After receiving this intelligence, Tsunade once again summoned a high-level meeting in the name of the Hokage.
Soon, the village's top brass gathered in the Hokage's office.
Just as Tsunade was about to begin the meeting, a member of the Anbu landed beside her and respectfully asked, "Hokage-sama, according to protocol, Uchiha Shinji is also eligible to attend this meeting. Should we notify him?"
At the Anbu's inquiry, the attendees suddenly realized.
Shinji was no longer just a squad leader in the Anbu. He was now the captain of the Hidden Leaf Police Force, the head of an entire department, making him qualified to participate in the village's high-level meetings.
Tsunade paused briefly before responding, "The official appointment hasn't been issued yet. Shinji is still part of the Anbu for now, so there's no need to notify him for this meeting."
"Understood!"
The Anbu responded and silently withdrew.
This brief interruption made the gathered high-ranking officials acutely aware that Uchiha Shinji had risen to their level, a figure of real power who needed to be taken seriously.
Tsunade lightly tapped the desk, signaling for silence, and said, "Alright, let Kakashi start by reporting on the first batch of testers' experience with Takamagahara."
Kakashi immediately described the experiences of the jonin who had tested Takamagahara to the gathered leaders.
Upon learning that the realism of the hypothetical enemies created by Takamagahara depended on Shinji's familiarity with them, the village's leaders fell into deep thought.
This made sense.
If Takamagahara could perfectly create a hypothetical enemy Shinji had never even heard of, that would be downright terrifying.
However, this meant the village leaders' plan to use Takamagahara to fully analyze every member of the Akatsuki organization had fallen through.
After a long pause, the Third Hokage spoke, "Even so, the capabilities Takamagahara has shown make it far superior to other training methods, even for ordinary cultivation!"
Shikaku nodded. "Indeed. Within Takamagahara, time and matter can be freely manipulated. The training efficiency is at least five to ten times higher than outside, making it suitable for all Hidden Leaf shinobi!"
Koharu Utatane asked, "Are you suggesting we open Takamagahara to every shinobi in the village, allowing them to benefit from its training effects?"
Mito Menma added, "It's not impossible! We could assign specific personnel to conduct targeted training against Akatsuki members within Takamagahara. At the same time, we could allow more village shinobi to enter Takamagahara for training according to their own plans. This way, the overall strength of Hidden Leaf would see a comprehensive boost!"
Koharu Utatane raised a concern. "But doing so would make it difficult to keep Shinji's activation of the Mangekyo Sharingan and the details of Takamagahara a secret!"
Shikaku took over the conversation. "Shinji's own information is important, but with a great battle looming, sacrificing his secrecy to enhance the entire village's strength is, in my opinion, worth it! Moreover, the Hokage has already approved his request to rebuild the Hidden Leaf Police Force. Once that news is officially announced, anyone could guess that Shinji has awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan."
Those familiar with Hidden Leaf's political structure knew what the Police Force represented. Allowing a twelve- or thirteen-year-old like Shinji to rebuild it was, in itself, a compromise by the village's leadership toward Uchiha Shinji.
From this, it wasn't hard to deduce that Shinji had awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan. Otherwise, a young Uchiha without the Mangekyo would not have the leverage to force the village's leadership to concede.
Koharu Utatane naturally understood this logic and continued, "If we provide Takamagahara to all the village's shinobi, can Shinji's dojutsu stamina hold up?"
Instantly, the office fell silent.
Undoubtedly, the proposal to let all the village's shinobi benefit from the efficient training capabilities of Shinji's Takamagahara was partly intended to drain his dojutsu power.
Shinji's current strength had already sparked unease among the village's leadership. His request to rebuild the Hidden Leaf Police Force only heightened their attention to him.
At just twelve or thirteen, with only a handful of subordinates, Shinji posed little threat to the village's leadership. But who could predict what might happen in five or ten years?
Allowing a genius like Shinji—who had both strength and legitimacy—to amass power for a decade would leave none of the present leaders confident in their ability to suppress him.
By then, Shinji would become a blade hanging over the heads of the village's leadership, one that could fall at any moment!
With this in mind, convincing Shinji to deplete his Mangekyo dojutsu power bit by bit under the guise of aiding the village was the safest way to neutralize the threat.
Koharu Utatane was no fool. She quickly realized this.
And upon realizing it, she made her decision, choosing to align with the other leaders on this matter.
This meant sacrificing Shinji, but she had no choice. She only needed Shinji to help maintain her influence, not to oppose the entire leadership for his sake.
Sigh
Deep down, Koharu Utatane let out a soft sigh.
It was easy to imagine that once Shinji's dojutsu power was exhausted, his strength would be greatly diminished. At the right moment, the village would inevitably disband the Hidden Leaf Police Force again. If Shinji was sensible, the village would likely not make things difficult for him. But if he refused to let go, the outcome would be grim.
On second thought, Koharu Utatane felt a hint of relief.
Not to mention whether the village could safely navigate the impending battle with Akatsuki, even if it did, dealing with Shinji was a matter for ten years or more in the future.
By then, she might have already retired, sparing her from facing many of these challenges personally.
Kakashi, standing to the side, also caught on to the leadership's intentions, feeling a faint pang of guilt toward Shinji.
But he quickly suppressed his emotions.
As a Hidden Leaf shinobi, he had long been prepared to sacrifice for the village. In his eyes, it was only natural for any Hidden Leaf shinobi to dedicate themselves to the village—Shinji was no exception!
The high-level meeting concluded swiftly.
Kakashi, carrying the village's official order to rebuild the Hidden Leaf Police Force and Shinji's appointment as its captain, found Shinji and conveyed the village's request for him to provide Takamagahara to all Hidden Leaf shinobi.
Kakashi looked at Shinji sincerely. "I know this request is bold, but with the great battle approaching and the village's survival at stake, I hope you can understand the village's decision!"
Shinji was momentarily stunned. This opportunity had come far too suddenly.