"What a pity. To think Nagato didn't show up."
Jie Uchiha couldn't help but sigh.
If the Akatsuki leader had come, Jie could have finally tested the gap between himself and the Rinnegan—a power far beyond the Kage level. It would have been the perfect chance to see how close he was to the realm of the Six Paths.
Defeating Nagato might have even triggered some rare, Six Paths-related rewards.
'Well, it doesn't matter, he thought. There is still plenty of time.'
Thanks to Hashirama Senju's personal endorsement, not a single person dared to object to Jie taking the mantle of the Fifth Hokage.
The Fire Daimyo hadn't even issued his official approval yet, but Jie had already moved straight into the Hokage's office to oversee the village's reconstruction.
Across the village, the Uchiha clan was busy purging the last of Hiruzen Sarutobi's loyalists. The collateral damage from those skirmishes wasn't too bad, but the area still needed repairs.
The real problem was the battlefield where Jie had faced the four Akatsuki members.
That district was completely leveled. Even ignoring Kakuzu's devastating chakra blasts, a single tail whip from Garaga had wiped out more than half a block. The reconstruction costs were going to be astronomical.
To make matters worse, Hiruzen hadn't just drained the Sarutobi clan's assets to hire the Akatsuki against the Uchiha—he had crippled the entire village's finances in the process.
Looking at the absolute mess laid out before him, Jie felt a massive headache coming on.
"Should I just let Father be the Fifth Hokage instead?"
Staring at the endless mountains of paperwork and looming debt, Jie felt a sudden, strong urge to quit.
Unfortunately, Fugaku Uchiha had already shut down that line of thinking.
"Jie, you are the first Hokage of the Uchiha clan!" Fugaku had told him, beaming with absolute pride. "Whatever ideas you have, execute them boldly! From now on, the entire Uchiha clan and I will be your unwavering support."
Seeing his son wear the Hokage hat made Fugaku happier than if he had taken the seat himself. Sure, their original plan was for Fugaku to become the Fifth, but what did that matter now? Jie was his son.
Fortunately, just as Jie's head felt ready to split from the stress, Minato Namikaze and Shikaku Nara stepped up. One was a former Hokage, the other was the Hidden Leaf's greatest strategist.
With those two at work, a mountain of chaotic problems was sorted into perfect order in just two or three days.
Not only was the reconstruction schedule mapped out, but the issue of the Hidden Cloud's war reparations was swiftly resolved. Reading over the drafted terms, Jie had to sigh in genuine admiration.
When it came to the art of extortion, he was nowhere near as ruthless as Shikaku Nara.
Tens of billions of ryo in cash...Tens of billions more in food and resources.
Compared to Shikaku's brutal demands, the Hidden Cloud's past attempts to extort the Leaf looked like the meows of a gentle kitten.
What if the Cloud couldn't afford to pay it all at once? No problem. Shikaku had considerately prepared a predatory installment plan just for them.
Jie was absolutely certain of one thing: as long as the Hidden Cloud signed this peace treaty, they would be reduced to the Hidden Leaf's most reliable wage slaves for the next twenty years.
Naturally, he was thrilled. He was the Hokage of the Hidden Leaf, not the Raikage. What did the life or death of the Hidden Cloud have to do with him?
Bleed the Cloud dry, wait for them to weaken, and then seize the opportunity to annex them completely—wouldn't that be wonderful?
Without a second thought, Jie happily signed his name on the treaty. As for the Cloud shinobi, once they elected their Fifth Raikage, Shikaku would have plenty of ways to force them to sign on the dotted line.
This was no longer the Hidden Leaf of Hiruzen's era. They were no longer cowards, too terrified to resist powerful enemies.
In the past, Shikaku's brilliant strategies were useless because Hiruzen had been too coward to adopt them. But now, with a Hokage like Jie—someone who possessed overwhelming strength and answered violence with violence—Shikaku felt boundless confidence.
