"Tch… Can't believe I'm walking around with an Amegakure headband and this stupid-looking gas mask. This is so not my vibe… Makes me feel like I've downgraded myself."
Somewhere near Konoha, Land of Fire.
Biwa Jūzō, masked in black and thoroughly annoyed, grumbled to himself.
He hadn't even been with Akatsuki for long, and already they were throwing him into some absurd mission.
—Disguise yourself as a Rain envoy, go to Konoha, and make contact with 'Uchiha Chizumi.'
He glanced sideways at the Rain ninja walking beside him, his eyes narrowing.
Akatsuki's grip over the Rain Village was way tighter than he expected. These guys followed that woman's orders like robots—no hesitation, no questions. Not even a frown when she gave commands.
Looks like…
He'd really joined a serious organization. Still didn't make sense, though—why infiltrate Konoha just to get close to some 'Lava Beast' and dig up secrets about Uchiha Madara?
Uchiha Madara…
Wasn't that guy supposed to be dead and buried?
Then again, Konan's words had stuck with him:
"This mission is top secret. Only you, me, and the Leader know about it. Not a word to anyone. Not even other Akatsuki."
"Uchiha Chizumi knows something about Madara. I want that intel."
"Why you? You're known as a ruthless killer—but only on the battlefield. You've never harmed civilians or allies. That makes you acceptable in Chizumi's eyes."
"Based on our intel, Chizumi won't tolerate criminals who target the innocent. If one shows up in front of him, he'll kill without blinking."
"That's why no one else in Akatsuki can do this job. Everyone else has too much blood on their hands. The moment they approach Chizumi, they're marked as enemies."
"Keep your mouth shut. To everyone."
"Complete this, and you're in. No more rookie status. You'll be one of us."
Jūzō sighed, pressing his tongue against his cheek.
A member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, and somehow… still not "evil" enough?
Well… she wasn't wrong. His brutality was strictly professional—reserved for enemies on the battlefield. Outside of that, he kept it on a leash.
"So in that Lava Beast's eyes, killing enemy shinobi for your country isn't evil? As long as you don't touch civilians?"
He clicked his tongue again.
"Absolute justice, huh? What a weird ninja creed. Uchiha Chizumi's a weird guy."
"Hey," he casually asked one of the Rain ninja beside him, "how far to Konoha?"
"Two days."
…
Elsewhere, in the shinobi world…
Obito sat silently on a moss-covered boulder, his tone flat and cold.
"Chizumi knows too much. If he spills my secrets, everything I've worked for is toast."
"If Nagato and Konan find out I'm not actually Madara… or if they figure out my Mangekyō Sharingan's true ability… Nagato might let it slide, but Konan?"
"She'll come for me. No doubt."
He clenched his fists.
"She's been eyeing me weirdly for a while now. That guarded, suspicious look? I see it. And I think Chizumi might know more than just that."
He turned to the black-and-white figure beside him.
"He might even know about you, Zetsu. That's why I need Akatsuki's support. I need to gather intel and erase that guy. Wipe him out before he becomes a real problem."
Zetsu spoke after a pause.
"Obito, asking the others to investigate Chizumi is risky. The second you bring him up, they'll know something's up. Nagato and Konan will run their own investigation—probably into you."
Obito frowned.
"Come on, what could they possibly suspect?"
Zetsu shook his head.
"You said it yourself—Konan doesn't trust you. To her, everything you do is calculated. Every move has some hidden motive. And if you're Madara, why would you suddenly be so interested in a random young Uchiha?"
Obito's expression tightened.
Had he underestimated her that badly?
Zetsu continued, with the air of someone ancient and tired.
"Konan's too smart to ignore that. She'll start digging. I told you—don't rush."
In Zetsu's eyes, Obito was still a rash 20-something—impulsive, impatient, and nowhere near the level of the real Madara.
Honestly, this kid couldn't even hold a candle to Madara. Now Zetsu had to clean up his mistakes and babysit him too?
Madara wouldn't have made this mess, Zetsu thought with a sigh.
"Still… I don't think we're screwed yet," he added.
"Even we don't know why Chizumi knows so much. By the time Konan figures it out, it might be too late for her to act."
Obito exhaled, slightly relieved.
Zetsu went on.
"If you're planning to eliminate Chizumi, hitting him head-on won't work. He's too sharp."
"But… he's not alone. He has a weakness—his subordinate. That Uchiha girl who awakened the three-tomoe Sharingan earlier than anyone else in clan history."
