Absolute Justice: Uchiha’s Crusade

While the Hawk Faction was arguing—

The moderate faction, who advocated for peaceful coexistence with the village, had gone directly to Uchiha Fugaku to question him.

"Clan Head Fugaku, is it true?" they asked.

Fugaku's expression darkened slightly.

He had no idea who had leaked the incident from that morning.

Of course, he had already taken note of the wave of public uproar rising within the Uchiha clan—but stepping in to stop it himself would only confirm the rumor.

Yet, if he didn't step in, there was a high chance the rumor would spread beyond the Uchiha compound—into the village itself.

This left Fugaku torn.

Could it have been Keizumi who spread what happened this morning?

But—

That would be completely out of character for Keizumi, who was normally reserved and taciturn.

Had he changed?

Or was it... someone else?

"It's just hearsay,"

Fugaku said after a long pause, ultimately still choosing to protect his eldest son.

His face was stern as he spoke slowly, "Itachi would never do such a thing—not now, and not in the future. For the Uchiha clan to continue living in peace with the village, we must remain united. Don't let yourselves be misled by those with ill intentions. I vouch for Itachi—on my name as clan head."

The elder from the moderate faction shook his head and sighed.

"I hope you've made the right choice, Clan Head Fugaku."

…

Noon.

Ninja Academy.

Uchiha Sasuke had just finished his lunch in the first-year classroom when he suddenly noticed several students entering the room, eyeing him strangely.

They appeared to be whispering among themselves...

...and discreetly pointing fingers at him.

Sasuke frowned. He was just about to go ask them what was going on—

when one of them stepped forward on their own.

"Sasuke-kun," one of them asked hesitantly,

"Is it true that your brother, Uchiha Itachi… killed everyone in your clan?"

Sasuke: "???"

Sasuke's face visibly registered a flicker of shock.

Immediately afterward, a surge of inexplicable irritation welled up inside him.

He stood up at once, forcing himself to adopt the standard Uchiha stoic expression, his gaze locking sharply onto the other boy.

Furrowing his brow, Sasuke demanded, "What nonsense are you spouting? Are you trying to slander the Uchiha Clan?!"

Sasuke wouldn't allow anyone to speak ill of his older brother.

And as the top student of the first-year class at the Academy, as the second son of the Uchiha Clan head, Sasuke's sudden shift into this serious demeanor was enough to intimidate the group of Academy kids in front of him.

One of them timidly answered, "That's just what people are saying outside! Someone said… Uchiha Itachi killed everyone in the Uchiha Clan. Old or young, he didn't spare anyone."

Sasuke: "...???"

Just as he was about to respond, a sudden cry rang out from the classroom doorway. Haruno Sakura came rushing in.

She ran straight to Sasuke's side, flustered and breathless. "Sasuke, everyone's saying something happened to the Uchiha Clan!"

Another girl ran in right after—it was Yamanaka Ino. She shoved Sakura aside and said anxiously, "Sasuke-kun! Someone said your parents… your parents were killed by your brother, Uchiha Itachi."

A surge of anxiety gripped Sasuke.

His expression shifted slightly.

One absurd rumor after another entered his ears, and Sasuke was gradually beginning to realize—something really might have happened at home.

But it was just too ridiculous!

Killing the entire clan? Killing their parents? There's no way his brother could've done something so monstrous. To Sasuke, his brother was the kindest Uchiha of all.

It was simply impossible!

Even though his mind was overwhelmed with disbelief, Sasuke couldn't control his legs. Ignoring the gazes of the other Academy students, he bolted straight out of the classroom and out of the Academy.

His instincts, along with a deep sense of panic and dread, drove him to race toward the Uchiha Clan compound.

"It can't be true…"

"My brother…?"

"There's no way it's true!"

…

By the time Sasuke had run himself breathless, he could hear the whispers more clearly—rumors about the Uchiha Clan were indeed spreading like wildfire, and they were getting more and more outrageous.

He even vaguely caught someone saying that Uchiha Sasuke had also been killed by Uchiha Itachi.

Wait a second—

If Uchiha Sasuke had been killed too… then who the hell was he?

