"Senpai, the corpse has already turned into bare bones. All the evidence must be gone—where do we even start investigating?" Izumi asked timidly.
Uchiha Chizumi replied flatly, "Rookie, go back to the Police Force."
"Eh?" Izumi blinked, confused.
Chizumi continued, "Find me a list of everyone who's gone missing in Konoha in the last five years, then bring it to me. Jūjirō, tell your ninja‑cat to comb every inch of Konoha's sewers and collect every fragment that might be human bone. I'll wander around the village and see if luck is on our side."
Although the shinobi world possessed DNA‑extraction technology, Konoha had never created a village‑wide DNA database, so they had no way to identify victims immediately.
Izumi, still wondering what sort of "luck" her senpai hoped to find by strolling around the village, suddenly remembered what he had once told her—his eyes could see through evil itself.
Hiss! That was exactly how he had located murderers several times before!
Sweeping away her doubts, Izumi answered quickly, "Yes, Chizumi-senpai!"
Jūjirō added, "Understood, Chizumi-sama!"
…
Izumi hurried back to the Uchiha compound. Just as she was about to stride into the Police Force building, a familiar silhouette ahead made her stop short.
She shook her head in disbelief, closed her eyes for a full two seconds, then opened them again.
The silhouette was still there.
"…Itachi‑kun?" Izumi ventured tentatively.
The figure turned.
A familiar face came into view—Uchiha Itachi, eldest son of the clan head.
"It's you, Izumi." Itachi suppressed the heaviness in his heart, managed a polite smile at his only friend.
Izumi brightened instantly. "Itachi‑kun, it really is you! You're back in Konoha and didn't say a word—I thought you were still on a mission outside the village!"
"I only got back a short while ago," Itachi forced a smile.
There was no joy in this reunion. In the brief time since his return, he had already sensed that the rift between the village and the Uchiha was growing irreconcilable.
The latest flash‑point was that Uchiha Chizumi had killed Hokage-sama's eldest son, Sarutobi Shinnosuke.
He felt a pitch‑black darkness enclosing the Uchiha—like a cage none of them could escape.
If tensions kept escalating until the village resorted to "special measures," the Uchiha would be wiped out. Their backlash would in turn devastate Konoha and shatter the Hokage's faith in the clan.
And then…
Sasuke…
One grim thought after another swirled in Itachi's mind, shadowing his eyes.
His mood grew ever heavier.
"Itachi‑kun, is something bothering you?" Izumi asked, sensing something was off. "Did your Anbu mission not go well, or…?"
Itachi snapped back, shook his head blankly. "…It's nothing."
Only then did he notice Izumi's attire—a Police Force field uniform. He recalled she had graduated from the Academy just over half a month ago.
He shifted the topic, steadying his thoughts. "You joined the Police Force? Are you getting used to it?"
Izumi nodded with a confident smile. "Mm‑hmm! I'm only a trainee; there's a long probation before I'm a full member. It's exhausting, but I'm coping. Chizumi-senpai only looks strict—he actually cares about his subordinates."
Itachi paused. "Chizumi… 'senpai'?"
Izumi's smile froze. Oh no—lack of sleep must have dulled my memory. She'd forgotten Itachi and Chizumi didn't get along.
"It was Uchiha Chizumi, right?" Itachi asked.
"…Yes." Izumi nodded stiffly, wishing she could flick her own forehead.
After a moment's silence Itachi chose to warn his last friend. "Izumi, forgive me if I'm meddling, but Uchiha Chizumi's views can be extreme. Shisui…"
He paused half a beat, drew a breath, and continued, "Shisui once told me Chizumi's allegiance lies neither with the Uchiha nor with Konoha—only with himself. He's the kind who can harm not just his enemies, but those around him. His notion of 'Absolute Justice' will bring the clan great trouble."
"Chizumi-senpai's Absolute Justice won't bring any trouble to the Uchiha," Izumi blurted almost reflexively.
Itachi was taken aback—and so was she. Clutching her sleeve, she said, "I don't know what happened between you two, but Chizumi-senpai's Absolute Justice has never done wrong. He's dutifully fulfilling his role in the Police Force, quietly upholding justice and suppressing Konoha's corruption. People just misunderstand him because he says little he deems unnecessary. One day, those misunderstandings will disappear!"
She wasn't sure why she felt compelled to defend him—perhaps because she had chosen to follow that Absolute Justice and thus to defend it…and him.
Itachi, watching the girl's anxious yet earnest face, said without expression, "So you've resolved to follow that man's extreme ninja path?"
"Mm!" Izumi's young face was resolute. "Since Academy days, I wanted to catch up to geniuses like you, Itachi‑kun. But I'm average—I only graduated at twelve, with no clear future plan… Yet after meeting Chizumi-senpai and learning what he stands for, I now see how I can serve Konoha. Purging the ninja world's 'evil' with Absolute Justice—that is my ninja way, Uchiha Izumi's way!"
Itachi was silent for a while. "So that's your resolve?" he said flatly. "It's impressive—but your path is… crooked."
"Meow—rookie, what are you doing?" A strange voice cut Itachi short.
A black ninja‑cat stood on a nearby eave.
It spoke to Izumi: "Grandpa Jūjirō sent me to check on you. Got that missing‑persons list yet, nya?"
"Eh—you're the cat that was guarding the sewer entrance earlier!"
Izumi looked up and said quickly, "Ah! Hold on, I'll fetch it right away!"
As she dashed into the Police Force building, Itachi withdrew his gaze and turned it calmly on the cat. The cat stared back.
"Uchiha Itachi…" The cat's fur bristled slightly and it retreated a few steps—ninja cats tied to Chizumi shared his coolness toward the clan heir, even a hint of hostility.
Itachi hesitated, but in the end did not use the Sharingan to pry for information.
"Pass a message to Uchiha Chizumi," he said slowly. "What he's doing only deepens the rift between the village and the Uchiha. It will lead to an irreparable outcome. I hope he'll consider the village's position—and the rarity of peace."
…
"Meow! Chizumi-sama—bad news!"
The black cat didn't wait for Izumi; it sprinted back to report.
Panting, it blurted, "Chizumi-sama, Uchiha… Uchiha Itachi's back in the village, nya!!!"
"He's a Konoha ninja. Coming home is normal, isn't it?" Chizumi's tone barely wavered.
The cat blinked. "But didn't you once say Uchiha Itachi would commit unspeakable crimes? You can see the evil in people's futures, right? And your vision has never been wrong!"
Chizumi paused. "If you knew someone would commit unforgivable evil in the future but hadn't yet, what would you do?"
The cat fretted. "I'm just a ninja cat—I can't handle questions that deep…"
"Maybe…" it mewed weakly, "I'd try to stop them?"
"I advised the clan head and his wife to get Itachi's head examined—their eldest son is clearly unwell. I told Shisui too: he'll regret protecting Itachi." Chizumi's steps slowed. "I've taken many pre‑emptive measures; if he still chooses to sink into depravity, then all I can do is purge evil with Absolute Justice."
Just then, a distant shout rang out.
"Senpai! I—I found the missing‑persons list!"
The Uchiha girl came running, clutching a folder in both hands.