Tobirama accepted Shinju's suggestion and went out to take a look around.
He changed out of his old armor, put on a set of ordinary casual clothes, and completely restrained that overwhelming aura that belonged at the very peak of the ninja world.
Following behind Shinju, he stepped out of the Divine Court base and onto the land of this new era.
The road beneath his feet was paved with smooth stone slabs, wide and clean.
The faces of the people on the street all carried relaxed, peaceful smiles—
smiles that came from the heart, with no shadow of worry for the future.
They were completely different from the people of his own time.
Back in his era, most people lived in fear of whether they could survive to see tomorrow.
Villages distrusted and hated one another,
and they had to be on guard against enemies they didn't even know by name.
The Konoha in his memory was a fortress,
everything in it oriented toward war.
The Konoha before his eyes, however, looked more like a thriving metropolis.
To Tobirama, it already felt like a stranger.
"Was this all done by you?"
Tobirama's voice was a little dry as he broke the silence between the two.
"I only provided a direction and a set of rules," Shinju replied calmly.
"It was the villagers of Konoha who created all this themselves."
They walked into a central plaza where people converged and the bustle was especially lively.
Tobirama's gaze was drawn to a squad of patrolling ninjas.
On the backs of their uniforms was a fan-shaped crest that could not be more familiar.
The Uchiha Police Force.
It was an organization he himself had once personally founded.
But the officers in front of him were completely different from the image in his memory.
Their faces did not carry the usual arrogance and distance.
Their expressions were calm, even with a hint of professional friendliness.
Villagers passed by them with open, unafraid eyes.
There was no fear there, and no deliberate avoidance.
Compared to the Uchiha Police Force he had originally designed,
the difference was like heaven and earth.
Had the times really changed this much in just a few short decades?
Tobirama fell into thought.
In the middle of the plaza, a four- or five-year-old girl was squatting on the ground, crying.
It was obvious she had been separated from her family.
A young Uchiha officer stepped out from the patrol line and walked over to her.
He didn't tower over her and interrogate her from on high.
Instead, he crouched down, speaking softly to comfort her.
Then, two tomoe spun into existence in the officer's eyes.
Sharingan.
Tobirama's body tensed in an instant.
Those eyes were the manifestation of hatred and curse.
But the intimidation and genjutsu he expected did not appear.
In those red eyes, the pupil power shifted into all kinds of birds and beasts,
forming strange and delightful little images that flickered before the girl's eyes.
The girl's sobs gradually subsided.
She was drawn in by the wondrous sight and reached out a tiny hand in curiosity.
Very soon, a flustered woman came running over.
Seeing that her daughter was safe and sound,
she thanked the Uchiha officer over and over.
The officer just smiled, waved his hand, and turned back to rejoin the patrol line.
Tobirama stood at the street corner without moving, watching all of this.
What exactly had he just seen?
The Uchiha, using those eyes twisted by "love,"
to soothe the child of an ordinary villager?
And in that villager's eyes, facing an Uchiha,
the only emotion was pure gratitude?
This was utterly at odds with the conclusion he had spent his whole life arriving at.
Before he could recover from this massive shock to his worldview,
something even harder for him to comprehend happened.
From a shop with the sign "Senju Timber Shop" hanging out front,
the owner came out with a broad smile.
On his face, Tobirama could faintly see some traits of the Senju clan.
He held two big, shiny apples in his hands and walked straight over to the passing Uchiha patrol.
"Thanks for the hard work, everyone. It's a hot day, have something to refresh yourselves."
"Haha, thanks, Uncle Mori," the Uchiha captain said cheerfully as he took the apples and handed them out to his team.
"That security barrier you ordered last time—we've finished installation and calibration. Are you satisfied with the effect?"
"It works great! Ever since you folks from the Police Force put that barrier in, those little thieves haven't dared to come back even once!
Next month's renewal order, I'll still be going to you!"
The descendants of the Senju.
The Uchiha Police Force.
They talked like old friends who had known each other for years,
naturally discussing their business cooperation.
Scene after scene like this hit Tobirama harder than any forbidden technique ever could.
All his life, he had studied how to use rules and power
to suppress the evil impulse rooted in the Uchiha bloodline.
He had created the Police Force and pushed them to one corner of the village,
tightly monitoring their every move.
He had believed that was the only way to protect Konoha.
Yet the young man beside him had used a method
he had never even considered—and had once openly scoffed at—
to solve this problem at its root.
Shinju had redirected the Uchiha's strength
from internal surveillance and intimidation
into outward-facing security services and profit-making work.
The Uchiha's sense of pride no longer came from their "noble" bloodline,
but from the recognition of the villagers
and the tangible benefits their work brought.
When the Uchiha were no longer seen as a potential threat by the village,
but as contributors to its prosperity and guardians of its safety,
the soil that hatred needed to grow in simply ceased to exist.
Tobirama stayed silent as he followed Shinju to the new headquarters of the Uchiha Police Force.
The head of the headquarters, Fugaku, came out personally to welcome them.
When he saw Tobirama, there was no hostility or hatred in his eyes.
He had already been notified in advance, so he wasn't particularly shocked either.
He simply bowed deeply in the respectful manner one reserved for a village founder.
"Second-dono, welcome to the Uchiha Police Force. It's an honor for us to have your guidance."
Led by Fugaku, they toured the headquarters together.
Tobirama saw "Employee of the Month" smiling faces hung on the walls.
He saw a huge mission board covered with security and protection contracts
from all over the village.
So many novel, epoch-making ideas and methods left Tobirama thoroughly shaken.
Work could be broken down like this?
He was seeing a host of entirely new systems—
structures completely unlike anything from their era,
perhaps even ahead of the current era itself.
Fugaku explained in detail the Police Force's current commercial operations model—
how their security services brought massive profits to both the village and the clan,
and how they analyzed the profit margin and client satisfaction of each type of job.
Throughout the entire tour, Tobirama hardly said a word.
He just quietly watched and listened.
He realized that he had probably been wrong—
and not just a little wrong, but utterly, completely wrong.
The problem he had once tried to solve through "segregation" and "suppression"
had been perfectly resolved by this young man
through "integration" and "mutual benefit."
Blocking was not as good as channeling.
When the visit came to an end, Fugaku said,
"Second-dono, thank you for founding the Police Force in the first place.
Even if your original intention may have been off the mark,
it was this platform that let the Uchiha find a new kind of honor in this era.
We almost walked into tragedy…
But we were lucky enough to meet Shinju-dono,
who pulled us back from the brink of disaster
and helped us find our direction."
On the way back to the Divine Court, Tobirama remained silent.
His attitude toward Shinju had shifted
from initial scrutiny and doubt
to genuine respect.
This young man possessed a wisdom that surpassed everyone of his time.
Back inside the base, it was Tobirama who spoke up first.
"Your philosophy is correct.
I am willing to offer all of my knowledge and strength
for the sake of your new order."
(End of Chapter)
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