Uchiha's personal opinion

Uchiha Tokumitsu responded with a "nuclear-kind" smile.

"That's not so bad, at least we don't have to worry about the risk of civil war..."

At this point, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, also felt that this Shinobi Clan Council and Consultation Conference was a good thing.

However, I'll need to put in some effort to win over those declining small ninja clans that don't even have Jonin...

The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, silently recalled the information of the representatives of each ninja clan in his mind, plotting how to control the direction of the tournament.

Public opinion is truly a wonderful thing!

Uchiha Tokumitsu was also very satisfied with this.

His desire to engage in political discourse was also satisfied.

"...The proposal to establish the Military Command has been formally approved by a vote at the general assembly!"

Mitomon's words sealed the deal.

Sakumo Hatake was the first to stand up and bow to the ninja representatives.

Uchiha Tokumitsu and the other three border army commanders then rose and waved to the ninja representatives.

This also marks the official conclusion of the core resolutions of the first Konoha Ninja Clan Council and Consultation Conference.

Chapter 187 The Eastern "Great Development" Plan

With the conclusion of the first Konoha Ninja Clan Council and Consultation Conference, the previously tense and solemn atmosphere in the village dissipated.

The ninjas from the Northern District Police Station of the Police Department, who had previously been withdrawn to the Eastern Police Station, were also released from combat readiness and returned to the station to continue their police duties.

At the Ninja Clan Council and Consultation Conference, the Hokage faction rightfully obtained the authority to establish an Internal Affairs Department.

Meanwhile, the Uchiha clan and Hatake Sakumo were able to strengthen their control over the border defense forces, and in particular, Uchiha Tokumitsu's future special operations would no longer be labeled as "going it alone".

The declining ninja clans of the Reform Society were also very satisfied, as the Ninja Clan Council and Consultative Conference gave them an opportunity to have an equal dialogue with the powerful clans.

Moreover, some of the more astute ninja leaders discovered a way to make money based on the conference's decision-making process—that is, to scalp votes!

Sakumo Hatake also noticed this.

Because some ninja clan leaders, eager to cash in on their meager earnings, were behaving so blatantly, rumors of vote-rigging spread like wildfire, reaching Hatake Sakumo's ears almost immediately, just one day after the meeting ended.

On the second day after the establishment of the Military Command, Hatake Sakumo invited four border army commanders to discuss military affairs.

The so-called Military Command was newly established, and its specific responsibilities, administrative functions, and civilian staff had not yet been determined. Therefore, Hatake Sakumo simply vacated an empty room near the Jonin team to make do.

"The Ninja Clan Council and Consultation Conference is good, but nowadays there are so many negative news reports that it's really hard to cope."

Before the other three arrived, Hatake Sakumo complained to Uchiha Tokumitsu.

"so what?"

Uchiha Tokumitsu, however, was somewhat unconvinced.

"The newly formed Ninja Clan Council and Consultative Conference will inevitably bring new challenges to the village, which is perfectly normal; but we should also treat it with an inclusive attitude, because it may be a catalyst for our progress."

In fact, Uchiha Tokumitsu had anticipated that similar corruption would occur from the beginning, but he did not expect it to happen so quickly.

"That's true..."

Sakumo Hatake sighed, somewhat helplessly.

"Sakumo-kun, this also shows that everyone is actually quite adaptable to new things..."

Uchiha Tokumitsu's explanation seemed very weak and far-fetched, and even he himself felt that it was somewhat illogical.

"I think the pace of future reforms could be even faster!"

Sakumo Hatake was also speechless.

"...So what measures should be taken to prevent such behavior?"

After a long pause, Hatake Sakumo continued to ask.

"Then let's set up another dedicated anti-corruption agency."

Uchiha Tokumitsu said it casually.

"For example... how about the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC)? Doesn't that name sound very clean and honest?"

"...Not very good."

Sakumo Hatake hesitated for a moment before replying.

"It's fine,"

"So... how should this Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) operate?"

Sakumo Hatake couldn't help but ask again.

"Well..."

When asked about this, Uchiha Tokumitsu was also a little stumped.

In the previous life, the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) was subordinate to the local administrative head, but if such an agency were to be established in Konoha, wouldn't that be handing the Third Hokage a powerful weapon?

Besides, Uchiha Tokumitsu knew his own family best. Although the clan members in the police department initially resisted the "fees" during the early stages of the police department's reforms, and seemed to be model citizens of integrity, they were actually lining up to collect money under the leadership of the various regional chiefs not long afterward.

If it becomes such an organization, wouldn't it become a sharp blade in the hands of political enemies, stabbing the Uchiha clan in the back?

"I haven't thought about it yet, but generally speaking, an agency like the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) must be independent in power, not subject to the control of the villagers, and able to conduct anti-corruption investigations independently based on clues..."

Uchiha Tokumitsu racked his brains and gave a few perfunctory replies.

“You have a point, but such a special agency would likely face enormous resistance…”

Sakumo Hatake considered this seriously for a moment, "Moreover, with such immense and unchecked power, it will inevitably become another, even more hidden breeding ground for corruption..."

Uchiha Tokumitsu remained noncommittal.

After a while, Uchiha Himon, Mimura Yoru, and Sarutobi Shinnosuke arrived at the Chief of Staff's office one after another.

