Chapter 36: 36.Another Meeting
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The List of The "ANBU" Member:
-Miguel razo
-Korron Hightower
-Z3kChrome
-Raiden Allen
-Paolo Garcia
-Tobias Sinkewicius
-jake doe
-Abel Yapura
-Hugegreenpickle
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-EaterOfTheDead
-sighduck
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-PandaSho
-LOUIS fontus
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-Mohammed Alshamsi
-Mikolaj Zwolak
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-Salah Mohamed
-Raganos
-Robert Thompson
-Lluis
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After Izumi left, Kazuki asked Itachi, who was standing in front of his desk:
"You should know why these people came to Konoha, right?"
"Yes, they came because of the plan to assassinate the Daimyo."
Itachi answered truthfully.
"Then tell me, what is the responsibility of the Police Department?"
"To maintain the village's security, and..."
The Third Hokage once said that although Itachi was a child, he had the mindset closest to that of a Hokage, which meant he was very intelligent.
In turn, the smarter a person is, the more they know, and the more they care about.
Facing Kazuki's question, Itachi was at a loss.
Because the initial purpose of the Police Department, besides maintaining the village's security, also included capturing spies, criminals, and carrying out a series of important and dangerous tasks.
However, as the Third Hokage and others' vigilance against the Uchiha increased, the Uchiha were left only with the responsibility of maintaining security.
Other tasks and rights were out of the question.
"Remember, the current responsibility of the Police Department is to maintain the village's security. We only have the right to maintain security, nothing else. You should understand why it has come to this. Alright, go back. As long as these people are not gathering to cause trouble or doing anything excessive, we don't need to worry about them."
"Konoha welcomes tourists and merchants from any region to visit and do business."
"As for what you mentioned, the Police Department has no authority to handle it. That's the ANBU's responsibility."
It might look like Kazuki was shirking responsibility and remaining aloof, but in fact, he was complaining about how the village had gradually stripped the Police Department of its original powers.
From beginning to end, the Uchiha have always been passive.
"Understood."
"Wait."
Itachi was about to leave after saluting when Kazuki suddenly called him back.
"Captain? Is there something else?"
Itachi stopped, not expecting Kazuki to make a request that would both annoy and confuse him.
Kazuki motioned for Itachi to come closer and said:
"Come on, smile for me."
Itachi: "..."
It was clear that Itachi wanted to punch him, as both of his hands, or rather his fists, were clenched tightly.
"Don't get me wrong, I'm not being weird, and I don't mean anything else."
Kazuki smiled slightly and pointed to his own face, saying:
"See this? A smile. Don't imitate your father, always with a stern, expressionless face.
Now that you're a member of the Police Department, if you want to excel in this position and not be like other clan members, you need to learn to control and manage your emotions and expressions."
"A smile can easily bring you closer to others. These are things you need to learn. And someone who can smile on the surface but be ruthless underneath is even more dangerous."
A smile, with so many complex principles mixed in?
This was beyond Itachi's understanding.
No one had ever required this of him before.
Since graduating from the Chunin exam and leaving his ninja team, Itachi's smile had become rare.
Except for when he was with his mother, brother, and Shisui.
Others could only see a stoic expression on Itachi's face.
"I know that the clan leader always teaches you sternly and praises you with, 'As expected of my son.' Remember, do not, under any circumstances, imitate him.
Because a stern face is not always a good thing."
"It just makes people think you're difficult to get along with. Aside from his position, how many people dare to approach the clan leader with that face of his?"
"If you want to take on more responsibilities for the clan, your first lesson is to learn to smile, learn how to communicate with your clan members, and integrate into their circles."
"..."
Itachi: Do I have to learn this?
Itachi felt that Kazuki was making things difficult for him.
"Clan leader, am I right?"
Kazuki suddenly looked up and addressed the door.
"Father!"
Hearing this, Itachi was slightly startled and turned to look.
Standing at the door, which had been open for a while, was Fugaku, his face as dark as a pot's bottom.
Kazuki's repeated comments about not imitating his father made Fugaku uncomfortable, not to mention Kazuki's continuous complaints about him.
Especially that line, "As expected of my son," almost made him break down.
Was his way of educating his child wrong?
Fugaku couldn't help but doubt himself.
"Ahem!!"
Clearing his throat, Fugaku opened the door, still wearing his usual stern expression. He glared at Kazuki subtly and said to Itachi:
"Since this is a request from your senior and captain, Itachi, you should strive to learn it, understood?"
"Yes, Father, I will do my best."
Itachi straightened his back and responded loudly.
Kazuki, holding back laughter, watched this subtly complicated father-son interaction.
"Alright, you may go now."
"Father, Senior."
After saluting formally, Itachi left, closing the door behind him.
"What are you doing?"
As soon as his son left, Fugaku, with a stern face, questioned:
"I asked you to lead Itachi's team, not to teach my son how to smile while being ruthless inside."
"Like you? Always with a stern face, making many clan members hesitant to approach you? Is that what you call clan leader authority?"
"Come on, my great clan leader."
A stern-faced Fugaku might intimidate other Uchiha, but this tactic didn't work on Kazuki.
"..."
Fugaku, heavily criticized, was speechless.
Knowing he couldn't outargue Kazuki, he dropped the topic.
"Tonight, I will convene another clan meeting to continue discussing the Police Department's reorganization. You need to attend."
"No way."
Kazuki decisively refused, uninterested in such futile discussions.
Several hardline elders were stubbornly refusing to budge, fearing their power would be stripped away, consistently hindering Fugaku's efforts to reorganize the Police Department.
Even without much thought, Kazuki could predict the meeting would be a heated argument between Fugaku and the elders.
At most, it would also involve those who supported Fugaku.
A lot of noise, but no solution.
It wasn't that Kazuki enjoyed criticizing, but Fugaku's performance at critical moments was truly disappointing.
Whether for the clan or the village.
So much time had passed, and he still couldn't deal with a few hardline elders.
And this was just about reorganizing the Uchiha, not even dissolving the hardliners.
If it came to actually dealing with the hardliners, with his indecisive nature, he would accomplish nothing.
It was bad enough he was indecisive himself, but he also restricted others from taking action.
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