Konoha: Uchiha’s Absolute Justice Chapter 018

When Uchiha Ikeizumi brought up the “Fourth Hokage” who sacrificed himself on the night of the Nine-Tails attack, Sarutobi Hiruzen was startled.

He didn’t expect Uchiha Ikeizumi to mention the Fourth Hokage in front of Naruto.

But then he noticed Naruto bowing his head, not daring to speak, seemingly not having paid attention.

Sarutobi Hiruzen inexplicably breathed a sigh of relief.

He lowered his voice slightly and said, “Ikeizumi, I believe you are well aware of this child Naruto’s special circumstances. Being imprisoned for a mere prank will surely stimulate him.”

“Therefore…”

Sarutobi Hiruzen spoke in a negotiating tone, earnestly saying, “Occasionally giving the village’s young sprouts some room to grow is the perfect embodiment of the Will of Fire in Konoha.”

But Sarutobi Hiruzen found that despite all his earnest words, Uchiha Ikeizumi’s eyes showed not a hint of wavering.

Uchiha Ikeizumi said expressionlessly, “Lord Hokage has already abused his power for personal gain, going against justice, and chose to shield Shimura Danzo, who for some unknown reason possesses the Sharingan power of the Uchiha clan.”

“Now, you wish to continue abusing the Hokage’s power to shield Uzumaki Naruto, a child who should have received proper discipline but was inexplicably left to run wild, leading to a distortion of his values.”

“Lord Hokage’s actions are tantamount to splashing dirty stains upon the very words [Justice].”

Sarutobi Hiruzen: “!!!”

Sarutobi Hiruzen felt that he had been insulted, and directly to his face.

However.

The amount of information contained in Uchiha Ikeizumi’s words was too vast, so vast that Sarutobi Hiruzen’s eyes grew serious.

“Ikeizumi, what do you mean by Danzo’s Sharingan?”

Sarutobi Hiruzen immediately changed the subject and asked.

Uchiha Ikeizumi unhesitatingly exposed Danzo’s secret, saying in a cold tone, “He used the secret Sharingan technique ‘Izanagi’ when he fought me.”

“Why does Shimura Danzo, who is not of the Uchiha clan, possess the Uchiha Sharingan? Why does he use the forbidden secret technique of the Sharingan? Lord Hokage, it’s very ‘hard’ to guess!”

Sarutobi Hiruzen’s expression subtly changed.

He knew that Danzo had secretly conducted many human experiments with Orochimaru, and he also knew that Danzo had researched the Wood Release bloodline limit.

But Sarutobi Hiruzen hadn’t expected Danzo to be so obsessed with the Uchiha clan’s Sharingan as well.

Sarutobi Hiruzen recalled Uchiha Shisui, who the village had declared “deceased, but cause of death unknown.”

He had long suspected that Shisui’s “unknown cause of death” was highly likely connected to Danzo’s Root organization.

After all, Shisui’s extremely special Sharingan…

Given Danzo’s personality, he would absolutely not have left it alone.

Sarutobi Hiruzen also remembered that during the Third Shinobi World War, the Sharingan eyes of some fallen Uchiha clan shinobi mysteriously disappeared, suspected of being dug out by enemy village shinobi.

Could it have been Danzo who sent people to secretly dig them out? —A sudden, absurd thought popped into Sarutobi Hiruzen’s mind.

He believed the possibility was extremely high!

He knew Danzo too well; Sarutobi Hiruzen felt that the possibility of Danzo doing such a thing was at least ninety-nine percent or more.

Moreover, this child Ikeizumi had never wronged anyone.

Although some of his methods, and the [Absolute Justice] he believed in, were not entirely agreeable to him, always feeling too extreme.

But that didn’t prevent him from trusting him.

“Ikeizumi, about Danzo… this old man will give you, and the Uchiha clan, an explanation.” Sarutobi Hiruzen’s tone stiffened slightly, and he suddenly felt a hint of guilt regarding “shielding” Danzo.

But in the blink of an eye, the so-called guilt vanished into thin air.

And he vaguely realized that he seemed to have inexplicably acknowledged the “shielding” label that Uchiha Ikeizumi had placed on him?

No!

As Hokage, he was merely trying to prevent infighting among the village’s shinobi; how could it be shielding?

Sarutobi Hiruzen “coughed” and said, “But this child Naruto…”

“No discussion.” Uchiha Ikeizumi, under the watchful eyes of the ANBU shinobi, once again lifted Naruto.

This caused a commotion among the ANBU.

But Uchiha Ikeizumi didn’t care. He looked directly at Sarutobi Hiruzen and said, “I will not let go of Root, which obstructs the execution of justice. In Konoha, either I am not here, or they are not here.”

“I will surely find the location of the ‘Root’ deep within Konoha and thoroughly eliminate the Root, which is filled with darkness and sin, to uphold the belief of [Absolute Justice].”

“You can stop it once, twice… but can you stop it forever?”

Sarutobi Hiruzen: “…”

He felt that his mediation had not successfully resolved the conflict.

Instead, it had escalated the conflict between Ikeizumi and Danzo to the level of the entire Root organization.

Ikeizumi would never speak without cause.

His words meant that he truly intended to destroy Root!

He truly intended to cling to Danzo and not let go!

Sarutobi Hiruzen took a deep breath and glanced at Naruto, who had given up struggling and wore a look of pleading and distress.

He frowned and said, “Ikeizumi, your methods are too extreme. What if this old man, as Hokage, orders you to let go of the conflict with Root, and to let go of Naruto?”

Uchiha Ikeizumi said, “You can try, Third Hokage.”

Clang — Suddenly, an ANBU ninja gently drew his ninja sword an inch.

“Uchiha Ikeizumi, the Hokage-sama’s orders must not be defied.” This ANBU ninja issued a warning: “And you should address him as Hokage-sama, not Third Hokage.”

Uchiha Ikeizumi glanced at him.

[Sarutobi Jō no Otoko — During the Third Shinobi World War, out of selfish anger, he vented his rage on civilians, killing a large number of ordinary enemy townspeople and claiming credit for their deaths.]

The ANBU ninja attempting to draw his sword suddenly felt a chill in his heart.

For some reason, he felt that Uchiha Ikeizumi was looking at him as if he were a dead man.

Uchiha Ikeizumi, still holding Naruto, walked away as if nothing had happened.

“Uchiha Ikeizumi! You—”

“Wait.” Sarutobi Hiruzen stopped the ANBU who wanted to act. He gazed at Uchiha Ikeizumi’s retreating back, his expression subtly shifting, and finally said in a deep voice, “Let him go.”

“Hokage-sama, that’s Uzumaki Naruto…”

An ANBU ninja reminded him.

Sarutobi Hiruzen clasped his hands behind his back and said quietly, “In his eyes, this old man is no different from Danzo. If I stop him again, the object of a physical conflict will become this old man and Ikeizumi. As his strength grows, it will become increasingly difficult for this old man to suppress him.”

The ANBU ninjas were incredulous.

Uchiha Ikeizumi actually wanted to fight Hokage-sama already?

How dare he?

Why dare he?

At this moment, Kakashi, who had been silent, finally spoke: “Hokage-sama, do you already have a plan for the Jinchuriki?”

Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded slightly and said, “Ikeizumi apprehending Naruto is his duty as a member of the Police Force, and it is his right. And this old man, as Hokage, has the power to pardon Naruto.”

“Kakashi, take an ANBU squad and stay behind to handle the aftermath. The rest of you, follow this old man to the Root base!”

“Yes, Hokage-sama!”

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