Konoha Notes

Chapter 112 In the Shadows

Ninjas are tools; unusable tools should be discarded, while valuable tools should be placed in the hands of those who are suited to them.

Danzo Shimura always upheld this belief.

In his view, the Uchiha clan was a dangerous, difficult-to-use tool that contained astonishing value.

Over the long years, this set of tools has brought too many scratches and hidden dangers to Konoha. Instead of spending a huge amount of money trying to break it down and appease it, it would be better to completely disassemble it, extract the most valuable parts, and give them to those who truly know how to use them.

This was something that had been progressing step by step, especially after the death of the Fourth Hokage, everything was going to develop naturally.

But Tsunade returned.

This is unlike any previous sporadic or tentative gestures of goodwill. This new plan is a clear and systematic action driven by a powerful Hokage candidate from the core of the village's power structure.

She is still the only candidate at this point in time.

His old friend Hiruzen Sarutobi will choose to invest resources and express his support, unless it is proven that the path is no longer viable.

Root cannot directly attack Tsunade. At this stage, any action taken against the Hokage candidate will provoke a direct counterattack from Hiruzen Sarutobi.

When Orochimaru defected, Hiruzen Sarutobi could let him go. But after Orochimaru defected, if he wanted to kill Kakashi, he would immediately be hit by an exploding tag.

The Root organization ran rampant, but if they were to make a move against Kakashi, the headquarters would be surrounded by the Anbu, and Tenzo would be taken away.

Since that's the case, the only way to make Tsunade's plan unfeasible is to start with the Uchiha clan.

So Danzo appeared in front of Itachi Uchiha.

"My esteemed advisor."

“Uchiha Itachi, you are a truly talented ninja, but now your talent is being wasted. Staying by Shuji’s side will only waste your talent.” Danzo made a direct recruitment call, putting on a gentle face for business purposes. “He cannot give you the path to true power, but I can.”

Itachi didn't answer, but simply bowed slightly: "Excuse me, advisor, I have other matters to attend to."

“Your people are on a dangerous path, and the protection he can offer is negligible.”

"You'll have more room to grow by coming to my side, where I, the Hokage's assistant, will be able to do your job."

Danzo took a step forward, pressing down on Itachi's position.

Having been in a position of power for a long time, he understood how to make a child feel suffocated and oppressed, and how to force the other party to make their first compromise under pressure. Once there was a first time, there would be a second, until the child was completely under his control.

Itachi's expression remained unchanged; he had witnessed how Shuuji handled such situations before.

See through all the superficial threats and intimidation to determine the other party's most fundamental needs.

Today, Itachi is going to the old house in the western suburbs because Shuji needs him to confirm the list provided by Fugaku Uchiha and who should be the first to go to the Anbu.

In other words, the village had already begun to use the methods of their predecessors to resolve the Uchiha problem, but this advisor appeared at this time, wanting him to change his stance. Therefore, he was an opponent of the predecessors' plan.

Danzo Shimura's approach to the Uchiha was either more radical or more conservative; in any case, they were not people he should cooperate with.

The other party's current posture subtly suggests an intention to force me to take action. If I back down, I'll have to follow their lead; if I resist, I might not be a match for them, and it could even give the advisor a reason to seize my position.

Even if nothing happens to him in the end, it may still make his father, who is trying to cooperate with the village, feel a sense of crisis, affecting the cooperation and even causing him to go back to his old ways.

So, should we first feign compliance...?

"Itachi, you're here... Oh, the advisor is here too."

Uchiha Shisui walked out naturally from the street corner, a hint of surprise on his face.

He walked a few steps to Itachi's side, stood still, and looked calmly at Danzo.

"Excuse me, what happened?"

Shimura Danzo glanced at Shisui but ignored him; the pressure could not continue today.

"Think it over carefully, Uchiha Itachi."

After uttering those words, Shimura Danzo disappeared into the shadows.

Only after the oppressive atmosphere completely dissipated did Shisui turn to Itachi: "Are you alright?"

"It's alright, thank you, Shisui."

"I just happen to be patrolling nearby." Shisui smiled and said, "Wherever you're planning to go next, I'll go with you."

"Go see your senior."

"Let's set off then, don't keep Shuji-kun waiting."
-
Inside the old house in the western suburbs, Shuji was reviewing a list. This list wasn't given to him directly by Fugaku Uchiha—since Tsunade's personal involvement, Fugaku no longer needed to communicate with him privately.

The list was forwarded by Tsunade. She knew that Shuuji was conducting some investigation through Itachi.

He looked up when he heard the knocking and Itachi's announcement.

"Come in."

"Senior, I met Advisor Shimura on my way here."

Shuji put down what he was holding and gestured for him to continue.

Itachi succinctly recounted what had just happened, including Danzo's recruitment, the implicit threat, and Shisui's timely intervention.

Still unwilling to give up, Shimura Danzo.

Since Tsunade hadn't officially taken office as Hokage yet, it wasn't appropriate for her to directly suppress him.

