The Convened Meeting

The reach of the Uchiha Fireworks Technique far exceeded Rikusei's expectations.

On the way to the Ninja Academy, Naori's pretty face was flushed with excitement. Tucking a lock of purple hair behind her ear, she recounted the spectacle they had witnessed the night before: "Fire Release that shone as brilliantly as flowing fire beneath the night sky—truly worthy of our Clan Head!"

Rikusei chose silence, nodding in agreement; he couldn't exactly say that the fireworks display had been performed specifically for him.

Naori cast a curious glance at him, then began to chat about whether other ninjutsu with distinct visual effects could be used for new fireworks performances.

In the end, the two of them reached a negative conclusion.

"That would probably trigger a thunderstorm, or perhaps even heavy rain."

Rikusei simulated the scenario in his mind: Fire Release and Lightning Release clashing in the sky with roaring thunder and soaring flames, potentially triggering convective activity. He couldn't help but shake his head.

"Then what about a solo performance like last night?"

"I'm afraid that wouldn't work either; there weren't many clouds in the sky last night." Rikusei recalled the clear, star-studded night.

"Rikusei-kun, you certainly saw it clearly last night, didn't you?"

Uh oh.

Realizing he had been baited, Rikusei turned his head stiffly to meet the girl's cunning, sparkling eyes.

His mouth opened and closed mechanically, repeating the motion a few times before his body slumped like a deflated balloon: "You saw through me."

"Given the Clan Head's personality, he wouldn't do something like that out of the blue, unless..." A glint of wisdom shone in the girl's eyes. She mysteriously pulled a kunai from behind her back and handed it to him. "Although it's a bit late, this is a birthday gift—a finely forged kunai."

The pitch-black kunai, glinting with a cold light, rested quietly in Rikusei's hand. Feeling the lingering warmth on the white bandages wrapped around the hilt, he said, "Thank you."

"Don't mention it."

The smile crinkling the corners of her eyes spread to her lips, and the long hair on Naori's shoulders bounced with her cheerful gait as she walked ahead.

The Ninja Academy was also buzzing with discussions about the previous night.

In their quiet seats, the two of them shared a knowing look, which left Kagami—who was sitting by the window observing his surroundings—deeply puzzled. Had their relationship really reached this point?

Could it be that they were planning to form an alliance for the next clan competition and beat up all the other Uchiha of their generation together?

Terrifying memories flooded his mind, and Kagami shivered involuntarily, gritting his teeth.

Torifu Akimichi, sitting nearby, turned his head to look at him curiously before continuing to chat with Homura and Koharu behind him about the fireworks from the night before.

"Hiruzen! Was that Fire Release last night done by your Sarutobi Clan?" A boy with messy black hair pulled over a stool to ask.

Sarutobi Hiruzen shook his head; he had no reason to hide the truth from his close friend, confirming it was not them.

Danzo, who was listening with great interest, was just about to say something when the teacher walked in, forcing him to return to his seat with a sigh of resignation.

Rikusei looked at the teacher standing on the podium: it was Kaku Uchiha.

He wasn't serving as a ninjutsu instructor at the Ninja Academy as previously rumored in the clan school, but rather as a taijutsu instructor.

That made sense.

Not everyone in the school possessed Fire-style chakra, but taijutsu was a skill every ninja had to master.

Kaku, wearing his hair in a short ponytail, swept his gaze over them, clearly satisfied with the spirited appearance of the academy's first class.

"The two most critical aspects of taijutsu are physical conditioning and combat experience. Unlike ninjutsu, which requires hand seals to manipulate chakra, it is different..." Kaku began to impart his years of taijutsu experience on the blackboard.

Time slipped away quietly as the pencil tip grew shorter on the paper.

Boring?

Rikusei didn't think so.

Everyone had their own unique fighting style. Unlike his training with Madara, where Madara emphasized "the eye following the heart" and utilizing the Uchiha Clan's Sharingan to adapt to any situation, this was different.

The buildings in the village were now fully constructed, and with the arrival of supplies from the Daimyo, the progress of the village's development had reached a new level.

Today was the day the clan heads would participate in the grand assembly, where proposals regarding all aspects of the village would be discussed.

Everyone sat quietly around a round table.

In front of each person's seat sat a nameplate displaying their respective clan's name.

Once everyone was seated, the white-haired man in black ninja attire sitting behind Hashirama picked up a stack of documents from the table, looked around, and began: "The first item on the agenda: the name of the village is 'Konoha,' and the title of the leader shall be 'Hokage'."

Tobirama, looking at the agenda on top, saw that no one present had any objections and nodded silently.

The name of the village had been decided long ago; this was merely a formality. He cast an indifferent glance at the long-haired man who was sitting with his eyes closed in meditation.

"The second item: the village emblem."

With that, Tobirama distributed the papers featuring the pencil-sketched design to everyone present.

"This pattern looks somewhat familiar."

The head of the Hyuga Clan pointed to the stylized leaf on the left and said softly.

"This is a design that visualizes the term 'Konoha'." Tobirama, who had designed the emblem himself and used it on the gate of the Ninja Academy, explained.

The second item was also passed unanimously; they all knew that these things had already been decided and this was just a formality.

The Daimyo rolled his eyes, looked carefully at the pattern on the paper, and after a thorough comparison, agreed that the one Tobirama had chosen was indeed the best-looking one.

The members of the Senju Clan truly are talented.

"The third agenda item," Tobirama paused, his sharp gaze scanning the expression of every person present before he continued, "concerns the establishment of the various departments within the village."

The main event had arrived.

All the clan heads perked up, their lax gazes sharpening; this was a matter that would determine their future status within the village.

"The first is the special assassination and tactical force under the direct command of the Hokage, primarily responsible for protecting the Hokage, identifying spies and ninjas with treasonous tendencies within the village, and handling other classified missions."

The special assassination and tactical force—this specific name sent a jolt through their hearts, especially the emphasis on it being a unit under the direct command of the Hokage.

This implied that they would be unable to plant their own people to investigate, and they wondered if these so-called classified missions might involve monitoring them; after all, every ninja clan had friendly ties with other clans that had joined different Hidden Villages.

Smaller clans like the Ino-Shika-Cho breathed a sigh of relief, casting furtive glances toward the Hyuga Clan and Uchiha; if there was to be surveillance, it would surely target those larger clans first.

"The second is the Internal Affairs Department, responsible for processing all types of Konoha documents and archives, as well as distributing ninja missions."

Tobirama waved his hand, signaling the ninjas who had been waiting outside to enter with large stacks of documents, distributing the organized files in front of each clan head for them to read carefully.

Hashirama, like the other clan heads, picked up the document on the table and flipped through it slightly, taking in the text on the table of contents.

"Medical Department, Intelligence Department, Logistics Department, Interrogation Department, Police Department, Barrier and Sealing Department, Land Planning Department."

Including the previous two, there were nine departments in total, and the dense text made his head spin.

Yet, most of these were meant to deal with war, and now that a peaceful village had been established, the threat of war was visibly dissipating.

"Tobi—"

Tobirama, who was currently explaining the various squads under each department, heard the sensitive word and shot a stern, piercing glare toward the source of the sound.

Hashirama, who had been curiously holding his document while waiting for a response, lowered his head and sank into a state of depression.

"Heh."

Madara closed the document in his hands, and for the first time since entering the conference hall, the tension on his face broke, a long-lost smile appearing at the sight of his friend's pathetic state.