After seeing Orochimaru off, Jin and the others did not disperse. Instead, they remained in the office to continue their discussion.
Second Elder Uchiha Yashi spoke first.
"Today's jōnin council truly opened my eyes. I never thought I'd live to see the day Hiruzen and Danzo completely tear their masks off in front of everyone."
Setsuna gave a low chuckle.
"Indeed. Judging by Hiruzen's performance, he wanted to deal with Danzo without offending us. In the end, we became the fishermen while the clam and the crane fought."
For years, Setsuna had carried the stigma of "instigator of rebellion." He rarely left Uchiha territory unless absolutely necessary. To suddenly see his name partially cleared in open council—
That was an unexpected gift.
Fugaku nodded thoughtfully.
"Now that Hiruzen and Danzo have fallen out, the Uchiha have become the swing faction. Both sides need us. The more viciously they fight, the more leverage we gain."
Setsuna's expression darkened slightly.
"The only regret is that we allowed Danzo to wash his hands clean of the human experimentation issue today."
"He has undoubtedly experimented on Uchiha. Letting him off without extracting justice… it leaves a bad taste."
Earlier in the meeting, when Hiruzen exposed the experiments, Setsuna had nearly stepped in to press the advantage. Jin had stopped him.
Jin spoke calmly.
"Don't be impatient, Elder."
"Hiruzen's objective today was never to destroy Danzo outright. He only wanted to strip him of candidacy and political office."
"Even if we had piled on, at most Danzo would have lost his positions."
"For us? That isn't enough."
"If we intend to cut someone down, we don't aim for flesh—we aim for the throat."
"Moving today would have alerted him."
"And once alerted, he becomes far more dangerous."
He leaned back slightly.
"Relax. Whether Danzo, Hiruzen, Koharu, or Homura…"
"They're grasshoppers after autumn."
"They won't be jumping much longer."
Setsuna fell silent. When Jin spoke like that, it meant the matter was already accounted for.
Fugaku shifted the conversation.
"There are three days until the Fourth Hokage election."
"In those three days, neither Hiruzen nor Danzo will remain idle."
"What should we do?"
Jin shook his head.
"Nothing."
"They're the ones in a hurry. Not us."
"We simply wait for them to come offering better terms."
Fugaku asked the crucial question.
"On voting day… who do we back?"
"Do we continue playing along with Danzo?"
Jin paused briefly before answering.
"To avoid unnecessary risk, all Uchiha-held jōnin confidence votes go to Minato."
"But we cannot show our hand yet."
"If Hiruzen believes we're already committed, he won't bleed to buy us."
"So we maintain ambiguity."
"Flip at the last possible moment."
Fugaku, Setsuna, and Yashi all nodded.
That was the Uchiha way—never reveal your blade before it's needed.
Jin's tone shifted.
"While we refrain from interfering in village politics, our internal preparations must accelerate."
"You heard what I told Orochimaru."
"In at most one year, we begin a war that engulfs the entire shinobi world."
"Time is short."
"Once Minato ascends, the Military Police reforms begin immediately."
He turned to Fugaku.
"After this meeting, speak with Yashiro. Finalize the department's documentation and draft the initial restructuring framework."
Fugaku nodded.
"Most of the groundwork is already complete. With your strategic outline in place, refining details will take no more than three days."
"Good."
Jin continued.
"Originally, Minato and I planned to fabricate a reason to remove the current Anbu commander."
"But fate intervened."
"The assassination attempt failed to kill Hiruzen—"
"Yet his son, the Anbu Commander, Sarutobi Shinnosuke, died in that same incident."
"No excuse required anymore."
"When Minato takes office, I will assume command of the Anbu."
He paused deliberately.
"As you all know, the Six Major Departments traditionally have separate heads."
"I cannot hold both the Military Police and Anbu simultaneously."
"Fugaku-niisan, the Police will return to you."
Fugaku did not hesitate.
"We are family. The title matters little."
Yashi, however, frowned.
"The Anbu is too critical a post."
"Hiruzen's influence there spans decades."
"They won't surrender it easily."
Jin gave a cold smile.
"The Anbu answers to the Hokage. Period."
"Personnel decisions fall under the Hokage's authority alone."
"On what grounds could Hiruzen object?"
Setsuna spoke up.
"The problem isn't official authority."
"The problem is loyalty."
"Anbu members have been shaped by Hiruzen's hand for years."
"If he undermines you from the shadows, your authority will be hollow."
Jin's expression hardened.
"Then we replace them."
"If they've forgotten who they serve, we remind them."
"And if reminders fail—we remove them."
He spoke as if discussing inventory management.
"The Uchiha have plenty of capable shinobi with no formal appointments."
"Police reform will free additional elites."
"With Hyūga support as well…"
"We could replace the entire Anbu roster if necessary."
He tapped the desk lightly.
"The Anbu is already ours."
Silence settled over the room.
It wasn't arrogance.
It was inevitability.
Read 50 chapters ahead on P@treon -> [email protected]/warewolvesTL(replace@ with a)