A Clash

A line of four crossed the bustling Commercial Street and headed toward the edge of the village.

As they drew closer to the gate emblazoned with the Gunbai crest, the lively bustle around them gradually faded, replaced by an oppressive silence.

This was the Uchiha Clan Compound.

There were no walls to separate it from the rest of the village, but the invisible barrier in the air was sturdier than any physical barrier.

They had just crossed the stone bridge over the boundary river when several figures appeared in the middle of the road as if they had teleported, blocking their way.

Three elderly men stood there in dark blue, high-collared robes. Their hair was white, but their eyes were as sharp as a hawk's. Behind them stood several Police Force elites, all wearing hostile expressions.

The old man at their head leaned on a cane. His face was covered in wrinkles like dry tree bark. Though his eyes were cloudy, they still held the arrogance and scrutiny of someone long accustomed to power.

Uchiha Setsuna, an elder of the clan's hard-line faction and one of Madara Uchiha's loyal followers back in the day.

"Fugaku."

Elder Setsuna's voice was hoarse and cold. He didn't call him "Young Clan Leader" or "Captain"; he addressed him by name.

"You've been making quite a stir in the village lately. 'Crying for your comrades,' 'tragic hero'... Hmph. You've brought shame upon the proud Uchiha name!"

He slammed his cane against the flagstones with a sharp crack. With his experience, how could he not guess that Fugaku was behind all the recent publicity?

"And this is sacred ground within the Uchiha clan. It's no place for just anyone to enter. Throw those two outsiders out."

Setsuna's gaze swept over Nishikawa Tetsu and Namikaze Minato, his undisguised contempt making it seem as though he were looking at two stray dogs that had wandered into a lion's den.

The smile on Minato's face faded slightly. He was a good-natured man, but such blatant humiliation still made him uncomfortable.

Tetsu, however, remained expressionless, observing the old fossils with interest.

This was the Uchiha Clan's sickness. The old fossils needed to retire.

Uchiha Fugaku stopped. The relaxed expression he'd worn at the barbecue restaurant turned as hard as iron.

He stepped forward, shielding his two teammates. His dark eyes, Sharingan still inactive, fixed coldly on Setsuna.

"Elder Setsuna."

Fugaku's voice was low, but it carried the bloody edge of someone who had fought on the battlefield.

"First, that publicity campaign was meant to counter the suspicion of the village leadership. If you think it's shameful, you can go explain my Mangekyo to Hokage-sama and the village leaders yourself."

"Second, they're not just anyone. They're my teammates, comrades who fought beside me on the battlefield in the Land of Rain and saved each other's lives."

"Third..."

Fugaku's presence suddenly erupted, and a chill chakra swept through the air, dropping the temperature around them by several degrees.

"I'm the current Head of the Police Force and the Young Clan Leader. Who I invite to my home is none of your concern."

"You..."

Elder Setsuna's expression changed. He clearly hadn't expected Fugaku, who had always been cold but at least kept to the rules, to become so unyielding after returning from the battlefield.

The Police Force elites behind him instinctively put their hands on their sword hilts.

"What? You want to fight?"

Tetsu suddenly spoke up.

He leaned out from behind Fugaku, pointing at his still oil-stained clothes, which he hadn't had a chance to change out of, and smiled with an utterly harmless expression.

"Before you do, you'd better think it through, seniors. Minato and I are the village's 'heroes who held back the Rain,' and we were personally received by the Third Hokage."

"If we get beaten up in the Uchiha Clan Compound, I've already thought of tomorrow's Konoha Weekly headline—"

Tetsu paused, his tone turning mocking.

"'Shocking! Uchiha Elder Attacks War Heroes! Is This a Breakdown of Humanity or a Collapse of Morality?'"

"You!" Elder Setsuna's beard trembled with rage. He pointed a shaking finger at Tetsu. "You sharp-tongued brat!"

"Let him speak," Fugaku cut in coldly. "I'm having them over for dinner, and that's final. Move aside."

The two sides faced off for a full ten seconds.

In the end, confronted by Fugaku's unyielding presence and the devastating threat of Tetsu's "headline," Elder Setsuna snorted and waved them through.

"Fugaku, you'll regret this."

"I'm the Young Clan Leader!"

Fugaku led the three of them straight through the crowd without looking back.

Fugaku's home was a typical Japanese-style residence, quiet and elegant.

