The Uchiha Clan's Sun

"Ahem," Minato Namikaze coughed lightly, drawing everyone's attention, and then said, "I think everyone understands what happened regarding Sakumo Hatake-senpai. I can only say that this tragedy was entirely caused by the selfishness of some high-ranking officials in Konoha!"

"As a junior, I cannot criticize my seniors here, but as the Hokage, I can clearly tell everyone that Sakumo Hatake's choice was not wrong!"

"Here, on behalf of the village, I sincerely apologize to Sakumo Hatake. The village was at fault in this matter!"

As he spoke, Minato Namikaze looked at Kakashi Hatake, who was still standing in place, and nodded slightly to him.

Kakashi Hatake's eyes welled up with tears. Minato Namikaze's actions undoubtedly vindicated Sakumo Hatake, washing away the shame that had been borne by the Hatake clan for over a decade, and also resolved Kakashi Hatake's inner conflict.

Minato Namikaze continued, "At the same time, I would also like to take this opportunity to make one point clear to everyone: when it comes to missions and comrades, comrades are always our first choice!"

"People often say that ninjas are tools for carrying out missions and don't need to have any emotions."

"But what I want to say is that we are not only ninjas, but also sons, husbands, fathers, brothers, and the pillars of a family!"

"Therefore, I hope that when you are carrying out missions, you will always prioritize protecting yourselves and your comrades!"

"The failure of a mission may not be a big deal for a village, but the death of a ninja often means the collapse of a family!"

"Perhaps to someone like Shimura Danzo, there are tens of thousands of ninjas in the village, and it doesn't matter if a few die in order to complete the mission. But to me, you are all my family, and not one of you can be missing!"

"You are risking your lives for the village while carrying out missions. If the village abandons you because of the success or failure of the mission, what is the point of the village's existence!"

"So I hope that when you encounter similar situations again, don't hesitate, don't worry, lend a helping hand, believe in yourselves, believe in your companions, believe in the village. The village will always be everyone's strongest support!"

......

"Clap clap clap clap, clap clap clap..."

"Long live the Hokage! Long live Konoha!"

"Long live the Fourth Hokage! Long live Lord Minato!"

......

As Minato Namikaze finished speaking, enthusiastic applause and cheers erupted in the conference room.

They weren't just cheering for Minato Namikaze letting them choose their comrades; they genuinely felt Minato's sincerity and how much the Hokage cared about them!

This was also the first time they had noticed the difference in governing styles between Minato Namikaze and Hiruzen Sarutobi, and they wholeheartedly accepted Minato Namikaze's leadership!

They believe that under Minato Namikaze's leadership, the village has a bright future!

As the saying goes, a scholar will die for one who understands him. If Minato Namikaze can uphold this ideal, they will all be willing to die for the village and for Minato Namikaze without hesitation!

Jiraiya looked at the glowing Minato Namikaze with immense satisfaction, his heart filled with joy. This was his most satiating disciple!

Tsunade and Orochimaru's gazes toward Minato Namikaze also became somewhat complicated. If they had previously doubted Minato's ability to shoulder such a great responsibility due to his age, their opinion of him had now changed.

"Alright, let Elder Uchiha continue his accusations against Shimura Danzo!"

A few minutes later, the heated atmosphere in the meeting room eased somewhat, and Minato Namikaze spoke up.

Upon hearing this, everyone turned to look at Uchiha Jin.

Uchiha Jin remained calm and took out another document, saying, "There are many other comrades who were persecuted by Shimura Danzo. For various reasons and excuses, I could talk for three days and three nights and still not finish listing them all."

"So to save everyone's time, I won't list them all here. I will give this document to Nara, the class monitor, and the Konoha administration will organize it and then post it on the bulletin board in front of the Hokage Building."

"If anyone is interested, they can go and check it out for themselves!"

As he spoke, Uchiha Jin handed the document in his hand to Nara Shikaku, who was standing to the side.

No one had any objections to this. Shimura Danzo was a one-way sword, and it was indeed not worth spending too much of everyone's time on him.

Uchiha Jin continued, "These are roughly the charges against Shimura Danzo. However, due to the short time we have, the Konoha Police Department cannot confirm whether Shimura Danzo has committed any other offenses!"

"However, the existing crimes are enough to make Shimura Danzo deserving of a hundred deaths, so I suggest that we slowly gather other evidence against him, but Shimura Danzo can be put on trial immediately!"

“Based on the village’s regulations, I propose that Shimura Danzo be publicly executed!”

Minato Namikaze nodded slightly upon hearing this, then looked at Shikaku Nara and asked, "Does Class Representative Nara have any objections?"

Nara Shikaku shook his head and said, "I have no objection!"

Minato Namikaze then looked at the crowd and asked, "Gentlemen, do you have any objections?"

"I have no opinion!"

"I have no objection either! Shimura Danzo deserves to die!"

"Me too!"

