Chapter 40 The Aburame Clan is Numb
The next day, when Inuzuka Kaze arrived at the Security Department with seven clansmen and twenty ninja dogs, he was startled by the commotion at the entrance. The Security Department,
usually exuding an aura of unapproachability, was now brightly decorated. A huge red banner hung above the Security Department's signboard, proclaiming: "
Konoha Security Department Police Dog Donation and Establishment Ceremony of the Inuzuka Clan Special Police Dog Training Base."
At the entrance, Uchiha Touhuan and Uchiha Fugaku, dressed in formal attire, waited below the banner, flanked by dozens of Security Department members who were not currently on duty, standing ramrod straight.
This display completely bewildered Inuzuka Fu. He had originally planned to simply send over the police dogs trained by his clan and a few promising juniors, and incidentally, get a position in the Security Department himself. However, the commotion the Security Department was causing made him glance down at the most ordinary ninja tactical vest he was wearing in Konoha.
The other members of the Inuzuka clan also suddenly felt that they weren't dressed formally enough.
At this moment, Uchiha Touhuan and Uchiha Fugaku, who had already seen the group, approached with their men.
"Brother Fu, we've been waiting for you all for quite some time," Uchiha Touhuan said warmly, shaking Inuzuka Fu's hand. Then, Uchiha Touhuan went to the few Inuzuka clan members who had come with Inuzuka Fu, shook hands with each of them, and said, "Welcome to the Inuzuka clan, to the Security Department family."
"Inahime, take your colleagues to change," Uchiha Touhuan instructed after the handshakes and greetings.
"Yes!" Uchiha Inahime nodded in response, then came to Inuzuka Kaze and the others, reminding them, "Everyone, please follow me."
The eight people and twenty dogs entered the security headquarters under Uchiha Inahime's guidance. When they came out shortly after, they had changed their clothes. Inuzuka Kaze even put on a ninja vest specially designed for the security headquarters at the captain level, while the twenty ninja dogs were fully armed.
After changing their clothes, Uchiha Inahime led everyone to the banner, where Uchiha Touhuan was already waiting.
Upon their arrival, Uchiha Touhuan personally adorned the eight newly joined Inuzuka clan members with the security department's codes, and then placed special dog tags on the twenty police dogs. Inuzuka Kaze's partner, Sumeragi, was even given the special number 00001.
"On behalf of all my colleagues in the security department, I welcome the Inuzuka clan ninjas and their ninja dog companions to the new organization," Uchiha Touhuan announced loudly after completing these steps.
The image of Uchiha Touhuan and Inuzuka Kaze shaking hands with smiles was then captured on camera and permanently recorded.
...
The Konoha Hokage's office and the various ninja clans quickly learned of what had happened at the security department's entrance.
The Aburame clan's leadership was utterly stunned. As one of the two clans to receive a formal invitation from Uchiha Touhuan that same night, unlike the Inuzuka clan who quickly sided with the Uchiha, the Aburame clan felt more fear than anything else in the face of Touhuan's invitation.
After all, not long ago, the Security Department had delivered Aburame Ryoma's corpse. Touhuan's invitation, delivered in a private capacity, seemed to carry ill intent.
While, strictly speaking, the Aburame clan could also be considered victims in this affair—Ryoma had been forcibly taken to Root by Danzo through near-extortion at a very young age and had had little contact with them over the years—they were still largely unaffected.
However, when Ryoma Aburame used his clan's secret techniques to do dirty work for Danzo, he naturally offended many people. Unlike Yamanaka Fu, another of Danzo's generals, Ryoma's insect control techniques were too obvious. Clans that had been disgusted by Danzo dared not openly oppose him, and naturally, they all harbored resentment towards the Aburame clan.
Therefore, the Aburame clan had always kept a low profile in Konoha for years.
And now, a ruthless Uchiha suddenly appeared and directly killed Danzo. That's not all. The Shimura clan, as one of the fastest-growing ninja clans in the village in recent decades, although not as fast as the Utatane, Mitomon, and Sarutobi clans, had grown from an ordinary family that inherited summoning techniques to a size that rivaled the great clans of the Warring States period after the Third Hokage came to power. But now, their clan leader had been arrested by the Uchiha and taken to the Uchiha's security department, and they didn't even know if he was dead or alive. What unsettled them even more was that the body of Aburame Ryoma, which the security department had simply dumped at the gates of the Aburame clan, bore the fatal wound inflicted by the very same ninja sword, Swift Lightning, feared throughout Kirigakure and known as the "Bloodless Blade." The blade pierced his heart with a clean, black cut, devoid of any blood.
This meant that Aburame Ryoma's death was likely due to an assassination attempt on Uchiha Touhuan, giving Uchiha Touhuan a ready excuse to attack the Aburame clan.
Now, the Aburame clan had no recourse but to anxiously await Uchiha Touhuan's arrival.
Although the Aburame clan could barely be considered a major ninja clan within the village, boasting more Jonin than the Inuzuka clan, they had been helpless against Danzo, let alone the now even more powerful Uchiha clan.
...
After handling the welcoming ceremony, Uchiha Touhuan sat in his office until the end of the workday, then promptly left.
When Sasuke arrived home, he was already there, eating the snacks Keiko had prepared for him in the dining room.
"Teacher, you're back!" Hearing Uchiha Touhuan enter, little Sasuke came running over on his short legs.
"Yo, Sasuke, you're here early today," Uchiha Touhuan said cheerfully.
After two days together, the teacher and student had become familiar with each other. Sasuke was a very intelligent child; he could quickly memorize everything Uchiha Touhuan asked him to recite each day, word for word, and even after Uchiha Touhuan explained it to him, he could understand, albeit partially, the deeper meanings behind the words.
Soon, the teacher and student began their lesson in the study.
After Uchiha Touhuan explained the meaning of the last sentence, "Do not do to others what you would not have them do to you," the book that Uchiha Touhuan had carefully selected from the Three Character Classic, Thousand Character Classic, and Analects as Sasuke's primer was finished.
"Alright, Sasuke, that's enough for today." Uchiha Touhuan closed the book and said to Sasuke.
"Yes." Sasuke nodded. "Teacher, what will we learn tomorrow?"
"Tomorrow?" Uchiha Touhuan smiled. "Starting tomorrow, you don't need to come for a while. I have some things to take care of."
"Huh?" Sasuke was taken aback, then looked a little downcast. "Okay."
These past three days had made Sasuke quite fond of Uchiha Touhuan, the teacher who told him many interesting stories in class. Now that his teacher was suddenly telling him he didn't need to come for a while, he was a little reluctant to let him go.
"Sasuke, I have some homework for you." Uchiha Touhuan patted Sasuke's head and smiled. "That is, during this time, carefully understand what I've taught you, and then use the principles I've taught you to observe the world. When you start to feel that these principles can't adequately explain what's happening in the world, come back to me, and then I'll teach you something new."
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(End of Chapter)