Although the Uchiha clan members didn't say anything outright, when the shopkeepers closed their stores, they all exchanged knowing glances with the customers and then subtly gestured toward the Root operatives nearby.
Root's reputation had long since been rotten, so the villagers immediately jumped to their own conclusions.
Could it be that these Root patrol units were deliberately targeting the Uchiha, trying to crush their business?
The rumors spread vividly, with people convinced that Root was scheming against the Uchiha.
As a result, Hyūga Hiashi was summoned to the Hokage building.
The Third Hokage, puffing on his pipe with irritation, said sharply:
"I don't care what kind of deal the Hyūga Main Family and Danzō have made. The bottom line is this: within three days, the Uchiha shops must reopen."
Hiashi had originally opposed the Main Family elder's meddling in the police force. Ever since the Cloud incident, Hiashi no longer held any goodwill toward the Hokage faction — they had practically sold the Hyūga clan out.
But the Main Family elder was an old fossil, stubbornly convinced that opposing the Hokage would only bring harm.
And besides, Danzō had promised him an "Honorary Elder" title after things were done. It was only a personnel shuffle, after all.
He never expected that the Uchiha had already prepared countermeasures. The moment Root members took over patrols, the shopkeepers simply shut their doors and stopped business altogether.
Now, with the Third Hokage personally stepping in, Hiashi went to negotiate with the elder.
The Third Hokage sighed in relief. Though he had quietly delegated some authority to Danzō, he had never admitted it publicly. No one knew that Danzō's collusion with the Hyūga elder had been tacitly approved by him.
But since the Uchiha had reacted so forcefully, the situation had to be handled with a long-term strategy.
Hiashi soon relayed the Hokage's command, but the Main Family elder still clung to that promised honorary position. He couldn't just walk away.
So he called back Hizashi to resume his duties, while he himself continued hanging around the police department under the pretense of "assistance."
Hizashi loathed these useless power-hungry parasites, but as a branch family member, he couldn't openly defy the Main Family. All he could do was swallow his resentment.
Soon after, Root's patrols were shifted elsewhere, and the Uchiha shops on Eighth Street reopened all at once.
"Oh ho! Skewers!"
"Stinky tofu!"
"My favorite hot and sour noodles!"
"Lamb paomo!!"
The villagers rejoiced. Their stomachs had long since been conquered by Chinese cuisine.
During that week of closed shops, they had lost their appetites and lived in misery. Many had even grown thin.
Now that the restaurants were open again, crowds swarmed inside, ordering food like mad.
The Uchiha servers nearly collapsed from exhaustion by the end of the day.
Satisfied villagers left the shops, stuffed and staggering out, afraid that the stores might close again the next day.
Fortunately, the nightmare didn't repeat immediately — the restaurants stayed open on the second day, calming the villagers' fears.
But on the fourth day, once again, all the Uchiha shops shut down in unison.
When loyal patrons quietly approached the shopkeepers, they received a wry smile and an explanation:
"The past few days, the patrols were manned by our Uchiha clan or the Hyūga, so there was no problem. But today's patrols are Root operatives. How could we dare open?"
The shopkeeper trailed off, saying only, "Those Root people…" and left the rest unsaid.
"Once Root's patrol rotation is over, we'll reopen. Please be patient."
The shopkeeper squeezed through the crowd and left.
Word spread quickly, and Danzō soon received the report.
He smashed the teacup in his hand in rage.
How were the Uchiha defending themselves so tightly? His plan had been to use Root's patrols to slip something into their food, cause an "incident," and then shut them down officially under the banner of "safety." He could drag people away for interrogation — once in his hands, not only would they cough up their secret recipes, they'd also hand over their hidden wealth.
But the Uchiha gave him no chance. The moment Root appeared, every shop shut down.
They would rather suffer losses, close their businesses, and refuse to open than let Root find a foothold.
At first, customers were angry.
But the Uchiha had prepared for that as well: endless coupons, free meals, giveaways at no cost.
The villagers saw that the Uchiha were being forced, not greedy, and their sympathy grew.
Soon, an unspoken rule formed. Someone leaked the police patrol rotation schedule.
Whenever it was Root's turn to patrol, customers simply stayed away — no crowds, no queues. The street looked deserted, as if all the restaurants had gone out of business.
Root couldn't even find a single Uchiha to harass, let alone get their hands on secret recipes.
Danzō was livid.
"They close shop every single time — don't the owners complain!?"
He couldn't understand. These shops were gold mines, and yet they shut down on a whim? Close too often and customers would lose patience. And if you had too many fresh ingredients stocked, leaving them unused would only rot and waste them.
But Danzō didn't know — Uchiha Natsuki had already anticipated all of this.
From the very beginning, he had worked with Fugaku to draw up countermeasures.
Any move tied to Root had to be answered immediately. Otherwise, if they let the pressure creep in little by little, they'd be boiled alive like frogs in warm water.
No food for customers? No problem. Anyone who came in vain received generous coupons.
And these weren't useless "300 off a Lamborghini" coupons — they were straight-up meal vouchers, worth entire portions of real food.
Excess ingredients? No problem. Everything was brought back to the clan compound, distributed for free among families.
Lost income? Covered. Each restaurant owner received clan compensation equal to their average daily revenue.
When you've got money, you can be that domineering.
Did the shopkeepers complain? Sure — they complained that Root didn't patrol their street every day. Then they wouldn't have to work at all, and still get paid!
Most Uchiha, however, felt grateful to their clan. The clan had their backs.
After all, these restaurants had originally been supported by Deputy Clan Head Natsuki.
Their businesses now earned several times more than they ever had before.
And Natsuki had warned them early on about possible hardships. The most important thing was to protect the Uchiha reputation. If their reputation held, the villagers would never forget their food.
Any losses during this period would be covered by the clan.
And besides — the taste of [Chinese Cuisine] was truly unique. Once you had eaten it, you wouldn't stop coming back just because the shop closed once or twice.
So the villagers' frustration wasn't aimed at the Uchiha at all — it landed squarely on Root.
Ordinary people couldn't do much, apart from giving Root cold glares.
But capable ninja were another matter.
Again and again, Root operatives suffered "accidents" — getting knocked into ditches, biting into fruit full of worms, even falling into toilets.
Everyone knew it was deliberate harassment, but with no evidence, Root could do nothing.
Konoha had no shortage of people and no shortage of secret techniques. If someone wanted to make your life difficult, it was all too easy.
As a result, Root operatives limited themselves to patrol duty only, vanishing the moment they were off the clock.
Otherwise, who knew how they might end up dead?
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