Two months was enough time for a spring rain to coax cherry blossoms from every tree, and enough time for a rumor to evolve from whispered gossip into a truth known on every street and in every alley.
Konoha, the bustling Commercial Street.
Afternoon sunlight filtered through the leaves, dappling the tables of an open-air teahouse.
"Hey, have you read this issue of Konoha Weekly?"
A Chunin on a break slapped the newspaper onto the table and pointed excitedly at a supplement titled Ninja World Chronicle. "That war correspondent writing under the pen name 'Abyss Walker' has put out another story!"
"Read it! Read it! Where did we leave off last time?" His companion leaned over at once. Even the civilian women at the next table, who were eating dango, perked up their ears.
The Chunin cleared his throat and began reading with great feeling:
"...The rain poured in torrents, and black flames blazed. Faced with enemies surging toward him like a tide, the red-eyed young nobleman did not retreat a single step. Blood tears streamed from his eyes, and his vision had grown blurry, but he still stood firm in front of the blond boy and the black-haired boy, protecting them."
"'Even if these eyes can never see the light again, I'll still carve a path to safety for you!' Uchiha Fugaku roared. In that moment, he was no longer the lofty young master of a noble clan, but a shinobi who would lay down his life for his comrades..."
"How moving!"
One of the women dabbed at her eyes, forgetting all about the dango in her hand. "I knew that boy was a good person. All that talk about him being a demon of Asura was just lies made up by those bad people!"
"Exactly," another woman chimed in. "I heard he still has to go to the hospital for rehabilitation every day to recover from saving his teammates. He can't even walk without someone helping him. Poor thing."
In an era with few forms of entertainment, a story combining fiery heroics, tragedy, and the bitter feuds of powerful families was an overwhelming hit.
Nishikawa Tetsu sat in the corner of the teahouse, holding a cup of tea with a newspaper spread out in front of him.
The editorial department of Konoha Weekly was just two streets away, and the so-called guest writer, Abyss Walker, was sitting among them, drinking tea.
He hadn't simply tried to clear Fugaku's name. Instead, he had mixed truth with fiction.
The battles and injuries were real. The melodramatic inner monologues and dialogue that made your toes curl were not.
But that was exactly what the public loved to read.
There was even a gossip column in the corner of the paper called Konoha Red and Black List. For the past few issues, Team Five had completely dominated it.
[This Week's Hot Topic: Is Namikaze Minato, the man who shines like a little sun, really a devoted homebody who can't walk past a bargain on eggs?]
[Exclusive Reveal: The Uchiha Young Clan Leader's Hidden Side—Beneath That Cold Exterior Is a Heart That's Gentle Only to His Comrades? An insider claims he once secretly mended a teammate's Ninja Tool Pouch late at night.]
"Mended a Ninja Tool Pouch... I can't believe you came up with that."
Sitting across from him, Namikaze Minato lowered his voice. His expression was twisted with disbelief. "If Senior Fugaku sees that, he'll definitely use Susanoo to tear the newspaper office apart."
"He's already seen it."
Nishikawa Tetsu calmly turned a page. "Apparently, he saw this issue at the Police Force yesterday and crushed three teacups. But the results speak for themselves."
He pointed out the window.
Several Uchiha wearing clothes emblazoned with the Uchiha Clan Crest walked down the street.
In the past, passersby had looked at the Uchiha with fear and loathing, instinctively keeping their distance.
But today, a few women out shopping for groceries actually greeted them. One little girl even ran over and gave a wildflower to a young member of the Uchiha Military Police Force.
The Uchiha stood frozen, at a loss for what to do. For the first time, that face he usually kept stern showed confusion—and a trace of barely perceptible embarrassment.
"See?" Nishikawa Tetsu took a sip of tea. "Fear comes from the unknown, while affection comes from contrast. Once the mysterious Uchiha are shown to be ordinary people of flesh and blood—people who are even a little tragic—the barriers start to come down."
"And..."
Nishikawa Tetsu pulled a bulging envelope from his robes. It was the payment for his latest articles, just settled by the newspaper.
"This stuff really pays."
The newspaper had once been a dry, dull record of current events, and sales had been dismal. Now, these bits of gossip had sent circulation soaring, and the paper's manager had been grinning so hard his face looked ready to split.
Namikaze Minato eyed the thickness of the envelope, his mouth twitching.
Just then, an uproar broke out at the far end of the street.
The crowd parted on its own, clearing a path.
Uchiha Fugaku approached in a plain black outfit, his hands tucked into his sleeves and his face expressionless.
Although his eyes had mostly recovered, he still habitually kept them half-closed, maintaining his "impaired vision" persona.
"Lord Fugaku!"
"Captain Fugaku, are your eyes feeling better?"
"These are apples I just picked from my garden. Please, take one and build up your strength!"
The villagers greeted him warmly as he passed.
Fugaku paused, his body stiff as a board.
He clearly hadn't gotten used to this kind of treatment.
In the past, he would have walked right by with a cold face, or ordered the bystanders to clear out.
But now, he remembered Nishikawa Tetsu's "threat" that night, as well as the gentle smile on Mikoto's face as she read the newspaper to him at home.
Fugaku took a deep breath and stopped.
