Chapter 98: Naruto Uzumaki No Longer 'Forgives' Villains!
Akainu's strike was swift, too fast for Hiruzen to stop. The moment the Hokage's frantic "wait!" left his lips, he saw a spray of crimson blood. The arterial spray shot high and far, and a few drops even splattered on Hiruzen's face. In full view of everyone, a small head slowly rolled across the ground, its frozen expression still wide with terror.
[Ding! You have successfully killed a "red name" villain! Your chakra has received a small boost! Congratulations, you have acquired: 'Clone Jutsu' Experience Scroll ×5!]
A headless body toppled sideways, the severed neck facing exactly where Naruto was standing. The gushing blood soaked Naruto's shoes a deep red. The hot, visceral touch of it made him jump back in shock. He stared in disbelief at the corpse.
Naruto couldn't believe it. He had only said "serves him right" out of a moral instinct, and that terrifying man had killed someone without a moment's hesitation! This, this, this... he actually killed him!
Naruto's eyes trembled. He had seen corpses before, and he had even seen Akainu kill a Root ninja, but this time was different. This time, it felt like the terrifying man had acted because of him, Naruto Uzumaki. If he hadn't said that one word, "serves him right," would the man have used such a bloody method to punish the murderer?
A thousand thoughts swirled in Naruto's mind, making him feel uneasy.
"What are you afraid of, Naruto Uzumaki?" a sudden, cold question made Naruto flinch. He realized his view was blocked, and when he looked up, he was shocked to see the terrifying man standing right in front of him! He hadn't even noticed him move! As Naruto scrambled for an explanation, another series of questions followed.
"Are you afraid of evil? Or are you afraid of justice? Or do you believe that justice should not punish evil in this way?"
Naruto swallowed hard. He felt an immense pressure, even greater than when Iruka-sensei called him to the front of the class to answer a question. His palms were already slick with cold sweat. Naruto himself didn't know why he was so nervous.
"I... I just didn't expect that your absolute justice would be... so absolute..." he answered, his voice shaking.
Akainu stared at the reincarnation of Asura's chakra and calmly countered, "If you have a better solution than 'a life for a life' to bring peace to the innocent victims, then tell me what it is."
Naruto opened his mouth, but no words came out. He was once again picturing the gruesome scene of the family of four. They must have felt such fear and despair in their final moments. They were a happy family one moment, and the next, they were four unrecognizable corpses. And the murderer, just moments ago, had shown no remorse, his actions completely devoid of any guilt. He had only been afraid because he was caught, not because he regretted the evil he had committed.
Was there really a better solution than "a life for a life"? Naruto realized he could only come up with two options: forgive him, or kill him.
"We did not experience the pain and despair of the victims before they died. We have no right to forgive any villain on their behalf," Akainu's voice rang out again, as if he could read Naruto's thoughts. "To forgive the villains of the shinobi world is something absolute justice will never do. To do so would mean that absolute justice is compromising with evil."
"Naruto Uzumaki, cast the word 'forgive' from your heart." Akainu's sharp gaze made sure Naruto didn't miss a single word. "Justice has the right to avenge the victims, but not to forgive the perpetrators on their behalf—you must remember this forever. You must engrave it in the deepest part of your memory. If you forgive evil on behalf of the victims, then you yourself are evil! Because you are aiding and abetting evil!"
Each firm, decisive word landed heavily on Naruto's young heart. This kind of "black and white" extreme logic made both Hiruzen and Fugaku frown, but it was so undeniably true that they couldn't find a way to argue against it.
However, for a seven-year-old boy, this "black and white" logic was perfect. It was simple enough for him to understand.
"Forgiving a villain on behalf of the victim... means you yourself are evil..."
Naruto's eyes widened, and a wave of intense shame washed over him. The thought of "forgiving" had indeed crossed his mind. Was he not even supposed to have that thought? Did having that thought make him no different from a murderer?
The shame and guilt made Naruto vow to remember every word this terrifying man said. After all, even Grandpa Hokage hadn't objected, so they must be true, right? With a thousand thoughts racing through his head, Naruto straightened up and quickly said, "I... I understand!"
