For Hiruzen Sarutobi, the very concept of "justice" had become almost synonymous with Uchiha Akainu. When he heard Naruto's highly emotional outburst, Hiruzen realized he was too late. He also realized exactly what Akainu intended to do with Naruto.
Hiruzen found it hard to describe his current feelings—shock, anger, regret... But one thing he was certain of was that he absolutely couldn't let Naruto embrace any kind of justice! Especially not Uchiha Akainu's Absolute Justice!
He forced a stiff smile onto his old face and earnestly told Naruto, "Naruto, leave searching for murderers to the Konoha Military Police Force. That's their duty; they'll investigate until everything is clear. You're still young, just a child, and you've only been at the Ninja Academy for less than two months. This adult world isn't something you can get involved in right now. We can talk about it when you're older."
"But..." Just as Naruto was about to say something, a strangely sharp, high-pitched voice suddenly interjected, "Why is it that only now, when it's convenient, a seven-year-old brat is considered a child, meow?"
Hiruzen frowned and glanced over, surprised to find that the speaker was actually a ninja cat. This orange ninja cat... it seemed to be Akainu's. Hiruzen suddenly had a bad feeling.
"Meow! Uchiha Itachi was thrown onto the battlefield of the Third Shinobi World War when he was four years old! At that time, why did nobody say that kid was just a child?" Kinjirō's cat face was full of disdain, and he scoffed without reservation. "Naruto Uzumaki is seven now, three years older than Itachi was then. Just because he wants to follow Akainu-sama in enacting justice, you say he's too young?"
"Even a ninja cat like me can see your intentions clearly! Humans are truly skilled at calculations, meow!"
Hiruzen: "..."
He never thought he'd be mocked by a ninja cat. But for the venerable Third Hokage to get into a huff with a cat... that would be far too humiliating! The crucial point was that he didn't know how to refute it. Could he openly declare that Naruto was a jinchuriki?
No. That secret, at least for now, couldn't be revealed to Naruto. He was still too young.
Uchiha Akainu's tone was indifferent. "Naruto Uzumaki, make the choice in your heart. Don't worry about anything; even if your choice goes against my expectations, I won't kill you. But if your choice aligns with my expectations, they won't be able to take you away."
This statement made Koharu Utatane's eyes widen. She clenched her fists, forcing out each word, "Uchiha Akainu, do you understand what you are doing right now!?"
This was Koharu's first close-up, face-to-face encounter with Uchiha Akainu. It was also her first time realizing how unyielding and how little he regarded Konoha's elders. She finally understood the immense frustration and anger Hiruzen usually had to suppress when dealing with Akainu. She also somewhat understood why Danzo wanted to kill Uchiha Akainu.
While the Uchiha clan had many problematic individuals, Uchiha Akainu was definitely the first to dare to say such a thing in front of so many Anbu, in front of the Hokage, and in front of her, an elder councilor. Koharu Utatane already felt a faint urge to order the Anbu and Root ninja to subdue Uchiha Akainu together.
"Uchiha Akainu, you..." Just as Koharu was about to say, "you have no right to force Naruto Uzumaki to make a choice," Hiruzen Sarutobi suddenly spoke. "Naruto, the old man knows your dream is to gain the village's recognition, to become the future Hokage of Konoha. You need to make the right choice. Because if you make the wrong choice, the villagers will find it very hard to acknowledge you."
"And Akainu..." Hiruzen continued, "although he has done many things for Konoha, his methods are too extreme and too absolute. He has never, from beginning to end, gained the approval of most people."
"Naruto, this goes against your dream."
Hiruzen no longer held back. He openly criticized Uchiha Akainu in front of Naruto, and in front of Akainu himself.
Upon hearing this, Akainu immediately frowned. She grumbled and scribbled Hiruzen Sarutobi's name repeatedly in her small notebook, pressing so hard that she even tore the paper.
"But..." To Hiruzen Sarutobi's stunned expression, he saw Naruto's eyes visibly redden, and tears slowly welled up and rolled down his wet cheeks.
"Grandpa Hokage..." Naruto tried to wipe away his uncontrollable tears. He lowered his small head, his voice choked with low spirits, "You never actually wanted me to get the village's recognition either..."
Hiruzen Sarutobi was stunned.
"Everyone in the village says I'm the Nine-Tailed Fox incarnate, and when they occasionally see me, they think it's a terrible omen for the day. Those rumors are all spread by that person named Danzo Shimura, aren't they?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi's pupils constricted.
"Grandpa Hokage knows about this... Grandpa Hokage also knows who the mastermind behind everyone disliking me is. But why does Grandpa Hokage protect that person?"
"Grandpa Hokage not telling everyone the truth... isn't that just making everyone in the village believe even more firmly that I'm the 'Nine-Tailed Fox incarnate'?"
"Why can't you tell them—that the Nine-Tails was sealed inside me without my knowledge?"
The moment Naruto's question landed, it wasn't just Hiruzen Sarutobi who reacted subtly; even Koharu Utatane looked at Naruto in disbelief.
Naruto Uzumaki... How did he know the Nine-Tails was sealed inside him? Who told him? Uchiha Akainu?
