Fugaku's eyes remained fixed on Toyama.
Behind him stood Shisui, while five-year-old Itachi quietly stood at his side. Both Fugaku and Shisui were watching Toyama sternly, waiting for an answer.
Toyama, however, wasn't looking at either of them.
His eyes were fixed on Grand Elder Setsuna, who had brought them here in the first place.
His expression seemed to say,
Did they really need to be here? Couldn't you have warned me about this beforehand?
Setsuna only gave him a wry look in return.
Kohaku noticed it as well and sighed quietly.
Kazuto, meanwhile, seemed very interested in looking anywhere except at Toyama.
"Are you planning something against the village?" Fugaku finally asked.
His voice was calm and firm, his eyes never leaving Toyama.
"What exactly did you mean by those words?"
Toyama slowly turned toward him.
"Hello, Sur—"
He paused.
"Oh. Sorry. Clan Head."
The correction came just a little too late to be mistaken for an accident.
Fugaku's jaw tightened.
This bastard can never change.
That same attitude.
That same contempt.
Even now, Toyama was deliberately mocking him.
"Didn't know you had this habit," Toyama continued casually.
"Listening to other people's private conversations."
He tilted his head slightly.
"Who taught you that?"
The contempt on his face was impossible to miss.
"Youuu..."
Fugaku gritted his teeth.
"Don't change the subject."
His voice became sharper.
"What did you mean by what you said?"
Before the argument could escalate further, Setsuna spoke.
"Yes. I'm curious about that too."
He looked toward Toyama.
"What exactly did you mean when you said the next Hokage would only remain in office for a year?"
His tone was calm, almost as if he were deliberately allowing Toyama to explain himself.
Kohaku's expression remained tense.
From the look on his face, it was obvious he was trying to figure out exactly how much Fugaku and Shisui had overheard.
Setsuna noticed it as well.
"Is there something you know that even I don't?"
For a brief moment, relief appeared on Toyama's face.
So they hadn't heard much.
His expression changed almost immediately.
"Hmph."
He folded his arms and casually sat down in the nearest chair.
"Even if I did know something, why would I tell it in front of people who might run off and report everything to their master the moment they leave this room?"
The hidden meaning behind his words was obvious.
Fugaku's eyes narrowed.
Shisui also understood exactly who Toyama was talking about.
"Toyama."
Shisui stepped forward.
"The Clan Head is only worried about you and the clan."
His voice remained calm.
"If you take even one wrong step, everyone will suffer for it."
Toyama barely looked at him.
"We're a separate clan now."
He leaned back in the chair.
"You don't need to worry about us anymore."
Then he glanced between Fugaku and Shisui.
"And why are you two here anyway?"
There was no patience in his voice.
He clearly had no interest in listening to another speech about sacrifice, unity, or the greater good.
Shisui didn't back down.
"Separation doesn't change the blood running through our veins."
He looked directly at Toyama.
"Whatever else has changed, that hasn't."
Toyama stared at him for a few seconds.
His expression was difficult to read.
Then, unexpectedly, he smiled faintly.
"You're a good guy."
Shisui blinked.
Toyama continued looking at him.
"You know that?"
Shisui couldn't tell whether Toyama was praising him or mocking him.
The words sounded sincere.
But the faint contempt in Toyama's eyes made him question everything about the statement.
"I don't think that's..." Shisui said, looking slightly confused as he tried to laugh it off.
"No. I'm telling the truth."
Toyama's expression became completely serious.
"I've always thought about it. You and Clan Head Fugaku."
He looked between the two of them.
"No matter how much of an idiot you two can be sometimes, there's one thing I've never doubted."
Fugaku and Shisui's expressions darkened, already expecting another insult.
Kohaku and Setsuna, however, watched with growing interest. They were both curious about where Toyama was going with this.
"You're both good guys."
The words hung in the air.
For a moment, nobody knew what to say.
"Toyama, we may not always see eye to eye," Shisui said slowly, "but I also know that you're trying to make the Uchiha a better clan. In your own way."
Fugaku gave a small nod beside him.
Even Itachi's expression softened, seemingly pleased by Toyama's words.
"That's exactly why I said it."
Toyama stepped closer and placed a hand on Shisui's shoulder.
For once, there was no obvious mockery in his expression.
He gave Shisui an approving look.
"You're a good guy."
