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NAJ Chapter 16: Justice Without Privilege
🕑 Added 2025-06-03 02:06:19 +0000 UTC"Fugaku-sama. The matricide case involving the Gekkō Clan has been concluded. Gekkō Hayate, the last direct descendant of the clan, has accepted the Police Force's judgment."
Inside the office, a member of the police force was giving Uchiha Fugaku a report on the case.
"Furthermore, Gekkō Hayate stated that the clan will not pursue the legitimacy of Uchiha Keizumi’s actions during the enforcement. However, he does request that the case details not be made public."
"It seems he wants to preserve a bit of dignity for his younger brother."
Upon hearing this, Fugaku let out a heavy sigh.
"A murder case involving family always weighs heavily on the heart..." Just as he was about to say more, a soft knock sounded on the door.
"Come i—"
Before he could even finish the word 'in', the door was pushed open.
In that very moment, he didn’t even need to look—he already knew who it was.
After all, even the more aggressive members of the Uchiha clan would at least show him, the clan head, a semblance of respect.
The only one in the entire clan who dared to completely ignore that courtesy was likely Uchiha Keizumi.
And Keizumi didn’t even bother to fake it.
Sure enough—
When Fugaku looked up, he saw Keizumi walking in, trailed by his junior companion, Izumi.
"Keizumi, you—"
“...Huh!?”
Fugaku’s attention was suddenly caught by the blond brat Keizumi was dragging behind him.
There was something oddly familiar about that kid.
He narrowed his eyes—
A flash of shock flickered in his usually composed gaze.
He recognized him.
Keizumi casually tossed Naruto aside. The boy landed squarely on his butt with a painful thump, letting out a yelp of pain.
But worried that his outcry might annoy Keizumi, Naruto hurriedly clamped his hands over his mouth, trembling and too scared to make another sound.
“Keizumi, this child…” Fugaku felt like his brain was about to short-circuit—his scalp tingled.
Never in a million years did he think Keizumi would bring the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki straight into the Uchiha Police Force headquarters!
Fugaku forcibly swallowed the words 'Nine-Tails jinchūriki' and instead asked, "Why did you bring Uzumaki Naruto here?"
The ever-composed head of the Uchiha clan was, at this moment, speaking much faster than usual.
Fugaku had to admit—he’d been caught completely off guard.
The village had long suspected that the Uchiha were somehow involved in the Nine-Tails' rampage years ago.
To dispel that suspicion, Fugaku had gone out of his way to order all clan members to stay far away from the jinchūriki.
He had especially warned his wife not to make contact with Uzumaki Naruto.
After all, his wife and Naruto’s birth mother had been close friends.
He was worried Mikoto might go soft on the boy.
But who would’ve thought...
Despite all his warnings and reminders—he forgot about one person.
Uchiha Keizumi.
Or rather—
Uchiha Keizumi had never cared about his orders in the first place.
“He disrupted Konoha’s public order and interfered with legitimate business operations. In my eyes, that makes him a criminal. Even under Konoha’s lenient legal system, he could still be charged with several offenses. I brought him here because it was my duty.”
Keizumi’s tone was calm and matter-of-fact.
Fugaku: “…”
You might be taking your duty a little too seriously.
“But what about the Hokage—”
Before Fugaku could even finish the sentence, Keizumi smoothly interrupted him, as if it were routine.
“The Hokage knows. So does Root. When I was apprehending Uzumaki Naruto, Danzō brought Root shinobi to interfere with the arrest. I killed two and a half of them.”
Fugaku: “???”
Keizumi continued, “Unfortunately, the Hokage showed up soon after with the Anbu, using his position to shield Shimura Danzō. He also tried to shield Uzumaki Naruto, but the moment he sensed I might turn against him, he backed off—for now.”
Fugaku: “???”
Fugaku could swear the amount of information packed into just a few of Keizumi’s sentences was more than what he'd absorbed in an entire day.
He never would have imagined that the same Uchiha Keizumi who just yesterday caused a huge stir by killing three shinobi from the Gekkō Clan—
Had today created an even bigger mess!!!
Apprehending the jinchūriki, killing Root members, offending Danzō, clashing with the Hokage, and even forcing the Hokage to back down.