"Even though the pain and disaster Konoha suffered on the night of the Nine-Tails attack had nothing to do with me... why does everyone in the village dislike and isolate me because of those rumors? Why can't Grandpa Hokage explain for me? Why do the villagers' misunderstandings about me keep getting deeper?"
"Grandpa Hokage..."
"I don't understand."
Naruto's tears "pitter-pattered" down. The seven-year-old child couldn't organize complex verbal logic, so he could only rely on his wronged instincts to continuously question Hiruzen Sarutobi. He didn't express anger towards Hiruzen Sarutobi because he knew Grandpa Hokage was indeed very good to him. Naruto just felt exceptionally wronged, lost, and endlessly confused.
"Grandpa Hokage, I'm sorry..."
"I... I just want to do one thing. I can't go back with you for now. At least I have to find that murderer, at least I have to let the four victims rest in peace. Only then will I go back with you, Grandpa Hokage."
Naruto made his choice.
He also gave his answer.
Watching Naruto, whose tears were still "pitter-pattering" down, feeling so wronged, Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't know what to say anymore. Naruto knowing these things surely had an inseparable connection to Akainu.
Logically, Hiruzen felt he should be angry, especially at Uchiha Akainu. Didn't Akainu know how much telling Naruto the truth about that night would traumatize him? Akainu surely knew! But he still told Naruto. Was his goal just to make Naruto believe in his [Absolute Justice]?
However... as he watched Naruto constantly wiping away his tears, Hiruzen himself didn't know why, but the anger in his heart felt somewhat stifled. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something to the child, but for a moment, he didn't know what to say that could salvage Naruto's disappointment in him, his "Grandpa Hokage."
"Naruto Uzumaki, stop this nonsense!" Hiruzen Sarutobi remained silent, but Koharu Utatane spoke with a dark expression. "You don't have the right to make choices. Cases handled by the Military Police Force aren't something you can interfere with. Even if Uchiha Akainu forced you to make this choice, it's useless, right, Fugaku?"
"...Right." Fugaku took a deep breath and also spoke. "Naruto Uzumaki, you might not know me. I am the Commander of the Uchiha Military Police Force—Fugaku Uchiha. To participate in cases handled by the Military Police Force, you need my permission."
"My answer is, I do not approve of you messing around with Akainu! At your age, you should be focusing on your studies at the Ninja Academy."
Naruto immediately looked stunned.
Koharu Utatane's dark old face finally relaxed somewhat. At least she could confirm that Fugaku Uchiha was temporarily on Konoha's side. She immediately gave a Root ninja a look.
Koharu was currently temporarily filling Danzo's position. The Root organization was, on the surface, under her command. However, Root was now reduced to just a few members, most of its ninja having died at Uchiha Akainu's hands. This forced Koharu, upon taking over Root, to draw some ninja from the Utatane clan to fill in.
Koharu Utatane's glance was immediately understood by the Root ninja. He stepped forward, attempting to forcibly pull Naruto Uzumaki away. Naruto, startled, instinctively recoiled half a step, and then, he suddenly bared his teeth at the man. A sudden surge of inexplicable irritation and malice welled up within Naruto, confusing even himself.
In the next second, a hand suddenly reached out and grabbed the Root ninja's hand.
Koharu Utatane, about to erupt in anger, froze, and Fugaku Uchiha reacted the exact same way. Uchiha Akainu's reaction, however, was completely opposite. He didn't look at the hand that suddenly appeared but gazed at Naruto's small back. He narrowed his eyes, keenly noticing that the hair on the back of Naruto's head was slowly moving, even without wind! This made Uchiha Akainu thoughtful.
"...Grandpa Hokage?" Naruto, thinking he was about to be forcibly taken away, looked up in surprise at Hiruzen Sarutobi, his face stained with tears.
"...Hiruzen?!" Koharu Utatane's shock was evident; this was a situation she hadn't anticipated at all.
"Hokage-sama?" Fugaku also looked dazed, because he clearly saw that the hand gripping the Root ninja's arm was none other than the Hokage-sama's right hand!
Under everyone's watchful eyes, Hiruzen Sarutobi remained silent for a long moment. He released his hand, half-squatted, and reached out to Naruto.
Naruto hesitated, but didn't dodge. Hiruzen Sarutobi then gently stroked Naruto's hair. He forced a faint smile and slowly said, "Naruto, the old man can temporarily put aside some public affairs today and join you in upholding justice for the innocents killed by the murderer."
"Grandpa Hokage..." Naruto felt the inexplicable irritation and malice within him subside somewhat.
"Hiruzen, what are you doing?!" Koharu Utatane was momentarily unable to comprehend Hiruzen Sarutobi's reasoning. She urgently said, "Naruto Uzumaki, he..."
But before Koharu could finish speaking, she was firmly cut off by Hiruzen Sarutobi. "Naruto is willing to try to gain the village's recognition this way; this is a good thing. Koharu, let's put this matter aside for now. You can take your Root ninja and leave."
Koharu Utatane: "???"
