I Choose Orochimaru as Hokage, Ascending to the Moon in Ten Years Chapter 13

"That's right. If outside merchants were to come in, they would naturally conduct trade, but members of the Uchiha Clan do not leave Konoha to engage in commerce."

Fugaku recalled the words of Uchiha Gin as he spoke.

For instance, the Nara Clan has external commercial dealings, selling medicinal products; they possess their own forest where they can cultivate these herbs.

The Yamanaka Clan is responsible for manufacturing medicine, while the Akimichi Clan engages in the business of selling meat.

Other families also have such external commercial channels to varying degrees, managed by the ordinary members of their clans.

Only the Uchiha lack such commerce; they have only the duties of the Military Police Force and odd jobs.

"A reasonable request. I grant it."

Sarutobi Hiruzen agreed. It was indeed difficult to refuse this matter, as the Uchiha had made concessions. Danzo was merely going through the motions here; he wouldn't truly do anything against him.

However, he had already decided in his heart to have someone closely monitor the shop the Uchiha Clan was about to open, ensuring not a single clue was missed.

The subsequent discussion was mundane. Those who had originally hoped to watch the drama unfold found there was no drama to be had, and thus it became uninteresting.

The personnel arrangements for the Military Police Force would be decided by the Third Hokage within three days, consisting of a four-man squad.

After the meeting concluded, Shisui was summoned by Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Only after carefully confirming that Shisui knew nothing of what had transpired today did Sarutobi Hiruzen allow him to leave.

"Am I a double agent now?"

"Or... am I merely a puppet?"

After leaving the Hokage Building, a sense of bewilderment filled Shisui's eyes.

Uchiha Gin knew exactly what he was doing, yet told him there was no need to hide it and to report directly to Sarutobi Hiruzen.

As for Shisui, he had concealed the fact that he had awakened his Mangekyo; he had originally intended to use this to trade for the Third Hokage's trust.

He had planned to inform him that if the Uchiha Clan truly launched a coup, he could use Kotoamatsukami to rewrite the will of Clan Head Fugaku and stop it.

After meeting with Uchiha Gin, he abandoned this idea.

"I am who I am!"

"I shall be the firewall between Konoha and the Uchiha!"

Shisui decided to continue his protection from the shadows.

Whichever side crossed the line, he would use the power of Kotoamatsukami to alter the situation.

If Uchiha Gin knew of Shisui's thoughts, he would surely be unable to hold back his laughter.

From the very beginning, he had never considered persuading Shisui to use Kotoamatsukami to force Sarutobi Hiruzen to step down; that would be the equivalent of a super shortcut in a strategy game.

This method would inevitably backfire. Who knew if Shisui would use this same trick against him later? Once a chain of suspicion is formed, it cannot be stopped.

The Uchiha Clan all had their own deep-seated issues, so Uchiha Gin chose to develop slowly; being strong oneself is the only absolute truth.

The conclusion of this meeting caused quite a stir among the upper echelons of Konoha.

However, the ordinary people felt nothing; they went about their business as usual, and there was basically no impact.

People from the various major clans believed that Danzo had been too ruthless and had been bitten back by the Uchiha. They felt this result was for the best—both sides had suffered losses. Although they gained no benefits themselves, they were pleased.

Within the internal meeting of the Uchiha Clan, the debate was also quite heated.

After all, many believed that the power of the Military Police Force should not be shared.

"If we don't share it, are you going to be the one to go out on patrol every day and be scolded by those old hags?"

With just this one sentence, Fugaku resolved the issue.

Upon learning that the squad sent by Konoha would be responsible for these tasks, the others had no further objections.

Dealing with these civilians was the most disgusting part. Ever since they had been targeted, they couldn't use heavy-handed tactics because the Third Hokage was always watching. After a few incidents caused the Uchiha's reputation to plummet, they hadn't dared to act.

Most importantly, everyone now felt a sense of confidence, believing that Uchiha Gin's Sharingan could serve as their trump card. Furthermore, they had managed to bring Danzo down, which could be considered a gain.

After Uchiha Gin showed his sincerity, Orochimaru also began to make his move.

Now that he was the leader of the Root organization, he naturally had to reorganize it properly and "optimize" everyone who wouldn't cooperate with him.

After all, Root was a training department for the Anbu; it was a very reasonable arrangement to say that these members of Root had graduated and were now entering the Anbu.

However, this was undoubtedly a slap in the face to Danzo. Danzo had been subjected to a perfunctory investigation for several days—a closed-door investigation where, aside from reading the memories in his brain, they had basically used every method available.

After all, Sarutobi Hiruzen was also guarding against Danzo, but in the end, he found no evidence of Danzo collaborating with Uchiha Madara.

However, some information regarding Danzo and Orochimaru collaborating on human experimentation did surface—it was impossible to cover it up completely—but it had nothing to do with Uchiha Madara.

After careful consideration, Sarutobi Hiruzen lifted the restrictions on Danzo, but he did not return the Root organization to him; he needed to let some time pass, no matter what.

After all, the Uchiha Clan had paid a price.

So, when Danzo regained his freedom and returned to the Root base, he discovered that all his own people had been reassigned to the Anbu, and he immediately became frantic.

"Orochimaru, are you trying to make an enemy of me?"

Inside the base, Danzo glared at Orochimaru.

"The era of the young has arrived. My methods differ from yours, so those who are unsuitable must naturally be cast aside."

