"Dead last, what do you think?" Sasuke asked Naruto beside him.
"I told you, stop calling me that," Naruto muttered irritably. Then he squinted his bright blue eyes toward the right and added, "Don't know if it's just me, but I've got this feeling… that it's connected to those guys over there."
"Those guys?" Sasuke followed his gaze.
Sure enough, in that direction, a few Academy students—two or three years older—were sneaking glances their way.
But once they noticed Naruto and Sasuke looking back, they quickly averted their eyes, pretending nothing was wrong.
Even Sasuke thought that reaction was suspicious.
"Naruto! Sasuke!"
All of a sudden, both boys felt their collars seized tight, as if they had been lifted straight off the ground.
A scolding voice followed: "Didn't I tell you not to get so close? The teachers will handle this. You two, back to the classroom now and study on your own!"
Struggling midair, Sasuke ground his teeth and protested, "We believe in Absolute Justice! We have a duty to join the investigation!"
Dangling by his collar as well, Naruto quickly echoed, "Yeah, that's right! Iruka-sensei, let us down already!"
"No."
Iruka, his darker complexion stern under a frown, said flatly, "I don't care what you claim to believe in. At least here, in the Academy, you'll obey me. This isn't some childish shinobi game. Don't treat something this serious like play. Do you understand? Acting that way is disrespectful to the one who's gone."
With that, Iruka carried the two boys back toward the classroom. As he walked, he turned his head, his eyes lingering on a female teacher nearby.
His steps faltered. In a low, heavy tone he said, "Kaede-sensei, this girl was in your class, wasn't she? For her to suddenly choose to end a promising young life—do you have any idea why?"
Kaede froze, her face pained as she shook her head. "I don't know. The moment she arrived at the Academy this morning, something felt off about her mood. Maybe… maybe something happened in her family."
"I see…" Iruka nodded. "Even though I'm still new among the Academy teachers, let me offer you this—As a teacher here, you must take responsibility for every single student."
"When the Police Force arrives to conduct their investigation, Kaede-sensei, please do not conceal anything. Only then can the truth be revealed to all—and only then can the departed child rest in peace."
Kaede suddenly frowned. "Iruka-sensei, what do you mean by that? Are you suggesting Sakurako didn't take her own life?"
Iruka shook his head. "I never said that."
Without another word, he carried Naruto and Sasuke away.
No matter how much the two troublemakers wriggled and protested in his grasp—he did not let go.
…
"Found him!" Elsewhere, after nearly ten minutes of searching through the village, the ANBU ninja sent out by Sarutobi Hiruzen finally spotted Uchiha Keizumi.
Drawing a deep breath, he appeared instantly before him.
Blocking his path, the ANBU quickly spoke to avoid being misunderstood: "Uchiha Keizumi, the Hokage has assigned you to handle a special case!"
Tachibana Jirō, the orange ninja cat, narrowed his eyes. "The Third personally wants Keizumi-sama to handle a case? That's like the sun rising from the west."
"What sort of case did the old man dump on this brat?" A sudden female voice startled the ANBU.
A hand clapped his shoulder right after.
He froze in alarm—how could he, an ANBU operative, not notice someone coming up behind him?
Spinning around warily, he found himself face-to-face with none other than one of Konoha's Legendary Sannin—Tsunade!
Beside her stood her disciple, Shizune.
"Tsunade-sama?" The ANBU was taken aback. Though surprised to see Tsunade and her student together with Uchiha Keizumi, he quickly gathered himself and answered her question: "It concerns a child named Sarutobi Sakurako. Not long after the Hokage sent her to the Academy… she ended her own life there, using a kunai against her throat."
Tsunade: "!!!"
Shizune: "!!!"
Uchiha Keizumi's face showed little emotion, but both Tsunade and Shizune widened their eyes in shock. Overcome with fury, Tsunade seized the ANBU by the collar, hoisting him into the air with terrifying strength.
"What on earth happened?" Tsunade's entire being radiated danger, her teeth clenched tight. "That child would never have thoughts like that!"
The ANBU broke into a cold sweat. Up close, he could feel the killing intent bursting from one of the Sannin.
"I don't know… and neither does the Hokage."
