The sprawling capital of the Land of Fire was gripped by fear and unease.
Many of the noble families who had narrowly escaped death realized that as long as they didn't commit evil, they wouldn't cross paths with Uchiha Akainu's wrath or fall victim to his so-called "Absolute Justice" purge.
But the question lingered: who could truly claim to be clean? Who could guarantee their family members were untainted? Who could be certain they wouldn't face his blade? And if a loved one was cut down, who could stay calm and unaffected?
One thing, however, was undeniable…
In just a few days, the capital of the Land of Fire had seen no one dare to commit a single crime.
The reason? One by one, evildoers who had committed countless atrocities were being rooted out by Uchiha Akainu. Those guilty of minor offenses were thrown into prison, while those responsible for heinous acts lost their lives.
Day after day, the capital was washed in blood, the air thick with the stench of it.
It scared the wicked into submission, stripping away their courage to act on their dark desires.
If you ignored the bodies left in Akainu's wake, and the bloodstains that couldn't be scrubbed from the streets, the capital of the Land of Fire was, in a twisted way, experiencing "stable law and order" these past few days!
Stable… to the point where even the Daimyo of the Land of Fire had been killed.
Amid this cloud of fear and dread, Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, was in a foul mood. Rumors and whispers about him were starting to spread through the capital.
Not long after witnessing the Daimyo's burial, an Anbu ninja rushed to report to him: "Lord Hokage, these are the 'conspiracy theories' about you that we've gathered from the streets over the past few days. As you suspected, many believe this incident is tied to you."
Hiruzen's eyelid twitched. It took all his mental preparation to accept the intelligence report from the Anbu.
One glance at it nearly made him faint.
The parchment was filled with damning words, each one more shocking than the last.
—"The Daimyo's death is definitely connected to the Hidden Leaf! Isn't that Uchiha Akainu a Leaf ninja? How could he storm the Daimyo's mansion alone? There must've been other Leaf ninja helping him from the inside. Didn't the Third Hokage himself show up at the mansion?"
—"I heard the Third Hokage is some kind of ninja legend… a legend that betrays the Daimyo? That's a first. Aren't these ninja getting too dangerous? Have they been plotting this for a while?"
—"Is the Hidden Leaf trying to break free from the Daimyo's control? Is this the ambition of the entire village, or just the Hokage's personal scheme?"
—"They say the Hokage's second son is one of the Daimyo's Twelve Guardian Ninja! The Hokage's been planting his pieces in the Daimyo's mansion for ages. This was all planned!"
—"The Daimyo's eldest son is staying quiet and swallowing his pride. Is he being threatened by the Hokage too?"
—"The Hokage's trying to seize power!"
"Outrageous! Absolutely outrageous!" Hiruzen muttered repeatedly, pacing back and forth in agitation. The words on the report made his old face flush with shame and his conscience sting.
The problem was… these were baseless conspiracy theories! Hiruzen Sarutobi had no such intentions! This had nothing to do with him! He'd rushed to the capital with his Anbu not to conspire with Uchiha Akainu, but for entirely different reasons.
He was innocent!
For the first time, Hiruzen felt a flicker of fear. He finally understood the crushing weight of public opinion that Shisui's father, Sakumo Hatake, had endured years ago. And these rumors were still somewhat restrained, born out of fear of the "scheming Hokage." If people had spoken more boldly…
Hiruzen shuddered to think he might have contemplated suicide to prove his innocence.
Thankfully, he quickly dismissed such irrational thoughts.
"Can we control the rumors?" Hiruzen asked, desperation creeping into his voice as he turned to the Anbu for advice.
One of them replied, "Lord Hokage, some of the conspiracy theories about you have already spread beyond the capital. The capital is far larger than the Hidden Leaf, and controlling the spread of rumors here is several times—maybe even ten times—harder than in the village."
"Plus, this isn't the Hidden Leaf. Even if we tried to suppress the rumors, we'd need the Daimyo's mansion's support. But…" The Anbu hesitated before continuing, "Right now, the Daimyo's mansion would likely side with Uchiha Akainu over you."
"And if Akainu gets involved, there's no way we can control the rumors."
Hiruzen fell silent.
The name "Uchiha Akainu" wasn't just a nightmare for the people of the capital.
It was his nightmare too.
Meanwhile, elsewhere…
"Kunai," Uchiha Akainu said simply, his voice cold.
Mitarashi Anko quickly pulled a kunai from the bundle she was holding and handed it to him.
She watched as Akainu discarded a dull blade and, with the new one, swiftly beheaded another evildoer without hesitation.
