"Have you heard? Ten days ago at the border, Lord Minato took down more than a dozen Cloud shinobi all by himself!"
"Really? I heard it was the Uchiha Police Force..."
"Ah, they all deserve credit. But Lord Minato was faster! The Yellow Flash isn't called that for nothing!"
"Exactly. And Lord Minato doesn't put on airs at all. Yesterday he even helped my grandmother carry her groceries."
"He's young, talented, kind, and powerful. It would be wonderful if he became Hokage one day..."
...
Conversations like these began appearing more and more often in dango shops, bathhouses, and marketplaces.
It was as though overnight, Namikaze Minato's reputation had soared from "an outstanding Jonin" to "the village's idol" and "the future Hokage."
The major clans quickly noticed this unusual shift in public opinion.
Inside the Hyuga Clan's main house, Hyuga Hiashi finished listening to his clansmen's report before immediately seeking out his father, Hyuga Sakumo.
"Father, Minato's reputation has been rising rapidly lately. It seems the Third Hokage has begun preparing the path for the next generation."
"Namikaze Minato... truly is a flawless candidate."
Hearing this, Hyuga Sakumo let out a dismissive laugh.
"The Third Hokage certainly has his calculations."
"But in the end, it will all be pointless."
He recalled the sight of Uchiha Chiya dominating the battlefield.
The man who had ended the war...
"Do not get too close."
"Remain neutral and observe."
"Hiashi."
"Yes, Father."
"Once this matter concerning the Hokage settles down, you will inherit the position of clan head."
A trace of surprise flashed across Hiashi's eyes.
"Father, about this..."
Hyuga Sakumo waved his hand, allowing no objection.
"It's decided."
"Yes."
"From now on, no matter what happens, the Hyuga Clan must never fight against the Uchiha Clan."
...
Almost all of Konoha's major clans chose to remain silent.
Some of the smaller clans, however, sensed the changing winds.
With approval from their leaders, they began looking for every opportunity to show goodwill toward Namikaze Minato.
For a time, Minato's home was practically overwhelmed by visitors.
Even he found it difficult to deal with everyone and began feeling troubled.
Although he was cheerful by nature, he was far from foolish.
He could clearly sense that an invisible hand was pushing everything forward.
It made him deeply uncomfortable.
Out of respect and trust for the Third Hokage, however, he could only devote himself even more diligently to training and completing missions, hoping to repay those expectations through his own efforts.
But when this wave of enthusiasm reached the Uchiha Clan...
It was as if it had struck an invisible wall.
The Uchiha reacted with indifference.
Many even carried a trace of undisguised ridicule.
"The Yellow Flash? Hmph. It was our Clan Head Chiya who ended the war."
"Exactly. Without Lord Chiya capturing the Raikage and the Tsuchikage, would the war have ended so quickly? No amount of publicity can change the facts."
"The Third Hokage must be afraid. He's desperately pushing out a spokesman to balance against the Uchiha."
"What a clown."
...
Such arrogant sentiments quickly spread throughout the clan.
Fortunately, Fugaku stepped forward and stopped them.
Having served as a Hokage advisor for years, his political instincts were naturally sharp.
If the Uchiha allowed themselves to become arrogant and openly hostile now, others would surely seize upon that weakness.
Whenever Uchiha clan members walked through the village and heard people praising the Yellow Flash, they neither protested nor openly mocked them.
Instead, they simply remained silent or responded with meaningful glances.
Eventually, even Fugaku could no longer remain seated.
He hurried to Chiya's residence.
There, he urgently reported everything.
Listening to Fugaku's anxious and dissatisfied account, Chiya merely nodded calmly.
"Just as I expected."
He gently blew across the steaming tea in his hand.
The rising mist briefly concealed the sharpness that flashed through his eyes before they returned to their usual unfathomable calm.
"Brother, don't be impatient."
Setting down his teacup, he spoke in a steady voice that naturally soothed those around him.
"The Third Hokage's methods are still the same old tricks."
"Public opinion and balance."
"He has been using them for decades."
