"Shizune, get the money we picked up last night."
Tsunade's sudden command snapped Shizune out of her thoughts like a jolt of electricity.
She quickly grabbed the sacks from the floor and started lining them up on the table, one by one.
"Tsunade-sama," Shizune began, "we followed Uchiha Chizumi last night and gathered up over 47 million ryō in cash. Thankfully, most of it was large bills—1,000 ryō and up—so we didn't have to carry dozens of bags."
"But…"
Just as she was about to open one, Shizune suddenly hesitated. "Some of the money is… stained with blood. I know your hemophobia, Tsunade-sama…"
Tsunade shot a glance at the bulging bags but didn't let her finish.
After a deep breath, she said flatly, "Leave one million. The rest goes."
"…Huh? Wait—what?! Are you serious?!"
Shizune couldn't help herself. Her expression cracked as she stared at Tsunade like she was someone else entirely.
"Tsunade-sama, you…"
"I'm not hallucinating or high, if that's what you're thinking."
Tsunade continued, "We rescued seventy-nine kids from that basement. Divide 47 million by seventy-nine, and each kid gets a little over half a million. That should be just enough to raise them properly into adulthood."
Shizune: "!!"
"You're saying… you're going to adopt them?!"
She was genuinely stunned.
The Tsunade she knew, addicted to gambling and reckless as hell, would've treated that 47 million as her future casino budget. Anyone who tried to touch it would've gotten punched through a wall.
But now? No outside pressure. And she was offering it up freely?
Tsunade rolled her eyes, poking Shizune's cheek. "Do I look like I have time to raise that many brats? Obviously, I'm giving the money to orphanages to raise them."
Shizune pouted, covering her face. "That… actually sounds like a good thing, but that much money… isn't someone bound to pocket some of it?"
Before last night, Shizune wouldn't have doubted people so easily.
But after what she witnessed, she couldn't help imagining the worst.
"…What if we run into more scumbags who try to exploit the kids again?"
Tsunade's eyes narrowed. Dark memories from last night came flooding back, casting a shadow over her face.
"Then we kill them."
Crack.
Her hand pressed into the solid oak table. Deep cracks spiderwebbed through the wood. A sharp palm print was left scorched into the surface.
Shizune froze.
Since Tsunade left Konoha—since her phobia of blood started, since she drowned herself in gambling—Shizune hadn't seen this kind of murderous aura in her.
And now… it was back. A glimpse of the old legend: "Tsunade, Princess of Konoha."
What brought this change?
Shizune knew the answer instantly—Uchiha Chizumi.
When he showed up in Tanzaku Town.
When he revealed to Tsunade just how dark the shinobi world really was.
When he demonstrated his "Absolute Justice" right in front of her.
That was when Tsunade started changing.
Less self-loathing. More clarity.
"…Hey, Shizune. Where's that Uchiha brat and the ninja cat?"
"They should be leaving town by now," Shizune replied. "That cat—Jujirō—said Chizumi just happened to pass through. They're on an S-rank mission assigned by the Hokage. I think last night was just a stopover."
"Hah. Resting, huh? They left behind six hundred fifty-nine corpses."
Tsunade smirked. "That brat definitely came here on purpose. Dropped a bomb like this and left—same as nine years ago. Hasn't changed a bit."
Shizune corrected weakly, "It was 640, actually. Nineteen were… well… you, Tsunade-sama. I tried to stop you."
"Cough."
Tsunade let that go and stood up. "Let's find a good orphanage for those kids. And if we can't? We'll bring them back to Konoha."
"With the old man's soft heart, he won't ignore a bunch of war orphans. Heck, maybe we'll even get to save the money."
Shizune: "…"
Tsunade really knows how to squeeze the Hokage. Then again… isn't it Konoha's money anyway? And considering her grandfather was the First Hokage…
So is this… a granddaughter selling her grandpa's land and not feeling a thing?
…
Meanwhile – In a forest just outside Tanzaku Town.
Chizumi and Jujirō were gliding through the woods at high speed.
But suddenly, they stopped.
Seconds later—rustling.
Gekko Hayate stumbled out of the trees, out of breath.
"…Gone?"
He looked around, confused. He had been less than ten meters behind Chizumi, yet the man had disappeared without a trace.
If someone looked closely, they'd see the faint glint of Sharingan patterns in his pupils.
He thought he was tracking Chizumi with expert stealth—turns out, he'd already fallen into genjutsu.
He blinked. His head dipped slightly. When he looked up—
Chizumi was right in front of him.
Hayate flinched back, startled.
"Don't move, meow."
A quirky voice came from above. Something cold pressed into his temple.
"Meow, aren't you from the Gekko clan?" Jujirō said lazily. "Gekko Hayate, right? The sickly one?"
