[Absolute justice] was not [Blind justice]

Uchiha Chisen did not return to the Konoha Military Police Force headquarters with Izumi.

He headed toward the center of power in Konoha-the Hokage Building!

After arriving at the Hokage Building, Uchiha Chisen made his way to the door of the Hokage's Office with practiced ease.

He knocked lightly, and a voice from inside called, "Come in."

Uchiha Chisen pushed the door open and entered.

His movements were far too practiced, as though he did this all the time.

"Chisen..."

Sarutobi Hiruzen looked up and saw a dark-haired young man whose looks stood out even among the Uchiha Clan.

He set down the documents in his hands and sighed. "I've lost count of how many times I've reminded you. You don't always need to use such ruthless methods. Law enforcement should have strength, but it should have warmth, too."

"The Shinobi World War ended years ago. These aren't exceptional times, and everyone is looking forward to a brighter future. The Uchiha Clan could afford to ease up a little when enforcing the law."

After this earnest admonition, he asked, "What happened this time to cause such a stir?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen did not mention the complaints filed against Uchiha Chisen.

He knew Uchiha Chisen would not care even if he brought them up.

After all, he had watched this child grow up. Once he noticed how utterly different the boy was from the other Uchiha, Sarutobi Hiruzen had made a point of interacting with him frequently.

He believed he understood Uchiha Chisen all too well.

Yet, for some reason, Sarutobi Hiruzen always felt there was something a little strange about the way this child looked at him.

Hmm...

Surely I'm imagining things?

Uchiha Chisen shifted his unreadable gaze away from the red box above Sarutobi Hiruzen's head. Meeting his eyes, he said, "A Konoha civilian, Akiyama Jiro, drunkenly assaulted his own four-year-old child two days ago after losing at gambling, killing the child. The victim's body is being brought back to the police force."

Sarutobi Hiruzen knitted his brows. "A murder, then..."

He did not even question the truth of Uchiha Chisen's words.

Sarutobi Hiruzen exhaled and said patiently, "Chisen, the next time you encounter something like this, you should let the Land of Fire's legal statutes serve as your weapon for punishing criminals."

"Your decision to take it upon yourself to deal harshly with offenders has upset a great many people. Sometimes, even I, Konoha's Hokage, struggle to silence those complaints."

Uchiha Chisen replied expressionlessly, "Lenient laws only become instruments of murder that enable evil. Only [absolute justice] can sweep away every monster and villain."

Sarutobi Hiruzen was momentarily at a loss for words.

He gave a wry chuckle. He, too, seemed to have forgotten just how many times Uchiha Chisen had retorted like this.

"Lord Hokage."

Before turning to leave, Uchiha Chisen told Sarutobi Hiruzen, "You were wrong about something else, too. My law enforcement has always had warmth-as blazing hot as the lava in a volcano."

With that said,

he left without even taking his leave of Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Sarutobi Hiruzen: "..."

As blazing hot as volcanic lava? Doesn't that mean anyone it touches dies?

Right!

Sarutobi Hiruzen suddenly remembered that there was something more important he had wanted to ask Uchiha Chisen. He had actually intended to find out what Chisen thought about the increasingly intense rebellious sentiment within the Uchiha Clan.

"Never mind..."

Sarutobi Hiruzen had a feeling that, before long, Uchiha Chisen would visit the Hokage's Office again for the very same reason.

After leaving the Hokage Building, Uchiha Chisen stopped by the Konoha Military Police Force.

He did not see Izumi.

Suddenly, a curious voice came from one side. "Chisen, that Recruitment Assessment candidate you're supervising... the one called Uchiha Izumi. Is she still alive?"

The young girl, Uchiha Izumi, was actually quite well known within the Uchiha Clan.

As the only half-blood Uchiha, she was something of a rarity.

Uchiha Chisen glanced over and saw that the speaker was another member of the Konoha Military Police Force. The face seemed familiar, but he could not remember the person's name.

"Alive."

His answer was brief and to the point.

That single word seemed shockingly unexpected. Quite a few nearby members of the Konoha Military Police Force turned to look at him in surprise.

Whispered discussions gradually rose around him.

"Hey, seriously? I remember Chisen supervised two candidates before. Those two poor bastards... he killed one on the first day for disobeying his orders. The other supposedly awakened their Sharingan from the shock on the first day of the assessment, but it also triggered a severe mental illness."

Clearly, this person lacked a proper understanding of the Uchiha Clan's hereditary mental illness.

"Tsk, how unusual! Could that half-blood Uchiha Genin be a newcomer with some real 'potential'?"

"She's only survived today. Maybe she'll be killed tomorrow."

"Come to think of it... Uchiha Chisen killed a fellow clan member. Why did the clan head let such terrible conduct slide? He even let the guy keep serving as a police force Ninja."

"I heard they found out that the clan member he killed had done something unspeakable. But the clan head suppressed the news. Only he and Uchiha Chisen probably know what actually happened."

"Tch. Some loser died, so what? What's there to discuss?"

"..."

The whispered discussion stirred no emotion in Uchiha Chisen.

He merely swept a brief glance over his colleagues, his gaze lingering on the white boxes floating above their heads.

[Uchiha Kaede-Nine days later, while apprehending a thief, will secretly pocket the stolen goods and submit a falsified case report to the police force. Sin level: white name!]

[Uchiha Rei-Three days later, will engage in an adulterous relationship with the husband of colleague Uchiha Momoha. Sin level: white name!]

[Uchiha Natsuki-Half a month later...]

[...]

Among these members of the Konoha Military Police Force—and even among all the Ninjas in Konoha—he saw only a tiny minority without a white name or red name hanging above their heads.

They were so few that they might account for only a little over thirty percent of the village's Ninjas.

However, [Absolute justice] was not [blind justice], nor was it the sort of twisted justice that would slaughter everyone in the shinobi world without leaving a single survivor.

Even if he knew someone might fall into the abyss of "evil" because of some event in the future, Uchiha Chisen was not so foolish as to consider snuffing out their life before it happened.

Past experience had taught him that future misdeeds were not set in stone. They could change when certain intervening events occurred.

As for why he had such peculiar experience...

Well, growing up always involved some trial and error.

Though Uchiha Chisen felt no stir of emotion, his earlier glance still made the group's whispers grow quieter and quieter.

Eventually, these members of the Konoha Military Police Force stopped whispering altogether, their expressions turning uneasy.

They did not know why... but they felt as though needles were prickling their backs!

As though something had set its sights on them.

"Ch-Chisen!" The girl's breathless, weary voice suddenly drew closer from the distance.

"I..."

"I brought the body back!"