Uchiha's personal opinion

"I'm afraid everyone thinks the Uchiha's ninja swords are ineffective!"

Uchiha Tokumitsu sneered and ordered his subordinates, "Notify Fubo Castle to send someone to bring Yagura Karatachi to Konoha!"

This time, Uchiha Tokumitsu has no intention of compromising.

He needed to prepare for both options: a battle of wits and a battle of force, and he had to be strong in both. Moreover, he needed to use both methods simultaneously to quell any opposition within Konoha in one fell swoop!

Uchiha Tokumitsu wanted them to know that even though Konoha had nominally achieved a Jonin republic, there were still people who were more equal than ordinary people in terms of the right to speak!

……

After concluding the House of Representatives executive meeting, Hatake Sakumo returned to his residence with mixed feelings.

There is no doubt that the uproar caused by Mimura Yoru's proposal in the House of Representatives will inevitably provoke a backlash from the Uchiha clan.

Whether in terms of the number of Jonin or the power they wield, the Uchiha clan possesses an overwhelming advantage within Konoha, a feat unmatched by any challenger.

Hatake Sakumo couldn't understand why Mimura Yomaki would choose to go against his will and provoke trouble at this time. Even when he tried to summon Mimura Yomaki for a private discussion after the meeting, she resolutely refused.

In addition, divisions began to emerge within the Reform Society.

Commoner ninjas and members of minor ninja clans were dissatisfied with Uchiha Tokumitsu's decision not to bring Kirigakure under Konoha's control after conquering it, but instead to make it his personal property. They believed that Uchiha Tokumitsu was abusing his power for personal gain, using Konoha's strength to expand his own clan's influence, and violating Konoha's long-standing principle of fairness.

The problem is, even if they coveted the shogunate's gains in the Kirigakure campaign, these dissidents were not part of the ninja army that participated in the war!

It's important to know that the participating Allied Company Ninja Army didn't suffer any losses; they all made a fortune.

Moreover, as far as he knew, some people within the Reform Association had already begun to conspire to start a new election and change leadership, in order to remove Uchiha Tokumitsu from his position as chief supervisor and eliminate the influence of the ninja clan in the Reform Association.

Even more concerning, some voices have begun demanding that the Uchiha clan relinquish control of the Land of Water and bring it under the jurisdiction of Konoha, so that Konoha ninjas can take on missions from the Land of Water…

To be honest, the changes in the Reform Society also alarmed him.

The change in attitude of some mid-level ninjas, in particular, chilled him to the bone.

The cacophony of various sounds was incredibly irritating to Sakumo Hatake.

"Those bastards!"

Even the good-natured Hatake Sakumo couldn't help but curse.

The Uchiha clan's expansion with its affiliated ninja clans is actually a good thing for Konoha. At least for now, the internal competition in Konoha has eased a lot, and there are many more tasks available to everyone.

But now they can't even keep up with the missions assigned to Konoha, yet those people have the leisure to think about missions to the Land of Water! Do they all really think that Uchiha Tokumitsu wouldn't dare to use force against his own people?

Moreover, if Uchiha Tokumitsu were to choose to take a hard line internally, given the current strength of Konoha, who could possibly stand up to the Uchiha clan?

It's important to know that the original Hokage lineage has completely vanished! Even the Anbu has been absorbed into the Special Operations Bureau of the Police Department!

Don't they realize that with their meager strength, how could they possibly stand against the Uchiha clan?

Sakumo Hatake grew increasingly angry, and began to regret his attempt to de-escalate the situation during the House of Representatives meeting.

"I should have rebuked and rejected it on the spot..."

The more Hatake Sakumo thought about it, the more troublesome it seemed.

The current good situation in Konoha is only possible because Uchiha Tokumitsu is relatively "reasonable". Otherwise, after killing the former Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, even if Uchiha Tokumitsu calls himself the new Hokage of Konoha, who in the village would have the courage or ability to raise objections?

"It's not scarcity that's worrisome, but inequality..."

Hatake Sakumo recalled a statement that Uchiha Tokumitsu had once made, and the more he thought about it, the more sense it made.

