Saving the Uchiha clan starts with becoming the clan leader.

"Sir Rokuro."

The sudden shouts disrupted Rokuro Arasaka's thoughts. He turned around and saw one of the guards running over to him. He said, "Lord Rokuro, there's a group of police officers outside the gate who want to see you. They want you to come over."

"Police Department?"

Rokuro Arasaka's face turned pale.

They've come knocking on our door already? How fast!!

"It's definitely the police department. Their uniforms are different from ordinary Konoha ninjas; they have shuriken sheaths and fire fans on their shoulders. I'm not that sure I'd mistake them..."

"Okay, I understand. You go back first, I'll be right there."

Rokuro Arasaka had no patience to listen to the ramblings of this flowery guard, so he waved him away. He stood on the bamboo bridge, pacing anxiously like an ant on a hot plate. The police department had already come knocking, but the problem was that he hadn't figured out how to deal with them yet.

After thinking for a while,

He gritted his teeth and decided to go see the person first. Maybe, out of respect for the special envoy, the village wouldn't really take any serious action, and the police might not be there to cause him trouble. Of course, if they really were there to cause trouble, then... well, we'll see what to do then!

Rokuro Arasaka lifted his leaden legs, as if he were a prisoner about to be sent to the execution ground, and slowly swayed towards the gate. Just as the gate came into view, a not-so-unfamiliar figure blocked his way.

"Lord Kazuma?"

Arakasaka Rokuro stared blankly at Kazuma, who stood before him with a chilling expression, wondering when he had offended Kazuma-sama. But no matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't find an answer.

"Rokuro Arasaka, listen up. If the police come to you to ask about your kidnapping, tell them everything you've done, and tell them that if they want to kill you outright, they shouldn't rush into action now. It would be best to catch you red-handed tomorrow. Do you understand?"

Kazuma finished speaking, word by word, and stared intently at Rokuro Arasaka, waiting for his reply.

Rokuro Arasaka was completely dumbfounded.

Has he...has he gotten himself caught in the crossfire of the power struggle between the Special Envoy and the Deputy Envoy? Is the Deputy Envoy planning to use this opportunity to bring down the Special Envoy? What should he do in this situation? He felt a headache coming on. The Deputy Envoy had gotten involved too, and was even standing against the Special Envoy...

The situation is more complicated.

Which side should I take?

"I...I understand, Lord Ma. I promise to do as you say."

Looking at the kunai pressed against his chest, Rokuro Arasaka gave Kazuma a heartfelt answer.

[257. Chapter 256: A Thrilling Prelude]

Rokuro Arakawa felt like he had stepped into a quagmire from which he couldn't escape. How did he end up getting caught up in the struggle between the special envoy and the deputy envoy? But this also saved him the trouble of figuring out what to do. The stinging pain from the kunai pressed against his chest by Lord Ma was still lingering.

We have no choice but to do as Lord Ma says!

Otherwise... you'll be doomed, and your family will be doomed too.

As for offending the Hiramiya family, that's a problem to consider later. If we can't get past this hurdle, what future can we expect?

Arriving at the main entrance of the embassy, ​​Rokuro Arasaka saw three people standing at the door. Uchiha Torajiro and Yakushi Kabuto were both wearing police uniforms, making them easily identifiable. As for the little girl next to him wearing light purple casual clothes, she was probably a genin. As far as he knew, this kind of vest uniform was only issued to chunin.

"Ah! You've finally arrived! I'm so sorry, I'm tied up with work here, so I had to trouble you to make this trip!" Arasaka Rokuro's expression changed quickly, an exaggerated and enthusiastic smile spreading across his face. He darted forward, stood in front of Uchiha Torajiro, and extended his hand to shake hands.

"Here's the thing, a friend of mine runs a brothel in the new district. Recently, he's gotten into trouble with some people, and every night someone comes over to cause trouble. I was going to try to handle it myself, but then I found out that there seem to be ninjas among those causing trouble. I'm really out of options, so I'm asking you all for help. Please don't worry, the reward will be substantial."

Uchiha Torajiro looked at the note held in Arasaka Rokuro's outstretched right hand, raised an eyebrow, reached out and squeezed it, calmly taking the note. He coughed lightly and said, "Let's investigate first. As for what we can find out, I can't guarantee for now, but I promise we'll do our best."

"Thank you so much! I'd be extremely grateful!"

Rokuro Arasaka kept bowing.

"No need, this is our job. By the way, we met your father on the way here. The old man was very worried about you. He said that you are the only one of the six brothers left. It must be hard for you. Don't make the old man worry too much. Dou, Quan, let's go. We have to get busy."

Uchiha Torajiro waved his hand, then turned and left.

"Huh? Leaving already..."

"Quan, let's go, don't fall behind."