A fluffy orange tail dropped into his vision.
Only then did Hayate realize—there was a talking ninja cat on his head.
And he hadn't even noticed.
Chizumi had known he was being followed the entire time.
And he was still trapped in genjutsu.
If Chizumi moved now—
He'd die instantly.
"…I mean no harm," Hayate said quietly.
He was drenched in sweat, but he wasn't backing down. From the start, he hadn't come to attack Chizumi.
He just didn't have that kind of courage.
Staring into Chizumi's eyes, his thoughts finally took shape.
"Uchiha Chizumi. I came to ask you one thing. Even if you kill me afterward, I need to ask."
"…Why does justice have to mean killing?"
He clenched his fists.
"I'm not criticizing your justice. I just think… shouldn't justice take a form that people can actually agree with?"
Chizumi stepped forward.
Hayate thought he had gathered his resolve—but the fear rising inside him made him falter.
He couldn't even meet Chizumi's eyes anymore.
Chizumi stood inches away.
"Your kindness and mercy—are they meant for villains?"
His voice was cold, like steel.
"When someone slaughters an innocent soul, what punishment do you think is enough? What should justice look like to help the victim rest in peace?"
"Don't hold back. Say what you really think."
Hayate froze.
He came here to ask why Chizumi couldn't spare his only living family.
But now?
Every word from Chizumi hit like thunder.
"This twisted world doesn't just produce evil," Chizumi continued. "It makes people numb to it. So numb, they can't even feel disgust anymore."
"You ask why I had to kill your brother. But why don't you ask what he did? Why don't you ask what your mother felt… the moment her son killed her?"
"Gekko Hayate… feel it for yourself."
"This… is my absolute justice."
The moment Chizumi's cold voice faded, Hayate's vision warped violently.
He was in a genjutsu. Another Sharingan illusion.
Everything around him changed. In the blink of an eye, he was no longer in the forest—he was standing in the Gekko Clan Compound.
Wait… something was wrong.
His body didn't feel like his own. He tried to move, but it was like he was a passenger inside someone else's skin.
Whose body…?
"Why, Mother?!"
A voice roared behind him—so familiar it made Hayate's blood run cold.
"Why does everything go to Hayate just because he's older? Just because he's the firstborn, he gets everything? Even though he's always been a sickly, worthless mess, he gets to be the next clan head?!"
Hayate's eyes widened.
That voice… It was his brother—Seisui.
The same brother Chizumi had already killed.
So the body he was inhabiting must be…
His mother.
"You're giving our entire clan to a dying man," Seisui raged. "We'll never avenge Father like this! What if Hayate just drops dead?! Have you forgotten who killed your husband?!"
His voice trembled with barely restrained hatred.
Hayate could only watch—and listen. He had no control.
"Seisui," his mother's voice replied, through his borrowed lips, "don't speak like that about your brother. Even if he's unwell, his talent surpasses yours. And he's calmer, more responsible…"
"You're blinded by hatred. If the Gekko Clan were left in your hands, you'd drag us all into hell."
Hayate felt tears prick his borrowed eyes.
This was the moment. This was when she died.
"I'm sorry, Seisui," she said. "Hayate was chosen as clan heir a long time ago—"
CRACK.
A crushing blow slammed into the back of the head.
Hayate saw white.
He felt the pain—the jarring, brain-rattling shock—as if it were his own.
He collapsed forward. The taste of blood filled his mouth. His ears rang.
And yet…
He felt no anger.
Only shock. Confusion. Grief.
His thoughts spiraled in a storm of emotions he couldn't even name.
They weren't his. They were hers.
This was what his mother had felt in her final seconds.
Why?
What did I do wrong?
Why would he—my son—do this to me?
She didn't even hate him.
She just wanted one last look… to speak one last word.
But it was too late.
Behind her, Seisui was panting heavily.
"This… this is your fault!" he yelled. "You never treated me like your real son! You handed everything to that sick little freak! You even let Father's killer go! You don't deserve to be my mother!"
"Calm down… I need to calm down," he muttered to himself. "I'll hide the body. No one can know. I'll bury her outside the village… yeah, that'll work…"
Even in death, she worried for him.
But she couldn't speak.
Her soul drifted into darkness with no hatred, only regret.
Hayate felt something inside him snap.
His body trembled with rage—not at Chizumi, but at his brother. The brother who had murdered their mother in cold blood.
He wanted to cut off those hands. He wanted to scream "WHY?!"
He wanted to tear Seisui's head from his shoulders and force him to face what he had become.
Still inside his mother's perspective, he watched helplessly as Seisui carried her body out into the night.
He used his clan's bloodline technique to slip out of the village unnoticed.
Then, in the forest beyond Konoha, he dropped her into a pit and began covering her with dirt.
