities. We don't have time for this," Fugaky chided.

Mikoto squeezed her son's shoulder. "Honey, I know you are worried, but Sasuke is not actually helpless and Hideyo is… Hideyo is something else entirely. You need to have more faith in your brothers."

Itachi lowered his head in resignation.

"Very well."

Just as he was about to leave, Itachi took one long look at his parents, his mother specifically.

"Did you know that the attack was coming? Was that the reason why you only gathered those with sharingan and left those who opposed you? Even those who possess the sharingan but strongly support the coup, like the Elders and Yashiro-san, are missing. Did you… did you plan this?"

His mother smiled.

"Does it really matter, Itachi-kun? The seed of doubt has been sown. By asking me this, you must have already formulated your own theory, your own judgement. I already am guilty in your mind. Would anything I say change it?"

Itachi felt his face warmed up, knowing that he was behaving no better than the rest of the village.

"I'm sorry, Mother."

Mikoto tied her long hair into a ponytail. In the dark room they looked almost identical.

"Life is full of luck, my son. Some people have luck handed to them, a second chance, a save. But there are those who don't have luck on a silver platter, those who end up in the wrong place at the wrong time, those who don't get saved. You never know what worse luck your bad luck has saved you from. And those people you've mentioned, they are simply… unlucky."