The Real Business War: Arson and Frame-Up!

Business warfare!

The other department stores likely saw the profits in this industry and were dissatisfied that One Heart Department Store was taking the lion's share, which is why they made their move.

Fake business warfare: strategizing in the boardroom, plotting and scheming!

Real business warfare: robbing your goods, killing your people, and burning down your shops!

This is the true business warfare of the ninja world.

In other words, the bandits encountered these past few times were entirely the work of competitors playing dirty.

As for why he didn't suspect Danzo or the village higher-ups?

Naturally, it was because White Dove had previously kept the scale and profits under control, so it was impossible to attract the attention of such big shots.

"Aunt Yezue, go post a few C-rank escort missions for the merchant caravans!"

After White Dove figured this out, he had a countermeasure.

Since the other party wanted "business warfare," he would naturally accompany them to the end.

If it were before, he certainly wouldn't be this aggressive and would have chosen a strategic retreat.

But now that his strength had been revealed, he naturally had to show dominance, and the caravans could take this opportunity to expand.

He had been cautious before because his strength was insufficient; now that he had the power, what was the point of still being cautious?

Although his current strength hadn't reached the level of "not eating beef," protecting the One Heart Chamber of Commerce was certainly not a problem.

Now that someone wanted to mess with his chamber of commerce, he would naturally strike back without hesitation.

Even if those ninja clans were behind them, he wasn't afraid.

Quasi-Kage level strength—even if not yet at the T0 tier of the village's top powerhouses—was at least T1, and one shouldn't underestimate a powerhouse of this caliber.

Uchiha Yezue didn't ask any questions and went to the center of the village to post the missions.

White Dove didn't waste any time making arrangements either.

"Tekka, Inabi, I feel that in this dry weather, those department stores are prone to catching fire. It would be even better if there were some evidence of foreign village spies hidden inside, don't you think?"

He chose to play hard.

Since the other party could use "bandits" as an excuse to mess with him, he would use dry weather and spies as an excuse to mess with them. It was fair, wasn't it?

It was as if he didn't know how to play these "business wars."

It was only because he didn't intend to hide; otherwise, if he had plotted in the shadows before striking, he could guarantee they would suffer without ever knowing who did it.

Strike once to avoid a hundred strikes!

If he didn't even retaliate against this, he would just be waiting to be bullied and have his business stolen.

Therefore, White Dove's methods were not complicated.

It was simply arson plus framing!

It sounded simple, but in reality, it was highly effective.

Of course, to play like this in the village, one had to be at least a Jonin and have sufficient intelligence support; it wasn't easy to pull off.

But for the Uchiha, these were not problems at all.

Tekka and Inabi were both three-tomoe Jonin, and their ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu were all formidable. They were the kind of Jonin who could trade blows with Kakashi for a few rounds; having them do this was a total waste of their talents.

So, after the two disappeared from the office, it took less than half an hour before the panicked clamor could be heard from the streets outside.

"Fire!"

"Evacuate the crowd quickly!"

"It's no use, the fire is too big, get out of here!"

Because the Police Force was located in the central area of the village and the other department stores were not far away, they could see the towering flames with absolute clarity.

White Dove and Yashiro also walked to the window and saw the burning buildings in the distance.

"...Isn't this going a bit too far?"

Yashiro was somewhat worried.

As a ninja, he naturally wasn't soft-hearted, but he felt that taking commercial competition to this extent might be crossing the line.

After all, when their own caravans encountered bandits, the robbers only took the goods and didn't make things difficult for the people.

If it weren't for that, they wouldn't just be losing thirty percent of their profits; they might have been operating at a loss.

"It's just a courtesy call!"

White Dove didn't take the matter to heart at all.

This was nothing; the other party probably hadn't even seen business warfare tactics like throwing feces, stealing official seals, or pouring boiling water on money trees.

In a ninja world where children started killing each other at a few years old, these business tactics were already considered "gentle."

After all, blocking someone's path to wealth is akin to killing their parents!

From this perspective, even though Uchiha White Dove was the one who set the fire and framed them, he was truly a good person.

"Interesting!"

A smirk appeared at the corner of White Dove's mouth.

"???"

Yashiro looked at White Dove with a confused expression.

