"Hahaha, I'm finally out!"
Sarutobi Shōtarō walked along the path, taking in the surrounding scenery and feeling wonderful.
Yesterday, he had truly thought he was going to die. He had even lost control of his bladder and wet himself.
Fortunately, his uncle, the Hokage, had stepped in and saved him.
"Damn you, Uchiha Jin!"
Veins bulged on Sarutobi Shōtarō's forehead. Just thinking about that bastard infuriated him.
Even now, he still did not understand how the other man had known he was a murderer.
Had he figured it out just by glancing at him in the crowd?
What a load of bullshit!
Worst of all, the bastard had been determined to kill him!
Sarutobi Shōtarō could swear he had never provoked Uchiha Jin. There had never been any bad blood between them, old or new. He truly could not understand why Jin kept sinking his teeth into him like a rabid dog.
He would not even show his uncle, the Hokage, any respect. Could it really have been for the sake of so-called justice?
What a joke!
He was an elite among Chunin, a genius who believed he could become a Jonin in just a few more years.
How could the lives of a few ordinary people compare to his?
They were dead. Why should he have to pay with his life?
Fortunately, things had worked out in the end. Unable to withstand his uncle's pressure, the Uchiha Clan had held a clan meeting and unanimously decided to release him.
His uncle had already arranged the rest of his life for him.
His undercover assignment would take him to the Land of Hot Water.
It was a country with lovely scenery and a thriving tourism industry, one that had seen no war in all these years.
Being sent there meant Sarutobi Shōtarō would simply be enjoying life.
The spy mission was just the official excuse.
He was the Hokage's nephew, after all. Even if he had made a little mistake, they would hardly send him off to die.
Once a few years had passed and things had blown over, he could return to Konoha.
"You bastard, just you wait!"
The moment Sarutobi Shōtarō thought of Uchiha Jin's face, fury flared in his heart.
After reaching the Land of Hot Water, he would train twice as hard. When he returned to the village, he had to take revenge on that bastard!
"Where are you going?"
In the tree directly ahead, a boy sat on a branch, propping his chin on one hand as he watched him. A black cat lay on his shoulder, and a black ninja blade hung at his waist.
Sarutobi Shōtarō's pupils instantly widened at the sight of him, and terror appeared on his face.
"Y-you..."
He raised a hand to point at the young man, his legs trembling uncontrollably.
"Uchiha Jin, what are you doing here?!"
The instant he saw him, a bad feeling rose in his heart.
Why had this guy appeared on the very route he had to take out of the village?
He dared not think any further...
Uchiha Jin leaped down from the tree, landed on the ground, and slowly approached, his right hand gradually closing around his sword hilt.
"Did you think you would be safe once you left Konoha?"
With every step he took forward, Shōtarō took a frightened step back.
"I enforce the village's laws. Your brutal murder of civilians was an unspeakable crime, and by rights, you should have been publicly executed. Unfortunately, certain factors beyond our control allowed a murderer like you to escape justice."
Uchiha Jin activated his Three-Tomoe Sharingan and slowly drew the tachi at his waist.
"Though darkness has shrouded the village's light, I will cut through that darkness and restore the light."
Sarutobi Shōtarō's back hit a tree. Only when he could retreat no farther did he scream at the top of his lungs.
"Uchiha Jin, you can't kill me!"
Panicking, he pulled the undercover spy appointment letter issued by the Hokage from his clothes.
"I'm a spy dispatched by the village to infiltrate an enemy country! If you kill a fellow villager without authorization, are you trying to betray the village?!"
He knew he was no match for the Uchiha before him.
An Uchiha genius whose reputation rivaled Water of the Body Flicker Technique was not someone a mere Chunin like him could contend with.
All he could do now was invoke his uncle, the Hokage, and make Jin realize the seriousness of the situation.
His current identity was not that of a murderer, but a spy earning merit to atone for his crimes!
Swish!
Cold steel flashed, and the document in Sarutobi Shōtarō's hand was sliced in two.
Uchiha Jin remained expressionless, his three tomoe fixed firmly on him.
"Sorry, I can't read."
Sarutobi Shōtarō: "???"
Though the situation was extremely dangerous, he still could not resist calling him out.
"That's fucking bullshit!"
How could this guy possibly be illiterate?!
Even a dead-last student at the Ninja Academy, the sort who scored five points in academic classes-
At most, that would mean they struggled to learn. Surely it would not mean they could not read.
This guy was even resorting to such an absurd excuse just to kill him.
What an absolute bastard!
"Sarutobi Shōtarō, your murder of Konoha civilians is an established fact. Under the laws drafted by the First Hokage and refined by the Second Hokage, your crimes are extremely serious. As a Jonin of this village and a member of the Konoha Military Police Force, I have the authority to execute you on the spot!"
Uchiha Jin ignored his protest and proceeded to pronounce Shōtarō's crimes.
He had strictly consulted the village's laws before killing.
After all, his strength had not yet reached the point where he could disregard the Hokage.
With proper justification, even if he killed Shōtarō-
Hiruzen Sarutobi would have little to say afterward.
Unless he dared disregard the laws laid down by the First and Second Hokage.
But that was clearly impossible...
"Bastard!"
Realizing that invoking his uncle, the Hokage, was useless, Sarutobi Shōtarō drew a kunai from the ninja tool pouch at his waist and charged at Uchiha Jin through gritted teeth.
It was not as though a Chunin had never killed a Jonin before.
Perhaps he could work a miracle today!
The Uchiha Jin before him was only a brat of about ten. Those battlefield honors might well have been an Uchiha fabrication.
The kunai stabbed straight toward Uchiha Jin's chest, but he easily sidestepped it.
Then cold steel flashed.
The sharp tachi sliced clean through Sarutobi Shōtarō's right hand, which held the kunai.
Blood sprayed.
"Aaah! My hand..."
The intense pain sent him to his knees, clutching his severed arm and howling. In a single instant, he had lost all ability to fight.
Clearly, Shōtarō's combat experience was nothing special.
Other Chunin would not have left such a huge opening even if their arms had been cut off.
After all, a person could survive without a hand, but leaving an opening because of a severed hand could truly cost them their life!
It seemed this guy had never experienced brutal fighting on the battlefield.
Most likely, he had followed behind his clansmen, or simply carried out missions that were not dangerous.
His father was the Sarutobi Clan's Great Elder, and his uncle was the Third Hokage. He still enjoyed that much privilege on the battlefield.
"If you think your powerful connections can get you off the hook after committing a crime..." Uchiha Jin laid his tachi across Shōtarō's neck. "Then I can show you the truth: justice might be late, but with me here, it will never fail to arrive!"
"Please, don't kill me..."
Sarutobi Shōtarō raised his head, tears and snot smeared all over his face.
"My father is the Sarutobi Clan's Great Elder, and my uncle is the Hokage. As long as you let me go, I'll agree to any condition..."
"I have only one condition."
At those words, hope for survival flared within Sarutobi Shōtarō.
"Whatever it is, I'll agree!"
Uchiha Jin tightened his grip on the hilt. "You must pay the price you deserve."
Just then, Hiruzen Sarutobi hurried over with the Anbu, followed by Uchiha Fugaku and members of the Konoha Military Police Force.
Seeing the situation before him, he anxiously shouted for him to stop.
"Jin, stop right there!"
Shhk-
The sound of a blade piercing flesh rang out.
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