At dawn—before the Jōnin Council convened—Yako mobilized all four squads of Fox Division to assemble near the Hokage Tower.
He barked his orders with characteristic sharpness:
"Today! Within a 200-meter radius of the Jōnin Council chamber—if a dog so much as walks past, break its legs. If a bird dares fly near, clip its wings!
Not a single unexpected sound or shadow is allowed to disturb the proceedings!
If a bird chirps while the Hokage is speaking, it's our failure!"
This was the first full Jōnin Council since the end of the Second Great Ninja War.
It should've happened last December, Year 39 of Konoha.
But the official excuse had been to "let everyone enjoy a peaceful New Year."
Now it was February. There was no delaying it any longer.
Yako continued:
"I'll be seated in the second row, furthest from the center. Any incident, signal me immediately.
Yak Squad will be inside the chamber—one member at each corner.
The other three squads will maintain an external perimeter.
Purple Cat will be stationed at the main entrance, ready to relay any orders.
Absolutely no mistakes allowed!"
Yako himself wasn't one of the central players in this gathering.
That was the beauty of the shadows—whether the east wind crushed the west, or the west wind toppled the east, it didn't matter to him.
He was just here to watch the show.
Soon, the Jōnin began entering the council chamber.
Yako reviewed his mental list of the known power blocs:
Sarutobi Hiruzen – Supreme leader of the village.
Shimura Danzo, Mitokado Homura, Utatane Koharu, and Nara Shikakaku – High-ranking advisors. Technically not part of the Jōnin roster but wielding enormous influence.
After the Second Great Ninja War, Konoha had 187 active Jōnin.
Sarutobi Clan: 21
Ino–Shika–Chō Clans (Yamanaka, Nara, Akimichi): 22
Shimura Clan: 13
→ Combined: 56 Jōnin aligned with the Hokage's inner circle.
ANBU Jōnin: 7
Direct kin of Homura and Koharu: 3
→ That brings 66 Jōnin fully loyal to Hiruzen.
Uchiha Clan: 11
Senju Clan: 7
→ The founding clans now reduced to 18.
Neutral clans like Hyūga (9), Inuzuka (5), Aburame (4)
→ 18 more, largely functional specialists who didn't take sides.
Remaining 85 Jōnin: civilians turned elite.
But even among those 85, at least 25 were personally loyal to the Hokage—including the likes of Orochimaru and Jiraiya.
The other high councilors each had loyal civilian Jōnin under their influence.
Just like Yako—publicly aligned with Yellow Dog—many civilians made calculated allegiances for survival and advancement.
Only three Jōnin openly supported Hatake Sakumo:
Kawatora, Yamashiro, and Moonlight Kento.
Kawatora, stationed at a distant outpost, wasn't even present.
Behind the numbers, a stark reality emerged:
Konoha is Hiruzen's village.
That might've been an exaggeration—just not by much.
Opponents rarely survived long.
The ANBU's preferred tactic? Leak intel to enemy villages.
Suddenly, a Jōnin's movements were suspiciously exposed—dead within a week.
Loyalty?
No—it was fear that kept many in line.
The first lever of power: Ninjutsu Authorization
Only the Hokage controlled access to high-level techniques.
The second: Promotions
From Tokubetsu Jōnin to full Jōnin, no one advanced without high approval.
The third: Mission Assignment
The Hokage literally held every ninja's life in his hands.
When you died, the village would say it was "a noble sacrifice for the mission."
As for how you died?
No one ever really knew.
In a system like that… opposing the Hokage was suicide.
Even the proud Uchiha had to lower their heads.
The Hyūga, who claimed to be Konoha's "greatest clan," had still handed over their heir Hiashi to Kumo when ordered.
The Senju, once the mightiest clan, now relied on the hospital to maintain relevance.
And Hatake Sakumo?
Make no mistake—he could kill three of the five ruling elders in ten seconds flat.
But combat strength meant nothing in this political game.
Even Sakumo treaded carefully around the village's true power structure.
Last night, Yako had been excited about the potential Uchiha–Senju–Sakumo alliance.
But looking now at the numbers, he couldn't help but wonder…
Was Tsunade being too impulsive?
Of the 187 registered Jōnin, 152 were present.
12 were stationed at border forts.
4 served as bodyguards to the Fire Daimyō.
2 each guarded the daimyō of River, Whirlpool, Hot Water, and Grass Countries.
→ 24 total unable to return.
Only one who could be here but wasn't: Jiraiya, still stuck in Amegakure.
Yako sat in the second row, closest to the door, flanked by seven other ANBU Jōnin.
Yellow Dog, the only ANBU Jōnin seated in the first row, was surrounded by clan leaders.
Tsunade and Hatake Sakumo entered and also took seats in the front.
Last to arrive was Orochimaru, who gave Tsunade a nod and sat beside Yellow Dog.
He was now considered an ANBU-aligned Jōnin.
The large amphitheater held 250 seats—Konoha had never exceeded that count of Jōnin.
Finally, the Hokage entered, followed by his four advisors.
Nara Shikakaku stepped up to the speaking platform:
"The Second Great Ninja War—
Under Lord Hokage's leadership, and through the life-and-death struggles of our Jōnin corps and all Konoha shinobi—
We have emerged victorious.
We fought the Cloud in the Land of Hot Water.
The Stone in Grass.
The Rain in Amegakure.
The Sand in River.
The Mist in Whirlpool.
No other village fought on five fronts.
No other village won on all five fronts.
Today, we hold our first post-war Jōnin Council.
First agenda item: The Three-Year Jōnin Instructor Program.
Every Jōnin—excluding ANBU—will be required to serve as a graduation instructor at the Academy at least once over the next three years.
We have lost too many elite shinobi. The quality of our Genin has sharply declined.
We must act—now—to rebuild Konoha's strength."
Yako relaxed slightly.
No ANBU involvement? Great. He wasn't in the mood to wrangle a bunch of kids.
Then a new thought hit him—his eyes suddenly gleamed.
The brightest star of the next decade?
Namikaze Minato, no doubt.
He was graduating next year.
And a genius like that?
Even a dog could raise him into an elite Jōnin—maybe even Kage-level.
'Better yet…
What if they got him to become Hatake Sakumo's student?'
That would pull one of the Hokage's strongest future assets into their camp.
Yes. That needed to be done.
Tonight, Yako would summon Pakkun and send word to Sakumo.
Not a suggestion.
A must.