The problem is that Uchiha Tokumitsu never backs down in any matter concerning the interests of his clan, not even in the slightest, let alone in a strategic, superficial way.

Even in the distribution of benefits after the coup, although the House of Representatives and the Senate were nominally coexisting, and the House of Representatives was entrusted to Sakumo Hatake, in reality, the Uchiha clan and its affiliated ninja clans were capable of influencing any decision of the House of Representatives. They simply chose not to express their opinions on daily affairs in order to maintain their alliance.

Just like during the Jonin team meeting, Uchiha Tokumitsu simply chose to have the clan's Jonin give their full support to Hatake Sakumo in the affairs vote.

"Father..."

Kakashi Hatake, Sakumo's son, awkwardly pushed open the study door and timidly asked his father, "Do you have time to teach me swordsmanship today?"

"Oh……"

Sakumo Hatake forced a smile. "Could you wait a moment? I need to take care of something..."

"OK……"

Kakashi Hatake, the son, nodded obediently.

Sakumo Hatake returned to his study, took out paper and pen, and was about to write something when suddenly a family servant announced from outside the door.

"Lord Sakumo, Jonin Orochimaru and Jonin Jiraiya have come to visit together..."

"……I see."

Sakumo Hatake hesitated for a moment, then put away his pen and decided to meet with the two Jonin of special status.

"...Oh right, tell Kakashi that I might not have time to practice swordsmanship with him anymore."

Chapter 286 The Blade Turns Inward

As evening fell, Uchiha Tokumitsu, who had rushed back to Konoha, returned directly to his clan's territory surrounded by his subordinates, without having any dealings with any outsiders.

However, this scene sparked some discussion among other forces in Konoha.

Mimura Yoru's proposals in the House of Representatives to disband the ninja army and annex Kirigakure were seen by the Senju clan, the Hyuga alliance, and other so-called "third forces of Konoha" as nothing more than infighting among the current ruling class of the village. They were eager to see the drama unfold and were constantly fanning the flames.

For example, while feigning opposition to Mimura Yoru's disarmament bill in the House of Representatives, he secretly instructed the lower-ranking ninjas of his clan to spread rumors about the benefits that disbanding the standing ninja army and annexing Kirigakure would bring to Konoha. This was essentially a case of a split personality.

The Senju clan, on the other hand, launched a fierce attack on Uchiha Tokumitsu's control of Kirigakure from various angles, including the one village, one country system and the fact that the five great ninja villages established a peaceful order in the ninja world, putting pressure on the Uchiha clan in terms of public opinion.

But ultimately, "the weapon of criticism is no match for the criticism of weapons."

The Uchiha ninja army, returning to Konoha amidst a storm of blood and gore, immediately silenced all other sounds in the village.

Especially after the second batch of shogunate personnel arrived in Konoha, the Hyuga ninja in charge of intelligence immediately recognized the identity of the short man among them—Yagura Karatachi, the former Jinchuriki of the Three-Tails of Kirigakure!

As everyone knows, the Tokugawa Shogunate, which won several major battles in the Hidden Mist Campaign and the Hidden Cloud Campaign, controls the largest number of tailed beasts in the ninja world! And this time, they even brought the Jinchuriki back to the village...

No one doubted that the Uchiha clan, skilled in eye manipulation and genjutsu, couldn't control a mere Jinchuriki, especially with the Uzumaki clan's full support.

Similarly, no one doubts that the Uchiha clan lacks the courage to start a civil war!

A chilling aura, a chilling and murderous aura, quickly spread from the gates of Konoha Village to every Konoha faction that was paying attention to the development of the situation.

Sakumo Hatake was also getting restless.

He also bears a significant responsibility for how this matter escalated to this point.

Habitual compromise and appeasement are the reasons why the "ninja village faction" forces, such as Mimura Yomaki, believe that Hatake Sakumo is a "gentleman" and thus dare to "deceive him with their methods".

But in fact, Sakumo Hatake clearly understood that although his alliance with the Uchiha clan had indeed changed the Uchiha clan's image in the village, he and the Reform Society had not contributed much to the struggle to completely destroy the Hokage lineage.

