"Since yesterday," Mitokado Homura said in the Hokage's office, his expression grave, "the Uchiha clan has been buying up every kind of scroll they can find—blank ones included. And today they're holding a gathering at the Naka Shrine. You must have heard those howls just now. My guess is, they've managed to acquire a summoning beast. Not just any beast either—something with an entire tribe. It's clear that more than one Uchiha has signed a contract with it."
Hiruzen Sarutobi took a slow drag from his pipe, exhaling a thin stream of smoke. "We'll know everything soon enough. Since yesterday, none of the Uchiha upper ranks have shown themselves. The only thing the people below noticed was the buying of scrolls—but by now, everyone's heard the rumors. We must stay calm. It doesn't seem to affect the bigger picture. Besides," he sighed, "we're still in the honeymoon phase of cooperation. Any rash action would be unwise."
---
When the morning came, the citizens of Konoha were utterly stunned by the sight before them.
The Konoha Military Police Force—composed entirely of Uchiha—was now patrolling in teams, and every single squad was accompanied by a massive dog nearly two meters tall.
If not for the fan-shaped clan crests on their uniforms, people might have thought the Police Force had been taken over by the Inuzuka clan.
But no one was more shaken than the Inuzuka clan themselves. Their own ninken partners—their lifelong canine comrades—refused to step outside. Whenever an Uchiha squad passed their door, some of the ninken were so terrified they… lost control of their bladders.
The Inuzuka were left in a state of utter humiliation and despair.
Their entire clan's prestige had always been built around their bond with ninja dogs. The Inuzuka grow up with their partners—dogs that are not mere beasts, but family, friends, brothers. Yet now, their "brothers" wouldn't even walk outside, much less onto a battlefield.
Some of the Inuzuka tried confronting the Uchiha, but before they could even get close, their own instincts screamed at them to stop. The oppressive presence of those black-furred beasts was overwhelming—primal, ancient, dangerous. When human and hound locked eyes, the Inuzuka couldn't take another step. Their blood itself seemed to whisper: Don't move.
Realizing the gravity of the situation, the Inuzuka clan head immediately gathered his people, selected a few representatives, and rushed to the Hokage's office.
---
Meanwhile, back at the Uchiha compound, the scene couldn't have been more different.
The Uchiha women were busy measuring their new partners, sewing them custom uniforms embroidered with the clan crest. The children, who had initially been frightened, now ran around in pure excitement—laughing, climbing, and playing atop the massive hounds.
Some of the older hellhounds leapt onto rooftops to sun themselves, while the younger ones curiously played with the children, their deep voices echoing through the streets. Since they could all speak human language, communication came easily—and soon, laughter filled the entire compound.
The once-quiet Uchiha district was now bursting with life.
Those with three-tomoe Sharingan immediately took on missions, bringing their new partners along to strengthen their bond in real combat. Others gathered at the training grounds, experimenting with combined jutsu techniques—human and beast fighting side by side.
Every Uchiha with a summoned hound was learning more about their partner each hour, building trust and friendship. And before long, the children made a discovery—these terrifying hellhounds… had a weakness.
They loved sweets.
Within thirty minutes, the Uchiha clan had completely bought out every confectionery and candy shop in Konoha. Even the restaurants weren't spared. One Uchiha patrol officer, passing by a diner, asked the owner with a dead-serious expression,
"Excuse me… do you have any spare white sugar?"
Konoha had no choice but to notice.
A few mischievous Uchiha even talked about visiting the Inuzuka compound—just to show off.
"Hey, you call yourselves the dog clan? Can your ninja dogs talk? Can they use jutsu? Wind Release? Gale Palm? Hahaha—imagine their faces!"
The elders of the Uchiha watched this newfound prosperity with tears in their eyes.
For the first time in decades, they could see a glimmer of the clan's revival. They were no longer alone. Now they had powerful, loyal partners who would stand with them in battle and in life.
The strength of man and beast combined—one plus one greater than two—would surely open a new era for the Uchiha.
When they later heard about the Inuzuka's terrified response, their laughter echoed through the halls.
"Hah! Now they'll finally understand what it means to cross the Uchiha! A clan that can't even leave their homes—can they still call themselves ninja?"
