The Third's Inducement

The fall of Uzushio Village was clearly the Third's oversight. The Land of Whirlpools was a small island in the eastern sea off the Land of Fire, and its location was crucial for resisting the Land of Water.

While Konoha was struggling to keep up with the Second Shinobi World War, Uzushio Village was destroyed by ninjas of unknown nationality.

This was clearly a premeditated attack, and wandering ninjas were absolutely not capable of such a thing.

Fortunately, Uchiha Naraku saved many members of the Uzumaki Clan, preventing them from disappearing into the long river of history.

In Year 38 of Konoha, the Third was in his early forties, middle-aged and beginning to lose some of his vigor. Even so, one could still glimpse the bearing of the Shinobi Hero in him.

The Anbu on duty entered the Hokage Office through the window and reported something to the Third.

The Third puffed a smoke ring from his pipe and nodded.

The office door opened, and Uchiha Fugaku walked in.

"Lord Hokage," Uchiha Fugaku greeted him quietly.

"Haha, Fugaku, you're here. Please, have a seat."

The Hokage Office had been empty, but two Anbu appeared with the Body Flicker Technique and brought Uchiha Fugaku a chair.

Fugaku was somewhat puzzled. Although he had often interacted with the Third before and had a good impression of his gentle nature, the Third had never been this courteous.

"Lord Hokage, did you summon me for some classified mission?"

Fugaku asked softly. When the Hokage summoned him, he could only think of being assigned some dangerous mission.

Fugaku had also fought in the Second Shinobi World War and earned the title Wicked Eye Fugaku. He was confident in his combat abilities.

"Fugaku, I only asked you to come to my office. There's no classified mission. I watched you grow up, and now you've become an excellent ninja, contributing your strength to Konoha. I'm very pleased."

The Third puffed away on his pipe and spoke with a smile. He truly was Konoha in the sunlight; a few words were enough to stir up memories in Fugaku.

Fugaku was nineteen, in the prime of his youth, and had indeed grown up as a ninja during the Third's era.

"Heh, Lord Hokage, you flatter me. As a Konoha Ninja, it's only right that I contribute to Konoha. It's also a ninja's fate."

Fugaku smiled faintly. In those days, ninjas in every village were still regarded as tools. That truly was their fate.

"Mm. I heard the Uchiha chose Naraku as their clan head. A while ago, Naraku came to see me and asked to be sent into battle. Sigh, that child is talented, but he's still a little too rash in how he handles things."

At the Third's disparaging words about Naraku, Fugaku furrowed his brow slightly.

Although Fugaku had ambitions for power within the Uchiha, he was still a proud Uchiha at heart. He could also clearly sense the Third's contempt for the Uchiha leader.

"You're right. The clan head has brought many changes to the clan."

Fugaku quietly agreed, while also making a point of mentioning Naraku's position and accomplishments.

Over the past three years, the changes within the Uchiha Clan had been plain to see, not only to Fugaku and the other Uchiha, but also to the Third and his two advisors.

The so-called Clan Affairs Hall established by the Uchiha seemed to have taken on the shape of a Hokage Building, with affairs coordinated under one roof. It was clear that power was becoming centralized.

For the Third, who was determined to reduce the influence of the ninja clans, this was hardly good news.

The great clans held too much influence, which was bad for Konoha's development.

Konoha was strong because of the contributions of the great clans, but the Hokage's power was constrained for the same reason.

To weaken the clans' influence, the Hokage had to start with the greatest and most prominent clan in the Shinobi World: the Uchiha Clan.

Now that the Uchiha Clan had chosen a leader, they seemed united under his leadership, as solid as a single block.

What was more, Uchiha Naraku had joined the Police Force. The Uchiha Clan's leader had joined an organization belonging to the Uchiha Clan. What did that mean?

Who would have the final say, the clan head or the captain? The signal Uchiha Naraku was sending was obvious: he intended to take control of the Police Force as well.

The Uchiha Clan, and Uchiha Naraku in particular, were clearly ambitious.

Yet the elders of the Uchiha's many factions had watched without saying a word or trying to stop him. This only deepened the Third's wariness of Naraku.

The Uchiha Clan had always been under close scrutiny by the Hokage Faction. They clearly didn't want to see the Uchiha unify their power and speak with one voice.

From the Hokage's perspective, a divided Uchiha Clan was a good Uchiha Clan.

If the Third's faction spent its energy watching the Uchiha on the battlefields, or pursuing compensation and other matters that benefited ordinary ninjas, it would raise the Hokage's prestige.

Instead, they had handled many matters so carelessly that the Third was forced to step down in disgrace after the Third Shinobi World War.

The Third took a couple of puffs from his pipe and asked with a serious expression:

"Fugaku, the Konoha Military Police Force is vital to maintaining public order in Konoha. I have great faith in you, and I hope you won't let us down. Manage the Military Police Force well, and root out the troublemakers and spies in Konohagakure."

"You should also keep the streets in order. I often receive complaints from villagers and ninjas. There are far too many. Clearly, the villagers are unhappy with conditions in Konoha, and these complaints are damaging the Hokage Building's reputation. I hope you can take care of these matters."

The Third exhaled a smoke ring and fixed Fugaku with a piercing gaze.

When the Uchiha chose a leader last time, the Third had been paying attention, but the Second Shinobi World War was raging at the time, leaving him no room to interfere.

Now the shinobi war was nearing its end, with only scattered fighting still underway.

Since he had already realized that Uchiha Naraku was ambitious, he naturally couldn't let him take control of the Konoha Military Police Force so easily.

Sarutobi Hiruzen had keenly noticed the rivalry between the Uchiha's factions, as well as the conflict of interest between Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Naraku.

He had summoned Fugaku this time to show him some goodwill and signal the Hokage's support. Fugaku needn't worry; he could boldly compete with Naraku for the position of Police Force captain.

If Fugaku won, the Uchiha Clan head's prestige would suffer, weakening the clan's unity.

If Fugaku lost, the faction of the Uchiha's most powerful Great Elder would certainly take issue, sowing discord within the clan.

As long as the Uchiha had factional infighting, they would never be united. It wasn't too late to mend the fence.

Sarutobi Hiruzen wanted to use Fugaku to check Uchiha Naraku. He couldn't stand by while the Uchiha's power became unified.

As a seasoned politician, Sarutobi Hiruzen was well versed in sowing discord, winning people over, planting his own men, and building factions.

As for Uchiha Okura and Uchiha Sanzang, the two brothers who had usurped power within the Uchiha Clan, the older generation had been helpless to deal with them for various reasons.

But now that a younger generation was coming up, Sarutobi Hiruzen was determined to do something about it.

When they were young, Uchiha Okura and Uchiha Sanzang had played a significant role in many confrontations with the Hokage faction.

Back then, the two had worked in perfect sync, acting like old foxes despite their youth.

Konoha had also been in turmoil at the time. As power passed from the Second Hokage to the Third, Sarutobi Hiruzen had only had the staunch support of the Second Hokage's escort unit.

The deaths of the Senju Brothers had stirred improper ambitions in the great clans and powerful ninjas alike. Fortunately, the Konoha Quartet had worked together seamlessly.

Shimura Danzō was ruthless and cold-blooded. He had dealt with many targets that Sarutobi Hiruzen couldn't handle openly, helping stabilize the situation and return power to the Third.

But the Uchiha Military Police Force was an exception...