Chapter 154: Can

Second Hokage, it's the Second again!!!

When he heard Yanshiban mention that the Second Hokage's Zhuanren Xiaochun was breathing increasingly rapidly, his face turned green.

She didn't understand why her greatly respected teacher had granted the Uchiha such immense power back then.

And why, despite possessing such power, the Uchiha always performed mediocrely? If Rizhan had been unharmed and exposed it earlier, they wouldn't have been so passive, constantly being led by the nose by the Uchiha.

"Even with the Second Hokage's approval, it should first be sanctioned by us; without our authorization, how could the Police Department arbitrarily redeploy ninjas?"

When Zhuanren Xiaochun forced a weak question, Yanshiban laughed loudly and said, "Approval? What approval? Your approval only handles funding. For Konoha, this money comes from us Uchiha; the Zhuanren assistant wouldn't be trying to freeze the Uchiha's heartfelt dedication to the village and its people, would they?"

Zhuanren Xiaochun hesitated; with so many people around, she obviously couldn't refuse.

Moreover, on the surface it looks like the Uchiha are using their own money to safeguard Konoha's safety; though angry, she could only stay silent.

Mizuto Monen, seeing this, replied, "They're just a few spies; it shouldn't have escalated to this point. Deploying so many ninjas will only unsettle the villagers. Better withdraw all Police Department personnel; let the ANBU take over, and we'll give the villagers an explanation."

"You?"

Yanshiban's expression was disdainful; he glanced at the ANBU behind the two, then surveyed the crowd.

"Who doesn't know that since the Third Hokage fell ill, the village has been plagued by internal strife and constant accidents? Even you have been assassinated, yet you speak of protecting the villagers? It's downright laughable."

The two fell silent; it was Danzo who assassinated them, which had nothing to do with them, and they never wanted to be assassinated.

Yanshiban ignored that, waved his hand and shouted, "You cannot serve Konoha above, nor soothe the villagers below; you disregard the Third Hokage's trust, single‑mindedly seeking power and profit."

"With people like you in the village, how can it not fall into decline?"

"Nonsense, we are the ones acting for the village!"

Mizuto Monen initially wanted to ignore the topic, but Zhuanren Xiaochun couldn't stand it; how could her heartfelt dedication to the village be so misunderstood?

"For the village? Hahaha, you dare talk to me about serving the village. When have you ever thought of the village? When have you thought of my Fire Country?"

Yanshiban laughed, pointed at the two with a righteous expression, and said, "Konoha is short on funds now; we Uchiha are united, working day and night with the Police Department, conducting strict investigations inside and out, and we've uncovered countless parasites."

"And you?"

"You only abuse your authority, meddle in Police Department missions, constantly cause trouble; many parasites have been saved by you—do you think I don't know?"

"Do you think the others present don't know?"

"Exactly, those guys have been found guilty, the evidence is right there, yet the two assistants keep rescuing them—truly damned."

"Those ninja clans already consume most resources; now they won't even let go of this money—Konoha's sky grows darker."

"My friend's family's relief payments haven't been fully disbursed for months; didn't the great name give extra allocations?"

"Could it have been embezzled?"

Listening to Yanshiban's stern questioning, everyone couldn't help but nod; each time the ANBU extracts people from the Police Department, the Police Department issues a notice to make the matter public.

If it were once or twice, they'd understand the village.

But the Konoha high command does this repeatedly; do they really think they're fools who can't grasp these people's intentions?

Their relatives and friends are fighting to the death on the front lines, some relief funds haven't even been paid out, yet those in the rear dare to touch that money—truly damned.

The crowd thought, their gazes toward Zhuanren Xiaochun grew increasingly sharp and hateful.

Both wore extremely grim faces, forced to explain, "Putting these wrongdoers in prison also wastes village resources; better send them to the battlefield so they can contribute to Konoha."

That does make some sense, of course, but it's only a little; the crowd aren't fools—Yanshiban pointed it out, so they certainly know the high command's intentions.

Yanshiban didn't linger on the matter, waved his hand and said, "Today I bring people here for the safety of Konoha above and below; the Police Department exists to protect Konoha's citizens. Within Konoha, any obstruction can be seized; every clan and family must cooperate fully."

"Why is your Zhuanren clan so special, repeatedly obstructing, not only hindering official duties but daring to make public arrests? Such audacity—are you disregarding the Police Department, or the Second Hokage?"