As soon as they opened the door, the aroma of food wafted toward them, instantly dispelling the gloom from outside.

"Welcome home."

Uchiha Mikoto, wearing an apron, came out of the kitchen carrying a steaming pot of oden.

Seeing their troubled expressions, she wisely didn't ask any questions. She simply smiled warmly. "Go wash your hands and come eat. I also tried making some of that... spicy, numbing food Tetsu-kun mentioned."

The four of them sat around a low table.

After a few cups of hot tea, the atmosphere finally eased.

Tetsu spread the Police Force Reform Proposal across the table. The little confrontation at the gate had made the perfect opening.

"See? That's the resistance we're up against. Those elders treat the Police Force as Uchiha property, even a symbol of their power. Getting them to give any of it up will be harder than climbing to heaven."

"Hmph. A bunch of old fossils clinging to the dreams of a bygone era." Fugaku snorted and took a fierce bite of radish.

"So our reforms can't come from within. We have to bring in outside support."

Tetsu pointed with his chopsticks at several names in the proposal.

"The Police Force's biggest problem is this: it has the power to enforce the law, but not the power to define the law or shape public opinion."

"When the Uchiha arrest someone, it's called violent policing. If someone from the Hyuga Clan makes the arrest, it's called impartial justice. That's prejudice."

"Our job is to dilute that prejudice."

Tetsu looked at Minato.

"Minato, you have a good reputation, and you're from a civilian family. If you joined the Police Force as a 'special advisor' or a 'squad leader,' you could build a bridge between the Uchiha and the civilians."

"I have no problem with that." Minato nodded, his expression serious. "If it can ease tensions between the village and the Uchiha, I'm willing to do it."

"Minato alone won't be enough."

Tetsu shook his head. "Minato's still a Chunin, after all. He doesn't have enough clout to keep those elders in check. We need stronger allies."

He wrote three characters on the paper:

[Ino-Shika-Cho].

"The Nara Clan?" Fugaku frowned. "They're staunch supporters of the Hokage. Why would they help the Uchiha?"

"Because they're the Hokage's people, we should make a point of winning them over."

Tetsu explained, "Nara Shikaku is a clever man. Right now, the Police Force is a hot potato and an independent kingdom. If the Uchiha voluntarily opened up some of its power and invited the Nara Clan to handle the paperwork and strategic planning, and the Yamanaka Clan to handle interrogations and intelligence..."

Tetsu's lips curled into a faint smile. "That would be like giving the Hokage's faction a share of the Police Force's power. Would the Third Hokage turn down such a good chance to bring it under his control? No."

"Once the Third Hokage approves, the elders' objections won't matter. It'll be the Hokage's order, not a personal whim of Fugaku's."

It was an Open Scheme.

They would give up some of their interests in exchange for political security and legitimacy.

The "Uchiha Police Force" would become the "Konoha Joint Law Enforcement Force."

The Uchiha would still retain control over its core military strength, but its reputation would improve immeasurably.

As Fugaku listened to the plan, the light in his eyes grew brighter.

He wasn't good at political maneuvering, but he could see the tremendous value behind the plan.

It would set the Uchiha free.

"And the Hyuga Clan."

Tetsu delivered one final blow. "The Hyuga and the Uchiha may not get along, but as two major clans with powerful visual jutsu, they agree on protecting the interests of the great clans. If we could bring members of the Hyuga Branch Family into the patrol force, combining the Byakugan's scouting ability with the Sharingan's perceptiveness..."

"Then Konoha's crime rate would fall to a minimum," Minato added excitedly.

"This will take tremendous resolve."

Fugaku looked at the weighty proposal in front of him and took a deep breath.

It meant facing the fury of every elder at the clan meeting by himself. They might even call him a traitor to his clan.

Mikoto gently took Fugaku's hand, her gaze warm and resolute.

Fugaku squeezed her hand in return and looked at Tetsu and Minato. All hesitation had vanished from his eyes.

"In this world, someone has to be crazy enough to break the deadlock."

Fugaku lifted his teacup and drained it in one go.

"I'm in."

"I'll submit the proposal tomorrow. Even if I have to flip the table, I'll see this reform through."

Tetsu smiled.

He knew that the great ship called the Uchiha had finally begun to veer away from the iceberg it was destined to hit.

"But before that..." Tetsu pointed at the empty plates on the table. "Mikoto-nee, could I have another bowl of rice? This spicy oden goes so well with it."