Chapter 85: Uchiha, Hands Off!

In the meeting room of the Medical Department.

"Here's your payment." Dan took out stacks of green bills from the safe, totaling five hundred thousand ryō, and placed them in front of Tsunade.

"Oh my, this is too much, I can't possibly accept it."

Tsunade feigned surprise, verbally declining while her hands swiftly packed the bills into her briefcase.

"It was a pleasure doing business with you. Please keep this matter confidential."

Dan stared at Tsunade. This money was not only for the surgery but also for her silence.

"Of course, I'm the best at keeping secrets."

Tsunade readily agreed and told Dan, "I plan to stay in Konoha for a while. If there are more surgeries like this, please find me."

"No problem." Dan nodded in agreement.

After leaving the meeting room, Tsunade didn't rush to leave. Instead, she mysteriously invited Samui to a corner of the gym.

"Dr. Dan, what can I do for you?" Samui looked a bit wary.

She had a feeling that this blonde gentleman had been eyeing her, seemingly with some ulterior motive.

"Well..."

Tsunade hesitated for a few seconds before delicately expressing her admiration for Samui's necklace. She wanted to gift a similar one to her maid but couldn't find it anywhere.

So.

Tsunade hoped Samui could part with her necklace and sell it to her. She was willing to offer a high price of five hundred thousand ryō.

After saying this, she opened her briefcase, attempting to persuade Samui with the sight of the green bills.

Samui was taken aback.

So, this gentleman had been staring at her because he was infatuated with the necklace around her neck.

However.

"I'm sorry, Dr. Dan. This necklace was a birthday gift from the gym owner. It's precious to me, and no amount of money... can buy it."

Samui firmly declined Tsunade's offer.

She really liked this crystal necklace. Samui also worried that if she sold the necklace, the gym owner would be upset.

As a spy, Samui's most important task at the moment was to become Dan Uchiha's most trusted confidant.

This way, she could obtain more information about the Uchiha clan.

Tsunade was disappointed to hear this, but she still managed to squeeze out a smile: "I see, I was too presumptuous, I apologize."

Damn it.

She would have to think of other ways.

Deception had failed, leaving only the riskier options of theft and robbery. But she had to find the best opportunity to act.

While scheming, Tsunade left the gym.

...

There were six days left before Konoha took back the Police Force.

During this period, the Uchiha could still exercise the powers of the Police Force, thanks to the Third Hokage's mercy.

The villagers were worried that the Uchiha would take advantage of these few days to abuse their power and oppress the people.

This could be the Uchiha's final madness.

But everyone soon realized that they were overthinking.

Because.

For the entire day, not a single patrol officer could be seen on the streets of Konoha.

In the Police Force building.

The captain's office was piled high with documents.

Fugaku was busy preparing the handover materials for the Police Force.

What worried him more was the future livelihood of the Uchiha clan.

After all, even though he was about to step down as the captain of the Police Force, he was still the head of the Uchiha clan. It was his responsibility and duty to find a new path for the clan.

Currently.

There were more than two hundred and forty Uchiha clan members working in the Police Force.

Among them, over forty were administrative staff, responsible for finance, personnel, and administrative departments.

The remaining two hundred were Uchiha ninjas, part of the law enforcement team.

Within the Uchiha clan, although only eighty people had activated the Sharingan, there were also those who had become ninjas early on but had not awakened the Sharingan.

These two hundred plus people accounted for thirty percent of the total Uchiha population, a significant number.

Although the Police Force's budget had been repeatedly cut, and even Fugaku's salary as captain was not high, it was still a stable income. Many clan members lived on this.

Now, these people were collectively unemployed.

This indeed posed a big problem for Fugaku as the clan leader.

Fortunately.

The Uchiha clan, after all, was a large clan that had lasted for a thousand years and was one of the founding clans of Konoha. They owned many family businesses in the village.

The most famous was the ninja tool shop.

The Uchiha were skilled in Fire Release, and the exploding tags made by the clan members using Fire Release chakra were top-notch among their kind and sold well.

It was an important source of income for the clan.

In addition, there was the most common way for ninjas to make money—taking on missions.

Although the Uchiha had a bad reputation, their strength was undeniable. Many high-paying escort, assassination, and subjugation missions specifically requested elite Uchiha ninjas.

Fugaku thought carefully and did some calculations.

The Uchiha would face a difficult economic period in the future, but they could still pull through.

He suddenly regretted that when he proposed to the Third Hokage to give up the Police Force, he should have tried to get a severance payment. Then the Uchiha could have easily overcome the difficulties.

As Fugaku was thinking of a solution.

Knock, knock!

The sound of knocking on the door echoed, and his secretary, Uchiha Kenzo, walked in.

