Chapter 184: Expansion Of The Police Force, Justice Radiating Across The Ninja World
In the Konoha border region, Morino Ibiki, who had been engaging in battles of wits and courage with ninja from neighboring countries for several years, was sent back to the village due to injuries.
Although the Third Shinobi World War had ended many years ago, small frictions between different ninja villages were still very common.
Every year, many Konoha ninja would sacrifice their lives because of this.
But because these ninja were not active within Konoha Village, even if they died outside, no one really paid attention to them.
Morino Ibiki felt that surviving this time was already fortunate. The several Konoha teams he led had only six survivors left, and he was one of them.
“Phew…”
After Morino Ibiki, with his arm in a cast, walked out of the Hokage’s Office Building, his mood was quite heavy.
Because this time returning to the village, he had also brought back the ashes of many subordinates.
But what puzzled him a bit was…
The Hokage seemed somewhat off.
After learning that so many Konoha ninja had sacrificed for the safety of the Land of Fire border, the Hokage surprisingly showed little reaction, just telling him to go back and rest first.
Morino Ibiki could tell it wasn’t that the Hokage didn’t care about these sacrificed ninja, but that the Hokage was too exhausted.
In just two or three short years since they last met, the Hokage seemed to have aged a full ten years or more.
This change in the Hokage…
Could it be related to Ikeizumi?
Even outside the village, he had occasionally heard about some events in Konoha, though not much, but he roughly knew that the Hokage had recently been troubled by Uchiha Ikeizumi’s absolute justice.
Regarding this.
Morino Ibiki found it hard to empathize with the Hokage. Because he was very familiar with Uchiha Ikeizumi, even to the point of being friends.
“It seems that during this recent period, Ikeizumi must have caused quite a stir in the village, making the Hokage so exhausted?”
Morino Ibiki decided to inquire about the news in the village.
But just with this inquiry.
He was shocked.
—Killing the Daimyo of the Land of Fire, massacring nobles, imprisoning the Hyuga Main Family, imprisoning the Konoha Advisor, killing Sannin Orochimaru, forcing back Uchiha Fugaku, killing Uchiha Fugaku… one major event after another, any one of which would be enough to shake the entire Konoha, and these all happened in less than half a year!
“This guy…”
Morino Ibiki took a deep breath, his fierce face full of knife scars showing thick disbelief: “No wonder when we met before, he didn’t tell me what he was going to do. At that time… he was actually going to assassinate the Daimyo of the Land of Fire! Indeed, if I had known in advance, I definitely would have tried to stop him.”
“And after the fact, the Hokage surprisingly didn’t pursue the matter, and the Land of Fire side showed no reaction either. Hiss, this guy Ikeizumi suppressed all dissatisfaction with absolute overwhelming martial power, just like the First Hokage suppressing the entire ninja world back then.”
The only difference between the two sides was perhaps that this wave of Ikeizumi’s methods was even more hardline and extreme than the First Hokage’s.
It felt like…
A combination of the First Hokage and the Second Hokage!
After thinking about it, Morino Ibiki still decided to go find Uchiha Ikeizumi.
He entered the Uchiha Clan Compound.
…
“You’re back in the village earlier than I imagined.” Uchiha Ikeizumi looked up at Morino Ibiki, gesturing with his eyes: “Not sitting down?”
“The status difference between you and me is too great.” Morino Ibiki shook his head and said: “If I sat and talked with you, and your Police Force subordinates saw it, it would damage your authority to some extent.”
Morino Ibiki sighed and said: “Who would have thought that in less than half a year, you transformed and took over the Konoha Military Police Force.”
“Moreover, when I entered the Uchiha Clan Compound, I found there were actually quite a few non-Uchiha clan members inside. It seems your influence isn’t limited to the Police Force; you’re affecting the entire Uchiha Clan. The Uchiha weren’t so open before.”
Uchiha Ikeizumi said indifferently: “Most of the outsiders who come here just want to report cases.”
Morino Ibiki smiled, but with the scars on his face, the smile didn’t look very good.
“Ikeizumi, you’re too modest. For a conservative and exclusionary ninja clan, this is already a big change.”
