Urgent Report from the Frontline, Jonin Meeting Convened

Inside the room, Shisui looked from Hayato to Itachi and back again.

Hayato, meanwhile, kept his eyes on Itachi, sensing the aura of confusion radiating from the boy.

Forget it, he thought. He's just a brat who hasn't even awakened his Sharingan yet. Whatever happened in the original timeline is irrelevant; if he still grows up with that same mindset under my guidance...

Then I'll just have to deal with him myself.

"Uchiha Itachi," Hayato's voice echoed in the room. "When do you graduate?"

"I've already submitted the paperwork. I should be able to graduate sometime this week," Itachi replied, nodding immediately.

"Good. Join the Police Force after you graduate. If I have any missions, I'll take you out of the village with me." Hayato stared straight at Uchiha Itachi, then stood up as soon as he finished speaking.

Shisui rose to follow him. Just as they reached the doorway, Hayato stopped and looked back at Shisui. "Have a good talk with Itachi. Things probably won't be this relaxed for much longer."

"Uh, right." Shisui nodded at his words.

Hayato said nothing more and left Fugaku's Dojo.

Strolling through the streets of Konoha, Hayato offered a smile and a nod to the villagers he passed. Many were visibly startled, though they eventually nodded back in greeting before moving on.

It's going to take a little more time.

Hayato understood that the villagers' reactions were due to the fact that the changes within the Uchiha clan hadn't yet fully settled in their minds.

Constant dripping wears away the stone; it was not a task for a single day.

Gazing toward the distant Hokage Building, Hayato couldn't help but consider another problem.

The village's sudden urgency in asking the Uchiha to nominate a few Jonin was likely due to mounting pressure at the borders, but that wasn't the main point.

If Danzo was the one who proposed this, then it was worth thinking outside the box.

Perhaps, were they looking to seize the Sharingan on the front lines?

"We shall see."

Hayato whispered to himself. Right now, Konoha's talent pool was completely depleted following the incident with Orochimaru's laboratory, and Kakashi was still tied up in the Anbu.

If there really was an intention to send the Uchiha to the front lines, then this would be his opportunity.

An opportunity for the Uchiha to change people's perceptions.

How did the Fourth Hokage become the Hokage?

He had built a high-profile and powerful track record on the battlefield.

A major war was likely on the horizon, and that was the Uchiha clan's greatest chance. He needed to leave a different impression on the village's ninja during this conflict.

At the very least, the public image of the Uchiha needed to change, and while he was at it, he wanted to see if he could steer Uchiha Itachi toward a different path than the one in the original story.

In the blink of an eye, three weeks passed.

Hayato and Shisui successfully became Jonin, and Uchiha Itachi graduated and joined the Police Force, spending his time patrolling alongside Shisui.

However, Hayato, who had been waiting, never received any news from the front lines. Due to the Uchiha clan's unique status, even some of the other ninja clans in the village couldn't find out anything.

Both Shisui and Itachi, who were trailing behind Hayato, could sense his inexplicable anxiety.

"Brother Shisui, what's wrong with the teacher?"

Uchiha Itachi looked toward Shisui and asked in a low voice.

During this time, he had realized that Shisui was no ordinary person. Shisui seemed excessively close to his teacher, and from time to time, he would head off to train alone.

"I'm not sure either." Shisui shook his head.

Hayato hadn't told anyone about this, so Shisui didn't know exactly what was going on.

Uchiha Itachi nodded at this, greeting the villagers as they passed, which left him feeling a bit strange.

The clan seemed to have changed significantly.

Even the seniors in the Police Force no longer wore those bitter, resentful expressions they once had.

He would often see the seniors on patrol duty calmly explaining to the villagers what the suspects they were about to arrest had actually done, only taking action after the explanation was finished.

It was almost unbelievable to him.

Screech—!

Just as the group was walking toward the Police Force Building, a sharp cry rang out in the sky above.

Hayato stopped in his tracks, looking up at the Ninja Hawk as it flew into the distance, a smile tugging at his lips.

This wasn't a hawk for a standard Jonin meeting; it had come from the border.

It was time.

Not long after, Hayato walked into the Police Force Building and ran into Tekka coming the other way.

"Vice... Hayato, a Jonin meeting has been called. We need to head over there," Tekka said, correcting himself after Hayato had stopped him from using the title of Vice Clan Head earlier.

This was Hayato's arrangement; the position of Vice Clan Head was merely a suggestion by Fugaku and didn't need to be reported to the village.

So, Hayato had simply told everyone in the clan to continue calling him by his name.

It was just a title, after all.

"Alright, let's head over." Hayato nodded, then looked at Uchiha Itachi behind him and said, "Itachi, wait at the Police Force Building. If there's a need, assist the other seniors."

"Yes, Teacher."

Uchiha Itachi bowed in salute, then watched as Hayato and the others departed from the building.

Vice? It wasn't until the figures of Hayato and the others had faded into the distance that a trace of confusion inevitably appeared on Uchiha Itachi's face.

Entering the Hokage Building, the gazes that were usually everywhere were nowhere to be found at this moment. Hayato led the group quickly into the jonin conference room.

The spacious conference room was already packed with many people, and Hayato even spotted members of the Hyuga, Nara, and other clans.

However, there were indeed a few malicious gazes cast their way.

Hayato turned his head to look and saw a middle-aged man watching their group with an arrogant expression on his face.

"Hayato, come over here."

Just as Hayato was wondering who this guy was, Fugaku's voice reached him.

Turning his head, he saw Fugaku sitting not far away with other jonin from the clan, and beside him... Shikaku?

"Clan Leader, Senior Shikaku."

Hayato stepped forward quickly, greeting Fugaku and Shikaku.

"Fugaku, are these the jonin you promoted this time?" Shikaku asked, his gaze lingering on Hayato and Shisui.

"Yes. They still needed more tempering, but an opportunity happened to arise recently, so I promoted them along the way," Fugaku nodded and said.

Hearing this, Shikaku simply nodded and then fell silent.

Hayato, on the other hand, looked at Shikaku from time to time, thinking to himself, Is he not yet the captain of the Jonin Squad at this time?

But looking at Shikaku, who was about the same age as Fugaku, Hayato suddenly realized.

It was probably still a matter of age.

Clack, clack.

Several sets of footsteps rang out, and the previously noisy jonin conference room instantly fell silent.

Leading the way was the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, while Danzo followed slightly behind him, yet still ahead of the other two elders.

This guy, he can't even hold back for something like this.

Hayato sneered inwardly, though his face remained completely expressionless.

"Everyone, the reason for convening this jonin meeting is... an urgent report from the front lines. Not long ago, Kumogakure began deploying troops on a large scale toward the border of the Land of Fire."