When Inuzuka No said this, his attitude was fairly civil. Given his temper, the fact that he hadn't simply chased Yashiro out already meant he was showing him considerable respect.
And he was only being so courteous for Qingguang's sake.
It wasn't that he didn't want his daughter, Akiya, to marry Yashiro. He just didn't want her to marry into the Uchiha Clan.
Although the Police Department's reputation among the villagers had improved considerably lately, Ninja Clans were different from ordinary civilians. To this day, not a single Ninja Clan had befriended the Uchiha.
The tallest tree catches the wind. In the eyes of the various Ninja Clans, no matter how deep or sincere Akiya and Yashiro's feelings were, they would only see their relationship as a political marriage.
No's attitude toward Qingguang was just as she had expected.
Being Lord Hokage's adopted son might make the Uchiha dislike him, but to the other Ninja Clans, that status made him a prized catch. Even if they didn't try to curry favor with him, they certainly wouldn't dare offend him.
Qingguang stepped forward and stood before Yashiro. "Senior No, I'm here today for no other reason. I'm not representing myself, but the Police Department. This is about Ninja Dogs."
"Ninja Dogs?" Inuzuka No was taken aback.
Did the current Uchiha Police Department not only have to smile, but also learn to tell jokes?
The Uchiha had been staunch allies of the Ninja Cat Clan since ancient times. How could they possibly come to talk to him about Ninja Dogs?
What in the world was this kid talking about?
That was what he thought, but Qingguang looked completely serious, and didn't seem to be joking.
He picked up a whistle and gave two short blasts.
Two huge dogs, one black and one white, appeared beside Inuzuka No in a flash, their shoulders level with his.
"Black Wind, White Gale, take over supervising the training of these pups for now. I'll be away for a while."
"Yes, boss." Black Wind nodded and spoke, though his tone was a little awkward.
When Yashiro heard the dog speak, he thought for a moment that he hadn't woken up properly. He shook his head.
Seeing Yashiro's dumbfounded expression, Inuzuka No put on a stern face. "What, never seen a Ninja Dog that can talk?"
"Don't the Uchiha Clan's Ninja Cats talk?"
Just as Yashiro was at a loss for words, Qingguang responded, "As expected of Senior No's two best partners. Their discipline, execution, and even their strength are probably on par with elite jonin."
That softened Inuzuka No's stern expression a little. His lips turned up despite himself, and he looked downright proud.
"Black Wind and White Gale have saved my life more than once. They're my brothers."
As he spoke, Inuzuka No led the two of them into a wooden cabin nearby.
Inuzuka No walked over to a chair and sat down. "This is where I usually rest. Whatever you need to discuss, we can talk about it here."
The cabin was small, with a wooden bed, table, and chair, a cooking stove, and a simple clothes rack. Everything was plain and practical.
Seeing the humble surroundings, Yashiro couldn't help asking, "Do you live here all the time?"
Inuzuka No nodded. "That's right. To take good care of these lovely children, I have to stay here around the clock."
As he spoke, he gazed through the window at the Ninja Dogs racing around the training grounds, as well as those standing guard and keeping watch nearby. In the end, he lowered his head and sighed.
It was a shame that some members of the clan, while carrying out intelligence missions, had stayed behind alone so they could send the information back with their Ninja Dogs. Now they could only spend their days here, living in the shadow of the past.
"You said you wanted to discuss something with me about Ninja Dogs. Let's hear it."
"When it comes to Ninja Dogs, I, Inuzuka No, rank among the most knowledgeable in the entire Shinobi World."
At first, he had thought Qingguang had brought Yashiro along to persuade him about the wedding, so he hadn't been welcoming.
But since this was official business concerning the Police Department, he had to take it seriously and keep his personal feelings out of it.
Qingguang began, "Senior No, it's quite simple. With the Shinobi World's situation growing increasingly tense, more and more merchants are trying to profit in Konoha by selling inferior medicine and grain. Some villagers have even ended up in Konoha Hospital after eating it."
"Our Police Department hopes to hire some retired Ninja Dogs as tracking dogs to help us investigate cases."
"As for their compensation, don't worry, Senior. They'll get three meals a day, with meat at every meal, and only the highest-quality dog food."
As she spoke, Qingguang handed Inuzuka No the text of the notice the Police Department was preparing to post.
Seeing the Police Department's seal on the notice, Inuzuka No had no reason to doubt its authenticity.
He wouldn't dare marry into the Uchiha Clan, but helping the Uchiha investigate cases was nothing to worry about.
The clan that worked most often with the Uchiha in this regard had long since emerged: the Yamanaka Clan.
Whenever they encountered someone difficult to interrogate, someone stubbornly tight-lipped, they would have a Yamanaka Clan ninja handle it.
Besides, although the Uchiha had an agreement with the Ninja Cat Clan, it only applied to the Uchiha and had nothing to do with Konoha.
And when it came to discipline and execution, Ninja Cats were far inferior to Ninja Dogs. It was only natural for the Police Department to approach the Inuzuka Clan to work together.
Just as Inuzuka No was assuming this was an ordinary request for help with an investigation, he spotted something unexpected in the notice.
"What's this about Ninja Dogs being assigned official posts?" Inuzuka No looked up at Qingguang and asked.
Qingguang patiently replied, "Why don't you finish reading it first, Senior No? You'll find the answer further down."
A hint of suspicion crept into Inuzuka No's mind, but he continued reading as Qingguang had suggested.
But when he reached the rest of the notice, his brows drew tightly together, and he fell silent.
"Is this notice really true? Why didn't I know about this?"
"It's true. Minister Fugaku only stamped it yesterday."
"It just hasn't been posted yet. We're planning to announce it together with the results of this batch of cases, so we don't cause unnecessary panic among the villagers."
Inuzuka No stayed silent for a long time. He even glanced at Yashiro, giving him a sudden shiver.
Finally, he stood and turned to Qingguang. "Sorry to trouble you both. Please wait here for a little while. You can have a look around and see the Ninja Dogs."
"This is a matter of great importance. I need to discuss it with the clan head."
"Yashiro and I look forward to hearing good news from you."
Inuzuka No left and hurried straight to the home of the clan head, Inuzuka Gou.
"No, what happened? Why do you look like that?" Inuzuka Gou asked.
Without a word, No handed him the notice Qingguang had just given him. "See for yourself."
"Uchiha Qingguang brought Yashiro along and wants to hire some Ninja Dogs to help with investigations."
Inuzuka Gou hadn't yet read the notice, and didn't see anything amiss. "It's just working together on investigations. There's no need to worry about that. The Yamanaka Clan has done it countless times."
But when he started reading the notice closely, he fell into a deathly silence.
The living room was so quiet that they could hear nothing but each other's breathing.
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