Uchiha Kai's voice was stern.
He wasn't joking.
He hadn't wanted to be Police Minister in the first place. If every single decision had to be explained to every doubter, he'd spend all day answering questions and never get anything done.
And worst of all—
If they were all sharp like Nara Kazama, fine. A hint or two, and they'd figure things out.
But Uchiha? Dense as bricks. Even if he spelled it out word for word, they'd still struggle to grasp it.
"Very well," Tiehuo said earnestly. "Then, Elder Kai, please enlighten me!"
With that, he dropped to one knee.
He knew what he was doing wasn't proper. Kai had made his stance clear at the clan meeting the night before.
But he had no choice. His heart was in turmoil. He had to know, or he wouldn't be able to carry out his duties in the future.
So, to show his sincerity, he gave the utmost gesture of respect—kneeling on one knee.
For an Uchiha, such a thing was rare. Unless it came from genuine recognition, even the clan head wouldn't be shown such submission.
That Tiehuo would do this… meant that, deep down, he had already acknowledged Kai.
After all, Kai's handling of the earlier case—though the thief wasn't caught—had left the villagers satisfied, and even Shinichi had reaped unexpected benefits.
On the other side, Kai, who had been lazily indifferent, couldn't help but grow solemn at the sight of Tiehuo kneeling.
Yes.
With Tiehuo showing such sincerity, how could he brush him off?
"Rise, Tiehuo," Kai said. "Since you've gone this far, I will teach you properly. How much you understand will depend on your own wits.
First question: as I said earlier, don't you feel something was wrong with today's incident?"
Tiehuo blinked, confused.
But facing Kai's serious demeanor, he grew serious too.
After a pause, he asked, "Wasn't it all because of those three spies?"
Kai's lips twitched. "You actually believed that? That was just to fool the villagers. They weren't spies."
Tiehuo froze, stunned.
"They… weren't?"
"Of course not," Kai said flatly. "Every spy is precious. It takes years to embed them in another village. Do you think such resources would be wasted on something as trivial as a theft?"
Tiehuo fell silent.
Even he could sense the wrongness now. Cold sweat dampened his back as the realization set in—there was more to today's events than he had seen.
And that realization only deepened his respect for Kai.
But after pondering, he still couldn't make sense of it.
"Then… why didn't they deny it?" he asked, bewildered. "And if you knew they weren't spies, why order us to interrogate them?"
His head was pounding. He couldn't wrap his mind around Kai's moves.
Kai didn't hide anything. His tone was sharp, almost scolding.
"Have you learned nothing? Let me spell it out.
Did you not notice how those three weren't afraid when caught? They even dared provoke us.
Even toward me—the Minister of Police—they showed disdain, without the slightest fear.
Think carefully. In Konoha, who has the right to look down on the Uchiha… to look down on me?"
Tiehuo gasped, a chill crawling over him.
"They… they're Anbu?" he stammered. His body trembled. "But why? Wait, if they're Anbu, then we can't torture them. I need to go stop—"
He scrambled, panic-stricken.
But Kai cut him off with a shake of the head.
"Forget it. You're hopeless. I'll just say it plainly. Yes—I knew they were Anbu.
And I deliberately had them arrested. I deliberately ordered torture. It was a message to the Hokage's faction.
I had just taken office, and they came looking for trouble. Do they think I'm easy to push around?
As for why the Hokage's people did this, there are two likely reasons.
First—suppress the Uchiha. The worse our reputation, the greater the rift between us and the village. Even if we revolt one day, no other clan or commoner will support us.
Second—sow discord within Uchiha. If I had mishandled today, do you think Uchiha Setsuna would have let the chance slip by? He would have struck at me without hesitation.
And once I fought him, no matter who won, the Uchiha would bleed strength.
Outsiders grow hostile, while insiders fight among themselves. Only then can Sarutobi Hiruzen sit firmly as Hokage.
The thief and the victim? They were just pawns, disposable pieces on the board. Real or fake, it doesn't matter.
Do you understand now?
The daily work of the Police is meaningless. Solving cases is meaningless. A few villagers? Even if they die, the Hokage doesn't care.
What matters is using these incidents to tarnish our name, to weaken the Uchiha.
So be smart. The Police Department's job is simply to smooth things over, keep the villagers pacified.
The truth doesn't matter. Justice doesn't matter.
Even if Konoha itself falls into chaos—so be it.
The Clan Head put me in charge of the Police for one reason: to salvage Uchiha's reputation.
As long as I can withstand the Hokage faction's schemes, and even turn them against Hiruzen—
That alone is enough."
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