The Uchiha's "Caged Bird" Spreads Its Wings

Hiruzen Sarutobi had mixed feelings.

He should have seen it coming!

Everything that innately wicked Uchiha brat said or did carried a deeper meaning, leaving no trace of his intentions...

Shinji had cornered him again.

"Shinji... can we discuss this some more?"

Shinji rubbed his forehead. "If we can't replenish the Konoha Military Police Force's ranks, what's left to discuss? If Uchiha children attend the Ninja Academy, they'll join the Hokage's system when they graduate. How would they serve in the police force? We might as well train them from childhood to become qualified officers."

Hiruzen Sarutobi wanted to curse him out and walk away. But he had no way out. He couldn't do that, and he didn't dare.

Whether Shinji was seizing the chance to gain an advantage, erode his authority as Hokage, and increase the Uchiha's say in the village...

Sometimes, even when presented with a pile of shit, he had to hold his nose and accept it. It wouldn't be the first time.

Konoha was weaker than it had ever been!

First, the White Fang had taken his own life. Then came the Third Shinobi World War, followed by the Nine-Tails' Attack and the deaths of the Fourth Hokage and his wife.

Even now, Konoha was still struggling to rebuild.

The new Nine-Tails Jinchuriki wouldn't turn eight until next year. He was only just old enough to enter the Ninja Academy. Not only was he no use yet, he was a ticking Explosive Tag!

Of the Konoha Sannin, one had defected, one had lost her spirit and could no longer be relied upon, and one was wandering the world like a layabout in search of some damned Child of Prophecy.

Now Danzo lay in a hospital bed, his fate unknown. Root had no leader, and Hiruzen Sarutobi had effectively lost an arm. The major clans were growing restless!

No one willingly remained beneath another forever. The weaker you were, the worse things became.

Everyone wanted to walk all over you!

And the Uchiha were a problem all their own. They had somehow produced a troublesome little bastard like Shinji Uchiha!

Last night's disturbance only left Hiruzen more alarmed and uneasy.

More than once last night, Hiruzen Sarutobi had considered striking down the Uchiha, ending the matter once and for all, and clearing the clouds hanging over Konoha.

But what little reason he had left held him back.

He had a feeling...

If the Uchiha fell, Konoha would suffer a steep decline right behind them. He was certain of it!

So...

It seemed he could only compromise and continue his old approach of Boiling a Frog Slowly.

"Shinji, how about this?"

After thinking it over, Hiruzen Sarutobi said, "Setting up an office inside the Academy isn't realistic... But I can issue a directive from the Hokage's office allowing the police force to recruit three graduates directly each year."

Shinji frowned. "Three?"

"..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed. "It's a small number, barely enough to dent the police force's staffing shortage. But the war ended only recently, and the Nine-Tails' Attack left us with a serious shortage of students. Children aren't weeds that sprout again with the spring breeze."

Shinji tapped his fingers against the desk. "Three is too few. Make it six per term. That's four ninja squads' worth a year, selected for special recruitment and early graduation whenever we need them. That's not too much to ask, is it, Third Hokage?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi hesitated, weighing the costs and benefits.

"Well..."

Shinji glanced at him and thought for a moment. "In return, twenty-four Uchiha children of school age will enter the Ninja Academy each year. Of course... I can't promise that number forever. As you said, children don't sprout again with the spring breeze, and even as Clan Head, I can't control how many children our members have."

Hiruzen Sarutobi fell into thought.

Was he losing out? Or gaining something?

Or would this benefit both sides?

After a long while, he raised his head, his gaze firm. "It's a deal!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi firmly believed it.

As long as channels of communication remained open between the Uchiha and Konoha, and large numbers of their children entered the Ninja Academy, he could shape them from a young age. Through the bonds they formed with classmates and teammates, and through the great Will of Fire...

He would surely raise many more talents like Kagami Uchiha and Uchiha Itachi!

"Good!"

Shinji was delighted. "Third Hokage, you won't regret this decision. One day, the village and the Uchiha will be one and the same!"

"I hope so."

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded, his eyes unreadable.

"Then..."

"Shinji."

Hiruzen Sarutobi leaned forward and said earnestly, "Since we're speaking so openly, shouldn't you tell me what happened with the Uchiha last night? Tell the village, too, so everyone knows where things stand?"

Shinji froze. "That..."

"Clan head! We failed to—"

A voice suddenly came from outside the office. A police officer rushed in, his face smeared with dirt and his uniform stained with blood. He looked anxious, but the moment he saw Hiruzen Sarutobi, he stopped speaking.

He stood there at a loss.

"Get out! Can't you see I'm talking to Lord Hokage?" A flicker of panic crossed Shinji's eyes.

Hiruzen Sarutobi studied Shinji's expression, then turned to look at the Uchiha officer...

He frowned.

"Yes, Clan Head!"

Shinji watched his subordinate leave, then turned back to Hiruzen Sarutobi with an apologetic smile. "Third Hokage, sorry you had to see that..."

"Mm... it's nothing."

Hiruzen Sarutobi considered for a moment. "Now that we've reached an agreement, I'll be going. I'll draft the directive as soon as I get back."

"Thank you, Third Hokage!"

"Take care."

"No need to see me out!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi stepped out of the police headquarters.

He looked around and saw nothing amiss. He was about to leave the compound when a police squad returned, covered in dirt.

They looked furious, their clothes were disheveled, and they bore burns in several places.

Hiruzen happened to know the man leading them.

"Uchiha Ryuka?"

"Third Hokage!"

Uchiha Ryuka was startled to see Hiruzen Sarutobi leaving the police headquarters. He quickly averted his eyes.

Hiruzen clasped his hands behind his back and smiled like a kindly old man. "Out on a mission?"

"Uh... yes."

Hiruzen Sarutobi chuckled. "Well, I've heard you've followed Shinji since childhood. You're a genius of the Uchiha Clan, skilled in taijutsu and Swordsmanship, a Three Tomoe Jonin whose Odachi strikes fear into his enemies. If even you ran into trouble while leading a squad, your target must have been formidable!"

Uchiha Flowing Fire gave an awkward smile. "You flatter me, Third Hokage. It was nothing like that. Sorry, but I have to go report on the mission!"

With that, he left Hiruzen Sarutobi behind and led his squad into the police headquarters. He looked more like a rat fleeing with its tail stepped on.

Hiruzen Sarutobi lowered his head, his eyes unreadable, and strolled away with his hands behind his back like an old man out for a walk.

At a second-floor window of the police headquarters...

Shinji and Shisui stood side by side.

"Can you still not tell me your plan? What exactly are you trying to accomplish with all this?"

Shisui could not make sense of it.

Since becoming Clan Head, everything Shinji had done openly appeared to be for the future of both the village and the clan...

But...

What he did in secret continued to baffle Shisui.

What was the point of having Uchiha Itachi "defect"?

Shinji gazed at the peaceful Konohagakure in the distance. "It's nothing complicated. Everything I've done is to help the clan flourish. And if I can make the place where we live more hospitable along the way, why wouldn't I?"

Shisui still could not understand.

"Making Itachi a Missing-nin will somehow make the clan and the village better?"

"See? Another blind spot. Don't waste your brainpower on it. Just wait and see!"

Shinji smiled as he looked into the distance.

Now that you're free of the cage that held you, what changes will you bring to this dark world when you spread your wings, Yatagarasu?

I can't wait to see it either!

Itachi!