Chapter 70: The Initial Plan for Kyoto

"Kyoto?"

Fugaku Uchiha exclaimed in surprise. He couldn't begin to guess what Aozora was thinking.

"Yes, Kyoto,"

Aozora nodded firmly. "The city's defenses are no weaker than Konoha's, filled with numerous samurai and monks. Even Kage-level ninja wouldn't dare act recklessly there.

I suggest relocating clan members without ninja talent to Kyoto."

The Ninja World is a vast and real place, far beyond the simplistic 'five-village brawl' perception held by some.

Besides the five great ninja villages, powerful factions like the Daimyo's court also exist.

After the Warring States era ended, while ninja villages gathered strong ninja clans, the Daimyo's court absorbed samurai, monks, and smaller ninja families.

Daimyos aren't just nominal national leaders—they control the country's economic lifelines and command countless powerful individuals beneath them.

Remember, assassinating important political figures are always S-rank or higher—they're not just valuable targets, they're extremely dangerous too.

Despite this, Kyoto's security rivals Konoha's, enough to deter foreign interest in the Uchiha bloodline.

Fugaku remained silent for a moment before speaking. "Kyoto is certainly a safe location, and ordinary clan members can definitely relocate there.

But will Kyoto itself pose no dangers? Without protection from elite clan ninja, our people's safety remains questionable.

Furthermore, elite clan ninja cannot leave the village freely. If discovered by elders like the Third, any ninja traveling to Kyoto might be labeled as deserters.

Additionally, unfamiliar elite ninja require the Daimyo's permission; otherwise, they'll be monitored and restricted."

Suddenly, Aozora asked, "Chief, have you heard about Asuma Sarutobi?"

"Of course!" Fugaku replied. "The Sandaime's second son—I heard he recently quarreled with his father.

Why do you bring him up?"

"Asuma Sarutobi slipped out of Konoha to join the Daimyo's selection for the Twelve Guardian Ninja."

Aozora smiled knowingly.

In truth, Aozora hadn't received confirmation on this—he deduced it.

The rumor about Asuma falling out with Hiruzen had spread wildly through Konoha, and posters advertising the Daimyo recruiting candidates for the Twelve Guardians were posted all over the village.

These two pieces alone were enough for Aozora to draw his conclusion.

"What?"

Fugaku believed Aozora—but still found it hard to believe.

The Daimyo and the Hokage—both are twin authorities within the Land of Fire.

One serves as its nominal leader, the other controls the most violent and powerful organization.

As the saying goes, "There can't be two suns in the sky." Although publicly amicable, behind closed doors, both sides constantly undermined each other.

How could Asuma—the Hokage's own son—possibly go serve directly under the Daimyo as a bodyguard?

This would clearly undermine the Hokage's authority, even bordering on becoming a hostage situation.

Once he got over his shock, Fugaku said, "Asuma acted recklessly without considering consequences. But what does this mean? Are we going to expose this incident to damage the Sandaime's reputation?"

Shaking his head, Aozora replied, "What good would that do?

We won't reveal it—we'll cover it up instead."

"Also, we plan to send one of our clan's elite along with him to join the Twelve Guardian Ninja."

Fugaku rubbed his chin thoughtfully upon hearing this, then broke into a grin. "Excellent strategy!"

The Daimyo was nominally the leader of the Land of Fire, so it made perfect sense for the Uchiha to dispatch someone for guarding duty.

However, relations between Konoha and the Daimyo's court were complex.

An unspoken rule existed among ninja clans joining Konoha—they couldn't serve two masters. Choosing Konoha meant they couldn't send their children to serve at the Daimyo's court.

Since the Hokage's son had broken this norm first, the Uchiha following suit would be perfectly acceptable.

"Why should they make the rules if we can't play by them too?"

