Uchiha Keizumi glanced at the white rectangular badge atop the ANBU's head, a sharp gleam flashing through his eyes that made the air feel frigid. He asked coldly, "You're interfering with Police Force jurisdiction, Yamanaka Ryōshin?"
The ANBU ninja: "!!!"
"You..."
He was stunned.
He was wearing an ANBU mask—he had never met Uchiha Keizumi in person. So how did Keizumi recognize him?
Noticing the cold gleam in Keizumi's eyes deepen into something potentially dangerous, the ANBU ninja hesitated, then slowly withdrew his blade.
He had heard certain intel about Uchiha Keizumi...
He knew this enforcer was known for his absolute justice.
To play it safe, it was best not to provoke him.
"Hoo—"
The ANBU let out a breath, trying to calm himself down. In a low, steady voice, he said, "Uchiha Keizumi, Police Force jurisdiction shouldn't really apply to Uzumaki Naruto, should it? He's just an ordinary child. Isn't that right?"
He had deliberately emphasized the word 'ordinary'.
Uchiha Keizumi replied, "And yet, he just so happens to be a criminal I caught in the act."
The ANBU ninja: "???"
Oh no...
This just got complicated.
As sweat trickled down his back, the ANBU racked his brain for a solution. But before he could say anything else, a sharp, raspy voice suddenly roared from afar, rapidly approaching: "You wicked little Uchiha brat! What do you think you're doing?! What evil intentions does your cursed Uchiha clan harbor this time?!"
The ANBU was stunned.
What the hell?
Someone was even more worked up than he was?
Turning toward the voice, he saw a familiar figure rushing in.
That was...
Shimura Danzō?!
...
After leaving the Hokage's office, Danzō was fuming.
He was extremely dissatisfied with Sarutobi Hiruzen's indecisiveness.
In his eyes, aside from Uchiha Kagami back in the day, every other member of the Uchiha clan was an evil Uchiha.
Especially that brat Uchiha Keizumi, who made no effort to hide his extreme personality and ruthless methods!
What 'Absolute Justice'?
It was nothing more than killing under the guise of righteousness for his own twisted amusement!
Only that monkey—such an unqualified Third Hokage—would ever consider Uchiha Keizumi's position to be trustworthy.
As Danzō simmered with resentment, heading back toward the Root base with two of his bodyguards from Root—
He witnessed a scene that nearly gave him a heart attack.
—Seven-year-old Nine-Tails jinchūriki Uzumaki Naruto was being held up by Uchiha Keizumi with one hand!
The sight triggered a vivid flashback of the Nine-Tails' rampage.
The destruction caused by that monstrous fox was still fresh in Danzō's memory, as if it had happened yesterday.
In an instant, Danzō practically exploded in rage.
From a distance, he roared, "You Uchiha brat born evil!"—and then charged forward with his two Root guards.
In the blink of an eye, they had surrounded Uchiha Keizumi, the ANBU operative, Izumi, and Uzumaki Naruto in a tight triangular formation.
Danzō was so agitated he was almost tearing through the bandages on his body, as if to reveal the horrifying Sharingan hidden underneath.
But he grit his teeth and forced himself to hold back.
"Uchiha Keizumi! Are you trying to rebel!?"
Danzō's venomous gaze burned with rage as he glared at Keizumi. Even his breathing had grown noticeably heavier with emotion.
He barked furiously, pressing in with aggression: "Seizing Uzumaki Naruto in broad daylight—so the Uchiha clan's ambitions can no longer be hidden, huh!?"
"I've always known you Uchiha harbor ill will toward Konoha. That tragedy years ago… it was your clan who planned it all, wasn't it!?"
The two masked Root guards had already drawn their ninja blades.
The tense atmosphere quickly alerted nearby onlookers that something was wrong.
"Who are those two masked ones…?" Compared to the half-visible ANBU operatives, Root agents—Konoha's true shadow—were virtually unknown among the common populace.
"Hey, hey, something's not right!" someone muttered nervously, swallowing hard and stepping back. "Are they about to fight? Shouldn't someone notify the Police Force?"
"But that Uchiha Keizumi… isn't he from the Police Force? Maybe we should report this to the Hokage instead!"
"…This is looking pretty bad…"
"…."
