Cousin, Clan Head

Uchiha Ao turned around and saw a young man with thick, limp hair walking toward him with a serious expression.

Hm?

Kagami Uchiha?

Why did he return?

Kagami Uchiha was a relative of the Original Owner; in terms of bloodline, Kagami Uchiha was his cousin.

Both of them shared similar backgrounds, having lost their parents at an early age, so Kagami felt a natural sense of closeness toward his younger cousin.

However, the Original Owner could not be described as very friendly toward this cousin.

The Original Owner belonged to the Uchiha Hawk Faction, while Kagami Uchiha was a member of the Dove Faction and a student of Tobirama Senju. Consequently, the two often argued due to their differing ideologies.

"What is it?" Uchiha Ao asked with a cold expression.

He didn't actually have any conflict with this cousin, but to stay consistent with the Original Owner's personality, he had to put on an act.

After all, his cousin was an Uchiha who had awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan and possessed keen insight.

Kagami Uchiha, long accustomed to his coldness, gave a bitter smile.

"I just wanted to tell you that when the Clan Head summons you this time, say what needs to be said and keep quiet about what shouldn't be mentioned. I heard about your assassination attempt a while ago, but I wasn't in the village due to a mission, so I haven't been able to visit you."

"Mm, I understand."

Uchiha Ao felt a warmth in his heart, but he still feigned indifference as he turned his head and walked away.

"Wait!"

Kagami Uchiha stepped forward to block his path, speaking earnestly, "Ao, after this assassination attempt, don't you understand yet? With your current strength, getting caught in the vortex between the clan and the village is just seeking your own death."

Uchiha Ao paused, his head bowed as he thought bitterly that he understood this logic all too well.

However, at this point, whether he was involved or not was no longer his decision to make; he had already been targeted by the leaders of both sides.

He recalled the cold eyes of Tobirama Senju. If he managed to pass the test in a month by some stroke of luck, he believed the next person to attempt an assassination would be the Second Generation himself.

Given that man's cold-blooded nature, he would never allow a "useless person" who had once attempted to assassinate his own clansmen to continue living in this world.

By then, not even Kagami would be able to protect him.

"I know."

Thinking of this, Uchiha Ao continued walking forward. After a moment of silence, he softly tossed back one final sentence: "Thank you."

Upon hearing this, Kagami Uchiha's pupils constricted.

Did he hear that right?

That stubborn cousin of his had actually said "thank you" to him.

However, he didn't dwell on it, simply assuming that after going through this ordeal, his cousin had finally matured.

"Sigh, I hope he can break free from this as soon as possible."

Kagami Uchiha let out a soft sigh and headed toward his home.

How could he not know that as a member of the Uchiha, wanting to escape this whirlpool was nothing more than a pipe dream?

But Uchiha Ao was, after all, the last relative he had in this world, even if this relative wasn't interested in his goodwill.

A moment later, Kagami Uchiha arrived in front of a small building. He stood downstairs, carefully identifying it for a moment, before slipping through an open window.

Entering the room, he looked around.

Seeing the room, which was as neat and clean as new, a trace of surprise flashed in his eyes.

"Since when did my cousin develop such a good habit?"

It seemed this assassination attempt had truly made him grow up quite a bit.

Thinking of this, he pulled a stack of banknotes from his pocket, along with a scroll stained with a few specks of blood, and placed them on the desk.

"This is all I can do. From now on... it will depend on his own fortune," Kagami Uchiha muttered.

With that, his figure flickered and vanished from the room.

At the home of the Uchiha Clan Head.

Uchiha Ao stood in the courtyard, head bowed, hands at his sides.

Gurgle...

Inside the room, Uchiha Qiongyue picked up a teapot, filled a teacup, and took a light sip before raising his eyes to look over, saying coldly:

"Where did you go? Returning to the clan grounds so late?"

To think he, a dignified clan head, had been kept waiting for so long—he was very angry, and the consequences would be severe.

Although he was very confident in this plan, it was still only a conjecture. Without a definitive answer from Tobirama Senju, the implementation of this matter remained a castle in the air.

Uchiha Ao clearly sensed that the atmosphere was not right, so he simply replied honestly: "The Ninjutsu School expelled me, so I had nothing to do and went to the woods to practice some ninjutsu."

"Cultivation?"

Uchiha Qiongyue set his teacup down on the table with a sharp clack, neither too heavy nor too light.

"Still lying? My men clearly saw you coming out of that Izakaya!"

"The clan is in dire need of manpower, yet you go off to drown your sorrows just because of a momentary setback? Ao, you disappoint me!"

"..."

