The Third Hokage's Little Moves

Many people lived in Konoha.

Some dreamed of becoming ninja, some dreamed of becoming chefs, and some dreamed of becoming teachers... Inuzuka Hana hoped to become a veterinarian. She loved little animals.

Because she was too young, her mother, Inuzuka Tsume, did not recommend that she treat other people's pets. So she could only secretly help sick animals, spending most of her allowance on such things.

Whenever she saw a kitten that had fallen from a drainpipe, a stray puppy by the roadside, or a listless crow, the little veterinarian would always step in to help. She wanted to become a veterinarian trusted by both people and animals.

Innocent and adorable, clever and lively, with her own dreams and goals in life, steadily moving toward them... Kitahara felt that if he had never watched Naruto, he might have thought Inuzuka Hana was the true protagonist.

After eating a bowl of ramen and chatting for a while, the crow had calmed down considerably. The little girl took out a notebook and recorded this medical case.

"If Kitahara gets sick, come find me then..." Inuzuka Hana packed her tools into her bag and waved goodbye to them. "Then I'll see you at school!"

"Yeah! Goodbye!"

"Caw!"

The little veterinarian was not pretentious at all. Even when facing such an adorable boy as Uchiha Itachi, she had no ulterior motives... She was simply a breath of fresh air in the ninja world...

When they returned home that evening, Fugaku Uchiha was in an excellent mood. He had discussed their respective doubts with Shisui, who had just left, and the genius chunin had gone home burdened with worries...

Fugaku Uchiha, meanwhile, looked thoroughly refreshed!

Based on Shisui's detailed intelligence and the Third Hokage's actions, he concluded that the mastermind behind this incident was the Hokage's advisor, Shimura Danzō. After all, that gloomy old man certainly had a motive.

The fact that a Wood Release ninja had been defeated by Hatake Kakashi proved that the experiment subject's Wood Release was still very immature. What they needed to watch out for was the Flying Thunder God user who appeared afterward. Danzo really had plenty of trump cards...

From now on, Hiruzen Sarutobi would no longer trust his old friend, would he?

"I'm home." Uchiha Itachi first placed the crow on the table, then looked at Fugaku, who was leisurely drinking tea. "Father, I think I saw Shisui on the road. Did he come here as a guest?"

"Huh? Yes!" Fugaku Uchiha beckoned for his son to come closer, then said seriously, "What Kitahara saw outside must not be told to anyone..."

"I understand."

"Good..." Fugaku nodded, unable to stop himself from smiling. "The police force members told me after they came back. What you did this evening was very well done! As expected of my son!"

Uchiha Itachi: "..."

Did information spread that quickly among their clan?

Uchiha Mikoto came out and smiled as she stroked her son's hair. "That's right! Itachi has grown up! He can protect little girls now!"

"That wasn't what happened..." Uchiha Itachi explained in detail how Inuzuka Hana had saved a cat for free, only to be extorted by its owner. He included their conversation that afternoon, then concluded, "...I admire her very much..."

"From the sound of it, she seems even more outstanding than Itachi!" Mikoto nodded. "I remember her mother, Inuzuka Tsume, was quite hot-tempered... I never expected her daughter to be so gentle!"

Fugaku Uchiha offered no comment. Even if determined people deserved respect, one still had to consider whether that person could reach the level of the strong.

Another year passed, and several major events took place in Konoha.

The Uchiha clan collectively moved to a new clan compound, farther and farther from the center of Konoha. Still, being isolated from the world was not necessarily a bad thing. At the very least, far fewer people barged into Uchiha territory.

Another matter was rather strange. Orochimaru, a disciple of the Third Hokage, had actually defected... Orochimaru's defection from Konoha briefly became the village's biggest news. In truth, Hiruzen Sarutobi had pressured Shimura Danzō too hard, forcing him to expose Orochimaru's secret human experiments in order to divert Hiruzen Sarutobi's attention.

The Third Hokage issued a wanted order: S-rank rogue ninja Orochimaru, dead or alive.

Thus, all three Legendary Sannin had left Konoha...

Having truly become a lonely man, the Third Hokage quickly began another round of maneuvers. He presided over promotions for jonin and special jonin, further expanding the scale of the jonin assembly.

Then, at the New Year, he reshuffled the leadership positions within the Anbu, stripping Shimura Danzō of his command over the Anbu training class. Those in the Anbu who thought Hatake Kakashi would be promoted were left utterly stunned...

Only one person was promoted.

He was a seventeen-year-old chunin, promoted by Hiruzen Sarutobi to captain of the Anbu Torture and Interrogation Force. His name was Morino Ibiki.

Furthermore, Hiruzen Sarutobi reorganized the mission assembly hall. Strict restrictions were imposed on daily missions leaving the village, with missions carried out in ninja squad formations whenever possible to prevent ninja defections.

In addition, the authority to assign Konoha Ninja Academy graduates was returned entirely to the Hokage. The Hokage would appoint jonin captains and graduate team members, a measure that gave several of Konoha's great clans a terrible headache.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's actions had little to do with Fugaku. The police force continued offending people all across Konoha... Perhaps the only matter connecting them...

Was the Ninja Academy's opening day.

The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, would go to the Ninja Academy to deliver a speech, while Uchiha Fugaku, as a student's parent, had to sit through some nonsense... It was truly irritating...

April. Spring. The weather was pleasant and bright.

"Today is Itachi's first day at the Ninja Academy..." Mikoto said as she fed Sasuke, glancing at her husband. "Fugaku, the school requires parents to accompany their children!"

"Mm, I'm ready." Fugaku Uchiha wore ordinary clothes. Sending his proud eldest son to the Ninja Academy was something he had been looking forward to for a long time.

If only... they could skip the Hokage's speech...

As the number of powerful people in the village gradually dwindled, Hiruzen Sarutobi attached more and more importance to Ninja Academy education. He had even begun interfering in the school's daily administration... Why was that old man's energy so abundant?

Uchiha Itachi had packed his stationery early. After moving, he had begun previewing his lessons. He had read many ninjutsu records kept within the Uchiha clan, and Shisui had also provided plenty of study materials.

As for Kitahara...

He was rather excited. The Ninja Academy...

At first, he had thought the school would only teach things like the Three Basic Techniques. But Shisui had mentioned that there would be theoretical classes covering many ninjutsu and strategies for dealing with them. In addition, they would teach a few simple C-rank ninjutsu.

Of course, clan ninjutsu like the Great Fireball Technique would definitely not appear in the school's curriculum. They would teach more ordinary ninjutsu, such as the Large Fireball Technique and Water Bullets.

After breakfast, Fugaku Uchiha and his son left home with the crow... Sasuke crawled around inside, clutching at the floor as he watched his father and brother leave. He kept making whimpering noises from his mouth...

Hearing his younger brother's mournful cries, Uchiha Itachi helplessly turned around and flicked Sasuke's forehead with two fingers:

"Sasuke, be good and listen at home..."

First update. It was a little bland.