Chapter 27 (Patreon)

When it came to politics, Kushina was a complete novice, and Roy was not much better.

However, by combining Roy’s knowledge of future events with Kushina’s understanding of Konoha, the two of them had managed to devise a practical plan.

First and foremost, everything depended on strength.

Kushina had to become a perfect jinchūriki while gathering every ally and available force they could rely upon.

Second, information concerning Danzō’s crimes—and even the misconduct of Konoha’s other senior officials—would be leaked throughout the village from time to time. By doing so, they would gradually weaken Danzō’s reputation and undermine the authority of those aligned with him.

Finally, they would work to improve the Uchiha clan’s standing among Konoha’s civilians.

By advancing on all three fronts, they could develop their position steadily while waiting for Danzō to expose a weakness.

Once that happened, they would eliminate him in a single decisive move.

Without Danzō, who excelled at schemes and controlled Root from the shadows, dealing with Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane would be far easier.

Once those three were removed from power, it would only be a matter of time before Hiruzen Sarutobi stepped down as Hokage.

Of course, Roy had also prepared an alternative plan in case the Uchiha refused to change their arrogant ways despite being given the opportunity.

Still, he believed that most members of the clan were capable of changing.

The Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, had once described the Uchiha as a clan consumed by hatred. At the same time, however, they were also a clan capable of loving more deeply than most.

Their kekkei genkai, the Sharingan, awakened and evolved when powerful emotional upheaval caused a unique chakra to surge through their brains and optic nerves.

That was also why members of the Uchiha clan were particularly vulnerable to emotional extremes.

Love or hatred—the path they followed depended largely upon how those emotions were guided.

Because Tobirama understood the Uchiha better than most, he had remained wary of them while still accepting an Uchiha as one of his trusted subordinates. By training Uchiha Kagami and bringing him close, Tobirama had hoped to bind the Uchiha clan more firmly to Konoha.

Unfortunately, Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzō Shimura had failed to continue that policy properly.

Although both men acknowledged Kagami’s loyalty and character, they treated him as a rare exception rather than attempting to earn the trust of other Uchiha in the same manner.

As a result, they pushed one of Konoha’s most powerful clans closer and closer to destruction, until only a single survivor remained.

Because of the nature of their bloodline, the Uchiha were easily driven toward emotional extremes. If someone offered them sincere goodwill, many of them would repay it with even greater loyalty.

However, they were also an immensely proud and emotionally reserved clan.

Most Uchiha struggled to express their true feelings openly, which made it much easier for others to misunderstand them.

Roy’s task was therefore relatively straightforward.

By using his knowledge of the personalities of the clan’s members and drawing upon Tobirama’s methods of dealing with the Uchiha, he could win over most of them without too much difficulty.

Of course, there were undeniably ambitious schemers and emotionally unstable individuals within the clan as well.

Gentle methods would not work on people like that.

Just as Kushina had told Fugaku, when the situation demanded firmness, they had to act firmly.

They could not allow a dangerous minority to drag the entire clan into ruin.

After hearing Kushina’s words, Fugaku remained silent.

He was well aware that there were problems with his personality.

Within the clan, he had been unable to suppress the radical faction completely. Yet whenever he faced pressure from Konoha’s higher-ups, he appeared overly restrained and compliant.

Because of that, even members of the moderate faction had begun to grow dissatisfied with him as clan head.

But what else could he do?

Ambition was meaningless without the strength to support it.

Although the Uchiha clan’s overall strength far surpassed that of ordinary shinobi clans, they lacked truly decisive combat power at the highest level.

Danzō was also watching them constantly, waiting for the slightest mistake.

Fugaku wanted to act more forcefully, but he feared even more that a single reckless decision might bring disaster upon his entire clan.

Kushina’s appearance, however, had finally given him a glimmer of hope.

“Lady Kushina, I understand,” Fugaku said at last. “From this moment onward, I will do everything I can to change the attitudes of my clansmen.”

“Then you must not become soft-hearted,” Kushina warned him. “Endless compromise and retreat will only drag everyone into the abyss.”

