"I'm not looking down on civilian shinobi, I'm just worried they'll be looked down upon by the great ninja clans."
Asuma's expression turned serious, and he looked earnestly at Takeshi.
Seeing Asuma's gaze, Takeshi instinctively straightened his posture.
This old friend of his had followed Danzō for many years and had inherited much of his insight—his understanding of the clans was in no way inferior to Takeshi's.
"Yeah, exactly! What if you lose your temper and order those guys from the Internal Affairs Division to storm into the clan compounds, forcing them to hand over their secret techniques? What if they all rebel—what then?"
Anko pulled her companion chair a bit closer, found a more comfortable position, and somehow produced a skewer of dango.
You're just here to watch the show, aren't you?
Takeshi stared speechlessly at the dango in her hand.
"What are you looking at?"
Anko noticed Takeshi's eyes locked on her dango, quickly stuffed one into her mouth, and looked at him protectively as she chewed.
I'm the Fifth Hokage—would I really covet a stick of your dango?!
Takeshi sighed inwardly.
Unlike what Anko remembered of him, Takeshi was the type who always planned before acting—or at least, he thought things through for a bit before he did.
He moved against the nobles because they and shinobi belonged to fundamentally different classes. As long as he could extract enough benefit, Takeshi could gather loyal subordinates around himself to stand against the Daimyō faction.
He moved against the daimyō because, after years of subtle influence, their faction was no longer a threat, and Konoha's shinobi no longer held them in reverence.
Now, to move against the clans, Takeshi had to consider more than his die-hard loyalists. He had to evaluate whether the factions that stood to gain from this move could withstand the clans' inevitable backlash.
"The Five Great Villages were able to set aside their grudges and unite against the Ōtsutsuki. The clans and civilians of Konoha must also work hand in hand to face this threat."
Takeshi offered the lofty justification with a straight face, just to shut Asuma up.
"Don't resort to violence. Even if it comes to that, leave it to me or to my father."
Asuma's voice carried sincere weight.
What, are you trying to become Hokage too?
Hearing Asuma's words, Takeshi's eyelid twitched. His teacher's son had truly become his father's image. How was he supposed to explain this to his sensei later?
"If it really comes to that point, we'll have to execute some, imprison others, and then support a few obedient clans to set an example. My suggestion—start with the Sarutobi clan. Because of the old man, they hold quite a bit of influence in the village."
Not only Takeshi, but even Anko and Kurenai twitched at the corners of their mouths when they heard Asuma's words.
This guy… he's seriously ruthless to his own clan.
"My father used to say the same thing—not only do the Five Great Villages need unity, but the clans within each village must be unified too. We're all part of Konoha. No single clan can be allowed to jeopardize the whole."
"Well said." Anko clapped approvingly—and pulled out yet another skewer of dango.
Well said, my ass! Where are you even getting all that dango from?
Takeshi cast her a sidelong glance. Somehow, it felt like he was surrounded by nothing but troublemakers.
Other protagonists had wise and noble allies surrounding them.
And him? A circle of wise fools at best.
He glanced around at his "circle of wisdom." With Obito still busy handling matters in the Research Bureau and aside from Kakashi, he couldn't think of a single strategist capable of managing the big picture.
"After the Sarutobi clan, the next to keep in check should be the Uchiha!"
Asuma grew more animated as he spoke, as though Takeshi had already granted him authority over Internal Affairs—to purge all the clans of Konoha.
Wait a second. What did the Uchiha ever do to you? They've been perfectly well-behaved lately!
If there's a clan that's not behaving, it's definitely the Hyūga...
...
"Achoo!"
Uchiha Fugaku sneezed.
"What's this? The great clan head of the Uchiha brought down by a single battle?"
Seeing Fugaku's tired, unfocused eyes, Hiashi couldn't resist teasing him.
"Sigh..."
Fugaku, unusually, didn't snap back at Hiashi's provocation.
Hiashi frowned.
Had he actually hit the mark? Was Fugaku really hiding some illness?
"I won't hide it from you—the Fifth Hokage values me, values the Uchiha clan. He's made me an advisor, ending the long era when no Uchiha held a decision-making position in Konoha."
Fugaku's words made Hiashi unexpectedly sentimental.
There was a time when the title of "Konoha's strongest clan" belonged to the Hyūga.
Years had passed, and though the title remained in name, everyone could see the truth—the Uchiha had outshined the Hyūga during the Fifth Hokage's reign.
"Hmph. What do you have to worry about? Your son is the Hokage's only disciple. He could very well become your clan's first Hokage someday."
Hiashi's expression darkened. Though he had sworn loyalty in time, the Fifth Hokage clearly held a deep bias against the Hyūga. Even after the division between main and branch families was abolished, Takeshi still hadn't shown any intention of promoting them.
Jealousy tinged his tone.
"The Hokage's seat will pass on eventually. The next one might not favor the Uchiha."
Fugaku shook his head. He only wished for his clan to live without discrimination, to be a true part of the village. As for the Hokage's title—he wouldn't dare to dream of it.
"The side effects of my Mangekyō Sharingan have already appeared. After the last battle, I can no longer see anything beyond three meters clearly."
Before Hiashi could respond, Fugaku shifted the topic.
"You..."
Hiashi was taken aback by his candor.
"I only hope that the future Hyūga and Uchiha can maintain good relations. According to the Research Bureau's findings, we may have come from the same bloodline long ago, don't you think?"
...
A/N: Recently, many readers have been asking about the female lead. To clarify—those ambiguous scenes are just that: ambiguous. As for Takeshi's final romantic destination, please be patient. It'll be explained clearly at the end.