Kabuto Yakushi interrupted Izumi Uchiha, his meaningful gaze making Izumi shudder. She swallowed her original question and muttered under her breath, "Isn't this my first time at the embassy? I've heard that the ponds here are very beautiful!"

The three figures gradually disappeared into the distance.

Rokuro Arasaka was left standing there alone, looking blank.

He stared blankly at the departing figure, his heart filled with mixed emotions. Had he gone to his house first? Was his father... worried about him?

Not far from the gate

Behind the white walls of the embassy, ​​on an old pine tree, He Ma stood on a branch, silently watching all of this.

······

"Okay, you can stop now."

Uchiha Torajiro activated his Sharingan with two tomoe, carefully looked around and at his feet, and only after confirming that there were no tails around did he call out to his two subordinates and stop on the empty rooftop. The rooftop was indeed a good place to talk, with open space all around. As long as he checked his feet, he didn't have to worry about being overheard.

"Can you speak now?"

Uchiha Izumi asked anxiously.

"Izumi, be patient, I know what you want to ask. You'll understand why we left soon enough." Uchiha Torajiro's words made Uchiha Izumi pout. She wanted to ask why they suddenly left, even though they were supposed to be investigating Arasaka Rokuro.

Instead, they were tricked into leaving by Rokuro Arasaka.

"When we shook hands, Rokuro Arasaka slipped this to me."

Uchiha Torajiro revealed the folded note.

The note was about two fingers wide and only about six centimeters long when unfolded. It read, “Hotai-yu, Ito Meat Shop, 6:00 AM every day, delivering fresh meat that the Special Envoy and Ogasawara Guard Captain love to eat.” The hasty handwriting showed that it was written in a hurry.

"Hotai-yu? That name... is that the bathhouse? The bathhouse that enshrines the Cloth Bag Monk!" Uchiha Izumi mentioned Cloth Bag Bathhouse, which Uchiha Torajiro also knew. This bathhouse called Cloth Bag Bathhouse was in their jurisdiction, just like the brothel.

"And I remember this Ito Butcher Shop is not far from Hotei-yu, could this be...?"

Uchiha Izumi wasn't stupid, and the note was written quite bluntly.

“If I’m not mistaken, this is probably the same hunting grounds of the Special Envoy, just like that brothel.” Kabuto Yakushi pushed up his glasses with his index finger. “Hobuki Yu was in charge of selecting and catching the prey, and then sending it to the butcher shop not far away through secret channels like tunnels. The butcher shop had to supply a large amount of fresh meat to the Special Envoy every day, and the captured prey was mixed in with it and sent to the Special Envoy. And this Special Envoy, and Chief Guard Ogasawara are probably the masterminds behind the disappearances... exactly the same methods!”

"However, the only strange thing is Arasaka Rokuro's attitude? I was originally thinking that if Arasaka Rokuro committed suicide, or was killed by someone else, we would lose the clues and have no way to continue the investigation. But I didn't expect... does he want us to catch him in the act?"

"I don't know either."

Uchiha Torajiro shook his head. He was joking! How could he know why Arasaka Rokuro would be so proactive and cooperative? He jokingly said, "Perhaps he had a change of heart?"

"It's possible, but unlikely. Don't be fooled by how shabby their place looks... the bonsai in that old man's yard could easily fetch seven or eight million if sold outside! If they were law-abiding, they couldn't afford such an expensive hobby."

The pharmacist frowned.

He always felt that Rokuro Arasaka's attitude was a bit strange. In his opinion, a guy like Rokuro Arasaka, who was used to walking in the gray and black areas, would most likely deny it to the death when he encountered this kind of thing. In the end, when he could no longer deny it, he would commit suicide or be forced to commit suicide, taking all the blame on himself... rather than actively cooperating with them.

Because they know very well that there is no good outcome to actively informing on someone. Not only will they be ruined, but their families will also be affected. As for whether the police department will provide protection... they can protect them for a while, but they cannot protect them forever, unless they are confident that the person who betrayed them and their forces behind them will be eradicated.

However, according to the note,

If that special envoy, Hiramiya Nariaki, is the mastermind, it's impossible to completely eradicate the Hiramiya family behind him. According to Kabuto Yakushi's investigation a couple of days ago, the Hiramiya family is one of the most powerful noble families in the Land of Fire and one of the staunch supporters of the Fire Daimyo... Dealing with Hiramiya Nariaki is still somewhat possible, but to completely eradicate the Hiramiya family is simply wishful thinking!

It was precisely because of this that I could not calm my doubts. It was too strange that Rokuro Arasaka would cooperate with them. I could not rule out the possibility of it being 100% possible, but to be honest, it was at most a few tenths of a percent.

