CH_10.30 (396)

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"Even the thought of swearing fealty to a clan makes me want to retire on the spot."

It was clear that she had some complicated feelings and negative views towards shinobi clans. Could it be that she was a civilian-born shinobi and felt some form of complex towards her clan-born peers? But she had been above and better than the clan folk in their batch; however, complexes were never logical.

"Look at who's being direct," Takuma said to avoid an awkward silence that was coming. "I'm curious as to why you think so."

"The current state of clans is objectively unfair. Do you know why?" Momoe asked.

"Massive wealth accumulation, abuse of power, increased resource disparity," Takuma listed some reasons from the top of his head.

"That and more," she said. "I understand our village was born from the union of two shinobi clans, and that more clans followed to make a stronger shinobi alliance against the Daimyo's samurai. It's not like I'm ignorant of the fact that before the creation of the hidden villages, shinobi were mostly concentrated in shinobi clans, and that civilian-born shinobi went through a boom after the establishment of the academies, which the clans played a role in developing."

Before hidden villages and shinobi academies, if someone outside of a clan wanted to become a shinobi, they had to become a vassal of a shinobi clan—similar to today's sponsorships—who would teach the outsiders how to use weapons, harness chakra, and wield jutsu. The clans kept those outsiders under tight rein by only allowing them access to lower-ranked ninjutsu to ensure they never became strong enough to betray the clans.

Shinobi academies democratised that process. While Senju Tobirama, who established and refined the concept, received most of the credit, the Hidden Leaf clans played just as big, if not a bigger, role in the success of the Leaf shinobi academies. For the first two decades, teachers were exclusively clan shinobi. They left their homes for years at a time to establish shinobi academies around the Land of Fire, and promoted them while the Daimyo's court tried to dissuade the people from joining them in an attempt to keep the shinobi in check.

Leaf's jutsu archives, which were used by literally every civilian-born shinobi who ever earned their forehead protectors, were also created by shinobi clans' contributing jutsu to get it started.

"Am I grateful that they made it possible for people like us to become a shinobi without devoting our entire lives to serving a clan? Yes, of course I am. But am I supposed to stay below them and be considered a lesser shinobi because they did a good deed in the past?"

"No, that's ridiculous," Takuma supplied the answer. 'Fuck that,' he thought. "Do you hate the existence of clans?" he asked because while he could see her point, he didn't think clans were an evil they needed to get rid of.

"I have no problems with the concept of a clan. It's natural for families to help each other. I received plenty of help from my parents. I don't hate clan folk either; Izumi is my best friend and the best person I know. As much as I don't like Hiji, it's not his fault that he was born in a clan and benefited from it. What's he supposed to do? Deny those resources? That's unrealistic. I'd take full advantage if I were born into a shinobi clan."

So would he.

"The problem is when the clans grow too big—"

"How big?" he asked.

"The two dōjutsu clans; Yamanaka, Nara, Akimichi of the Ina-Shika-Cho; Lord Hokage's Sarutobi; Aburame; Inuzuka; Shimura—all these old clans who were invited into Hidden Leaf because they were the big players before the village's inception—and have grown even bigger since then. These clans are so deeply entrenched in this village that they control everything in some fashion, directly or indirectly. They have amassed hordes of wealth so vast that they could live in lavish luxury for a century or more even if they stopped working today."

One could use money to earn money. The clan's enormous wealth was ever-increasing as they used it to earn more than a person could imagine. The problem was that there was only a limited amount of money in the economy. The more someone gained, the less someone else would have. It wouldn't be a problem if money exchanged hands frequently—a concept known as "velocity of money"—but when it amassed in the pockets of a few people and stopped there without moving somewhere else, it became a problem.

"What about a clan like the Fuma?" he asked.

"Arisu's clan? They're not a behemoth, but they, too, represent another problem. Let's put aside the wealth disparity. Until recently, the Uchiha kept the Police Force closed to everyone except them and the Fuma clan, their vassal clan in the Warring States Era. In fact, you were among the first to enter an institution that was closed off for decades."

The batch size of non-affiliated people entering the Police Force had increased ever since Takuma's entry. The Uchiha clan was diluting their presence in the Police Force while inviting more people in. By no measure were they going to lose their influence, but it was still the biggest change since its inception.

"I think that was because Lord Second tried to isolate the Uchiha clan by not allowing them to participate in governing the village, and gave them the Police Force in return. The Uchiha clan retaliated by making it so they had complete control over the Police Force," said Takuma. He was in the Police Force and in contact with several Uchiha shinobi to know what they thought about it. They were proud of their position because—"only the strong can bring other shinobi to justice"—but they were also aware of the history.

