Moving the Clan Grounds

Sarutobi Hiruzen's return to office didn't cause much of a stir. After all, the Nine-Tails Incident had only just ended, and much of Konoha needed to be rebuilt from the ruins. Everyone knew this wasn't a good time to choose a Hokage, especially since Hiruzen had only retired a year ago after ruling for decades.

When Naoki received the news, he was sitting in a corner of Uchiha Fugaku's office, speaking quietly with Uchiha Inabi, who had come to report.

"Good, I understand. Once Lord Fugaku is done, I'll pass the message along."

Naoki had made his meaning clear, but Uchiha Inabi showed no intention of leaving. Instead, he gave Naoki a strange look.

"What is it?" Naoki touched his face. "Is there something on it?"

"Last night, you got first dibs. You went from an ordinary member of the Military Police Force to captain of the Second Inspection Division in one leap. Now we're equals, and you've even started bossing me around."

Naoki laughed, patted Inabi on the arm, and lowered his voice.

"You can find an opportunity next time, too. Who knows? You might even land the director's seat in one of the three main bureaus—the Operations Bureau."

"I don't want it." Uchiha Inabi stared at Utatane Koharu, who was speaking with Uchiha Fugaku. "By the way, what's that woman here for?"

"Shh." Naoki pulled over a stool for Uchiha Inabi. "Keep your voice down."

"That woman's here to discuss moving the clan grounds with Lord Fugaku."

When Konoha was first founded, it consisted of only two major clans: the Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan. As a result, the village's central district was home mostly to members of those two clans. Though Konoha continued to expand and the Senju Clan dwindled over the years, the Uchiha Clan still firmly occupied the heart of the village.

More than half of Konoha's buildings had been destroyed in the recent turmoil, including the homes of many Uchiha. After a preliminary count, Sarutobi Hiruzen and Utatane Koharu decided that instead of patching things up, it would be better to rebuild the entire central district. So Koharu, who was in charge of postwar reconstruction, had approached Uchiha Fugaku, hoping the Uchiha Clan would lead by example and cooperate with Konoha's rebuilding efforts by moving their clan grounds to a newly designated area.

Utatane Koharu sat on the sofa beside Uchiha Fugaku and smiled. "If the Uchiha Clan takes the lead in cooperating with the relocation, I think it will make it much easier to persuade the civilians nearby to move as well. That would greatly benefit the reconstruction effort."

"You've told us the benefits. What about the drawbacks?" Uchiha Yashiro spread his hands. "Though many clan members' homes were damaged, a considerable number were unaffected by the fighting. If we make the entire clan move to a new area, some members are bound to object. How are we supposed to appease them?"

"Yes, how are we supposed to appease them?" Uchiha Fugaku echoed.

The smile on Utatane Koharu's face didn't waver. She lifted her teacup, took a small sip, and spoke slowly. "Yashiro has a point. Still, as Konoha's foremost clan, I'm sure the Uchiha Clan understands the importance of putting the greater good first."

"Putting the greater good first..." Uchiha Yashiro rolled his eyes. "In that case... we'll have to give it careful consideration before deciding. After all, we have to put the greater good first!"

Uchiha Yashiro placed heavy emphasis on those last few words, but Utatane Koharu remained unruffled.

She set down her teacup and slowly rose to her feet.

"In that case, I'll take my leave. I hope you'll give it careful consideration, Fugaku."

Uchiha Fugaku nodded and gave Uchiha Yashiro a look. Yashiro stood and said, "I'll see you out."

After the two of them left, Uchiha Fugaku crossed his legs, rested one arm along the back of the sofa, and rubbed his chin, lost in thought.

Naoki and Uchiha Inabi exchanged a glance, then walked over.

"Lord Fugaku."

"Oh." Coming back to himself, Uchiha Fugaku remembered that Uchiha Inabi had something to report. "Go ahead. What is it?"

"The Third Hokage has returned to office."

"Hmm?" Uchiha Fugaku raised an eyebrow, but quickly understood. He murmured, "That explains it."

Uchiha Yashiro walked back into the room and asked, "What does?"

Uchiha Fugaku furrowed his brow. "I was wondering why that woman was so unreasonable today. Turns out Sarutobi has no intention of letting someone else become Hokage. He's going to take the position himself."

He patted Naoki and Uchiha Inabi on the shoulders, signaling for them to sit down. Uchiha Yashiro said, "So he's going to be Hokage again. Honestly..." He shook his head from his seat across from Uchiha Fugaku. "Who knows when this will ever end?"

"Let's not talk about that." Uchiha Fugaku waved a hand. "Since Utatane Koharu came to discuss this, the Third Hokage must have already made up his mind. So, are we moving the clan grounds or not?"

"If we don't move, we may face pressure from the Third Hokage. But if we do... quite a few clan members' homes are still intact. Convincing them won't be easy... Oh, right." Uchiha Yashiro suddenly pointed at Naoki. "Is your little courtyard all right?"

Naoki nodded.

As Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Yashiro fretted over the matter, Naoki cut in. "I wonder what you think, Lord Fugaku?"

Uchiha Fugaku was quite candid. "As for what I think, there isn't much to it. Moving somewhere new is unpleasant, but the Third Hokage has led Konoha for decades. There aren't many people who can say no to him..."

Naoki understood. He thought for a moment, then said, "I think we should leave the matter to the Third Hokage. If they can resolve the issue with the clan members who don't want to move, then there's no harm in agreeing."

After considering it, Uchiha Yashiro nodded.

"That makes sense. If he's asking us to move, he can't take the benefits for himself and leave us to swallow the drawbacks. Let him work things out with the clan members who don't want to move."

"When they reach an agreement, we'll move. However many people they can persuade to leave, that's how many we'll take to the new clan grounds."

"Excellent. Good idea."

"Come, come." Uchiha Fugaku laughed heartily, pointed at Naoki, and patted the sofa beside him. "Sit here."

He gently patted Naoki on the back and said, "Yashiro used to praise how clever you were, but I never really believed him. I thought, no matter how smart you are, can you really be smarter than Itachi? Now I understand. Itachi's nowhere near as clever as you."

Seeing Uchiha Fugaku compare him to Itachi, Naoki quickly waved his hands.

"I only said a few words. It was just a small bit of cleverness; I can't compare to Itachi... Look, if I'm a little genius..." He pointed at Uchiha Inabi, who was sitting nearby. "Then Inabi is a true genius, and Itachi is a supergenius!"