Izumi also sensed that things were going south. She didn't recognize the Root agents, nor did she know who that bandaged old man was, but she recognized the ANBU masks.
And she noticed that from the moment that unfamiliar, bandaged elder appeared, Keizumi-senpai's gaze had been locked onto him.
Maybe it was just her imagination, but she had the distinct impression that Keizumi-senpai's eyes were radiating a murderous intent that couldn't be hidden.
It wasn't her imagination.
In Uchiha Keizumi's vision, the red frame floating above Danzō's head was far larger than anyone else's.
Countless tiny characters within it listed crime after crime committed by Danzō—each stained with such a deep shade of crimson it bordered on purple, a mark of his evil.
Six years ago, Keizumi had caught a distant glimpse of Danzō, and even back then, he'd felt the urge to act.
But at the time, he was only a chūnin. The magnitude of Danzō's sins had far exceeded what he was capable of cleansing.
But now—
Keizumi was itching to strike again. He narrowed his eyes, ignored Danzō's barrage of accusations, and said coldly: "This brat broke the law—that's why I arrested him. Is Root trying to obstruct a Police Force operation? Anyone interfering with the execution of the law… will be eliminated without mercy."
Even the ANBU agent assigned to monitor Naruto had realized the situation had taken a dangerous turn.
He silently summoned a messenger pigeon, released it, and had the summoning beast quickly notify the Hokage.
Naruto had been so frightened by the tense and perilous atmosphere that he no longer dared to speak.
He realized now that he had really caused a major incident today.
Danzō's eyes, dark and venomous, radiated killing intent.
"Uchiha Keizumi, you're no longer just one of the evil Uchiha… Today, I'll personally eliminate this threat on behalf of Konoha!"
[Click—]
The ninja blade at Uchiha Keizumi's waist slid out by more than a few centimeters.
At the very moment a leaf was swept in by a passing breeze—
The two Root shinobi behind Keizumi were the first to strike!
One lunged forward with his blade, aiming straight for Keizumi's back!
The other slashed toward Keizumi's left arm, attempting to seize the jinchūriki.
Danzō himself dashed in like a thunderclap, crossing the distance in an instant.
At some point, his bandaged hand had already gripped a kunai.
The kunai thrust directly toward Keizumi's abdomen!
In that instant—almost simultaneously—Keizumi's eyes turned a vivid crimson, the three tomoe of his Sharingan blooming in place of his pupils.
With a sudden movement of his left hand, he forced the Root ninja on that side to pull back his blade—any further and it would have sliced into the Nine-Tails jinchūriki.
The blade at his waist, already partly unsheathed, now came free in a single, fluid motion, clashing violently with Danzō's kunai.
Using the force of the collision, Keizumi released his grip on the blade and, with his right hand, formed a single-hand seal at lightning speed.
"Lava Release…"
"Chakra Armament!"
A surge of intense, crimson chakra erupted from Keizumi's entire body. Every inch of his skin visibly transformed into a molten, lava-like texture. Even the uniform of the Police Force on his body was overtaken by the nature of the Lava Release chakra, taking on the same flowing, molten pattern.
The sheer heat ignited the back of Naruto's collar. With a yelp, Naruto tumbled to the ground, the searing air mere centimeters away burning the back of his neck.
Clutching his neck, Naruto screamed in pain.
The blade that had been aimed at Keizumi's back began to melt the instant it touched his skin—
[Hisss!]
"This is…" Danzō's pupils shrank. His fury, which had nearly clouded his mind, was instantly forced into clarity. In that moment, he remembered Keizumi's unique constitution:
"Lava Release Kekkei Genkai!!"
This brat—this inherently wicked Uchiha—was one of the rarest shinobi in the entire ninja world: a dual Kekkei Genkai user!
Even Danzō had only heard rumors of Keizumi possessing dual bloodline limits. He had never seen the boy actually wield Lava Release before.
And this terrifying temperature—it surpassed most Fire Release jutsu in raw destructive potential!
He must not be touched.
If this brat got even one hand on him, that heat would vaporize flesh on contact.
This conclusion came from Danzō's many years of battlefield experience—an instinctive warning, screaming through every fiber of his being.
And just as that thought crossed his mind—
Keizumi's lava-coated arm surged forward like a crimson spear, stabbing straight for Danzō's head!