Scoop after scoop, her face disappeared beneath the soil.
The illusion faded.
Back in reality, Hayate didn't realize he was crying.
Two clear trails of tears marked his cheeks.
Chizumi's voice echoed gently beside him:
"That was what the Yamanaka clan saw when they read the memories from your brother's and mother's corpses."
"You don't understand people like me who believe in Absolute Justice. Just like… I'll never understand people like you."
"I answered your question. Now answer mine—why would you show kindness and mercy… to someone like that?"
Thud.
Hayate collapsed to his knees.
His arms trembled.
Chizumi's words echoed louder and louder in his ears.
Why?
Why did I try to defend him?
Just because he was my brother?
Just because we shared blood?
But he killed our mother. In cold blood.
"…I'm sorry."
His voice cracked.
Tears streamed down his face.
And then, with his forehead pressed to the ground, Hayate bowed deeply.
A perfect, full-body prostration.
At that moment, he didn't know why he had ever believed what he did.
But he understood why Chizumi believed what he did.
When evil becomes that twisted…
…there's only one punishment.
Death.
…
Three Days Later – Konoha
Sarutobi Hiruzen had been discharged from the hospital, but he was still far from fully recovered. Even so, as the Third Hokage, he had no choice but to return to managing the village—especially the chaos left behind by Uchiha Chizumi.
Oddly enough, the past few days had been… peaceful.
Without Chizumi around, Konoha felt quieter.
Calmer.
He'd even managed to hold a proper funeral for Asuma without interruptions.
Sure, the Uchiha police force was still arresting criminals and tossing them into prison, but at least no one was dying anymore.
When Chizumi was still in the village?
One death a day was "a slow day."
Sometimes there'd be five.
Sometimes ten.
Sometimes more.
It got to the point where the funeral home was booming with business.
If outsiders didn't know better, they'd think Konoha was in the middle of a war.
But just as Hiruzen began to enjoy this rare moment of quiet…
SLAM.
A masked Anbu agent burst into his office, nearly tripping over himself.
"Hokage-sama! Uzumaki Naruto—he… he nearly killed someone!"
COUGH! COUGH COUGH COUGH!!
Hiruzen choked so hard on his pipe that his eyes watered.
After catching his breath, he stared at the Anbu in shock. "What happened?!"
The Anbu wasted no time. "Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke were assisting Uchiha Izumi with a field mission. They found a criminal. Something he did enraged Naruto—he stabbed the man in the stomach with a kunai."
"Fortunately, the Anbu assigned to monitor Naruto—Yamanaka Ryoushin—stepped in immediately. The man survived, though he was seriously injured."
"…But Uchiha Izumi executed the man right after. She decapitated him."
Hiruzen sat frozen in his chair.
Every word hit harder than the last.
What the hell is going on?
Chizumi leaves the village, and suddenly Naruto becomes even harder to control?
When Chizumi was here, Naruto might've been rebellious—but he never actually attacked anyone.
This was serious.
Naruto was the Nine-Tails jinchūriki.
This couldn't be ignored.
"Take me to the scene. Now."
"Yes, Hokage-sama!"
…
Nara Clan District – Konoha
Hiruzen stood in front of the Nara compound's gate, silent.
A flash of memory crossed his mind—just a few days ago, in Konoha Hospital, the Nara, Yamanaka, and Akimichi clans had all pressured him, backed him into a corner.
Even within the Sarutobi clan, some had started looking at him with… unfamiliar eyes.
He hid his unease well.
As he entered the compound, two men stepped forward.
"Nara Shikaku. Yamanaka Inoichi," Hiruzen greeted.
They nodded respectfully, as if they'd been waiting for him.
Hiruzen took a deep breath and followed them inside.
What he saw made his gut tighten.
Naruto stood there, covered in bruises, hands stained with blood.
Sasuke had scraped knees, but was alert.
Uchiha Izumi stood calmly beside them.
Yamanaka Ryoushin observed silently from the side.
On the ground, a headless corpse lay in a pool of blood.
A Yamanaka clan ninja was performing their mind reading jutsu on the body.
Hiruzen opened his mouth to scold Izumi—
What were you thinking letting children get involved in something this dangerous?
Is this what "Absolute Justice" looks like? Letting a kid nearly become a killer?!
But then… he paused.
Izumi herself was twelve.
She was also just a kid.
"…Ahem."
Hiruzen coughed and forced a gentle expression onto his face.
He crouched beside Naruto, who looked downcast.
"Naruto. Grandpa Hokage knows what happened. Can you tell me why you did what you did?"
He assumed the guilt written across Naruto's face meant regret.
But Naruto looked up, furious.
"Gramps, that guy… he was worse than scum! This morning, Izumi-senpai said the ninja cat found a lead, and asked if Sasuke and I wanted to see how Absolute Justice works."