Previously, Kenzo's speech at the meeting had won Fugaku's appreciation. He felt that this young man had potential, so he promoted him to his side for training.

"Clan leader, many clan members didn't come to work today. Some took leave, and others skipped work."

Kenzo hesitated for a moment but still reported the truth to Fugaku.

Fugaku understood:

"Our people patrolling and enforcing the law on the streets now would probably only be ridiculed by the villagers. There's indeed no need for that."

Moreover.

The two hundred Uchiha law enforcement officers had been managing nearly two hundred thousand villagers in Konoha. On average, one law enforcement officer had to manage a thousand people, which was a lot of pressure.

The Police Force had to work overtime frequently, and the officers were already physically and mentally exhausted.

Now was indeed the time to rest.

So.

"Assign some people to keep an eye on the prison, just don't let another riot happen." Fugaku instructed Kenzo.

"Yes."

Kenzo complied, hesitated for two seconds, then suddenly said with a bashful face, "Clan leader, I also want... to take a leave."

Fugaku was taken aback, then laughed and shook his head: "Go ahead."

Half an hour later, at the gym.

Kenzo had also changed into the white t-shirt and red shorts of the Body Modification Department and joined Inohi and the others. However, he still asked with some worry:

"Inohi, is it really okay for us not to go to work for the next few days?"

Inohi scoffed at the question, "Work? Screw that!"

Everyone burst into laughter, filling the gym with a cheerful atmosphere.

After completing their strength training for the day.

The Uchiha members left, chanting "Body Modification Department" as they began to run laps around Konoha.

Along the way, a minor incident occurred.

As the Uchiha members were passing through a commercial street, they suddenly heard a commotion ahead and saw the crowd in chaos.

It turned out.

Two ninjas had drunk too much and started a fight in a pub, which spilled onto the street, inadvertently injuring some passersby.

"The Police Force is here!"

As soon as someone shouted this, the two fighting ninjas sobered up a bit from their drunken stupor.

The previously chaotic crowd quickly quieted down and order was restored.

"These two are in for it now."

The onlookers were buzzing, waiting to see the spectacle.

However.

To everyone's surprise, Inohi and the others ignored the situation and ran straight past the two men.

"Hey! Hurry up and arrest these two drunks, that's your job in the Police Force!" someone reminded.

Inohi just glanced back at the person, causing him to shut his mouth, silenced.

Looking at the villagers around him.

Inohi snorted and coldly said, "We Uchiha have collectively resigned from the Police Force. From now on, these troubles are not our responsibility. You should get used to it sooner."

With that.

The Uchiha members left under the stunned gazes of the villagers.

As for the two drunken ninjas who had narrowly escaped.

One was still stunned, while the other came to his senses first and threw a punch without a second thought.

Since no one was going to intervene, why not have a good fight?

So, chaos ensued once again.

This was not an isolated incident.

Over the next two days.

Numerous public order incidents, big and small, occurred in Konoha, but no Uchiha ever appeared to handle them.

Even when disputes escalated to the Police Force building, no one came out to intervene.

Because the Uchiha were not going to work.

The villagers of Konoha finally realized that the Uchiha clan had completely washed their hands of the matter.

Under such circumstances.

Some people who were usually up to no good began to stir.

In the past, with the red-eyed Uchiha watching, they were nervous about doing even minor thefts. Now that no one was watching, it seemed like a great opportunity for a free-for-all.

Additionally, some people with ulterior motives, such as spies from other ninja villages, also began to act more boldly and frequently.

It was proven.

Without the Police Force, the few dozen members of the Anbu couldn't handle everything.

The public order in Konoha deteriorated rapidly within just a few days.

In the Hokage's office.

Bang!

Homura slammed the table and angrily rebuked, "The Uchiha are doing this on purpose to show us, not caring at all about the safety of the two hundred thousand villagers. They really think Konoha can't function without them? Ridiculous."

Koharu adjusted her glasses and said emotionlessly:

"The Uchiha are clearly neglecting the Police Force. There's no point in blaming them at this point."

This clan was already a dead pig not afraid of boiling water.

Koharu directly proposed to the Third Hokage: "We must take back the Police Force as soon as possible, the sooner the better, otherwise the village will become more chaotic."

The Third Hokage took a puff from his pipe and said in a deep voice:

"The importance of the Police Force is indeed irreplaceable. Therefore, after careful consideration over the past few days, I have decided to take this opportunity to allow more ninja clans in the village to join the Police Force and participate in the management of Konoha's public order."

Homura's eyes flashed at this:

"Since that's the case, let's discuss who should take over the Police Force."

"No need."

The Third Hokage shook his head and directly announced to Homura and the others, "I have decided that the Hyuga clan will mainly manage the Police Force in the future."