"Move faster!"
Uchiha Fugaku's voice rang through the district like a battle order.
"Pack only what you need. We're returning to the old clan grounds—leave the unnecessary junk behind!"
Someone shouted from inside a storehouse, "We're out of ink!"
Another answered with barely contained excitement, "It doesn't matter—this is the Fourth Hokage's authorization! We can finally go home!"
That day, the Uchiha district was pure motion.
Boxes. Scrolls. Weapons. Family heirlooms. Even the elders were moving with urgency, because this time the clan meeting hadn't been about rebellion or resentment—
It had been about orders.
Fugaku had returned from the Hokage Tower and immediately convened everyone. He delivered Ryuji's directives without embellishment, most importantly:
The Uchiha were permitted to relocate back to their original land.
The reaction was immediate.
Several elders who had spent years opposing compromise fell silent—then nodded.
Even they understood what it meant.
A chance to reset the clan's image.
A chance to step back into the village as protectors, not suspects.
The elders began cooperating for real, discussing how joining the Konoha Guard under Ryuji's reforms could gradually change how the village viewed the Sharingan.
For the first time in a long time, the Uchiha district felt… hopeful.
The Ones Who Didn't Fit
Hope, however, always attracted shadows.
A small knot of discontented Uchiha gathered in a side alley, voices low, Sharingan flashing in irritation.
"This is humiliation."
"Relocation? Rebranding? He's taming us."
"Are we really going to bend?"
They didn't realize someone was nearby.
Watching.
Listening.
Recording every word.
Fugaku noticed the gathering from a distance.
His expression cooled.
He had spent years holding the clan together through pressure and suspicion. Now that Ryuji had opened a path forward, Fugaku would not allow a handful of loud idiots to burn it down.
He turned sharply and walked to the Uchiha official in charge of internal task assignments.
"Send a notice," Fugaku ordered. "Uchiha Inuhiro and his group—immediately."
"Yes, Patriarch!"
Fugaku's tone didn't leave room for questions.
"There's been an attack on our border mines in the Land of Fire," he said evenly. "Have them deal with it."
The task officer didn't think twice. To them, it sounded like standard business—protect the clan's assets, drive off intruders, return with reports.
The message went out.
Supplies were gathered.
Uchiha Inuhiro and several others departed before sunset.
As proud Uchiha, they couldn't tolerate threats to their interests.
They also didn't understand what Fugaku had truly done.
That was the last time many of them would be seen.
Konoha Watches the Uchiha Move
The Uchiha relocation didn't go unnoticed.
If anything, it became the village's primary topic overnight.
"How did they get permission?"
"What does the Fourth Hokage want?"
"Is this reconciliation… or preparation?"
Every major clan began reassessing.
The Uchiha had moved first.
Now everyone else needed to decide how to survive under a Hokage who didn't hesitate.
The Hyūga Dilemma
Within the Hyūga compound, Hyūga Hizashi spoke with unusual urgency.
"We should meet the Fourth Hokage as soon as possible," he insisted. "After what he did to the Sarutobi and Shimura… he holds power more tightly than even the Third ever did. We should build goodwill early."
Hyūga Hiashi frowned.
As patriarch, he was trained to remain neutral.
No matter who sat in the Hokage's chair, the Hyūga would provide support when needed—but never pledge themselves to a faction.
That was how the clan survived.
But the situation now was different.
Ryuji wasn't simply a Hokage.
He was a reset button.
Hizashi watched his brother struggle—and hope slipped into his eyes.
With a Hokage like Ryuji…
Could the Hyūga finally change the curse they had endured for generations?
The branch house system.
The seal.
The cage.
And the cruel irony of their position struck him as it always did: the Uchiha were feared by civilians the moment they walked the street in their crest…
while even a Hyūga noble could be mocked or bullied by children, because their strength was buried under clan rules.
The Village Starts Choosing Sides
The Uchiha's movement triggered a chain reaction.
The Ino–Shika–Chō clans arrived at the Hokage Tower together, offering public loyalty.
Then other clans followed.
Major families.
Minor families.
Civilian shinobi representatives.
One by one, they came to align themselves with the new center of gravity.
Eventually, the Hyūga brothers stood before Ryuji as well.
Ryuji didn't waste time with ceremony.
He looked straight at Hiashi and Hizashi and spoke without pretense.
"Do you want to change the branch house system?"
The words hit both men like a jutsu.
Hiashi stiffened.
Hizashi's breath caught.
For years, they had endured it. Rationalized it. Protected the clan with it.
Hated it with it.
Hiashi bowed slowly, voice controlled.
"Lord Hokage… please enlighten us."
Ryuji nodded once.
Then he turned his head toward the silver-haired man standing nearby like a silent blade.
"White Fang."
"Today, you'll accompany them to the Hyūga compound."
"We end this—completely."
Ryuji's expression sharpened.
That cursed seal—branding loyal kin as disposable tools—was an insult in his eyes.
"Controlling people by carving a cage into their foreheads," he said flatly, "is like chopping off your own arm and calling it strength."
He glanced at Hiashi.
"How you choose to proceed… is up to you."
Then he returned to his paperwork as if he'd just assigned a routine patrol.
Hiashi didn't move for several seconds.
His gaze drifted, almost unwillingly, to the mark on Hizashi's forehead.
The decision formed like a stone sinking into water.
Finally, Hiashi bowed deeply.
"I understand, Hokage-sama."
He turned to Sakumo.
"White Fang-sama… please come with us."
Ryuji's faint smile told him he'd chosen correctly.
White Fang followed without a word.
The Hyūga brothers left the Hokage Tower together.
And Konoha's old traditions began to tremble.
Another Visitor
Just as the room settled again, a messenger appeared.
"Lord Hokage—Uchiha Fugaku requests an audience."
Ryuji's pen paused.
The village was moving faster than expected.
And every move mattered.
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