Chapter 181 : The thief of life
The Land of Fire.
Konoha Village.
Uchiha Yuzuru emerged from the Kamui Dimension as if entering an uninhabited land.
It was daytime, but the streets of Konoha were almost deserted, and most of the shops along the street were tightly shut.
It looked quite desolate.
Watching the patrolling Ninja occasionally passing through the rooftops, Uchiha Yuzuru walked towards the Uchiha Clan Compound.
Under his powerful perception, Uchiha Yuzuru was not discovered by anyone.
Before long, Uchiha Yuzuru arrived at the Uchiha Clan Compound.
The Uchiha Clan Compound at this time was unrecognizable; a large gate carved with the characters "Shimura" stood at the periphery of the estate.
Seeing this, Uchiha Yuzuru let out a cold snort from the corner of his mouth.
A magpie occupying a dove's nest.
To even seize the abandoned old clan estate, just how deep was Shimura Danzo's obsession with the Uchiha Clan?
Just then, two Ninja reeking of alcohol walked over from a distance.
Seeing Uchiha Yuzuru standing in the street, one Ninja drunkenly asked, "Who are you, and what are you doing at our clan estate?"
"I'm in a good mood today, so just give me some money for drinks and scram, or I'll have you thrown into the Military Police Force, and you'll be skinned alive even if you don't die."
As he spoke, he reached out, wanting to grope Uchiha Yuzuru.
But the next second, he incredulously looked down at his chest.
A Kunai was embedded there, with only the hilt still exposed.
"You..."
The Ninja's eyes widened, and he fell to the ground with a "thud."
Seeing this, his other companion instantly sobered up.
He opened his mouth to shout but felt a chill at his neck before he could make a sound.
A line of blood erupted, and his breathing became rapid.
The Ninja's chest heaved violently, but the sense of suffocation grew heavier.
He tried to call for help, but only a gurgling sound escaped his mouth.
After killing the two, Uchiha Yuzuru did not bother to deal with them but walked directly towards the center of the Village.
Before long, in a small alley, a tavern that seemed out of place with its quiet surroundings appeared in Uchiha Yuzuru's sight.
He stepped inside, and someone immediately came forward and asked, "Customer, what would you like to eat?"
"Just bring me anything."
Uchiha Yuzuru placed the money on the table and began to quietly observe his surroundings.
Even though it was daytime, the tavern was still packed.
There were Ninja, villagers, merchants... After the dishes were served, Uchiha Yuzuru quietly perked up his ears.
A merchant sighed, "Alas... things are getting harder and harder lately. Banditry within the Land of Fire is becoming more rampant, and the price of hiring Ninja is getting higher and higher. Working for several months only barely allows us to make ends meet."
As soon as he said this, someone immediately echoed, "Exactly, that's why many people are going to the Land of Lightning now. I hear the merchants there are making a fortune."
Mentioning the Land of Lightning, many people became interested.
A Short, Stout Merchant took a drink and laughed, "I'm telling you, the Land of Lightning is full of gold now; you can make money just by going there."
"You know about the Land of Lightning?"
"I just came from the Land of Lightning this time." The Short, Stout Merchant had drunk a bit too much, and his flushed face was full of smugness. "They're doing construction everywhere there. Both Materials and workers are in short supply."
"As long as you have hands and feet, you can earn a lot, a lot of money. And if you get injured, there's workers' compensation. If you get sick, medical insurance helps pay your fees. Even if you can't work anymore, you can still collect a pension every month..."
"And you wouldn't believe it, the roads in the Land of Lightning are built so smooth and wide, seemingly paved with a Material called 'asphalt.'"
"Their carriage wheels are fitted with rubber tires, and coal-burning trains can pull over ten thousand tons of goods, traveling day and night without stopping."
"In the Land of Lightning, even if you go to the most remote places, you don't have to worry about bandits or robbers attacking. The public order there is the best I've ever seen."
Hearing this, everyone in the tavern couldn't help but fall silent for a moment.
After a while, someone asked incredulously, "Are you telling the truth? Then why did you come back?"
The Short, Stout Merchant took another drink and laughed, "I got a few passes, so this time I plan to bring my family over so they can see the world too."
Upon hearing this, a Konoha Ninja snorted, "You're practically calling the Land of Lightning paradise. I don't believe that place can really be that good."
"If ordinary people can enjoy the benefits you mentioned, how much money would they have to spend each year?"
The Short, Stout Merchant originally wanted to argue, but seeing that the person speaking was a Ninja, he wisely shut his mouth.
In this era, Ninja-sama were not people a merchant like him could provoke.
The Short, Stout Merchant stopped talking, but the others in the tavern were chatting animatedly.
Especially the ordinary villagers of Konoha, all of whom showed expressions of yearning.
Workers' compensation, medical insurance, pensions... if the Land of Lightning really had these welfare policies, how happy would the people living there be?
In the Land of Fire, life was becoming increasingly difficult for ordinary people like them.
Material controls, night curfews.
There were unemployed people everywhere, yet prices were rising daily.
Many froze or starved to death in the streets, and most terrifyingly, in recent years, many people would go out once and never be heard from again, as if they had vanished from this world.
Even with jobs and some savings, they still felt a sense of shared sorrow, like a rabbit mourning a fox.
In such a grand environment, who knew if such a fate would suddenly befall them one day?
But no matter what they thought, they could only live in a daze.
After all, the last time those who protested in the streets were directly killed off by the Ninja.
The current Konoha was not like before; Ninja would truly kill if they were displeased!
The atmosphere in the tavern became somber, and someone murmured, "I truly wish we could return to the time before the Uchiha Clan left."
This statement immediately resonated with everyone in the tavern.
Even many Ninja couldn't help but nod.
Whether they wanted to admit it or not, almost everyone agreed that the decline of Konoha Village began when the Uchiha Clan left Konoha.
Before the Uchiha Clan left, the public order in Konoha Village was exceptionally good. Both ordinary people and Ninja from clans obeyed the law.
Anyone who dared to abuse their power would immediately be thrown into the Military Police Force's prison.
The Ninja in the Village had a steady stream of missions, and the villagers could live and work in peace, all with bright futures.
But ever since the Uchiha Clan left, the Village's situation had gone from bad to worse.
War losses, economic downturn, powerful individuals defecting, collapse of order... up until now, most people lived in deep distress, struggling to survive day by day.
Those with privileges didn't even bother to hide their actions anymore; anyone who dared to provoke them would face the fiercest retaliation.
In contrast, the Land of Lightning, where the Uchiha Clan settled, had become a powerful nation in the Ninja World, aggressively expanding its territory.
The people living there had plenty to eat and wear, lived and worked in peace, and enjoyed various welfare benefits that sounded enviable and hateful... The thieves of the Land of Lightning stole the happy lives that rightfully belonged to them!