Meanwhile, Uchiha Setsuna and the other elders of the radical faction learned about the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki's arrival from their younger ninja.
"The Jinchūriki has been taken to the Police Force headquarters again?"
Setsuna Uchiha frowned. While he was just as eager to get his hands on the Jinchūriki's power, he didn't act on it this time. "What is that brat, Uchiha Akainu, trying to do?"
The last time he tried to take the Jinchūriki, Akainu had stopped him. He'd been so aggressive and unyielding that Setsuna, an elder of the clan, had completely lost face. It was as if Akainu would have killed him without a second thought if he had actually tried to touch the Jinchūriki.
Remembering the incident made Setsuna clench his jaw in anger. It was because of that confrontation that his authority within the clan had been seriously undermined. Some of the younger, more radical ninja no longer even gave him the respect a clan elder deserved!
After a moment of calm, Setsuna tried to figure out Akainu's motive.
"Is he trying to use the Jinchūriki to escalate the conflict between the village and the Uchiha, forcing the clan to go against the elders and push Fugaku to carry out the coup? Then, with the power of the Nine-Tails, he'll eliminate the top shinobi of the Leaf, allowing the Uchiha to take control of the entire village?!"
When Setsuna had that thought... he fell silent. He couldn't figure out what Uchiha Akainu was really thinking. The plan he'd just imagined was one he'd been hoping to execute himself.
Just then, another Uchiha ninja rushed in to tell Setsuna something, and he looked desperate.
"Elder Setsuna!" the ninja shouted. "The Third Hokage and Senior Council member Koharu Utatane, along with a huge number of Anbu ninja, have just invaded our compound!"
"It looks like they brought most of the Anbu with them. There are even ninja with Root masks! It's possible the Root organization has been temporarily handed over to Koharu!"
Setsuna's expression tightened. His first thought was that the clan's coup had been exposed and the Hokage was making the first move, planning to use brute force to subdue the Uchiha. Right now, the clan's strongest fighters were Uchiha Akainu, Uchiha Fugaku, and Uchiha Itachi.
Akainu was a lone wolf who didn't care about the conflict between the village and the clan. Fugaku was a clan leader whose loyalty was divided, and Itachi was a little monster who would one day slaughter his entire clan!
In this situation, if the Third Hokage decided to use his full power to suppress the Uchiha, they might not be able to fight back at all!
"Damn it..."
"Is it going to end before it even begins?"
Setsuna was furious. With a dark look, he gave the order, "Gather all the radical Uchiha! I want to see what the Third Hokage plans to do to us! Humph! When it comes to seniority, I'm his elder!"
Within moments, a number of radical Uchiha ninja gathered. But because it was so rushed and many ninja were still on duty, only twenty or thirty showed up. With a stern face, Setsuna led his small group of Uchiha elites toward Hiruzen's location.
"The Uchiha clan..."
While Koharu Utatane didn't have as extreme a view of the clan as Danzo Shimura, she still didn't like this unpredictable group of ninja. Too many Uchiha were mentally unstable. The way they awakened their Sharingan pretty much guaranteed that there were few normal people in the clan. There was always some troublesome character with an extreme ideology, like Madara Uchiha, who turned on the First Hokage.
And now... Uchiha Akainu, who brought the Jinchūriki into the Uchiha compound. In Koharu's eyes, these people were not normal. They were mentally ill patients who had been seduced by the power of the Sharingan. Oh, and of course, Itachi Uchiha, who was rumored to one day wipe out the entire clan, was not a normal person in her eyes either.
However, since Itachi was on Konoha's side, Koharu didn't hold too much prejudice against him. She just thought the boy had too much "capacity." Luckily, Itachi was an Uchiha, not a member of the Utatane family, so he would only bring ruin to his own clan.
Noticing the many watchful and hostile eyes on her, Koharu's face hardened. She said to Hiruzen, "Hiruzen, the radical, hawkish faction of the Uchiha is getting out of hand. Are you really going to keep tolerating them? Shouldn't we be making preparations?"
Just as Hiruzen was about to speak, a large group of Uchiha ninja appeared. The leader was Setsuna Uchiha, along with several other radical elders! The Anbu behind Hiruzen became alert. Both groups stopped about ten meters apart.
"Lord Hokage."
Setsuna leaned on his cane, his face, which was even more wrinkled than Hiruzen's, showing clear displeasure. "If you wanted to visit our compound, you could have just sent someone to let us know. There's no need to bring so many people."