However, the police department's actions immediately halted Sakumo Hatake's journey to the Uchiha clan's territory.

"Police Department Order: Effective immediately, a curfew will be enforced from 10 PM to 6 AM the following morning!"

"Anyone without a special pass issued by the police department or who has a genuine emergency is strictly prohibited from walking on the streets during the curfew!"

"Anyone who violates the curfew order will be imprisoned for at least six months upon discovery!"

"Anyone who resists the police department's enforcement of the curfew will be killed on the spot!"

Less than an hour after Uchiha Tokumitsu returned to his clan's territory, police stations in all districts of the police department immediately posted notices, and loudspeakers broadcast messages to the entire village. Police officers also began to change into their combat gear and prepare to enforce the curfew.

Sakumo Hatake glanced at the clock in his house; it was around nine o'clock at night...

Although confident that he wouldn't be subject to the police department's impartial enforcement even if he went out, Hatake Sakumo thought about it and decided to give up his plan to go out.

He couldn't fathom Uchiha Tokumitsu's thoughts, so there was no need to try.

Based on Sakumo Hatake's understanding of Tokumitsu Uchiha, Tokumitsu Uchiha would begin his operations within Konoha as early as tomorrow morning, or at the latest the day after tomorrow. At that time, all he needed to do was control the situation and prevent it from escalating to extremes.

"But this time, a lot of people might die..."

Sakumo Hatake sighed deeply.

Especially Mimura Yomaki, whom Hatake Sakumo had always regarded as his right-hand man, so he did not understand why she suddenly chose to attack Uchiha Tokumitsu's shogunate, and even went so far as to challenge the Uchiha clan's military power.

However, this time, Sakumo Hatake was no longer willing to risk his reputation to plead for him.

After taking control of Konoha's highest power, Sakumo Hatake's mentality also underwent some changes, and his moral bottom line became relatively flexible. For example, he learned how to make choices when faced with interests.

"Father...can you practice ninjutsu with me today?"

Kakashi Hatake, the son, leaned against the porch and asked with his big, blinking eyes.

"How's your swordsmanship? There's a curfew outside, so we can't go out... and there's not enough space at home?"

Sakumo Hatake forced a smile and tenderly stroked his son's silver hair, which was just like his own.

"Don't let me down...Kakashi..."

Sakumo Hatake muttered to himself.

In this generation of Konoha, it's estimated that no one can rival Uchiha Tokumitsu, but the next generation probably still has a chance.

For example, his exceptionally intelligent son…

Then, Hatake Sakumo recalled what Orochimaru and Jiraiya had said during their visit the previous night...

……

After returning to his clan's territory, Uchiha Tokumitsu first sent someone to inform Elder Setsuna of his arrival before returning home to have a meal with his parents, who had been waiting for him.

After washing up, Uchiha Tokumitsu carried the Uchiha clan's sacred weapon, the Flame Fan, to Elder Setsuna's residence.

Unlike usual, this time the gates of Elder Setsuna's residence were open, and two guard ninjas stood respectfully at the entrance. When they saw Uchiha Tokumitsu approaching from afar, one of them immediately went back inside to report, while the other went forward to greet him.

"Lord Tokumitsu..."

The guard ninja was also very respectful, "The Grand Elder is already in the hall, please follow me..."

"Thank you for your help."

Uchiha Tokumitsu didn't put on any airs and spoke gently.

"You're too kind. It's just my duty."

The guard ninja replied just as politely.

His gaze also occasionally drifted toward the flame fan in Uchiha Tokumitsu's hand.

The whereabouts of the sacred artifact, the Flame Fan, has been a target that the Uchiha clan has been trying to find ever since Madara Uchiha left. For a time, the Uchiha clan believed that the Flame Fan had been hidden by the Senju clan after the battle at the Valley of the End, which caused quite a rift with the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju. However, later, with the mediation of Uchiha Kaname, the clan gradually gave up the idea of ​​retrieving the Flame Fan from the Senju clan.