Hiruzen's eyes widened. This is a huge problem! Naruto! You must not understand!
Just as Hiruzen was about to speak, Akainu spoke again. "Naruto Uzumaki, you had better remember what you just said. Never forgive evil, and never allow yourself to become a person you're ashamed of."
"I... I will! I'll remember, I promise! Even if I'm not a good student, don't underestimate me when it comes to things like this!" A look of serious determination finally appeared on Naruto's dirty face. He was revealing his true character, his "capacity."
"Um..."
Naruto, still filled with courage, didn't back down. He looked up, meeting Akainu's eyes. His blue eyes were filled with a look of desperate hope as he spoke the thoughts in his heart.
"I don't know why... Maybe it's because I don't want the village to become unrecognizable to me, or maybe it's because I want to do something for the village, or maybe it's because I don't want the evil of the shinobi world to affect Konoha."
"I don't want to see another person like Ryoji Utatane in the village, and I don't want to see more innocent people be victims of the evil of the shinobi world..."
"Persecuted," Izumi said, helping Naruto find the right word.
"Yeah!" Naruto quickly continued. "So, I don't want to use pranks to get everyone's attention anymore, because that's just a bother to them! If I'm bothering them, doesn't that make me evil, too?"
He bowed deeply to Akainu, his head lowered as he yelled, "Please teach me about true justice! I want to earn the village's approval through justice! I want to use justice to make sure there's no more evil in the Leaf, and no more killers like him!"
"After all... I told Grandpa Hokage that I want to be the Hokage, but pranks only cause trouble for people. Maybe justice is what will make people accept me, but I'm not learning this just to become Hokage!"
"Anyway, even though I can't quite remember your name yet, please, please teach me! I can even pay for it!"
"Even if I have to go through a lot of pain and hardship, I'm ready for it!" The seven-year-old Naruto shouted at the top of his lungs, his voice hoarse by the end.
---
"Meow, that kid has a lot of spirit!" Jiro the cat exclaimed. He then teased Izumi, "He's a lot more accepting of Lord Akainu's absolute justice than you were when you first joined! I remember it took you a few days to fully accept it."
Izumi's beautiful face flushed in embarrassment.
Jiro rubbed his fluffy chin and muttered, "Speaking of which, are younger kids more accepting of Lord Akainu's absolute justice? If that's the case, then maybe we can..."
Jiro glanced discreetly at Hiruzen, who was a few meters away. He didn't continue his thought, knowing that the idea forming in his head would likely cause the Third Hokage to have a meltdown.
"Naruto..." Hiruzen, unaware of what the ninja cat was thinking, found himself speechless. He could see what was going through Naruto's mind: a desire to be accepted by the village, indignation at the evil he had just witnessed, shame at his fleeting thought of "forgiveness," guilt for all the pranks he had pulled, and admiration for Akainu's "justice." All these emotions combined had made him shout out his declaration. It had completely sealed him in Akainu's web of justice.
If he, Hiruzen, were to counter Naruto now, telling him not to go down the path he had chosen, it would only fuel the boy's defiance. It would also make the unstable Nine-Tails power inside Naruto, which had almost burst out today, even more unpredictable.
Hiruzen realized he had to remain silent! Saying another word would only make things worse. The consequences of arriving just a few minutes too late were something Hiruzen was finding hard to accept. Was Akainu's justice really that appealing? Akainu's justice was completely unrealistic, too extreme and idealistic for any normal person to follow. So why? Hiruzen couldn't understand.
Fugaku, whose presence was almost forgotten, had a look of worry in his eyes. In the end, the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki was influenced by Akainu's extreme sense of justice. Would this make the Hokage even more suspicious of the Uchiha clan? No... it shouldn't, right? After all, the Hokage seemed to have approved of my actions in the morgue...
Akainu just watched the bowing Naruto. The atmosphere became strangely silent, broken only by the faint sound of blood gurgling from the headless body.
"After you've finished cleaning the streets every day, you can come find me," Akainu said to Naruto.
"!!!" A look of pure joy spread across Naruto's face. He quickly straightened up and bowed even deeper this time.
"Naruto Uzumaki! Please take care of me!" he said excitedly.