"Uchiha Izumi."
Obito's eyes narrowed. "Right. Her."
…
Konoha – Hyuga Compound
Uchiha Chizumi was gone. So was the Third Hokage. The Anbu had disappeared as well.
What remained was silence. The Hyuga clan stood still, saying nothing—staring at the bloody corpse of a young branch family member lying cold in their courtyard.
Under the weight of so many eyes, Hiashi Hyuga exhaled quietly, but his face stayed expressionless.
"Take the body inside. We'll find a day to bury him properly."
"Hiashi-sama…"
One of the clan's shinobi tried to speak, but Hiashi shut him down with a cold glare.
"Let this go. Pretend none of it happened. Digging into this will do nothing but hurt the Hyuga."
"If we push this… the Nine-Tails jinchūriki, the Hokage, Uchiha Chizumi, and the entire Uchiha clan will turn against us."
Just thinking about that alliance made Hiashi shudder.
The Hyuga always claimed to be Konoha's number one clan—but that was only after the village systematically isolated the Uchiha. Back then, the Uchiha were undisputed. Now, with Chizumi at the center of everything?
If the Hyuga were ever treated like the Uchiha had been…
Hiashi didn't want to imagine what would become of them. A once-great clan, reduced to political roadkill.
They'd swallowed worse in the past—like the whole mess with the Cloud Village. They could swallow this too. After all, it was "only" one dead branch family child.
And the Hyuga had learned to endure.
"Bring the kid inside," he repeated, this time with a firmer tone.
"…Yes, sir."
But news spread fast. A Hyuga child had been killed at their own front gate—and the clan head did nothing. Not a great look.
Voices began to stir:
"So just because Naruto's the jinchūriki and that Uchiha brat is Fugaku's son… they can kill a Hyuga kid in broad daylight?"
"They just get to ignore the law?"
Another clenched his jaw.
"The Hokage keeps telling us to follow the rules—but it's always the ones breaking them who get to stand on top of us."
"He was just a kid. Even if he made a mistake, did he really deserve to die for it?"
A cold-faced Hyuga jonin from the branch family folded his arms.
"To the Hokage, we're just tools."
Someone muttered bitterly:
"He won't so much as glare at Chizumi, but he's always giving us grief…"
"If we had that kind of power, we'd be the real number one clan. The Hokage would bow his head to us."
The murmurs fell silent when Hiashi walked past "coincidentally." He'd heard everything.
And it hurt—but not because they were wrong.
They just didn't understand the danger of standing out too much. That was the Uchiha's problem. They became too powerful—so powerful they threatened the village's power structure.
That's why Hiashi had chosen restraint.
He wasn't like Uchiha Setsuna, chasing some glorious revival.
And he wasn't like Fugaku, trying to keep peace through political balancing acts.
Hiashi had one goal: keep the Hyuga alive, strong, and under the radar.
Because if they were ever viewed the way the Uchiha were?
That would be the beginning of the end.
Unfortunately, not everyone understood that.
Neji Hyuga certainly didn't.
Neji clenched his fists, watching Hiashi's figure disappear down the hall.
"The Main House… Father…"
He let out a slow, quiet breath—then turned and walked away from the compound, headed in the direction Naruto had gone earlier.
As for why he didn't go straight to Chizumi?
Somewhere deep inside, there was a fear he couldn't quite name.
And that fear steered him away.
By the time Yamanaka Ryoshin finished dropping Naruto off and escorting Sasuke back home, the sun had already set.
Sasuke watched the Anbu disappear in a blink. A flicker of admiration showed in his eyes—but only for a second.
Because he knew.
One day, he'd surpass them.
He wouldn't just match them—he'd surpass even Uchiha Itachi.
"That idiot Naruto was right… Carrying out justice really does earn the blessing of Absolute Justice."
He whispered to himself, still stunned by what happened.
He remembered it clearly—the moment he plunged the kunai into that Hyuga punk's back.
As life left the guy's body, something surged into Sasuke—raw, overwhelming power. It wasn't his… but in an instant, it became his.
His chakra swelled dramatically.
More than a month of training—just from executing one criminal.
The realization shook him.
So this… is what Absolute Justice truly is?
By the time he snapped out of his thoughts, he was already standing at his front door.
He reached for the handle—then froze, glancing down.
His hands were still bloody.