"Four thousand seven hundred fifty-six…"
"And the eleventh kunai…"
Anko swallowed hard, silently tallying the numbers.
She thought she'd have grown numb to Akainu's extreme actions by now, but as the body count and the number of dulled kunai kept rising, she realized "numbness" was impossible.
Every day, she was shocked anew, her mind reeling from the constant psychological blows.
Numb? Not a chance.
Following Akainu, she'd seen countless villains she'd never encountered before and heard of vile deeds she couldn't have imagined. Some of their crimes were so revolting that even thinking about them now made her stomach churn and gave her nightmares.
Over time, Anko's perspective began to shift.
"Maybe… these people really don't deserve to live in the ninja world. Their existence only taints this land, and their twisted minds only spread more evil…"
Staring at the headless corpse before her, the Anko of a few days ago would've been confused. Now? She thought they got what they deserved.
The nauseating crimes of these villains had stripped away any shred of sympathy she might have had. No matter how much they begged or cried in their final moments, she felt no mercy.
But then, a wave of uncertainty hit her. She glanced at the bundle of kunai in her arms, then at her own hands, her eyes filled with confusion and fear.
"What… what evil have I done for Orochimaru? Am I like these people? Have I hurt others? Do I even deserve to live in this ninja world?"
Question after question gnawed at her conscience.
She knew she was Orochimaru's disciple, but he'd erased parts of her memory to protect his secrets. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't recall what she might have done.
"If your crimes were as grave as those I've killed," Uchiha Akainu's voice cut through her thoughts, low and chilling, "you'd already be a corpse waiting for the worms."
His words snapped Anko out of her spiral.
Right! If she were truly that kind of monster, how could she still be alive?
Taking a deep breath to steady herself, Anko found the courage—somehow—to ask her fearsome old classmate from the Ninja Academy, "Akainu, you're going to find Orochimaru and kill him, right?"
"I can't remember those things, but…"
"I will," Akainu interrupted coldly.
The events in the Land of Fire's capital inevitably reached the Hidden Leaf, and Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu could no longer keep them under wraps.
Suppressing the news now would only make it look like they were hiding something.
At the Nara clan's compound, the leaders of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio—Nara, Yamanaka, and Akimichi—gathered.
"Uchiha Akainu has really done something earth-shattering," Nara Shikaku said, his eyes wide with awe. He sipped his tea to calm himself before continuing, "Shikaku, I'm starting to truly respect his 'Absolute Justice.' He's not messing around when it comes to justice in the ninja world."
"He killed the Daimyo of the Land of Fire and wiped out nearly every noble in the capital. I heard he even cleaned out Tanigakure Street from top to bottom."
The shock in Shikaku's eyes was hard to suppress.
Akimichi Choza mused, "Shikaku, could this spell trouble for our Ino-Shika-Cho clans? Akainu's made enemies of every noble—won't we get dragged into this?"
Shikaku shook his head. "If it were trouble, I wouldn't be praising his 'Absolute Justice.'"
He explained, "Akainu's overwhelming power has silenced anyone in the capital who might oppose him. Even the Daimyo's eldest son gave up on avenging his father. Do you know what that means, Choza?"
Answering his own question, Shikaku said, "It means the entire upper class of the capital, including the Daimyo's heirs, has chosen to let this go—for now."
"They won't come after Akainu, and they won't drag our clans into it."
Choza rubbed his triple chin thoughtfully. "So, you're saying they're too scared of Akainu to act? They're basically bowing to him?"
Yamanaka Inoichi chimed in, "They just see Akainu as the winner in this conflict, so they're siding with him. The dead Daimyo? He's the loser in their eyes."
His expression darkened as he continued, "But if Akainu's 'Absolute Justice' ever weakens, those same people will turn on him without hesitation and dig up old grudges."
Shikaku smirked. "That's how these 'big shots' play the game. But for now, it's not a bad deal for us."
"Though, the Hokage and his team are probably in for a headache."
"We can't keep this quiet anymore," Homura sighed heavily, standing atop the Hokage Building, looking down at the bustling village below. The faint sounds of shocked gasps and murmurs reached his ears. "In half a day, the whole village will know what Uchiha Akainu did in the capital."
"In a few days, his name and his extreme 'Absolute Justice' will spread across the Land of Fire. It'll reach the ears of spies from other villages, and soon, every ninja village will know."
Beside him, Koharu rubbed her temples, her face grim. "It's not just that kid's reputation. Some of the rumors about Hiruzen have made it to the Leaf too…"
The thought of those absurd rumors made her head throb.