Uchiha Ikeizumi changed the topic: “Has the Third Hokage assigned you any new missions?”
Morino Ibiki shook his head: “Not for now. The Hokage seems to be quite troubled by you, tied up with many miscellaneous matters, no time to pay attention to a small figure like me.”
Uchiha Ikeizumi said: “Then come help me.”
Morino Ibiki was stunned.
Uchiha Ikeizumi directly extended an olive branch, saying expressionlessly: “The Police Force has lost quite a few people after several purges. Even now, the Police Force struggles to protect the justice of a small Konoha. Let alone expanding justice beyond Konoha, radiating to the entire Land of Fire, or even the ninja world.”
“The Police Force needs talents like you that I recognize.”
Uchiha Ikeizumi was very frank, not beating around the bush, and not stingy with praise for an excellent ninja like Morino Ibiki.
“Ha…”
Morino Ibiki was very surprised: “With your personality, you’d invite others to carry out justice with you? Ikeizumi, you seem to have changed a lot. This kind of change is positive for you and for the absolute justice you believe in.”
“When did this change start?”
Uchiha Ikeizumi paused, silent for two seconds, and said: “It started from acknowledging a reckless little guy who occasionally has some bright spots. At least, she made me realize—there are many people in the ninja world who yearn for「absolute justice」.”
Morino Ibiki looked thoughtful.
“How’s your consideration?” Uchiha Ikeizumi asked him.
“…I’ve decided.”
Morino Ibiki said: “As long as the ninja of your Uchiha Clan don’t discriminate against or isolate me as an outsider, that’s fine. I don’t like engaging in that kind of office politics; it annoys me.”
He agreed.
He switched sides.
…
“Achoo!!!”
After escorting a Konoha troublemaker who spread rumors in the village into the Interrogation Room, Uchiha Izumi suddenly felt her nose itch.
After an uncontrollable sneeze, she rubbed her sore nose.
“Caught a cold?”
Izumi muttered: “Anko said I now have strength on par with a Special Jonin, and especially good at taijutsu, so I shouldn’t catch a cold so easily, right?”
…
Smack!!!
“Old man, why not approve a medical team ninja stationed in the Konoha Military Police Force? This is a proposal I thought up all night. In this relatively peaceful era, Police Force ninja are already in a very dangerous position, and injuries are commonplace.”
“If the Police Force had medical team ninja belonging to them, then after Police Force ninja get injured, they wouldn’t need to be sent all the way to Konoha Hospital. The medical team ninja within the Police Force could treat their own internal ninja.”
“This way, the injured could receive faster treatment. Isn’t this a great proposal?”
Tsunade slapped the Hokage office desk, leaving a clear palm print on it.
She unleashed a series of questions at Sarutobi Hiruzen in front of her.
Sarutobi Hiruzen’s eyelid twitched slightly.
This desk was quite expensive… He had specially spent a large sum to hire a carpenter to make it from precious wood.
But thinking that the person in front of him was Tsunade…
Sarutobi Hiruzen could only endure the heartache.
He took a deep breath, looked up at the aggressive Tsunade, and asked a soul-searching question: “Tsunade, if I remember correctly, you once told me that you were no longer getting involved in Konoha matters. But your actions these past few days have been constantly interfering in Konoha affairs one after another. This… what’s really going on?”
Tsunade said expressionlessly: “If a person can always stick to one idea, then things like ‘decisive in prime, indecisive in old age’ won’t happen.”
After a pointed sarcastic remark.
Tsunade continued: “You can consider me getting involved in ninja affairs again. So my proposal’s request isn’t excessive, right?”
Sarutobi Hiruzen rubbed his brow: “It’s not as simple as you think. The Police Force is already under the Uchiha Clan’s control; that’s a very powerful force, already the village’s greatest indulgence toward the Uchiha Clan.”
“If such a Police Force also has a medical team. Tsunade, who in the village could check them afterward? I know you’re doing it for justice, but…”
“Managing a village and upholding justice aren’t the same thing. You need to learn balance, you need to learn…”
Tsunade interrupted without hesitation: “Old man, if you could truly balance the village’s factions, do you think the village would be like this now? Since you don’t have the ability to balance, why not let those with ability in the village do as they please, and hand the choice to the young people now.”