He hadn't even had a chance to clean up before his mother's voice rang out:
"Sasuke? Why are you home so late? Did you go see Chizumi-sensei? Wait—why is there so much blood on you?! Are you hurt?!"
…
Later that evening, at the dinner table…
Freshly cleaned and changed, Sasuke sat kneeling stiffly at the table.
On his left, his mother Mikoto watched him with concern.
On his right, his father Fugaku stared with stern, silent judgment.
The pressure was suffocating.
Sasuke thought it over. There was no point lying. His parents would find out anyway.
So he told them everything—well, almost everything.
He left out the "gift" from Absolute Justice.
Mikoto hadn't even reacted yet when Fugaku stood up sharply.
"Sasuke… you killed someone in the village?!"
He looked at his son like he didn't recognize him.
"A Hyuga?!"
"…Yeah."
Sasuke's head dropped lower. Even now, his father's stern presence was hard to defy.
"And the Hokage was there? You did it with Naruto?"
"…Yes."
Fugaku closed his eyes and let out a long, exhausted sigh.
"Great. Now even my own son is ruining our chances with the village leadership…"
He was about to explode—when Mikoto spoke up:
"Fugaku, you should've expected this the moment Sasuke chose to follow Chizumi's path. You understand Itachi. Why can't you understand Sasuke?"
She stood up for her son, voice steady.
"You always said you were proud of Itachi. Even when you feared what he might become—you were still proud. Because of his strength. His vision."
"Well, Sasuke has his own version of that. Maybe it's not as grand as Itachi's, but it's still his. He chose to walk this path for a reason."
"As his father… shouldn't you be proud of him too?"
"Besides, he didn't do anything wrong. The Hokage was there. If Sasuke had gone too far, he wouldn't have been allowed to come home."
Her words made Sasuke lift his head, just a little.
Fugaku frowned. "You're too soft on him, Mikoto."
"He's not like Itachi. Itachi did what he did for Konoha. Sasuke's doing it for Chizumi."
Mikoto didn't flinch.
"Chizumi is doing it for the world."
"And Sasuke… is following that vision. He's aiming for peace—not just for Konoha, but for the entire shinobi world."
"That kind of conviction—isn't it worthy of pride too?"
She paused, then added coldly:
"Besides, if I'm guilty of spoiling Sasuke, then you're just as guilty of spoiling Itachi."
Fugaku's expression tightened.
He felt like Mikoto was always taking Chizumi's side.
And Sasuke noticed.
For the first time, he realized… his parents might actually be fighting.
…
"This should be the place…" Neji stood in front of a small, worn-down house.
He had lost Naruto halfway through the chase, but kept asking people for directions and somehow stumbled here. It didn't look like much—but that matched what he'd heard about Naruto's situation.
And yet, as he stared at the door, a strange question crept into his mind:
"Why… did I even come?"
He'd left the Hyuga compound out of disgust—disgust at how the clan was being led by the weak and spineless Main House.
And anger. A whole lot of anger.
But after what Naruto and Sasuke had said earlier that evening, something inside him had shifted.
"I remember now…"
Neji muttered to himself as he stared at the humble home in front of him.
"It's their ninja way. Something about it… resonates with me. A lot of what they said… I've thought about it too. And some of it—I never thought of, but it made sense."
"No—'resonates' is just a safe word."
"Truth is… I admire it."
Neji let himself admit it.
And just like that, the confused haze on his face cleared.
What he didn't realize was that nearby, in the shadows, Yamanaka Ryoshin—still assigned to keep an eye on Naruto—had been watching him. At first, Neji looked like a threat. A possible attacker.
But hearing what he just said? Ryoshin paused.
No need to interfere.
Neji took a deep breath, then stepped up and pressed the doorbell.
Ding—dong.
The bell gave a weak, metallic wheeze. It was ancient.
Inside:
"Wait a sec!" Naruto's voice echoed from behind the door.
Crash!
There was the sound of furniture falling over, someone tripping, followed by more crashing.
Click.
The door finally opened.
"…Huh?"
Naruto stared at the visitor, blinking. He'd mentally prepared for about ten different people—Iruka, the Hokage, Chizumi-sensei, Sasuke, Anbu surveillance…
But definitely not Hyuga Neji.
"You're…?"
Then he saw the eyes—Byakugan.
Naruto's body instinctively stiffened.
Even with soreness still radiating through him, he stepped back half a pace and raised his guard.
"Hey—you're from the Hyuga clan, right? You're not here for revenge, are you?"
"No."
Neji's tone was calm but unreadable.