One hat after another was tossed at her; Zhuanren Xiaochun's mind became a tangled mess. Some matters she could gloss over with her prestige if left unmentioned, but certain actions, when viewed from the ninja clan perspective rather than Konoha's, are fundamentally untenable.

The crowd murmured, someone whispering, "Other ninja clans cooperate honestly; why does the Zhuanren family cause so many issues? There must be something fishy."

"Hmph, those ninja clans are shady; perhaps they're the ones who sent the Uchiha to assassinate us. The Police Department helped us uncover so many parasites, yet they still target us—truly damned."

"How did the Third Hokage pick these two to manage Konoha? Since they entered the Hokage Tower, Konoha hasn't had a few days of peace. Choose the Fifth Hokage quickly!"

Mizuto Monen didn't know how to rebut, but regardless they cannot let the Police Department enter Zhuanren territory; otherwise, if Zhuanren Xianghui is discovered by the Uchiha, they'll be in trouble.

"Hehe, the Third Elder makes sense; after all, it's the Second Hokage's rule, so we shouldn't block it. However, the village has many areas, and relying solely on the Police Department for searches inevitably lacks manpower."

"Alright, I'll have the ANBU review the central district; after all, when the Nine‑Tails Rampage broke out, many ninjas in the core area died at the Nine‑Tails' hands. They wouldn't cooperate with the Police Department, but with ANBU assistance it could go smoother."

At that time the Nine‑Tails was still some distance from the core district, but the core district was inhabited by ninja clans who fought to block the Nine‑Tails, resulting in many deaths.

Yanshiban had learned some Konoha matters from Sima Yi, so he naturally understood Mizuto Monen's reference to the Nine‑Tails.

He gave a casual glance; indeed, some people seemed touched by a sore subject, their faces not looking good.

Yanshiban frowned slightly; the Nine‑Tails issue heavily suppressed the Uchiha, yet back then Fugaku foolishly nodded in agreement.

He truly wished to crack Fugaku's skull open to see what's inside.

After a brief thought, Yanshiban ignored the Nine‑Tails topic and shouted, "Stop rambling. What use is the ANBU? They couldn't protect the Third Hokage, yet they abandoned the Second; what right do they have to meddle in Police Department affairs!"

Whoa—once those words were spoken, everyone gasped, turning to Yanshiban, then to the ANBU members, finally fixing their gaze on the two assistants.

"Abandon the Second? Who? Of course it's Zhuanren Xiaochun and Mizuto Monen. Who doesn't know those two were once ANBU members under the Second Hokage, and during negotiations with the Lightning Country, the Second stayed behind alone to protect them, ultimately dying in the Lightning Country."

Zhuanren Xiaochun and Mizuto Monen trembled with anger, immediately pointing at Yanshiban and shouting, "Scoundrels, daring to slander us! Do you really think you're an Uchiha elder, so we can't act against you?"

"Hmph, what, did you hit someone's sore spot?"

"For Konoha, for the people, what wouldn't I dare do? At most I'd be assassinated again by some; at worst I'd gamble my life with you."

"After all, some people even dare to abandon the Second Hokage; what can't you accomplish?"

"Damned thing!"

Zhuanren Xiaochun, enraged, murderous intent flaring, raised her hand to strike; Yanshiban sneered from a distance, unafraid, while Police Department personnel beside him instantly drew their swords.

Mizuto Monen, though irritated, stopped her irrational move and said coldly, "Third Elder, watch your words; the Second Hokage is our teacher, Rizhan and Jing are his students."

"Our teacher once sacrificed himself to protect us; your slander places us where? Places Jing where? And Shisui's grandfather—who is he? Don't you understand?"

Yanshiban wouldn't answer; his gaze passed over the two and fixed on the ANBU behind them, asking, "What is the ANBU's duty?"

Facing Yanshiban's stare, the ANBU felt a headache; the Second Hokage was one thing, unrelated to them, but the Third Hokage's issue was a mental ailment—how could one claim they were ineffective in protection?

However, under everyone's watchful eyes, they could not ignore Yan Shifan's issue, and one of them had to grit his teeth and say, "Protect the shadow and."

Before he finished, Yan Shifan cut in, "Protecting the Hokage is the ANBU's duty, yet you left the Second to survive alone on the battlefield. Now you still have the nerve to stand here and meddle in Police Department affairs—simply laughable!"