She continued, "Some people think Akainu killed the Daimyo under Hiruzen's orders. To outsiders, that kid's a Leaf ninja. They don't know how much he's at odds with us."
"These rumors, these conspiracy theories—they're bad news for Hiruzen and the Leaf. They'll make people wary of the village and the Hokage."
Koharu gritted her teeth. "That brat's extreme actions have put the Leaf at odds with every noble!"
"Those elites, who control vast resources and influence every corner of the Land of Fire, will never trust us again."
"In their eyes, if we dared to assassinate the Daimyo, what wouldn't we do?"
"The Leaf's reputation has been ruined by him!"
Koharu's tone was thick with frustration, echoing Hiruzen's own fears about the damage these rumors could do.
Homura was equally helpless. "We can't stop the news from spreading, and we can't quash the rumors. Even if the Leaf issues a statement, who's going to believe us?"
"And there's something even more pressing," Homura said gravely. "Once Akainu's 'Absolute Justice' becomes known across the Land of Fire, who knows how many people—especially young ninja, even students at our own academy—will be swayed by his extreme ideals."
"If too many start believing in his black-and-white worldview, the entire Land of Fire could descend into chaos!"
At that, both Homura and Koharu fell silent.
As senior advisors to the Leaf, pointing out problems was their forte. Solving them? That was Hiruzen's job.
If they had to propose a solution…
The only one that came to mind was "kill Uchiha Akainu." But that was the least feasible option.
In the Uchiha clan's compound, many clan members were still reeling from the news that some of their elders, led by Uchiha Setsuna, were planning to impeach their clan leader, Fugaku, and elect a new one.
But then, an even more shocking piece of news hit them.
"The Akainu that Izumi follows… he killed the Daimyo of the Land of Fire because he was corrupt," Uchiha Hazuki said, stunned. She knew Akainu wasn't well-liked among the Uchiha, his actions often seen as extreme.
After meeting him a few times, she'd thought he seemed fairly normal—not as terrifying as the rumors suggested.
But now, she realized she'd been naive.
Killing the Daimyo… that was an event that shook the entire nation!
In the Hokage's eyes, would Akainu be considered a rogue ninja? And since Izumi followed him, would she be labeled a rogue too?
No, killing the Daimyo wasn't just rogue ninja behavior—it was tantamount to treason, wasn't it?
That sounded even worse…
Hazuki began to worry about her daughter.
It was a natural concern for an ordinary Uchiha like her.
At the Police Force headquarters, Fugaku was blindsided. The Uchiha clan was already dealing with internal turmoil—Setsuna and his radical elders were pushing to oust him as clan leader.
And now, Uchiha Akainu had pulled off an even bigger stunt in the capital, leaving Fugaku, as clan leader, reeling.
When he heard the news, his scalp tingled as if pricked by a thousand needles.
"Akainu… that's the Daimyo!"
"The Daimyo… you can't just kill him!"
Fugaku muttered in despair, his eyes vacant as he stared at his desk.
This was it.
The Uchiha clan had no hope of recovery now. No matter how you looked at it, Akainu was still an Uchiha, and the clan hadn't fully distanced itself from him.
By killing the Daimyo, Akainu had made it look like the Uchiha clan's ambitions could no longer be contained.
The Leaf's leadership would surely tie this to the clan, and every other ninja clan would turn against them.
In their eyes, if the Uchiha dared to kill the Daimyo, what was stopping them from targeting the Hokage or other clans? They'd definitely think that way!
Fugaku's usually stoic face twisted in pain.
He'd poured so much effort into ensuring the Uchiha's survival.
Why were Setsuna and Akainu—both of them—burying the clan?
"How did it come to this…" Fugaku whispered, lost in despair.
"Uchiha! Akainu!"
Meanwhile, Uchiha Setsuna was practically exploding with rage.
Breathing heavily, like a bellows, he gripped his wooden cane tightly, his eyes blazing with fury. "That reckless, extreme brat—how dare he? How dare he?"
"How does the Third Hokage even manage him? How could he let that brat kill the Daimyo?"
Huffing and puffing, Setsuna sank into a chair, his face dark as a storm cloud.
"My coup plan relied on gaining the support of the Daimyo and the nobles. If we could oust Hiruzen Sarutobi and secure their backing, the Uchiha could claim the Hokage's seat."
"But now…"
Setsuna's liver practically ached with rage. "That idiot brat, with his extreme 'Absolute Justice,' not only killed the Daimyo but slaughtered countless nobles in the capital! He even wiped out entire families!"
Setsuna couldn't fathom who would support the Uchiha as Hokage after this.
That reckless brat had dragged him down from miles away!