Chapter 81: Chapter 81. Increase the number of tasks
Konoha Village.
Hokage Building.
"Is this the plan you developed? Do you realize how much Eighth Street has suffered from a decline in foot traffic?"
"The complaint letters from villagers are overflowing!"
"Several ninja shop owners on that street reported this to me!"
The Third Hokage knocked on the table, displaying his dissatisfaction with Danzo.
Danzo's eyes reflected impatience: "Uchiha had already orchestrated this. I can't predict their reactions."
He took a drag from his cigarette: "Leaving your roots in the police force was a misguided move, and it's proving ineffective now."
"Visit the village hall and measure the extent of the damage to your reputation. People actively avoid you. How do you expect to serve in the police force?"
Danzo's expression soured. In his past efforts to cultivate the roots, loyalty to him and ruthlessness were the key qualities instilled.
Training them to act as police officers required a level of emotional intelligence that most lacked.
Danzo grunted, "I'll consider alternative approaches."
"Start by withdrawing your personnel from the police force," calmly suggested the Third Hokage.
"Impossible!" Danzo retorted, suddenly agitated.
He finally succeeded in infiltrating his roots into the police force.
Although their performance was bad, he secured a position, providing potential alternatives for the future.
The Third Hokage's voice grew even colder: "The Hyuga clan's elder has visited me twice, demanding the redemption of his position as an honorary elder. Is this not what you promised?"
Danzo snorted dismissively: "He expects the honorary elder position even before delivering the items?"
The Third Hokage grabbed a stack of complaint sheets and threw them in front of Danzo.
"Then, you deal with it."
Danzo's brows furrowed, and he fell into silence.
Observing Danzo's lack of response, the Third Hokage softened his tone.
"The Root base was there before, but it's currently sealed, and it will stay that way."
"Remove your roots, and I will give the open position to the Hyuga Elder, providing a satisfactory solution."
After brief contemplation, Danzo acknowledged that Roots was indeed unsuitable for the police force.
It might work better if he could use Root as a base.
"Provide me the appointment letter as an honorary elder with your name left blank," Danzo requested, and the Third Hokage agreed without hesitation.
The daimyo's orders must be fulfilled, and thus, this position must be given to Danzo for operation.
...
After countless complaints, the roots, who were disliked by everyone, were removed.
When the villagers learned that the police force had been abolished, they rejoiced and swarmed to Konoha Eighth Street.
As promised, all the Uchiha stores opened. Countless delicacies enticed everyone to rush into the stores like crazy.
The Uchiha bosses couldn't believe it—they had pulled it off.
...
Hokage Building.
The Third Hokage smoked a cigarette with a bored expression.
Neither the soft approach nor the hard approach was working.
He couldn't come forward personally, and Danzo was temporarily halted after being disgraced again.
Now, Uchiha's stance of non-violence and non-cooperation made the Third Hokage's situation quite challenging.
He decided to call Koharu over to discuss the matter.
Surprisingly, she arrived after a while, holding a cup of pearl milk tea made by the Uchiha clan.
This trendy drink, with its soft pearls and sweet milk tea, had become highly popular in the Uchiha clan.
"Koharu, how are the Uchiha handling their mission workload?" The Third Hokage had to base his decisions on the tasks that the Uchiha clan was undertaking.
Ninjas also needed to eat, and the likelihood of elite ninjas emerging from the Uchiha clan was undoubtedly higher than that of civilians from smaller clans.
The Uchiha clan's primary income came from completing various missions.
She took a sip of her milk tea and, with her mature face, created an unexpectedly odd scene.
"I've brought the recent mission statistics for the Uchiha clan."
The Third Hokage nodded approvingly. As a trusted colleague, Koharu knew what was happening when summoned by him.
She had even prepared for this meeting.
As he examined the mission statistics, he frowned slightly.
Despite Uchiha still having over a hundred elites, the current monthly task completion rate was less than 30% of its previous level.
"Don't the Uchiha take on tasks to support their families now?" He asked with doubt.
Koharu, who had just woken up, clearly knew more. "Many Uchiha members are choosing to give birth at home, so naturally, there are fewer people available for tasks."
The Third Hokage was a little puzzled. "If they want to have children, shouldn't they be working harder?"
Koharu, now awake, shook her head. "Hiruzen, there's something you're not aware of. Before Natsuki left, he announced a reward to encourage childbirth. Each time a child is born, a substantial amount of money is awarded."
"So, many ninjas have stopped taking missions and are focusing on having children at home. Even when they do take missions, they choose simpler ones."
The Third Hokage examined the mission acceptance details, noting that approximately fifty Uchiha members were still engaging in missions.
On average, they completed seven C-level tasks each month, with most of the others being D-level tasks—relatively trivial matters such as finding pets or picking up trash.
"A substantial amount of money? How much are we talking about?" The Third Hokage inquired.
She admitted she didn't have the exact figure.
Now, the Third Hokage paced back and forth in the room.
Uchiha's actions indicated they had indeed accumulated substantial wealth through their catering business. The Third Hokage felt the need to stop in the Uchiha clan.
"I have an idea; let's change the rules of our mission reception center."
He elaborated, "Jounin must complete at least one B-level mission or three C-level missions every month. Special jounin need to undertake two C-level missions or five D-level missions per month. As for Chuunin, they should complete at least one C-level mission or three D-level missions."
He refrained from specifying for genin, recognizing the significant skill gap within that rank.
Koharu couldn't help but praise the Third Hokage's strategic approach after hearing the plan.
The new rule, seemingly ordinary for other ninjas, was a hidden method to raise the requirements within the Uchiha clan.
In Uchiha, most of the genin were focused on the family's business, and those with inactive progress or limited talent were also included.
Additionally, families with newborns were preoccupied with childcare.
As a result, the backbone of Uchiha's missions included chuunin and a small number of special jounin.
Koharu, curious about potential resistance to the rule, asked the Third Hokage, "What if they resist and don't complete the missions?"
The Third Hokage responded calmly, "Then we'll lower their division levels and relocate them from within the village to outside the village."
In the process of accepting missions in Ninja Village, a portion of the payment, 20%, needed to be contributed to the village, with the remaining 80% going to the mission performer.
Though it may seem like a significant share, the crucial factor in completing missions successfully was intelligence.
To ensure mission success, individuals were required to provide a portion of the intelligence fee in advance.
The more detailed and valuable the information provided, the higher the intelligence fee, which made missions more profitable for ninjas from the Village.
They could receive approximately half of the mission bonus, a relatively favorable arrangement.
In contrast, ninjas from other villages or wandering individuals had to share a larger portion of their earnings, receiving only 30% to 20% in the end.
Despite the distribution of funds, many ninjas still preferred to come to the Ninja Village for missions.
The access to information within the village was crucial for mission success, as it allowed them to locate targets and complete tasks effectively.
After the Third Hokage's new rule, if Uchiha failed to complete missions properly and their share was adjusted to match the rates outside the village, their income would plunge.
Despite the subsidies for having children, continuous childbirth was not a sustainable solution.
Ultimately, Uchiha had to prioritize taking on tasks to make ends meet.
The Third Hokage's decision was not without its strategic importance.
If the Uchiha clan accepted the new rules, it would result in more individuals undertaking missions, leading to increased stability within the Uchiha clan.
On the other hand, if the Uchiha rejected the rules, Fugaku would likely approach the Third Hokage to negotiate.
This would provide an opportunity for the Third Hokage to raise concerns about Uchiha's control over the catering sector.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone