Chapter 352 Itachi's Death

As the sky gradually darkened, the Konoha Ninja Village was covered with lights. If you looked down from a high place, it was quite magnificent, like the most dazzling stars on earth.

Lanterns were hung early in the courtyard where Uchiha Fugaku lived. The soft lights dispelled the darkness and brought warmth and hospitality to the secluded courtyard.

Ye Shan sat on the main seat, and from left to right were Uchiha Keiji, Namikaze Minato, Uchiha Fugaku and Terumi Mei. As it was still early and the kitchen was preparing food, they drank tea and chatted first.

The tea is the Uchiha clan's unique white tea, with an annual output of only a pitiful ten pounds. Most of it is distributed to the clan leader and elders, and outsiders never see it.

Uchiha Fugaku smiled widely, in stark contrast to his strict attitude at work: "Everyone, please try this white tea. This is a new tea that just came out this year."

"Deputy Hokage Mei Terumi, you're welcome. We're all family."

Mei Terumi covered her mouth and smiled: "Since we are one family, why do you have to call me so politely? Just call me by my name."

Ye Shan nodded and said, "Don't be so stiff and distant in private. Putting aside the tedious official business, we are still good friends."

"By the way, your precious kids are all going to internships. How are they doing? Are you secretly crying because you miss them?"

Minato sighed sadly: "When Naruto was here, Kushina devoted all her energy to her children. Now that Naruto is gone, it's her turn to nag me..."

Ye Shan laughed and joked, "If you ask me, you should have a second child. Look at Fugaku. He has two good and filial sons. His life will definitely be guaranteed when he gets old."

“Why is life guaranteed?”

"Think about it, if you only have one child, when you are critically ill and lying in bed unable to move, he can pull out your oxygen tube without anyone raising any objections. But if you have two children, maybe one of them will disagree with his conscience."

"Hahaha"

Several people burst into laughter, but Fugaku stopped laughing, thought for a moment and said, "What if one of them says to pull out the oxygen tube, and the other says yes, yes?"

"You are lucky that your two sons and brothers work together to break the iron wire."

Mei Terumi smiled in agreement. This was her first time attending a small group dinner in private, and she would make a few toasts later.

Soon, the tea set and snacks on the table were removed, and steaming dishes were served, with the aroma filling the whole room.

Eight cold dishes, eight stir-fried dishes, four hot dishes plus a ginseng black chicken soup. Not to mention five people, even if there are twice as many people, they can't finish it.

Influenced by Ye Shan, there has been a stir-fry craze in the Fire Nation in recent years. The original flashy things like yakitori have been abandoned by the upper class, because stir-frying tastes so delicious!

"Braised fish lips, sea cucumber with scallions, and stir-fried beef are three dishes that really test the chef's skills. It seems that Fugaku is full of confidence. Everyone, please don't hesitate to eat them while they are hot."

There are not so many rules for private banquets. A few people ate and chatted about work and life. The atmosphere was relaxed and pleasant until the sound of chaotic footsteps was heard outside.

Ye Shan frowned, put down his wine glass and stared outside. He saw Nara Shikaku coming in breathlessly, his face extremely gloomy.

Nara Shikaku is a steady ninja who will never lose his composure in normal matters unless he encounters something big and difficult to handle.

As expected, Shikaku didn't even dare to say it in public, but instead reported to Ye Shan in his ear.

Minato was closest to Ye Shan and could clearly see the murderous intent that suddenly erupted in the other's eyes and the grief and helplessness that followed a moment later.

After more than ten breaths, Ye Shan finally came back to his senses. He looked around at everyone and finally slowly fell on Uchiha Fugaku.

"According to the intelligence," Ye Shan's voice was very low, containing endless anger: "The new official Uchiha Itachi was assassinated while on patrol. He is currently seriously injured and unconscious. It is very likely..."

"Clang"

The silver spoon in Uchiha Fugaku's hand fell into the exquisite porcelain. He held the handle of the chair with trembling hands and tried to get up, but failed twice. Shock, grief and disbelief appeared on his usually serious and expressionless face. He opened his mouth to call the guards in, but only a sound of "enji enji enji" came out of his throat, and he couldn't even utter a complete word.

At critical moments, you have to rely on your own family. Uchiha Keiji is experienced and knows that the clan leader was shocked by the news in a very short period of time. If he is not treated in time, he may become an idiot for the rest of his life. He didn't care about the messy etiquette. Keiji grabbed the bottle and took a big gulp, and then sprayed it on Fugaku's face without leaving a drop, and then slapped him twice in the face.

"wake up!"

"wake up!"

Two bright red slap marks suddenly appeared on Uchiha Fugaku's face. His eyes were blurry for a few breaths and then became clear. The strange sound in his throat also disappeared.

"I'm...okay."

Ye Shan slowly loosened his tightly clenched hands and pretended to be relaxed, "It's good that you're fine. Don't worry about Itachi. The top medical team is on the way. And Tsunade is in the village. It will be no problem for her to take action."

"Minato, thank you for taking the trouble to make the trip. Please make sure to send Mr. and Mrs. Fugaku over as quickly as possible."

Poor parents in the world, with just this much skill, Uchiha Fugaku's face turned dark blue, and half of his hair turned white!

"Don't worry, Itachi has the coordinates I left on him, and he can make a space jump at any time."

After the host left, it was naturally inconvenient for the three guests to stay. Terumi Mei noticed that Yeshan was trying hard to suppress his emotions, and tactfully applied to be on duty in the office.

Uchiha Keiji looked up at the bright moon hanging in the sky, feeling angry and melancholy. You know, Uchiha Itachi was the young patriarch recognized and appointed by the clan, and was also the successor favored by their leadership team. Now he was assassinated in his own territory, which was really disrespectful to Konoha.

