When Fugaku said, "I don't want a civil war inside the Uchiha," Uchiha Setsuna actually let out a cold, bitter laugh.
He raised his head and stared straight into Fugaku's calm eyes.
"Fugaku, are you threatening me? What, if I don't follow your orders, you're gonna have me arrested now?"
Setsuna's voice was hoarse, but his words were razor-sharp.
Fugaku replied, "If a full investigation shows you weren't involved in the smuggling and selling of illegal drugs, then of course we won't take any action against you. I just want to prevent chaos in the Uchiha clan. That's all."
Setsuna clenched his teeth so tightly his gums started to bleed.
Tasting blood, he muttered in a low voice, "Heh… 'Don't want civil war,' huh? You're doing a real great job as clan head, Fugaku."
"But all you're doing is threatening me, while completely unable to control Uchiha Chizumi. If that guy hadn't stuck his nose where it didn't belong, would I even be in this situation?"
"You can't control him, can you? If you could, my grandson wouldn't have died by his hands, right?"
Fugaku didn't respond.
Because Setsuna wasn't wrong. Between the two—Setsuna and Chizumi—Setsuna was clearly the easier target.
Fugaku couldn't stop Chizumi. But as the Uchiha clan head, he could put pressure on Setsuna.
"Heh, guess I was still one step too slow," Setsuna muttered, breaking eye contact. "If I'd moved faster, my grandson might still be alive."
That cryptic comment made Fugaku frown slightly.
"Fugaku, I've got some intel you might find interesting."
Setsuna spoke quietly, gaze lowered. "Chizumi's Lava Release does seem to nullify most physical attacks, but it's not passive. He has to form hand signs and use a jutsu he created himself—'Lava Chakra Armor.'"
"I've spent a lot of time thinking about how to hit him before he acts. So tell me—if I planted a bunch of explosive tags and blew them up before he could activate his technique, do you think he'd survive?"
Fugaku's pupils contracted slightly.
Setsuna wouldn't bring this up for no reason.
Could it be…
A disturbing possibility started forming in Fugaku's mind.
"Of course, I don't have that many tags. And the Uchiha's explosive tags are reserved for use against the Hokage, not wasted on some brat."
"But… a certain ninja clan came to me this morning. They want to kill Chizumi. They're few in number, but still have some tricks up their sleeve."
"Unfortunately…" Setsuna sighed. "Some of the younger guys under me have already been brainwashed by Chizumi's so-called 'Absolute Justice.' Even if I wanted to work with that clan, my own people wouldn't agree to it."
For some reason, Fugaku felt a slight sense of relief.
Chizumi was definitely a problem. At times, even Fugaku had violent thoughts toward the guy. But once he calmed down, he always came to the same conclusion—the Uchiha clan needed Chizumi.
Chizumi's overwhelming strength was a foundation of stability.
Even if Konoha's leadership wanted to move against the Uchiha, even knowing Chizumi might not side with them, his sheer presence made them hesitate.
No one wanted to risk it—what if Chizumi suddenly did back the clan?
That possibility was exactly why Fugaku kept tolerating him.
"I didn't mean to help them, but I'm getting old, and I might've let slip Chizumi's so-called 'weakness.' Whether it's real or not, who knows?"
Setsuna looked up again. "I had no intention of killing him. I didn't team up with anyone. Even Chizumi's eyes that supposedly see evil wouldn't be able to pin anything on me. Wouldn't you agree, Fugaku?"
But the moment those words left his mouth—
BOOM!!
A massive explosion rang out just a few hundred meters away—followed by a continuous chain of blasts.
Flames lit up half the Uchiha district.
Everyone was jolted awake by the blasts.
The firelight illuminated Fugaku's face—his expression was dark and grim.
"Setsuna…" Fugaku growled, his voice tense. "Did you let outsiders sneak into our compound and plant explosive tags?!"
Stone-faced, Setsuna replied, "Don't blame me. If even you, the clan head, didn't know they were here, how would I? As for their assassination plan—heh, I know even less than you."
Fugaku was done talking.
He immediately rushed toward the explosion site with a team of police force ninja.
And he remembered—Naruto was with Chizumi. So was Sasuke.
