The Sarutobi Clan Meeting / I Suggest You Do the Right Thing!

"Oh dear, Lord Shingen, we've been waiting for you for so long!"

A large, fat man stepped forward with great enthusiasm, grasped Uchiha Shingen's hand, and had tears welling up in his eyes.

What? Uchiha Shingen is younger than him? Get lost!

This is his biological father!

Only after following Shingen's father did I realize that all my previous businesses were garbage!

Unfortunately, Uchiha Shingen refused to take him as his adopted son, which saddened him greatly. He had no other wish but to stay by Uchiha Shingen's side as much as possible and learn from him.

"You're too kind, Chief Omi." Uchiha Shingen smiled. "A new year brings new beginnings; I'm sure your business will flourish this year, and you'll have no worries whatsoever."

"It's all thanks to you." The head of Omi smiled broadly, his eyes narrowed to slits by his fat. "You've been a great leader! You should guide us more often!"

"Sigh, Omi-sama, if you put it that way, I won't dare to say anything." Uchiha Shingen kept shaking his head. "Making money is your own skill. I only offered a few suggestions. Without your help to improve it, how could it have succeeded?"

Seeing that Omi had taken the best spot all by himself because of his size and wouldn't leave, a group of money shop owners got impatient and squeezed in as well, offering him all sorts of nice things, creating a harmonious and friendly atmosphere.

The Uchiha Clan's client stood alone on the other side, watching Uchiha Shingen surrounded by a group of people, and could only sigh.

In terms of popularity, even if an elder from the Uchiha Clan came, he wouldn't be as effective as Uchiha Shingen in the association.

But it wasn't good for them to just stay there, so he clapped his hands loudly to remind them.

"Everyone, Shingen must be very tired from his journey. Please don't stand at the door. The banquet upstairs is ready. Let's talk over there."

"Yes, yes, you fat bastard Omi, look what you've done!"

"Yeah, you talk too much."

Seizing the opportunity, everyone quickly pushed aside the head of the Omi clan and then crowded around Uchiha Shingen as they went upstairs to begin the meal.

Chapter Fifteen: The Sarutobi Clan Meeting

Sarutobi Saizo felt his thoughts flowing like a spring, his heart overflowing with indignation that he had to express.

Regardless of whether Uchiha Fugaku's writing was serious or not, it was certainly very serious.

His serious demeanor made his people worry that he might die before the election results were announced.

Especially after seeing Sarutobi Saizo's speech, they felt that he might really die suddenly.

On this day, the Jonin of the Sarutobi Clan gathered together for a clan meeting.

In the past, when Sarutobi Hiruzen in charge, the Jonin of the Sarutobi Clan gathered together in the same way, heeding the call of this Shinobi Hero and contributing their strength to the clan and the village.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's Will of Fire influenced many people, and there were many in the Sarutobi Clan who dedicated themselves and sacrificed for the village.

Of course, as the Hokage's family, the Sarutobi Clan inevitably picked up some bad habits, but at least among the Jonin, they were aware of them.

If Namikaze Minato, they are now much more grounded.

Now that Sarutobi Hiruzen has retired, he doesn't care about anything anymore. Unless it involves the survival of the clan, he will not participate in clan affairs. Therefore, this meeting was still chaired by the elders of the Sarutobi Clan, Jonin attended.

Everyone first circulated the speech draft that the clan leader Sarutobi Saizo, had prepared after several days of fussing. Everyone who read it gasped in shock.

After the document was circulated, an elder immediately spoke.

"Cai Zang, I think you should change the subject," the elder said seriously. "You'll get beaten to death."

"Elder, this matter must be brought up." Sarutobi Saizo clearly wouldn't allow his masterpiece to be questioned. "Was there anything I said wrong?"

"Nothing about it is right." Seeing the clan chief's stubbornness, the elder became unhappy. "There has never been a case in the village of forcing a ninja clan to hand over their technology. How could you come up with such a foolish idea?"

"Yes, Cai Zang. If he forces others to hand it in today, does that mean we'll have to hand it in tomorrow?" another elder asked. "How many days did you spend writing this kind of garbage? It's fine if you don't want to be the Hokage's assistant, but does the Sarutobi Clan still have any standing in the village?"