"Furthermore, I have already shown you respect; otherwise, I would have executed your subordinates these past few days."

Orochimaru spoke to Danzo with a cold, sinister smile.

He was no saint, and while Danzo held control over Root, he had indeed posed a threat.

But now, Danzo was nothing more than a stray dog. Orochimaru sensed that his teacher had tacitly approved of these actions; otherwise, how could all those transfer orders he issued have been fully authorized?

The Hokage's primary duty was that of a village chief. Virtually all affairs within Konoha required the chief's permission; without it, any action was illegal.

"Aligning yourself with the Uchiha is a grave mistake. You will be dragged into the abyss!"

Danzo was no fool.

Although he lacked evidence, he could sense that his downfall was the result of a collaboration between the Uchiha and Orochimaru.

Orochimaru did not answer directly; he had no desire to leave behind any incriminating evidence.

"The prologue of a new era has begun. There is no ship left that can carry you; wait slowly for your sinking."

Orochimaru's words made Danzo's eyes turn icy.

"I will return!"

Leaving those words behind, Danzo departed with the few remaining subordinates who had not yet been "optimized."

Although he possessed evidence of Orochimaru's human experiments, he was inextricably linked to those matters himself. Unless absolutely necessary, Danzo did not wish to play that card.

There would be plenty of opportunities for revenge; he was in no hurry.

Blue Familiar Representing Wisdom Completed

"These individuals are your new colleagues from here on out."

"Let us start with some self-introductions."

For the first time since the founding of Konoha, people outside the Uchiha clan were serving in the Military Police Force.

A meeting was called immediately, and everyone who was available attended.

"I am Hyuga Himon, captain of the Fifth Squad of the Military Police Force."

"Nara Rikufu, Aburame Mizuki, Inuzuka Ichito."

The group showed no signs of timidity as they introduced themselves.

One could discern their general abilities just by their names.

They were all experts at gathering intelligence. Sarutobi Hiruzen made no effort to hide his intentions, nor did he have any desire to.

Moreover, the leader was from the Hyuga clan. Since both were ocular-jutsu clans, they were natural rivals; peers in such fields usually hoped for the other's entire family to perish. Only then could Sarutobi Hiruzen feel at ease letting them lead this squad.

Next were the introductions from the Uchiha side.

"Uchiha Gin."

"Uchiha Shisui."

"Tekka Uchiha."

"Uchiha Yashiro."

These were the introductions of the four captains.

The Military Police Force did not actually have many personnel; only clansmen who reached the level of Chunin were qualified to be members.

Those at the Genin level, like Itachi, were out performing missions in squads.

This was why Uchiha Gin believed that the eventual annihilation of the Uchiha clan could not be separated from Sarutobi Hiruzen. After all, to be wiped out so thoroughly, with no survivors other than Sasuke, would have been impossible without Konoha's support.

The Military Police Force had five squads, equal in size to the Anbu within the village, and also maintained a certain number of personnel responsible for the prison.

Among them were many retired old-timers; in the original timeline, the stockpile of three-tomoe Sharingan held by Obito and Danzo largely came from these individuals.

"Now that you are familiar with the environment, Captain Hyuga, let Tekka take you through the daily patrol routes and duties today," Fugaku continued.

Hyuga Himon naturally had no objections. He knew the mission he had been sent here for; creating conflict would not make his work any easier.

Deep down, he felt a surge of excitement. He remembered clearly how the Uchiha clan used to throw their weight around, and he never expected that his own day to hold power would come.

He was already fantasizing about the fearful gazes others would cast upon him within Konoha in the future.

Following this, Tekka Uchiha led their new squad away to familiarize them with their daily "urban management" tasks.

Inside the Military Police Force headquarters, Fugaku and Shisui were summoned together by Uchiha Gin.

"We are going to hold an examination within the clan. Everyone between the ages of 10 and 60 must participate. These are the test questions."

In Fugaku's office, Uchiha Gin produced a stack of paper about a finger's thickness.

These were the exam questions he had asked Orochimaru to draft, intended to filter for those in the Uchiha clan with sharper minds.

Itachi was the secondary core responsible for the future evolution of the Rinnegan. Since Sasuke was around, it would be easy to keep this brother-obsessed youth steady; essentially, no extra effort would be required.

However, other assistants are also needed, so I must select talented and intelligent individuals.

Furthermore, aside from this matter, people are indispensable for scientific ninjutsu. All of this requires manpower; after all, having great strength does not mean having a good brain. Beating people up and dissecting them are two completely different things.

"This is an exam?"

Fugaku picked up the test paper and glanced at it, his eyes widening.

What the hell is written here?

I recognize the characters, so why can't I understand them when they are put together?

Shisui also frowned, attempting to solve the problems, only to find the difficulty immense. It did not look like something that could be completed in a short amount of time.

"I will leave this matter to you, Clan Head. Arrange for suitable people to take the exam in batches, and I will grade them once they are finished."

Uchiha Gin said.

After speaking, he immediately formed hand seals to create a Shadow Clone, leaving it behind to work while his original body returned to cultivate.

"Does Gin actually know the answers to these questions!"

"How amazing!"

Shisui exclaimed in surprise.

"Does he really know?"

Fugaku doubted.

He felt that these questions looked like gibberish.

Uchiha Gin naturally could not solve the problems himself, but he had the answers provided by Orochimaru, which he had already recorded using his Sharingan to prevent any leaks.

Now that things were on the right track, the pressure was not as great as it had been before.