The next morning, at the crack of dawn.
Hokage Building, small conference room.
A single long table dominated the room. Uchiha Jin sat at the head, flanked by the heads of every major Ninja clan. Off to the side, at a smaller desk, sat Tsunade, Kakashi, Fugaku, and Nara Shikayasu.
This was the new power structure of New Konoha: the clans no longer held real authority, and their members were now divided into three groups.
One group handled administrative duties.
Another managed the clans' private enterprises, while the last became freelance Ninja.
The true leadership of Konoha now consisted of only five people: First Hokage Uchiha Jin, Jonin Commander Nara Shikayasu, Anbu Captain Kakashi, Police Force Head Fugaku, and Chief Secretary Tsunade.
Collectively, they were known as the 'Five-Person Cell.'
Former departments such as Interrogation, Intelligence, and the Barrier Corps had all been folded under the Anbu and placed entirely under Kakashi's command.
Administrative Affairs, Education, the Ninja Academy, the Mission Desk, and the Medical Division were now overseen by Chief Secretary Tsunade, with Jonin Commander Nara Shikayasu handling day-to-day operations and answering only to Hokage Uchiha Jin.
"Now that everyone's here, let's begin."
"After two years of planning and preparation, the time to harvest is upon us!"
"Old Konoha's self-destructive policies have driven the Hyuga Clan to join us, sounding the death knell for the old regime!"
"Today, Old Konoha is almost bereft of strong fighters; ordinary villagers and Civilian Ninja grumble in despair. It is time to wipe the slate clean."
"There is only one item on today's agenda: while completely destroying Old Konoha, we must preserve as many of its Ninja as possible—even those of the four major clans like the Sarutobi must be persuaded to surrender unconditionally."
"The reason is simple."
"Every Ninja is, in my eyes, a precious resource. While the four clans will certainly stand trial, I have no intention of executing them out of hand."
"Because to me, that would be the most wasteful option."
"So these Ninja can be expended during wartime, or put to work mining, cultivating medicinal herbs and grain, even building roads and houses—anything is better than a summary execution."
"I call it—Re-education through Labor."
"They are a high-quality, renewable human resource. Of course, just trials must still take place; once sentenced, they will atone for their crimes through work."
"Naturally,"
"to prevent those sentenced from despairing, we must give them hope."
"So we need to draft a broad framework for this re-education program: shortened sentences for good behavior, possible New Konoha citizenship after a period of labor, and so on…"
"Details to be discussed."
"Therefore, today's meeting must achieve two outcomes."
"First, how to make Old Konoha implode in a manner consistent with 'justice'; second, how to absorb and resettle its large population and Ninja, and after trying criminals like Hiruzen Sarutobi, which clan's enterprises will host their labor re-education?"
"That's the broad outline. Let's hear your thoughts."
"Tsunade, you first."
Uchiha Jin wasted no words.
Once the framework was laid out, he moved straight to refining the details.
No one was surprised; after two years they knew his style by heart.
Concise. Efficient.
Only the newly arrived Hyuga Hiashi sat stunned.
What the hell…
At first blush Jin sounded benevolent—despite Old Konoha's persecution of the Uchiha, he wouldn't kill anyone outright after trial.
But damn it—
the more Hiashi thought, the clearer it became: Jin was a demon.
He meant to squeeze every drop of value from them, to maximize profit down to the marrow.
Honestly… better to behead Hiruzen and be done with it; one swing and it's over.
Now?
A lifetime of forced labor, converting their sweat into New Konoha's economic gain.
Ruthless. Utterly ruthless.
Hiashi's forehead beaded with sweat, his mouth twitching uncontrollably.
Tsunade, unfazed, was already speaking; she knew Jin's style. "Since the Hokage has set the broad strokes, I'll add a few details."
"I believe Old Konoha's criminals must be ranked by degree of guilt."
"The most heinous must die, or the law loses its bite."
"Then assign labor accordingly: lighter crimes, lighter work; graver crimes, heavier toil. Administration will need time to draft a suitable scheme."
"That's all from me."
One after another,
the others spoke up, filling in the gaps.
Finally,
Nara Shikayasu said, "As for destroying Old Konoha under the banner of justice, I have a small idea."
"Precisely because Old Konoha has acted against its own interests, we've spent these two years quietly recruiting its Ninja."
"Results have been… decent."
"Using our clans' former posts inside Old Konoha's departments, we've swayed many from the Anbu, Intelligence, and Administration branches."
"We can use the Kumogakure incident as cover: arm our recruited agents, have them stir up unrest inside Old Konoha."
"Then seed disinformation, throw open the gates, and the civilians—long crushed by Old Konoha's tyranny—will flood out."
"New Konoha need only stand ready to receive them."
"Lastly, our agents will organize these civilians into a 'petition of tens of thousands,' giving us the popular mandate to arrest Old Konoha's leadership…"
"And then—trial."