Sarutobi Saizo looked around. Several elders had long faces, and although the other clansmen didn't say anything, their expressions clearly showed their disapproval.

He was somewhat disappointed.

The elder's words are nonsense.

He knew, of course, that his article would offend people.

But... he's over fifty, almost sixty, why would he bother offending someone?

Do these people even understand the family's situation?

Do they really think the Third will live forever?

He, Sarutobi Saizo, is a hypocrite, not a complete idiot.

Sarutobi Saizo never felt embarrassed about his double standards, but today he realized that perhaps because he had been using them for so long, these people genuinely saw him that way.

"Everyone, our clan no longer has anyone as strong as Sasuke or Hiruzen- sama. You all understand what that means, right?"

The Sarutobi Clan members present were a little unaccustomed to the clan leader's sudden remarks.

The elders, however, began to rack their brains and analyze the situation.

The old men thought about it for a moment and immediately understood Sarutobi Saizo's intention.

"Cai Zang, you're being too radical." The elder who had initially been criticizing him softened his tone considerably. "Doing this is far too risky."

"This isn't about risk anymore. Nara Shikaku's rise to power speaks volumes." Sarutobi Saizo looked at his clansmen with exasperation. "If only we were a little more ambitious, the position of Jonin Council leader wouldn't have fallen into Nara Shikaku's hands..."

"There's nothing wrong with Nara Shikaku part of a unified family."

"There have never been four families, Elder." Sarutobi Saizo sighed. "If we rely solely on the legacy left by our ancestors, Shimura Clan's present will be our future."

Everyone was speechless.

Was Shimura Clan strong back then? Very strong!

Was Sarutobi Clan strong back then? Of course he was very strong, but he wasn't stronger than Shimura Clan.

At that time, the head of the Sarutobi Clan was Sarutobi Sasuke, a powerful figure whom even Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara would take seriously. Excluding those two freaks, Sarutobi Sasuke was one of the few people who stood at the pinnacle of the Ninja World.

After joining Leaf Village, both Sarutobi Clan and Shimura Clan entered their golden age. The Sarutobi Clan produced Sarutobi Hiruzen, and the Shimura Clan produced Shimura Danzō.

In particular, Sarutobi Hiruzen was the most outstanding young man in the entire village at the time, surpassing all his contemporaries, including the Senju of the Forest and Uchiha Clan.

Decades have passed, and now Sarutobi Clan has no successor; Shimura Clan is only nominally in charge, and the group has practically disbanded.

The thought of the Sarutobi Clan turning into the Shimura Clan sent chills down everyone's spine.

"Cai Zang..." the elder wanted to persuade him further.

"Don't try to persuade me anymore." Sarutobi Saizo his hand and looked at everyone. "Don't wait for the second round. In the first round, you all vote for Nara Shikaku. There's no room for discussion. We must show unity among the four families in the first round!"

"Chieftain!" Everyone exclaimed in shock, "Please calm down!"

Today, everyone realized that this clan leader is truly a tiger!

Is this really necessary? It hasn't come to that!

"I'm fucking calm!" Sarutobi Saizo straight face. "You guys are pretty calm too, but are the others calm?"

At this point, he felt a headache coming on, so he rubbed his temples and finally spoke out about what had been weighing on his mind.

"On the night the Nine-Tails was attacked, wasn't there some grandson who went to the Hokage Rock and demanded that Uchiha Shingen come down?"

The group looked at each other in bewilderment.

There is indeed such a person, but haven't the younger generation been like this for many years?

"Young people..." one of the Jonin chuckled dryly, "They'll mature over time."

"I'm afraid he'll get beaten to death before he even matures," Sarutobi Saizo. "By then, how long has the Fourth Hokage been Hokage? Doesn't Hokage still consider himself Hokage?"

"There's no need for you to personally provoke Uchiha Shingen," the Jonin advised. "The young people in our clan are indeed ignorant; we will teach them a lesson."

"It's too late..." Uchiha Clan Sarutobi Saizo his head. "There's no time left. The Uchiha clan has been out of control since that night. If we keep wasting time like this, it's only a matter of time before they have to go back to the Hokage Building. Can't you see the Fourth Hokage's dissatisfaction with the clan?"

"But the Fourth Hokage is Lord Jiraiya's disciple."