"That guy you killed… he got what he deserved. He was reckless, ignorant, and unworthy of the strength he held. That was his fate."
"A caged bird… at least now, he's free."
Naruto: "…What?"
The beginning made sense, but that ending? What kind of poetic nonsense was this?
"Uh… you wanna come in?"
"No need."
Neji stared Naruto straight in the eye.
"Tell me—how do you judge if someone's truly evil? How do you decide if someone's actions are unforgivable?"
"Like… say, branding someone with a painful, binding curse mark—just because of their birth. Isn't that the kind of act that should be punished?"
Naruto: "What??"
It took him a second to process all that.
He scratched his head, frowning.
"…Well… if someone hurts innocent people on purpose—yeah, they're a bad person. If they commit a bad act out of malice, that's evil. Doesn't matter if it's direct or not. It's the intent that counts."
"And yeah, curse marks sound awful. If they're actually harming people—especially family—then yeah, the person who made them probably isn't a good guy."
Naruto paused, seeing Neji's expression hadn't softened at all.
He added quickly:
"But that's assuming you're telling me the whole story. You're not leaving stuff out, right?"
"Honestly, best if you run this by Chizumi-sensei. He's got this crazy ability—he can literally see the evil in someone's past and even their future."
Neji blinked. "…Chizumi-sensei?"
Naruto grinned.
"The one and only Uchiha Chizumi! Even the Hokage can't out-argue him most of the time."
"He's your teacher?"
Naruto nodded proudly.
"Yeah. On the path of justice."
"…Justice."
Neji let the word roll around in his head. He took a deep breath and exhaled.
"I think I get it now."
He turned to leave.
Before walking away, he glanced back one last time.
"Don't overthink why I came. I just wanted to understand him—the one you call teacher."
Naruto blinked. "…Okay?"
He watched Neji walk off into the night, muttering:
"Jeez, why does everyone act like they're Sasuke lately? No 'thank you,' no manners…"
…
Hokage's Office.
"Hiruzen, I heard everything!"
Koharu barged into the room, her face like thunder.
"The Nine-Tails' jinchūriki killed someone. In the village. And not just anyone—a Hyuga!"
"This is exactly why Absolute Justice is dangerous. Chizumi's influence is corrupting even Naruto! Can you guarantee this won't spiral out of control?"
Her tone turned sharper, accusatory.
"And what about Fugaku's son? He didn't just stand by—he joined in. I wouldn't be surprised if he encouraged Naruto to do it!"
"At this point, I'm starting to doubt if Fugaku's really on our side anymore. How else do you explain raising a kid like that?"
"What if Setsuna's death was all staged—just to make us drop our guard? What if they're planning a coup… led by Chizumi?!"
Hiruzen pinched the bridge of his nose as Koharu's theory spiraled into full conspiracy.
"Koharu," he said tiredly, "that's enough. The village is already unstable. We don't need more chaos driven by guesswork."
He let out a deep sigh.
"Even I didn't expect Naruto's justice to go this far."
He paused.
"…Didn't I assign Kakashi to keep an eye on him?"
Homura, who had been silent until now, finally spoke.
"You did—but you also reassigned Kakashi to monitor the Uchiha while you were out of the village."
"That brief gap might've been enough. Naruto's mindset could've shifted in that time. With no one around to intervene…"
Hiruzen: "…"
The blame had come full circle—right back to him.
"Still," Homura continued, "maybe we can't stop Naruto from believing in Absolute Justice… but we can redirect his focus."
"He still wants to be Hokage, right?"
Hiruzen nodded, some pride creeping into his voice.
"That dream has always been there. I planted it myself."
"Then lean into it," Homura said. "Start grooming him now. Make him a real candidate for the Fifth Hokage."
"It won't erase Chizumi's influence completely… but it might dilute it. Keep him busy. Keep him focused elsewhere."
Hiruzen considered it. "…Koharu?"
She folded her arms.
"His father was the Fourth. Making him the Fifth isn't unthinkable. But if we go down that road, he has to abandon Absolute Justice."
"Otherwise, Konoha will be devoured by it."
It wasn't approval—but it wasn't a hard no either.
Hiruzen rubbed his temples.
"…Let's give it a try."
Still, a quiet doubt gnawed at him.
"Am I doing the same thing Chizumi is? Forcing growth before it's ready?"
…
Late Night – Uchiha District
Uchiha Izumi was deep asleep when—
Tap, tap.
