After the high-level council meeting in the Hokage Building, Kadoya simply leaves the Hokage Building. Meanwhile, another meeting quietly unfolded within the Hokage's office, this time without the presence of the other clan heads.
The Konoha F4, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo Shimura, Koharu Utatane, and Homura Mitokado, four best friends and students of the Second Hokage, stay and talk about how to deal with the Uchiha.
"This is unacceptable," Danzo said coldly, voice like steel.
"A mere Clan Head of a three-person clan daring to accuse a high-ranking Konoha official..." Homura scoffed, voice laced with contempt.
"Hiruzen, we need to act!" Koharu insisted. "At this rate, the Uchiha will turn on the village!"
Hiruzen didn't reply right away. He inhaled deeply from his pipe, releasing a slow, curling stream of smoke before calmly asking:
"Then tell me... what should we do about the Uzumaki... and Uchiha?"
The room went dead silent.
It was the question that had stumped them for years.
When it comes to how we should deal with the Uchiha or Kadoya Uchiha.
The loud group of friends suddenly went silent.
Uzumaki were vital to the village in order to keep the Nine-Tails Sealed. Eliminating them would mean the village would lose its Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.
The Uzumaki's Fūinjutsu is simply too powerful, and not just anyone could learn it; wiping out every Uzumaki would cripple the village's greatest advantage.
Not to mention, the Uzumaki is currently under the protection of the Uchiha.
Targeting one meant provoking the other.
Danzo finally broke the silence. "How about we eliminate him?"
A glint of murderous intent flashed in Danzo's eyes as he finished his sentence with unmistakable coldness.
"Eliminate? Are you insane?!" Hiruzen snapped, eyes wide.
"If we act without reason, all the clans in the village will feel threatened. That kind of move would plunge Konoha into chaos!"
"It's better to kill one than to risk the entire village," Danzo replied without hesitation. "If we can't strike publicly, then we do it in secret. Ambush him outside the village."
Danzo's voice was sharp and calculated.
Hiruzen narrowed his eyes. "Can you deal with a Mangekyou user?"
Danzo didn't flinch. "We'll deploy both ANBU and Root. We'll surround him, hit him hard, and fast. We'll overpower him using numbers."
The other three frowned at once.
"That won't work," Hiruzen said bluntly, taking another puff. "The Mangekyou Sharingan is only rivaled by the Wood Release. And the Senju… don't have it anymore."
"Nawaki and Tsunade are the Senju, and they're close to Kadoya," Koharu added. "They would never agree to fight him."
"Not to mention, using our own shinobi would only weaken us further, and there's no guarantee we'd even succeed," Hiruzen muttered.
Koharu crossed her arms, voice more cautious this time. "Don't forget, during the Second Shinobi War, Kadoya Uchiha stormed Iwa's main camp alone and wiped out over a thousand shinobi. His strength might already be comparable to Madara's. Sending our men after him would just give the Uchiha a reason to go to war with the village."
Silence returned.
Homura spoke next. "Isn't the Mangekyou supposed to deteriorate eyesight over time? How long until he goes blind?"
"That's the problem," Danzo growled. "He doesn't leave his Clan ground to take on missions. He doesn't need to. That cursed Uchiha Care system, he doesn't need to go out on missions to earn money. He doesn't even need to enter the Police Force. So his eyesight might still work as fine as it was during the Second Shinobi War."
Danzo gritted his teeth.
Originally, Danzo had scoffed and even mocked the Uchiha for wasting their wealth by creating the Uchiha Care, letting the Clan support its weak members through the money earned by its stronger members.
Now it seems that Kagami's son was benefiting from it. Living in a small house somewhat within the Uchiha Compound, and living peacefully without the need to go out on missions.
Making assassinate him outside the village nearly impossible.
If Kadoya were listening in on their conversation like before, he might roll over and laugh himself to death.
These four were so out of touch that they didn't even know where Kadoya's house is in the Uchiha Compound.
If they knew that his place was actually the largest ground in the entire Uchiha grounds. They may have suspected the Uchiha created a small compound for the Uzumaki within their own land or something.
After the Uchiha-Uzumaki alliance was announced, spying on the Uchiha now could only be done by entering their land, but doing that would mostly give away their position since many of the previous attempts had ended in failure.
That also does not mention, some parts of the compound are forbidden to outsiders, only accessible to Uchiha members and a select few.
If any outsider tries to enter those areas, the many Uchiha patrolling the street would step in, stopping them and giving them a warning not to enter.
If they refuse to listen and still try to enter to sneak in, then you can't blame them for getting free dancing lessons from the Uchiha and getting sent into a 30-day apartment with free food and water; the only issue is that you can't get out until your 30-day period is over.
In the Uchiha only street where their Clan Head lives, unless he allows access, even those without the Three-tomoe Sharingan couldn't enter. If outsiders enter and somehow find out the Clan's secrets, then the Clan Head might drag the entire Clan into an all-night dance battle.
"So," Homura shifted, trying to steer the conversation, "what about Minato Namikaze?"
"A brilliant shinobi," Hiruzen said with a slight smile. "The Yellow Flash of Konoha. If this keeps up, he may rival even the White Fang someday."
"He's close to Kadoya, isn't he?" Koharu said. "Maybe we could use that. He might be able to give us information on the Uchiha."
"That's… not a bad plan," Danzo admitted, reluctantly. "Minato has no clan, no bloodline. But his bond with Kadoya might prove useful."
"I agree." Hiruzen nodded. "We'll test the waters. I'll offer him a position in ANBU and observe his loyalty."
Danzo crossed his arms. "Don't be too quick to trust him, Hiruzen."
