Renji returned to his room and drew a long breath. It felt good. After washing up, he sat at the window and watched the moonlight.
Today had been a lot. He had just come home and the family handed him a wife-to-be. That felt good too. In his previous life, finding a partner was hard. In this life settling down seemed almost easy.
Talking with Meimei helped him accept this fiancée with the rough past. Wanting to marry a good man is not too much to ask. Wanting a stable life is not too much to ask. Aiming for a good home makes sense. In every way he was the best choice. There was nothing to pick from. He laughed to himself. Too outstanding to hide.
If not for a few pests stirring trouble, the day would have been perfect. Danzo had clearly refocused on the Uchiha. Fine. Stare all you want. The Third War is about to begin. We will have a proper game then.
Shameless old vulture. You wanted my son's eyes. You wanted to sweet talk my nephew. You wanted to erase our clan. You wave Izanagi around like a substitute trick. I will not give you the chance. Your life has started its countdown.
People said Root and the Uchiha were at each other's throats lately. That was normal. Even without the memorial, Danzo and the Uchiha were mortal enemies. But one man's attitude felt off.
Sarutobi Hiruzen. With no middleman left, was he planning to push the Uchiha and Danzo into an open ring? Danzo's name already stank, yet Hiruzen was not much cleaner.
Letting Danzo run wild like this. Was Hiruzen unleashing a rabid dog to scare people?
Danzo moved more than ever and braver than ever. If he was not acting on orders, then he was done with hiding. Root painted itself as silent guardians of Konoha, but the truth was hunger for power and the seat of Hokage.
So Hiruzen wanted to sit on the mountain and watch tigers fight. Dream on. Renji would find the old man some entertainment of his own. Little Fugaku should come home. Stay outside too long and how will you act as clan head one day?
If they would not let the Uchiha walk among the people, then bring the people to the Uchiha. He named the plan Fallow Soil.
Turn the Police Force into fertile ground for friendly ties. Restructure the Police. Break the Second Hokage's policy. Give up a little first to gain more later.
Tomorrow he would see his uncle Nobunaga. No time to waste. From Minato's garb yesterday, he had probably made jonin. That meant the Third War was close.
At dawn, Renji woke to find Meimei already in the kitchen making breakfast. He did not disturb her. He leaned on the wall and watched for a long time, only snapping out of it when Takuma called him.
"What are you doing?" Renji stared at his father, speechless that the old man was up so early.
"Nothing. Making sure your soul didn't wander off," Takuma teased.
"Mom, are you awake? Dad has no interest in holding grandkids," Renji yelled toward the bedroom as he marched past, ready to go nuclear.
Takuma rushed to cover his mouth. This brat. Just met the girl and already hugging her. Now he wanted kids.
Uchiha Ran opened the bedroom door to see father and son wrestling. "What are you two doing?"
"Haha. Nothing. He wanted to wake you for breakfast. I told him to let you rest a bit more," Takuma explained stiffly.
"Mother, breakfast is ready. Meimei has been cooking since early morning. She made a lot. Come taste it," Renji said, dropping the quarrel.
Breakfast went smoothly and warm. After eating, Renji helped Meimei wash the dishes, then hurried to the Police Force.
At the familiar gate he took a deep breath and walked in, heading straight to Uchiha Nobunaga's office.
He pushed the door open. Besides his uncle there was another man. They met eyes and smiled. Little Fugaku.
"Well, if it isn't little Fugaku. Long time no see. How are you free today? I thought you'd be out on a date," Renji said, slinging an arm around his brother's shoulders.
They rarely met, yet there was no distance. Teased by his brother, Fugaku just scratched his head and countered gently.
"I just escorted Mikoto to work. She is Assistant to Elder Tsuru now. Big brother, I heard you tore through the streets with your sister-in-law yesterday and almost had Root hauled in." He clearly did not want Renji poking at his romance, so he poked back.
"Nothing much. Your teacher stepped in to calm it down. Otherwise I would have sent Elder Danzo a little gift. Your squad are all tokubetsu jonin now, right? Time to come back and get familiar with home turf."
"I was thinking that, but the village and our clan have friction again. Should I ask the Hokage for his opinion?" Fugaku sounded hesitant.
"No need. As young clan head, you must train in the Police. Otherwise how will you command subordinates one day? If our future chief never stood with his people, they will wonder if he even wants to be here. Is that good for unity of clan and village?" Renji said.
"If you feel abrupt, inform your teacher Jiraiya first. Remember you are informing, not seeking permission.
You are jonin now. A pillar of the village. Children ask for approval on every step. You graduated long ago, little brother."
You go to the Hokage to build rapport, not to be a lackey. You are our heir, our future head. Do not treat yourself as someone else's junior of a junior. The Police are your foundation. Do not get upside down by clinging to a field squad.
You have already outgrown that team. Since when does an elite lead three jonin? Jonin lead their own squads. How long will you play the kid?
"You are right. I was slow to see it. I will tell my teacher tomorrow that I am leaving the team," Fugaku said, serious now.
"Do not look so tense, like you are breaking up. You are just returning to where you belong, like any shinobi returning home after a mission.
Your mission is complete. Besides, Jiraiya and your teammates are good people. You can still meet often," Renji added, worried his brother would take it too far.
After all, look at his future sons. Top talent, decent brains, but pre-school emotional sense. The eldest got talked into madness and slaughtered the whole family. The younger believed anything he heard and had no judgment.
Nobunaga saw his son awakened by Renji's words and felt relief. He always feared pushing too hard would trigger backlash. Sometimes the boy seemed torn in knots. Thank goodness Renji was back, or he feared the next generation would be led astray by the Hokage faction.
"Fugaku, take these files to Aunt Tsuru," Nobunaga said. He knew Renji had come with business, while Fugaku was still a bit too pure. Some things needed to be taught slowly.
"Oh. Alright." Fugaku took the files, a little downcast. He thought he was being sidelined. Maybe he was not good enough. Maybe his father still did not trust him. His face clouded.
"Deliver them and hurry back. Do not spend all day on dates. A wife will come home sooner or later. We have real work now. Quick in and out," Renji said, hearing the gloom in his brother's silence.
His uncle meant well, shielding the boy from politics since he lacked Renji's knack for it. Not every sixteen or seventeen year old earned a seat at the table.
But he had ignored the boy's feelings. Fugaku had never served in the Police. Among kin, he still felt like an outsider. Sending him out during a serious talk looked like distrust. To him it felt like rejection.
Anyone else could stew. Not this one. He was the next clan head. You cannot let your heir feel like a stranger in his own clan. If this lasted, he could drift to the Hokage camp. That was how his eldest son drifted in another life.
Hearing Renji, Fugaku looked to his father with hopeful eyes. Nobunaga understood. "Go on. Or do you expect me to run errands myself?
We just said do not ask permission for everything. You are grown. Must I tell you like when you were small that there is more to discuss after you deliver the papers? Figure it out."
Fugaku flushed, but the gloom vanished. So that was it. He had misunderstood. Maybe Renji was right. He had gotten dull away from home.
Renji chuckled out loud, not bothering to save face, grinning like he was watching a dope.
Fugaku fled before he died of embarrassment. He slipped out with the papers, cheeks burning, grateful it had been only his big brother in the room.
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