Read ahead of public release on P atreon at: p-atreon.com/Knockturn_Alley
Check out Chapter illustrations on Pixiv at unhinged_uchiha
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Hokage Building, Konohagakure
When Kanzou entered Hiruzen's office this time, the Hokage wasn't wearing his usual smile. Instead, his face was stern and serious.
"I wonder what business the Hokagay-sama has with me?" Kanzou asked calmly.
Hiruzen stared at Kanzou, not noticing the subtle disrespect in the young Uchiha's tone
His thoughts were focused on something else, and he looked at the man.
As if Kanzou didn't already know why he'd been summoned. This time, Hiruzen had no intention of wasting time on pleasantries or meaningless conversation.
"What's going on with the Police Force these past two days? I've heard multiple people have been arrested all over the village," questioned coldly said coldly, releasing his Kage-level aura to pressure him.
Others might buckle under Hiruzen's oppressive aura, but it did not affect Kanzou.
His strength was on par with Hiruzen's, no… even superior. Why would he be intimidated?
"Everyone we arrested had legitimate issues. The Konoha Military Police Force never lets criminals go free," he said firmly, with a righteous tone. "We of the Uchiha Clan are loyal to the village and its people… we'd never do anything that would bring harm to the village…"
As Hiruzen listened to Kanzou's words, his mouth twitched faintly.
Kanzou's rhetoric was razor-sharp. He framed himself as a champion of justice while casting those he had arrested as threats to the village itself.
Hearing it put so bluntly made Hiruzen's anger flare. His own son was among those arrested. Was Kanzou implying that even his son was dangerous to Konoha?
Hiruzen had two sons. The elder, Sarutobi Shinnosuke, was one year older than Kanzou and had just turned twenty.
He also had a younger son, Sarutobi Asuma, who was born just a few years ago.
After several members of the Sarutobi clan were arrested, Shinnosuke attempted to have the Konoha Police Force release them. When he caused a disturbance, Shin and Souta showed no mercy and had him imprisoned as well.
And it wasn't just him. The Hyuga patriarch had been arrested as well, and members of the Hyuga Clan had been coming to Hiruzen repeatedly, urging him to rein Kanzou in.
Yet Kanzou, having these people, is saying that these people are dangerous to Konoha?
The implication behind Kanzou's words was impossible to ignore and deeply infuriating.
He placed his pipe on the table and stared more intently at Kanzou, "Then explain the so-called security management fee to me… and how come the shops are being raided by the Policemen."
"That's something you should be asking yourself, Hokage-sama," Kanzou replied evenly. "The village authorities don't fund the Police Force properly. The budget we receive is clearly insufficient to pay our personnel adequately. Are my men supposed to survive on thin air?"
He continued without raising his voice. "We work tirelessly to maintain the village's safety. A decent salary is the bare minimum needed to keep morale and motivation intact. It's because of the Konoha Military Police Force that shop owners enjoy peace and order in the first place. Charging a small fee for security is perfectly reasonable."
He paused briefly, then added, "It's just crowdfunding."
"Crowdfunding?" Hiruzen murmured, hearing the term for the first time.
"Yes," Kanzou replied calmly. "It's simply a case of many people contributing small amounts to solve a shared problem. Security concerns everyone, so everyone helps pay for it. That way, there's no added pressure on the village, and the police, now properly compensated, can work with greater motivation."
Hiruzen pressed his lips into a thin line. Using such a method was one thing, but Kanzou wasn't asking for contributions. He was creating pressure, forcing people to pay. This wasn't 'many people coming together to contribute'; it was "many people having no choice but to pay."
Worse still, Hiruzen feared the consequences. If villagers paid the Konoha Military Police Force directly, the taxes they paid to the village authorities would inevitably decline, and that would create serious problems.
The tax money that should come to the village for the functioning and management of the village would now start going to the coffers of the Uchiha Clan…
This wouldn't ease the village's burden at all; if anything, it would only increase it. And on top of that, the Uchiha Clan would grow even stronger. How could something like that possibly be acceptable?
The last thing he wanted was for the Uchiha Clan to grow even stronger. Kanzou needed to be stopped, but Hiruzen also wanted to avoid open conflict.
