Konoha, The Uchiha Compound (Morning)
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As the morning sun illuminated the land, the residents of the compound commenced their activities on the second day following the war.
Unlike the war times, they proceeded to their workplaces after enjoying an uninterrupted meal.
While the scars of war never faded from their minds, and the losses remained irrecoverable, they still yearned for a brighter tomorrow. They sought stability in the present and future, and prayed for the return of the peace once established by the First Hokage.
And for that, they must move forward, for them and for their descendants.
Although the day appeared peaceful in the aftermath of the war on the surface, there was an underlying sense of tension deep beneath the iceberg.
The Konoha Military Police Force(KMPF), consisting of Uchiha clan members, were ordered to gather at the office of the Chief of Police(COP), located at the headquarter of KMPF.
Gathered in his office, newer members from the patrol division looked at their COP nervously, wondering what had happened, while senior members patiently waited, accustomed to meetings unlike their younger counterparts.
'Why is it taking them so long?" Uchiha Fugaku, the COP, pondered with a frown as he sat at his table, doing some paperwork.
The previous night, an impromptu meeting took place at the Hokage residence, with attendance restricted to the clan heads. They were informed about a group of attackers allegedly from Kirigakure.
Reports indicated that Anbu and Root members, gathered in the Forest of Death for training, were brutally attacked by an unknown group of assailants. Many were found impaled with ice, suggesting possible involvement from Kirigakure who is known to have a clan, having the bloodline to create ice.
Though the exact number of casualties wasn't disclosed, Fugaku could discern the extent of the losses from the expressions of the village elders.
They were furious, displaying more emotion than they had shown toward the deceased, especially Danzo, who didn't even bother to talk and appeared demented in his chair—an honestly pleasant occurrence to witness during the meeting.
Due to the potential danger posed by the group of attackers, his force was tasked with remaining vigilant, capturing the group, and even eliminating them if necessary—a prospect that personally pleased Fugaku, given that they hardly acknowledged the presence, let alone the deeds, of their force.
However, he received unexpected additional orders and awaited his arrival to carry out the task.
"What's all the fuss about?" Masato yawned comically as he was unexpectedly pulled out of bed by others in the police force.
Leaving his flak jacket and white sleeve behind at home, he wore only a black shirt with the Uchiha clan symbol on the back.
Although he bore the police force emblem on his white sleeve, Masato rarely attended duty after being deployed to war alongside selected Uchiha clan members in Kirigakure shortly after joining the police force.
So technically, it was his first official day of work as a police officer. However, he couldn't jokingly refer to himself as a Kōhai anymore. His promotion to Senior Police Officer after the war eliminated the fun of calling the younger officers his colleagues and witnessing their reactions
"Just read the report," Fugaku said with a blank face, handing him the details on a paper, showing no interest in entertaining his tomfoolery.
After taking the paper, he coughed a lot, attempting to suppress his laughter. This prompted newer members to increase their distance from him, which drew ire from senior members.
"So what is our order?" Uchiha Yashiro asked seriously who read the report after snatching it from him.
While the magnitude was indeed serious, he found no reason to call all of them to his office.
If patrolling was their only task, there would have been no need for him to gather them in his office. A simple command sent through his messenger would have sufficed.
Yashiro understood there was something more to this matter, as he was ordered alongside Uchiha Inabi, Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Tekka to drag Masato from his apartment to this office despite lack of need for it.
If he wished to let Masato handle the matter, given his infamous battle prowess, he would have simply sent the message rather than bringing him to the office.
While they waited patiently, Fugaku handed a document to Masato.
Initially looking with his droopy eyes, he widened a bit after further reading.
"How serious is the matter that you appointed me as the Police Captain of the Patrol division?"
However, as he spoke, seemingly confused, the room fell silent, with everyone looking at their chief for an answer.
"Due to your experience leading squads during the war, I'm entrusting you with overseeing the patrol division and volunteers. Each squad will receive orders to increase village patrols, accompanied by members of the Aburame, Hyuga, and Inuzuka clans who have volunteered to assist, provided the group remains uncaptured."
It took a while for his words to sink in, leaving them bewildered. Fugaku couldn't blame them.
Since the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, entrusted the police force to the Uchiha, no one dared to question it.
Neither they had shown intention to join it.
It was just like Masato's former grandfather suggested, this was just a method of ostracizing them from the village: having built the police station next to a prison, as well as distancing the Uchiha from taking part in the actual governing of Konoha.
However, Fugaku, who belongs to and leads the neutral faction, can't blame them, as his predecessor, Uchiha Madara, caused significant damage that warrants fear towards his clan.
So as the meeting came to an end, he didn't expect the Inuzuka Patriarch to interject, insisting on assisting the police force in capturing them.
Before Fugaku or the Konoha Upper Echelon could recover from their surprise, the Hyuga and Aburame clans also insisted on participating, highlighting their reconnaissance abilities.
Given their role as the backbone of the reconnaissance teams during wartime, their assistance would undoubtedly accelerate the process, but he still harbored some doubts.
All night, he thought, 'What were they planning?' unable to sleep peacefully.
He would have immediately rejected any naive civilians or satellite clans of the Sarutobi clan, knowing they wished to surveil them.
In this case however, it was different.
They were prominent clans with a transactional relationship with the upper echelon of Konoha, each prioritizing their own clan interests.
With added danger of an unknown group of assailants whose individual strength were theoretically Jonin and where one of them he predicted to be at least an Elite Jonin, he couldn't bruise off their 'assistance' and the current danger to the safety of villagers.
Moreover, Danzo would have another reason to shamelessly criticize the Uchiha clan, as he always does.
Even though the bodies of 50 clan members were missing, they didn't even bat an eye.
However, he can't allow the 'volunteers' to act without oversight. He needs someone to maintain order in case they initiate a disagreement with their force in public. This could provide the upper echelon of Konoha and the public with an excuse to criticize or limit their opportunities, which might be their objective.
So he needed their clan's elite to keep them in check and inform him about their undisclosed agenda
"This is an order from our Third Hokage, so I don't want to see any meaningless disagreement among our fellow villagers. Understand?" Fugaku said sternly, briefly mentioning the magnitude of the group before resuming to his seat.
Before anyone could question him about involvement of volunteers, his glare silenced them, and they refrained from further inquiry.
He had already communicated the rest of the details to Masato through the documents, so it was now Masato's responsibility to delegate this task to qualified officers capable of investigating the matter.
Informing everyone here would be detrimental. It would lead the 'volunteers' to become more discreet in achieving their goals, making it harder for us to identify and stop them.
Afterward, they were dismissed, with most wearing expressions of confusion and feeling awkward about accompanying their new patrolling companion for the day. Meanwhile, Masato contemplated which food shop to visit for breakfast, having been pulled from his sleep without a chance to eat.
As they were leaving through the door, Fugaku quickly glanced at Shisui and gestured toward Masato. Shisui responded with an 'I understand' nod.
Satisfied with the response, he dismissed Shisui.
'As long as Masato behaves and doesn't cause any drama, I am fine with it,' he thought as he began doing his paperwork.
Descending the stairs, Shisui cast a curious glance at their newly appointed Police Captain, who wore a smile as if something positive had happened.