Yuhara's question left Kakashi speechless. No matter how he looked at it or thought it through, the answer was the same—he truly couldn't face them. He just couldn't.
His father's situation was clearly not simple, and it wasn't an isolated case either. The circumstances surrounding the Uchiha and Naruto were eerily similar to his father's. He couldn't bring himself to ignore it all.
Naruto's treatment pained him deeply. How could he not question why Naruto was treated this way? His teacher had already sacrificed everything for Konoha! But Kakashi didn't dare answer Yuhara's question or follow his line of thought—he knew Yuhara was trying to drive a wedge between him and the Third Hokage.
But so what? The reality was that the entire village was rejecting Naruto.
And those who knew the truth were forbidden to tell Naruto, even restricted from interacting with him. The only person who could approach Naruto was the Third Hokage himself.
"Maybe... there's some other reason," Kakashi muttered internally, but suspicion was a terrifying parasite.
Once planted in the mind, without definitive evidence, it only grows—and Kakashi already had doubts. Now he couldn't shake them.
Yuhara saw his inner turmoil and knew his goal was achieved, so he didn't press further. Kakashi had been pushed enough today. Any more would seem excessive—some things were better left for Kakashi to figure out on his own.
Still, Yuhara was a petty guy. Before releasing Kakashi from the genjutsu, he threw in one last comment:
"Let me tell you, a lot of this ties back to Danzo. He's dead now, but many of his actions are being covered up.
But covering up doesn't mean there aren't traces. Like the evidence I found of Danzo's human experiments—stuff the Hokage personally buried.
I'm not getting involved any further. There's nothing in it for me, especially since the Hokage gave me enough hush money.
But have you ever asked why he had to do this? And you, as an ANBU—don't you want to investigate the truth?
For your father. For your teacher."
That line cut deep. Yuhara washed his hands of it and dumped the burden squarely on Kakashi. Without another word, he left.
Whether Kakashi would report this to Hiruzen, Yuhara didn't know—and didn't care.
Their relationship was already strained, and both knew future conflict was inevitable. This wouldn't trigger it just yet.
Besides, from an emotional standpoint and considering Kakashi later stopping Gai, there was a good chance he wouldn't say a word.
Could a barrier set by four chunin really stop Kakashi? With his Sharingan, breaking it was child's play.
Sasuke had done similar stuff fighting that Shennong guy, and Gai had straight-up smashed barriers before.
"So whether he talks or not doesn't affect me. If he stays silent, that's a huge win."
Naturally, Yuhara was pleased with this outcome—and he was certain of one thing: his Mangekyō had grown stronger!
At the final stage, he'd used genjutsu—and to maximize its effect so Kakashi couldn't easily break it, he'd specifically added Dōhan's power into the mix. The result? Kakashi stayed trapped without resistance.
Though he'd used this combo of technique and eye power countless times before, this time the chakra cost was the lowest ever.
This kind of progress was what really excited Yuhara.
Still, while pleased, Yuhara wasn't entirely focused on that. A week after the Kakashi incident, the initial draft for the clan reform plan was ready.
Inside the shrine, Yuhara sat with the four top clan leaders, flipping through the documents and calculating things in his mind.
The draft mostly matched the discussions he'd had with Uchiha Sō and Uchiha Takechi. The two had also added plenty based on their knowledge and experience. Overall, the theory behind it was solid.
But as someone who knew "truth comes from practice," Yuhara felt the real test was in implementation.
Most of the content came from basic philosophy of his past life—not difficult but enlightening enough. That was all Yuhara needed.
Still, when it came to the clan's reward system, he felt something was missing—maybe he hadn't said enough, or maybe the clan's finances were just that strained.
"Alright, the education part looks fine. I'll leave the lectures and lessons to you two.
Of course, I'll drop in from time to time."
Yuhara decided it was necessary to say something and turned to Sō and Takechi.
"No problem, Clan Head," both elders nodded. As the reform kicked off, plenty of things needed their personal involvement. They weren't surprised.
With that settled, Yuhara finally voiced his deeper thoughts.
"There's something else I need to bring up. I think the reward system doesn't emphasize enough on what we need. For our clan to grow, we need development in all areas.
And that development only comes from people. So we should encourage more births—only with a big enough population can we cultivate real talent.
And when those talents contribute to the clan, is ninjutsu and money alone enough of a reward?
Weren't all of you once considered genius shinobi?"
His words left the four speechless—but they had to admit it. Back in their day, each of them had been hailed as a genius.
So what did genius shinobi need? Besides things to boost their strength, what else?
After some thought, they could only think of one answer—honor.
Seeing their reactions, Yuhara smiled and continued.
"And like I said, clan development is all-around. There are many ways to contribute.
Like earning more money for the clan—that's also strength.
Or supporting clan administration. Or raising more kids or training the younger generation—aren't these valid too?
Don't be narrow-minded. We need to recognize every person's worth. That's key.
Among these people, some might rank low as shinobi, or not be shinobi at all.
So what should we offer them? Have you thought about that?"
Yuhara had long known that in this twisted ninja world, talented people without ninja status often struggled.
But talent always shines. Even outside the ninja system, they could be hugely impactful.
In economics, management, even research—they might do better than actual shinobi.
Ninjas constantly train to stay strong. Without it, their decline is inevitable.
This makes it hard for them to focus on one area—Orochimaru and the Second Hokage were exceptions.
But these non-ninja types? Without ninja aptitude, they could fully devote themselves to the areas they excel in.
And their achievements would be just as impressive—exactly what Yuhara needed.
"That's definitely a real issue," Uchiha Sō finally said after long thought, nodding seriously.
"So, Clan Head, what do you propose?"
"I think if someone's fit for the ninja path, we should give them more support."
Yuhara stroked his chin, then slowly continued.
"For example, I, Shisui, or Fugaku could personally train them. We're all Mangekyō users—this would be huge for them.
Or assign them to a jonin with three-tomoe Sharingan, depending on their potential and contributions.
As for those without ninja talent, to encourage them to contribute in other areas, we can appoint them to the Police Department.
The Police Department is also being reformed. We need talent everywhere. But that still doesn't carry much weight.
We should create a new position—one that grants honor, full clan respect, and participation in clan meetings.
Of course, ninja-talented folks would be included too. What do you think?"
A new position with voting rights in the clan council?
The four leaders fell into deep thought. The proposal was solid.
But it raised a big issue—power distribution.
The clan had once been a mess, with factions fighting for dominance. They worried these new members might form their own faction, which would be a disaster.
"I support this proposal," Uchiha Fugaku said. "But the position should be tightly regulated. Otherwise..."
"I get it," Yuhara smiled. He knew what could be changed and what had to stay intact.
In a world of superpowers, messing around would just piss everyone off. Ninja authority had to be respected.
"In the clan, aside from the elders, clan head, and deputy, everyone else holding this role will be called 'councilor.'
Councilors, as the name implies, will attend meetings and offer input and revisions to proposals.
They'll help refine our plans—and they'll have elevated status in the clan.
Higher income, more support—and if they lack ninja strength, we'll assign shinobi to protect them.
We'll make sure they feel valued, give them a voice in the clan, and let them share in our honor.
So—how does that sound?"
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P/S: If you are interested, you can read up to 30+ at patreon.com/Emik01.