"There is nothing new about them."
"But... he's trying to make Minato the next Hokage! Are we really going to sit back and watch?"
Fugaku asked urgently.
As a member of the Uchiha Clan, he had always dreamed of seeing an Uchiha become Hokage.
Chiya smiled faintly.
The smile carried absolute confidence and complete indifference.
"The position of Hokage has never been secured through praise and publicity."
"Reputation is like the tide."
"It rises quickly and it disappears just as quickly."
"Besides..."
He paused.
His gaze seemed to pass through the walls toward the blond young man struggling to live up to everyone's expectations.
"Namikaze Minato is a fine blade."
"A blade that is sharp enough and correct enough."
"The Third Hokage is polishing him until he shines."
"He is holding him high but who is he preparing that blade to fight?"
Fugaku froze.
"The higher his reputation rises now... the harder he will fall in the future and the harder he and those behind him fall..."
Chiya's voice became lower, carrying an icy chill.
"...the more natural it will seem that we represent true strength."
"And the new order."
"It will become the will of the people."
"What we need to do now is not jump out and challenge them directly."
"That would only lower ourselves and make us seem impatient."
"What we truly need..."
He lightly tapped the table with his finger.
"...is to quietly watch the situation and continue building our own strength."
"When the tide recedes... It will become obvious who has been swimming naked and when the time comes to deliver the final blow..."
A mysterious light flashed through his eyes.
It was as though he could manipulate fate itself.
"...the cards in our hands are far more numerous..."
"...and far more deadly..."
"...than they could ever imagine."
Looking at his composed younger cousin, who seemed to have everything under control, Fugaku found that his anxiety had only grown stronger.
How could the clan head remain this calm?
"I understand."
Taking a deep breath, Fugaku nodded.
"I'll keep the clan under control."
"I won't allow anyone to act recklessly."
"Good."
Chiya nodded in approval.
"Let them continue performing their one man show."
"We'll simply enjoy the performance."
After seeing Fugaku off, Chiya remained seated alone in the courtyard.
A faint glow of chakra circled around his fingertips.
"So..."
"They're building momentum."
He muttered softly, the corner of his mouth lifting into a cold smile.
"Go ahead."
"Raise your chosen piece even higher."
"Soon..."
"You'll discover that the stage you built with your own hands..."
"...will become nothing more..."
"...than the grandest grave..."
"...for your era."
...
Fugaku hurried away from Chiya's residence.
His brows remained tightly furrowed.
Rather than easing, the anxiety in his heart only continued to grow.
He looked back at the closed gate.
Chiya's calm expression, as though nothing concerned him, left Fugaku feeling powerless.
"He should understand."
"This is the Hokage's position!"
"It is the Uchiha Clan's lifelong dream!"
His fists unconsciously clenched.
He simply could not understand Chiya's composure.
He even wondered whether his overwhelmingly powerful cousin lacked political awareness.
Instead of returning home, he changed direction.
He quickly disappeared deeper into the clan district, using a secret signal to summon several elders.
Not long afterward, smoke filled a hidden meeting room.
Several of the Uchiha Clan's core members had gathered.
Uchiha Tekka.
Uchiha Yashiro.
Uchiha Yakumi, who oversaw the clan's finances.
All were present.
Keeping a serious expression, Fugaku carefully explained how Hiruzen Sarutobi was doing everything possible to raise Namikaze Minato's reputation.
"...That's the situation."
"The Third Hokage is obviously afraid that Lord Chiya's reputation has become too great."
"He fears it will threaten both his own authority and the inheritance of his political faction."
"So he hurriedly pushed forward his grand disciple, Namikaze Minato."
"Now the entire village is talking about the Yellow Flash."
"All the major clans are paying attention to him."
"If we don't act soon, the position of Hokage will fall into the hands of that common born boy with no foundation whatsoever."
His tone was filled with urgency and dissatisfaction.
Tekka snorted heavily and slammed his teacup onto the table.
"Hmph!"
"Hiruzen Sarutobi certainly planned this well."
