When Sasuke personally witnessed a body, with half its head missing, slump to the ground, his small face went pale with fright. He even saw the corpse's single remaining eye staring wide and "looking" in his direction, sending shivers down his spine.
"M-murder..." Nearby, some Konoha villagers were also quite alarmed and repeatedly whispered, "Q-quickly, go inform the Uchiha Military Police..."
"We are the Uchiha Military Police!" Izumi took a deep breath, then stepped forward and declared loudly, silencing the surrounding Konoha civilians.
Ah, right... The one who did the killing was an Uchiha Military Police ninja. Even if they called other Military Police members, would it make any difference?
Izumi noticed many people looking timid. She spoke even louder, "The executed individual is named Yūhi Ken'ya, a ninja who forgot the Will of Fire's original intent and harmed innocent lives! His crimes include, but are not limited to, trafficking illegal drugs, murder, and desecrating a corpse..."
"Furthermore, he actively tried to use force to resist the Military Police's enforcement! My senior, Uchiha Akainu, could only execute the resisting criminal on the spot in the name of 'Absolute Justice'!"
Perhaps the young girl's shouts truly sounded righteous and awe-inspiring. Perhaps the deterrence of the Military Police and the legitimacy of their enforcement made it difficult for anyone to raise objections. Of course, it was more likely that the name "Uchiha Akainu" was enough to have a "stop a crying child" effect. Izumi noticed that some of the nearby civilians no longer looked as panicked. This also made her sigh with relief from the bottom of her heart.
"Senior, what now...?" Izumi could speak with defiant confidence when facing the Konoha civilians' doubts and fear about her senior's actions, but she lost that courage when facing Akainu himself.
"Ninja cats will run back to the Military Police to call for someone to handle the body," Uchiha Akainu said calmly.
Izumi saw a ninja cat squatting in the alley corner quickly depart. These ninja cats must be Senior Akainu's most trusted companions and capable assistants, right?
Oh! No, no! I'm Senior Akainu's capable assistant! Izumi quickly adjusted her mindset.
After Uchiha Akainu left the street, the Konoha civilians, who hadn't dared to make a sound, finally mustered their courage after exchanging glances and approached the headless corpse.
"Ugh, what a horrible death... Is this the third person Uchiha Akainu has killed in the village this month?"
Someone's skin crawled. "Is he a Military Police enforcer, or a serial killer?"
"Didn't they say that Uchiha Akainu has eyes that can see 'past and future evil'? The Uchiha clan's Sharingan are already weird; maybe he really did see the 'evil' in others, plus he's always hated evil."
"That girl just said this guy was a murderer, so if Uchiha Akainu of the Military Police killed him, he probably deserved it, right?"
"But this is too extreme, isn't it? Shouldn't they at least take him back for interrogation first? What if he was mistaken? What if he hadn't committed a crime?"
"...That man doesn't kill innocent people indiscriminately. He's not as scary as you think. He only wields his blade against the guilty. You don't need to be so afraid of him."
Amidst the murmurs of various opinions, a rather discordant voice suddenly rang out, instantly drawing many eyes to the speaker. It was a rather dejected-looking man.
The man didn't care about being stared at strangely by others; he cared that Lord Akainu was being misunderstood. He lowered his head, openly revealing his scars in public, and insisted, gritting his teeth, "If it weren't for Lord Akainu executing justice for my fiancée, who was raped and murdered, I wouldn't have known how to make those three animals pay."
The man clenched his fists, tears of pain instantly streaming down his face. He choked out, trembling, "You only have so many prejudices against Lord Akainu because you think his enforcement methods are harsh."
"But how could you possibly know... in the eyes of someone like me, whose life has fallen into painful darkness, a person like Lord Akainu is the only light that makes me believe justice exists!"
"So! Please don't misunderstand that man! He has never been an enemy to ordinary people like us who have never done wrong!"
Sasuke, feeling dazed and walking unsteadily behind Izumi, faintly heard the shouts from the distance behind them. Even Sasuke himself didn't know why he was inexplicably following Izumi; he'd been terrified by that Uchiha Akainu! Now his little heart was pounding wildly.
"Sasuke-kun. I'm sorry, that unexpected incident happened, which kept me from answering your earlier question about the 'rumors' concerning your brother, Itachi Uchiha."
Just then, Izumi's voice finally snapped Sasuke out of his trance. He eagerly looked at Izumi. Sasuke also suddenly noticed keenly that Izumi's way of addressing his brother had changed. He vaguely remembered that Izumi used to call his brother "Itachi-kun," which was a term for a close friend. Now, she called him "Uchiha Itachi," sounding much more distant.
Izumi's mood visibly darkened, and her tone carried a hint of disappointment. She gently brushed a stray strand of hair from her temple and slowly said, "Sasuke-kun, only half of the rumors you heard in the village today are truly rumors. The other half is real."
Sasuke: "???"
Sasuke almost stopped breathing. His small face looked panicked as he stammered, "Wh-which part... is real?"
Izumi initially thought it would be heartless to tell Sasuke the truth, but as one of the individuals involved in the future evil, Sasuke perhaps shouldn't be kept in the dark; perhaps he should know his brother's true nature.
Izumi said, "Senior Akainu possesses the power to see future evil. He saw your brother Itachi Uchiha's future. In one year, the Uchiha clan will be annihilated by Itachi Uchiha."
As Sasuke's small face registered horror and panic...
Izumi continued her shocking revelation: "Your father, your mother, your friends, your relatives. They will all die by Itachi Uchiha's hand; they will all be personally killed by him!"
"This matter... your father, Clan Head Fugaku, knows about it; your brother, Itachi Uchiha, also knows about it. They both chose to trust Senior Akainu's ability."
"Your father believes his eldest son will annihilate the Uchiha clan in the future, but he chose to protect Itachi Uchiha."
"Your brother believes he will commit such an evil act in the future. He once stated directly that he will have no regrets."
Izumi stopped walking. She turned around, bending her knees slightly. Her clear, watery eyes met Sasuke's tearful, bewildered gaze.
"Sasuke-kun... this is Uchiha Itachi's 'future evil.' He will kill almost everyone in the Uchiha clan."
"This may not be the answer you want most."
"I'm sorry, Sasuke-kun..."
"This is the truth."