Setsuna's gaze was grim. "If you were here to see me, Lord Hokage, then I am standing before you now. Whatever issues you have, we can deal with them here. No matter what you plan to do, the Uchiha will not back down as long as I live!" He conveniently ignored all the times the Uchiha had backed down in the past, thanks to their spineless leader, Fugaku!
Hiruzen frowned. "I'm not here for you. Akainu... and Naruto. Where are they?!"
Setsuna was speechless. He didn't know if Hiruzen meant to, but he felt like he had just heard a hidden message: "You're not important enough for me to bring this many Anbu for you alone." And who was important enough? Setsuna had his answer—Uchiha Akainu! Only that extreme and eccentric brat would be taken so seriously by the Third Hokage.
In comparison, was Setsuna Uchiha nothing more than a bug in the eyes of Konoha's leaders?
Setsuna's already dark expression became even more intense.
"Lord Hokage!"
Suddenly, a voice, filled with both urgency and relief, cut through the tension. It was Ryonshin Yamanaka, an Anbu ninja who had been blocked by the Uchiha when he first entered the compound. He rushed to Hiruzen's side and said with a guilty look, "Naruto Uzumaki was taken into the Police Force building by Uchiha Akainu."
Hiruzen saw the young man's guilt. He tried to reassure him. "Akainu is an unpredictable factor. You were right to not impulsively clash with him."
Setsuna noticed the Hokage was completely ignoring him. Damn it... he thought. Is my threat to the Konoha elders really less than Uchiha Akainu's?!
However, in a strange way, that wasn't a total loss for him. To Setsuna, Uchiha Akainu was not someone he could win over and was a threat to his very life. A confrontation between Konoha's leadership and Uchiha Akainu might be a good thing for him.
But being so blatantly ignored in front of his clansmen made Setsuna's face flush with anger. As he watched Hiruzen and Koharu, along with the Anbu, turn and walk toward the Police Force building, Setsuna and his group were left standing awkwardly.
"Elder Setsuna, they're going to deal with Uchiha Akainu. Shouldn't we stop them?" a younger, more radical Uchiha asked eagerly.
"Hmph! You want to help an outcast who works against us at every turn?!" Setsuna snapped, his face dark. "Don't forget how Uchiha Akainu treated us when we tried to get our hands on the Jinchūriki! You want to help him, but he will never see you as a comrade. In his eyes, if you do wrong, you deserve to die, and he will turn his blade on his own clansmen."
"He's no different from that animal, Itachi Uchiha!" Setsuna said, emphasizing his words in front of the younger, radical Uchiha. But when he saw the hesitation on their faces, his expression grew even darker. He realized that some of his clansmen were starting to admire Uchiha Akainu's actions. They might even be starting to support Akainu's "absolute justice," but they weren't showing it because of his presence.
Setsuna clenched his wooden cane, his face twisted with rage.
Uchiha Akainu... you really need to die!
"The Uchiha were forced into this remote compound because of your weakness as the clan leader."
"In the face of the village's pressure, your solution was to back down at every step. When the village elders applied pressure, you acted like a faithful dog. And when the clan complained, you lashed out, demanding to know why they were acting this way, why they were ignoring your efforts, and why they were ruining your plan..."
Uchiha Akainu's expression was blank. "You're the head of the Uchiha clan, and I have no interest in your decisions. I don't care about the balance between the village and the Uchiha. I won't interfere with you, so don't interfere with me."
"Otherwise... I'll have to consider you a roadblock to absolute justice. And anyone who stands in its way will be an enemy of justice."
Fugaku's eyes narrowed, and his facial muscles tightened. For a moment, he saw a flash of killing intent in Akainu's eyes. It was the first time Fugaku had heard Akainu's true opinion of him.
Weak... a roadblock... Is that what Akainu really thought? So his ideas were no different from the radical Uchiha? Fugaku had always thought Akainu was a special kind of Uchiha, someone different from the radicals. He must have seen Akainu through rose-tinted glasses because of his actions.
Fugaku's face became calm. He thought he finally saw Uchiha Akainu for who he truly was.
"Don't assume that everyone with the Uchiha name has to follow the orders of a coward like you, Fugaku. My absolute justice isn't limited to the Uchiha clan, let alone a small village like the Leaf. Don't look at justice with the eyes of a frog in a well."
"Besides..."
Akainu's tone shifted, and he looked at Naruto. The boy, caught in the middle of their conflict, looked completely lost. And it seemed he was the root of the problem!
"Naruto Uzumaki, do you want to bring justice to the victims?" This was a question Akainu suddenly directed at Naruto.