"Is this some new joke? The Fourth Hokage was Lord Jiraiya's disciple, what does that have to do with the Sarutobi Clan?" Jonin Sarutobi Saizo sideways. "Looks like you're not calm, you've just got your head stuck in a door."

Just as Sarutobi Saizo cursing, an elder standing nearby quickly interrupted him.

That old guy's insults are really nasty, not because they're vulgar, but because they're so sarcastic and unbearable.

"Cai Zang, what you're doing might backfire."

"If it backfires, it means the clan is beyond saving." Sarutobi Saizo took his manuscript back from the elder's hands, his voice low. "If that's the case, I'd rather die now."

Chapter Sixteen: I Advise You to Be Kind!

In the first month of Leaf Village's 53rd year, the speeches of the candidates for Hokage's assistant began as scheduled.

The stage was set up at the junction of the south, north, and west districts, where there was a large open space.

Early in the morning, the place was already packed with people.

Everyone was waiting to see what would happen.

Amidst everyone's anticipation, the current Hokage Namikaze Minato, the former Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen, and two advisor elders arrived together, accompanied by the four candidates.

Namikaze Minato was an efficient person; he immediately announced the start of the candidates' speeches.

The first candidate was Shimura Feilian, and the other three candidates tacitly gave him the top spot.

The old man expressed his gratitude to everyone in a friendly manner, then went up on stage, first bowed to the four bigwigs sitting to the side, and then faced the crowd to begin his speech.

His speech was conventional, with the central theme being simply "unity and friendship."

It's not bad, but it's definitely not very original.

But after he finished speaking, everyone still encouraged him, and the applause from both the stage and the audience was very enthusiastic.

After all, ordinary villagers might not know, but the ninjas all knew that he had come specifically to accompany them. However, the old man did not express any dissatisfaction; on the contrary, he cooperated very well.

He did not cause any trouble among the candidates because of this, and his nominal opponents also respected him.

But Shimura Feilian achieved his goal: some of the stereotypes about the Shimura Clan in the eyes of others because of Shimura Danzō disappeared during this election campaign.

So-called stereotypes are nothing serious; they're just things like "like begets like," and there will always be people who think that the Shimura Clan, which could produce a great demon like Shimura Danzō, must have some dark side.

This was Shimura Feilian's sole motivation for running for office.

When he stepped down from the podium, everyone perked up.

The professional pacers have completed their procedures very professionally; now it's the athletes' turn to take the field.

Everyone is looking forward to it.

While this might sound like a case of enjoying a good spectacle, everyone is genuinely looking forward to Uchiha Fugaku's speech.

The original professional runner-up was the Uchiha Clan.

This time, however, the Uchiha Clan displayed formidable fighting power. Inuzuka Clan clearly sided with the Uchiha Clan Hyuga Clan n't say it aloud, he was essentially doing the same.

It is said that the Hyuga Clan has a motto, "Whoever Elder Murasaki supports, we support!"

Hyuga Ziji, on the other hand, openly expressed her personal support for Uchiha Fugaku.

Uchiha Fugaku has emerged as a dark horse.

In Hidden Leaf Village today, when people mention Uchiha Fugaku, they have two impressions—his calligraphy is so bad it's almost unbelievable, and he's a strong candidate to be the Hokage's assistant.

Being both bad at the game and a playful person must be the first impression, as this is quite relatable and makes people genuinely feel a strong connection with this Uchiha Clan Head.

After all, who doesn't have a few hobbies they're bad at but love to have?

As a result, everyone felt closer to the Uchiha Clan.

He's aloof yet endearingly goofy, but not at all annoying.

Because of this mindset, everyone was inexplicably disappointed when they discovered that Nara Shikaku was the second to take the stage.

Another wait, this is no fun at all.

Seeing the audience's obvious expressions, Nara Shikaku could only feel helpless.

He almost cursed when he saw the undisguised regret on Namikaze Minato's face.

Be serious! You're the Hokage!

"This is a headache, I'm not popular..." That was Nara Shikaku's first sentence.

Everyone laughed; you're quite self-aware, aren't you?

"Squad leader, we really like you, but you came up at the wrong time!" someone in the audience immediately shouted, causing a burst of laughter.