Family System In Naruto

"Lord Hiashi, there's no need for thanks. You know we did that for ourselves too."

Faced with Hyūga Hiashi's gratitude, Yuhara quickly understood the underlying point. He accepted the thanks with a calm smile. After all, gratitude is a kind of social currency. While it doesn't always outweigh personal interests, sometimes it can come in handy—after all, as they say, the hardest debt to repay is a favor.

Still, Yuhara kept himself in check; being too obvious wouldn't be good. Besides, if it weren't for Danzō's actions, he might not have dared to act like this at all—getting called out would've been a nightmare.

"I understand. Anyone facing this kind of leadership would feel trapped and helpless."

Hiashi nodded, smiling faintly. Notably, he referred to "leadership" rather than "the Hokage," making it clear how displeased he was.

But he didn't pursue the topic. Instead, he sipped his tea and said softly, "Lord Yuhara, I'm guessing you came here with something important. Go ahead. Maybe if we talk as individuals, we'll see things from different angles and find new answers."

"Exactly."

Yuhara nodded with a smile, then grew more serious.

"In that case, I'll be blunt—I'm here for the Konoha Police Force."

"The Police Force?"

Hiashi's hand paused mid-air, then he looked curiously at Yuhara.

The Police Force was a big deal. Every clan in Konoha envied the authority it held. But the Uchiha had run it into the ground—turning a massive organization into a complete mess.

Many people sighed over it. Still, the Uchiha were notoriously arrogant and exclusionary. They never let anyone else join and stubbornly ran it their own way. Naturally, no one helped them.

And the other clans weren't stupid—they saw the village was targeting the Uchiha.

That combo led to a worsening situation for both the Uchiha and the Police Force. It looked like the whole thing was about to collapse.

Hiashi had shared that opinion too—until recently. Lately, the Police Force seemed to be gaining better traction. Not by much, but the word was spreading.

He understood why. Just like people don't talk much when a well-known good guy does good things, if he does something bad—boom, instant gossip.

Same for "bad guys." If they do something good, it spreads fast.

Clearly, Yuhara had brought some change to the Force, and it seemed to be a positive one.

Even more interesting—Konoha hadn't cracked down on it, which meant Yuhara had gotten something solid from Hiruzen.

And now this guy was mentioning the Police Force to his face? It likely meant those benefits included something about the Police Force.

Hiashi was intrigued. He sat up straighter and asked seriously, "The Police Force belongs to the Uchiha. What guidance do you have in mind, Lord Yuhara?"

"The Force is under Konoha. The Uchiha only manage it. That's a fact."

Yuhara smiled and tapped the table gently.

"If it's a Konoha department, then it shouldn't only be staffed by Uchiha, right?"

"Oh?"

Hiashi froze for a second. Was Yuhara saying the Uchiha were opening up the Police Force?

If that were true—it was big news.

Clearly, he now understood why Yuhara had come to him. Yuhara was probing if the Hyūga would be interested in joining.

Hiashi was tempted. The Hyūga were a powerful clan, but they didn't actually run any official village department.

Still, he was hesitant. As the Uchiha clan leader, Yuhara surely knew how rocky things were between their clans.

Hiashi had to drop his "clan leader" role just to express thanks earlier. That role symbolized the whole family, after all.

"I'm curious—why me?" Hiashi finally asked. "And why do you think I'd say yes?"

"Honestly, I'm just testing the waters. Everyone knows how battered the Police Force's image is. Other clans may not be able to handle the pressure like we can."

Yuhara gave a bitter smile, then spoke seriously again.

"I picked you for a reason. Hyūga ninjas take on a lot of missions, and they already serve in various departments.

So why not consider the Police Force? Besides, the Hyūga have a natural edge here."

Yuhara was being vague, choosing not to poke Hiashi directly in the sore spot.

Sure enough, Hiashi's expression changed slightly after hearing that.

But he didn't lash out. Instead, he turned silent, deep in thought. The room fell quiet.

Yuhara sipped his tea calmly while Shisui glanced nervously at him.

But Yuhara remained composed. To him, this was just a proposal. Everyone has their own views and motivations.

He wasn't some universal currency—he couldn't please everyone. Some folks probably wanted him dead.

All he could do was offer an idea, paint a vision, and make it look delicious enough to attract others to join him.

The silence didn't last long. Hiashi suddenly sighed, lifted his teacup, and downed it.

Then he set the cup down, smiled gently, and said, "I think it's time we had a proper talk… Captain."

"Well damn, that went smoother than expected."

At dusk, Yuhara and Shisui walked side by side toward the Uchiha district.

Thinking back on the day's events, both of them smiled.

Yuhara had always been a man of action. After getting a nudge from Kotoba and thinking it through, he dove straight in.

It might've looked impulsive, but the outcome was solid—Hiashi had agreed.

He accepted the proposal, though he made it clear the number of people he'd send would be small.

Hiashi still had concerns—Hiruzen's pressure, the Police Force's bad rep. These were valid reasons to hesitate.

Big clans were all about protecting their reputation. Any stain could wreck a member's standing—or worse, the entire family's future.

Yuhara got it. Just look at the Uchiha.

They never cared about their image, and people just kept dumping dirt on them.

Eventually, the truth stopped mattering. The bad reputation stuck.

Now, Yuhara's mission was to change that reputation.

It'd be hard—but in a world without instant information and smear campaigns, not impossible.

If this were the internet age, he'd have given up already.

"But seriously, Hiashi can really talk, huh? We chatted from noon to sunset."

Yuhara laughed, glancing at the sky. Turns out Hiashi was way chattier than the cold, silent guy in the anime.

Then again, people wear masks.

Depending on the setting, situation, or identity, everyone puts on a face to deal with life.

Yuhara didn't know if this was Hiashi's true self or just another mask.

But it didn't matter—he'd gotten what he wanted.

As they walked, Yuhara noticed Shisui was deep in thought, head down.

"What's up, Shisui?" Yuhara asked. "You look off."

"Uh…" Shisui rubbed his head and sighed. "Sorry, I've been thinking about something."

"What is it? Tell me," Yuhara said. "Maybe I can help."

"It's about Lord Hiashi."

Shisui shook his head, then spoke softly.

"I was in the ANBU back then. I knew the Hokage ordered Hiashi's brother to die.

From the situation at the time, it seemed like the Hokage had no choice. Konoha couldn't afford a war.

But that decision made Lord Hiashi resentful. It harmed our internal unity. So..."

"So you're not sure if what the Hokage did was right or wrong, huh?"

Yuhara already knew what was bothering Shisui. He sighed softly.

"It's complicated. You can't look at it from just one side.

What Hiruzen did—it was wrong, but it also wasn't."

(End of Chapter)

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