The Uchiha and Inuzuka clans arrived at the Hokage Building in grand fashion, banners high and momentum blazing, requesting an audience with the Third Hokage.
Just as Uncle had predicted, when the Inuzuka clan raised their request for help resolving the land issue, the Hokage readily granted them territory near the Forest of Death. Everyone returned to their clan lands in high spirits.
The Uchiha, too, showered the Hokage with praise — extolling his benevolence, and saying that the Third truly possessed the noble bearing of the First Hokage.
Thus, both clans began large-scale construction. The Inuzuka even mobilized their entire clan — aside from elders and small children, nearly everyone went, since this was a matter of their clan's survival.
As long as they could successfully raise their ninja hounds again, the Inuzuka would recover their fighting strength within two or three years — perhaps even rise higher than before.
The Uchiha side was managed by the three elders. Uchiha Kairen was occasionally called in to lend a hand. It was part of the clan's deliberate plan to nurture the next generation — letting the younger ones experience that, beyond killing, a shinobi clan's higher ranks also needed to handle affairs of governance and leadership.
After pondering for a while, Kairen decided to speak with his uncle and his teacher, Uchiha Ankoku, about his new idea — the "Praise and Kill Plan."
When Kairen entered the Police Force office, he found his uncle and teacher already waiting. After a few formal greetings, Kairen's expression turned serious.
"Uncle, sensei — I've come up with a new plan. But before explaining, I want to ask: who do you think the next Hokage will be? Or rather, among which people will the next Hokage arise?"
"In terms of achievements and strength, there's no question — it'll be one of the Three Legendary Sannin, or Konoha's White Fang — Hatake Sakumo."
"The Hatake clan has a long legacy, famous for their swordsmanship. And White Fang is the strongest among them. But that very fact — that he's of the Hatake — means he's nearly impossible to become Hokage. Still, if his reputation were suddenly to surpass even the Sannin…"
"If his fame rose close to the Hokage's… whether or not the Third has the same tolerance as the First, could he really stomach letting White Fang's influence grow that high? And what about those clans who've long aligned themselves under the Hokage's banner — would they ever agree?
If the Hatake rise, that means a reshuffling of power. Do you think the old guard will willingly surrender their positions?"
"And what of Danzo? Would he just sit still? The moment White Fang rises, the first person he'll move against will be Danzō himself. White Fang is currently the commander of the Anbu. If not for the Third's deliberate decision, do you think the Anbu commander would ever tolerate a special operations unit that ignores his direct orders? Ridiculous — then what kind of commander would that make him?"
"All we need to do," Kairen continued, "is make contact with the Hatake clan and pull in some of the other sword-wielding families. Under the banner of 'bonding through the blade,' we build up White Fang's reputation — gathering those sword clans under his name. The more the Hatake grow, the more they'll become a thorn in the side of certain factions — and certain people."
"White Fang's personality is resolute, straightforward — flawless as a shinobi. But his clan is weak. And weakness means that once he's gone, they'll have nothing left. If we use his nature well — and with Danzō's methods — eliminating White Fang will be no trouble. Once he's gone, the Hatake clan will exist in name only. The Hokage faction will have lost one of its strongest arms."
"And as for those sword clans who joined us in supporting the Hatake — when the Hokage faction turns hostile toward them, cutting off all return to neutrality, where else can they go but to us, the Uchiha?"
"Once White Fang — an elite of Kage-level strength — is removed, and the Hatake clan crushed, the Hokage faction loses influence while our Uchiha gain allies. The balance of power shifts — and all without us ever lifting a blade. The benefits to our clan are immeasurable."
"So, to achieve that goal, my proposal is simple: the Praise and Kill Plan.
Through the guise of camaraderie by the sword, we rally support around the Hatake, raise White Fang to the heavens — and then let him be crushed under his own glory. Once the stage is set, we merely ride the tide."
Uchiha Nobunaga tried his best to treat his nephew as a grown man — but even so, the boy's thinking left him speechless. This mind… is he sure he's not a Nara? he thought, staring at Kairen, whose face so closely resembled his brother's. He shook his head, cleared his thoughts, and began analyzing the plan seriously.
The more he thought, the more potential he saw. Even if they pushed this plan forward, there was no real downside for the Uchiha.
It wasn't their hands doing the killing — and it wasn't their allies submitting to others.
"All we're doing," Nobunaga mused inwardly, "is connecting through the way of the sword, deepening the bonds between clans, showing our willingness to integrate into Konoha. What's wrong with that? Everything else… well, those are other people's choices. Not ours."
Such clarity of thought. Such exquisite poison — so sweet the target will swallow it willingly.
Such ruthless logic — so cold it frightens me.
To effortlessly destroy a Kage-level ninja, erase a clan, and corner the sword families into submission — all without lifting a finger… thank heaven this child was born a Uchiha. If he were born our enemy, we'd never even know how we died. Truly, heaven protects the Uchiha.
Uchiha Ankoku, who had long known Kairen's sharp analytical mind, still found himself astonished all over again. The boy's ability to see through layers of politics and human nature seemed to grow by the day.
Kairen saw the two men's reactions and knew he had convinced them. Without White Fang's eventual death, the plan was merely speculative — a gamble on the Hatake. But given how the "story" of this world tended to unfold, White Fang was destined to be disgraced and driven to death anyway.
Why not simply make that fall come sooner?
Even so, Kairen knew this was delicate. A "bonding by the sword" gathering might be harmless for any other clan, but if the Uchiha were involved? Even without evidence, Danzō could slap the label of "traitorous conspiracy" on it instantly. For Uchiha to have a favorable outcome, ironically, they had to rely on Danzō.
The three of them then fine-tuned the plan, using the "Flatter-and-Destroy" concept as the core.
Kairen added, "Just holding a sword-meet won't draw enough attention or elevate anyone's prestige. I propose this: we have the Uchiha formally petition the Hokage to host an official event — the First Konoha Shinobi Sword Tournament — inviting every talented young ninja in the village."
"Let Hatake Sakumo serve as chief judge. Each sword-wielding clan, including ours, will send one master as a secondary judge. After selecting the top ten contestants, the judges will each give them a week of instruction, then those ten will face off in a final challenge tournament — to decide the ultimate champion."
Kairen's idea was inspired by "talent contests" from his previous life — a completely new concept in the shinobi world. In scale and creativity, it far outshone the Chūnin Exams.
Once the plan was finalized, Uchiha Nobunaga went to meet with other clan heads, and together they would approach the Hokage to preside over the tournament — completing the first half of the Flatter-and-Destroy Plan.
In the following days, Uchiha Ankoku gathered the clan's young sword prodigies and began intensive training, determined to display the Uchiha's sword mastery to the world.
The plan was progressing smoothly. Kairen also began wooden sword sparring every day — switching opponents constantly. His father, his teacher, Danten, even Kaze — none escaped his challenge.
He wanted to get a real feel for the competition ahead, like a warm-up match from his previous life.
It didn't take long before the Hokage caught wind of the Uchiha's coordination.
But since their public stance was one of deference — insisting the Hokage host it and appoint the Anbu Commander as chief referee — Hiruzen Sarutobi was more than happy to agree.
After all, the event gave the young generation a stage to hone their skills. It could even become a recurring event — bringing revenue to Konoha, boosting youth experience, and strengthening his own prestige. And with the Uchiha and sword clans footing the entire bill, it was pure benefit with zero cost.
Only a fool would refuse.
For the past two days, Hiruzen had remained in his office, waiting for the clans to officially submit their request. Hatake Sakumo had already spoken with him privately — everything that needed to be said had been said.
All that remained was to make it official.