The next day.
Sarutobi Hiruzen had changed into mourning clothes early. Today was the day his eldest son, Sarutobi Shinosuke, would be buried. Whether by fate or not, a fine drizzle was falling from the sky.
"Let's go to the Konoha Public Cemetery."
Sarutobi Hiruzen said with a heavy heart, then led the way, letting the rain fall on him.
Behind him followed Sarutobi Shinosuke's wife, Sarutobi Fuyuko, and their son, Sarutobi Konohamaru.
A number of members of the Sarutobi Clan also followed closely behind.
Besides them.
Only a few close friends of Sarutobi Shinosuke from his life remained.
The funeral for the Hokage's eldest son should have been attended by more people.
But...
Negative rumors about Sarutobi Shinosuke were spreading like wildfire in the village. Even though Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, intended to curb public opinion, he found it impossible to control.
The more the public opinion was suppressed, the more the villagers believed the rumors to be true.
This was almost a traditional skill of Konoha's unruly citizens.
In such circumstances, it was not appropriate to make the funeral too grand.
After all, in the eyes of many Konoha villagers – he was a "villain" who abused his power because his father was the Hokage of Konoha. If he were to have a grand funeral after his death... wouldn't that be too unfair to his victims?
Helplessly.
Considering the negative public opinion in the village, Sarutobi Hiruzen could only keep everything as simple as possible, inviting only some friends of Shinosuke from his life.
Before long.
Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others arrived at the Konoha Public Cemetery, where the Konoha Funeral Hall had already transported Sarutobi Shinosuke's coffin.
"Hokage-sama, may I see him one last time?"
Sarutobi Fuyuko held Konohamaru's small hand, tears welling up in her eyes.
"Yes." Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded heavily.
"Mom, why is Father lying here..." Three-year-old Konohamaru was confused.
His words were still a little slurred.
The tears in Sarutobi Fuyuko's eyes could no longer be held back. She said, weeping, "Konohamaru, your father is asleep. It's just that he's going to sleep for a very, very long time this time. When you grow up, you'll understand why he's sleeping for so long."
...
Not far away.
Several staff members from the Konoha Funeral Hall were whispering amongst themselves.
"Is that woman the Hokage-sama's daughter-in-law? She's really beautiful... Hey, Yamada, are you spacing out? I advise you not to get any funny ideas. She might be a ninja and could crush you with a single finger."
"Yamada? What's wrong with you these past couple of days? I call you, and you don't respond. You haven't actually fallen for the Hokage-sama's widow, have you?"
Yamada snapped out of his daze and quickly retorted, "Don't talk nonsense! If the Hokage-sama hears you, you'll get me in serious trouble."
He suppressed his uneasy thoughts and added, "It should be about time. Isn't it time to bury the coffin?"
His companions nodded in agreement. "Indeed."
However.
Just as the funeral hall staff were about to walk over, an unexpected commotion suddenly broke out.
They vaguely heard someone arguing.
"Hey! Uchiha Chisen! What are you doing here? You're not welcome here today!"
"The Konoha Military Police Force is enforcing the law. Unauthorized personnel are not allowed to interfere. Otherwise, you will be killed without mercy."
"You!!!"
"Uchiha Chisen? That name sounds familiar..." A funeral hall staff member muttered, stroking his short beard. Then, he noticed that Yamada next to him looked a bit strange and asked curiously, "Hey, Yamada, why is your face so pale!?"
"It's... it's nothing..." Yamada's lips were trembling slightly.
The smile he forced out was uglier than crying. "I just got rained on, maybe... maybe I caught a cold..."
Yamada's mind was screaming "Impossible!"
It couldn't possibly be that his actions from four years ago had been exposed!
Perhaps...
Perhaps it was just a coincidence.
After all, Konoha Village was this big. It was perfectly reasonable for that jinx from the Konoha Military Police Force to show up anywhere. It was also reasonable that his luck was bad today and he ran into him.
Moreover, he had handled everything so cleanly back then. For four consecutive years, no one from the Military Police Force had bothered him.
How could it possibly be exposed?!
Meanwhile.
Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others also noticed the commotion over there, and when they vaguely heard the name "Uchiha Chisen," the expression on Sarutobi Hiruzen's face visibly darkened a bit.
When he saw his daughter-in-law, who was kneeling beside the coffin, suddenly stand up in silence...
Sarutobi Hiruzen's heart skipped a beat.
He was afraid that Sarutobi Fuyuko, who was grieving the loss of her husband, would do something irrational.
He said, "I'll go take a look. Fuyuko, you stay here and accompany Shinosuke through this ceremony properly."
Sarutobi Hiruzen took a deep breath and, with two Anbu guards, quickly rushed in the direction of the commotion.
As expected.
He saw the person he least wanted to see during this period.
—Uchiha Chisen!
"Hokage-sama." Several Sarutobi Clan ninja who had been blocking Uchiha Chisen immediately made way upon seeing Sarutobi Hiruzen appear and greeted him respectfully.
Sarutobi Hiruzen walked forward slowly. He stood in front of Uchiha Chisen, less than two meters apart.
"Chisen..."
Sarutobi Hiruzen said with a complex expression, "You should know that you, who did such things, shouldn't be here. Your appearance will only provoke many people and cause unnecessary conflict."
"If you want to pay respects to Shinosuke..."