The sudden sound jolted her awake. Instinct kicked in.
Without hesitation, her hand reached for the ninjato by her bed, and her Sharingan snapped open—three tomoe swirling instantly.
Her eyes scanned the direction of the noise—and froze.
"…Jujiro?"
Outside the window, perched casually on the ledge, was the oversized ninja cat, gently tapping the glass with a paw.
Jujiro, clearly annoyed, narrowed his eyes.
"Tch. It's not just 'Jujiro,' kid. Call me Jujiro-senpai, got it? Show some respect for your seniors, newbie."
Izumi quickly slid the window open.
Before she could even ask what was going on, the massive cat got straight to the point:
"Chizumi-sama wants you. His exact words: 'It's time to carry out justice.'"
The moment the word "justice" was spoken, any trace of sleep vanished from Izumi's mind.
"Understood."
No hesitation.
She didn't even bother changing out of her sleepwear—just threw on her Konoha Police flak jacket and shin guards over it. Slapped her cheeks a couple times to wake herself up, then launched straight out the window.
As she landed, Jujiro smoothly leapt onto her shoulder.
"We've got one more person to grab," he added casually.
Izumi raised an eyebrow mid-run. "Who?"
"Mitarashi Anko."
…
Meanwhile – Anko's Apartment Balcony
Mitarashi Anko stood in the moonlight, arms crossed, staring at the quiet Konoha night.
She hadn't slept at all.
Too much had happened in one day—and all of it, somehow, had Chizumi's name stamped all over it.
And her.
She wasn't just watching from the sidelines anymore. She was in it now.
"Is Konoha… really hiding that much darkness?" she whispered.
"If not, then what exactly is Chizumi seeing?"
She couldn't imagine that the village she'd grown up in—fought for—was teeming with such evil. But Chizumi saw it. Saw things no one else did.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a sudden shift in chakra.
Her body tensed.
"Who's there?!"
She turned toward a rooftop across from her. A slim figure stood under the moonlight—silent, poised.
Izumi.
"Chizumi-senpai's found new targets," Izumi called calmly.
"He said to bring you too."
Anko squinted.
This was the girl from the Uchiha District—the quiet one. Pretty, deadly, and way too mature for her age.
Anko remembered how sharp she'd looked when they fought side-by-side earlier. There was something about her… intimidating, maybe even dangerous.
Three-tomoe Sharingan, too.
If Orochimaru were still around, Anko thought darkly, Izumi would've been on his test slab in a heartbeat…
She shook that thought off.
The old scars still whispered sometimes.
After steadying her thoughts, Anko nodded.
"Got it. Who's the target?"
"No idea," Izumi said bluntly.
…
Jujiro, Izumi, and Anko arrived at the meeting spot where Chizumi stood waiting beneath a flickering streetlamp.
Before they could even speak, he answered the question they hadn't asked yet.
"Utatane Clan."
Izumi blinked.
"You mean… that's where the target is?"
Chizumi nodded.
Anko's eyes widened.
"Wait. The Utatane Clan? That's where Advisor Koharu is from."
She felt her stomach twist a little.
First the Uchiha.
Then the Hyuga.
Now the Utatane?
Were they planning to go clan by clan through every pillar of Konoha?
Before she could voice the thought, Jujiro yawned dramatically while licking his paw.
"Why so surprised? The Utatane Clan's just the first stop tonight."
Chizumi spoke calmly:
"Second stop: the Mitokado Clan. Third: the Sarutobi Clan."
"I'll step in only if you two encounter someone above your strength."
Anko: "…What?!"
Izumi: "…Seriously?!"
They were hitting all three of Konoha's most politically powerful clans in one night.
It wasn't just bold.
It was suicidal.
Unless…
Unless Chizumi knew they were all harboring rot.
Anko took a shaky breath.
She wasn't sure whether to feel fear… or exhilaration.
"So you want Izumi and me to execute the criminals in these clans?" she asked, half-daring him to say no.
Chizumi's gaze was steady, unwavering.
"Yes."
"Back at the Hyuga compound, I saw the hesitation in both of you. The way you looked at the Hokage. At the political elite. You still see them with a filter—as if they're off-limits."
"That filter needs to go."
"If you can't punish the powerful, how will you ever bring justice to the ones who abuse that power?"
He turned his gaze squarely on Anko.
"This is your trial. Especially you, Anko."
"You've lived in their shadow the longest. You were shaped by their lies. It's time to cut free."
~~~
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