The Jonin confidence vote was still underway. Aside from the Uchiha Clan and Hyuga Clan, the two great clans that had gone first, the other Jonin did not swarm the ballot boxes all at once. Instead, they consciously formed a long line and stepped forward one by one to cast their votes. Though the atmosphere was tense and gripping, the entire process remained steady and orderly.
Jonin on duty or away on missions had also entrusted relatives and friends to vote on their behalf, so nearly every Jonin in the village had participated in this confidence vote.
On the rooftop of the Hokage Building.
As the voting neared its end, Fugaku calmly glanced at the ballot boxes. A sharp gleam flashed through his eyes, and a smile of long-cherished fulfillment gradually spread across his face.
Throughout the voting process, he had appeared completely confident, but in truth, he had been closely monitoring its progress the entire time.
I won!
When the last Jonin at the end of the line finished casting his vote, Fugaku let out an excited roar in his heart.
At that moment, even someone as accustomed to suppressing himself as he was could not contain his excitement. The Sharingan in his eyes activated without his noticing, his body trembled slightly with excitement, and even his breathing grew much heavier.
He had watched the entire voting process and silently calculated his votes in his heart.
Adding together the votes of the Uchiha Clan and those of the shinobi clans that had discreetly expressed their support for him, he had at least ten more votes than Hyuga Kagami.
In other words, even if there had been some minor mishap during the voting process, he had a margin of error of ten votes. He was utterly convinced that he had