"If we punish criminals by the Land of Fire's laws, then evil will never face real justice in the ninja world."
That sudden voice cut off Utatane Koharu mid-rant.
She turned with a frown—and saw a young Uchiha girl striding over with clear hostility.
Her frown deepened. She recognized her.
Izumi. That little sidekick always trailing behind Uchiha Chizumi.
Izumi stopped right in front of her. Koharu had once seemed so high above, a powerful Konoha advisor even clan heads treated with deference. But after following Absolute Justice and learning what Konoha's upper ranks were really like, Izumi's illusion shattered completely.
To her now, Koharu was nothing more than a powerless, nagging bureaucrat who loved criticizing Chizumi-senpai.
"Chizumi-senpai once told me—'gentle laws enable evil.' They betray the innocent. The Land of Fire's laws? They're too soft. They can't give real punishment to those who deserve it."
Izumi looked serious.
"Let's say someone smuggled and sold a ton of banned drugs. If we judge them by the Land of Fire's laws… what's the worst? Ten years in prison?
And if they pretend to behave, they're out in five or six."
"How many people die because of those drugs? How many families get torn apart? How many civilians get dragged into ruin?"
"Laws that lenient only help evil spread."
Koharu's eyes widened.
She could hardly believe this brat was standing here, in front of everyone, arguing with her—a Konoha elder—without an ounce of fear.
After all, Izumi was only twelve.
Even Fugaku nearby hadn't expected this. For an Uchiha to publicly clash with the village council—if he did nothing, that would be a huge problem.
So he stepped in fast.
"Izumi," he snapped. "The moment the Land of Fire established those laws, it was our duty to follow them—not question them!"
"You and Chizumi are way too obsessed with your so-called Absolute Justice. Laws are meant to maintain order and peace—not incite more killing."
Koharu's face finally eased a little. So, the Uchiha kids were the hotheads. At least the clan head was still rational.
But Izumi didn't back down.
She turned her fire on Fugaku instead.
"If Chizumi-senpai and I hadn't stood by Absolute Justice, Danzo would still be alive. So would a whole bunch of scumbags. And all the victims they left behind—they'd still be crying in the afterlife, never at peace."
"Clan Head Fugaku—you've done nothing for the innocent. So don't you dare look down on Absolute Justice. You and I don't stand for the same things. We fight for the countless innocent people across the shinobi world who've suffered under evil."
"You only care about the Uchiha! Actually, no—you don't even really care about them. All you care about is your so-called 'balance'!"
"If you really cared about the Uchiha, and you knew Itachi would one day massacre the clan, shouldn't you have stopped him yourself?"
"But what did you do? You covered for him! And now you want to act like that was for the clan's sake?"
Izumi's voice was raw—furious—not because she wanted to rebel, but because of everything Chizumi had done and how no one seemed to recognize it.
He wasn't wrong. He fought for justice, for the voiceless.
But people kept misunderstanding him—and throwing around nonsense that made her blood boil.
Her rebellious fire flared, and she let it all out.
Even Fugaku was caught off guard.
He, the leader of the Uchiha, just got chewed out by a twelve-year-old?
He looked visibly displeased. Clearly, Izumi had spent too much time around Chizumi—she didn't even respect her own clan head anymore.
If Sasuke started following Chizumi too...
Fugaku didn't even want to imagine what kind of person his second son might turn into.
But before he could say a word, everyone's attention suddenly turned toward a blaze in the distance.
Fugaku looked too. Koharu followed suit.
"...Uchiha Chizumi!"
Koharu's voice rang out.
From the sea of fire that used to be the Shimura compound, someone walked out.
Fire and lava couldn't touch him.
"The whole Shimura clan… and they couldn't even pressure him," Fugaku muttered.
He knew Chizumi was strong, but this was effortless.
"But still..."
A shadow crept into his gaze. A member of the Uchiha had just wiped out an entire ninja clan.
How would the higher-ups see the Uchiha now?
He glanced at Koharu again.
Her face had darkened—hostile, conflicted.
Damn it.
Chizumi's actions were dragging the Uchiha down again.
All of Fugaku's efforts—wasted.
He clenched his fists… then let them go.
He felt helpless—and bitterly disappointed.
Why can't Chizumi understand how hard I've tried to protect this clan?
"Chizumi-senpai!!" Izumi raised her hand high, calling out across the flames.
Jujirō the ninja cat strolled up beside her, tail raised.
"Meow. Without that old dog Danzo, the Shimura clan isn't even worth mentioning," the cat snarked.
"They thought they could assassinate Chizumi-sama? Challenge Absolute Justice?
The second they turned their thoughts against Justice, they sealed their fate."
Even Fugaku turned slightly at that.
Even a cat had been converted by Chizumi's ideology.
How did I not realize how… extreme this belief system is?
And if more Uchiha bought into this black-and-white mindset…
Wouldn't the entire clan become a threat?
To Itachi, wouldn't they look like a danger to Konoha?
Would that drive him to commit that future tragedy?
