Dare delay his clock-out? Even Danzo had to die!

8:59 a.m.

Outside the main entrance of the Konoha Military Police Force headquarters.

With a cup of hot soy milk in hand, Uchiha Chikage stepped across the threshold at an unhurried pace.

The minute hand of the clock on the wall ticked precisely to twelve.

A crisp mechanical notification sounded in his mind right on time.

"Ding."

"Current time detected: 9:00 a.m."

"Clock-in for today complete."

"Daily points awarded: 100."

As Chikage listened to that beautiful sound, he couldn't keep the corners of his mouth from curling up.

A hundred points.

That was ten days' pay before.

The joys of promotion really were that simple.

He walked down the corridor, passing his old shared office.

Several clerks inside were bent over their files.

Chikage didn't go in. Instead, he continued to a private room at the end of the corridor.

The plaque on the door read "Second Squad deputy captain's office."

Uncle Fugaku really knew how to get things done.

He had only signed the appointment papers yesterday, and today, an office had already been cleared out for him.

Chikage pushed the door open and set his soy milk on the spacious solid-wood desk.

The office had been cleaned thoroughly, and sunlight streamed through the window onto the leather chair.

Chikage sank back into the chair and stretched comfortably.

Being an officer really did feel different.

Even the chair was much softer than his old hard stool.

He opened a drawer, revealing a neatly stacked pile of brand-new files and reports.

Although he had been promoted to deputy captain, his agreement with Fugaku was that he would only offer ideas and handle paperwork.

Field assignments weren't his responsibility.

So he was still essentially a clerk, just with a bigger office and double the pay.

Chikage picked up a pen and opened the first report.

"Itemized collection of this month's public security management fees from South Street businesses."

Sipping his soy milk, he quickly checked the figures.

After spending his entire previous life as a working stiff, reviewing spreadsheets like these was a breeze.

In less than half an hour, he had finished the thick stack of reports and even caught several accounting errors.

Chikage pushed the reports aside.

Work was done.

Now came the long stretch of slacking off.

He dug today's copy of the Konoha Daily out of a cabinet, leaned back in his chair, and began reading with relish.

The front-page headline was a new announcement from the Hokage Building.

It outlined preliminary plans to reorganize the village's residential districts.

Chikage curled his lip.

Those old foxes in the upper ranks sure moved fast.

Yesterday's astronomical bill must have rattled them, and now they wanted to make the move a done deal as quickly as possible.

Chikage reclined in his leather chair, his crossed legs propped on the edge of the desk.

He had already flipped to the last page of the Konoha Daily.

There was an advertisement for a newly opened barbecue restaurant, and it looked pretty tempting.

He lifted the teacup beside him and took a sip. The temperature was just right, not hot enough to burn his mouth.

The wall clock ticked away. It was now 10:30 a.m.

There were still six and a half long hours until clock-out.

The captain of the Second Squad was Uchiha Yashiro, a notorious leader of the clan's hardliners.

Early that morning, Yashiro had gathered his men and marched out on patrol with several dozen squad members.

Before leaving, Yashiro had made a point of stopping by Chikage's office.

"I have no objections to Clan Leader Fugaku appointing you deputy captain."

"But you'd better know your place."

"We don't need you interfering with field assignments."

"Just stay here and don't cause trouble for our Second Squad."

Standing in the doorway, Yashiro had spoken harshly, his eyes full of warning.

Chikage nodded repeatedly, his attitude as respectful as could be.

"Rest assured, Captain. I won't take a single step outside this door."

"All the trouble out there is yours to handle."

"I'll just stay behind and guard the water cooler for you."

Yashiro's expression shifted several times at that, before he finally gave a cold snort and left with his men.

Chikage couldn't have been happier to see them all leave, with only a few clerks remaining on duty.

The entire compound was wonderfully quiet. This was the perfect environment for slacking off.

He opened his system panel and looked at the hundred points displayed there.

He calculated that after saving for a few more days, he could exchange them for a practical ninjutsu in the shop.

Water Release would be nice. He could even use it to cool off in summer.

Just as Chikage was planning his wonderful future, a sudden commotion broke out outside.

Hurried footsteps echoed down the corridor beyond his door.

Then came a loud bang.

Someone shoved open the deputy captain's solid-wood office door.

A young Uchiha police officer rushed in, panting.

He hadn't even knocked, and his face was full of anxiety and anger.

"Deputy Captain Chikage!"

"Something terrible's happened!"

"Captain Yashiro and his men have been arrested!"

Chikage had just raised his teacup for a drink.

At those words, his hand jerked, spilling scalding tea straight onto the back of it.

He quickly set the cup down and shook his hand.

"Catch your breath first."

"Then get your words straight."

"Yashiro took half the squad out on patrol."

"Who in Konoha could arrest them?"

"Did the Hokage step in personally?"

The young officer gasped for air, his chest heaving.

"It wasn't the Hokage!"

"It was Root!"

"Over on South Street, people from the Shimura Clan were causing trouble in our Uchiha shops."

"Captain Yashiro took his men over to deal with it."

"But they'd barely restrained a few of the ringleaders..."

"When more than a dozen masked Root ninja rushed out."

"They accused Captain Yashiro of police brutality and beating ordinary villagers without cause."

"And they detained the captain and his men on the spot!"

After hearing all that, Chikage felt his temples throb.

The Shimura Clan?

Wasn't that the clan of that scheming old bastard Danzo?

This was clearly Danzo taking revenge for yesterday's astronomical relocation bill.

He didn't dare openly fall out with the Third Hokage.

So he had secretly ordered his own clansmen to cause trouble on Uchiha turf.

He had even stationed Root operatives nearby.

They had just been waiting for hotheaded Yashiro to make a move so they could turn the accusations against him.

"What's happening on South Street now?"

Chikage grabbed a tissue and wiped the water off the back of his hand.

"Root took Captain Yashiro and his men away."

"They said they were taking them to the Hokage Building for questioning."

"Those Shimura Clan bastards are still smashing things on South Street!"

"Several shops run by our clansmen have been completely wrecked."

"Deputy Captain, please tell us what to do!"

"With the captain gone, you're the only one in the squad who can make the call!"

Chikage turned to glance at the wall clock.

10:45 a.m.

There were still more than six long hours until clock-out.

If he didn't resolve this properly, he would definitely end up leaving late today.

Overtime was absolutely out of the question.

Not in this lifetime.

Chikage sighed.

He stood and walked over to the weapons rack in the corner of the office.

Several standard-issue Konoha Military Police Force batons rested there.

Forged from refined steel, they had plenty of heft.

Normally, they just sat there gathering dust.

Chikage casually pulled one out and weighed it in his hand.

It felt pretty good.

"Let's go."

"To South Street."

"I'd like to see who gave them the nerve to collect protection money on the Konoha Military Police Force's turf."