“You handled it well. There’s no need to confront him directly now, after all, he’s a village advisor. But don’t be afraid either, he’s just the leader of Root.” “You can refuse any request. If there are any problems, tell him to go to Lady Tsunade. I will inform Lady Tsunade.”

"The only problem is that he might resort to force."

Just like Danzo stealing Shisui's eyes, as long as he can prevent his opponent's plans from being implemented, he has his own sense of existence as a radical against the Uchiha. If things become unmanageable, the village will still have to resort to his cleanup plan.

As for why something is impossible, that's not important.

This is like two doctors treating the same patient. If one of them manages to ruin the other's surgical plan, then even if the patient is unwilling, they have no choice but to accept the remaining options.

"When you get back, remind your father to be extra careful recently. Zhi Shui's concerns are valid. Even you should remain vigilant when leaving the clan's territory."

"If there's anything important going on later, I'll take the initiative to contact you."

If Itachi were given another year, with his abilities, he would no longer have to worry about Danzo.

Back then, even without awakening his Mangekyou Sharingan, Itachi Uchiha could easily defeat three Uchiha with three tomoe each, relying solely on his individual abilities.

But after all, everyone needs time to grow. Even someone as strong as Madara Uchiha had years when he couldn't cross a river by throwing stones at it.

Itachi hesitated for a moment: "Senior, if even I am being closely monitored, what about your safety...?"

"No need to worry about me," Shuuji said calmly.

Shuji knew Danzo's trump card, but Danzo did not know his.

Battles between ninjas are a contest of intelligence, especially when the difference in physical abilities is not that great—except for Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha.

Shuji wasn't actually too worried about fighting characters who appeared in the original work. He knew whether he could win or not. He also knew when to retreat.

On the contrary, we should be careful about those that have never appeared before and for which there is no information on ninjutsu.

After discussing Danzo Shimura, the topic returned to the list submitted by Fugaku Uchiha.

Uchiha Itachi glanced at the names and said, "Mr. Yashiro is stubborn, but he is relatively calm and not someone who cannot be communicated with."

"The same applies to Tiehuo and Daohuo."

"As for Mr. Yaowei, he has always been loyal to his father."

Shuji's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly. His worries had become a reality.

The message he conveyed through Itachi Uchiha was to transfer stubborn, elite Uchiha members to the Anbu, thereby freeing up positions in the police force.

Fugaku's understanding might be that he should prioritize persuading a relatively controllable group of radicals who were willing to follow his orders to enter the Dark Side and complete the quota.

Therefore, he recommended the person who was most likely to listen to him.

The problem is, why report them? If these people can truly obey Fugaku, then they are not essentially extremists who need to be isolated, but rather a force that can be won over and guided.

Those who truly need to be removed are the radicals whose voices are louder and whose attitudes are more hardline than the clan leader's.

After absorbing people into the Dark Side system, they can be sent to remote areas to infiltrate and investigate, or transferred to hunt down rogue ninjas who have fled into the Demon Desert and even further west.

The noise inside the Uchiha clan will immediately decrease significantly.

Do you really think the village needs an entire Uchiha squad to help investigate any clues about Madara?

The first wave of people sent into the Anbu, plus the vacant police force positions, together constituted the Uchiha's pledge of allegiance to the village's leadership.

Fugaku Uchiha submitted only six names this time, five of whom were his close associates.

Choosing four out of six, regardless of the choice, would not effectively weaken the most jarring and extreme voices within the Uchiha clan; on the contrary, it might weaken Fugaku's control over the clan.

“Fierce Fire, Thousand Nights, Flame Blade…” Itachi named several members in order, all of whom were the most radical and dissatisfied with the status quo among those he had observed and interacted with.

After writing down the names, Shuji made up his mind that he had to get Tsunade to reject the current list, and next time, he would have Fugaku provide a list with even more names.

You can't tell him the reason directly; just say that the village hopes to select the best from the best and expand the scope.

"Has the news that the village intends to select elites from the Uchiha clan to join the Anbu already spread within the Uchiha clan?" Shuji asked the next question.

Itachi replied, "Yes, there's already word of it."

"How was the response?"

“There are some dissenting voices, as well as some voices of clear opposition, who believe it is a conspiracy by the village.”

It's clear that you can't expect all Uchiha clan members to be oblivious to the political implications behind this matter, even though these people are often clever in the wrong way.

Itachi continued, "But some clansmen are happy about this, including some of the more powerful ones."

He was unaware that not everyone opposed leaving the police force.

In particular, many of those who were already serving as squad leaders in the police force had high hopes for this.

Shuji's eyes lit up upon hearing this, and he explained to Itachi's question, "The police department is indeed a large department."

"However, compared with the other five departments in the village, as well as the many directly subordinate squads and special operations teams, its size and potential for growth are limited."

"For truly capable people, being limited to serving in the police force is actually a constraint."

After all, no matter how hard they try, the police department only has one minister, who is the head of the Uchiha clan.

If Itachi's feedback is correct, then the existence of these people may provide unexpected internal support for deeper reforms of the police force.

(End of this chapter)