He added, "I have long heard that the Second possesses the Flying Thunder God technique, appearing and disappearing at will, traversing the battlefield freely. Not even a mere Golden Horn or Silver Horn could stop him; even the First could have left if he wished. So why did he fail to return when he went out with you?"

"Also, Elder Kagami of our Uchiha clan is exceedingly kind and cheerful, but after returning with you his mood turned sour; it seems he refused to go along with others, yet he passed away after only a few years."

One big revelation after another spilled out; everyone's breathing quickened, minds raced, constantly filling in the details of that time.

"So it was Zhuan Yin Xiao Chun, Mizuto Mon En, Danzo and the Third who betrayed the Second, which is why the Second died in the Land of Lightning?"

"Does that mean Uchiha Kagami and Akido Qufeng died because they refused to go along with them?"

"Nonsense, Senior Qufeng died fighting the Nine-Tails during the Nine-Tails Incident."

"Then why didn't Zhuan Yin Xiao Chun and Mizuto Mon En die? Moreover, those three are assistants, while Senior Qufeng was a disciple of the Second—why isn't he an assistant?"

"This"

"He was definitely suppressed; Senior Qufeng couldn't stand up to the four and had to compromise, after all he only had the Akido clan behind him!"

"Exactly, now only the four of them remain; whatever they say is fine, who"

Zhuan Yin Xiao Chun, listening to this discussion, felt like vomiting blood; he stared intently at Yan Shifan. This familiar rhetoric placed several unrelated events together, prompting imagination.

But they were merely stating facts—why was Kagami in a bad mood after returning? Because his teacher died!

As for not going along with the crowd, what does that have to do with his early death? This pot is too big, so big that touching it means death; they absolutely cannot bear it. Zhuan Yin Xiao Chun looked around.

Of course, they are the Third's ANBU, so they were thinking about the Third and Sarutobi Shinzusuke.

Mizuto Mon En's heart gave a jolt; he wished he could seal Yan Shifan's mouth shut.

He knew they could no longer tangle with Yan Shifan; such rumors must not be left unchecked, otherwise they would not only lose their authority but also be cursed by ten thousand people.

"As the Second's ANBU, we will naturally risk death to protect the Hokage, but the Second, bearing the Will of Fire, regarded Rizhan as the flame of the Leaf, thus sacrificing himself to protect us—how could we let you question that?"

Mizuto Mon En gave a brief rebuttal and dared not entangle further in this matter.

Then he returned to the main point, stating directly: "Regardless, the Police Department's shortage of manpower is a fact, and now it is already night; moving too many shadows for one person's affair would disturb the villagers' rest."

Let the ANBU help. As for the search of the Zhuan Yin clan lands, to show we have no ulterior motives, let the Police Department send someone to accompany the ANBU.

Zhuan Yin Xiao Chun paused, then recovered, saying grimly: "Our clan members are only because the Nine-Tails rejects Uchiha people, but we don't want anyone to misunderstand. So let the Police Department send someone to follow; we stand upright and fear no crooked shadow!"

Yan Shifan scoffed; although the two were conceding, in such a vast clan land, what could one person see while following?

But he didn't care; after all, he could never truly let the Police Department clash with the ANBU, that would cause a big mess.

As for whether one person could uncover anything?

"Then, as you say, so that no one can claim that we Uchiha are meddling like some others, come, follow the ANBU inside."

"Yes!"

Yan Shifan finished speaking and immediately stepped out.

Zhuan Yin Xiao Chun also sent ANBU members to search inside. She glanced at the Police Department member's back, feeling contempt; after such a delay, they had already hidden the person, and she doubted a single person could find anything.

When the search party entered the clan lands, the outside grew quiet; everyone craned their necks to watch. Most, because of the two assistants' attitude, already harbored doubts, but also knew that a single person could not find anything in such a vast Zhuan Yin clan land, feeling silently regretful.

If Zhuan Yin errs, they might still reap some benefits; such a large family has plenty of good things.

Biu~ After an unknown amount of time, a signal flare shot out from the Zhuan Yin clan lands, illuminating the night.

Everyone looked up, their expressions varied.

Alright, the vacation's over; finally got some things done. This school is truly hard, the more you work the more you get, brothers and sisters, remember: handle today's tasks today, never procrastinate! (End of chapter)