Keeping his tone measured, he said, "Your dedication towards the village is indeed admirable. However, your methods are flawed. They're causing unrest and dissatisfaction throughout the village. We should put an end to this before the situation escalates further." After a brief pause, he added, "Release everyone who has been arrested. And as for the money collected through this so-called 'crowdfunding,' it must be turned over to the village. We will review the matter and ensure it is returned to those who paid."
Kanzou didn't answer directly. He didn't even address the issue of releasing those who had been arrested. Instead, he turned the question back on Hiruzen.
"Does that mean the village intends to properly fund the Police Force from now on?"
Hiruzen paused, his eyes narrowing. Kanzou's implication was obvious: if the village didn't pay up, he had no intention of stopping.
The realization angered him. Kanzou was blatantly ignoring a direct order.
Still, Hiruzen restrained himself. He chose to hear Kanzou out, to understand just how much funding he was demanding. It was clear to him that this entire situation had been engineered to force an increase in the Police Force's budget. If raising that budget would end the unrest, then perhaps it was worth considering.
What he didn't realize was that funding wasn't Kanzou's true objective at all.
While he does want an increase in the budget allocated to the Police Force, more than that, he cares about the Evil Points.
Unaware of that, he asked cautiously, "How much of an increase are you expecting?"
It wasn't a promise, far from it. Such matters couldn't be approved so easily. But he asked nonetheless, hoping to defuse the situation.
Kanzou replied with a number that made Hiruzen doubt his own hearing.
"Not much," Kanzou said calmly. "Just 500 million ryō per month."
"…Sorry, what?" Hiruzen blurted out. Surely, he had misheard.
Kanzou's lips curved faintly as he repeated himself, patient and unhurried. "Only 500 million ryō a month. That shouldn't be too much, right?"
500 million ryō per month meant 6 billion ryō per year.
The current annual budget allocated to the Uchiha Clan stood at 1 billion ryō. Kanzou was effectively demanding that it be raised to nearly 7 billion.
That's about a 600% increase… it was absurd to even demand such an increase.
Hiruzen was left speechless.
The number was absurd, so absurd that, for a moment, he thought Kanzou must be joking. But one look at the young man's face dispelled that notion. There was no hint of humor there.
For a brief moment, Hiruzen wondered whether Kanzou had any real reasoning behind such a demand, or whether he was simply throwing out an outrageous figure, believing that the bigger the number, the more intimidating it would sound.
"What's your reasoning for demanding such a drastic increase?" Hiruzen asked, clearly unconvinced. "Is the Police Force really in such dire condition?" He doubted Kanzou could justify a number this extreme.
But Kanzou answered without hesitation.
"Hokage-sama, this isn't about whether the Police Force is struggling," he said calmly. "It's about what the officers deserve given their strength, rankings, and responsibilities."
He continued, laying it out plainly. "The current annual budget is one billion ryō. The number of active police officers ranges between seven hundred and eight hundred. Once you subtract operational costs, equipment, electricity, medical care, pensions for retired officers, compensation for the families of fallen personnel, funding for orphanages, and other necessary expenses, the average take-home income comes out to barely six hundred thousand ryō per year per officer… Obviously, not everyone is paid the same… but… let's keep this general."
He looked directly at Hiruzen. "Isn't that far too low?"
"Compare that to regular mission work," Kanzou went on. "Most of these officers are elite shinobi. A jōnin can easily complete at least one S-rank mission per month; some elites can even manage two. If they focused solely on missions, they would earn far more than they do now."
The reward for completing a Rank-S mission can even exceed a million ryō. While such missions weren't easily available, and it was unrealistic for many shinobi to take on one every single month, that was still the general scale of earnings.
And make no mistake: the Uchiha were fully capable of handling missions of that level.
After all, the Uchiha were currently Konoha's most elite shinobi. If they began taking village missions again, they would naturally claim the highest-ranked, most difficult assignments, along with the best pay, leaving far fewer opportunities for everyone else. That imbalance would come at the expense of the other ninja.
Kanzou's tone sharpened slightly. "Instead, they give up that income to maintain law and order within the village. They do it out of loyalty, out of love for Konoha, the village the Uchiha founded alongside the Senju. They choose stability and security for the village over personal profit. If they're making that kind of sacrifice, shouldn't they be compensated accordingly?"
He paused, then asked evenly, "Don't you agree?"
Hiruzen blinked.
