"Stand back, make way for Master Danzo!"
Several masked Root operatives shoved the villagers aside, clearing a path through the crowd.
"Master Danzo, the way is clear."
Danzo gave a slight nod to the Root shinobi, his expression unreadable but clearly pleased.
Several figures followed closely behind him.
With his cane in hand, Danzo made his way to the front of the stage and looked up at Uchiha Fugaku standing atop it.
"Minister Fugaku," Danzo called out, his voice steady and loud, "look at the crowd gathered here. So many villagers have voiced their objections to your so-called reform of the police department. Don't you think, as the department's minister, you owe them an explanation?"
Fugaku's fists clenched at Danzo's words, his fury barely restrained. The old schemer had clearly orchestrated this, manipulating the crowd for political gain. Fugaku wanted nothing more than to leap from the stage and beat the man so severely he'd spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair.
But he held back.
"Assistant Hokage," Fugaku said coolly, voice even and controlled, "we haven't even finished discussing the police department reforms. Why the rush? Surely a man of your stature can afford to wait a little longer."
Danzo's cane slammed down against the ground, a sharp crack punctuating the tension. Yet his face remained calm.
"Very well. Let's hear what the head of the police department has to say. Let's see if your words can satisfy the villagers."
But inside, Danzo wasn't the least bit concerned. He had already planted several operatives among the gathered villagers. No matter what Fugaku said, they would stir dissent, sow dissatisfaction, and fan the flames of mistrust.
Let's see how long you keep that calm, Minister Fugaku.
Danzo mentally prepared to announce the success of his plan.
Failure? Impossible. If the great White Fang of Konoha could be driven to suicide by public opinion, then the Uchiha clan leader would surely crumble under pressure. Danzo didn't need him to die—just to disgrace the Uchiha Police Department. That alone would be a major victory.
But what Danzo didn't know was that Uchiha Hikaru had warned Fugaku the day before. He had predicted Danzo's interference down to the exact moment—and laid plans accordingly.
The schedule for today's celebration had been arranged meticulously by Hikaru. If Danzo hadn't shown up, Fugaku would've been disappointed. Now that the opportunity had come, it was time to make the old man eat his words.
Fugaku stepped forward and spoke into the microphone, his voice ringing out confidently:
"Though there are only fifty civilian ninjas in the police department's operational team, half of our administrative staff are now civilian shinobi!"
The crowd erupted into cheers.
"Is it true? Half of the police staff are civilian ninjas now?"
"I know it's true! My mom just started working there last week—I've even been getting more pocket money!"
"Really? Hey bro, I've got an idea. I just turned eighteen..."
"Get lost, my mom's over thirty! My dad's a special jonin—even if he's not in the police force, he's still awesome!"
"Aww... that's rough."
Even Danzo was momentarily taken aback. He hadn't expected this.
Giving half the civilian posts to non-clan ninjas? That was a serious concession. Those administrative positions held real influence—they affected decision-making at nearly every level.
And now, with half of them handed over to civilian ninjas, and many of the remaining posts distributed among other clans, the Uchiha Police Department had fundamentally changed.
Still, Danzo forced himself to appear calm. Though his attempt to discredit the Uchiha had failed, seeing the clan give up so much internal power felt like a partial victory.
He grunted.
"Hmph. Seems the reforms aren't so bad after all. I'm satisfied. I'll take my leave."
With that, Danzo turned and walked off, Root shinobi in tow. A few "villagers" scattered through the crowd followed him out—clearly his planted agents, abandoning their posts now that their leader had left.
On stage, Fugaku stood tall, his respect for Uchiha Hikaru growing even deeper.
That boy... he saw through everything.
At first, when Hikaru had suggested opening up so many positions to outsiders, Fugaku's blood pressure had spiked. It wasn't until Hikaru calmly laid out the regulations that Fugaku realized the true brilliance behind the plan.
[The head of the Police Department is chosen by the Uchiha clan leader]
[The Police Minister holds veto power over internal decisions]
Initially, Fugaku had only paid attention to the first clause. But after Hikaru's explanation, it all became clear: as long as the Uchiha clan remained, and the department head was still one of their own, the core power of the Police Department would never leave Uchiha hands.
Not even the Hokage could override that. Only a collective vote from the Jonin Council could remove the minister—and no one with a brain would propose such a thing. Civilian shinobi were still grateful to the Uchiha. Why would they oppose them?
And as for the jonin from the other clans? The Hyuga and the Ino-Shika-Cho clans were long-time Uchiha allies.
The clans behind Konoha's political elite—Hiruzen's generation—had long since dipped into corruption, hoarding village resources and training illegal private forces. They wouldn't dare risk exposing themselves by stepping into the light.
Besides, Hiruzen had already shown signs of pulling back from suppressing the Uchiha. When he personally approved this celebration, Fugaku understood everything—even without Hikaru needing to say a word.
This time, Danzo's scheme was doomed to fail.
And the old vulture probably believed he had scored a victory. Let him enjoy his delusion.
Fugaku turned to the microphone once more.
"Everyone, the police department's reform report has concluded!"
"But tonight's celebration isn't over yet. In fact, the most exciting part is still to come."
"Please enjoy the performance brought to you by our Deputy Chief of Police, Uchiha Hikaru, and his team!"