Who's in Favor, Who's Against?

"The village rumors spread everywhere in such a short time because people have been holding something over our heads all along. There's no smoke without fire. The people working behind the scenes don't want us dead right now. They want us to look like we deserve to be killed. What they want is justification."

Hayato looked at the elder who had just argued against him. "Elder, if we keep going like this, we'll be doing exactly what he wants."

"He'll tell the Third Hokage, 'See? The Uchiha really are plotting something. I only tested them, and they attacked me.'"

"Uchiha, our greatest enemy isn't the village's leaders. It's ourselves. We've given them an 'excuse.'" Hayato paused. "As long as we don't give him one, he can't touch us."

"Vice Clan Head, you've said all that, but I still can't see this path you keep talking about."

Yashiro said with a grim expression. As expected, the young lacked experience and couldn't be trusted with important matters.

All he had were grand words. It was a shame the Mangekyo had appeared in this boy.

"It's simple. The path has always been in our hands." Hayato looked around and said this.

The path was in their own hands?

Inside the shrine, the Uchiha looked at one another in confusion.

Seeing the bewilderment on every face, Hayato couldn't help sighing.

Senju Tobirama really had understood the Uchiha Clan better than anyone. These weren't Uchiha who were born evil. They were a bunch of stubborn, honest people.

"Everyone, the Police Force's full name is the Konoha Military Police Force. It already has enormous authority."

Hayato tapped the table in front of him helplessly.

Even Fugaku, seated behind Hayato, blinked. The Police Force's authority... was that great?

"The Police Force has always been responsible for maintaining law and order within the village. It also arrests criminals, sentences them, and guards those in custody. What does that make it? A purely armed department."

"Isn't that authority enough?"

Hayato had always found it a little ridiculous that the Uchiha Clan thought their treatment was unfair.

They legally and legitimately held hereditary control over the personnel, military, law enforcement, judicial, and prison administration of an armed force stationed within Konoha.

It was, in every sense, a centralized institution.

After Hayato put it that way, their authority did seem quite extensive.

Even Shisui, who hadn't given it much thought before, found his mind wandering as Hayato spoke.

So this was why the village leaders were so wary of the Uchiha?

"But the Hokage's Anbu have to monitor us directly," Yashiro said, unable to hold back any longer. "That's a way of restricting and guarding against our clan."

"If you were Hokage, would you take that measure? Our clan helped the Senju found Konoha, but don't forget what happened." Hayato spoke calmly.

Konoha couldn't withstand another Madara. The Uchiha Clan Head had defected and caused the village's First Hokage to die, while the Land of Fire had suffered heavy losses. It was only because Uchiha Madara had been presumed dead that Senju Tobirama, knowing that harshly punishing the Uchiha would inevitably provoke fierce backlash and might even split the village, had refrained from doing so.

When Hayato had said in the Hokage Office that Uchiha Madara hadn't been labeled a rogue ninja, he had only been trying to make things look good on the surface.

Yashiro's words made it clear that some people weren't unaware of the authority held by the Uchiha Clan. They simply thought being watched by the Hokage meant the Uchiha were being mistreated, and always cast themselves as the victims.

But had they ever considered whether any Uchiha after Madara was truly qualified to compete for the Hokage Position?

The Sannin, the White Fang, Namikaze Minato—every one of them was immensely powerful. But who had the Uchiha produced over the years?

Silence.

That was the main theme of the shrine that night.

"The path ahead for the Uchiha is simple: stop all this aimless debate. The clan needs to stand behind a single course. Our thoughts, our will, and our words must be unified. There can't be a second voice."

Hayato stood up and faced the crowd, speaking clearly.

"Among those here, who's in favor, and who's against?"

Before his words had even faded, Hayato's Mangekyo flared again, an unseen pressure spreading from his eyes.

The people inside the shrine all looked at Hayato on the platform, especially at his eyes. Their pervasive, almost tangible, chilling ocular power shook them to their very cores.

"I support every decision the Vice Clan Head makes!" Shisui spoke up at once.

"I support it!" Uchiha Yakumi caught Fugaku's glance and voiced his support as well.

"I'm in favor." Seiichi, seated beside Shisui, looked at Hayato on the platform and spoke up too.

As these voices rang out, the clan's young and able-bodied members all raised their hands in support of Hayato, including quite a few from the hardline faction.

The atmosphere inside the shrine seemed to shift, as though something had set it in motion.

Hayato turned his gaze to Yashiro, who was staring straight back at his Mangekyo.

"Elder, I'd like to ask you something. What do you think the Uchiha's honor is?"

Yashiro paused, taken aback.

Hayato continued, "The Uchiha's honor has never been about being stronger than other people. It's about our clan enduring, our children growing up safe, and the Uchiha name continuing to exist.

"Only if we survive will there be Uchiha. If we die, nothing will remain."

Yashiro looked as though he wanted to say something, but after a long while, he finally grumbled, "All right, all right. I understand. If anyone brings up rebellion again, I'll be the first to stop them."

"But tell us, then. If we don't rebel, what do we do?"

Hayato picked up a blank scroll and a pen from the side, writing as he spoke.

"I intend to make changes within the clan. First, reforming the Police Force."

"Starting today, patrol officers must smile. They must nod to villagers, explain before enforcing the law, prioritize mediation, and use force only as a last resort. We'll improve the Police Force's reputation and prevent a repeat of this situation."

Everyone listened without objecting. The rumors had indeed brought them perilously close to disaster.

If Hayato and Fugaku hadn't taken the squad leaders to the Hokage Building, the situation would have been completely different if they'd waited for the Hokage to come ask questions in person.

Tekka furrowed his brow. "Smile? But I don't know how."

Hayato looked up at Tekka's face. After a long pause, he said solemnly, "Then practice. Yakumi and Shisui will be in charge. Keep at it until you can do it."

Shisui and Yakumi both froze. "Us?"

"Because you two have the friendliest faces."

At that, everyone lowered their heads, struggling to hold back their laughter.

Tekka looked embarrassed. What could he do about having a fierce-looking face? He'd been born that way.

"These are the basic guidelines for patrols. We'll need to work on them and draw up a proper set of procedures. If possible, once we've completed the reforms, the Police Force will open recruitment to other Konoha Ninja."

"Whether they're from a clan or civilians, this is something we have to do."

"The Police Force has enormous authority, but if our clan continues to monopolize it, we'll only deepen the rift between us and the villagers. The Uchiha need to become more integrated with the village."

After speaking, Hayato looked at Fugaku. Today's incident gave them the perfect opportunity to get the Third Hokage to agree, and Fugaku was the only one who could make the request.

"Tomorrow, I'll speak to the Hokage in person," Fugaku said with a nod.