Chapter 42 (Patreon)

Deep within the Uchiha compound, inside the clan head’s mansion—

“You’re saying the Fourth Hokage came to the Uchiha compound openly? No disguise, no ANBU?”

A dignified man sat at the head of the room, his posture straight and imposing.

Uchiha Fugaku.

The current head of the Uchiha clan.

“Yes, Clan Head-sama,” the clansman reporting the news answered immediately.

Fugaku narrowed his eyes slightly.

“Let them in.”

After the clansman left, Fugaku quietly muttered to himself,

“So he made sure everyone would see him coming…”

“Is he trying to repair the relationship between the Uchiha and Konoha?”

Earlier that afternoon, Itachi had already informed Fugaku that Namikaze Minato intended to visit.

Officially, it was simply a Jōnin-sensei visiting his student’s home.

But in the eyes of others…

It carried a completely different meaning.

Before long, Minato arrived together with Yujiro.

“Clan Head Fugaku.”

Minato greeted him with his usual gentle smile.

Fugaku nodded calmly.

“Please, sit.”

The two sides took their seats.

“Thank you for taking care of Itachi,” Fugaku said.

Minato smiled lightly.

“Itachi is my student now. Looking after him is only natural.”

After a brief pause, Minato continued,

“There’s something else I wanted to discuss.”

“Yujiro, Kakashi, and Itachi have officially formed a squad.”

“From now on, I’ll begin assigning missions to them.”

As he spoke, Minato looked directly at Fugaku.

“I wanted to hear your thoughts first, Clan Head Fugaku.”

The meaning behind his words was obvious.

Once they started taking missions, danger would naturally follow.

Injuries.

Casualties.

Death.

All of it was possible.

And Itachi was not just any child.

He was the son of the Uchiha clan head.

Minato could not pretend that identity did not matter.

Fugaku, however, simply smiled.

“That aligns with my expectations, Hokage-sama.”

“My son isn’t some fragile child raised in a greenhouse.”

A trace of pride appeared in Fugaku’s eyes.

After all, Itachi had already witnessed war at the age of four.

Ordinary missions would not shake him.

Minato nodded inwardly.

As expected…

Fugaku himself was not unreasonable at all.

“The Hokage probably didn’t come all this way just to discuss missions,” Fugaku said calmly.

The atmosphere in the room grew quieter.

Even Itachi could feel the tension building.

Unable to endure the silence, he subconsciously glanced toward Yujiro.

Meanwhile, Yujiro sat there casually, looking completely unconcerned.

He was waiting.

Waiting to see whether Minato would continue.

If Minato chose to stop here, then so be it.

But after a moment, Minato took a slow breath.

“Clan Head Fugaku… there’s another reason I came today.”

His blue eyes met Fugaku’s directly.

Fugaku’s expression shifted slightly.

He saw determination there.

Minato spoke slowly.

“I want the Uchiha clan and Konoha to stand together again.”

The room fell silent.

Completely silent.

After a long while, Fugaku finally asked quietly,

“And how do you plan to do that?”

That single question stopped Minato cold.

Yes.

How?

The divide between Konoha and the Uchiha clan had existed for far too long.

Suspicion.

Fear.

Isolation.

None of it could disappear overnight.

“…Troublesome.”

A lazy voice suddenly broke the silence.

Everyone turned toward Yujiro.

Yujiro slowly stood up.

Then he looked at Minato.

“Minato-sensei… can you represent all of Konoha?”

Minato froze slightly.

Then he shook his head.

“…No.”

Yujiro nodded calmly before turning toward Fugaku.

“Then, Clan Head Fugaku… can you represent the entire Uchiha clan?”

Fugaku was silent for a few seconds before giving the same answer.

“No.”

Even as clan head, not everything within the Uchiha was under his control.

There were different factions within the clan itself.

Some wanted peace.

Others wanted conflict.

Fugaku himself leaned more toward coexistence.

Konoha’s leadership was no different.

Shimura Danzō was an extremist.

The Third Hokage tried to maintain balance, but he still distrusted the Uchiha deep down.

As for Homura and Koharu…

They were even harsher.

Among Konoha’s higher-ups, Minato was practically the only one still trying to bridge the gap.

“If you really want reconciliation,” Yujiro said calmly, “then only two things matter.”

He raised two fingers.

“Cleaning out the rot.”

“And recognition.”

Minato and Fugaku both focused on him completely.

Yujiro continued casually,

“Konoha has problems.”

“The Uchiha clan has problems too.”

“If neither side deals with the people constantly fueling the hatred, then nothing changes.”

His tone remained relaxed, but every word landed heavily in the room.

“People want acknowledgment.”

“The Uchiha want acknowledgment too.”

“No one is born hating others.”

“That hatred was built over time.”

“Change the environment… and eventually people will change with it.”

Silence filled the hall once more.

But this time, it was different.

Minato and Fugaku exchanged looks.

Both could see the shock in the other’s eyes.

It was not that they underestimated Yujiro because of arrogance.

It was because they genuinely did not expect someone his age to see things this clearly.

And yet…

Every word struck directly at the core of the problem.

Minato suddenly stood.

Then, in front of everyone present, he lowered his head seriously toward Yujiro.

“Yujiro… I’ve learned something important today.”

Even Fugaku’s eyelids twitched slightly at the sight.

He had never seen this kind of sincerity from Konoha’s higher-ups before.

Not even from the Third Hokage.

Yujiro simply accepted it calmly.

After all, while his current body was still young, his mentality was not.

Minato straightened himself again before looking toward Fugaku.

“Clan Head Fugaku… I know the chances are small.”

“But small doesn’t mean impossible.”

“As Hokage, I don’t want to give up on that possibility.”

For a while, Fugaku remained silent.

Then he slowly nodded.

“…I feel the same way.”

With the serious discussion finally over, the atmosphere gradually eased.

Fugaku personally invited Minato and Yujiro to stay for dinner.

The evening became much more relaxed afterward.

As for Yujiro—

He honestly did not care that much about Konoha’s future political struggles.

Nor did he particularly care about the internal disputes of the Uchiha clan.

To him, those things were secondary.

What mattered most was becoming stronger.

Strong enough to protect the people around him.

And honestly…

If life also included a few trusted friends and a couple beautiful girls by his side—

Then that kind of life did not sound bad at all.