If those two kids hadn't gotten out in time…
He didn't even want to think about it.
…
Meanwhile
Izumi and Jujirō—the cat ninja—had just completed the mission Chizumi gave them and returned to the Uchiha district.
Then the explosions hit.
"Who the hell's throwing around explosive tags at night, meow?!" Jujirō yelled, fur standing on end.
"Jujirō-senpai… I think that came from…" Izumi stared at the flames in the distance. "That's… Chizumi-senpai's house!"
Jujirō's eyes widened. "Meow! Rookie! Someone's targeting Chizumi-sama! Let's move!"
He leapt from her shoulder like an orange blur and vanished.
Izumi was stunned by his speed, but more shaken by the blasts. She didn't hesitate and chased after him.
…
Hokage Tower
Hiruzen Sarutobi, quietly waiting for tonight's "Absolute Justice victims," flinched as explosions rang out in the distance—again and again.
He rushed to the window.
From there, he saw towering flames rising into the sky.
"That's…" he murmured, frowning.
Koharu's voice came from behind: "The Uchiha compound. And if I'm not mistaken, those were explosive tags going off."
She too had been drawn in by the chaos.
Hiruzen's brow furrowed deeper.
What were the Uchiha doing now? Explosions that large could flatten entire homes—possibly with people inside.
"Wait!" he suddenly exclaimed, alarmed. "Could Naruto be there?!"
…
Amid the Smoke and Fire
"Cough! Cough…"
Naruto groaned, clutching his aching head. Suddenly, he felt something warm and sticky in his palm. He looked down, and in the glow of the flames—his hand was covered in blood.
His ears were ringing so loudly he couldn't hear a thing.
Dazed, he lifted his head and saw several houses around him completely engulfed in flames.
Chunks of shattered buildings littered the street.
His mind was foggy—everything spun.
He vaguely remembered Chizumi-sensei saying to wait at his house for Izumi and Jujirō to return. So he and "stuck-up Sasuke" had followed him back there.
But just as the door opened—
Chizumi-sensei had suddenly grabbed both of them and tossed them out.
Then—boom. The explosion hit. It felt like being caught in an invisible storm and flung through the air.
Then... blackout.
His head must've slammed into something.
"Ssss—" As the memory flashed back, Naruto sucked in a sharp breath. The pain sobered him up instantly.
He scrambled to his feet, looking around in a panic.
Not far away, Sasuke was using the wall to stand up, staggering and breathing heavily.
"Huff… huff…"
Sasuke's face was pale. He was clearly shaken.
When he saw Naruto stand up too, he immediately straightened his posture, trying to look less beat up. But the moment he moved, a jolt of pain made him flinch.
He bit his lip, looked down—and saw his knees scraped and bleeding.
His arms and legs were also bruised and scraped all over.
"What the hell happened?" Naruto stumbled toward him, still holding his head.
Sasuke rolled his eyes. "How would I know?!"
…
A short distance away, Kakashi wiped blood from his hand.
Given the force of that explosion, Naruto and Sasuke should have been seriously injured—if not dead. But the only reason they were okay… was because Kakashi had caught them midair just in time.
Now he was staring at a few silhouettes retreating through the smoke.
His eyes narrowed.
"Shimura clan…"
When he'd caught the kids, he hadn't had time to question why there was an explosion, or who was trying to assassinate Uchiha Chizumi.
But he had noticed—someone used the chaos to flee.
He'd tried to chase after them, but it was too late. Their escape path had clearly been pre-planned.
But then—
The wind from the blast had blown off part of one attacker's mask.
It only lasted a split second, but it was enough for Kakashi's Sharingan to catch it.
The man had moved his forehead protector—revealing a three-tomoe Sharingan underneath.
Kakashi recognized him.
He was a ninja from the Shimura clan.
"…I should report this to the Hokage," Kakashi muttered to himself, covering his Sharingan with a sigh. He glanced back at the row of demolished buildings. "If it were me in there, I'd be dead. Best-case scenario? Years in the hospital."
He paused.
"Wait a second… could that guy actually…?"
"Huh?!" His thoughts were cut off—
…
"Hey, loser! What's wrong with you?!" Sasuke, still wincing from the pain, suddenly noticed Naruto staring off, frozen.