"Alright, Kabuto, stop worrying about it. It's not important why Rokuro Arasaka would cooperate willingly. What's important is whether this news is true or false. If it's true, then we can solve this case. If it's false... then we might have to settle some scores with him."

Uchiha Torajiro also found it strange, but he wasn't as curious as Kabuto Yakushi. Rather than digging into the details, he was more concerned about the veracity of the information.

"We'll find out tonight whether it's true or not."

Kabuto Yakushi temporarily put aside his doubts; he could ask Rokuro Arasaka about it after the case was over.

"Captain, the problem now is whether to request backup. If we plan to catch them in the act... we need to consider the possibility that the target might resist. If the embassy has experts on standby, our team might get taken care of instead."

"It's Kabuto Yakushi," he said in a low voice.

Uchiha Torajiro glared at him, holding his breath. Was this a disrespect to him, a special jonin? It was simply... infuriating. It seemed that special jonin were not so great after all. Putting aside everything else, the Uchiha clan had never lacked jonin, and special jonin were even more numerous.

"Captain, um...am I holding the team back?"

As the only genin in the team, Uchiha Izumi felt somewhat ashamed.

"Don't worry, it's not just you, Kabuto and I are both dragging our feet too," Uchiha Torajiro said irritably.

Kabuto smiled silently, offering no rebuttal. His combat skills were not bad, but for a spy, being able to fight was at most a bonus, not the most important deciding factor. He was confident that he could fight Captain Uchiha Torajiro for a few rounds without being at a disadvantage, but he wasn't so sure he could handle those powerful Jonin.

"Let's go! Go back and write a report, see if we can get a top expert to come and help us out."

Having made their decision, the team quickly returned to the police department and submitted a report on their findings. After some twists and turns, the report reached Zongxian's desk. Zongxian, who had just returned from the Hokage Building, had a bit of a headache.

His delusions were shattered!

The main culprit in the missing persons case is most likely the daimyo's special envoy to Konoha. In that case, the money transfer plan really has to be put on hold for the time being. Otherwise, if we kill the daimyo's special envoy and then make a mess of the Ōtsuri Province, how can the daimyo sleep at night?

Put yourself in his shoes. If Sogen were the Fire Daimyo, he would definitely worry that Konoha was planning to forcibly control him, and then control the Daimyo's residence and even the entire Land of Fire.

"Hiramichi Nariaki... what is this old guy trying to do by kidnapping people? The Hiramiya family doesn't even do slave trading, really... they're just causing trouble." Zongxian muttered a couple of complaints. After all, they are one of the most prominent noble families in the Land of Fire. What are they after by coming to Konoha to kidnap people?

Why can't you just act like a tyrant in your own territory? Why do you have to come to Konoha and cause trouble for others!

Moreover, they were not abducting women, but rather a group of strong construction workers or other robust men engaged in heavy physical labor.

It's completely baffling.

It's truly baffling.

only--

Despite his confusion, the task still had to be done. Zongxian picked up his pen, signed "Approved" on the report requesting support, and handed it to his secretary, Uchiha Futaba, who was standing at the table. "Futaba, make a copy, and then take this to Uchiha Torajiro's team. Tell them that the person they need will appear when required, and they can continue their work without worrying about safety."

"Yes, Chieftain!"

Uchiha Futaba agreed, and the short secretary darted out like a ghost.

Just minutes after Uchiha Futaba left, Uchiha Arashiyama rushed over and asked abruptly, "Sōgen, is it confirmed that the mastermind behind the missing persons case is that special envoy?"

"It's still uncertain. I can only say that if I'm not mistaken, it's highly likely that it's that old guy. When the Fifth Generation hosted a banquet to welcome that old guy, I knew he wasn't a good person. Even the perfume on his body couldn't cover up the smell of blood. I originally thought that whatever disgusting hobbies he had, it had nothing to do with me. I never expected... that after all the twists and turns, he still ended up in my hands."

Uchiha Arashiyama was silent for two seconds, then said, "In that case, we can completely put aside the matter of sending money for now?"

"…Let's take it easy! Anyway, the Hokage Building has already agreed to provide funding. By the way, Arashiyama, write a report requesting funding later, and come up with a few plausible reasons. With the funding from the Hokage Building, we should be able to get through the first half of the year. However, just to be on the safe side, we can also start preparing for the hunt for rogue ninja."

It's still uncertain how much money the Hokage Building will offer.

Hoping that the Hokage Building can fill the gap in one go... that's the best we can do, but we're afraid it might fall short, so it's necessary to have a backup plan.

"Chief, you really know how to order people around. How can you come up with such a good reason for applying for funding?"

Uchiha Arashiyama grumbled, but in his heart he was already thinking about which of his secretaries to assign this task to. After the police department expanded its recruitment, he no longer had to do everything himself. As the vice minister in charge of the daily operation of the police department, he now had six secretaries under him.