It wasn't until he saw White Dove pull on his Military Police Force vest and dash toward the burning building in the distance that a look of realization dawned on his face.

He had instantly understood White Dove's methods.

"..."

Start a fire first, making it impossible for the opponent to continue their business, while simultaneously having an excuse to intervene in the capacity of the Military Police Force.

If they were to "discover" items related to spies from outside the village, the opponent would be forced to shoulder the blame whether they liked it or not.

Ruthless!

In this way, even if the truth were eventually uncovered, few people would likely be willing to shop at that department store anymore.

After all, ordinary people would definitely steer clear of any incident involving ties to foreign spies.

Solving the trouble in one fell swoop... it was indeed a ruthless move.

Moreover, their One Heart Department Store had no reason to fear such tactics.

Not to mention that Uchiha elites were stationed there at all times, the location of their neighbor alone was enough to guarantee safety.

The Konoha Military Police Force!

With a large number of elite Uchiha present at any given moment, daring to pull any tricks here was simply courting death.

Do you even understand the weight of the Uchiha name?

White Dove had opened the One Heart Department Store here precisely to prevent anyone from playing dirty.

As for his relationship with the Military Police Force?

Ahem!

As the Logistics Captain, treating them to drinks, yakiniku, and sending gifts during holidays... such things were basic operations for him.

It could be said that while the higher-ups might not say it, among the middle and lower ranks, his prestige far exceeded that of the clan head, Uchiha Fugaku.

If that weren't the case, where do you think he got the confidence to start the "New Uchiha"?

He even had hundreds of ordinary Uchiha clansmen working for him!

It was precisely because of this that he could serve as the Logistics Captain; otherwise, with the two-tomoe Sharingan he had previously displayed, he would have had no qualifications to participate in clan meetings, let alone have several three-tomoe clansmen following him.

Take the publishing house, for example, where dozens of clansmen worked, and the trade caravans and outposts were also managed by ordinary Uchiha clansmen.

It could be said that it was precisely because of Uchiha White Dove that the Uchiha were barely holding on; otherwise, the number of people supporting the hawk faction would be even higher.

Therefore, White Dove was truly at ease leaving, not worried at all that something would happen here.

Swish! Swish!

Figures leaped across the rooftops, rushing toward the direction of the fire.

Upon seeing the Military Police Force uniform worn by White Dove, they all averted their gazes, having no intention of coming over to greet him.

The current role of the Uchiha within the village was one that everyone avoided like the plague.

After all, the suppression and malice from the village's higher-ups, combined with their situation which was like a volcano waiting to erupt—anyone with even slightly informed intelligence would know about it.

Given this premise, it was no wonder these ninjas all held this attitude toward them.

Do not offend, do not approach!

Thud! Thud!

When they arrived at the department store backed by the Utatane clan, the fire had already been gradually extinguished.

After all, it was daytime, and the location of the fire was in the center of the commercial district, so the speed of the rescue was naturally astonishing.

Especially when ninjas took action, saving people was effortless.

As for the fire itself, there were naturally no "firefighters" as a profession.

Ordinary people simply splashed water, while ninjas used Water Style.

The prerequisite was being able to withstand the destruction caused by the ninjutsu.

After all, the average ninja could not precisely control the effects of Water Style.

Just as White Dove arrived, he happened to hear a boisterous and shrill female voice ringing out in front of the Utatane Department Store, which was no longer burning but still billowing black smoke.

"Why did you Military Police Force only just arrive now!"

"It's because you came late that my place was burned like this! You must be held responsible for the losses!"

"If you don't compensate me, I will go to the Hokage Building and ask Lord Hokage to preside over justice!"

A middle-aged woman with a sharp, mean-spirited face stood before a dozen members of the Uchiha Police Force, showing no signs of fear as she berated the Uchiha, whose expressions were even darker than the charred building behind them.

To these members of the Uchiha Police Force, the situation felt deeply unjust.

They had clearly come to save people, yet they were met with a barrage of insults and didn't even dare to talk back.

This was because they had already suffered for it a few times before.

Their own clan head would not only refuse to stand up for them, but would instead reprimand them to appease the orders of the Hokage.

However, at this very moment, their savior arrived.