"Damn rumors…"

Sasuke no longer had the energy to argue with those who spoke ill of his brother. All he could think about now was hurrying back to the Uchiha Clan compound.

Strangely enough—maybe just a coincidence—he hadn't encountered a single Uchiha Police Force shinobi along the way.

That only made the unease in his chest grow stronger.

Then, out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly caught sight of two shinobi up ahead, dressed in the uniform of the Uchiha Police Force.

Sasuke's eyes lit up instantly.

A bit of relief washed over him.

At the very least, it meant some of those outrageous rumors weren't true—there were still Uchiha shinobi alive.

"No… that's not right!" Sasuke shook his head quickly. What am I even thinking? It's not just that some of the rumors are false—all of them must be false!

"Hey! Please… wait!!!"

Seeing the two Uchiha officers about to turn and leave, Sasuke rushed forward and shouted after them.

It seemed they heard him.

Both of them stopped in their tracks.

Sasuke took the opportunity to run over. The moment he stopped, he braced his hands against his knees, panting heavily. Sweat soaked his forehead—he was clearly exhausted.

After a long breath, he finally looked up and hurriedly asked, "I heard people in the village spreading rumors about our Uchiha Clan… Can you tell me what's really—"

His words came to an abrupt halt.

He recognized one of the two officers—it was Uchiha Keizumi, the very man his mother had once warned him to avoid whenever possible.

A sudden wave of nervousness surged in Sasuke.

He remembered that after his brother Itachi returned to the village, Sasuke had once asked him why their mother didn't want him interacting with Keizumi.

And Itachi had explained the conflict he once had with Uchiha Keizumi—something that had deeply shocked the young Sasuke.

From that point on, Sasuke had instinctively regarded Keizumi as an enemy.

Someone who wanted to hurt his brother.

And if not an enemy, then what?

"Hm? Sasuke-kun?" A vaguely familiar voice came from the other side, and Sasuke turned his head stiffly.

He saw someone he recognized—Uchiha Izumi.

Because his brother had so few friends, Sasuke remembered each one of them clearly.

"Sasuke-kun, it's Thursday today, and classes haven't been dismissed yet. Are you… skipping school?"

Izumi narrowed her eyes playfully, placing a hand on top of Sasuke's head. She ruffled his hair while gently chiding, "Skipping class is a very bad habit, you know. That's how kids go astray—you don't want to turn into a delinquent, do you?"

Sasuke quickly took a step back and ran a hand through his tousled hair, trying to smooth it down. He hurried to explain, "I… I only came back because I heard those rumors. I wanted to see for myself. They said… they said my brother killed everyone in the Uchiha Clan."

Izumi's eyes lit up in realization.

She turned to Uchiha Keizumi beside her and said, "Senpai, even students at the Academy have heard about Uchiha Itachi's future crimes. But the truth gets twisted as it spreads—people add details, exaggerate things, and soon, it turns into outright rumors that no longer match reality."

Sasuke blinked in confusion and quickly asked, "What truth? What do you mean by 'real message'? Is it something about my brother?"

But he soon noticed that the others weren't paying him any attention.

The man called Uchiha Keizumi only glanced at him once before turning his eyes away.

Sasuke followed his gaze and realized it was fixed on an unremarkable-looking Konoha civilian not far ahead.

Then Keizumi spoke in a flat tone, "Someone's been deliberately fanning the flames of negative public opinion against Uchiha Itachi. This whole wave of gossip—it's being used."

Izumi's eyes widened. She asked hesitantly, "Used? Keizumi-senpai… do you mean you've discovered something new?"

She, too, turned to look at the person Keizumi had been watching.

Hmm...

Was there something off about that man?

But Keizumi didn't elaborate. He simply began walking toward the civilian with unhurried steps.

Izumi immediately followed.

Leaving Sasuke standing there, completely dumbfounded.

He looked left. He looked right.

Then fell into hesitation.

Should I go straight back to the Uchiha compound? It would take at least ten more minutes of running. But if he just asked these people, maybe he'd get an answer in a few minutes.

"…Even though Mother said I shouldn't get involved with Uchiha Keizumi, I'm only talking to Uchiha Izumi, right? That should be okay…"

Sasuke gritted his teeth.

Then followed after them.

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