"Gentlemen, by order of the Hokage and following a vote at the Ninja Clan Council, the Military Affairs Department is now officially established!"

Sakumo Hatake got straight to the point: "The headquarters' work involves coordinating personnel and combat achievements among the various border defense units..."

"The eastern border defense forces will report the specific situation of all personnel in headquarters to the General Staff within three days!"

Uchiha Tokumitsu was the first to express his support for Hatake Sakumo's work.

I second that!

I second that!

Uchiha Himon and Mimura Yoru followed suit, expressing their agreement.

"The organizational structure of the northern border defense forces has undergone slight changes, and a report on the military situation will be submitted to the General Staff within five days..."

After considering it for a moment, Sarutobi Shinnosuke gave an answer that was slightly different from the other three.

Since he only took over as commander of the northern border defense forces when the Fourth Shinobi World War was about to end, the ninjas under his original command underwent a large-scale rotation soon after, and were replaced by ninjas from the Sarutobi clan.

Some of the ninjas who returned to the village for rest might choose to retire due to a recurrence of their injuries, while others might choose to stay in the village because they were former subordinates of Hatake Sakumo. However, not all members of the Sarutobi Ninja Army were included in the ninja army roster, so the personnel situation of the northern border defense forces remained unclear.

That should do it!

Hatake Sakumo didn't seem to care about the slight difference in timing and quickly moved on to another topic: "Are there any military operations being planned by each department? Are there any matters that require the support of the Naval General Staff?"

Although the daimyo of various countries signed peace agreements and other pronouncements, declaring the end of the state of war between them, for the ninja village, those pronouncements signed by the daimyo had nothing to do with them.

Especially after Uchiha Tokumitsu led his troops to capture the Fire Temple, forcing the daimyo to submit, the authority of the daimyo and nobles had already greatly diminished.

"None available."

Mimura Yomi was the first to answer.

Since the Sand Village ceased its activities, the River Country region he was stationed in has been peaceful.

Moreover, the impoverished Land of Rivers only looks up to the Land of Wind, which is trapped in the desert, and usually doesn't even bother to visit the rogue ninjas or the black market there.

"The Northwest Border Defense Force plans to enter the eastern region of the Rain Country to establish a defense identification zone. No further support is required at this time."

Uchiha Himon replied.

The so-called "defense identification zone" is simply a territory that is forcibly occupied by people in the Land of Rain, the original ninja organizations in the area are driven out, and the mission quota of the area is seized.

This seemingly positive term was conceived by Uchiha Tokumitsu based on his memories from his previous life.

However, the strength of Amegakure has been greatly reduced. After a series of battles, the number of Amegakure members has been reduced to less than one-tenth. Even Hanzo of the Salamander, who was willing but unable to control so much territory, could only turn a blind eye and tacitly approve of Uchiha Himon's invasion.

"Headquarters has no other plans."

Sarutobi Shinnosuke replied somewhat helplessly.

Although he also wanted to make some noise, his northern border defense forces were facing the Hidden Cloud Village, a ninja village ruled by the militant faction. It would be good enough if they could withstand the pressure from the Hidden Cloud Village, let alone make any progress.

"The eastern border defense forces will continue the Kirigakure extermination war with the shogunate's direct forces to uphold justice and restore order."

Uchiha Tokumitsu said solemnly, "At the same time, in order to strengthen the participating ninja forces, headquarters will launch the Eastern Development Plan!"

"Eastern Development..."

Sakumo Hatake was taken aback by what he heard.

Mimura Yomaki and Sarutobi Shinnosuke couldn't help but glance at them.

"The eight eastern districts of the Land of Fire are, after all, direct territories of the Land of Fire. They cannot be treated as small buffer states!"

Hatake Sakumo thought that Uchiha Tokumitsu intended to seize control of the eastern region of the Land of Fire, so he quickly stopped him, saying, "Besides, the ninja village controls the military affairs, and the daimyo controls the political power. This is the foundation of the one village, one country system, and we can't just destroy it like this."

"...What would I do with governing the eastern region?"

Uchiha Tokumitsu was stunned for a moment before realizing what was happening, and couldn't help but find it both funny and absurd.

"The Eastern Development is just a pretext. The headquarters' real purpose is to carry out a crackdown on the eight eastern counties, sweep away the black market forces in the region, and ensure the smooth flow of trade routes in the east."

Uchiha Tokumitsu explained, "The reason it's called the Eastern Development Plan is twofold: first, for strategic deception; and second, through security operations, it can provide a safe and peaceful business environment for the eastern region!"

To put it bluntly, after the Kakuzu attack, Uchiha Tokumitsu had secretly sent people to find out the distribution of black market strongholds and their guard forces in the eastern region, and now he planned to launch an indiscriminate retaliatory strike plan.

In addition to sweeping up the black market, Uchiha Tokumitsu also planned to take over all the trade routes between the eastern region and the Land of Grass in order to amass wealth to raise ninja armies to conquer Kirigakure.

Furthermore, the so-called "Eastern Development Plan" will select suitable candidates from the nobles of the eight eastern counties to cooperate with the Uchiha clan and provide them with targeted support.

Compared to overly conspicuous direct rule, Uchiha Tokumitsu preferred to use economic and political means to achieve his goals.