---
As everyone silently watched this unfold, Koharu, who had left earlier, returned to the Uchiha compound with a group of Root ninja. Her domineering attitude, completely disregarding the Uchiha's opinions, earned her furious glares from the clan. Some of the more impulsive ninja even reached for the hilts of their swords.
Fugaku's heart tightened. He quickly stepped in front of his clansmen and asked Koharu, "Lady Koharu, why have you returned to the Uchiha compound?"
"Business!" Koharu replied coldly. She immediately turned to Hiruzen and asked, "Hiruzen, I heard your Anbu brought a child from the Utatane clan to the Uchiha compound? What's going on? Where is he?"
Koharu had felt a sense of foreboding when she heard one of her clansmen had been taken away by the Anbu. She also wanted to check on Naruto and see what kind of game Akainu was playing.
Hiruzen was silent.
The silence from her old friend made Koharu's unease grow. She was about to say something else when she noticed a pool of scarlet blood on the ground and a headless body. Her heart skipped a beat. She immediately looked at Akainu, whose sword was still drawn and conspicuously stained with blood.
He killed someone?! That headless body must be his handiwork.
Figures... she thought. There are no normal people in the Uchiha clan. Even Akainu, who talks so much about absolute justice, is just a deranged psycho who can kill someone in broad daylight without a second thought.
Wait!
Koharu suddenly noticed the body was not that of an adult. Her eyes widened, and a thought entered her mind. "Hiruzen, this body..."
"Koharu, your clansman made a mistake," Hiruzen said with a sigh, choosing his words carefully. "This child, Ryoji Utatane... he made a mistake that no one his age should have made. His jealousy twisted his mind, leading to an irreversible error."
He couldn't tell Naruto that Akainu's actions were wrong, because Naruto had just accepted Akainu's "justice." To say that Akainu's act of killing Ryoji was too extreme would be to negate Naruto's choice. After Naruto had come so close to losing control today, Hiruzen knew he had to be gentle with the boy. He absolutely couldn't provoke him any further, at least not today.
Koharu's eyes widened in shock.
---
Meanwhile, far from Konoha, Asuma Sarutobi was unaware of the new chaos Akainu had caused. After traveling for a day and a night without rest, he finally arrived at the capital of the Land of Fire. As one of the Twelve Guardian Shinobi, Asuma held a high rank and was easily granted an audience with the Feudal Lord.
"Asuma, I heard about your brother, and I'm very sorry for your loss," the lavishly dressed Feudal Lord said with a sigh. "If you're not in the right state of mind, you can take half a month off. You didn't have to rush back."
"Oh, by the way, did you happen to see Kyusuke on the road? The boy was so enthusiastic about this mission as an envoy for the first time. I even asked Nango to protect him. I hope he doesn't cause any trouble on the way..."
"You know how the boy is. He's been a handful since he was a child."
Asuma remained silent. From the Feudal Lord's chatter, it was clear that he had not yet received news of what happened in Konoha. By all accounts, the news shouldn't have been this slow. After all, the shinobi world had long-range communication devices. The only reason the Feudal Lord wouldn't have known was if the Third Hokage had deliberately held back the news, likely for some political balance, a reason Asuma found so repugnant. It was precisely because he couldn't stand the political atmosphere of Konoha that he rarely stayed in the village.
Sorry, old man... I may understand what you're doing, but I don't agree with it. Uchiha Akainu has become a threat to the Leaf... and you shouldn't let someone who threatens the village stay here.
With that thought, Asuma looked up, took a deep breath, and interrupted the Feudal Lord. "My Lord... my deepest condolences."
The Feudal Lord, mid-sentence, froze. Asuma's grave expression made him realize that something was terribly wrong. "Asuma, what do you mean, 'my condolences'?" The Feudal Lord's calm demeanor vanished. "Did something happen to Kyusuke?!"
"My Lord, Lord Kyusuke... died in the Leaf Village," Asuma said, dropping the bombshell. "He didn't die from illness or an accident. He was killed by a Konoha ninja named Uchiha Akainu."
"And... Nango also died. Only one of your retainers survived, but he was so traumatized that he can't even speak properly. He probably couldn't send word to you immediately."
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