He turned to follow Naruto's gaze—
And his eyes flew open.
Amid the thick smoke and raging fire, a figure slowly emerged.
It was terrifying.
At first glance, the figure looked damaged—pieces missing from its body. But those gaps were quickly being filled in by glowing, molten lava.
Within just a few breaths, the lava had reshaped the figure into a fully-formed human silhouette.
Suddenly, the collapsed houses nearby erupted with thuds—one after another, vine-wrapped spheres burst out of the rubble.
Each vine orb was tethered to the molten figure by a thick root.
The vines slowly retracted, and from within the orbs… people emerged.
Civilians.
Uchiha villagers.
Some old, some young.
They all looked terrified, but every single one of them had survived the explosion.
Hissss… Chizumi stepped out of the fire, leaving glowing lava footprints behind. Molten rock dripped from his body, scorching the stone beneath him.
As the lava hardened and fell away, his figure became fully visible—
"Not a scratch…" Kakashi murmured, eyes wide as he watched Chizumi walk out of the inferno. "He even saved seven neighbors... and those two kids earlier. Unbelievable."
He had expected Chizumi to be powerful.
He hadn't expected this.
He'd thought, at best, Chizumi might crawl out of the rubble alive—but in critical condition.
But here he was, standing tall—only a little dirt on the edge of his sleeve.
"How the hell… and those vines—what was that?" Kakashi whispered to himself.
And then a terrifying thought hit him:
Wood Release.
His eyes widened in shock.
But he immediately shook his head.
No way. An Uchiha using Wood Release? That was impossible. The Uchiha and Senju never intermarried. Chizumi couldn't have any of the First Hokage's bloodline.
Besides, he already had two Kekkei Genkai.
A third one? Seriously?
And yet…
Kakashi remembered the Shimura clan—and Danzo's obsession with Wood Release experiments.
He suddenly fell into deep thought.
"Three Kekkei Genkai… No way… right?"
…
"Chizumi-senpai!"
"Chizumi-sama!"
Izumi and Jujirō finally arrived.
When they saw him completely unharmed, they both breathed a sigh of relief.
But the sight of the destroyed buildings made their faces harden.
So it really was his house that got hit—that thought crossed both their minds at the same time.
"Se—" Izumi began, but Chizumi cut her off with a cold tone.
"Are all the targets on the list dealt with?"
Izumi nodded immediately. "Jujirō-senpai and I executed them all. Not a single one left alive. Jujirō also had his ninja cats contact the Yamanaka clan to handle the bodies."
Naruto and Sasuke walked up from behind, still wobbly.
"Chizumi-sama… were you—?" Jujirō asked carefully.
Chizumi replied calmly, "It was an assassination attempt. They used at least a hundred explosive tags. Fortunately for me, they grouped them together. If they had spread them out, it wouldn't have been just these houses—this entire street would've been leveled."
Everyone: "!!"
Jujirō gasped. "Do you have any leads on who it was?"
Chizumi glanced to the side—and his eyes locked with Kakashi's, standing just a short distance away.
Kakashi: "…"
No use hiding now.
He stepped forward.
"I doubt you'd protect people willing to kill innocent civilians," Chizumi said quietly. "Right, Hatake Kakashi?"
Kakashi swallowed. If he didn't say anything, Chizumi might extract the truth by force.
Of everyone in Konoha, Kakashi least wanted to make an enemy of this man.
Not to mention… he still owed him a favor—because of Obito.
Even if Chizumi probably didn't care.
Suppressing the emotions in his eyes, Kakashi said, "The Shimura clan."
Chizumi asked, "Which direction?"
"West. Toward their compound."
"Danzo's cronies again, huh?" Jujirō snapped. "That old bastard may be dead, but looks like his dogs are still biting."
While he muttered, he saw Chizumi start walking off—alone.
"Chizumi-sama, I—"
"Watch those two kids. Make sure the civilians are okay." Chizumi didn't even look back.
Jujirō paused, then nodded helplessly. "Yes, Chizumi-sama."
Naruto blinked. "Wait, where's Sensei going?"
Izumi took a deep breath.
"Chizumi-senpai…"
"…is going to carry out Absolute Justice."
~~~
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