Homura waved it off. "He's a civilian. Not an Uchiha. He'll naturally side with the village."
Hiruzen turned to the shadows.
"Dog," he called out gently. "Where is Minato Namikaze?"
The ANBU operative appeared, kneeling with his head bowed. He inhaled deeply.
"Hokage-sama…" he said in a single breath, "Minato Namikaze is currently… working at the Uchiha Cremation Shop."
Hiruzen: "..."
Danzo: "..."
Koharu: "..."
Homura: "..."
The four of them fell silent, then their face turned into anger as they all seemed to realize who was responsible for this.
"Ka↑do↓ya↑ U↑chi↓ha↑!"
Meanwhile, back at the Uchiha Cremation Shop…
The main discussions of the Konoha F4 is working hard right now, running the shop.
Minato really is a genius, spotting the cremated your rival in the flyer as undercover assassination work, with the tiers could be considered the level of the target.
During the Second Shinobi War, along with during missions, many Konoha shinobi had lost friends and loved ones to enemy villages. So seeing the Yellow Flash of Konoha running a hidden assassination shop, a few try asking, and after giving the details of their target.
Minato would just nod with a calm smile before disappearing using the Flying Raijin.
Of course, after taking the body, Minato brings them back inside the village, calls the client over to come and see their "loved one", one last time, before cremation.
The Konoha shinobi ordering the service were very pleased by Minato's efficiency, nodding, giving a moment of silence as they watched him send the body into the furnace.
They then left the shop with a satisfied smile, seeing their "rival" cremated.
"Hokage-sama? What are you doing here?" Minato asked, spotting Hiruzen Sarutobi standing in the doorway.
"I was just passing by," Hiruzen said with his usual kind tone, the same one he used to brainwash orphans into adopting the Will of Fire. "Minato, my boy, how have you been?"
"I'm fine," Minato replied, before tilting his head slightly. "Are you here to support my business?"
The Third Hokage froze. His eyes twitched.
For a split second, the image of Kadoya Uchiha overlapped with Minato's.
"Ugh…" Hiruzen clutched his forehead.
Minato was referring to his assassination service. But the Third Hokage is thinking that Minato was asking to cremate him.
Damn! Is this really Minato Namikaze or just Kadoya Uchiha with better manners?
"Ahem!" he cleared his throat and forced a chuckle. "Minato, I'm not here for that. I merely wanted to see how Konoha's brightest are doing. You're my student's student, it's only natural that I keep an eye on you."
Minato: "..."
"I see." Minato murmurs blankly, not showing much reaction.
He remembered Kadoya once mentioning that the Hokage could spy on villagers using a crystal ball.
Now, hearing the Third Hokage say "it's only natural to keep an eye on him" really gave him goosebumps.
If the Hokage could watch him from anywhere, then won't that mean even he could also watch him take baths, use the toilet, or even sleep?
The thought of a fifty-something-year-old man spying on him really gave him the creeps.
Minato made a mental note to ask Kadoya how to block the crystal ball surveillance technique.
"Minato," Hiruzen continued, "what do you think of the village?"
The Hokage's smile nearly makes the blonde crawl into a coffin now that Hiruzen has confirmed what Kadoya told him years ago.
Though his brother always speaks nonsense and a lot of random things, Minato knew that Kadoya wouldn't lie to him; he just won't tell him everything.
Still, he answered honestly. "My thoughts on the village?"
"Don't be shy, just speak your mind." He said, still smiling, causing Minato to take a step back.
"Hokage-sama, to me at least, I see the village as a whole, where everyone in the village is considered family. A place of warmth and safety for our villagers. A place where children could grow up in peace. Where the strong protect the weak."
This was Minato's genuine thought on Konoha; after all, he did take his time studying at the Uchiha Academy. He knows about Konoha's origin and the purpose of its creation, so his mindset for a Hokage would naturally align with the idea of the founders.
Hearing this, the Third Hokage nodded with a smile, satisfied by Minato's answer. "Excellent answer, Minato, you truly have the mindset of a Hokage."
Minato's face darkened even further. A few years back, his brother said this exact same line to him, and the conversation went something like this:
Kadoya: "As expected of Minato. At the age of ten, you already think like a Hokage."
Minato: "Really!?"
Kadoya: "Yes."
He nodded before stabbing a long sword down on the ground before Minato.
Kadoya: "Now go kill the Third Hokage and become the Fourth Hokage!"
Minato: "..."
Kadoya has said the same thing to him, before encouraging him to go and kill the Third Hokage so he could become the Fourth.
And now the Third was saying the same exact line.
Is this reverse psychology? Is he tired of living?
Now that he thinks about it, he did see the Third Hokage's name in the Cremation Note.
Is the Third Hokage trying to tell him he also wants to try the Hokage Experience™?
Before Minato could answer, the Third gave him a gentle wave.
"Well then, take care, Minato."
Although Minato was good and had the Will of Fire, he was too much influenced by Kadoya Uchiha.
So, Hiruzen made up his mind to slowly convince Minato with time, earning his trust and loyalty before enrolling him in the ANBU.
Minato watched the old man leave, scratching his head. Still feeling goosebumps after talking to the Third Hokage.
With a sigh, he turned the Open sign to Closed, wandered over to one of the coffins, and opened the lid.
The Ash to Ash Deluxe Edition™. Comfortable. High-resilience cushioning. Great lumbar support.
He turned off the light, crawled in, pulled the lid shut, and muttered, "Just a short nap before I go home…"
Next to his coffin, the Made in Heaven™ Premium Coffin creaked open.
Kadoya sat up, his crimson Sharingan eyes glowing faintly in the shadows.