Chapter 70: Shackles

Gulp.

Under the pressure, Kensan swallowed nervously, glancing at Dan with apprehension.

He wasn't sure if his understanding was correct, but he gritted his teeth, gathered his courage, and voiced his thoughts:

"I believe that the Uchiha Police Force is just a facade of glory, in reality, it's the most thankless job in Konoha!"

His words were shocking.

But Kensan wasn't just spouting nonsense.

"No matter what the Police Force was like initially, after working here for ten years, I gradually realized that it's nothing like what I once idealized," Kensan said, turning to look at Clan Leader Fugaku.

Fugaku, although frowning, didn't say anything. Instead, he nodded slightly, signaling Kensan to continue with his eyes.

Kensan decided to go all out, pouring out all his grievances in one breath.

"Every day, our Police Force members have to carry out a large number of patrol tasks. To maintain the village's security and order, we not only have to catch thieves and spies but also handle conflicts and disputes among villagers. We have to manage countless big and small issues. After returning to the Police Force, we also have the task of managing and interrogating prisoners. We work ourselves to the bone, busy and stressed, yet we don't receive any respect. Instead, we only harvest a pile of complaints.

During law enforcement, if we're too strict, villagers accuse us of abusing power and being inhumane. If we're lenient, we're accused of lax law enforcement and incompetence. If a clan member makes a mistake, it's magnified due to the halo effect, leading to a worsening reputation for the entire Police Force and the Uchiha clan. In short, the work of the Police Force is thankless!"

Kensan hadn't finished speaking.

He picked up the water cup on the table, gulped it down, and then added angrily:

"Moreover, the Third Hokage's Anbu often interferes with our Police Force's business, causing a lot of problems. But under the public opinion offensive of Konoha's upper echelons, every time something goes wrong, villagers only blame the Police Force, not the Anbu. On the contrary, as long as important criminals and spies are caught, it's naturally the Anbu's credit, and it has nothing to do with the Police Force. Why is that?

In my view, the Police Force seems to be a glamorous garland, but in reality, it's a heavy shackle around our Uchiha necks! I, Uchiha Kensan, would rather undertake the most dangerous tasks, go to the battlefield and fight desperately with the enemy, than stay in the Police Force and live such a stifling life!"

After he finished speaking, the meeting room fell silent. No one spoke for a long time.

Rather than saying Kensan was complaining about his work, it was more accurate to say he was denying the existence of the Police Force.

His words were indeed bold.

As expected, Kensan's words made Fugaku, the captain of the Police Force, frown deeply, as if he was about to explode in anger and strip Kensan of his squad leader position.

Just then, "clap, clap, clap!" Dan suddenly raised his hands, applauding a few times, expressing his approval of Kensan's speech.

Seeing Dan nodding slightly at him, Kensan, who had been extremely nervous, couldn't help but show a joyful smile.

"Well said!" Hachidai, seeing the situation, was the first to change his stance, supporting Kensan. Ever since he was beaten by Dan last time, he had been eager to regain his standing with Dan. Seizing this opportunity, he quickly made his position clear:

"I've long felt that the Uchiha clan staying in the Police Force is akin to slow suicide! The trivial matters of the Police Force waste the Uchiha's time and energy, consuming the Uchiha's talent and passion. The Uchiha could be more free, but they have to patrol the streets every day, thus being domesticated and gradually becoming a mediocre clan. This must be a conspiracy by Konoha's upper echelons!

The solution to this situation, as Dan said, is not for the Uchiha to cling to the Police Force, but to actively break free!"

As the second-in-command of the Police Force, Hachidai was certainly skilled in rhetoric. He had just been insisting that the Police Force should fight for power with the upper echelons, but now he had changed his tune, and he spoke convincingly and provocatively. This was why he could become the leader of the radical faction.

Elder Shatan remained silent. Although he was old, his mind was more active than the younger ones. He understood.

Dan's proposal to abandon the Police Force was partly to make Konoha's upper echelons complacent and lower their guard against the Uchiha. On the other hand, it was to cut off the clan's retreat, so that they could join the coup without any burdens.

Indeed, was Dan preparing to gradually instill the belief of "death before dishonor" in the clan members?

Shisui and Itachi were both stunned. Shisui's plan to reform the Police Force was something he had come up with while lying in bed these past few days, and Itachi had also contributed many ideas.

But now, compared to that, Dan's suggestion for the Uchiha to simply abandon the Police Force seemed to be a better solution for the village. This way, they might be able to resolve the conflict between the family and the village once and for all.

What was Dan thinking? Shisui and Itachi were both puzzled, feeling that things were not that simple.

And Fugaku, at this moment, remembered Dan's bold words when he smashed the ancestral stone tablet, saying he would lead the Uchiha to write a new history.

So, he once again said to Dan: "Dan, please explain yourself, why should the Uchiha abandon the Police Force?"

It wasn't until then that Dan finally slowly stood up, preparing to speak.

"Who among you can tell me, what is the greatest asset of the Uchiha clan?" Dan's gaze swept across the meeting room as he asked.

The clan members fell into thought upon hearing this. Was it the Police Force? No, since Dan asked this way, it definitely wasn't the answer.

Dan didn't keep them in suspense for long, he revealed directly: "The greatest asset of the Uchiha is not something else, it's our own bodies, it's these Sharingan eyes."

As his words fell, his pitch-black eyes transformed into the shape of three tomoe.

Dan's three-tomoe Sharingan was more crimson than anyone else's, more exquisite, emitting a pupil power fluctuation that was startling.

Dan glanced at Fugaku again, then continued:

"According to the stone tablet records in the Naka Shrine secret chamber, the Uchiha clan is the descendant of the Sage of Six Paths from a thousand years ago, this was deciphered through the pupil power of the Mangekyou Sharingan.

So, what the Uchiha should do is to follow the footsteps of our ancestors, even surpass them, rather than play house with the ordinary folks of Konoha."

His words were like a stone thrown into calm water, causing a thousand ripples.

Was it true? The Uchiha clan was the descendant of the Sage of Six Paths?

Many clan members were hearing this secret for the first time. They couldn't believe its authenticity, but it came from Dan, so it couldn't be completely dismissed.

Dan said that the Uchiha should surpass their ancestors, which stirred the blood of the Uchiha people.

What a bold and extraordinary statement.