"This time, I came because the new preliminary department for the expansion project is desperately short-handed. If this continues, both the schedule and budget will be seriously affected. So, I came to borrow someone from you. You know the village is short on manpower right now."
Having made up his mind, Chiba did not waste any more words and directly explained the current situation and why he had come.
Borrow someone? They were desperately short-handed, yet they only needed to borrow one person?
What...
What did that mean? Upon hearing this, Uchiha Fugaku was somewhat puzzled. By Chiba's account, the manpower shortage should have required a large number of people. It could not be that they needed only one.
Chiba's words were truly strange.
"...Please, go ahead. Although the Police Force is also severely understaffed, I believe we can still spare one person."
Strange as it was, Uchiha Fugaku was no fool. He was even the clan head of the Uchiha Clan, a great and proud clan. He could still hear the implications hidden in Chiba's words.
Those words had not merely come from Chiba as an Assistant Agent. They represented the Hokage. Otherwise, given the delicate relationship between the Hokage and the Uchiha Clan, there was no way they would have sent an assistant in such a special position to deliver the message. They could simply have sent any directly subordinate Anbu.
Clearly, the Hokage was not in a position to appear personally for the time being, but had sent someone capable of representing him to express goodwill toward them.
Yes, goodwill.
And not merely goodwill, but a promise as well.
Though the Hokage's words seemed to concern nothing more than a simple request for manpower, under the present circumstances, this was far more than a simple matter of