Aozora said, "This Guardian Ninja gig is just the start. Once we secure that position and establish connections with the Daimyo, we can even relocate our retired clan elders to Kyoto. With support from the Guardian Ninja and protection by our retired clan elders, establishing a foothold in Kyoto won't be difficult."

Most of the Uchiha elders were former commanders of the Police Force who, though past their prime due to age, still retained some of their combat capabilities.

Seeing Fugaku nodding in satisfaction, Aozora smiled proudly as well.

"This is only our initial plan," he continued. "We can explore more cooperation opportunities with the Daimyo later..."

Two legs wobble, but three make a stool stand solid.

After a long time, when the moon hung above the willow-tops and night had fallen deep, they finally finished discussing matters concerning Kyoto.

"You surpass your elder brother in both capacity and talent!" Fugaku sincerely remarked. "Your planning today has enlightened me greatly. Now I have much more confidence in dispelling the dark clouds hovering over our clan."

After speaking, he bowed deeply to Aozora.

Aozora sidestepped to avoid receiving the bow directly, replying, "I can only offer suggestions verbally. To truly save our clan, we rely on the Clan Head's leadership."

He had already laid out nearly every strategy he'd ever thought through. What came next would take effort from everyone else—he'd just pitch in when needed.

Next, he would focus on cultivation and search for a third refuge for the Uchiha clan.

As the old saying goes—a crafty rabbit has three holes—and he'd planned an escape route for the Uchiha too, but since it hadn't been verified yet, he didn't mention it for now.

Before rising, Fugaku bowed to Aozora once again and said, "Aozora, may I make another humble request?"

"What is it?" Aozora asked curiously.

"It concerns Itachi!"

Sighing heavily, Fugaku continued, "I'd like to ask you to become his teacher."

"What?" Aozora exclaimed in surprise.

He knew Fugaku had high expectations for Itachi and had personally trained him since childhood.

At merely four years old, he had brought Itachi to the battlefield, instilling various philosophies.

Currently, Fugaku personally taught Itachi ninjutsu, clearly cultivating him as his successor.

Itachi had previously trained under other Uchiha members like Shisui and Hachidai, but those were brief sessions without forming formal master-disciple relationships.

He couldn't figure out what specifically caught the Clan Head's attention about himself.

After all, he hadn't displayed any remarkable techniques or spiritual abilities yet.

"I want you to be Itachi's teacher," Fugaku affirmed.

"I have extremely high expectations for Itachi. By setting a personal example, guiding him through actual battlefield experiences, and teaching him ninjutsu, I hope that he can become the backbone of the Uchiha in the future."

"But I realized I had instilled too many concepts of the greater good and peace into him, without explaining the long-standing suspicion and oppression from the Hokage lineage toward the Uchiha."

He continued, "Also, since Itachi had stayed by my side for a long time, he never developed deep emotional bonds with most of the clan members, aside from a few individuals. I'm actually quite concerned about this now."

"Your insight truly impresses me today," he said. "I'd like you to teach Itachi—help him see the crisis and helplessness facing our clan from a different perspective."

Aozora asked, "If you've already noticed these problems, why don't you educate Itachi yourself?"

Fugaku replied, "Firstly, after the clan's protests, Itachi became distant from me. Secondly, I believe your vision extends further than mine—you can offer more valuable teachings to him."

Aozora finally got it—this was mostly about setting Itachi straight mentally.

"I agree," he said. "He just started school this year—it's his very first year. Let him come to my house on weekends—I'll teach him one day each week."

To be honest, Aozora wasn't all that interested in changing Itachi's ideology.

But Itachi shared similar ideals with Shisui. Right now, Itachi was basically a junior version of Shisui.

In the future, he would surely realign Shisui's thinking. Using Itachi as practice first actually sounded pretty good.

<><><><><><><><>

Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!

~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!

<><><><><><><><>

~ 100+ Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon!

~ More *Free* Chapters and Books Available on Patreon!

patreon.com/Tansnovel

<><><><><><><><>