Throne Of The Uchiha

Reorganization

What Uchiha Jin said made a certain amount of sense. Right now, the individuals holding the most influence within Konoha were the remaining disciples of the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju.

In addition to the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, the influential figures of the village included Homura Mitokado, Koharu Utatane, and Shimura Danzō. These three operated as elders and advisors, ostensibly assisting the Hokage in overseeing village affairs—but their influence extended far beyond simple counsel.

The Third Hokage had even authorized Danzō to secretly form a black-ops faction independent of the Anbu—Root—a covert force that answered only to Danzō himself. While Root officially existed to protect the village, its true operations often conflicted with the ideals of the Will of Fire.

Beneath this Advisory Council sat the Council of Elders, composed of retired shinobi and influential figures from the era of the First and Second Hokage. While lacking in direct command or military power, the Elders were respected, and their words could influence public opinion or sway the Hokage's decisions, especially during times of uncertainty.

Despite this, when it came to matters involving the Uchiha clan, true authority rested only with the Hokage and his direct advisors. The Elders had neither the means nor the courage to challenge them directly. The surveillance and marginalization of the Uchiha were carried out quietly, through policies that could never be openly stated. After all, the Uchiha still held prestige and power within Konoha, at least in name.

Fugaku reasoned that Hiruzen and the others were likely preoccupied with devising strategies against the other Great Nations and managing logistics. As for Shimura Danzō—whose disdain for the Uchiha was no secret—he was undoubtedly busy recruiting and deploying agents. War brought chaos, displacement, and fear—perfect conditions for infiltration and subversion.

Fugaku remembered well: during the Second Shinobi World War, Orochimaru had worked closely with Danzō, especially in intelligence gathering and espionage. He had personally protected Danzō during that time and had seen how deep their collusion ran.

Fugaku glanced sideways at Uchiha Jin and Uchiha Yan. The Third Hokage's doctrine—the Will of Fire—was powerful, even insidious in its subtlety. Fugaku couldn't be sure if his two clanmates had already accepted it, whether consciously or through indoctrination. Some thoughts could only remain unspoken. He wasn't yet clan head. His words alone wouldn't carry enough weight to shift the clan's direction.

"Jin, Yan," Fugaku said after a pause, "the Uchiha's standing in the village hasn't been good, but there's an opportunity now. If Father were to send more of our people to the Land of Rain, we could both contribute to Konoha and improve our clan's reputation."

Fugaku was well aware that the village leadership wouldn't willingly hand the Uchiha such an opportunity to shine. But that didn't matter. What was important was the public statement of intent—his father making a formal request to participate more in frontline combat. Whether the request was accepted or not, word would spread.

And in Konoha, word of mouth was power. News that the Uchiha were eager to serve would inevitably circulate among the villagers. Even if the request was denied, the clan's image could begin to recover.

Jin and Yan nodded in agreement.

"I'll have to trouble you, Yan, to pass that message along to the clan head," Fugaku said calmly.

Fugaku himself couldn't return to the village to deliver the message. Too many eyes were on him—both inside and outside the clan. But Uchiha Yan was different.

Yan's summoning contract was with the Ninneko of the Ninja Cat Clan, who had long been on friendly terms with the Uchiha. He could use a summoned cat to send intelligence directly to the clan head.

Uchiha Yan chuckled. "You geniuses never want to sign contracts with the Ninja Cat Clan. Senior Jing was like that, and now you're the same."

Then he gave a casual wave. "Don't worry. I'll get the message back to the chief."

Fugaku and Jin proceeded to give Yan a thorough rundown of the situation in the Land of Rain. In times like these, even intelligence from the village could be outdated or fabricated. A compromised spy or an internal factional shift could change everything. Real clarity only came from direct experience.

They didn't linger in Yan's tent too long. With tensions running high, the Uchiha were under scrutiny. Prolonged meetings between senior Uchiha could easily draw unwanted attention.

When they returned to their own tent, only Satomaru was there. Nozawa was absent.

The moment Fugaku stepped inside, he noticed a flicker of surprise cross Satomaru's face—just for a second—before he regained his composure.

"You're here alone," Fugaku said, watching him carefully. "Didn't feel like visiting old friends after completing your mission?"

Satomaru smiled faintly. "None of my old friends are stationed at the forward base. I was the only one selected. Not sure if that's good luck or bad."

Fugaku nodded slightly. He'd need to dig deeper into Satomaru's background. Konoha might be a village, but it was still large, and information could be traced—if you knew where to start.

As a relatively unknown Chūnin, Satomaru wasn't on anyone's radar. Tracing his academy classmates and mission history could expose holes in his identity. Starting from the Anbu would be pointless; they reported directly to the Hokage, and the Uchiha were already under suspicion. Such a move would only make things worse.

Still, if Satomaru truly was a member of the Anbu or Root, then his presence was a constant reminder for Fugaku to tread carefully—especially with his words.

Three days passed without incident, though the fighting across the Land of Rain intensified. There had been a quiet reshuffling of unit formations, and all missions over those three days had been carried out by newly reorganized squads.

Just yesterday, Uchiha Yan had been assigned as the leader of a nine-man team.

Then, early in the morning, a messenger arrived at Fugaku's tent with a summons—Hatake Sakumo had ordered all ninja to gather outside his command tent at 0900 hours.

It was obvious. Large-scale reorganization was underway. Fugaku didn't know who would be assigned to his new unit, but the time had come.

The sky wept its usual slow drizzle—sometimes heavy, sometimes light. After so many days in the Rain Country, the constant damp had become background noise.

At 0900 sharp, Sakumo stepped out of the command tent, followed by a clerk carrying a thick ledger.

Sakumo's piercing gaze swept over the assembled shinobi.

"You were summoned here because you're all elites—chosen from among Konoha's best," he said, his voice stern but clear. "But your performance thus far… has been underwhelming. Our forward units have taken severe losses. The high command is displeased."

He paused.

"Fortunately, reinforcements have arrived. After a review by the General Staff, we're reorganizing the combat teams."

He nodded to the clerk, who began reading from the ledger.

"Team 001, Captain Nara Fukada. Vice-captains: Yamanaka Imura, Akimichi Okada. Team members: Nagasawa Maru, Matsubara Nakamura..."

The listings continued until—

"Team 009. Captain: Uchiha Fugaku. Vice-captains: Hyūga Ning, Inuzuka Maru. Team members: Yamada Shinji, Kōda Maru, Aburame Nozawa, Qiuze Ōno, Satomaru, Haranoki, Yamamoto Ichisuke, Aida Maki, Harada Kirisawa."

And then—

"Team 010..."

The structure was clear: one Jōnin, two vice-captains, and a full team of chūnin and advanced genin. Unlike the prior setup—one Jōnin and two chūnin—this format reflected the urgency of war.

It wasn't a shortage of Jōnin, but a surplus of hastily promoted chūnin. Many of them had only gone through minimal evaluation, boosted by battlefield merit or necessity.

Fugaku noticed several familiar genin among the crowd—young, sharp-eyed, determined. War would forge or break them. Those who survived would be molded into hardened chūnin. The others… would be casualties.

This was not a temporary arrangement. It was a long-term strategy—one designed to replenish Konoha's ranks in anticipation of a prolonged conflict.