Konoha Notes

Chapter 296 Uchiha Hyuga
This is the first time that Uchiha Fugaku has set foot here since the branch was established.

He could neither prevent the establishment of the branch nor express his support for it.

It's better to separate things like this, with each side handling their own affairs.

He originally intended to let it pass by quietly.

"You already know about the Five Kage Summit to be held outside the venue next month, right, Hiashi?" Fugaku's gaze swept over the patrol list and branch personnel roster on the command room wall.

"Yes, Minister." Hiashi guessed at Fugaku's purpose in coming here.

Does headquarters also need to participate in security work? But if it's just about this kind of issue, is it necessary to bring people to the branch office?
So, is it to gain control over subsequent work and prove that the headquarters' authority is above that of the branches?
Hiashi Hyuga has no intention of competing with the headquarters in this regard. Holding onto the existing power and preserving what he already possesses is enough for both the Hyuga clan and the branch offices.

If the headquarters wants a title, just give it to them.

Judging from the current situation in the venue area, the branch has a lot of room for development, and there is no need to compete with the headquarters at this time.

Therefore, he adopted a humble attitude from the very beginning downstairs.

"The village requested that headquarters also participate in the operation."

Hiashi immediately replied, "I will order the branch members to cooperate with the headquarters' actions and instructions during the process."

Fugaku looked at Hyuga Hiashi, who had already said everything. He had originally planned to use work-related issues to discuss matters concerning headquarters and branches.

At that moment, a commotion came from below; it was Daohuo nitpicking the branch's work.

Hiashi remained unfazed, while Fugaku frowned almost imperceptibly. After a moment's thought, he ultimately decided not to intervene.

At that moment, Fugaku heard a faint sound coming from another room in the command center.

The child's voice...

"Is there a practice room set up next door?" Fugaku asked.

“Yes,” Hiashi answered frankly, “There is a similar training ground downstairs. Recently, the venue area has been very busy, and as the person in charge, it is inconvenient for me to leave my post for a long time, so I brought my daughter here to help supervise her studies.”

Training a successor...

How exactly did that person in the village view Itachi? And why did he treat Sasuke differently...?

"Your daughter, Hinata, right? She's a classmate of my second son, Sasuke. She..." Fugaku, wanting to ease the tension a bit, started talking about his child, hoping to have a proper talk with Hiashi Hyuga.

After thinking for a long time, Fugaku couldn't figure out how to evaluate Sasuke, who was number one and didn't say much about the other classmates. He realized that he knew almost nothing about the eldest daughter of the Hyuga main family.

"He should... be an outstanding child." In the end, he could only choose the safest and most polite evaluation.

Hiashi's lips twitched down very slightly for a moment. "No, Hinata is just an ordinary child, not as good as the captain's two sons."

The Hyuga clan's plan to change its heir is still undecided, so Hiashi showed some consideration for his eldest daughter when facing Fugaku. This was unlike in the original storyline when he bluntly called his eldest daughter a waste, as he did with Kurenai Yuhi.

Although he agreed with Hiashi's assessment, Fugaku remained polite, saying, "They still have a lot of room for improvement and a lot of problems."

Hiashi followed up with two more compliments. Then, the black-eyed man and the white-eyed man exchanged a silent glance, neither of them saying another word.

For a moment, the sounds downstairs and the subtle movements in the adjacent practice room seemed to be magnified, highlighting the silence in the command room.

Then, the sounds below suddenly disappeared.

Fugaku's eyes flickered slightly, and he guessed who had arrived.

“The Uchiha have other goals,” he said softly, as if speaking to himself, or perhaps to Hiashi.

Hiashi remained unmoved, and Hyuga was well aware that the Uchiha clan had other goals. Not only Hyuga knew, but the other ninja clans of Konoha were also aware of it.

The position of Hokage, however, doesn't necessarily mean that the Uchiha clan would engage in any substantial exchange of benefits when they have higher goals.

This clan has remained the same for decades.

What Fugaku thought was a profound expression of his true feelings was, in Hyuga Hiashi's eyes, nothing more than empty words.

Hearing footsteps approaching, Hyuga Hiashi walked towards the door of the command room. Fugaku, receiving no response, sat silently for a moment before following Hiashi to meet the person.

"Mr. Shuji."

"Shushi."

The person addressed by both of them politely replied, "Minister Fugaku, Minister Hiashi."

The atmosphere upstairs seemed better than downstairs—which was expected by Shuji. After all, Fugaku was probably there to resolve the problem.

Although Fugaku's physique wouldn't solve the problem, it wouldn't actually cause much of a problem either.

It's just that the atmosphere in the police department's lobby is a bit off. These things always happen, and they're bound to happen.

If it weren't for a message from the secret service, and because he didn't want any accidents to happen during the event, he wouldn't have even planned to make this trip.

"Perfect timing, since you two are both here, let's take this opportunity to explain the security arrangements during the Five Kage Summit."

"The outermost warning zone is the responsibility of the village's directly subordinate patrol team. From the third layer of protection onwards, the police department will need to take over, up to the outer perimeter of the meeting building."

"The deployment, investigation, and personnel deployment in this area are entirely the responsibility of the police department."

"The security of the building itself and its core internal area is jointly the responsibility of the Shadows' direct guards and the village's secret service."

"The two ministers are requested to coordinate the specific implementation plans for these two layers of defense within a week and submit a joint document."

Fugaku nodded: "Headquarters will formulate a plan as soon as possible and communicate with the branches in a timely manner."

Hiashi bowed and said, "Understood."

“Very good.” Xiu Si nodded, having no objection to the two’s statements.

He turned around, ready to leave.

“Mr. Shuji, please wait a moment.” Hiashi suddenly spoke up. “My two children are here. It would be very impolite of me not to let them pay their respects to you upon your arrival.”

As he spoke, he turned to open the door to the training room.

Xiu Si stopped in his tracks. He wasn't oblivious to the commotion next door; even his sister-in-law was there...

Fugaku's gaze shifted from Hiashi to Shuji, then back to Hiashi.

When he brought it up earlier, Hiashi Hyuga didn't have this attitude at all; he was visibly dismissive. Now, however, he's being completely different and very attentive.

Naruto...

"Regarding the patrol plan, we'll discuss it further once headquarters has drafted it." Fugaku's voice deepened. "I'll take my leave now, Shuji."

After saying that, he left without waiting for Hiashi Hyuga's reply.

Hiashi paused, turning to face away Uchiha Fugaku.

"The branch office will be prepared."

Even though Fugaku Uchiha couldn't see him, the head of the Hyuga clan still maintained his politeness, bowing as he watched him leave.

(End of this chapter)