Anbu

Qile slowly emerged from the mist-filled bathroom. He stretched his limbs gently, feeling the lingering soreness throughout his body.

Although the discomfort remained, he could clearly feel that his body was much lighter than it had been before the medicinal bath.

Following Yeling, Qile headed toward the dining hall. As they stepped inside, they found Madara and Hashirama sitting around the table, engaged in conversation.

Hashirama was beaming, gesturing animatedly with his hands, while even the usually stern Madara had the corners of his mouth turned up in a faint, barely perceptible smile.

However, when the two noticed Qile's arrival, their reactions were starkly different. Hashirama immediately stood up, greeting Qile with conspicuous enthusiasm and shouting, "Come sit over here, Qile!"

In contrast, Madara merely turned his head to glance at him before shifting his gaze back to the table, not saying another word.

Watching the two men's vastly different displays, Qile couldn't help but mutter to himself, Why does this scene feel like a doting mother and a stern father...

Just as Qile sat obediently on the bench and prepared to eat the meal in his bowl, Hashirama tilted his head and said, "Qile, we were just talking about that private unit you mentioned. Since you brought it up, I assume you already have some unique ideas in mind? Tell us about them."

Qile did not respond to Hashirama's inquiry immediately, instead casting his gaze toward Madara.

Madara sat there expressionless, as if he had no interest in what the two were discussing.

Qile observed Madara's expression, and once he was certain the man had no reaction, he slowly began to explain his thoughts: "My vision is to create a special unit that answers solely to the Hokage."

"The members of this team would wear masks and don uniform, distinctive combat gear."

"They would not use their real names, but code names; even among themselves, they would not reveal their true identities."

"As for the real names of these members, they would only be known to the Hokage... er..."

He paused, glanced at Madara, and added, "...and the person the Hokage trusts most."

Hearing this, the previously silent Madara suddenly frowned and asked in a tone of slight skepticism, "By your description, this isn't a guard unit you want to build, but an assassination squad!"

Having his intentions laid bare by Madara, Qile felt a bit awkward. He instinctively scratched his head and explained, "Well... that's more or less the idea. After all, the core mission of this unit would be to eliminate any factors that might pose a threat to the Hokage or Konoha."

As Qile's intentions were laid out plainly, the usually gentle Hashirama couldn't help but frown, clearly disapproving of this approach.

He looked at Qile with concern and said tactfully, "But wouldn't building such a special unit be too aggressive and extreme?"

Of course, Madara, whose view was diametrically opposed to Hashirama's, tapped the table twice before speaking slowly: "No, no. The formation of this special unit is absolutely necessary. Not only would it allow this unit to handle classified missions that cannot be made public, but it would also greatly enhance the Hokage's prestige within the village."

Hearing this, Hashirama responded dismissively, "Prestige? To me, this doesn't sound like mere prestige, but intimidation! If we do as you suggest, wouldn't Konoha become even more fractured, eventually leading to a situation where the Hokage has the final say on everything?"

Facing Hashirama's questioning, Qile did not back down and immediately retorted, "Lord Hokage, in reality, you are only looking at this problem from your own perspective."

"Why not imagine this: if you were to lose the immense strength you possess today, how would you keep the others in the village in check?"

"It is precisely because your strength stands at the pinnacle of the Ninja World that you have no need to rely on this unit to bolster your prestige. But have you thought about the next Hokage?"

Before he could finish, Hashirama waved his hand and said without hesitation, "My successor is Madara, and with his strength, he wouldn't need to rely on such a team either."

Faced with this unexpected answer, Qile was momentarily speechless, unable to find a suitable rebuttal.

After all, when Hashirama took office as Hokage, he had publicly stated that his successor would be Madara.

However, as soon as those words left his lips, Madara replied without hesitation, "I will not be the Second Hokage. Not now, and never in the future!"

This statement struck like a bolt of lightning, exploding in Hashirama's ears and instantly freezing the previously relaxed atmosphere.

Hashirama's brows furrowed tightly as he stared directly at Madara with burning eyes, saying solemnly, "Madara! This was what we agreed upon! If not for that promise, how could I have possibly taken on the mantle of the First Hokage?" His words were filled with... guilt over Madara's decision.

From the very beginning, and even now, in Hashirama's heart, Madara was the one truly suited to be Hokage.

Facing Hashirama's words, Madara merely raised his head slightly, gave him a faint glance, and then shook his head, saying nothing more.

Qile, meanwhile, acted like an ostrich, burying his head deep into his bowl and focusing entirely on eating, not even daring to look up.

After all, he had said what he needed to say; whether Hashirama would ultimately adopt his suggestion was not something he could decide.

Of course, if Hashirama remained adamant in refusing the proposal, he would not simply give up. He would find a suitable opportunity to speak with White-Hair.

After all, based on his understanding of that man, he believed the other party would certainly be interested in such a thing—or perhaps that fellow already had similar ideas of his own.

It was also important to note that his persistence in pushing Hashirama to establish the Anbu was not without selfish motives.

In reality, the deeper reason was that if Hashirama began building the Anbu now, out of respect for Madara, the Uchiha clan could logically be involved in its formation.

Otherwise, once White-Hair took power, even if the Anbu were eventually established, the Uchiha clan would likely never have another chance to be involved.

At this moment, everything Qile was thinking and striving for ultimately boiled down to ensuring that after Madara left, the Uchiha clan would not repeat the same mistakes and walk the path that once led to their destruction.

Another important factor was that the Uchiha were simply too well-suited for the environment of the Anbu: powerful, cold, and mission-first!