However, the village's finances were tight, and the Uchiha Clan was required to fund the police department's expenses out of their own pocket.
It was essentially equivalent to Uchiha supporting itself—raising and maintaining a force to handle security and complaints—without any substantial support from the village's budget.
This price was far from negligible.
But was the Uchiha Clan short of money?
Of course not. What the Uchiha feared wasn't the cost—it was the hassle, especially the multitude of senseless complaints.
Facing a flood of nonsense from villagers—without the liberty to teach lessons or retaliate—was enough to drive anyone insane.
And once something wasn't handled with precision or diplomacy, the clan could find itself blamed or even punished by the higher-ups of the village.
"Very good."
Several minor captains and elders displayed pleased expressions. Even Shisui, who was secretly a spy for the village leadership, wore a joyful smile.
This shift was clearly a good development for the Uchiha.
"This is definitely a victory for the Uchiha!!"
Seeing the Great Elder's enthusiastic expression, Yan rolled his eyes inwardly.
You're calling this a victory for Uchiha? Sure, I'll accept that it's a good development.
But a victory?
What nonsense.
It was clearly a soft knife, slicing away Uchiha's autonomy piece by piece.
As the elders grinned, Fuyue read the situation with precision. He knew exactly what calculations lay behind those smiles and had no intention of giving them room to maneuver.
"Hiko."
Fuyue called his name directly and said:
"The suggestion on handling complaints was your idea. What further recommendations do you have regarding the clan and the police department?"
All eyes turned to Hiko.
Full of ill intent.
Knowing that Fuyue was shifting attention toward him deliberately, Hiko didn't back away. After pretending to contemplate for a moment, he replied:
"I believe the police department's mission structure needs restructuring. Our department maintains security throughout all of Konoha and even participates in high-priority tasks such as capturing enemy agents and dangerous criminals."
"These trivial errands—catching cats, finding lost pets—should be entirely declined. Let the mission department handle those. If villagers want help, they can issue D-rank missions through the appropriate channel."
Yes, you heard right—cat-catching.
Even though the mission department had its share of odd missions, if the client had money and was willing to spend it, even a seasoned ninja would carry it out.
Because at the end of the day, ninja needed to eat too.
But those who couldn't afford such services?
They came crying to the police department.
Just as Hiko pointed out, villagers would bring every ridiculous issue to the police department.
If you didn't act, they'd throw a tantrum.
This was the current situation—a daily grind of nonsense that wore down morale and effectiveness.
"I don't think we should turn villagers away. This is the best chance to rebuild trust between Uchiha and the rest of Konoha."
Shisui seized the opportunity to voice his own opinion, directly opposing Hiko's proposal.
In the villagers' eyes, the Uchiha already had a negative image. Though these trivial matters were a burden, Shisui saw them as a bridge—an opportunity to mend relations, even if it cost resources.
"Shisui makes a valid point. I don't think restructuring is the right move."
The Sixth Elder, who'd been humiliated by Hiko the previous night, chimed in supportively.
"Hmph."
As the excuses piled up, the Great Elder scowled but held his temper. He turned his attention to Hiko, clearly eager to see how he would respond to the dissenters.
"Pfft~~~"
A sharp laugh cut through the room.
Hiko clutched his stomach, laughing aloud.
Shisui frowned, clearly displeased with Hiko's response.
The Sixth Elder's face turned purple with rage. His hand trembled as he pointed and barked:
"Uchiha Hiko! What do you mean by this? Are you mocking your elders?"
"Sorry, I couldn't help it."
Hiko wiped his face and waved his hand dismissively toward the Sixth Elder.
"Please Elder, drop the pretense—I'm not laughing at 'you'… I'm laughing at just you."
Oh wow.
Everyone winced.
That wasn't just sarcasm—it was a public slap in the face.
He didn't merely insult the elder—he metaphorically tossed the man's dignity on the floor and stomped on it.
And maybe even spat on it for good measure.
"You!!"
The elder's face, flushed red from humiliation, quickly turned ashen.
Shisui's tone grew increasingly irate.
"Hiko! Even if you and I have opposing views, there's no need to insult an elder. You can take up any issue with me. Don't drag others into this."
"You call that an opposing view?"
Hiko burst into another fit of laughter, this time tinged with scorn.
The situation was escalating quickly.
Fuyue pinched the bridge of his nose. This was giving him a headache.
Why had Hiko, usually reserved—perhaps a little odd—suddenly become so aggressively defiant?
His words were dripping with contempt. Anyone who stepped out of line risked getting verbally slapped—Fuyue himself wasn't safe.
"No respect. Simply no respect at all…"
The Sixth Elder mumbled angrily.
Hiko cut him off coldly:
"Save it. I'm not interested in sparring with you."
Then, turning to Shisui:
"As for you—this isn't a difference in philosophy. You're just plain stupid."
"The villagers don't hate us for no reason. It started after the Nine Tails attack. Before that, we were tolerated—resented maybe, but not despised."
"Secondly, what is the police department? It's the public security force. Their job is to make tough calls and take unpopular actions."
"And in this hostile environment, you want to waste clan manpower and resources handling petty errands just to improve PR?"
"How idiotic is that?"
"Why waste resources placating others when we can use those same resources to improve the lives of our own clansmen? Better pay, better conditions—that is the priority."
"Or are you saying our clansmen don't deserve those benefits?"
"I would never say that!"
Shisui panicked. Hiko had twisted the conversation into a debate about family benefits—if Shisui denied that, the backlash would be enormous.
He was already walking a tightrope in the clan. If he admitted Hiko's accusation, he'd be ostracized.
"The old man agrees with Hiko."
The Great Elder clapped with approval, clearly pleased.
"It's good to see that someone still puts the clan first. The clan comes before outsiders."
If others disliked the idea, the hardliners would support it even more.
And if the topic was internal benefits, even moderate clan members didn't object.
Even those leaning toward the doves stayed quiet.
After all, when it came to personal gain, people tended to shelve ideology.
In short—don't touch my benefits.
Especially not in the name of diplomacy that may not even work.
The mood was shifting again.
With hardliners in agreement and rank-and-file members leaning toward better pay, Fuyue realized the weight of this issue was landing on him—again.
He was the patriarch. This was his job.
If he kept pushing responsibility away, what kind of leader would he be?
And the dove faction? They were even worse off.
Fuyue intervened quickly to stop Hiko before he brought up more taboo subjects—like the Nine Tails, which was a forbidden topic in Konoha.
"Hiko, improving welfare is valid. But have you thought about the consequences? The police department used to handle these issues. If we abandon them now, how will the villagers perceive it?"
"How they perceive it doesn't matter."
Hiko's response was calm, unbothered.
"Uchiha's foundation isn't built on goodwill—it's built on strength."
"Assign a few civil workers to placate them, explain things. If that doesn't work, bounce the case back. But my team won't be handling it."
"Let whoever wants to take it—take it."
He shifted his tone firmly:
"And on behalf of all Uchiha police members—I must say: our compensation hasn't improved in years. Patriarch, do you expect us to keep living like this?"
"And those senior 'mentors' who do nothing—why is it taking half a month to evaluate a newcomer's performance?"
Hiko's eyes burned with frustration.
The third team—the one he led—had…