"This old man is definitely insane."
Yawning and rubbing his temples, Takuya, his eyes dark with exhaustion, trudged down the stairs.
That old man—Six Paths Sage—was completely out of his mind.
For years now, things had been peaceful in the shinobi world, yet the old man had nothing better to do than drop in and pester him with endless conversations. It was beyond frustrating.
And the worst part? Takuya still hadn't figured out a way to make him stop.
For someone who was supposedly resting in the Pure Land, he sure spent a lot of time meddling in the affairs of the living. Wouldn't it be better if he focused on gathering spiritual energy or, better yet, figured out how to retrieve his two endlessly reincarnating sons?
That's right—Indra and Asura's chakra was still cycling through reincarnations.
The Sage of Six Paths had mentioned this himself. Whether or not it was true, Takuya had no way to verify.
But honestly? He couldn't care less.
Even if Asura and Indra continued their cycle of reincarnation, what difference would it make?
Kaguya's seal was in the Pure Land—right under the Sage's watchful eye. Black Zetsu had been sealed away as well. Without a second Black Zetsu running interference, Takuya highly doubted Indra's next reincarnation could cause much trouble.
At least, not while he was still alive.
And as for after his death? Well, that wouldn't be his problem anymore, would it?
Just as he reached the bottom of the stairs, a figure suddenly threw itself at him. Reflexively, Takuya caught them.
"Suzune, that's a foul—you just tackled me out of nowhere."
"I couldn't help it! I'm just so excited!"
Hyūga Suzune giggled, her arms still looped around his neck before she finally let go, her expression growing somewhat hesitant.
One look at her and Takuya could already tell—something was wrong.
"Let me guess. The Hyūga clan's reforms aren't going well?"
No matter how much distance she put between herself and her clan, Suzune was still a member of the Hyūga main family. That fact alone meant she couldn't completely ignore its affairs.
But the clan had given her a seat as an elder, largely because of her connection to Takuya.
And with that influence, Hiashi had seen an opportunity—a chance to push for long-overdue reforms.
But, unsurprisingly, things hadn't gone smoothly.
Hiashi had underestimated the stubbornness of the Hyūga elders. The moment the proposal was raised, they unanimously rejected it. Even the branch family elders—who stood to benefit from these reforms—refused to support it.
"Aside from me and the clan head, everyone else opposes it—including my father."
Suzune sighed, looking genuinely frustrated.
She never imagined the clan's resistance would be this strong.
Compared to the Hyūga, the Uchiha had restructured themselves without issue.
And why?
Because they had Takuya.
With him as their silent guardian, the dissenting voices within the Uchiha clan had no choice but to fall in line.
Then, of course, there was Fugaku—who wasn't above subtly "removing" those who stood in the way of progress. After a few well-timed accidents, the Uchiha's internal reforms proceeded without a hitch.
Meanwhile, the Hyūga were still stuck at square one.
"I already expected as much."
Takuya wasn't surprised in the least.
The Hyūga elders were among the most stubborn, tradition-bound people in the village. Asking them to accept change? That was harder than killing them outright.
And unlike Fugaku, Hiashi wasn't ruthless enough to eliminate his opposition.
He couldn't exactly remove the main family elders—Hyūga bloodlines were too important to simply cut off.
And so, the resistance continued.
"I even went to Tsunade for help, but she can't do much about it either."
Suzune's frustration deepened. Even with the Hokage's backing, there were limits to how much pressure could be applied.
Tsunade could intervene on some matters, but she wasn't about to force the entire clan to change overnight.
And, more importantly—she was preparing to step down.
As for why?
Simple.
She was tired.
She had endured years of paperwork, politics, and village administration, and now? She wanted out.
Her first instinct had been to shove the Hokage hat onto Takuya's head.
But he also hated responsibility.
So instead? He shoved it onto Minato.
Takuya was confident Minato would be a capable Fifth Hokage.
After all, thanks to him, Minato had never become the Fourth Hokage in the first place. This would be a fair compensation.
Of course, convincing Minato hadn't been easy.
The original, ambitious "I'll become Hokage!" Minato from before had long since disappeared. After spending years under Takuya's influence, he had developed a sense of self-preservation.
It had taken a lot of effort to drag him back into the mindset of becoming Hokage.
But Tsunade was retiring.
Takuya wasn't willing to take the role.
And as for the other candidates?
Well, Jiraiya vanished the moment he heard Tsunade was stepping down, conveniently going off on a "research trip" for his novels.
Meanwhile, Sakumo spent his time pestering his son to hurry up and get married so he could retire and become a full-time grandparent.
That left only Minato.
And as for Nawaki…
Tsunade definitely wasn't about to hand him the position.
He had grown up, yes—but she didn't want the ever-expanding Senju lineage to continue disrupting the village's political structure.
Suzune had come to Takuya for advice regarding the clan reforms, but he was still too exhausted to care. So, he threw out a simple suggestion:
"If the elders are resisting change, then shift tactics. Don't try to abolish the old system outright—adjust it. Implement a new clan rule: status and privileges should be based on contributions to the clan. Make it clear that everyone is subject to this rule—main family, branch family, even the clan head and elders."
He smirked.
"In short, if they refuse to change, make them work for their privileges instead of leeching off the clan."
The Hyūga's biggest issue was the sheer number of freeloaders. The branch families had to financially support not just the entire main family, but also various elder council members who contributed nothing.
If they tied privileges to merit? Those freeloaders would be forced to earn their keep.
Takuya was certain they wouldn't last long once they had to endure the same hardships as the branch families.
Once they tasted the bitterness of being powerless, then they'd understand why the branch families had been demanding change all this time.
Suzune's eyes lit up.
"This is perfect!"
Overjoyed, she impulsively kissed Takuya on the cheek before dashing out the door.
She couldn't wait to bring this idea to Hiashi.
"Oh, right!"
Pausing at the doorway, she turned back with a bright smile.
"The clan head asked me to invite you to the heir's full moon celebration. Don't forget to attend!"
Time really flew.
One by one, the next generation of shinobi was beginning to enter the world.
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(P)(S): If you're interested, you can read the rest of the Chapter at Patreon com/ Emik01.
DO NOT FORGET POWER STONE AND CHATTING