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Nobody paid much attention to Butsuma's so-called "legal notice".
For the next ten years, Manji stayed true to the path he had chosen.
He helped Konoha grow its businesses, made the economy stronger, and kept building up the village's wealth and military while keeping things peaceful and prosperous.
Within Konoha, he named Hashirama, Madara, Tobirama, and Izuna as the core of its future leadership. Long before they reached adulthood, Manji had already begun preparing them to become the backbone of Konoha's second generation.
He adjusted their education to fit what each of them was best at.
Hashirama and Madara got the toughest combat training and became the main strength of Konoha's military. Tobirama and Izuna learned about strategy, running things, logistics, and politics so they could help manage and grow the village.
At the same time, Manji kept working to improve Konoha's schools.
The Shinobi Academy became a full school instead of just a training place, and regular schools opened for civilian kids. Now, every family in the village could learn reading, math, history, civic duties, and useful trades.
These changes quickly made a difference all over Konoha—
Education gave everyone a better life and made it harder for the powerful to bully those beneath them.
Manji didn't want to raise villagers who would bully Naruto in the morning and Hinata in the afternoon.
Outside Konoha, he kept working for peace.
He sent letters to clans all over the Shinobi world, asking them to let go of old grudges, join Konoha, and help create a more stable future.
Anyone who left another place looking for safety got a home, money, and help settling in. But if someone came to cause trouble, Konoha wouldn't let them in.
But years of peace brought their own problems.
As the village became more stable and prosperous, many of Konoha's shinobi lost the mindset needed for war. They did their missions, trained, and lived well, but not many were brave enough for battle anymore.
It was like the Uchiha Clan from the original story—where people got tired of fighting and left Madara when he kept wanting war.
The Hyūga's attitude wasn't surprising. After the Sage of Six Paths protected them centuries ago, they spent generations avoiding major conflicts and grew accustomed to living in peace and isolation.
But the real surprise was how much the Uchiha had changed.
The Uchiha used to be known for loving battle, but now most of them liked the lives they had in Konoha. They had homes, steady work, growing families, and didn't want to go back to the old clan wars.
Strangest of all, Konoha's loudest supporters of war were its civilian factions.
Many civilians felt stuck in the village's social system. Without special bloodlines, famous names, or shinobi skills, it was hard to move up. For them, war seemed like a chance to earn respect, gain status, and open doors that peace kept shut.
These differences slowly split Konoha into two main groups:
The doves, led by Manji, wanted steady progress and didn't want to risk everything on a war they didn't need.
The hawks, including Tajima, Hashirama, Madara, Tobirama, Izuna, and many ambitious young people, wanted a war of unification that would end the fractured clan era by force.
After almost twenty years with Manji's guidance, the four young men were no longer inexperienced. They were stronger and more respected than anyone else their age in Konoha, and each one was vital to the village.
Only Madara and Izuna had yet to awaken the Uchiha Clan's greatest power.
Neither had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan.
Manji protected the brothers a little too well.
They never went through the loss, grief, and despair that shaped Madara in the original story. Since no one close to them had died, nothing had happened to push their Sharingan to the next level.
This version of Madara still had both parents. Izuna was still with him, and Manji looked after them both.
He grew up safe, surrounded by people who cared about him. He never became as lonely or resentful as the Madara from the original timeline. His confidence came from knowing he was loved, not because he had to pretend he didn't need anyone.
Sometimes, where you grow up shapes you more than your bloodline ever could.
..............
Inside the Council Building, Tajima stood before Manji with frustration written across his face.
"Grandpa, I don't understand what we're waiting for!"
"Konoha has spent almost twenty years growing in peace. We're already stronger than any other power in the Shinobi world, but a whole generation of young shinobi has never seen real war."
"If this keeps up, the village will only get more afraid of conflict. When war finally comes, half our people might freeze because they won't know how to handle it!"
For years, Tajima had seen Konoha finish missions, gather resources, expand farmland, and build up its economy.
Almost twenty years had gone by without Konoha starting a major war. Tajima's patience was running out, and he was sure Manji had grown too cautious to take the last step to unite the Shinobi world.
Manji understood why he was frustrated.
In the original timeline, Madara and Hashirama would already have begun building Konoha by this age.
Here, the village had been founded much earlier—but the unification that should have come after had been delayed for years.
"Calm yourself," Manji said.
"Konoha cannot be the side that starts the war... We must wait until someone moves against us. Only then can we respond with justification and hold the moral ground before the rest of the world."
Tajima's face grew tense.
"But how long are we supposed to wait??"
He finally lost patience and blurted out the first plan that came to mind. "If no one attacks us, we could provoke an incident along another clan's border. Claim one of our shinobi disappeared there and use that as our reason to confront them."
"Oh?" Manji glanced at him, then his expression shifted as an idea took shape. "Tajima... you've just given me an idea."
Tajima's irritation disappeared. Hope entered his face as he leaned forward.
"You've thought of something, Grandpa?"
A mysterious smile spread across Manji's lips. "Come closer. I may have found a way to solve two problems at once."
Tajima came closer and bent down beside him. Manji lowered his voice and explained the plan in a few quiet words.
"..." Tajima's eyes lit up with every word. By the time Manji finished, he was nodding eagerly.
Then his excitement faded.
Worry returned to his face. "It's a remarkable plan. It would give us a legitimate reason to act and force the political situation forward."
Tajima paused. "But using it to awaken Madara and Izuna's Mangekyō... Is that a good thing?"
The memory of Uchiha Jin's Mangekyō remained vivid in Tajima's mind. He remembered the devastating power of those eyes—and the blindness that came from relying on them too heavily.
As their father, he couldn't ignore the danger.
Manji watched him over the rim of his teacup.
"Whether it becomes a blessing or a curse will depend on their character and the choices they make. Power does not decide what kind of men they become."
He took a slow sip. "Besides, Tajima—you wouldn't want your sons to fall behind Hashirama and Tobirama, would you?"
Tajima fell silent, weighing the decision. His doubts remained, but the future of his sons and the Uchiha Clan came first.
Finally, he nodded.
"All right." His eyes grew determined.
"I'll do it."
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