Naruto was surprised to be brought into the conversation. He remembered what this terrifying man had said before: Remember your conviction. That conviction is called justice! If there was no justice, would that family of four have died for nothing? Would the murderer get away with it? Is that what he wanted?
The answer came to Naruto in less than a second—he didn't want the murderer to get away!
Naruto nodded heavily. "Yes!!!"
Akainu glanced at Fugaku, and the tension in the air skyrocketed. Naruto's forehead broke out in a cold sweat. Then, Akainu asked, "Are you going to stop someone from following justice?"
Just then, a black ninja cat rushed in. "Lord Akainu! Lord Jiro! The Third Hokage is here!"
As soon as he finished, Hiruzen entered the morgue, followed by Koharu and a large group of Anbu. While the morgue was not small, it became cramped with all the bodies and people, leaving little room to stand.
"Grandpa Hokage!" Naruto shouted with joy. But just as he was about to say more, he remembered something. The look of relief on his face vanished.
Naruto recalled that the big, fat orange cat had said that Grandpa Hokage had been protecting someone who deliberately spread the rumor that he was the demon fox. Grandpa Hokage knew why the villagers hated him, but he had kept it a secret.
"Naruto Uzumaki, come over here!" Koharu said to Naruto before Hiruzen could speak.
Naruto was surprised and looked at the old woman he didn't recognize.
Hiruzen managed a kind smile. "Naruto, come here. Don't be afraid, Grandpa Hokage is here."
Hiruzen thought Naruto was scared because he instinctively believed Naruto had been abducted by Akainu, just like the last time. But to Hiruzen's surprise, Naruto, who usually clung to him, didn't move. The boy's expression was conflicted. This made Hiruzen frown, wondering what had happened to Naruto in such a short time.
"Lord Hokage."
"Lady Koharu."
Fugaku took a deep breath, trying to calm his frantic thoughts before greeting the two village elders. Worried that the Hokage would misunderstand, he quickly explained, "Naruto Uzumaki being brought to the Police Force was a misunderstanding. Please don't worry, Lord Hokage. I will have Naruto returned."
"A misunderstanding?"
Koharu narrowed her eyes. "The same thing has happened twice in less than a month. Are you sure it's a misunderstanding, Fugaku?"
Fugaku fell silent. He had no idea Akainu had brought Naruto here again! And the idea of Akainu trying to indoctrinate Naruto with his "justice" philosophy sent a shiver down his spine. If the Hokage found out, the Uchiha clan could jump into the Konoha River and still not wash away the suspicion!
Koharu's questioning gaze made Fugaku realize that this "misunderstanding" would be very difficult to clear up. Fugaku looked at Uchiha Akainu, as if silently saying, See? I'm the one who has to deal with the trouble you cause. If it weren't for me, the Uchiha would have been dismantled by the village before Itachi could even act.
But he saw that Akainu wasn't even looking at him. Fugaku's eye twitched in frustration.
"Naruto Uzumaki, what are you doing?" Koharu said, noticing that Naruto still hadn't moved. She cautiously glanced at Akainu before frowning at Naruto.
Naruto noticed that everyone's eyes were on him, a seven-year-old child. It was even more attention than he got when he pulled pranks.
"I..."
Naruto mustered his courage and faced Hiruzen. "Grandpa Hokage, I don't want to go back right now!"
The forced smile on Hiruzen's face froze. A cold sweat broke out on Fugaku's palms. Koharu's eyes widened in disbelief. The Anbu looked on, shocked.
Naruto took a deep breath and said loudly, "Grandpa Hokage, I don't understand why so many people in the Leaf Village have so much hatred for their own villagers! I don't understand what kind of twisted and sick evil could turn a person into a ruthless murderer who kills entire families!"
"I don't want to see those murderers get away with it! I don't want to see those innocent victims die with unfulfilled regrets! This isn't the Leaf Village I know, and this isn't the shinobi world I know!"
"I... want to find out who committed these terrible crimes in the village! I want them to pay!"
"That's... what I want to do..."
The more Naruto spoke, the clearer his thoughts became. He was stuttering because he was inarticulate, but he managed to get his point across. Then, the words Uchiha Akainu had said to him flashed in his mind. Naruto immediately straightened his thoughts. The courage in his heart transformed into action, and the look on his face became more serious.
"Grandpa Hokage, this is my conviction! This is my justice!" Naruto said firmly.
"???" Hiruzen's eyes widened in shock. Without even thinking, he turned his head and looked at Uchiha Akainu with a look of utter disbelief.
Support me by leaving a comment, voting, and visiting myPatr-eon at belamy20
Check out another story in my profile original works