Compromise or Resistance? Itachi and Shisui Make Their Stance Clear!

Give up half of the Military Police Force's management authority?

That would shake the Uchiha Clan's very foundation.

Those words echoed in everyone's minds. Some people even had veins bulging at their temples upon hearing them.

It was as if they had heard something that enraged them beyond measure.

"Why should we, Clan Head? We in the Military Police Force have worked tirelessly all these years. Whenever something happened in the village, we were always the first to arrive, yet not only did those villagers refuse to follow our orders, they even insulted the Uchiha Clan!"

As Fugaku's words fell, someone immediately rose to his feet. With his eyes wide in fury, he stared at Fugaku and demanded word by word, "Why should we apologize to those people who broke the law? And why should we surrender half the Uchiha Police Force's authority? The Military Police Force is the foundation of our Uchiha Clan!"

The Military Police Force was the Uchiha Clan's foundation. Under the village's suppression, the clan now basically relied on the Uchiha Police Force's income. They could never hand over the Military Police Force.

Absolutely not!

If the clan gave up the Military Police Force as well, these shinobi's income would be cut in half again.

"That's right, why should we?"

"What does Konoha take our Uchiha Clan for? They target us at every turn, and now they want our Military Police Force too!"

"Do they really think our Uchiha Clan is so easy to bully?"

"No! We won't apologize, and we won't hand over half of the Military Police Force's foundation!"

"Hmph, absolutely not!"

The other clansmen also spoke up indignantly. At that moment, their faces were full of dissatisfaction with Konoha.

Rage, discontent, and hatred toward the village.

Uchiha Shisui looked at the furious clansmen around him, growing somewhat anxious. Their emotions were becoming increasingly unstable, and they had even come to hate the village deeply.

If this continued, the relationship between the Uchiha clansmen and the village would only worsen. If it went on long enough, the clansmen might even riot.

He had to persuade them.

Uchiha Itachi watched the clamoring clansmen without speaking, but his eyes grew colder and colder.

These people were the clan's destabilizing factors. It was precisely because of them that Konoha kept targeting the Uchiha Clan.

"Everyone, quiet down!"

At that moment, among the Elder Council Seat at the front, the elder seated second rose to his feet. His face was grave as he said, "I have already sent people to investigate this matter. Although the villagers were somewhat in the wrong, we Uchiha clansmen are law enforcers. Violent enforcement is even more wrong!"

"If this continues, the relationship between our Uchiha Clan and Konoha's villagers will only grow worse!"

This was the Uchiha Clan's Second Elder, and also a member of its Conservative Faction.

"Second Elder, what do you mean by that? Are you saying we should compromise and hand over half the Military Police Force's authority?" Someone below stood up and shouted angrily after the Second Elder finished. He voiced the question on many people's minds.

Everyone's gaze turned toward him.

The Second Elder pursed his lips before continuing, "We should trust Hokage-sama. What he is doing is also for our own good. The villagers are currently dissatisfied with the personnel of our Uchiha Police Force, so giving up half of the Military Police Force would be acceptable!"

The Second Elder had clearly been influenced by the Will of Fire. His words were plainly biased toward the village.

"Hmph, Second Elder, you're mistaken!" The Third Elder beside him snorted coldly, his tone icy. "The Uchiha cannot be insulted. Our Military Police Force did not deliberately cause trouble. It was not violent enforcement; those villagers who broke the law refused to cooperate, so we had to use forceful measures!"

"I would like to ask the Second Elder: when encountering lawbreaking villagers who refuse to cooperate, how should we deal with them? Should we simply let them leave?"

Compared to the Second Elder's moderate stance, the Third Elder was clearly part of the Radical Faction. Everything was for Uchiha's glory, and the Uchiha law enforcement force had done nothing wrong.

"No matter what, violent enforcement is still unacceptable!" The Second Elder was briefly left speechless, but he still agreed with the Third Hokage's view. Yet everyone could clearly hear his voice weakening, and he almost seemed to be the only one who could hear that final sentence.

The Uchiha Clan had never tolerated insult. Moreover, the Military Police Force had its own rules. Just as the Third Elder said, if lawbreaking villagers dared defy order, force had to be used to stop them. After all, that was the Military Police Force's duty.

As the Second Elder fell silent, another Uchiha clansman below stood up. "As a squad captain in the Military Police Force, I have always diligently protected the village. My subordinates and I have already done our jobs well. Asking us to apologize is impossible!"

The other Uchiha clansmen behind him also echoed his words, shouting along:

"We absolutely cannot apologize! We did nothing wrong, so we cannot apologize!"

"We did nothing wrong."

"That's right! We have always protected the village and have not done anything wrong!"

"And they want us to hand over half the Military Police Force's authority? They might as well take away our entire Uchiha Police Force. We're just swallowing humiliation in the force anyway, so I quit!"

"I don't want to do it anymore either!"

"Right!"

"Everyone, quiet down!"

Seeing the increasingly agitated clansmen, Uchiha Shisui knew their resentment toward the village had deepened further. He hurriedly said, "Actually, Hokage-sama is doing this for the Uchiha Clan's sake as well!"

"Giving half of the Military Police Force to other Konoha clans to manage would make matters more efficient, and the villagers would no longer target only us Uchiha clansmen!"

Shisui knew that relinquishing part of the Military Police Force's authority could also reduce the ambitions of the Uchiha Radical Faction, allowing the Uchiha Clan to become increasingly stable.

"Shisui, after following the Hokage for so long, your heart has probably already turned toward Konoha, hasn't it?"

After Shisui finished speaking, the Fourth Elder, who had remained silent on the raised platform all along, finally spoke. His eyes were fixed on Uchiha Shisui, his words full of fury and even accusation:

"You are now Uchiha's genius. Do you know that Konoha has targeted our Uchiha Clan in recent years, leaving Uchiha shinobi unable to take village missions? The Military Police Force is what supports the entire Uchiha Clan. If we give up the Military Police Force, how will our Uchiha shinobi live?"

The string of questions left Uchiha Shisui somewhat speechless.

The Fourth Elder had a point. Because the village did not trust the clan, the clan could not receive missions.

He had always been thinking about how to ease the relationship between the clan and the village, but because the Third Hokage valued him highly, he had not considered the clansmen's predicament.

Because the Uchiha Clan's shinobi had been unable to receive missions for a long time, their lives had become very difficult.

Yet the village had never considered the Uchiha Clan's position. Instead, it continued to oppress the Uchiha clansmen, leaving them no way out.

Xuanyu inwardly grumbled as well. No wonder the Uchiha Clan wanted to launch a Coup. At this rate, even the Uchiha clansmen's livelihood would become difficult.

And they could not let go of Uchiha's pride to take other jobs.

In the end, there was only one choice: change the clan's future through a Coup.

Listening to everyone's words, Uchiha Itachi finally spoke as well, but his words carried a lofty righteousness: "The Uchiha Clan's shinobi cannot rely solely on the Uchiha Police Force for their livelihood. They need other sources of income!"

This was Itachi's first time speaking since attending the clan meeting.

Yet his words sounded so condescending, telling the Uchiha clansmen to change rather than putting himself in their shoes!

There would be another chapter later.

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