The drizzling rain made it impossible to see Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes. He paused and continued, "You can come tomorrow. Today... let's just forget it."
The moment Sarutobi Hiruzen saw Uchiha Chisen appear at Shinosuke's funeral, his anger had actually subsided a bit.
At least Uchiha Chisen still remembered their past master-disciple relationship.
At least, he was willing to come and see Shinosuke off on his final journey.
It seemed that Uchiha Chisen wasn't so extreme as to disown all ties, it was just that his [Absolute Justice] was too extreme.
Before, when Uchiha Chisen's "blade" hadn't fallen upon Sarutobi Hiruzen, Sarutobi Hiruzen thought that even if Uchiha Chisen was a double-edged sword, as long as he wielded it well, Uchiha Chisen would be an extremely outstanding elite ninja of Konoha.
However.
When this double-edged sword of Uchiha Chisen hurt Sarutobi Hiruzen.
He suddenly felt that Uchiha Chisen's [Absolute Justice] was so extreme that it made him very uncomfortable.
Yet.
Uchiha Chisen's reply surprised Sarutobi Hiruzen: "Third Hokage, I might come to pay respects to Teacher Shinosuke one day, but not today. I came here to execute justice."
Sarutobi Hiruzen's internal alarm bells suddenly rang, and the two Anbu guards following closely behind him narrowed their eyes.
The atmosphere at the scene immediately became delicate with Uchiha Chisen's words.
Execute... justice?!
What did that mean?
"Uchiha Izumi." At this moment, Uchiha Chisen said.
"Here!!!" The girl's loud shout almost made Sarutobi Hiruzen think Uchiha Chisen was about to break ties with Konoha.
Not until he saw Izumi walk out from behind Uchiha Chisen.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's old face darkened slightly, not understanding why this Uchiha girl suddenly shouted.
Uchiha Chisen said, "You explain."
"Yes! Senior Chisen!"
Izumi mustered her courage, suppressed the tension in her heart, and took the initiative to speak to the Hokage, "Hokage-sama, Senior Chisen has discovered an extremely heinous case of murder and dismemberment. Senior has already investigated many suspects yesterday and this morning. Now, only the last suspect has not been investigated—'Yamada Binjiro' from the Konoha Funeral Hall!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen frowned, "A dismemberment case?"
Izumi nodded, "The victims were a mother and daughter. After dismembering the bodies, the perpetrator threw the body parts into Konoha's sewer system. Although Senior Chisen could only find some bone fragments, he identified the victims through these fragments."
"We are continuously investigating suspects based on the clues, and now, only Yamada Binjiro remains."
Sarutobi Hiruzen remained silent for a long time.
He had to admit that he fully recognized Uchiha Chisen's case-solving abilities, a hundred percent.
However...
"Chisen," Sarutobi Hiruzen said in a deep voice, "Today is Shinosuke's burial day. Let him enjoy some final peace. If you need to apprehend someone, you can do so after the funeral."
Uchiha Chisen said expressionlessly, "Third Hokage, justice is already four years late, do you want it to be delayed any further?"
"Justice that is already late cannot continue to be late." His eyes met Sarutobi Hiruzen's directly. "Or, in the Third Hokage's eyes, does the post-mortem peace of a wicked person who has fallen into abyss hold more importance than the delayed justice for two innocent victims?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen clearly detected hostility from those eyes.
No...
It was not so much that he perceived it, but rather that Uchiha Chisen was revealing his hostility so nakedly and unreservedly!
Sarutobi Hiruzen's old face tightened, and he said forcefully, "Chisen, give me some face. We'll discuss whatever it is tomorrow."
Uchiha Chisen said, "If the Third Hokage's influence could turn back time and revive the dead, I would grant you that favor."
Sarutobi Hiruzen saw that Uchiha Chisen's right hand had already rested on the hilt of his ninja sword.
The Anbu ninja behind him also quickly gripped their respective sword hilts.
The already delicate atmosphere instantly became tense and confrontational.
"Chisen, I am the Hokage..."
Click—
Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyelid twitched because Uchiha Chisen's thumb had already pushed open the guard of his ninja sword. The inch of snow-silver blade that was revealed was particularly glaring in Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes.
This was simply a vicious dog that he, as Hokage, could not control!
Even Danzō wouldn't dare to be this forceful with him, Sarutobi Hiruzen!
Sarutobi Hiruzen's mood was extremely foul, and his expression visibly darkened. "Do we really have to escalate things to that point?"
Uchiha Chisen had already drawn his ninja sword.
The two Anbu guards also drew their swords without hesitation at that moment.
They quickly moved to block in front of Uchiha Chisen.
"Put them away!" However, Sarutobi Hiruzen's gritted-teeth command made the two Anbu guards pause.
"Lord Hokage?"
"Put them away!" Sarutobi Hiruzen repeated, and the two Anbu guards reluctantly sheathed their swords, but their vigilance did not diminish.
As long as Uchiha Chisen made any move, they would immediately intervene.
Sarutobi Hiruzen then gave Uchiha Chisen a deep look.
Finally, he turned and left without a word.
"Senior Chisen, we..." Izumi, startled by the tense and confrontational atmosphere, spoke up weakly.
Uchiha Chisen interrupted expressionlessly, "Go in and arrest them."
"Yes! Senior!"
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