"So? Why should I care about that?" Momoe said, fully turning to face him. "I'm unfamiliar with this history, so I'll take your word for it. And if what you said is true, then it sounds like it was some political cockfighting between the two founding clans. I won't claim it had no value; as I said, I don't know the complete context. Maybe at that time, it wasn't that big of a problem.

"But why, for decades, was there no representation for people like you and me in an institution with the authority to arrest us? For decades, the power to arrest and interrogate us was firmly in the hands of a clan. Is that fair?" she asked.

Takuma felt conflicted because he was part of the Police Force, and he didn't think the Uchiha were abusing their power by unfairly persecuting civilian-born shinobi or protecting clan shinobi.

However, that didn't mean her points weren't entirely valid.

"It's not fair," he said after a moment.

Momoe nodded. She seemed to recognise that he had complicated feelings regarding the topic and quickly moved on,

"Coming back to the Fuma clan. They were allowed entry into that closed institution because of their connection to the Uchiha. And that's another problem. These clans have created a gated community, and they only allow people who know each other into it." If she was passionate before, Momoe was most definitely angry now. "I'm not sure if you've directly experienced it, but I'm certain you must've experienced it indirectly. Have you ever been overlooked for a mission, only for a clan kid, who's clearly not as good as you, to get a spot?"

"I… I know what you mean," said Takuma. He momentarily hid his face by using the excuse to wipe off sweat because he didn't know what expression he was making.

His first C-rank mission to the Land of Frost was perhaps his first experience of the power of connections in the shinobi world. While Iruka had brought civilian-born shinobi, the other team was composed entirely of clan shinobi. And it was clear that they had gotten on the mission through connections.

The end result was nothing but negative, but that was an outlier.

He had also used his influence to get his friends on the Farm Raid. He needed people from outside the Police Force and told Nenro and Masaaki to use the opportunity to the chunin they knew. As long as the two of them were on the team, the chunin could fill up the other spots with whoever they liked. Every single one of those spots was filled up by a clan shinobi.

And while he loved all those people because he had risked life and death with them, he couldn't deny that they had been on the mission because the chunin had sold their team spots.

"How many opportunities we don't even know about are taken away by clan shinobi just because they know the right people?" Momoe's speech began to quicken as she posed question after question, getting worked up. "How do they expect us to grow when these decisions are made behind closed doors? Do we have to claw and struggle for every opportunity? Is that our only choice?"

Instead of answering or saying anything, Takuma took a deep breath and looked up at the sky. He didn't like to think about what it took to reach where he was today. Recently, when he had looked back at all he had to do, the sheer scope of what happened in the space of a few years always exhausted. All energy drained from his mind and body, and he felt like he was hanging by a thread over a dark pit of burnout.

Just thinking about the word "burnout" made him want to retire.

"Is going to war and risking his life the only way for a genin named Takuma to earn a deserving promotion?" Momoe asked before raising her hands. "Hey, I've benefited from those connections. A clan jōnin used his position and background to secure good missions for me and my team. After I became a chunin, he helped me by putting me on teams of chunin led by jōnin going on high-ranking missions. But that opportunity can only be earned by a handful. The genin who get guidance from jōnin right out of the academy are few. At least half of them belong to shinobi families or clans. What does that say to everyone else? That they only get one chance, so they better not fuck up when they're eleven years old, or else be ready to abuse themselves in the Genin Corp for years to come.

"I'm not saying that the academy system is wrong. I earned my way to be on that jōnin team. I deserved to be there. The village saw potential in me, so they gave me the help and resources to grow. I consider that logical. But just because I got a good deal, doesn't mean I have to turn a blind eye to the problem. What about late bloomers like you? You're the first non-jōnin-lead genin to be promoted from our batch. What if you had more resources?"

What would he have done?

Takuma thought about her question, and the answers were clear.

He wouldn't have dealt drugs. He wouldn't have shed sweat, blood, and tears as an underground prizefighter. He would've kept less secret and maintained healthier relationships with his friends, who he considered his second family.

Maybe he'd even have confronted the problem with his mind.

"And you still accepted the jutsu?" he asked.

"Of course I did. There were no strings attached to it. If I want to rise through the ranks, I need all the help I can. As long as they don't cross my principles, I'll take everything I can," she replied.

"No stings attached? Why would they give something as valuable as a B-rank without wanting something in return?"

"Because they're courting me," Momoe replied as a matter of course.

