Early the next morning.
After a day of baptism by gunfire, Konoha had shed its usual bustle, and the entire village was quiet.
The battered streets were gradually being repaired, and the lingering smell of blood had yet to fade.
Besides the smell of blood, an especially oppressive atmosphere hung in the air.
Apart from the ninja repairing the streets, ordinary people hid in their homes, afraid to venture outside. The situation had yet to stabilize, and even Konoha's unruly civilians knew when to back down.
On the top floor of the Hokage Building, in the Hokage's office.
The figure seated in the Hokage's chair, which had once belonged to the Third, Hiruzen Sarutobi, had changed.
Uchiha Fugaku sat in the Hokage's seat, dressed in neat clan attire with a cloak bearing the words "Fourth Hokage" draped over his shoulders.
Zongyan and Uchiha Itachi stood on either side of Fugaku.
Itachi's expression was cool, his arms folded across his chest, his presence quiet and sharp.
Zongyan rested one hand on Murasame's hilt at his waist, his eyes fixed ahead, making others afraid to meet his gaze.
The Hokage's office was deathly silent.
Representatives of every surviving ninja clan in Konoha stood in orderly rows inside the office. Everyone held their breath, and no one dared make a sound without permission.
During the upheaval, Konoha High Command had been wiped out, and the established powers of the Hokage's faction had been completely reshuffled. The ninja clans that remained had either chosen neutrality or never participated in the campaign against the Uchiha.
At the front of the crowd, the representatives of the two largest, highest-ranking clans waited silently.
Hyuga Hiashi of the Hyuga and Shikaku Nara of the Nara Clan.
When the upheaval erupted, the Nara Clan, which had previously maintained close