Uchiha Tanaka's step suddenly halted mid-stride.
He turned sharply, face dark and voice cold, as he looked toward Senju Tobirama.
"Tobirama-sama, what is the meaning of this? You're not letting us leave?!"
His youngest son had already been beaten by that traitor, and now they weren't even allowed to go? Tobirama was clearly targeting him!
Tanaka's expression grew even uglier at the thought, eyes blazing with fury as his Sharingan activated, spinning into three tomoe.
"Tobirama-sama, do you really think the Uchiha are so easy to push around?!"
But Senju Tobirama remained calm, completely unshaken. That only fueled Tanaka's rage even more.
Damn this Tobirama—he clearly had no respect for the Uchiha clan!
Tobirama frowned and said, "Uchiha Tanaka, your son used ninjutsu within the village and nearly injured civilians. How do you propose we handle that?"
The Uchiha always walked around with their noses in the air. Normally, Tobirama wouldn't stoop to targeting them over such things, but Uchiha Retsufū's actions had struck at the village's very foundation.
Konoha may be a great shinobi village, but its civilian population far outnumbered its ninja.
And civilians stood no chance against trained shinobi.
If they weren't kept in check, Konoha's foundation would collapse.
After all, both shinobi and civilians served important roles.
Shinobi were tasked with protecting the village and the country, often deployed for guard duty, reconnaissance, and combat missions.
Civilians engaged in agriculture, crafts, commerce, and various production activities. They were the backbone of daily life, providing food, materials, and goods.
Even most missions shinobi accepted were commissioned by civilians.
So if a shinobi began recklessly harming civilians, it would be nothing short of undermining Konoha itself.
That's why this had been explicitly forbidden from the moment the village was founded.
But Uchiha Retsufū had nearly injured a civilian today. That was no small matter.
Tanaka's expression shifted to one of disbelief as he turned to look at Retsufū.
He had arrived late and hadn't seen what had happened.
Tobirama had been observing from the start and had only revealed himself once Tanaka arrived.
Retsufū lowered his head in shame under his father's gaze.
"Father-sama, I didn't mean to..."
He had only wanted to spar with Renya and hadn't noticed the crowd of villagers watching.
Head still lowered, no one noticed the venomous hatred flashing in his eyes.
Damn those villagers...
If it weren't for them, he would've already fought Renya by now.
He had even deliberately sent his younger brother Retsu to provoke him, all to create a proper excuse for a duel.
The plan had been perfect—until those damned villagers ruined everything.
Worse yet, their interference had given Tobirama an opening to pin the blame on his father.
Uchiha Retsufū's rage toward those villagers was enough to make him want to kill them all.
Tanaka stared at Retsufū for a long moment before turning to Tobirama.
"This incident is indeed due to my failure in raising my son properly. I'll make sure he's severely disciplined once we return."
Before Tobirama could speak, Renya stepped forward with a playful, mocking expression.
"Tsk tsk, such a serious matter, and all you've got is 'I failed to teach him properly'?"
Tanaka's face darkened. "What do you want then?"
"Why ask me?" Renya shrugged. "I'm not the Hokage. I'm just making an observation."
Tanaka glared at Renya, teeth grinding, fists clenched so tightly they creaked, killing intent radiating without restraint.
Renya was completely unfazed. His own Sharingan flared into three tomoe as he stared back.
"Uchiha Tanaka, are you planning to attack me?"
Here in the heart of Konoha, Tanaka wouldn't dare lay a hand on him.
And even if he did, Renya had nothing to fear.
At the end of the day, Tanaka was just an elite jōnin. If it came down to a deadly fight, who came out alive was still up in the air.
Not to mention, Senju Tobirama was standing right there.
...
The crowd watching nearby was stunned.
"Who the hell is this kid? How dare he talk to Clan Head Tanaka like that?"
"You don't recognize Jōnin Renya? He's the Hokage-sama's adopted son."
"But isn't he an Uchiha? Why would the Hokage adopt him?"
"Shh... stop spreading rumors."
Uchiha Retsufū clenched his jaw so hard he nearly shattered his teeth.
Not everyone in the village knew that Renya had been adopted by Senju Tobirama, but now that it had spread, the entire village would find out.
And when that happened, the Uchiha's pride would be utterly shattered.
As a clan built on pride, the Uchiha could never allow something like that to stand.
In that moment, Retsufū even considered silencing the crowd.
But the thought quickly passed.
...
Tanaka's face was ashen. He said grimly:
"Tobirama-sama, what do you want to do about this?"
He had no desire to drag this out. The sooner it was settled, the better.
But this bastard Tobirama just wouldn't say anything.
Tanaka was on the verge of walking out and letting the chips fall where they may.
Seeing his anxious expression, Tobirama knew the time had come.
"Clan Head Tanaka, I recall the Uchiha have a few shops on the commercial street..."
Tanaka's fists tightened at the mention.
Back when Konoha was being built, the Uchiha had received certain privileges alongside the Senju.
Among them were a few storefronts on the commercial street, which brought in considerable income each year for the clan.
Tobirama had long wanted to reclaim those shops, but hadn't had the right opportunity—until now.
He had finally gotten his leverage.
Tobirama sighed internally as he brought it up.
Originally, the commercial street had been divided evenly between the Senju and Uchiha.
But his older brother had secretly handed over several Senju shops to the Uchiha under the guise of compensation.
It had infuriated him, but there had been nothing he could do.
Now, at last, he had a justified reason to take them back.
"I'm willing to turn over three of the shops to the village," Tanaka said through gritted teeth.
"Then thank you, Clan Head Tanaka. The village will remember your contribution," Tobirama replied.
Reclaiming the shops meant more revenue for the village treasury.
After all, money flowing into the Uchiha's pockets and money supporting the village were two very different things.
...
"Tobirama-sama, now may we leave?" Tanaka asked coldly.
This had been a total loss.
Not only had they lost face, they'd lost their property too.
The Uchiha had other businesses, of course—but who would ever complain about having too much money?
He could already imagine the old geezers at home mocking him over this.
"Of course," Tobirama nodded, then added:
"But... Clan Head Tanaka, I hope you'll take care in educating your children, so they don't cause even greater problems in the future."
Just moments ago, he had sensed murderous intent from Uchiha Retsufū directed at the villagers.
It had passed quickly, but that didn't mean it could be ignored.
The Uchiha were an extreme bunch and needed to be watched closely.
Retsufū was now firmly on his watch list.
"Heh... thank you for the reminder, Tobirama-sama. I'll make sure to keep a close eye on him," Tanaka replied as he turned and left.
Retsufū gave Renya a hateful look, then followed his father, the rest of the Uchiha youths trailing after them in haste.
Renya watched their retreating backs, the red fan emblem lined up in a row, and curled his lip in disdain.
...
Chapter for your review, thank you