He stiffly turned toward the woman offering him the apple, then forced the corners of his mouth into a smile so awkward it looked more like a grimace. To the onlookers, however, it was a brave smile from a man enduring great pain.
"...Thank you."
He took the apple, awkwardly stuffed it into his sleeve, then quickened his pace and all but fled into the teahouse.
"Phew..."
The moment he entered the private room, Fugaku collapsed into a chair, his cool and aloof facade falling away in an instant.
"Nishikawa Tetsu, explain this to me."
Fugaku pulled the newspaper from his robes and jabbed a finger at the gossip column, gritting his teeth. "I can let 'a heart that's gentle only to his comrades' slide, but what is this about 'drinking alone beneath the moon late at night, shedding two silent tears as he longed for a certain violet-haired beauty'?!"
"When did I ever cry? And Mikoto was in the next room!"
"Artistic embellishment, Senior."
Nishikawa Tetsu poured him a cup of tea without the slightest hint of concern. "Isn't it working? That woman just now looked at you like you were her nephew who'd been treated unfairly."
"I'd rather they feared me." Fugaku scowled and slammed the apple onto the table. "The Uchiha have lost all their dignity."
"You can let your blades speak for you on the battlefield. In the village, what you need is the people's support."
Nishikawa Tetsu put away his smile and spoke seriously. "Complaints against the Police Force have dropped by forty percent recently, and the approval rate for Uchiha missions outside the village has risen by twenty percent. Even Danzo hasn't been giving you trouble lately."
At the mention of Danzo, some of Fugaku's anger faded, and his expression turned grave.
"True. The higher-ups have been strangely quiet lately. A few elders were going to use this chance to make trouble and strip me of my position in the Police Force. But now that public opinion is overwhelmingly on my side, they can't make a move."
It was a peculiar kind of political balance.
When someone became both a "hero of the people" and a "tragic figure," any attempt to suppress him would be interpreted by the public as "persecuting a war hero."
Danzo might be ruthless, but he cared even more about maintaining his respectable public image.
"Still, this attention won't last long."
Nishikawa Tetsu tapped the table with his fingers. "Gossip always goes out of fashion, and people's sympathy is cheap and short-lived. We need to turn this temporary goodwill into tangible benefits."
"What sort of scheme are you cooking up now?" Fugaku's eyelid twitched whenever he heard Nishikawa Tetsu speak.
"It's not a scheme. It's serious business."
Nishikawa Tetsu pulled a new proposal from his backpack. The cover read: Konoha Police Force Reform Plan (Draft).
"While the villagers don't resent you—and even feel some sympathy for you—we need to overhaul the Police Force."
"Reform?"
"Exactly. The Police Force has been too arrogant. Its members have always relied on force when enforcing the law."
Nishikawa Tetsu opened the proposal:
"First, we introduce a neighborhood liaison system. Instead of patrolling from on high, Uchiha clan members will work in each district, helping grandmothers find their cats and mediating disputes between neighbors."
"Second, and most importantly..."
Nishikawa Tetsu looked at Fugaku and Minato.
"The Police Force can't consist only of Uchiha. We need to break the clan's monopoly."
"I propose recruiting shinobi from other clans into the Police Force."
"What?!" Fugaku shot to his feet. "Impossible! The clan elders will never agree! The Police Force is the Uchiha's private domain, given to us by the Second Hokage!"
"It's a cage the Second Hokage built around the Uchiha," Nishikawa Tetsu said coldly.
"Only when the walls come down can the air circulate. If the Police Force includes the Hyuga, the Ino-Shika-Cho clans, and even civilian shinobi, it will no longer be 'the Uchiha Police Force.' It will be 'Konoha's Police Force.'"
"Then who could isolate the Uchiha?"
Fugaku froze.
He watched the boy speaking so confidently, and waves crashed through his heart.
This wasn't just reform. It struck at the roots of Uchiha tradition—but at the same time, it was like replacing the soil and fertilizing a tree that was close to withering.
"And..."
Nishikawa Tetsu turned to Minato, who was eating snacks nearby.
"Minato, how's your Flying Thunder God training going?"
The Third Hokage truly considered Minato one of his own. Jiraiya had only mentioned it in a scroll, and the old man had actually handed the Scroll of Seals straight to Minato.
But when it came to Nishikawa Tetsu, the old man was stingy. He couldn't even get research funding approved.
"Huh? I'm still figuring it out," Minato said, caught off guard.
"Keep at it." Nishikawa Tetsu spoke with a meaningful look. "When the Police Force reform begins, I need you to be the first 'civilian genius' to join the force and serve as its public face."
"Little Sun in a Police Uniform—tsk, the sales... no, the support would go through the roof."
Fugaku sat back down. He looked at the proposal, then at the villagers outside, who no longer regarded him with suspicion.
He was silent for a long while. At last, he picked up the apple and took a hearty bite.
"...This apple's pretty sweet."
He looked at Nishikawa Tetsu, a glint of resolve in his eyes.
"Bring this proposal to my home tonight. We'll discuss it in detail. Mikoto will cook."
"Sounds good!" Minato was the first to respond.
Nishikawa Tetsu smiled and gathered the newspaper from the table.
Public opinion was just the appetizer. The real transformation was only just beginning.
Before you continue