Everyone in the meeting room expressed their thoughts.

Seeing this, Minato Namikaze made the final decision: "In that case, let's choose a day to publicly execute Danzo Shimura!"

Chapter 311 Head of the Dark Guard!

With the outcome regarding Danzo Shimura settled, the main topic of this Jonin meeting is now getting down to business!

Uchiha Jin and Namikaze Minato exchanged a glance, and both sat up straight.

Seeing this, Hyuga Hiashi, who was standing to the side, also sat up straight. What was about to be said was also closely related to his Hyuga clan!

Minato Namikaze coughed lightly and said, "Although there are preliminary results in the trial of Danzo Shimura, he has left many problems for the village that urgently need our attention!"

"For example, the aftermath of the children rescued from the Root base, the identification of Root personnel, and the handling of the Root intelligence system, etc."

"We had a preliminary solution for these three issues last night, so we can proceed step by step without further discussion."

"Now let's talk about the other issues left over from the roots of Shimura Danzo!"

Upon hearing this, many people in the conference room were taken aback, some wondering what kind of issue Root would need to be discussed in a Jonin meeting.

Minato Namikaze didn't keep everyone in suspense and continued, "As you all probably know, Root is an armed force under the command of Danzo Shimura, with functions similar to the Anbu and authority equivalent to the Anbu. It can be said to have immense power!"

"But I wonder if anyone has ever thought about why there's a Root organization in the village when there's already an Abu Dhabi?"

Upon hearing this, many people present who were unaware of the situation were puzzled, as they had never actually thought about this question before!

Yes, there's already a hidden unit in the village, so why is there another root unit?

Keep in mind that the Anbu is an armed force directly under the Hokage, while the Root is an armed force directly under the Root. What does this mean? Two Hokage?

This is clearly against the rules!

Minato Namikaze continued, "Actually, in the beginning, Root existed as an ANBU training camp, supplying elite ninjas to the ANBU!"

"In other words, Root's initial function was simply to train ANBU ninjas!"

"But later on, Shimura Danzo's power grew, and with his ambitions not being contained, Root also developed into another secret branch within the village, a secret branch within a secret branch!"

After a pause, seeing the surprised expressions on everyone's faces, Minato Namikaze continued, "Under Danzo Shimura's brainwashing training, the Root ninjas only know Danzo, not the Hokage! They only carry out Danzo Shimura's orders and ignore the Hokage's orders!"

"What's even more serious is that, because of his role in supplying elite ninjas to the Anbu, Shimura Danzo openly planted many of his own people within the Anbu!"

Minato Namikaze's words caused another uproar in the conference room!

They never imagined that Danzo Shimura would be so audacious!

Nara Shikaku spoke in a deep voice, "Hokage-sama, you can't just say things like that. Do you have any substantial evidence?"

“Of course there’s evidence!” Before Minato Namikaze could speak, King Uchiha interrupted, “I’m sure it’s been a while since you all saw Anbu Chief Shinnosuke Sarutobi, hasn’t it?”

Most people in the conference room were stunned upon hearing this, only then realizing that the head of the Anbu, Sarutobi Shinnosuke, had indeed been missing for some time!

Although the Anbu carry out classified missions, it is normal for them to disappear for ten days, half a month, or even several months. However, the Anbu chief rarely carries out such missions personally, and the Anbu chief also has to attend the Jonin meeting!

It's very unusual that Sarutobi Shinnosuke, the head of the Anbu, has been absent from the recent Jonin meetings!

Only a few high-ranking figures in Konoha, such as Nara Shikaku and Jiraiya, knew that Sarutobi Shinnosuke was dead.

But how exactly he died remains a mystery, as Hiruzen Sarutobi never said and they couldn't ask.

Uchiha Jin continued, "Everyone should know that the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was attacked on his way back from reporting to the Daimyo's residence some time ago."

"Although it was publicly claimed that the Hidden Cloud Village was behind that incident, the truth is far more complex than that!"

"According to our Konoha Police Department's investigation, that incident was orchestrated by Danzo Shimura, who joined forces with Kumogakure and hired assassins from the black market to carry out a decapitation operation against the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi!"

"Shimura Danzo used a spy planted in the Anbu to obtain information about the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi's, itinerary, and then ambushed Hiruzen Sarutobi on the road!"

"In this attack, the head of the Anbu, Sarutobi Shinnosuke, and all the Anbu members who accompanied him were killed. The Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, was seriously injured. If it weren't for the greed of the Kumogakure ninjas, who wanted to kill the Root ninjas as well, causing the Root ninjas to turn against them, the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, might have also died in that attack!"

Upon hearing this, everyone in the conference room exchanged bewildered glances, some finding it hard to believe.

After all, it's really... well, not unacceptable, since there's a precedent of this happening in Kumogakure!

