The Konoha Military Police Building

Night

Outside Konoha

In a hidden underground base.

Five small chakra orbs appeared in Naraku's hand.

"Five Elements Unseal!"

Hiruko's face twisted with pain, but he made no sound. After a moment, he lowered the clothes he had lifted.

"Lord Hiruko, the materials you need are ready inside. As for the medical equipment, it'll be delivered over the course of this week."

"Hahaha, excellent. Thank you, Lord Naraku."

Hiruko laughed heartily, clearly in high spirits. He had spent three years thinking through the Chimera Technique, from its conception to the start of actual experiments. He had only just begun to make some progress when Konoha discovered him.

Now, at last, he could experiment without restraint. He no longer had to worry about being exposed or hunted down and arrested.

Having someone influential backing and protecting him—there couldn't be a better environment for Hiruko.

"Think nothing of it, Lord Hiruko. You're conducting these experiments alone, and if any of your test subjects lose control, you could be in danger. I'll assign an elite squad of ninja to serve you. If you need to get in touch with someone or ask for help, you can have them deliver a message. Or, if you have any subordinates you're comfortable working with and consider reliable, you can bring them in to replace the squad."

Naraku treated Hiruko with great courtesy. The secret base had only five areas in total, and dozens of cameras had been installed in every area, leaving no blind spots. It was under tight surveillance.

"Lord Naraku, I'll leave it to your judgment. My Chimera Technique isn't complete yet, and my students might not be willing to follow me. So I'll have to entrust the base's security to you all."

As a Konoha jonin, Hiruko had a squad of ninja students under his command. Without sufficient benefits or a powerful secret technique, he couldn't easily summon them. If they let anything slip, it would cause trouble.

Uchiha Zitie nodded and said calmly, "Please don't hesitate, Lord Hiruko. Just tell us what you need, and we'll do it."

Uchiha Zitie led the squad. He had a Three-Tomoe Sharingan and was skilled in Uchiha Style Fire Release, Genjutsu, and Shuriken. He was powerful.

He was part of the Uchiha clan's covert forces and wasn't listed among Konoha's jonin. With Uchiha Zitie leading three teammates, they were more than enough to keep Hiruko in line.

"Don't be polite with them, Lord Hiruko. Just treat them like servants."

Hiruko understood that the ninja had been sent to watch him, but he didn't mind. This arrangement benefited both sides, after all. It would have been strange if Naraku hadn't taken any precautions.

"Yes, sir!" Hiruko replied respectfully.

"You four, even if it costs you your lives, you must ensure Lord Hiruko's safety. Understood?" Naraku said to Zitie and the others.

"Yes, sir!" ×4

Naraku nodded and vanished in a cloud of smoke.

"It's late. Zitie, you and the others can do as you please or get some rest. I can't wait to start experimenting."

Hiruko didn't hesitate to make use of the men who'd been assigned to him. After giving his instructions, he walked farther into the cave.

"Yes, sir," Zitie replied respectfully. He made a hand signal, and the three other guards immediately used the Body Flicker Technique to disappear, taking up positions at the two entrances to prevent anyone from breaking in.

The sun had barely risen, its light spilling across the land. The cool weather of early autumn and the peaceful village made for a beautiful sight.

Naraku set down the Fuinjutsu scroll in his hand and fell into thought.

The power of the Four-Symbols Seal depended on its caster. The stronger the caster, the longer-lasting and more secure the seal. But as time passed, its power would still weaken.

If no one reinforced the seal, once it grew weak enough, the target within might break free.

The Four-Symbols Seal was a powerful technique, and two people in the anime had made improvements to it.

The first was Namikaze Minato's Eight-Trigrams Seal, which was made by layering two Four-Symbols Seals together. This made the seal last longer and hold more firmly. With no key or other means of opening it provided, the seal couldn't be undone.

The second person to develop an improved version was Shimura Danzō. A regular Four-Symbols Seal sealed its target inside the caster's body, while the Reverse Four-Symbols Seal sealed the caster as well, erasing them from the world.

From his conversation with Uzumaki Nao, Naraku had discovered that the Uzumaki Clan seemed to have already worked out the basic idea behind the Reverse Four-Symbols Seal. There was also a rumor that when the Land of Whirlpools was destroyed, the Uzumaki Clan's leader had used the seal to take a great many invading ninja with him.

Naraku wasn't interested in a suicidal technique like that, but it was still important to study it as a reference for improving his Fuinjutsu.

"Mm, I've more or less mastered Fuinjutsu."

Naraku rolled up the scroll and brushed off the dust. Then he got up and headed for the Military Police Building.

Today was the day of the Konoha Military Police Force assembly. The night before, his father, Uchiha Sanzang, had spoken with him and they had planned to announce the transfer of duties today.

There was no point in delaying the transfer. Ever since the Uchiha Clan Head joined the Military Police Force controlled by the Uchiha, anyone with a discerning eye could see what was coming. It helped that the clan head and the squad captain were father and son.

Of course, even if they hadn't been as close as father and son, power would still have gradually returned to Naraku after the Uchiha Clan Head joined the Police Force.

Lately, Uchiha Fugaku had been showing up to work steadily, keeping a low profile. At first, Naraku thought Fugaku had been discouraged and had stopped paying attention to clan affairs and the Police Force.

Later, he learned that Fugaku had been spending time courting Uchiha Mikoto. So that was why he'd put his work aside. Naraku was at a loss for words.

Before long, Naraku arrived at the Military Police Building.

The Military Police Force Building's conference room.

Uchiha Sanzang sat at the head of the room.

Below him sat the squad captains and elite members of the Police Force.

Once everyone had arrived, Uchiha Sanzang nodded slightly and glanced at Uchiha Naraku.

Naraku had kept the deaths of clan members and the Hiruko incident under wraps, though a few informed Uchiha knew some of the details—old powerholders like Uchiha Okura and Sanzang.

Sanzang wasn't very confident in Naraku's decision to support experiments on a forbidden technique like Hiruko's. The so-called Chimera Technique was clearly nonsense.

The Uchiha Clan's Kekkei Genkai, the Sharingan, was the strongest Kekkei Genkai. And Uchiha ninja with the Sharingan were the finest ninja in the Shinobi World.

But there was nothing Uchiha Sanzang could do about Naraku's stubborn insistence. After all, they had been the ones to support him and help him rise to the position of clan head.

Naraku had now been clan head for three years, and the Clan Affairs Hall had become the Uchiha Clan's center for gathering and administration.

Uchiha Naraku, who controlled the Clan Affairs Hall, had already surpassed Okura and Sanzang in influence. The First Squadron of the Military Police Force under Naraku's command was also the most outstanding of all the squadrons.

The other squadrons were all learning from the First Squadron. They visited it more often than they visited their own squadron headquarters. There was no point in staying on if he wasn't going to step down.

Uchiha Sanzang sighed and put the thought aside.

"Silence!"

Uchiha Kosui, the captain of the Third Squadron, had been watching the room and quickly barked the order. Everyone below took their seats and looked toward Uchiha Sanzang.

Seeing that everyone had settled down, Uchiha Sanzang cleared his throat and said calmly:

"Ahem. I've been in charge of the Police Force for over twenty years, and I'm deeply grateful for the support you've all given me. But I'm now physically and mentally exhausted. So, at today's meeting, I hereby announce that I'm... retiring!"