Konoha Military Police Force's Wanted Notice: Konoha's Greatest Thief

Konoha Commercial Street, Tenten Ninja Tool Shop.

Because more than half the ninja tool shop had mysteriously been stolen a month ago, resulting in losses worth thirty million ryo, Tenten's parents had spent this period dealing with ninjas from the Konoha Military Police Force.

"This is the current investigation result. That is roughly all there is to it." Yashiro Uchiha, a short brown-haired Uchiha with narrow eyes and a jonin flak jacket, handed the final investigation report to Tenten's parents alongside two other Uchiha members.

Although the owners of Tenten Ninja Tool Shop were not ninjas, they had a clan behind them. Their clan was renowned for its skill in crafting ninja tools.

This theft had cost the ninja tool shop tools worth thirty million ryo. That was no small amount; in wartime, those tools would have been enough to sustain the expenditure of a small local war.

Even Asuma, a Konoha jonin who had served as one of the Twelve Guardian Ninja, had only carried a thirty-five-million-ryo bounty on the black market.

Therefore, the ninja tool shop theft could be called the greatest theft case since Konoha's founding. The Konoha Military Police Force had attached special importance to it, dispatching an investigation team led by jonin Yashiro Uchiha and composed of several chunin.

Yet after a month of painstaking investigation, they still had not uncovered any clues regarding the thief.

And this investigation report was, in truth, merely a record of the Military Police Force's investigative process. It contained no conclusion at all.

Tenten's parents stared fixedly at the report Yashiro Uchiha had handed them, their eyes red and swollen. "Is this all?"

They had found no suspects, let alone caught the culprit. That meant they could only bear the losses themselves.

Yashiro Uchiha shook his head with some reluctance. "For now, this is where the matter stands. If any further clues emerge, you may come to the Military Police Force at any time. Should we obtain new investigation results, we will notify you immediately as well."

After all, ninja tools worth thirty million ryo were an astronomical sum for most ninjas.

Even Tenten's clan was in considerable pain over the loss.

Aside from the clan's own ninja tool-forging base, this shop in Konoha had held the largest reserves. Now that ninja tools worth thirty million ryo had been stolen in one stroke, it would take Tenten's clan a long time to recover.

"Mom..." Four-year-old Tenten, her hair tied into two buns, looked helplessly at her father and mother as they held each other and wept.

Tenten clutched the hem of her mother's clothes. She still did not understand why her parents were trembling over several sheets of paper.

But the empty ninja tool cases on the shelves reminded her that the spots which should have been filled with kunai and shuriken now held nothing but dusty hooks.

Yashiro Uchiha signaled to the two Uchiha members, and the three slowly left the ninja tool shop.

"Captain Yashiro." On the street, an Uchiha chunin voiced his doubts to Yashiro. "That thief was truly too cunning. If we close the case so hastily, I am afraid it will be difficult to answer to the chief captain."

Yashiro was a squad captain, so his subordinates naturally addressed him as captain when outside. The chief captain referred to Fugaku Uchiha, the head of the Konoha Military Police Force.

"The case is not closed. It's just..." Yashiro Uchiha was equally helpless. The scene had not left behind many traces, and after investigating for a month, they had barely even found any suspicious individuals.

They had arrested several suspects for interrogation, but none of them had been the real culprit, so they had later been released.

The Uchiha were arrogant. As law enforcers, the Military Police Force was despised throughout the village and wounded by rumors and gossip, but the Uchiha disdained framing someone else for the crime.

"There is still one suspicious person, but..." Yashiro Uchiha recalled his earlier discussion of the case with Chief Captain Fugaku.

Chief Captain Fugaku had said that, on the day of the crime, a mysterious ninja had attacked the Hyuga Compound and thrown the corpse of the Cloud Village envoy leader into the compound in an attempt to frame the Hyuga clan. The two Hyuga brothers had been beaten, one seriously injured and the other lightly injured.

Although the Uchiha were excluded from Konoha's upper ranks, Fugaku, as clan head, still had many channels through which he could learn what had happened that night.

Moreover, it was no secret that Kumogakure had later been attacked by a mysterious ninja, resulting in a ceasefire between Kumogakure and Konoha.

"Forget it. I will personally report to the chief captain." Yashiro shook his head and hurried toward the Konoha Military Police Force headquarters, burdened by countless doubts.

When the surrounding villagers saw members of the Uchiha clan from the Military Police Force, they all looked somewhat fearful, especially the merchants.

As the organization responsible for maintaining internal security in the Hidden Leaf Village, the Uchiha clan had practically treated the Konoha Military Police Force as its private property, and they were known for their cold, uncompromising methods of enforcement.

On top of that, Danzo had spread rumors while the Third Hokage played deaf and dumb.

This caused Konoha's villagers to harbor considerable resentment toward the Uchiha clan of the Military Police Force.

Maintaining internal security was already a thankless task. No matter what they did, someone would always be dissatisfied.

When the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, established the Konoha Military Police Force and placed it under the Uchiha clan's responsibility, he must have done so partly because he trusted Kagami Uchiha.

But was it not also a way of deliberately keeping the Uchiha clan at a distance from ordinary villagers and small-to-medium ninja clans?

After returning to the Konoha Military Police Force headquarters, Yashiro Uchiha told his two subordinates to move freely, while he headed to the chief captain's office.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

After the knocking, Fugaku's voice came from inside the office.

"Come in."

Creak—

"Chief Captain." Yashiro Uchiha entered Fugaku's office and placed an investigation report before him.

"The theft at Tenten Ninja Tool Shop will have to remain at this point for now. We truly cannot find the culprit, or rather..." The distinctive lines beside Yashiro's eyes creased slightly as he frowned in distress.

"Mm. You have worked hard." Fugaku did not blame Yashiro and merely nodded.

"Since there are no other suspects, list 'Asura' as a suspect and report it to Lord Hokage." Fugaku's expression darkened as he looked at the investigation report on the desk.

"But why would someone that powerful steal ninja tools?" Yashiro voiced his doubt.

Although those tools were worth thirty million ryo, a powerhouse at that level would have plenty of other ways to obtain money if he wanted it. Moreover, only one ninja tool shop had been robbed. There were several other ninja tool shops in Konoha, yet none of them had been targeted.

Furthermore, according to the investigation, the shop had only lost kunai, shuriken, explosive tags, Sealing Scrolls, and the like. The most expensive items had been the dozen or so Sealing Scrolls, worth nearly ten million ryo.

"Who knows?" Fugaku was deeply puzzled as well.

Just as the two discussed how to report to Lord Hokage and issue a wanted notice for this great thief, another knock sounded at the door.

"Chief Captain!" One of the Uchiha chunin who had accompanied Yashiro to Tenten Ninja Tool Shop pushed open the door and rushed in.

He brought astonishing news. "The owner of Tenten Ninja Tool Shop has come to report a case! They found a box in the basement containing thirty million ryo in banknotes!"

"What?!" Fugaku, who had been sitting in his chair, abruptly rose to his feet.

Yashiro's perpetually narrowed eyes flew wide open as well.

A ninja who could come and go through the Hidden Leaf Village without anyone noticing!

That guy called Asura! Had he come again?!