"The war has only just ended, yet he already wants to suppress our Uchiha Clan using some young brat?"
"What wishful thinking!"
"The one who ended the war... was our Clan Head, Lord Chiya!"
Yashiro, who was far more thoughtful, stroked the hilt of his sword before speaking.
"Namikaze Minato is certainly no ordinary person. His strength, achievements, and reputation are all first class."
"More importantly, he is Jiraiya's disciple. He belongs to the Hokage's faction and has no clan ties."
"That makes him easy for the higher ups to control."
"Hiruzen's choice was indeed a clever move."
"If we remain completely silent... public opinion will eventually lean entirely toward them."
Yakumi, ever the practical one, asked directly,
"Fugaku, what is Lord Chiya's attitude? His support is what matters most."
Fugaku sighed helplessly.
"Chiya..."
"...doesn't seem to care."
"I just came from his residence. He simply told me not to worry and not to take it seriously."
"What?!"
Everyone stared in disbelief.
"How can he not take it seriously?"
Tekka's temper flared as his voice suddenly rose.
"This is the Hokage's position!"
"Does the Clan Head intend to remain only a clan head forever, shut out from the center of power?"
"Hasn't the Uchiha Clan been suppressed long enough?"
Yashiro frowned deeply.
"Lord Chiya is an extremely farsighted man."
"Perhaps he has other plans but his silence will undoubtedly leave our clansmen uneasy and confused."
"We can't wait any longer!"
Fugaku suddenly stood up, determination filling his eyes.
"We must take action."
"If Lord Chiya doesn't wish to make his position public for now..."
"...then we'll build momentum for him ourselves."
"We'll make everyone in the village understand who truly saved Konoha and who truly deserves to become the next Hokage."
"That's right!"
Tekka immediately agreed.
"Use every resource available."
"Have our younger clan members spread stories of Lord Chiya's overwhelming power on the battlefield."
"Let the smaller clans friendly to us speak up as well."
"We'll make the voices declaring 'Lord Chiya is the best candidate for Hokage' drown out this so called Yellow Flash!"
"And public opinion."
Yashiro continued.
"We can quietly guide comparisons between Lord Chiya's achievement of ending the war and Minato's battlefield accomplishments."
"We'll emphasize who truly made the decisive contribution to saving the village."
"At the same time, we'll subtly remind everyone that the Hokage must be someone with overwhelming prestige and strength capable of intimidating every nation."
"Not merely a talented young man with potential."
Yakumi nodded.
"I'll handle the funding."
"If we need to print pamphlets or organize activities to raise Lord Chiya's reputation, the clan treasury will provide everything necessary."
Inside that hidden room, the Uchiha quickly finalized their counterattack against the campaign promoting Namikaze Minato.
For the glory of the clan...
And for that supreme position...
The Uchiha machine quietly began accelerating.
...
Meanwhile...
At Chiya's residence.
After sending the worried Fugaku away, Chiya remained seated leisurely beneath the veranda, absentmindedly tapping the table with his fingertips.
He completely understood Fugaku's and the elders' concerns.
But he simply did not care.
Reputation was like the tide.
It could carry a boat...
Or overturn it.
In his eyes, the Third Hokage's campaign was nothing more than a futile struggle.
It was even helping him clear away future obstacles ahead of time.
This was the world of shinobi.
The strong devoured the weak.
True power was the only real foundation.
A Hokage candidate forced onto the stage and treated as nothing more than a tool to balance against the Uchiha would always possess a fragile foundation.
Besides...
What Chiya possessed now was no longer limited to the Uchiha Clan's strength and Orochimaru's technology.
The existence of Kotoamatsukami gave him the ultimate trump card capable of overturning the entire situation.
Especially...
That certain Shadow Hokage who had already fallen under Kotoamatsukami.
When the time came...
He would become another powerful piece supporting Chiya.
Just as he was lost in thought, light footsteps approached from outside the courtyard.
They carried a trace of hesitation.
Along with them came the respectful greetings of the clan members.
"Brother Chiya, are you home?"