With those final words, Kushina released the barrier.

She picked up Kaorui, who had been waiting outside, and returned home.

Fugaku remained standing there for a long time.

He still did not know whether following Kushina’s proposal was truly the correct decision.

However, if the Uchiha failed to change now, they might never receive another opportunity.

When Fugaku returned home, he found Mikoto waiting for him with worry plainly visible on her face.

“Go and rest,” Fugaku said quietly. “I’m fine.”

Seeing that he did not wish to explain further, Mikoto nodded and did not press him.

Neither of them noticed their son, Uchiha Itachi, passing by the doorway.

His expression possessed a degree of maturity that did not belong on the face of a child his age.

His father had returned late at night and immediately reassured his worried mother.

Although Itachi did not know what had happened, the scene gave him much to consider.

It seemed that something significant was about to unfold.

However, over the following days, Itachi noticed nothing unusual.

That remained the case until he encountered several members of the Konoha Military Police Force handling a civilian dispute in the street.

Every Uchiha officer involved wore an unnaturally stiff smile.

Men who were usually proud and distant had suddenly begun attempting to enforce the law with patience and courtesy.

The sight shocked Hiruzen no less than the news that Kumogakure had launched an invasion.

He had no idea what had caused such a dramatic change.

Nevertheless, the Uchiha’s new approach to law enforcement allowed him to glimpse an opportunity to ease the tension between the clan and the village.

Elsewhere, Nonō was telling Kushina about what she had witnessed while travelling through the village.

“I’m not sure what happened, but every officer from the Konoha Military Police Force I encountered today was smiling very strangely,” Nonō said. “They were clearly forcing themselves to do it. Has something happened in the village?”

“Really?” Kushina immediately became interested. “Then let’s go and have a look.”

It was obvious that Fugaku had begun exerting his authority over the clan.

However, since the change had only just begun, the normally aloof Uchiha clearly had not yet adjusted to smiling at everyone they met.

Kushina changed into a newly purchased outfit, picked up Naruto, and left the house together with Kaorui and Nonō.

Nonō, Kaorui, and Kushina

The red hair of Kushina and Kaorui was exceptionally eye-catching. Combined with Kushina’s unusual new outfit, the three women immediately drew the attention of many people in the street.

The villagers greeted Kushina warmly as she passed.

Their kindness only strengthened her resolve to change Konoha for the better.

Kaorui was equally moved.

Even during her life in the Land of Whirlpools, she had never witnessed a scene quite like this.

Before long, they found an Uchiha officer mediating a dispute.

Just as Nonō had described, the smile on his face was painfully stiff. It looked so unnatural that it almost seemed false.

The two villagers involved in the argument appeared tense and frightened.

They could not understand what the Uchiha were planning.

The Military Police had previously been known for arresting people over the smallest disturbances. Now, however, the officer was calmly attempting to settle their disagreement.

When the mediation finally ended, the Uchiha officer did not arrest either of them.

Instead, he offered them a serious piece of advice.

“We all live in the same village. You should not allow a minor disagreement to damage the peace between neighbours.”

After saying that, he turned and left.

The two villagers stared at each other in bewilderment.

However, the caution and resentment they had once felt toward the Uchiha had already eased slightly.

“They truly need to practise their smiles,” Kushina muttered under her breath.

Roy, on the other hand, was quite satisfied with the result.

It was unreasonable to expect people who rarely smiled to suddenly produce warm and natural expressions.

As long as they continued along this path, however, the Uchiha would eventually begin receiving positive responses from the villagers.

Once that happened, sincere smiles would naturally follow.

There was, of course, one extremely important condition.

No one could be allowed to sabotage their efforts from the shadows.

That concern referred specifically to Danzō and his subordinates.

In the current Konoha, Danzō was undoubtedly the person who least wanted the Uchiha clan to reconcile with the village.

It was not merely because he distrusted them.

If the relationship between Konoha and the Uchiha improved, he would lose the ability to manipulate and isolate the clan as he had done in the past.

More importantly, obtaining the Sharingan for himself would become far more difficult.