"Courting?"

"The arrogant ones might not think much about civilian-born shinobi even if they're visibly better, but those people aren't even worth looking at. But the smart ones, those ones who really matter, can spot potential. They try to bring those with promise under their banner, or at least maintain a positive relationship. My teacher gave me that jutsu because the Sarutobi clan wants to make me feel seen... and so do the Akimichi, Inuzuka, and Shimura clans."

Takuma's eyes widened. "All of them gave you..."

Momoe nodded.

Akimichi Hideaki was Momoe's teammate. Inuzuka Hana was her friend. They had a Shimura classmate. It dawned on Takuma that the clans were keeping an eye on those with potential through their children.

She had gotten at least four B-rank jutsu based on her potential for the future. Who knew how many she had gotten on her own? Or if she was only telling him about the big clans, and there were more.

He couldn't help it, then. A massive wave of envy surged through him from the feet up.

"I might not have gone to a war, but I've done things for this village that cost me," Momoe said while gazing at the pond's surface. "And those people in high spaces with the means to find things out know about them." She paused for a moment as though considering her words. "It was quite apparent you weren't comfortable talking about your experience during the war the last time we met. I understand that. I'm not telling you to brag about it, but people will only know things about you if you tell them."

Takuma had heard that before. To his defence, he did carry around a resume. It was just that it was somewhat difficult to advertise himself when he couldn't even tell people the truth about what he did for work.

"Why do you want to rise the ranks?" he asked her.

A person's motivation and goals said a lot about them. Momoe had said a lot, so he wanted to know what exactly she wanted to do with the influence that came with being someone important.

"To bring about change," Momoe replied with determination. "And I'm not waiting until I'm a jōnin. Do you know Nenro?"

"Nenro?" Takuma was utterly baffled as to why one of his closest friends' names had come up in a conversation with Momoe. "Yes, I do know him. But why..."

"I know him. That guy is special," Momoe said with a nod of impressed acknowledgement. "I think he's going to go far. So I used the connections to give him opportunities, and he has absolutely thrived. I think he can become a chunin as soon as next year or definitely the year after that."

Apparently, she had been looking for impressive civilian-born shinobi around her age and found Nenro. She approached him without knowing he was friends with Takuma until very recently, and she helped him connect with people who wanted someone reliable.

"What I can do is small, but if I keep trying, those small things will eventually add up. Even if I can't do everything on my own, I want to help someone who might perhaps bring about massive change one day. You know, last year I looked into Lord Fourth," Momoe said with a glimmer in her eye.

"Namizake Minato?"

"Yes. A Hokage who came from a civilian background. He was taken too early," she sighed and seemed visibly upset. "Lord Third had three students, one of them was Jiraya of Sannin, another shinobi from a civilian background. As far as I know, Jiraya was never under a clan's banner. And do you know who Fourth Hokage's jōnin teacher was?"

"Jiraya of the Sannin."

"You're well read,." She nodded approvingly. "When a civilian-born shinobi was given proper training, he became a legendary shinobi, and then trained another civilian-born who went on to become the Hokage. That's the best proof that we have the potential. As long as I can support civilian-born shinobi, they might do the same with others, and perhaps some day we will have another Namikaze Minato."

"Why not try to become the next Namikaze Minato yourself?" he asked.

Given how much passion she had, it was better for her to take the lead and aim for the sky. The next "Namikaze Minato" might not be passionate about her aspirations.

Momoe laughed while rubbing her arms. "That's too idealistic for me. I will, of course, aim as high as possible. But thinking of becoming the Hokage while I'm just a lowly chunin is too far of a goal. If some day I'm in the position to shoot for it, I'll of course go for it, but until then, I'm going to be somewhat realistic with my goals."

Takuma nodded in understanding. On a daily basis, he rarely thought about the future he knew was coming. It wasn't productive to think about it too much because there wasn't much he could do about it. Instead, he thought about what he wanted to achieve next and just hyper-focused on reaching there as soon as possible.

If he thought about the big picture daily, he would be crushed under its weight.

"Then how do you think we can level the playing field?"

In Takuma's opinion, even if all the civilian-born shinobi banded together, it would be difficult to shake the control and influence of the shinobi clans they possessed. Even if they outnumbered them and could exert influence through numbers, most of the Hidden Leaf jōnin came from clans.

"To be honest, even if I dedicate my life to fighting for the civilian-born, I don't know if I could change the core problem. But I do know someone who could bring about definite change."

"Who?"

"We need a traitor," she said with a bitter smile.

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The link is in the synopsis!