And if Fugaku’s instincts were correct—
Keizumi had already made up his mind and was fully prepared for an armed confrontation with the Hokage.
He really dared to fight the higher-ups!!!
He was more extreme than even the hawks within the Uchiha clan!
At least those hawks only pushed Fugaku to secretly plot a coup. But Keizumi? He’d already made the first move.
Fugaku was left speechless for a long time.
His gaze toward Uzumaki Naruto was no longer one of someone looking at a hot potato.
No—this was a red-hot iron ingot.
And the look he gave Keizumi?
Like he was staring at a madman.
Because in Fugaku’s eyes right now...
Not even the wildest Uchiha compared to Keizumi in insanity.
Which raised a terrifying question:
If Keizumi had the guts to bring Naruto here—
Did he, as clan head, have the guts to lock Naruto up in Konoha’s prison?
Fugaku fell silent.
He didn’t know how long he remained that way, nor what calculations ran through his mind, before he finally opened his mouth.
“Keizumi—”
“If you’re going to use your position to obstruct justice and protect Uzumaki Naruto under the guise of favoritism, then I’ll have no choice but to take him directly to Konoha Prison and personally lock him away.”
Keizumi interrupted again without hesitation. “If that’s what you choose to do, then in my eyes, you’re no different from someone who enables evil. You’d be my enemy, too.”
Fugaku: “…”
Well, that left nothing else to say.
...
A few minutes later, only three people remained in the office: Uchiha Fugaku, the Uchiha shinobi who had earlier reported the Gekkō clan case to him, and the boy Uzumaki Naruto, who had been unceremoniously left there by Uchiha Keizumi.
Keizumi and Izumi had already left the Police Force headquarters building.
Fugaku and Naruto now found themselves locked in a silent stare-off.
As he looked at the scruffy, youthful face of the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, Fugaku couldn't help but catch glimpses of the Fourth Hokage—Namikaze Minato.
Back when Minato was alive, the relationship between the Uchiha clan and Konohagakure had been relatively peaceful.
What a pity...
A complex expression flickered in Fugaku’s eyes as he recalled the final few questions he had asked Keizumi just before the latter walked out the door:
“Keizumi, are you truly prepared to face the consequences of throwing Uzumaki Naruto into Konoha’s prison?”
“What you did today—word will spread across the entire village in less than half a day. Everyone will know you brought Naruto into Uchiha territory.”
“And...”
“Are you ready to suppress the restlessness brewing within our own clan?!”
If the hawkish elements within the Uchiha caught wind that the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki was being held inside their compound…
Their ambitions would almost certainly ignite instantly.
Fugaku couldn't guarantee that nothing extreme would happen.
He remembered Keizumi’s blunt reply:
“[Absolute Justice] knows no privilege.”
Fugaku more or less understood what he meant.
—If there truly were radicals within the clan who intended to use the Jinchūriki’s power to commit acts that defiled justice, Keizumi wouldn’t show any mercy for the sake of kinship.
He would strike them down without hesitation.
Just like he did with the Root shinobi.
“Absolute justice…” Fugaku took a deep breath as he stared at Naruto, murmuring to himself, “It really is absolute, isn’t it?”
What shook Fugaku even more was the chilling intel Keizumi had dropped as he left:
—Shimura Danzō had Uchiha Sharingan implanted in his body. And not just one.
—He could even use Izanagi!
This unbelievable revelation sent chills down Fugaku’s spine.
Indeed.
Keizumi had no obligation to keep Danzō’s secrets.
He had simply laid his cards bare.
...
“Evil little Uchiha brat!!!”
Even after returning to the Root base, Danzō couldn’t contain his rage. He was grinding his old teeth so hard it seemed they might shatter.
A brief clash had cost Root two elite members—
And had cost him a fully matured three-tomoe Sharingan. And an ear.
The bandages Danzō used to wrap his head had once been to conceal the implanted Sharingan. Now, they also covered the searing pain that still pulsed from his ear wound.
But what truly rattled him—
Was the terrifying possibility that the enemy had seen through his use of Izanagi.
The implications of his kekkei genkai hunting being exposed… even for someone like Danzō, were daunting.