The peace treaty was drafted, reconstruction was scheduled, and the village's accounting books were finally sorted.
The only missing piece was the actual capital.
Thankfully, after seizing the lucrative industries previously held by the treacherous Utatane and Mitokado clans, the Hidden Leaf wouldn't be hurting for short-term funds anytime soon.
In just three days of Jie taking office, the Hidden Leaf entered a golden age of rapid recovery. The momentum was so fierce that even the major ninja clans couldn't help but openly praise the Uchiha for finally producing a genuinely capable Hokage.
But Jie's very next move sent their jaws dropping to the floor.
He made a move on the Konoha Military Police Force.
For decades, the Uchiha clan maintained absolute control over the Police Force. They oversaw village security and counter-espionage, holding immense, centralized authority. In fact, Tobirama Senju had specifically created the Anbu just to counterbalance their power.
Naturally, the major clans assumed Jie's first act as Hokage would be to expand the Police Force's jurisdiction. After all, the Uchiha were his own flesh and blood. A stronger Police Force meant a stronger foundation for his rule.
Instead, Jie did the unthinkable: he actively divided the Police Force's power. Or rather, he planned to shatter the Uchiha clan's monopoly over it.
Faced with this seemingly insane political maneuver, the noble clans chose to sit back and watch.
On one hand, the authority Jie was carving out of the Police Force was incredibly tempting. Any clan that snatched up those new divisions would see a massive boost in status...
On the other hand, they were terrified. What if this was a trap? A bloody piece of bait tossed out by the new Hokage to lure out and slaughter anyone foolish enough to covet the Uchiha's birthright?
Uncertain of the waters, they simply watched.
"Jie, what is the meaning of this?"
On his fourth day as Hokage, Jie was reviewing documents in his office when Fugaku broke the silence. He stood before the desk, his voice heavy with concern.
Fugaku knew his son would never betray their family. If Jie was doing this, he definitely had a profound reason. But Fugaku needed an explanation. He needed something he could take back to pacify the clan elders.
"Father," Jie began. He set his pen down and looked up patiently. "Haven't you realized? The Konoha Military Police Force might seem like an honor, but it's actually a shackle around our necks."
Fugaku frowned.
"As the ones who punish crimes, it's incredibly easy to draw hatred," Jie explained quietly. "Because we hold so much concentrated power, our people have grown arrogant. We look down on everyone else. We make ourselves completely unlikable, all while paying lip service to the Uchiha's glory."
Jie's voice dropped, turning deadly serious. "Isn't that exactly how the Uchiha used to be?"
Hearing this, Fugaku fell into a deep silence.
Ever since the Second Hokage established the Police Force, he had handed the most powerful department in the village over to them.
But it was a gilded cage...
Under the guise of guarding criminals, Tobirama had built the prison and the Police headquarters on the outskirts of the village. It physically drove the Uchiha into a corner, distancing them from the true center of political power.
From that point on, the Uchiha became increasingly isolated. Walking down the street earned them nothing but looks of fear and disgust from the civilians.
Unwilling to admit they were simply disliked, the proud Uchiha rationalized it. They convinced themselves the villagers were just afraid of their immense glory and power.
Fugaku had never stopped to consider this deeper, psychological layer of Tobirama's design.
"That is why I'm dispersing the power of the Police Force," Jie continued smoothly. "I want to rope the other ninja clans in. Let them help the Uchiha shoulder the villagers' hatred. With the other clans participating in law enforcement, the Uchiha can finally step out of the eye of the storm."
Jie leaned forward, intertwining his fingers.
"Moreover, if the Uchiha voluntarily take a step back now, won't we hold the absolute moral high ground when the rest of the village's power is reshuffled? Compared to the thankless job of guarding criminals..."
A sly, calculating smile crept across the Fifth Hokage's face.
"...I think seizing control of the Financial Department—which is far easier and vastly more lucrative—will make our clansmen much happier."
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