Crisis and a Proposal

At this moment, it was the early hours of the morning.

The Hokage Building in Konoha was brightly lit, with everyone bustling about.

There was far too much to deal with in the aftermath of the fierce battle surrounding the Uchiha defection.

Treating the wounded, repairing buildings, assessing the damage, suppressing the news, calming the public, and more... All of it kept Konoha's ninjas frantically busy.

Meanwhile, inside the Hokage Office.

Several members of Konoha's High Command were discussing the situation, the atmosphere heavy with tension.

The Third: Sarutobi Hiruzen.

High-ranking advisors: Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu.

And then there was Danzo, the "Assistant Hokage," who was still lying in a hospital bed and not present.

Together, they made up the highest decision-making body in the Hidden Leaf Village.

"Tell me, Hiruzen, how is Danzo's injury?"

Mitokado Homura asked.

"He's being treated by the Medical Corps. His life is no longer in danger, but... I'm afraid his legs can't be saved."

The Third, Sarutobi, sighed.

He couldn't help feeling sympathy for what had happened to Danzo.

"Hmph! The Uchiha Clan really did rebel after all. I said we should have treated them as traitors and executed them immediately!"

Utatane Koharu, sitting nearby, snorted angrily.

"Koharu! Isn't this discrimination exactly what drove the Uchiha Clan to this point?"

"This was the Uchiha Clan's own choice! They are traitors!"

Mitokado Homura hurriedly tried to mediate.

"Hiruzen, Koharu, don't argue."

"Now isn't the time to debate this. We should discuss how to handle the situation."

"So many Uchiha have defected. If we fail to handle this properly, it will inevitably damage the village's reputation, as well as that of the Land of Fire!"

Utatane Koharu quickly declared, her tone resolute:

"Exactly!"

"I propose that we immediately send out a large pursuit force to bring back every defecting Uchiha—or kill them on sight!"

"And we should place all the Uchiha still in the village under guard. Better yet, execute them all as well!"

"Only then can we truly strengthen the village's authority!"

Sarutobi immediately objected.

"No!"

"The Uchiha Clan is already skilled in battle, and they have that monstrously talented Uchiha Natsume. To kill or capture them all, we'd have to send out at least half the village's ninja, and even then we could risk being wiped out!"

"If we fail, Konoha's defenses will be dealt a devastating blow, inviting the other great ninja villages to take advantage of us!"

Sarutobi had experienced the might of Susanoo at close range.

In the face of such overwhelming power,

ordinary Anbu Ninjas had no ability to resist at all.

Just look at that old schemer Danzo—despite his strength, he had nearly died.

That was proof enough of how terrifying the Uchiha boy was.

If they sent out a pursuit force rashly, it might never come back!

Konoha had already lost a good number of fighters tonight. They couldn't afford to take another risk!

"Are you going to stand by and let them defect successfully, with no regard for the village's authority?"

"As Hokage, I have to put the village's safety first!"

"Besides, a large-scale pursuit would consume a great deal of resources. The ninja tools, supplies for the shinobi, and everything else would be no small expense!"

"The village has finally begun to prosper. Would dragging it into another war really be a good thing?"

"Also, I don't agree with using force against the Uchiha still in the village. They were victims of this defection too..."

Sarutobi argued vehemently.

More than hunting down the defectors, he was now concerned with the village's well-being, as a Hokage should be.

Soon, the discussion descended into an argument.

But it was clear that, after tonight's upheaval, the two senior advisors, Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura, both favored punishing the Uchiha Clan harshly.

Only Sarutobi wanted to take a gentler approach.

If Danzo were there too, he would probably have chosen an aggressive strategy and agreed to deal with the Uchiha Clan.

As the argument dragged on, Sarutobi had no choice but to give some ground.

But just then,

an unexpected visitor asked to see them outside the office.

When they saw that the visitor was Uchiha Itachi, a member of the Uchiha Clan, Utatane Koharu immediately snapped:

"Uchiha Itachi? You're from a rebellious clan. How dare you come here?"

"Koharu! Watch your words! Itachi is an Anbu Ninja. His family has nothing to do with his service!"

"Besides, Itachi was the one who reported his clan's rebellious intentions."

"Hmph..."

Utatane Koharu snorted and said no more.

"Itachi, what brings you here?"

Sarutobi looked at Itachi and asked warmly.

