The matter was settled; Uchiha Shisui would lead the practical implementation, while Uchiha Gen, together with the other senior clan officials, would provide oversight.
To ensure the system's integrity, Gen sought out Orochimaru, who was buried deep in his research, and asked him to modify a set of cursed seals, based on Root's Tongue-Blight Seal.
Human nature cannot withstand scrutiny. If the reward is rich enough, people will always gamble, no matter how dangerous, clinging to even a sliver of hope. Better to cut the problem off at the root. That way, it was safe for everyone.
As the saying goes 'The higher-ups move their mouths, the subordinates wear out their legs.'
For this reform, Shisui and his team spent days interviewing and investigating within both the Police Force and the clan.
Gen believed such an important matter, one that touched every member of the clan, required input from all levels. The high officials stood too far above; if they decided everything in a closed room, the point system might prove unrealistic.
Naturally, the investigation leaked.
Soon, heated discussions erupted among the Uchiha. No one could remain indifferent, this directly affected their future. Even families without active shinobi considered their descendants' prospects.
After days of research, Gen convened several rounds of captain-level meetings. They studied every aspect including, clan affairs, Police Force operations, and all non-forbidden ninjutsu.
At last, they drafted a preliminary plan.
To Gen, the direction was sound. Minor flaws could be corrected in practice.
Half a month later, on the morning of January 20, Konoha Year 54, the plan that was bearing Gen's signature, was officially posted on the public notice boards of the Police Force and the Uchiha compound.
Now that the Police Force and the clan were effectively integrated, public policy was both department law and clan rule.
The moment the notices went up, crowds gathered, Police Force shinobi clustering at headquarters, while Uchiha clansmen on leave and civilians filled the compound.
Gen had already dispatched officers familiar with the system to stand beside the boards. They read the plan aloud, then answered questions. After an hour of explanations, people understood and excitement spread like fire through dry grass.
Word raced across the clan. Gen's prestige as clan leader soared.
It wasn't just this policy, his record of past achievements, his Mangekyō Sharingan, his reputation across the shinobi world, even salary and welfare improvements, all combined to raise him above Fugaku's standing in a fraction of the time.
The people's eyes are sharp. If a leader considers their welfare, they repay it with respect.
Fugaku had needed a year to 'secure' his seat as clan head, secure meaning to possess the real authority that matched the title. In truth, authority never comes all at once with position. Otherwise, emperors would never have been bullied by their ministers.
As days passed, the news spilled beyond the Uchiha.
Before, clansmen had stayed quiet, worried the system might collapse midway. But now, with the plan formally in place, restraint vanished. Uchiha shinobi, casually or deliberately, boasted to outsiders.
The word spread.
Civilian ninja could only envy. The Police Force was a closed system; until it opened, they had no access.
The family clans, however, felt a deeper sting, especially the medium and large clans.
For small clans, numbers were few, competition limited. But larger clans had to ask, why; if we are all shinobi families, do the Uchiha enjoy such fortune while we do not?
It is not poverty that breeds resentment, but unequal distribution. The more they thought, the angrier they grew. Complaints rose from the rank and file to mid-level leaders, who in turn, burdened by pressure, carried them to clan elders.
Among all, the Hyūga were most agitated.
Their branch family lived under constant disparity, denied access to high-level jutsu, shackled by the cursed seal, even stripped of the right to own their own lives. To see the Uchiha empower every member of their clan was intolerable.
Clan leaders and elders across Konoha cursed Gen in private, furious at his 'meddling.' But anger alone was useless. They had to soothe their own clans while reporting upward to Konoha's top leadership.
Suppressing such unrest by force was unwise. Too much pressure, and unity shatters. Even the Hyūga main house, iron-fisted over their branch families, reserved coercion as a last resort.
The Third Hokage received the news and immediately summoned his closest advisors to the small conference room of the Hokage Building.
Bang!
Danzo's hand slammed the table. His words rattled out like machine-gun fire.
"Uchiha Gen, that brat doesn't know the immensity of heaven and earth!
"A policy he dreamed up has thrown every major clan into turmoil. He could even set the whole village aflame! Who gave him the right to decide such things on his own?"
"This must be stopped at once!"
Homura Mitokado, ever calm, replied: "Danzo, this is an internal policy of the Police Force and the Uchiha. He does have that authority."
The Police Force maintained order within the village, made regulations concerning public safety, and arrested both civilians and shinobi for crimes. If they could draft rules for Konoha itself, then issuing an internal policy was certainly within their mandate.
Danzo froze, then growled coldly: "Authority only applies if it does not destabilize the village. A policy that endangers stability must be halted!"
Hiruzen cares most for stability, Danzo thought. He won't let that boy run rampant.
Koharu turned to the Hokage. "Hiruzen, Danzo isn't wrong. What do you think?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen, solemn in his robes, pipe smoke curling around his face, pondered before replying,
"The village's interests come before all else. Stability is paramount."
"But we cannot directly order the Police Force to cancel this. It is within their rights. Even if we forced them, Gen could still implement the system within the Uchiha alone. We have no authority to interfere with internal clan matters."
High-level officials meddling in a clan's internal governance was taboo, one line even Konoha's F4 would not casually cross.
Danzo sneered. "Then we gather the heads of every department, the leaders of every clan. Let us pressure him directly. I refuse to believe a young man can withstand such weight."
Heh. Finally, my chance. Without Orochimaru, without Fugaku, without others to shield you, boy, you will lose face this time.
"Let's do that," Hiruzen said at last, exhaling a long stream of smoke.