Given Sasuke's financial situation, Shigeo Aburame decided to raise the price of blood insects to one million ryo each.
It wasn't about making money—it was to teach that having too much money at a young age wasn't necessarily a good thing.
Too much wealth could make a child disregard the value of money, lose direction in life, and lack the motivation to strive.
So, better to have less.
And his plan worked.
After returning to Konoha, Sasuke managed to obtain 17 blood insects, which drastically boosted his chakra reserves to a jonin level.
The price? All his savings and the deeds to his family estate were surrendered to the Police Force's treasury.
But Sasuke didn't care.
Even when he sat with Naruto at Ichiraku Ramen, eating a plain bowl of noodles without toppings, he maintained his usual pride.
"Naruto, I've joined the Special Forces, the elite unit of the Police Force. I won't be returning to Team 7 under Kakashi. You and Sakura had better work harder," he declared arrogantly.
"…"
Naruto clenched his fists so tightly that they cracked audibly, glaring at Sasuke's smug expression.
"Don't look down on me! If you want to leave Team 7, fight me first—just like we did on the hospital rooftop!"
"Heh…"
Sasuke chuckled, stood up, and walked toward the exit. But as he reached the doorway, he turned back to Naruto.
"Pointless fights violate Konoha's Public Order Act. Naruto, what you just did constitutes disturbing the peace. If it happens again, I'll arrest you and have you fined!"
"Uh…"
Naruto's face twitched as if he'd just eaten something awful.
He had guts when it came to fighting enemies, but the Konoha Police Force? That was a different story.
If Sasuke actually arrested him, it wouldn't just be embarrassing—he'd probably lose all his hard-earned savings.
Naruto had heard rumors: anyone caught by the Police Force ended up penniless, with some even losing their homes.
Having just started living comfortably, Naruto couldn't afford to become broke again, nor lose his tiny apartment.
So now, his two biggest fears were: ghosts and the Police Force.
Once Sasuke left the ramen shop, Naruto muttered under his breath, frustrated.
"Hmph! So what if you joined the Police Force? I'm not scared of you!"
Seeing his defiant act, Teuchi, the ramen shop owner, couldn't help but laugh.
"Ha! Naruto, isn't the Police Force commander your godfather? If you want to join, it wouldn't be hard."
"No way!"
Naruto immediately shook his head, raising it with pride.
"I won't be a nepotism hire! Besides, I'm going to become Hokage someday. Then the Police Force will report to me!"
"Is that so? Ha ha ha…"
Teuchi laughed heartily, adding an extra scoop of ramen to Naruto's bowl.
"Here, this one's on the house. When you become Hokage, don't forget about my shop!"
"Of course! I love your ramen the most, Teuchi-ossan!"
"Ha ha ha!"
…
While Naruto enjoyed his second bowl, Sasuke received a new mission: capturing escaped convicts.
Shigeobi prisoners, led by Mizuki, had escaped Konoha Prison after Mizuki manipulated the Wind God and Thunder God brothers into attacking the guards.
The Wind God and Thunder God were former Shigeobi whose immense appetites and low intelligence had led to an outburst during a mission over food distribution.
Though they possessed terrifying brute strength, they knew no jutsu. They had slaughtered their teammates over food, only to be defeated and subdued by Tsunade, who threw them into prison before promptly forgetting about them.
Fortunately, they were easy to manage as long as they were fed.
That was, until Mizuki entered the scene a year ago.
Mizuki noticed their strength and began hoarding food to win their trust, quickly becoming their "big brother."
When the time was right, Mizuki convinced them that Orochimaru's village was filled with delicious food, leading the brothers to help him stage a jailbreak.
The two used their brute strength to overpower the guards, break the cells, and free every prisoner.
Upon receiving the news, Shigeo Aburame immediately mobilized the Police Force, including the Special Forces, to hunt down the escapees.
Most of the convicts were soon recaptured, leaving only Mizuki and the brothers at large.
Shigeo anticipated Mizuki's next move and stationed himself at a woman named Tsubaki's home, knowing Mizuki would seek refuge there.
Sure enough, Mizuki arrived with the brothers in tow.
Seeing Shigeo waiting at the door, Mizuki panicked.
"Shigeo Aburame! How are you here? Did she betray me? No… she doesn't even know I'd come here!"
"I don't owe you an explanation," Shigeo replied, adjusting his sunglasses and pointing a finger at Mizuki.
"You have one option: surrender. Resist, and I am authorized to use lethal force. Make your choice wisely."
"Damn it!" Mizuki growled, memories of his prior humiliation flooding back. He turned to the brothers.
"Wind God! Thunder God! Attack!"
"Got it, big bro!"
The brothers charged at Shigeo with wild grins. Mizuki smirked confidently—these two were S-class in strength, no ordinary jonin could defeat them.
But Mizuki underestimated Shigeo.
With two thunderous crashes, the brothers were sent flying back, landing heavily on the ground.
"Ouch, bro! This guy's strength is like Lady Tsunade's!"
"Yeah, we can't beat him. Let's just surrender!"
"Smart thinking, bro!"
Without hesitation, the brothers knelt before Shigeo in a deep bow.
"Big bro! We're so sorry! Please forgive us!"
"We were wrong, big bro. We won't do it again!"
Shigeo: "…"
Their sincere apologies left him unsure how to react. After a moment, he waved them off.
"Fine. Get back to prison immediately. Take Mizuki with you. If you're late, there'll be no food!"
"Got it, big bro!"
The brothers hoisted a terrified Mizuki onto their shoulders and sprinted back to Konoha, raising a cloud of dust.
Amid the chaos, Mizuki's screams echoed through the forest.
"Let me go! Aaaahhhh!"
*(Chapter End)*