Shisui smiled awkwardly.
Toyama then looked at Fugaku.
"So are you."
Fugaku raised an eyebrow.
Toyama nodded as if he had just reached an important conclusion.
"That's why I have one piece of advice for both of you."
He looked at them seriously.
"Why don't you guys just ascend?"
Silence.
For a second, nobody moved.
Fugaku froze.
Shisui froze.
Kohaku froze.
Setsuna froze.
Even Kazuto stopped trying to avoid everyone's gaze.
Five-year-old Itachi simply stared at Toyama, clearly having no idea what he meant.
The entire room had gone completely silent.
Toyama, meanwhile, looked perfectly satisfied with himself.
"Pff..."
Kohaku's laugh escaped before he could stop himself.
A moment later, Grand Elder Setsuna and Elder Kazuto were struggling to contain themselves as well. After Kohaku's small laugh, both of them lowered their heads and covered their stomachs, trying desperately to keep from laughing out loud.
Grand Elder Setsuna shook his head.
Just as expected from Toyama.
He had never understood why Toyama had praised Shisui and Fugaku when he was usually the one who looked at both of them with open disgust.
Now he understood.
Toyama had simply been mocking them.
"Youuu..."
Shisui finally realised it.
His face darkened.
"Well, since you two are such good guys..."
Toyama ignored his reaction and continued.
"Let me explain why I said the next Hokage may only remain in office for a short time."
Fugaku and Shisui were still angry, but neither interrupted him.
They wanted to know what Toyama was thinking.
Toyama leaned back in his chair.
"It's obvious to everyone that Hiruzen Sarutobi is leaving the Hokage seat because of the pressure."
His eyes moved toward Fugaku.
"And even if he doesn't want to leave, the clans and the villagers won't allow him to stay forever."
Toyama paused.
"If he tries to force his way into remaining Hokage, there could be a backlash."
He shrugged slightly.
"And that backlash may become something even he can't control."
Fugaku's expression became more serious.
Toyama's voice lowered.
"But..."
He deliberately stopped.
Everyone in the room watched him.
"Controlling the next Hokage from behind the scenes may be the better option for him."
Silence filled the room.
Toyama looked directly at Fugaku.
"The real question is..."
He paused again.
"How long will he be able to control him?"
Nobody answered.
Despite their unwillingness to agree with Toyama, both Fugaku and Shisui found themselves thinking about it.
Could that really happen?
The rumours spreading throughout the village, along with the evidence of past actions involving the Hokage and the elders, had already planted doubt in people's minds.
The villagers were beginning to question the leadership.
The clans were beginning to question it too.
Hiruzen and the elders might genuinely believe themselves to be righteous—or at least appear that way in public.
But their clans were another matter.
The village had begun to understand that the people sitting at the top could claim to serve Konoha while their own clans followed very different interests.
And now Toyama had pointed directly at that weakness.
Fugaku's expression hardened.
He had wanted to dismiss Toyama's words as another one of the brat's provocations.
But he couldn't.
The more Toyama explained, the more uncomfortable the possibility became.
Fugaku had spent enough time around the elders to know how much influence they still held. Even if Hiruzen stepped down, that influence would not simply disappear with him.
Could they really try to control the next Hokage?
His eyes narrowed.
Shisui was troubled for a different reason.
He had always believed that changing the people at the top could eventually change the village itself.
A new Hokage.
A new generation.
A new relationship between the clans and the villagers.
But Toyama's words forced him to consider something he had never wanted to believe.
What if the Hokage isn't truly in control?
Shisui glanced toward Fugaku.
For the first time, he could see the same doubt in his clan head's eyes.
Neither of them wanted to admit it.
Neither wanted to give Toyama the satisfaction.
But they couldn't simply laugh it off anymore.
The rumours surrounding Hiruzen and the elders had already damaged the village's trust in its leadership. The actions of their clans had made that distrust even worse.
And now Toyama was pointing directly at the weakness everyone had begun to notice.
A Hokage could appear righteous.
The elders could appear righteous.
But what happened when the people behind them were not?
"Then how did you come to the conclusion of one year?" Fugaku asked.
Toyama had given an oddly specific number.
It wasn't simply a matter of saying the next Hokage wouldn't last long. He had said six months to a year with enough confidence to make Fugaku wonder how he had arrived at such a prediction.
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