Chapter 318: No Demolition Compensation... Not Moving

Three days later.

"What? You want us to move?"

Inside the Uchiha shrine, a voice filled with surprise, dissatisfaction, and resentment rang out.

The voice was loud, the tone angry, clearly very opposed to this demand.

"What does the village mean, excluding us when sealing the Nine-Tails, and now asking us to move?"

"Exactly! Isn't this clearly not trusting us? At this time, letting us move, or move near the South Celebration River, what does that mean?"

As Fugaku conveyed the village higher-ups' order, all the clan members in the shrine, each and every one, began to whisper and discuss.

Moreover, most expressed opposition.

"The village's current planning dates back to the Second Hokage's era; by now it's somewhat outdated."

"The village's higher-ups intend to use this opportunity to re-plan the village."

Seeing the agitated clan members below, Fugaku Uchiha had a headache; the village had summoned these major families for a meeting, never expecting to announce such a thing.

"Captain! No matter what, we cannot agree to this."

"Yeah! The South Celebration River is such a remote place; whoever wants to go can go!"

"Dong Shilang... what do you think?"

"In this Nine-Tails incident, your performance was outstanding, and your reputation in the village has greatly risen; I want to hear your opinion."

Seeing these people below all agitated, Fugaku Uchiha turned to Dong Shilang, who sat aside silently, wanting to see his reaction.

"Moving house!"

Unexpectedly, with my presence, the Third Hokage and others still proposed this suggestion, to move the Uchiha away from the village center.

I don't know if this counts as a test by the village, testing his and the Uchiha's attitude.

"Moving to that godforsaken South Celebration River, has the clan head considered how the ordinary clan members running small businesses should sustain their livelihood?"

"Without the massive foot traffic of Leaf Village, relying solely on the clan's small population, their business prospects will surely plummet."

Since the family escaped the Ninja World War, their third branch has had hardly any ninja left; this time Dong Shilang displayed great divine power in the Nine-Tails rampage.

He was elected by his branch's clansmen as the head of this household.

Now that he is the head, he must consider their livelihood; most of the small merchants and vendors in the clan are from his third branch.

"This..."

As a ninja, he never paid attention to the lives of these ordinary clan members; he simply hadn't thought about it.

"Also, if we move, how much compensation is the village preparing?"

"Demolition compensation, etc., that's really sweet."

"Compensation?"

Bombarded by Dong Shilang's questions one after another, Fugaku Uchiha was left speechless, not knowing how to respond.

"What the heck is compensation?"

He had never heard of it.

"Ha! No way, are we just moving silently without even compensation?"

"Clan head! Our current location is the center of Leaf Village; land prices are now not cheap, saying it's worth its weight in gold is not an exaggeration!"

"The village wants us to move to that godforsaken place; could it be they've taken a liking to our land?"

Why can Gangshou roam the world freely, play and gamble, and borrow huge sums of money?

It's because she inherited vast tracts of land.

Moreover, they are prime locations in the village center; just the monthly rent brings in considerable income.

"In short, if these two points cannot be resolved, our third branch will not move!"

Although he said that, Dong Shilang has already decided that even if the village resolves these troubles and gives a generous demolition compensation, he still does not intend to move.

The Fourth Hokage is dead; if the village still intends to act against the clan as in the original story, in this central location the Third Hokage and others would still have some reservations.

"Exactly! Captain, we can't just do whatever the village says; we also need to consider the clan members' livelihood!"

As soon as Dong Shilang objected, supporters appeared immediately, and this person is also the elder brother of Uchiha Yan.

His father was originally one of the heads of the first branch; after Yan's father died in battle, he smoothly became the head of the first branch.

"But, this is also the village's order... we Uchiha still need to cooperate with the Hokage's overall situation!"

An old man with white beard and hair, his face full of the marks of wind and frost, spoke up at this time, expressing a different opinion.

"Elder Yingzai, I know your second branch has always supported the Hokage's policies, but even if you support, you should distinguish what kind of matter this is!"

"For a matter that obviously harms the Uchiha's interests, don't you consider the ordinary clan members in the family?"

"Once we move to the South Celebration River, not to mention the inconvenience for our police force, how do you plan to handle the livelihood of those ordinary clan members?"

"Could it be that some people in the village have taken a liking to our station? Are they planning to use power for personal gain?"

"How could that be possible, how could the Hokage do such a thing..."

Faced with Dong Shilang's mixed remarks, Elder Yingzai of the Uchiha obviously couldn't cope, losing after just a few sentences.

He could only turn his gaze toward Fugaku Uchiha.

"Dong Shilang, this time the village's overall planning, the relocation, is not just our Uchiha clan; the Yamanaka, Hyuga, and other families are also on the relocation list, so we Uchiha cannot act alone."

In today's higher-ups meeting, he had not failed to raise objections, but afterward the Hokage summoned him to the office, had a good discussion, and successfully persuaded him.

At the same time, the other party gave him a task: to persuade Dong Shilang not to fuss over the Danzo matter.

He agreed to all of them.

But now it seems persuading him will be somewhat difficult.

The other party is no longer the little brat who just awakened the Sharingan nine years ago; he has grown to a point where even the Hokage must treat him cautiously.

"My parents, grandparents all live here; I was born and raised here; whether others move or not, I don't care, anyway I plan to keep living here."

「Even if the Third Hokage were right in front of me, I'd still have this attitude. 」

「In short, it's just one sentence: don't move! 」

He had already made up his mind; even if the Third came, he wouldn't even bother.

Could they, because of this, label him a rogue ninja?

If that's the case, he'll have to properly reason with the other side, convincing them from a physical standpoint.