Chapter 34: If I Can't Afford to Offend the Uchiha, Can't I Afford to Offend You?

"Indeed, I was a bit worried at first. After all, your mission target this time was Orochimaru, one of the legendary Sannin," Uchiha Fugaku said with a smile.

At this moment, Uchiha Touhuan took out the mission scroll he had obtained from Lord Yamamoto and placed it on the table.

"Touhuan, this is?" Uchiha Fugaku asked, curious. Uchiha Touhuan signaled him with his eyes to open it and see for himself.

Uchiha Fugaku picked up the scroll and channeled a bit of chakra into it. After just a single glance, he could hardly sit still. He looked up at Uchiha Touhuan and asked, "This... is all of it?"

"A total of 1.5 billion ryo," Uchiha Touhuan replied. "If we hadn't been in such a rush and if I had brought more sealing scrolls, there could have been even more."

"You really are something, Touhuan," Uchiha Fugaku said, delighted. One had to realize that even after accounting for the necessary expenses of the Uchiha clan—such as ninja tools—it would take years for the clan to save up that much money. Yet, Uchiha Touhuan had brought back such a fortune from a single trip, and judging by his words, there was still plenty more to be had.

"Send two jonin from the clan to Tanzaku Town tomorrow. This is the payment for a long-term bodyguard mission," Uchiha Touhuan said.

"I understand," Uchiha Fugaku nodded.

"How has the Police Force been while I was away?" Uchiha Touhuan asked.

"The situation is quite good. With the guidance of the work manual you left behind before you departed, the new ninjas have adjusted quickly and are already capable of conducting regular patrols and duties," Uchiha Fugaku said. "However..."

"Has something happened?" Uchiha Touhuan noticed Fugaku's hesitation and asked.

"Over the past few days, the number of complaints received by the Police Force regarding patrol and duty officers has multiplied compared to the past. They are all directed at those new civilian ninjas, while there isn't a single complaint against our original clan members," Fugaku said.

"Is that so?" Uchiha Touhuan chuckled after hearing this. "Is it because those new members aren't paying attention to 'smiling law enforcement'?"

"How could that be?" Uchiha Fugaku rubbed his brow in frustration. "There are four divisions and twenty-eight squads in the Police Force now. Before every patrol, the captains repeatedly emphasize the importance of smiling law enforcement. Yesterday, the entire force even stayed late for a meeting to stress this point, yet the number of complaints only continues to rise. Touhuan, won't this affect your plan to integrate the clan into the village?"

"Don't worry, Elder Fugaku. I will handle this tomorrow," Uchiha Touhuan said calmly. He had expected this from the very beginning.

After all, he knew exactly what kind of people these villagers were. When the Police Force was composed entirely of Uchiha clan members, they might have restrained themselves out of fear of the clan's power. But now that civilian ninjas had joined, everything had changed.

*They can't afford to offend the Uchiha, but they think they can afford to offend you?* That was the perfect description of these villagers' mentality.

In fact, Uchiha Touhuan was happy to see this. First, with these civilian ninjas acting as a buffer, the public perception of the Uchiha clan within the village would significantly improve. Furthermore, these civilian ninjas, who were being maliciously complained about despite upholding the law, would surely harbor resentment. When the day came for them to take action against these troublesome villagers, their truncheons would likely strike much harder.

"If you have a plan, then that is fine," Uchiha Fugaku said. "Aside from that, I have a personal matter to discuss."

"Please, Elder Fugaku," Uchiha Touhuan said.

"I would like to ask you to become a mentor for my son, Sasuke."

"Oh?" Uchiha Touhuan raised an eyebrow slightly. "Why has this thought suddenly occurred to you, Elder?"

"Sasuke has reached the age to formally begin practicing ninjutsu. The day before yesterday, I taught him the clan's formal introductory ninjutsu, the Great Fireball Technique," Uchiha Fugaku said. "However, the child's performance was far inferior to his brother's."

"Is that so?" Uchiha Touhuan laughed upon hearing this. He recalled that when he was studying the technique in the clan's private school, out of twenty-eight Uchiha children in his cohort, he had ranked twenty-seventh. It had once even made him doubt whether he was cut out to be a ninja.

"But since there is a precedent like you in the clan, I had Sasuke's chakra nature tested. His affinities are Fire and Lightning. I had him try learning Lightning Release, and his talent for it far exceeds his talent for Fire Release," Uchiha Fugaku said with a bitter smile.

Sasuke’s talent for Lightning Release was no less than Itachi’s talent for Fire Release. He had read the scroll for the Lightning Release: Lightning Ball technique twice and was already able to release a sphere of lightning up to a meter in diameter. However, their family consisted of ninjas specializing in Fire Release. Although Mikoto had a Lightning affinity, she did not have a deep understanding of it, making it a major challenge to teach Sasuke properly.

Fortunately, there was someone in the clan in a similar situation. As the former clan head, Uchiha Fugaku knew Uchiha Touhuan’s history well. When Touhuan was in the Ninja Academy, he performed decently thanks to his family's innate talent, but within the clan, he was very mediocre. His grades in the private school—which focused primarily on Fire Release and Genjutsu—were disastrous. The family had even considered giving up on his training, until he pestered the elder guarding the ninjutsu repository into letting him have his first Lightning Release technique. Only then did his true talent begin to shine.

Therefore, facing Sasuke’s current situation, Uchiha Fugaku naturally thought of having Sasuke apprentice under Uchiha Touhuan.

"Besides, Touhuan, you know I am not good at raising children. Itachi has already gone down his own path, so I would like to entrust Sasuke to you," Uchiha Fugaku said.

"I understand. From now on, have Sasuke come to me after school," Uchiha Touhuan said with a smile.

"Then thank you very much, Touhuan-kun," Uchiha Fugaku said solemnly.

"What are you saying, Elder? Being able to help a child who is in a situation similar to what I once experienced avoid some pitfalls is exactly what I would want," Uchiha Touhuan replied.

"No, Touhuan, this is my gratitude as a father," Uchiha Fugaku sighed. "Please take good care of Sasuke."

"I will," Uchiha Touhuan nodded.

"Then I shall not disturb you any longer," Uchiha Fugaku said as he took his leave. Uchiha Touhuan rose to see him out.

After Uchiha Fugaku left, Uchiha Touhuan finished maintaining his blade and went to rest.

The next day, Uchiha Touhuan arrived at his office in the Police Force. He looked at the room, which his subordinates had redecorated during his mission, and nodded with satisfaction.