Chapter 56: Konoha Unlimited Fighting Tournament - Preseason
"Officer! Stop hitting us! Stop!"
The few who had been knocked to the ground first cowered in fear, covering their heads as they evaded the relentless strikes of the police batons.
"We're just ordinary villagers who got dragged here! This has nothing to do with us!"
"Now you remember you're civilians?" Uchiha Inoka, swinging his baton six times per second with his Sharingan activated, glared at them fiercely.
"Too late! You dared to charge the Police Department—what's next? Are you planning to storm the Hokage's Office tomorrow?"
Before long, the fleeing rioters scattered through the streets and alleys of Konoha, with the relentless Police Department members chasing them down, batons in hand.
Some passing villagers, unaware of the commotion, peeked out, only to be met with harsh shouts:
"What are you looking at? The village is under curfew tonight! Stay indoors, or you'll be treated as rioters!"
One of the officers jumped onto a nearby wall and leapt down, kicking a fleeing protester to the ground and immediately resuming his baton strikes.
Seeing this scene, the uninvolved villagers were terrified, hurriedly retreating to their homes and bolting their doors and windows. In no time, the streets of Konoha were deserted, save for the panicked rioters and their pursuers from the Police Department.
---
Three ANBU members on patrol happened upon the scene.
"Nagai-senpai, should we intervene?" one of the special jounin asked.
"Intervene in what? Can't you see the Police Department is enforcing the law?" Nagai Seiichi glared at them.
"Let's just go back and report to the Hokage. Don't get involved in unnecessary trouble."
Despite being outnumbered, the trained and well-organized Police Department members methodically captured the rioters. After administering their signature chiropractic therapy with the batons, they dragged the incapacitated troublemakers back to the headquarters.
The alleys of Konoha echoed with screams and cries throughout the night.
---
Sakurai Shuumei and a fellow officer named Fujiwara Yoju chased after a particularly agile rioter, weaving through Konoha's labyrinthine alleys.
"This guy's not normal," Yoju panted. "A regular villager wouldn't be able to outrun two shinobi for this long."
The suspect darted around a corner, and the two officers followed without hesitation—only to find a small group of men waiting for them, wielding makeshift weapons crafted from broken wooden chairs.
"Now what?" one of the ambushers sneered.
"Shinobi are supposed to protect the village—how can you attack civilians?"
"You dare call yourselves civilians when you openly defy the Will of Fire?" Shuumei snapped.
"Shuumei-senpai, what do we do? They're too many," Yoju whispered nervously. Having just graduated from the Academy, he was still inexperienced and had yet to master the jutsu issued by the Police Department.
"Afraid? Don't be a coward!" Shuumei snatched off his forehead protector, gripping his baton tightly.
"Remember what Vice-Captain Douhuan said: Don't disgrace the Police Department!"
Taking a deep breath, Shuumei stepped forward, determination gleaming in his eyes.
Gritting his teeth, Yoju steeled himself and followed.
---
Clash
The fight broke out immediately. Shuumei, who had always been among the top students at the Academy and had trained under Uchiha Zaitou, managed to hold his ground against four attackers. He used a combination of the Police Department's basic taijutsu and Uchiha-style Kenjutsu, skillfully wielding his baton like a short sword.
Yoju, on the other hand, was having a harder time. As a recent graduate with little practical experience, he could only rely on his enhanced physical strength from basic chakra reinforcement to endure the strikes, swinging his baton wildly.
Suddenly, one of the thugs, pushed to the brink, pulled out a handful of shuriken and flung them at the two.
Shuumei narrowly dodged, but Yoju wasn't fast enough—one of the shuriken sliced his thigh, drawing blood.
"You're a ninja?!" Shuumei's eyes widened in fury as he reached for his own shuriken.
But the rogue shinobi had already discarded his disguise, forming hand seals rapidly.
"Fire Release: Flame Bullet!"
A sphere of fire erupted from the rogue's mouth, speeding toward the injured Yoju.
Shuumei sprinted to intervene, but he was too far away. Panic surged through him as he shouted, "Get out of the way!"
Frozen by his wound, Yoju could only stare in terror as the fireball approached.
But before the flame could reach him, a shadow appeared between them, and with a swift slash of his blade, the fireball dispersed into harmless embers.
"Zaitou-taichou!" both officers exclaimed in relief. The newcomer was none other than Uchiha Zaitou.
Zaitou glanced at the wounded Yoju, his gaze cold.
"Pathetic. When this mission is over and your leg heals, prepare for hellish training," he scolded.
He then turned his piercing eyes toward the rogue ninja.
"And you. Attacking members of the Police Department—are you tired of living?"
With his opponent no longer holding back, Zaitou made his move, flashing forward with his katana. The rogue, barely at chunin level, was utterly outmatched. In just three strikes, he was subdued, bloodied, and immobilized.
The other rioters, seeing Zaitou's overwhelming strength, scattered in terror.
"What are you two idiots doing? Chase them!" Zaitou barked. Shuumei and Yoju snapped out of their daze and took off after the fleeing troublemakers.
---
As the curfew order spread through the village, most residents chose to hunker down at home, shutting their doors and windows tightly.
However, a few self-righteous villagers, driven by misplaced compassion, opened their doors to give refuge to the fleeing rioters.
But the enraged Police Department members, already seeing red, stormed directly into these houses and delivered a thorough beating to both the rioters and their hosts. The message was clear:
Anyone sheltering rioters would be treated as accomplices.
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