Sarutobi Hiruzen was stunned.
“Tsunade… you’ve changed in a way that makes me feel a bit unfamiliar.”
Sarutobi Hiruzen said.
Tsunade was silent for a moment, then said: “As I said before, people can’t stay the same forever. I just want this ninja world to be a bit different from now, that’s all.”
Sarutobi Hiruzen roughly understood Tsunade’s idea.
After Nawaki and Dan died one after another on the battlefields of the ninja wars.
Tsunade had developed a strong disgust for the ninja world’s conflicts.
She was dissatisfied with the current state of the ninja world.
But the former her didn’t have any ideas to change the ninja world; instead, she chose to escape. Staying in the short side street of the Land of Fire, always indulging in gambling, borrowing money, repaying debts, evading debts…
Perhaps it was because she couldn’t see the ninja world’s future that she escaped like this.
And now.
Tsunade seemed to see a glimpse of the ninja world’s future in Uchiha Ikeizumi’s absolute justice, and that future seemed to be what she hoped for in her heart.
Thus, she chose no longer to escape.
Among this, perhaps many twists in Tsunade’s heart that he as Hokage didn’t know, but the result should be correct.
Even believing he understood Tsunade, Sarutobi Hiruzen still firmly shook his head: “No. Konoha allowing the Uchiha Clan to control the Police Force is already the maximum tolerance limit. Giving the Uchiha Clan more authority would throw the village into chaos.”
Tsunade stared into Sarutobi Hiruzen’s pair of turbid eyes.
“Old man, even if Police Force ninja might not get timely treatment for injuries, endangering their lives because of this, you still want to maintain this balance you can’t even hold?”
Sarutobi Hiruzen repeated: “Managing a ninja village isn’t as simple as you imagine; you’re still too young.”
…
After Tsunade walked out of the Hokage’s Office Building, Shizune holding Tonton hurried over.
“Lady Tsunade?”
Seeing Tsunade’s expression like someone owed her millions of taels, Shizune felt a bit uneasy.
She felt Lady Tsunade and the Hokage had probably argued.
“The old man rejected it.” Tsunade said expressionlessly: “In his eyes, equipping the Police Force with a medical team would pose a huge threat to Konoha.”
Shizune hesitantly said weakly: “Then what are you going to do next, Lady Tsunade?”
Tsunade clicked her tongue, indifferently: “Whatever I want to do, that old man can’t control me at all! Since he as Hokage won’t do it, I’ll do it myself. In the end, he’s purely distrusting Uchiha Ikeizumi.”
“He thinks that the Police Force controlled by that guy Ikeizumi, after having an independent medical team, would make Konoha unable to control the Police Force at all. As if he can control it now.”
“If he won’t do it, I’ll do it myself!”
Looking at Tsunade, whose expression suddenly turned from cloudy to sunny and even showed some fighting spirit, Shizune said weakly: “Lady Tsunade, why are you going this far for that Uchiha Ikeizumi? Your behavior is like actively helping him.”
Tsunade paused.
She said boldly: “I just want to see a ninja world different from now, one where loved ones won’t die one after another on the battlefield… And that kid seems able to achieve that.”
“Moreover…”
“The Slug Sage has already acknowledged him. Even from the Slug Sage’s relationship, I’m on the same boat as him.”
…
At the same time.
Land of Rain.
“What’s going on?!” Yakushi Kabuto was puzzled, adjusting the glasses on his nose bridge, frowning, and murmuring: “Why can’t I contact Lord Orochimaru… Could it be that Lord Orochimaru is recently in seclusion researching some human experimentation?”
Yakushi Kabuto originally wanted to pass intelligence from the Land of Rain to Orochimaru, but unexpectedly, message after message sank into the sea.
He received no reply from Orochimaru.
And in Yakushi Kabuto’s heart, a bad premonition surfaced.
“Maybe I can summon a snake from Ryuchi Cave to ask what’s happening; they should know something.”
But when Yakushi Kabuto bit his thumb, preparing to summon his summoned beast.
He found there was no response at all!
He was dumbfounded.
“Where’s my summoned beast?!”
…
…
