Ascending to Hokage, Full of Spirit

Under the dim night sky, a thick scent of blood hung in the air.

Ninja corpses lay scattered everywhere, their deaths grotesque and varied.

After a night of battle, the compound had been completely destroyed.

But it did not matter much to Uchiha Kyu. As long as the Uchiha Clan remained, they could rebuild their compound anywhere.

As it happened, Uchiha Kyu had new ideas for planning the Uchiha Compound.

As the victorious Uchiha clansmen gradually came back to their senses and carried away their fallen kin, their hearts grew exceptionally heavy.

Uchiha Kyu personally closed the eyes of a clansman who had died with them still open, then turned to give instructions to the two men.

"Send everyone seriously injured in this battle to the Medical Department for treatment."

"Have the lightly wounded accompany them and protect our heroes."

"Bury our fallen clansmen together. As for the Hyuga Clan, I will not interfere. Hiashi, make your own arrangements."

"Tomorrow, Konoha will issue compensation for the ninja of both clans who died in this battle."

Fugaku Uchiha nodded. "I will warn those medical ninja and make sure they do not try anything."

Hyuga Hiashi hesitated before taking the initiative. "It would be more convenient to leave the Medical Department to the Hyuga Clan for supervision, so they cannot pull any tricks."

Fugaku Uchiha looked uncertainly at Uchiha Kyu. Having outsiders watch over their clansmen was ultimately hard to trust.

"Then I will have to trouble you. The Hyuga Clan will have many things to do in the future."

Uchiha Kyu patted Hyuga Hiashi on the shoulder meaningfully, then walked toward those who had surrendered.

Hyuga Hiashi could not suppress the excitement in his heart. Had Uchiha Kyu's pat on his shoulder just implied that the Hyuga Clan would become one of his right-hand forces?

Uchiha Kyu had no pleasant expression for these ninja clans. Konoha had given these people far too much face in the past.

Anyone who had read the original story knew that these ninja clans only took and never gave.

Whenever Konoha faced a crisis, the number of ninja these clans sent out was pitifully small. Most of those deployed were cannon-fodder civilian ninja.

The clan heads who had chosen to surrender, including Choza Akimichi, knelt on the ground with their hands bound.

There was no shame on their faces. On the contrary, they were already considering how to obtain even more benefits after Uchiha Kyu took power.

To these ninja clans, Konoha was merely an umbrella that let them line their pockets without restraint.

This was not the first time they had surrendered to the Uchiha Clan.

When Konoha had first been founded, they had already surrendered to the Uchiha Clan once.

Back then, Madara Uchiha had taken on the role of villain all by himself, while Hashirama Senju had been handed the role of hero.

In the hearts of those ninja clans, Madara Uchiha's terrifying deterrence far surpassed Hashirama Senju's.

Yet Hashirama Senju had been chosen as Hokage because those ninja clans hated Madara Uchiha too deeply. He had killed so many of their clansmen.

Uchiha Kyu's cold gaze swept back and forth over the clan heads.

The sharpness in Uchiha Kyu's eyes made their scalps tingle and their hearts pound with anxiety.

But faced with Uchiha Kyu's terrifying power, they could only lower their heads even further.

"Surrender is not unconditional. Tomorrow, I want to see a list containing two-thirds of the ninja from each of your clans."

"The taxes on your family businesses will be raised to fifty percent."

"All personnel you have placed in every department will be dismissed."

"That is merely what you should do. As for compensation, I will have the relevant people settle accounts with you slowly."

"Any objections?"

Uchiha Kyu's tone abruptly changed.

Choza Akimichi was so frightened that he repeatedly waved his hands, his voice trembling. "No objections. No objections."

When Uchiha Kyu's gaze swept over the others, members of clans such as the Aburame Clan shook their heads, drenched in sweat. "We have no objections either."

Let those benefits go if they had to.

They needed to keep their lives first. Once Uchiha Kyu took control of Konoha, there would naturally be times when he needed them.

Do not think these people were stupid. In truth, they were very smart.