He hadn't expected Kanzou to lay things out so bluntly. Of course, Hiruzen knew this already; it was precisely how the village leadership had been quietly squeezing and marginalizing the Uchiha Clan. It wasn't immediately effective, not with the Uchiha's inherited wealth and their formidable reputation in the shinobi world, which allowed them to receive high-paying missions that bypassed the Hokage entirely.
Still… he had never expected someone to say it out loud to his face.
And certainly not Kanzou.
Hiruzen shook his head bluntly. "Such a drastic increase in the budget isn't possible. You're asking for far too much."
Of course, he had no intention of approving an increase like that. Doing so would only strengthen the Uchiha Clan, exactly the opposite of what he wanted.
What he didn't expect was Kanzou's response.
Not only did Kanzou refuse to back down, but he also added calmly, "If you think that's too much, then I'd say it's still insufficient. In fact, I intend to submit another proposal, an additional increase of 3 billion ryō. That would bring our annual budget to 10 billion ryō, which is the appropriate budget."
Hiruzen's eye twitched. "And what exactly do you need another 3 billion ryō for?"
"To pay the personnel we're recruiting from outside the Uchiha Clan into the Police Force," Kanzou replied casually. "They won't be working for free, obviously."
Hiruzen already knew that the Police Force had begun recruiting non-Uchiha members, and the confirmation only deepened his concern. "Why has the Police Force suddenly expanded?" he asked.
He fixed Kanzou with a sharp, suspicious stare. The Uchiha Clan had always harbored ambitions toward the Hokage's seat. Did Kanzou share those ambitions? If so, Hiruzen couldn't allow such thoughts to take root.
"As the village grows and expands, and the population of the village increases… the police force responsible for maintaining law and security should grow with it," Kanzou answered easily. "It's simple logic. Otherwise, how do you expect Konoha to maintain order? With the current population of already more than 120,000 people… The Uchiha Clan alone clearly isn't enough."
"I see," Hiruzen replied calmly, his expression neutral, neither pleased nor angered.
He spoke evenly. "Your request for a budget increase will be taken into consideration. For now, focus on ending this so-called crowdfunding effort. And releasing those arrested by the Police Force, stirring chaos and unrest, is not the solution."
He wanted the crowdfunding shut down immediately. The constant stream of complaints was giving him a headache.
Still, Kanzou's reply fell far short of a clear agreement.
"I understand, Hokage-sama," he replied calmly. "I will take your request to stop the crowdfunding into consideration. In the meantime, you may also consider my request for a budget increase." He shrugged off the Hokage's directive so casually that it made Hiruzen's irritation spike.
Before the Hokage could respond, Kanzou continued, smiling faintly. "As for releasing those who were arrested, that's out of the question. They're criminals, perhaps even traitors. The justice in my heart won't allow their release."
He was still counting on extracting gains from the detainees, whether in money or in evil points. Letting them go would mean losing both.
Hearing such a flat rejection, Hiruzen's anger flared, but he restrained himself. As Hokage, he had to maintain his composure and dignity.
"Oh, and one more thing, Hokage-sama," Kanzou added lightly. "Your son openly attacked members of the Police Force. That's a serious offense. Of course, someone as wise as you wouldn't allow his own son to tarnish his reputation. Allow me to help by properly educating Sarutobi Shinnosuke-senpai on your behalf."
Hiruzen's hand rested firmly on the desk.
On closer inspection, fine cracks had begun to spider across the wood, silent evidence of the pressure from his clenched fist.
He had to admit it: Uchiha Kanzou was troublesome.
The boy had no intention of respecting the Hokage's authority or following orders simply because they were given… which made it difficult for him to be dealt with. He also has the backing of the strongest Clan in Konoha… and is also a force to be reckoned with.
Seeing such a threat in front of him, for a brief moment, the urge to strike him, to teach him a lesson, flared within Hiruzen. But he suppressed it.
He couldn't afford to make an outright enemy of Kanzou. Not yet.
Turning against Kanzou would effectively mean turning against the entire Uchiha clan, an outcome that would bring nothing but harm to Konoha. There would be no benefit, only instability.
He even considered assassination.
Although, Kanzou's strength was formidable… Hiruzen doesn't think that it is impossible.
Konoha does have several highly skilled people, such as himself, Hatake Sakumo, Orochimaru, Shimura Danzō, and Jiraiya, who should be able to assassinate Kanzou.
The real problem was opportunity.