Yeshan had his hands behind his back with a calm expression. He knew very well that Itachi's health was related to the interests of too many people, and he also knew that as a master and Hokage he had to respond.

"Give me the order!"

In a moment, several masked and half-kneeling Anbu ninjas appeared in the dark corner, with the leader holding a pen and paper to record orders.

"The Fire Country Garrison Corps as a whole is given a serious warning, and the first-level captain Uchiha Seiji is given a serious warning and ordered to review the punishment. The person in charge of the relevant area is dismissed and cannot be re-employed within five years!"

"The ANBU, Root, and Security Department will be punished as a whole and will fail the year-end assessment!"

"Send all law enforcement teams to conduct a comprehensive review and reform of the garrison troops to put an end to all extravagance and enjoyment!"

"Set up a special task force, with Uchiha Fugaku as the team leader and Senju Tsunade as the deputy team leader. The deadline is one month to solve this case!"

Ye Shan's few words brought many people's careers to an abrupt end. This is the charm of power.

"The whole system is carrying out a rectification campaign, warning everyone not to slack off!"

Ye Shan gritted his teeth and had a ferocious look on his face. Whoever dared to fail or drag his feet at the critical moment would be doomed to failure!

"Keijima, what do you think about this?"

Uchiha Keiji's face turned bitter, and he swallowed his words of farewell. After thinking for a moment, he said, "I think that the murderer should be severely punished to demonstrate the majesty of Konoha..."

"I know how to handle these trivial matters. I'm asking you what to do if Itachi loses the ability to perform his duties normally."

"this..."

"This is a serious matter. I am in a state of confusion, just like Mizunotsukihara a few days ago. I have the urge to give up on myself."

It’s not that Ye Shan is exaggerating, but the balance between the current Konoha leadership team has reached a delicate point. If not handled properly, it will easily lead to internal conflicts.

At the beginning, Yeshan relied on the Uchiha clan to rise to power, and also promised that a Hokage would be born in the Uchiha clan in a few years. Not many people know about this, but it did happen.

Later, in order to implement the new policy, several Hokage agreed that as long as the Uchiha clan fully supported the development of the new Rain Country, Uchiha Itachi would be the sixth generation Hokage. This would bring the Uchiha clan a mountain of gold, silver and food. Otherwise, Konoha would not have the confidence to implement the new policy, and would not even be able to fill its stomach!

But everything has a prerequisite: Uchiha Itachi has the talent and ability to lead a big country with a population of billions, otherwise no one would hand over the beautiful country to a dandy boy.

Over the years, Uchiha Itachi has been working day and night on the new policy. He has performed outstandingly wherever he has been appointed. He has long been recognized by the leadership team, and everyone believes that he will be the Sixth Hokage in the future.

But now Uchiha Itachi has been assassinated! Even if his life is not in danger, will there be any sequelae? Can a leader in poor health really inherit the will of the new fire and thoroughly implement the new policy? This may be a big question mark, so Ye Shan feels confused.

Uchiha Keiji was a smart man and had long heard the hidden meaning of Ye Shan's words. The retired man originally didn't want to say anything, but for the future of the family he had an obligation to stand up.

"Hokage, I don't think it has come to that. Uchiha Itachi was the successor to the clan leader chosen by the late great elder Uchiha Shizan, and he was also your personal disciple recognized by everyone. Over the years, you have a deep teacher-student relationship, and I think small things cannot shake it."

After playing the emotional card, Keiji began to play the political card: "The current situation in the ninja world seems calm, but in fact, there are storms hidden; the new policy seems to be flourishing, but in fact, it is raging. So in this turbulent era, how many people will follow you wholeheartedly? Since the 44th year of Konoha, the Uchiha clan has been your loyal ally, and the tests over the years have also demonstrated the issue of loyalty."

"There's a joke in the village: The mountains are inseparable from the earth, and the earth is inseparable from the mountains. We are closely connected to each other. Even if Uchiha Itachi loses the right to succeed Hokage, our clan still has Uchiha Shisui, a genius who is no less talented. This does not mean that our clan has lost the right to succeed."

"Moreover, Uchiha Sasuke has been very smart and talented since he was young, and he may not be inferior to his brother in the future."

"So I think that the safety of Uchiha Itachi alone cannot be equated with the honor or disgrace of the Uchiha clan, let alone the development plan of the village. This is my point of view."

Ye Shan listened to these words with an expressionless face. He admired Keiji's ability to respond and organize language, and was completely convinced.

"That's what I said, but you must do your utmost to ensure Uchiha Itachi's safety and help him return to health at all costs. He is the only one I recognize in the Uchiha clan!"

.......

Sanwan River is an artificial river. In order to relieve the water storage pressure of Sanwan Lake in summer and open up the waterway with Nanhe River, Uchiha Itachi started to dig an artificial river last year. After more than ten months of hard work, Sanwan River has been connected, and five waterway docks have been set up along the way, which has greatly promoted trade and economic development between the two places.

There is a market at the junction of the river and the lake, where about five or six hundred people live. Most of them are lower-class people who do hard labor. They live here to earn money to support their families, so their living environment is naturally not good.

Now, all the ships and people have stopped, and they spontaneously gathered outside a tent in a wide area in the wilderness, but the Konoha ninjas in standard vests set up a cordon and prohibited them from approaching.

In the tent, two half-trained medical ninjas were treating a young man with sweat on their foreheads, but as time went by, the despair on their faces became more and more intense.

"Damn it, the bleeding won't stop!"

"Why hasn't the village sent anyone yet? Keep calling to urge them!"

"It's over. If anything happens to Itachi-sama, the two of us will definitely not be able to escape."