Uchiha Kyu turned and had Fugaku personally bring Minato over.

There was still one most important matter tonight: Minato Namikaze would publicly announce his abdication before these ninja clans.

Minato Namikaze was personally brought over by Fugaku Uchiha.

Seeing the clan heads who usually acted like elders before him now kneeling on the ground, Minato Namikaze could not help feeling a trace of schadenfreude.

You always made things difficult for me. Now that was over. No one would be doing well now.

Knowing that he would soon no longer be Hokage, Minato Namikaze was in a much better state of mind than before.

Choza Akimichi and the others stared at Minato Namikaze in confusion, unable to understand why he was allowed to stand.

"Begin." Uchiha Kyu rubbed his exhausted temples, his tone growing impatient.

The rapid depletion of his mental energy had left Uchiha Kyu extremely tired, the kind of exhaustion that came from the mind.

Minato Namikaze took a deep breath. Thinking of the speech Fugaku Uchiha had prepared for him, he shouted for Kushina's sake, so she could live safely.

"Everything that happened today was caused by me alone."

"I have wronged all of you."

Minato Namikaze bowed deeply, his voice carrying a hint of tears.

"It was my mistaken judgment that caused the village such tremendous losses."

"The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, took the opportunity to settle personal grudges and attempted to wipe out the Uchiha Clan, so I killed him on the spot."

There was a whole heap of wording, but in the end, Minato Namikaze took every bit of the blame upon himself.

Choza Akimichi and the others exchanged looks without speaking, unconsciously straightening their backs.

Minato Namikaze had committed the ultimate betrayal by killing his own teacher, the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi, and then he had surrendered in the end.

What did their act of surrender amount to by comparison?

"To make up for my mistakes, I have decided to resign as Hokage. Uchiha Kyu, head of the Uchiha Clan, will assume the position of Fifth Hokage."

After saying that, Minato Namikaze let out a deep breath. The psychological burden was not as great as he had imagined. On the contrary, he felt much more relieved.

How could Minato Namikaze, who had made enemies tremble on the battlefield, be some indecisive and kind-hearted man?

It was simply a matter of enemy to one side, hero to the other.

Minato Namikaze looked pleadingly at Uchiha Kyu. "What will you do to Kushina?"

"She is Konoha's Jinchūriki, and I am Konoha's Fifth Hokage."

"Thank you." Minato Namikaze received the answer he wanted and was taken away by men arranged by Fugaku Uchiha.

"Get lost."

Seeing that these clan heads were so obedient, agreeing to everything he said without a single troublesome dissenter, Uchiha Kyu could not help feeling a little disappointed.

As expected, anyone who could become a clan head understood the rules of survival in this world thoroughly.

If they could not win, they surrendered. Only by staying alive did they have a chance to grow stronger.

Unfortunately for them, power was what ruled everything in this world.

These ninja clans were destined to become cannon fodder for the Uchiha Clan's conquests in every direction.

Seeing that he was somewhat tired, Fugaku Uchiha could not help suggesting.

"Clan Head, you should go back and get some proper rest. Leave the matters here to us."

"Fine. I will leave this place to you."

Uchiha Kyu recognized Fugaku Uchiha's ability to handle internal affairs, so he returned to rest.

As the sun and moon turned and a new day arrived, Uchiha and Hyuga ninja appeared on Konoha's streets to patrol.

The villagers had shut themselves inside their homes, and the shops remained closed. The streets were utterly desolate.

Most of the villagers had slept poorly because of the commotion from last night's battle.

Today, they had also been informed of espionage activity and forbidden from going outside, frightening them so badly that they did not dare step out their doors.

Konoha's process for electing a Hokage was very simple. It was usually decided internally.

Afterward, they only needed to notify the daimyo of the Land of Fire. The villagers' vote was nothing more than a public fig leaf.

Hidden Leaf Central Square was where successive Hokage assumed office.

Uchiha Kyu wore a red-and-white Hokage robe. Standing atop the high platform, he was full of spirit, and his devastatingly handsome appearance was second only to the reader.