As her mind struggled to process this, Hiruzen Sarutobi slowly stood up. For some reason, Koharu noticed that the Hiruzen in front of her seemed to let out a slight sigh of relief. She saw Hiruzen Sarutobi turn to face her, his mouth opening and closing silently.
Koharu Utatane's pupils slightly constricted, because she understood his lips—Naruto, almost went berserk!!!
Koharu Utatane gasped. She looked at the now docile Naruto in disbelief. Then she couldn't help but look at Uchiha Akainu with an incredulous expression.
To make a jinchuriki nearly go berserk, it meant Naruto Uzumaki's emotional fluctuations just now must have reached their peak, right? Even when Naruto was crying aggrievedly earlier, although his emotions were intense, there were no signs of him going berserk. But why did he nearly go berserk just by the attempt to forcibly take him away?
What exactly did Uchiha Akainu say to Naruto Uzumaki? Is such extreme [Absolute Justice] that attractive?
These two had only known each other for less than half a day, right? And Naruto Uzumaki was already so eager for [justice]?
Koharu Utatane didn't understand!!!
Not just Koharu Utatane, Hiruzen Sarutobi couldn't understand either. He even wondered if Naruto had fallen under a genjutsu? Had Akainu used his Mangekyo to control the jinchuriki?
Of course, this suspicion lasted only a second before he dismissed it. Even though Hiruzen Sarutobi's views on Uchiha Akainu were now largely different from before, one view remained unchanged. That was—Akainu never played mind games. If he had truly used Mangekyo genjutsu to control Naruto, Akainu would even openly admit it.
Facing a potentially berserk Naruto, Hiruzen Sarutobi, at this moment, could only compromise with Naruto. Deep down, Hiruzen had a thought he didn't want to admit: that this was also a compromise with Uchiha Akainu.
Fugaku: "..."
Fugaku found himself unable to interject. A minute ago, he was firmly siding with the Hokage-sama, decisively rejecting Naruto Uzumaki's "nonsense," hoping that such an action would make the Hokage-sama and Koharu-sama understand that the Uchiha clan had no designs on the jinchuriki. If this pressure could also suppress Uchiha Akainu, it would be killing two birds with one stone. At least it could make Akainu calm down for a while.
But who would have thought?
While he was acting tough in front of Akainu, even taking decisive action against his own clan member to prevent the Uchiha clan from being misunderstood by the higher-ups... it was the Hokage-sama who "surrendered" first, who "softened" first.
Fugaku couldn't help but look at Koharu Utatane. He found that this Konoha elder councilor, who had been constantly bickering with Akainu and acting extremely rigid, now merely gave Akainu a deep glance. Then she obeyed the Hokage-sama's order and left directly with the Root ninja, leaving only a group of Anbu ninja behind.
Fugaku: "???"
No...
Hiruzen Sarutobi "compromised," Koharu Utatane "left."
So, what should he, who had been so "tough," do now?
Fugaku realized he was in an awkward spot! He wondered if he should be grateful that there were no other Military Police Force ninja in the morgue besides himself and Akainu. Otherwise, the last shred of authority he, the Uchiha clan leader, held within the Uchiha clan would have completely vanished.
When Fugaku shifted his rigid gaze to Uchiha Akainu, he found that Akainu wasn't even using this vulnerability against him. He just had a feeling that Akainu hadn't even given him a direct look!
"Um..." Naruto didn't know how dramatically the thoughts of everyone present were fluctuating. After vigorously wiping away his tears, he excitedly told Uchiha Akainu, "Grandpa Hokage agreed to let me stay for now to find the murderer! And Grandpa Hokage is even going to perform justice with us!"
Uchiha Akainu, however, coldly said, "If you are willing to embrace justice, then you should be ashamed of this."
Naruto immediately looked bewildered.
Uchiha Akainu continued, "Because this is 'evil' realizing that you possess a power it cannot control, and thus it is forced to reluctantly compromise with justice, putting on a nauseating facade of justice, and openly declaring that it will execute justice with you."
"Conversely, this also means that if justice lacks sufficient power, 'evil' won't even bother with a facade of justice. It will trample on justice freely."
Hiruzen Sarutobi: "???"
Though not explicitly named, Hiruzen felt that Akainu was talking about him, that he, the Hokage, was "evil"!
Naruto, who was somewhat bewildered, took a while to slowly grasp what was being said. He was shocked. "Grandpa Hokage is a bad guy???"
Naruto was good at grasping the main point.
Hiruzen Sarutobi suddenly felt his blood pressure surge. He found Naruto's "straying" unbelievable. The old man compromised and comforted you to appease you, practically sacrificing his old dignity, just to finally regain your trust!
And when the roles are swapped with Akainu... you believe him after just a few words?!
"Naruto, you've misunderstood. Akainu isn't talking about the old man." Hiruzen Sarutobi's usually benevolent face looked exceptionally stiff as he told Naruto, "As the Hokage of Konoha, I've inherited Konoha's most excellent Will of Fire! How could I be a bad guy?"
"He didn't misunderstand." Uchiha Akainu's short sentence choked back any other words Hiruzen Sarutobi had in his throat.