"So we followed her… and that bastard—we found him—and he…"
Naruto's voice trembled with rage. He couldn't even finish.
Izumi stepped in calmly.
"The man was a Konoha chūnin. He sexually assaulted his own daughter."
"When he realized the police were closing in, he grabbed a knife and held it to his daughter's throat. She was completely unclothed—he used her as a hostage."
"I used the Sharingan to put him under genjutsu."
"Before I could even act, Naruto grabbed a kunai from my pouch and stabbed the guy in the gut."
"The pain snapped him out of it. He kicked Naruto. Sasuke tried to help—got knocked back too."
"Ryoushin stepped in and stopped Naruto before he could rush in again."
"I took the man's head."
"…That's it."
She looked straight at Hiruzen.
"Third Hokage, instead of asking Naruto why he stabbed that man, maybe you should praise him. That's real justice. Naruto has potential to walk this path."
The Yamanaka ninja nearby finished his memory scan and stood up.
His eyes were dark—what he'd seen clearly disturbed him.
"…She's right," he said, flipping through notes. "When the man realized he'd been caught, he was going to kill his daughter. He was going to drag her down with him."
Hiruzen: "…"
Hiruzen had nothing to say.
He realized how foolish he'd been.
He'd come in assuming Naruto had gone too far.
But in truth—
He hadn't gone far enough.
Another monster. In our village. Again.
Even without Chizumi around, the rot was still here.
Hiruzen stared at the body, blood soaking the floor.
His old, weary face twisted into something painful.
My Konoha…
What happened to you?
…
Back in Konoha – Hokage Tower
Sarutobi Hiruzen had rushed out to find Naruto earlier that day.
And now?
Not even thirty minutes later, he was back at his desk—silent, brooding.
There was both relief and deep concern on his weathered face.
Relief that Naruto's sudden act of violence wasn't the result of the Nine-Tails going berserk.
Concern because…
Naruto, still so young, had willingly stabbed someone in the name of justice.
If that kunai had landed just a few inches higher…
If it had hit the heart…
Naruto would've killed a man.
At his age.
Has Chizumi already brainwashed him?
How the hell did this happen in just a few days?
Hiruzen just couldn't understand it.
Konoha had been preaching the Will of Fire for decades.
Chizumi shows up preaching "Absolute Justice" for a few weeks—and suddenly, Naruto is willing to kill for it?
"…Sigh."
Hiruzen let out a long breath, rubbing his temples.
Ever since Uchiha Chizumi had matured into his own power, nothing had gone right.
Every move Hiruzen made felt a step behind.
Every plan unraveled.
And now… even Naruto—his Naruto—was slipping out of reach.
Knock knock knock!
A sharp, urgent knock cut through his thoughts. He scowled.
Suppressing the rising frustration in his chest, he called out, "Come in."
The door flew open and two Konoha shinobi stepped in, covered in dust, clearly just returning from a mission.
"Chishou? Kaneshi?"
Hiruzen's brows lifted. "You've returned. That means you completed the A-rank mission I gave you."
He smiled faintly—but then noticed something.
"…Where's Hayate?"
That uneasy feeling crept back into his chest.
The Gekko clan had already lost so many.
Hayate was their last heir.
If something happened to him...
The ninja named Chishou stepped forward, catching his breath. "Hayate… he's coming back a day later than us."
That sentence alone made Hiruzen exhale in quiet relief.
"…No casualties, huh?" he said. "That's excellent. A job well done. Shinobi like you—"
But before he could finish with the standard praise...
"Hokage-sama! Something major just happened in the Land of Fire!" Chishou blurted out, still out of breath.
Hiruzen's expression darkened.
Another bad feeling.
"Don't rush," he said calmly, folding his hands behind his back. "Speak slowly."
Chishou tried to compose himself but couldn't hold it in.
"On our way back, we passed through Tanzaku Town. The entire place… was in flames."
Hiruzen's breath caught.
Chishou continued, voice trembling, "When we entered the town, we saw corpses. Everywhere. At least a hundred—probably more."
Hiruzen's expression turned stone-cold serious.
Tanzaku Town…
A notorious pleasure district.
A playground for the wealthy and powerful from across the Land of Fire.
If something had happened there—it would ripple through the highest levels of political power.
This wasn't just big.
This was disastrous.
Chishou swallowed hard. "We asked around. Did a quick investigation. According to survivors, there was only one person responsible."
He hesitated for a beat.
Then said the name like a final blow:
"Uchiha Chizumi."
"Hokage-sama… Chizumi didn't just kill a few people. He slaughtered the entire town. There are over a hundred bodies, minimum. But honestly? It's probably a lot more."
Hiruzen Sarutobi: "???"
~~~
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