When the Hidden Cloud Village and the Hidden Leaf Village held peace talks, the militant faction of the Hidden Cloud Village refused to accept the terms and launched a rebellion. They not only took away their Second Raikage, but also the Second Hokage of the Hidden Leaf Village, Tobirama Senju.

Uchiha Jin continued, "The Root ninja who participated in the assassination of the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and then realized his mistake in time, is Tenzo, whom you have all met."

"However, the village was at war at the time, and the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was worried that revealing such a thing at that time would destabilize the villagers, so he did not tell anyone about it. He also used this incident to get Danzo Shimura to release Tenzo from his control!"

"The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, also did not expect Danzo Shimura to be so bold as to launch another coup before the village had fully settled down!"

"Everything can be verified with witnesses and physical evidence, so there's no need for anyone to think I'm exaggerating!"

Uchiha Jin's certain words convinced everyone of this fact, and at the same time refreshed their understanding of Shimura Danzo's audacity!

If Danzo Shimura was capable of planting spies in the Anbu and assassinating the Hokage, what else wouldn't he dare to do?

Without giving everyone much time to think, Minato Namikaze continued, "This matter is enough to prove that there is a major problem within the Anbu!"

"Given the special nature and importance of the Dark Division, I have decided to conduct a screening of all active personnel within the Dark Division!"

Everyone in the meeting room could understand Minato Namikaze's idea.

The Anbu is one of the most important powers in the Hokage's hands, so it's normal for Minato Namikaze to value it so much!

But Minato Namikaze's next words made everyone in the conference room widen their eyes!

Minato Namikaze continued, "I have decided to appoint Elder Jin Uchiha as the head of the Anbu, and to select a group of elite ninjas from the Konoha Police Department and the Hyuga clan to join the Anbu for screening work!"

Chapter 312 When working, one should refer to their job title!

Although the Anbu is directly under the Hokage's command, changes in Anbu members can be decided by the Hokage alone, without needing to consult anyone else.

However, precisely because the Anbu is such an important department, and its members are often the Hokage's confidants, the position of Anbu Chief, whether in Konoha or other villages, is always held by someone who has a direct relationship with the Hokage!

Just as the position of head of the Anbu was held by Tobirama Senju, the younger brother of the First Hokage, during the reign of Hashirama Senju, the position of head of the Anbu was held by Tsunade's unknown father during the reign of the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, while the position of head of the Anbu was held by his son, Shinnosuke Sarutobi, during the reign of the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Minato Namikaze is still relatively young. He has no sons or brothers, but he does have three disciples!

Putting aside the two elusive and resurrected Uchiha Obito and Nohara Rin for now, Kakashi Hatake's current strength is barely enough to qualify him for the position of head of the Anbu!

After all, while Kakashi Hatake is young, Minato Namikaze is also young. The two of them working together and growing together is a good option!

So even though there wasn't a hint of it, everyone subconsciously assumed that once Minato Namikaze took over, the position of head of the Anbu would undoubtedly belong to Kakashi Hatake!

But now Minato Namikaze has given the position of head of the Anbu to the Uchiha clan leader, Uchiha Jin!

This made everyone realize a very scary fact, while also leaving them in disbelief!

That is, the relationship between the smiling Fourth Hokage in front of them and Uchiha Jin is far more complicated than it seems on the surface!

The very act of appointing Uchiha Jin as the head of the Anbu represents a form of trust—the same kind of trust shown to brothers, fathers and sons, or master and disciple!

This kind of trust obviously cannot be established overnight. Minato Namikaze was probably already in cahoots with King Uchiha!

This was something that none of them had noticed, not even the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and his group!

It's important to know that the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, along with three Konoha elders including Danzo Shimura, Koharu Utatane, and Homura Mitokado, had always maintained a suppressive attitude towards the village's ninja clans, especially the Uchiha clan!

If the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and his associates knew that Minato Namikaze had such a close relationship with the Uchiha clan and even the Hyuga clan, would they still support Minato Namikaze's rise to power?

Thinking hard!

Subconsciously, many people in the conference room felt a strange chill after seeing Minato Namikaze's warm smile!

However, Minato Namikaze's appointment process is not yet over!

"In addition, Hyuga Hizashi, the leader of the reconnaissance squad, has been recruited as the captain of the Hokage's Guard. The members of the Hokage's Guard will also be recruited from the Konoha Police Department and elite ninjas of the Hyuga clan!"

"At the same time, given that there is some overlap in the powers of the Anbu and the Konoha Guard, it is now clarified that the functions of the two are: the Anbu will handle external affairs, and the Konoha Guard will handle internal affairs. From now on, all security matters within the village will be the responsibility of the Konoha Guard!"

"Whether they're ordinary people or ninjas!"

Minato Namikaze's words were resounding, striking everyone's hearts like a heavy hammer.

As everyone knows, the Konoha Police Department is essentially the private property of the Uchiha clan!

Therefore, entrusting all security matters within Konoha Village to the Konoha Police Department is no different from entrusting them to the Uchiha clan!