He obviously couldn't deal with Kanzou here and now… If Kanzou is going to be assassinated, it can only be done in the shadows… But when, or even how, such an opportunity might present itself was far from clear. Uchiha Kanzou was, after all, the captain of the Police Force.
Any direct move against him would be anything but simple.
'Should I try sending him a mission?' he pondered.
However, he was a little uncertain… and not without a good reason. The reason was that the intelligence he had about Kanzou's skill was sort of unreliable.
Every assessment he possessed was based on outdated data.
His best reference point remained Kanzou's strength during the Second Great Shinobi War.
As for how much Kanzou had grown in the four or five years since the war ended. That was difficult to tell.
Given Kanzou's talent, it was only reasonable to assume that he hadn't stagnated. If anything, he must have grown significantly stronger over the past few years.
But it was difficult for him to tell to what extent exactly.
All he knew was that Kanzou was widely regarded as the strongest member of the Uchiha clan, stronger than Fugaku, and even stronger than Uchiha Seiji, whom Hiruzen considered one of the clan's top fighters and nearly Fugaku's equal… so Hiruzen considers Kanzou to be almost as strong as a Kage.
What Hiruzen didn't know, what made the situation far more dangerous, was that Kanzou had already surpassed Kage-level strength and even awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan.
At this point, there was no one in Konoha capable of assassinating him.
If they were to actually fight, Hiruzen would not be a match for Kanzou.
Among the Kage still alive across the Five Great Shinobi Villages, the only one Kanzou could consider somewhat of a challenge was the Third Raikage, and perhaps Ōnoki if he manages to catch Kanzou off guard.
After all, the Third Raikage had gone head-to-head with the Eight-Tails, Gyūki; meanwhile, Ōnoki can use Dust Style… a very dangerous Kekkei Tōta.
Apart from them, Kanzou didn't worry about anyone else, not even Hokagay in front of him.
In his eyes, his strength already surpassed that of Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Though Hiruzen was often referred to as the 'God of Shinobi,' 'Professor,' and the 'strongest Hokage of all time,' Kanzou was well aware that, realistically, Hiruzen ranked weakest among all the Hokages so far.
Whether it was Senju Hashirama or Senju Tobirama… both were far superior to Hiruzen to the point that it wasn't even a match.
Even among the Five Kages of the current generation, Hiruzen was probably the weakest… Weaker than Sandaime Raikage, who can use the Lightning Chakra Mode, weaker than Sandaime Tsuchikage, who can use many secret Earth Style Jutsu and the Kekkei Tōta Dust Release, weaker than Sandaime Mizukage, who is a master of Ice Release Kekkei Genkai, and probably even weaker than Sandaime Kazekage, who has mastered the Magnet Release Kekkei Genkai to an unnatural degree.
Indeed, among the Kages of the current, Hiruzen with no Kekkei Genkai or special Jutsu to back him up… Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, is probably the weakest Kage.
Yet he calls himself the 'Strongest,' 'God of Shinobi,' 'Professor,' and the 'strongest Hokage of all time.'
Kanzou couldn't help but disdain Hiruzen… a weak man trying to hide his weakness behind titles.
'It's truly pathetic…'
Kanzou left the Hokage building. As he departed, he made sure to ask once more about funding for the Konoha Police Force.
"Uchiha Kanzou… your existence is indeed a threat to Konoha," Hiruzen muttered, standing by the window and watching Kanzou walk away.
A flicker of killing intent flashed in his eyes.
He wanted to eliminate Kanzou, but what he didn't know was that Kanzou had already grown too powerful, and the opportunity to kill him had long since passed.
With Kanzou's strength, while it might be difficult for him to take on an entire ninja village alone, no one could actually stop him or pin him down. Even if the aged Uchiha Madara were to personally attack him, Kanzou would not be defeated; at worst, he could simply retreat.
After all, the current Madara had already given both of his eyes to Nagato.
No matter how formidable he once was, his power was now limited…
In fact, even if Madara appeared before him… it might end up being him who dies, considering Kanzou's Amenotokotachi, which can momentarily freeze his victim in time.
As such, Kanzou was indeed not afraid of anyone…
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Drop power Powerstonessssssssss!
Read ahead of public release on P atreon at: p-atreon.com/Knockturn_Alley
Check out Chapter illustrations on Pixiv: unhinged_uchiha