Uchiha Madara died very peacefully. Other than Obito, no one in the world knew of his death. Uchiha Yuan only speculated that Madara might have passed around this time, but he didn't dare to verify it rashly.
Unknowingly, another month passed. During this time, the Dove Faction observed the early success of reforms in the Third Division and expressed interest in emulating it.
However, the First Division, which was part of the Dove Faction, consisted entirely of Uchiha clan members and would not accept outsiders. They could only mimic some enforcement methods of the Third Division.
The Hawk Faction's Second Division showed nothing but disdain for the methods of the First and Third Divisions, sticking stubbornly to their own ways.
Surprisingly, the Fourth Division, managed by Uchiha Fugaku's confidants, fully replicated the Third Division's practices.
With these reforms, public discontent toward the Uchiha clan began to fade.
Some minor clans, envious of the Police Department's power, even took the initiative to approach the Uchiha.
Fugaku gladly accepted their overtures and assigned their members into the Fourth Division, which quickly grew to outnumber Yuan's Third Division.
Yuan didn't mind—after all, Fugaku was the clan head.
Besides, Yuan wasn't interested in those who came groveling just because they saw an opportunity. These people were only after power and could easily backstab the Uchiha at a critical moment.
While the Uchiha clan was fervently reforming the Police Department, Minato received a report: Danzo's Root shinobi had been frequently breaching the outer barrier of Konoha and secretly exiting and re-entering the village multiple times.
Minato remained vigilant toward Danzo.
After curbing the powers of the two advisors and Danzo, he still had Hidden Leaf's Anbu surveillance team shadowing Danzo's every move—which led to this intel.
After a brief pause, Minato said to his guard, Genma Shiranui, "Genma, go to the Police Department and ask Uchiha Yuan to come here."
"Yes, Lord Hokage."
A few minutes later, Yuan arrived in the Hokage's office. Minato handed over the intel directly.
Yuan quickly browsed through the report and asked, "Is this all, Lord Hokage? Any clues about where the Root ninja are headed?"
"No, that's all we've got. The Root members are elite, and my people don't dare get too close. That's why I want to ask you to investigate Danzo's recent movements."
Yuan thought for a moment, then nodded in agreement.
That very night, Yuan replaced the Anbu operative and went to Root's perimeter, waiting for the next appearance of Root operatives.
A few hours later, they showed up. Just as Yuan was about to tail them, Danzo emerged from Root headquarters, accompanied by five high-level ninjas—at least one of them seemed to be an elite jonin.
Yuan realized he might've hooked a big fish. He widened the distance between them and activated his "mind's eye" to track them from afar.
Once Danzo confirmed they weren't being followed, he led the Root ninja to breach Konoha's outer barrier and left the village quietly.
Yuan teleported through the barrier and closely tailed them.
They moved quickly, as if in a rush.
Soon, Yuan noticed they were heading toward the Land of Rain.
Based on the timing, Yuan guessed Danzo's purpose.
Danzo was likely heading to meet Hanzo of the Salamander for a joint ambush on the Akatsuki.
It was this ambush that, in the original story, led to Yahiko's death, Nagato's descent into darkness, and the birth of the Six Paths of Pain—transforming Akatsuki into the largest mercenary organization in the ninja world.
Previously, Yuan had asked White Zetsu to notify him if Danzo made a move against Nagato. This coincidence aligned perfectly.
Soon, Danzo's group reached the border of Amegakure, where Hanzo was already waiting.
Yuan didn't dare get too close, so he couldn't hear their conversation clearly.
After some kind of agreement was reached, Danzo and Hanzo departed together. Yuan hesitated briefly, then chose to follow them.
He figured there was no need to search for Akatsuki—just follow these two and intervene at the critical moment.
Meanwhile, deep within the Land of Rain, Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan were sitting together, listening to Nagato talk about a strange phenomenon he'd recently encountered.
Recently, a black mass had frequently emerged from the ground to speak to Nagato with cryptic messages.
At first, Nagato didn't take it seriously—this black thing didn't seem threatening. So, he never mentioned it to Yahiko or Konan.
But yesterday, the black figure reappeared and warned Nagato that Hanzo intended to harm them, advising him to be cautious.
Before Nagato could ask anything, the figure sank back into the ground.
Worried about the danger to his friends, Nagato immediately called Yahiko and Konan to tell them what had happened.
Yahiko laughed it off, "Nagato, you're overthinking it. This is likely someone trying to mess with your head. We're about to negotiate peace with Hanzo. He's a patriot, like us. He has no reason to attack us."
Konan agreed, "Yahiko's right. Don't overthink it, Nagato."
Hearing their reassurances, Nagato felt a little more at ease, though his gut told him the black thing wasn't that simple.
After Nagato and Konan left, Yahiko's face grew solemn.
In truth, he too had recently encountered a strange, masked individual.
The man's words were extremely persuasive, so Yahiko had chosen not to reveal his existence to Konan or Nagato.
Now that Nagato had also run into something strange, Yahiko felt even more uneasy.
Elsewhere in the Land of Rain, Obito and Black Zetsu met up.
"How's it going?" Obito asked first.
"Not great. This Yahiko is a real obstacle. Nagato listens to him too much. My words don't reach him," Black Zetsu replied.
"Isn't Danzo joining forces with Hanzo to strike at Akatsuki? We can use this opportunity to eliminate Yahiko."
"What about the other Akatsuki members? The ones who might influence Nagato too?" asked Black Zetsu.
"Kill them all. We're more than enough to handle it—and we'll blame the whole thing on Hanzo and Konoha," Obito said without hesitation.
(To Be Continued...)