Chapter 19: Arranged Down to the Last Detail

Absurd!

Utterly outrageous!

The atmosphere at the voting site was eerily chilling; representatives of the great families remained silent, watching quietly as the four brothers stood together.

The scene was almost surreal.

Even Chu Yang broke out in goosebumps, fearing his impulsive stunt might backfire.

Fortunately, events had not deviated far from fate’s trajectory—only slightly off course.

Aside from Hashirama Senju and Tobirama Senju, only a portion of people voted for Madara Uchiha.

Those people had been arranged in advance by Tobirama Senju.

Everything was within plan.

Madara Uchiha was slightly disappointed by the result; he knew his reputation among the villagers of Konoha couldn’t match Hashirama Senju’s, but he hadn’t expected such a staggering gap.

Yet he ultimately accepted it calmly, and even Uchiha Shisui had no objections.

“Madara…” Hashirama Senju looked at his friend with deep regret.

He seemed apologetic about becoming Hokage himself.

Feeling Hashirama’s sincere gaze, Madara Uchiha sighed and said, “Hashirama, this is everyone’s choice—including mine. Itachi needn’t feel guilty.”

“I chose Itachi because I believe Itachi can achieve our ideal.”

At this point, Hashirama Senju no longer refused; he accepted his friend’s trust with gratitude and, amid the crowd’s cheers, declared himself the First Hokage of Konoha.

During the period when representatives and villagers came forward to offer congratulations, Uchiha Shisui slowly walked over to Tobirama Senju’s side and stood beside him.

“Now I understand why my elder brother could become friends with him,” Uchiha Shisui sincerely said. “He… the Hokage truly possesses a unique charisma. I hope Konoha will grow even better under his leadership.”

Tobirama Senju nodded. “Our elder will not disappoint anyone. Itachi may rest assured.”

Suddenly, Uchiha Shisui made an action Tobirama Senju had never anticipated.

He extended his hand toward Tobirama Senju with a smile.

“Let’s get to know each other again. Uchiha clan, Uchiha Shisui.”

Tobirama Senju froze for a moment, then gave him a long, deep look before extending his own hand. “Senju clan, Tobirama Senju.”

As representatives of their respective clans’ hardline factions, this handshake drew even more attention than the one between Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha on the other side.

Standing outside the crowd, Chu Yang watched this scene with interest—until he suddenly felt Tobirama Senju’s approving gaze.

It meant: “Kid, your scheming isn’t half bad.”

Chu Yang: “...”

Thanks to Chu Yang’s subtle manipulation, Konoha’s development trajectory had diverged slightly from the original storyline.

The Uchiha and Senju clans had entered an unprecedented honeymoon period in their history.

As days passed, Konoha witnessed one major event after another, each capable of shaping the village’s future.

The first was the official establishment of the Anbu Black Ops, led by Tobirama Senju.

Everyone assumed Tobirama Senju would naturally become its head—but no one expected him to hand this crucial position to Uchiha Shisui.

Tobirama Senju, in turn, stepped down to become the Hokage’s assistant.

Everyone believed Tobirama Senju had made a sacrifice—even the Uchiha clan thought so.

Only Chu Yang understood Tobirama Senju’s true intent.

First and foremost, the Anbu’s primary duty was to secretly protect the Hokage’s safety; second was conducting covert assassination and special operations targeting key enemy figures.

Reconnaissance and defense against external invasion were the lowest priorities.

Protecting the Hokage was paramount.

Simply entrusting Hashirama Senju’s safety to Uchiha Shisui was already a clear sign of Tobirama Senju’s trust in the Uchiha clan.

This would greatly win the favor of the Uchiha clan—and Uchiha Shisui himself.

Undoubtedly.

Was there risk in this decision?

Of course.

But the risk remained within acceptable limits, because Uchiha Shisui lacked the power to threaten Hashirama Senju—even if he betrayed them, he could not harm him.

Tobirama Senju had already considered this.

Then, on Chu Yang’s suggestion, Tobirama Senju planned to embed a special team within the Anbu to secretly monitor its entire operation.

That team would later become the Root, founded by Danzo Shimura.

Based on these two points, Tobirama Senju gave the Anbu leadership to Uchiha Shisui—and he had further arrangements lined up to ensure absolute security.

What Chu Yang truly found brilliant was the position of Hokage’s assistant.

Who held more power: the Hokage’s assistant or the Anbu leader?

Most would choose the Anbu leader!

Isn’t the Hokage’s assistant just someone who runs errands? What power could he possibly have?

But forget not: Hashirama Senju’s nature meant he would inevitably dump every task, big or small, onto his brother Tobirama’s shoulders.

Thus, Tobirama Senju would become the true wielder of the Hokage’s power.

Everyone believed Tobirama Senju had sacrificed his rightful authority for the village’s peace and stability—but in truth, his power remained unchanged, merely hidden.

Madara Uchiha might sense something amiss, but he wouldn’t dwell on it, because the supreme authority of the Anbu already rested in his brother Shisui’s hands.

Moreover, he knew Hashirama Senju well—he understood the man was incapable of handling tedious bureaucratic affairs and would inevitably delegate them to his brother.

After resolving the Anbu matter, the second major event was the establishment of the Security Force.

Again, due to the Anbu’s structure, Tobirama Senju granted half the Security Force’s authority to the Hyuga clan.

As the third-largest clan after the Senju and Uchiha, the Hyuga had both weight and justification to claim a share of power.

A counterbalancing force now existed within the Security Force, capable of checking the Uchiha clan’s influence.

Even so, the Uchiha clan still gained more than they lost.

Meanwhile, Tobirama Senju successfully won the Hyuga clan’s loyalty.

With this arrangement, the Uchiha clan gained substantial benefits—but as clan head, Madara Uchiha received only the title of Senior Advisor, with no real authority.

The terrifying part? No one thought it was odd!

Even within the Uchiha clan, there was no dissent.

Beyond these two major events, the third was the one with the longest-lasting significance for Konoha’s development.

The founding of the Konoha Ninja Academy!

Providing a healthy environment for children scarred by war, letting them train and gain the skills to protect themselves—this was the shared wish of Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha.

Tobirama Senju, skilled in teaching young ninja, was unanimously elected as the academy’s first headmaster.

Chu Yang, as the First Hokage’s and Tobirama Senju’s direct disciple, became the academy’s first teacher.

(End of Chapter)