---
Meanwhile, the Uchiha leadership gathered in secret.
Present were the clan elders, the clan head, the division captains and vice-captains of the Military Police, and a few elite three-tomoe users. The agenda covered several key topics:
How to strengthen long-term cooperation with the Hellhound clan.
How to organize training and logistics for their new partners.
How to handle political relations with the Hokage's faction while maintaining the "honeymoon" balance.
How to deal with the Inuzuka situation—and how to respond if Konoha's leadership intervened.
They quickly reached a consensus on the first point: this alliance was to be treated as a long-term developmental project, requiring dedicated supervision and structure. The Third Elder would oversee it, with Uchiha Kairen assisting. All personnel involved were to follow their directives—this was a matter of the clan's future.
On the second point, they decided to maintain the status quo, while allowing for more Uchiha-only teams to take external missions. With the hellhounds' tracking abilities, their combat strength and detection range had multiplied. Some police officers could even be reassigned or take rest periods, while others handled lucrative outside patrol contracts.
As for the Inuzuka… most of the Uchiha simply smirked, waiting to see how it played out.
After all—when had anyone ever witnessed a ninja clan go extinct naturally? It was morbidly fascinating.
Uchiha Kairen, the youngest participant in the room—and, as the summoner who had secured the hellhound alliance, an essential attendee—could barely contain himself.
He stood up and spoke firmly:
"Honored elders and seniors, I may be young, but I wish to share my humble view.
The Uchiha clan has always stood in a difficult position within Konoha. Since the era of the Second Hokage, we've been subjected to deliberate political suppression and media slander.
In such an environment, we must strengthen two things: our power and our alliances.
Power is our foundation—once the Uchiha show weakness, we'll face the same fate as the Senju: extinction.
But strength alone isn't enough. We've lacked allies. Only now have we found a battle companion in the Hellhound clan—and while invaluable, it's still not enough.
Compared to the vast network of families loyal to the Hokage—the Sarutobi, Mitokado, Shimura, the Ino–Shika–Chō trio, the Hatake, the Koharu line, and countless smaller families and civilians—our side is far too small.
Outside of a crippled Kurama clan and a few distant allies like the Kubo and Oda families from the Warring States era, we stand nearly alone.
That must change.
We should seek to ally with neutral clans—especially the Hyūga, Aburame, Inuzuka, and Shiranui families.
If we can form mutual trust with the Inuzuka, it would be like rain after a long drought. A major step toward breaking the political blockade around us.
I've already spoken with the Hellhound patriarch. They're willing to breed a few non-awakened hounds with the Inuzuka's best ninken. Their offspring would likely be capable of human speech, and some might even inherit wind release chakra. They'd never match our true hellhounds in strength, but they'd still be extraordinary.
That way, we'd maintain our superiority, yet tie the Inuzuka to us through cooperation.
We could share logistics—let them handle food supplies while we manage high-level support. It would cut costs and bind us closer together.
Only by uniting all we can can the Uchiha reclaim the glory that is rightfully ours."
At first, some chuckled—the typical attitude toward a precocious child. If not for the fact that the hellhounds had come through him, he might not even have been invited.
But as he spoke, the laughter faded. One by one, they leaned forward, listening intently. His words carried not just insight, but vision.
By the end, even the elders nodded in approval. The proposal was adopted unanimously.
As the meeting adjourned, several elders exchanged meaningful glances with Kairen. The Third Elder even said warmly, "You should visit me more often, boy. We have much to discuss about the hellhound project."
Uchiha Nobunaga and his father, Yasuyuki—watched with pride.
One saw the clan's bright successor. The other saw a son who still believed in reconciling with Konoha—and couldn't be happier.
Walking away from the meeting, Uchiha Sa chuckled. "Tell me again—did I really teach that boy? Because right now, I feel like the child between us."
Uchiha Ze laughed. "Our clan's never lacked for muscle. What we've always needed are minds that can think."
Uchiha Ankoku said nothing. His thoughts had drifted to the past—back when Kairen had been only nine years old...
***************************
Read advanced chapters ahead of everyone else on my P@treon.
P@treon/GodDragcell