Uchiha Ao kept his head bowed, staring at the floor, offering no further explanation.

There was indeed an Izakaya in the vicinity of Might Duy's home; if the Clan Head put it that way, he wasn't technically wrong. However, it came as a surprise that the Clan Head had actually sent people to track him down. It seemed the reply from the Hokage... was something the man took very seriously.

"Hmph!"

Seeing that Ao no longer talked back, Uchiha Qiongyue let out a cold snort. Clearly, he couldn't be bothered to waste more breath on a piece of trash like him, so he went straight to the point.

"When Tobirama Senju dismissed you, what else did he say?"

Uchiha Ao relayed Tobirama Senju's words exactly as they were spoken. However, he did not mention the One Month Pact to the Clan Head. He had a lingering feeling that when Tobirama Senju mentioned that "irresistible reward," there was an ulterior motive behind it.

Uchiha Qiongyue suppressed the smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

Just as I thought. If he deployed a large portion of the clan's combat strength, he could rightfully claim the lion's share of the credit for this battle. As for the selection of personnel, he had already roughly decided: they would all be members of the Dove Faction who advocated for peace with the Village. He wouldn't feel a shred of pity even if all of them died; in his eyes, those people were no different from traitors.

Once they were gone and the obstacles were cleared, expanding the Police Force would only be the first step. With the assistance of that person, he could even begin plotting for the position of Hokage.

Having received a satisfactory answer, and knowing there wouldn't be any other useful information, he asked out of habit:

"Is there anything else to report?"

"Yes!"

Uchiha Ao raised his head, his expression neither servile nor overbearing. "It is a personal matter. Although my abilities are meager, I did my best for the clan during this mission. I would like to request that the Clan Head allow me to join the Police Force."

Over the past few days, he had learned about the benefits of the Police Force from various sources.

First is the study of Ninjutsu. Every member of the Police Force, provided they accumulate enough merit, can exchange it for many Ninjutsu unique to the Uchiha Clan.

It is said that the majority of these were left behind by the strongest of the Uchiha, Uchiha Madara, as well as Dojutsu and Forbidden Jutsu related to the Sharingan.

There is another point: after joining the Police Force, not only will he receive a monthly salary of fifty thousand taels, but he will also have priority in selecting missions that offer generous rewards while carrying a lower level of danger.

This benefit would undoubtedly ensure his survival while significantly alleviating his financial pressure.

He currently has only a few thousand taels left on him. If he doesn't earn more silver taels soon, let alone supporting Might Duy, even feeding himself will become a problem.

Furthermore, practicing those Ninjutsu requires a large supply of Ration Pills for replenishment. Excluding the single Ration Pill distributed by the Clan each month, buying them at a Ninja Tool Shop costs at least ten thousand taels each. Therefore, making money is something he must consider right now.

Uchiha Qiongyue's brows furrowed almost imperceptibly.

This request was within his expectations, yet it still filled him with annoyance. A useless weakling dared to covet a position in the Clan's core military force?

He felt disdain in his heart, but his expression remained calm, even showing a hint of helplessness:

"Sou, I understand your hard work. But the Police Force has limited spots; it only absorbs the elite of the Clan and has its own regulations. Your strength... still needs to be tempered for the time being.

How about this? When a spot opens up in the future, I will prioritize you. How does that sound?"

What a perfectly round pie in the sky!

Uchiha Ao sneered inwardly. Instead of backing down as Qiongyue expected, he stepped forward, neither humble nor pushy:

"Clan Head, having experienced this life-and-death battle, I feel I have made a breakthrough. Please give me a chance. Whether it is an entrance exam or a test, I am willing to prove my value through action."

Seeing Uchiha Ao refusing to let the matter drop, Uchiha Qiongyue's face showed signs of impatience.

"Nonsense!"

Uchiha Qiongyue stood up and turned his back to him. "Do not mention this again. You may leave!"

With that, he turned to head back into the inner chamber.

"Wait!"

Uchiha Ao had been prepared for this. He continued in a clear voice: "If I were to replace the entrance exam with the execution of a mission, would the Clan Head agree?"

Uchiha Qiongyue's brows knit together, and his footsteps came to an abrupt halt.

A mission?

A Chunin can at most execute B-Rank Missions; that doesn't even come close to the standard for the entrance exam.

The Clan does have A-Rank Missions, but the clients behind them are mostly long-term partners. How could he hand one over to a piece of trash?

B-Rank, B-Rank...

Wait!

Uchiha Qiongyue's eyes lit up as if he had thought of something.

"If he can complete that mission, letting him join the Police Force wouldn't be impossible."