The weight in Fugaku's chest grew heavier.
…
Elsewhere
Yamanaka Inoichi walked up to greet Chizumi—shocking Nara Shikaku and the Konoha elders watching from a distance.
A faint but genuine smile crossed his otherwise stoic face.
"Chizumi, want us to help clear the bodies?"
Chizumi nodded.
"There are a lot today. Over thirty. Appreciate the help."
Shikaku scratched his chin, then glanced at Hiruzen, Koharu, and Homura.
Inoichi's open support clearly stunned them.
"Inoichi… bold move," Shikaku muttered.
"Pretty sure those three won't sleep tonight."
And he was right.
Hiruzen knew the Yamanaka and Uchiha clans had cooperated for years, and that Chizumi had never executed a single Yamanaka.
That meant he saw them as lawful.
But for Inoichi to openly back Chizumi now?
Especially after the Shimura clan was just wiped out?
It was a public endorsement. And not a subtle one.
Then Hiruzen remembered—Danzo had nearly wiped out the Yamanaka once too.
Of course Inoichi resented him.
Of course he'd support Chizumi.
Even in front of the Hokage.
Hiruzen's face darkened with tangled emotion.
Just then, he noticed Fugaku's youngest son… walking toward Chizumi.
Sasuke had no idea what possessed him, but suddenly he was standing right in front of Uchiha Chizumi.
His bruises still hurt, even after treatment.
Nervously, he took a deep breath and spoke.
"I think I understand what 'justice' means now. It's protecting the innocent from harm—and scaring the bad guys into backing down, right?"
He clutched the hem of his torn clothes, eyes flicking up nervously.
"Maybe… maybe what my brother Itachi will do one day… maybe that counts as 'evil.' If he really does that… you'll kill him, won't you?"
His voice was cautious—uncertain—like he didn't expect an answer.
Sasuke had always lived under pressure, always compared to Itachi.
Even as the top student in class, he carried deep insecurities.
"Yes," Chizumi said simply.
"In fact, I'll kill him before he even acts."
"If justice doesn't stop evil when it starts… it becomes delayed justice. And sometimes, delayed justice… isn't justice at all."
"So, Sasuke," Chizumi asked, "do you want to stop me from killing your brother? Even after seeing in genjutsu how he'll butcher innocent Uchiha… would you still hold onto brotherly love?"
Sasuke shook his head.
"I said I wouldn't forgive him for that! But… I also don't want to stand by while danger gets closer to my mom."
He hesitated, then added quietly, "...and my dad."
He remembered how helpless he felt in that illusion.
He hated that version of himself.
"That's why… I want to stop him too!" he said more firmly.
"What he plans to do is wrong. His thinking is wrong. He's sick. I want to wake him up—to make him realize how important family really is!"
He thought of Izumi—once weak, now powerful.
All because she followed Chizumi.
"I want to follow you like Naruto does! I know I'll learn things from you I'll never get from the academy. I know I'll get stronger!"
His voice rose loud enough to shock Naruto, surprise Izumi…
…and almost give Fugaku a heart attack.
Did Sasuke just say that? Out loud? In front of everyone?
Fugaku instinctively looked around for something to smack him with.
But then—
"No," Chizumi said coldly.
Sasuke froze.
Naruto shouted, "Huh?!", looking left and right.
Izumi blinked in surprise.
Fugaku let out a breath—he was actually… grateful?
Chizumi—who always did things his own way—had just spared him a massive political headache.
Because no one would believe Sasuke followed Chizumi on his own.
Everyone would assume Fugaku approved.
Especially suspicious old Koharu.
"W‑why…?" Sasuke's voice trembled.
He stiffened like a board, on the edge of tears.
Chizumi looked at him calmly.
"Do you want justice because of your brother?
Or because you believe in justice itself? Have you even asked yourself that?"
"If you stop Itachi, then what? Graduate and become a model ninja? Take your dad's place as clan leader? Or aim to be Hokage?"
Each question rattled Sasuke.
He tried imagining it—ninja, leader, Hokage.
They used to sound fine.
But…
The smell of sulfur grounded him.
He looked at the leveled Shimura compound, recalled the lava‑burned Uchiha, the drug dealers Chizumi had executed, and Itachi's cruel future.
His mother's teary, disappointed eyes flashed in his mind.
His face turned pale. But even without the courage from before, he stood his ground.
"Even if I become a great ninja… even if I become clan head… even if I become Hokage…
I still couldn't really change anything, could I?"
"Ah…"
Something clicked in his mind.
A spark lit up his eyes.
"I want to change all of this.
If the evil you talk about disappeared—wouldn't everything get better?
Wouldn't there be no Uchiha massacre?
Wouldn't innocent people stop dying?"
He'd finally said the thing he'd wanted to say all along—but never had the words for.
"Is that… justice?"
His voice faltered.
"Yes," Chizumi replied.
That one word lit up Sasuke's face.
But froze Fugaku where he stood.
Crap.
Since when did my least reliable son get smart?
~~~
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