Driven by sheer survival instinct, he hurriedly explained: "When the Hokage learned of it, he was furious as well. That's why he sent me to request Uchiha Keizumi to investigate this matter…"
"Tsunade-sama, please calm down…" Shizune, holding Tonton in one arm, tugged at Tsunade's sleeve with the other.
Tsunade drew in a sharp breath. Her face was dark with rage as she finally loosened her grip.
Only then did the ANBU's feet touch the ground again.
"Brat, we must—" She turned to speak to Uchiha Keizumi, only to find that he and his orange ninja cat had already vanished without a trace.
"Shizune! Keep up!"
"Yes!"
…
Before long—
The Ninja Academy.
Three Uchiha Police Force shinobi, stationed close to the Academy, had already arrived before Uchiha Keizumi.
Naturally, the Academy teachers hadn't only gone to inform the Sarutobi clan.
They had also notified the Uchiha Police Force.
After all, this was a death—and of a ten-year-old child, no less—with plenty of witnesses. There was no way to cover it up, nor did the teachers have the courage to try.
"Victim: Sarutobi Sakurako, member of the Sarutobi clan. Female, ten years old, fourth-year Academy student. Fatal injury: laceration at the neck. Cause of death: asphyxiation and massive blood loss due to throat being cut."
One of the three Police Force shinobi crouched beside the body, inspecting carefully as he spoke with a calm tone: "The likely weapon is the kunai still in her hand—it's an Academy training tool."
"No second set of fingerprints on the kunai. Judging from the cut pattern on the wound, she did indeed inflict it upon herself."
"By all accounts, homicide can be ruled out. It should be confirmed as suicide. However… I discovered something."
His voice grew stern: "There are traces of Sharingan ocular power lingering on the victim. Within the last twenty-four hours, she was caught in a Sharingan genjutsu!"
The Police Force shinobi recording the report froze mid-stroke, frowned, and asked, "You're sure you didn't misread?"
"Impossible to mistake," the examiner replied. "I was shocked at first too, so I double-checked multiple times. The result was the same every time."
The third officer, arms crossed, spoke up: "So the victim's death is connected to us Uchiha? But why would anyone use a Sharingan illusion on a Sarutobi child?"
"And more importantly, which Uchiha would—"
His words were abruptly cut off by a cold voice interjecting: "The Sharingan traces left on the victim are from my Mangekyō Sharingan."
All three Uchiha Police Force shinobi: "!!!"
They were jolted at once. Looking toward the voice, they saw Uchiha Keizumi.
Keizumi didn't let their shock linger long. "I only used a genjutsu to make her forget certain psychological shadows she should not have remembered. I never used it to force her into ending her own life. Of course, I have no proof of this statement. You are within reason to suspect I'm lying."
"…Whoever we might doubt, we would never doubt you." One of the officers drew a deep breath. "With that, the Sharingan traces on the victim make sense."
The crouching officer slowly stood up. "Everyone knows—Uchiha Keizumi, who upholds Absolute Justice, has never spoken a lie."
The officer who had been standing with arms folded let them drop, abandoning the posture in Keizumi's presence.
He looked directly at Keizumi. "I didn't expect our first meeting after your return to the village would be under circumstances like this. Perhaps you've heard of us—on the night Uchiha Setsuna convened the clan assembly, we were among the first to walk out."
"We even spoke with your subordinate, Uchiha Izumi. If the chance arose, we hoped to meet you in person. But I never imagined that the opportunity would come through such a tragedy."
Uchiha Keizumi gave no reply. He stepped past the three officers and stood beside Sarutobi Sakurako's collapsed body.
He gazed at the young face, pale from massive blood loss, still streaked with two trails of tears.
For some reason—
The three Uchiha Police Force shinobi nearby could clearly feel a killing aura hanging in the air.
Even though they themselves were jōnin of the Uchiha clan, elite officers of the Police Force—
At this moment—
They still felt an overwhelming pressure pressing down on them.
So much so that cold sweat welled unbidden in their palms.
It was not fear in their hearts.
It was the body itself sending out primal warning signals.
Completely beyond their control.
Just then, they suddenly caught sight of two figures rushing swiftly toward them. The moment the pair stopped, they instantly recognized one of them—Tsunade, famed for her broad and generous heart.
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