He thought highly of this exceptionally talented shinobi, who cared about the village and understood the greater good.

What was more, few shinobi were willing to betray their own clan for the village and the greater good, bearing the weight of that sin. Such a person was truly precious.

"I came to report my father's proposal to the village."

"Oh? What does Fugaku want to say?"

Sarutobi grew curious.

After all, Fugaku had taken an active part in tonight's battle.

Itachi lowered his head and began repeating the instructions his younger cousin Natsume had left him.

"My father said: As clan head and captain of the Police Force, he failed to notice the signs of defection within the clan in advance, and failed to stop Uchiha Natsume and the others from defecting. He alone bears responsibility for this dereliction of duty."

"He asks Konoha to punish him!"

"Additionally, he will speak publicly as the clan's head, saying that this was an internal conflict within the Uchiha Clan! The problem was entirely within the clan and had nothing to do with Konoha. In fact, Konoha stepped in to help put down the conflict and protect the Uchiha Clan."

"Finally, my father also promises that he will do everything in his power to capture all the defecting clan members—or kill them outright!"

"He asks the village to approve!"

As they listened to his report,

Sarutobi and the two advisors' eyes lit up.

Itachi's report had solved the two biggest problems they were struggling with!

First, if the Uchiha Clan agreed to claim that this was an internal conflict, not a defection from the village, and took responsibility themselves,

Konoha's reputation and authority would be well protected! The village might even earn a name for fairness.

Second, having the Uchiha still in the village pursue the defectors would save Konoha a great deal of manpower!

Even if they failed to capture everyone, or suffered losses along the way, it would be the Uchiha Clan's strength that took the hit. For Konoha, it was a win on two fronts, with no downside!

This was far better than sending a large force of Konoha Ninjas to hunt them down!

Sarutobi and the two advisors fell silent.

They seemed to be weighing the pros and cons of the proposal.

But however they looked at it, the benefits of accepting it outweighed the drawbacks!

After a moment, Sarutobi was the first to ask:

"How badly is Fugaku injured?"

"My father's injuries are serious. I'm afraid it will take several days for him to recover."

"Itachi, from Konoha's perspective, what do you think?"

"What my father said should be true!"

"Before, it was mostly the more radical members of the clan who urged my father to rebel. He never wanted to rebel."

"Now, most of those radicals have fled. My father can finally act without restraint."

"And most importantly, other than my father, I doubt anyone in the whole village could stand against Natsume's Susanoo, right?"

Itachi laid out his explanation in an orderly manner.

Clearly, he had prepared his words in advance.

After all, if he couldn't convince Konoha's High Command here,

the Uchiha still in the village would be in danger!

Hearing this, Sarutobi nodded again.

It was the same problem as before: Uchiha Natsume's power was simply too great!

Sarutobi couldn't help feeling wary of him.

If he could help it, he truly didn't want to send Konoha's shinobi to their deaths in pursuit of him!

"Koharu, what do you think?"

"This proposal may be good. But how can we guarantee that the Uchiha shinobi sent to hunt the traitors won't defect too?"

Itachi paused, then continued with an explanation.

"We only need to keep the families of the remaining Uchiha shinobi in the village. Then they won't dare to do anything reckless. They'll simply hunt the traitors for the village!"

"Mm! Itachi is right."

"This really is a sound plan!"

Mitokado Homura also voiced his approval.

It was a plan that benefited the village and set the Uchiha against one another. They truly had no reason to refuse it.

Before long,

Sarutobi made his decision.

"Very well. Itachi, we'll give this proposal serious consideration."

"You may go back now."

"Keep an eye on the Uchiha still in the village. Don't let them cause any more trouble."

"Also, put Danzo's instructions aside for now."

"Understood!"

Itachi nodded in assent.

But inside, he was overcome with joy.

He understood that this meant Konoha's High Command had practically accepted the proposal.

That meant the Uchiha still in the village were safe for now.

His father, mother, and Sasuke were all safe.

At the same time, Itachi was secretly even more astonished:

"Was this the contingency plan younger cousin Natsume left behind?"

"With just one proposal, he resolved the crisis facing the remaining clan members! He even got the village to put them to use!"

"Did he see this coming from the start? Did he even predict the decisions Lord Third and the others would make?"

"Just how much have you been hiding, younger cousin Natsume?"