"Hahaha, you don't have to think of me that way, and you don't need to worry about Konoha High Command finding out. Wherever I show up, no Anbu dares come near!" Hatake Ziyan said with a laugh. "As for those dumbasses in Konoha High Command, they aren't qualified to order me around!"
Fugaku followed behind Hatake Ziyan without saying a word.
Hatake Ziyan found the young Fugaku rather amusing. He wanted to play mind games like the grown-ups, but he was still too green and was going about it all wrong.
If I could talk Fugaku into giving the Hokage his full support, that would be pretty interesting! Hatake Ziyan thought, turning to glance at Fugaku.
"Fugaku, have you ever thought about leading the Uchiha out of their current predicament?" Hatake Ziyan wanted to try taking the young Fugaku for a ride.
Uchiha Fugaku frowned slightly at Hatake Ziyan's words but still said nothing.
"Your clan has a pretty terrible reputation among Konoha's civilians and ordinary ninja! Do you know why?" Hatake Ziyan refused to give up and kept asking.
Hearing Hatake Ziyan bring up the subject, Fugaku couldn't hold back. "Why else? It's all because of those bastards in Konoha High Command! Otherwise, how could a bunch of civilians dare criticize a prestigious clan like the Uchiha?"
The corners of Hatake Ziyan's mouth lifted slightly when Fugaku answered. Kid, now that you've taken the bait, I can talk you in circles!
"That's not right! Think it over again!" Hatake Ziyan said, shaking his head.
"How could it not be right? If High Command weren't spreading rumors, who would dare slander the Uchiha Clan?" Fugaku immediately retorted when Hatake Ziyan rejected his explanation.
Hatake Ziyan stopped, turned around, and looked at Uchiha Fugaku. "If it really were just a matter of spreading rumors, ordinary people might shun and criticize the Uchiha Clan for a while. But ever since Madara left, haven't their misunderstandings about your clan only grown worse?"
Fugaku stopped when Hatake Ziyan did. After considering his words for a moment, he asked, "What's the difference? Isn't Konoha High Command constantly spreading rumors about the Uchiha Clan throughout the village? Otherwise, how could ordinary civilians know so many secrets?"
Seeing Fugaku gradually start to believe him, Hatake Ziyan felt much better. There was a chance he could successfully reel him in. He continued, "No secret stays hidden forever. Besides, Konoha has so many ninja clans, along with its long-standing squad system. How can you be sure the information ordinary ninja hear didn't come from clan members who let something slip after a few drinks?"
Fugaku fell silent at Hatake Ziyan's words, unsure how to refute them.
Hatake Ziyan continued, "As for why ordinary ninja dislike members of the Uchiha Clan, that's simple. What work is your clan responsible for in Konoha right now?"
"Konoha's policing!" Fugaku said proudly. "The Konoha Military Police Force is made up entirely of Uchiha Clan ninja. Konoha High Command can't interfere at all!"
Seeing Fugaku's pride, Hatake Ziyan couldn't help shaking his head. "Could you tell me what your police force mainly does day to day?"
Fugaku thought for a moment. "We patrol Konoha's streets, settle disputes between residents, verify the identities of visitors to Konoha, and sometimes arrest civilians or ordinary ninja who have committed crimes!"
"Then when you arrest these people, aren't you usually pretty heavy-handed? And do you always arrest the right person?" Hatake Ziyan asked.
"Of course we're forceful when arresting criminals. Besides, why should the prestigious Uchiha show mercy to these civilians? And we have the Sharingan. With our illusion-based interrogations, there's no such thing as arresting the wrong person!" Fugaku replied.
"So, in other words, when someone is a suspect in a case, you arrest them and interrogate them with illusions first, regardless of whether they actually did it. If they confess under interrogation, you lock them up. If they don't, you keep looking for the real culprit?" Hatake Ziyan asked.
"Exactly! And no one can deny their crimes under our illusion-based interrogation!" Uchiha Fugaku said smugly. "Ever since the Uchiha Clan took control of the police force, Konoha's crime rate has kept dropping, and public safety has kept improving. That's all thanks to us Uchiha!"
Hatake Ziyan smiled. "And that's exactly why Konoha's ordinary residents dislike you!"
With that, Hatake Ziyan started walking again. Fugaku hurried after him and asked in confusion, "What do you mean? We've made Konoha safer, and they still dislike us?"
Hatake Ziyan nodded. "Let me put it another way, and you should understand. Suppose you're an ordinary street vendor. To make a living, you have no choice but to set up a stall on the street and sell little things to get by. But a bunch of people calling themselves the police force keep stopping you from setting up your stall, leaving you unable to survive. How would you feel about those people?"
Cold sweat poured down Fugaku's back. His voice trembled as he answered, "Naturally, I'd dislike them. I'd even hate them!"
Hatake Ziyan nodded and continued, "Suppose you're an ordinary civilian-born ninja in Konoha. Because you're implicated in a case, the so-called police force throws you into prison without hearing you out and immediately interrogates you with illusions. Under that pressure, you're forced to confess to a crime you didn't commit. Once you're released, what would you say about the people in that police force?"
At this, Fugaku began to question whether it was right for his clan to control the police force at all!
"Naturally, I'd tell people how awful and unreasonable they were, so more people would know how bad the police force was!" Fugaku said, wiping the sweat from his forehead.
Seeing that he had convinced Fugaku, Hatake Ziyan silently gave himself a thumbs-up. Although what he had described was only part of the reason, and Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo had also played a considerable role, all that mattered was that Fugaku believed him.
"So do you still think your current predicament is entirely due to Konoha High Command deliberately spreading rumors and slandering you?" Hatake Ziyan asked.
Just then, three Uchiha clansmen passed them from the opposite direction. One was boasting about a man he had arrested the day before, describing how the man had kept denying he had committed any crime when arrested, only to finally confess under his illusion-based interrogation.
None of them thought there was anything wrong with that. Instead, they all seemed very proud!
After hearing their conversation and recalling what Hatake Ziyan had just said, Fugaku felt that the Uchiha Clan had no one else to blame for its current predicament. They thought far too highly of themselves! Or rather, the Uchiha clansmen were all too confident. Many of them could be called outright arrogant, believing that no one could compare to the Uchiha. That was why they couldn't even be bothered to explain when they were blamed for things they hadn't done.
Before you continue