Chapter 88: Absolute Justice Knows No Rank or Status (Double Chapter – Subscription Request)

When Uchiha Iizumi pulled his arm free, Nanmu’s eyes had already gone lifeless. He collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut, his chest split nearly in two by a wound so deep it looked like he’d been cleaved at the waist.

Uchiha Iizumi’s expression remained unchanged. This Guardian Ninja Twelve, he thought, felt no stronger than a Root elite Jonin.

His gaze then fell upon the retreating figures ahead—only silhouettes now.

Yes. In the split second Nanmu had attacked Uchiha Iizumi, sheer instinct for survival had sent the loyal retainers scrambling, dragging Yoyoenin Kyosuke away in blind panic.

In just moments, they had already fled over a hundred meters. Their cries echoed through the air, frantic and shrill.

“Murder! Murder! There’s an assassin attacking the envoy sent by the Daimyo to Leaf Village! Help! Someone help!”

“The Uchiha ninja are mad! He’s trying to kill the Daimyo’s son!”

“Where are the Leaf Village shinobi? Hurry! We need help!”

“Where’s the Hokage? Where is the Hokage of Leaf Village?!”

Their voices rose in a cacophony of terror.

They had formed a tight circle around Yoyoenin Kyosuke, pushing him toward the center like a shield. As if their bodies alone could protect the Daimyo’s heir.

“Madman… he’s completely mad…” Yoyoenin Kyosuke’s face was pale, sweat beading down his forehead. As he was shoved forward, stumbling in his flight, he whispered through trembling lips, “How… how could he dare? I’m the Daimyo’s son! Even the Hokage of Leaf Village treats me as a guest of honor. How could a mere Uchiha shinobi… how could he even think of—”

He couldn’t make sense of it. Only one conclusion formed in his mind.

—I’ve met a madman.

Suddenly, Yoyoenin Kyosuke froze.

A head, flying high into the air, appeared in his left field of vision.

Then another—rising from his right.

He recognized both instantly.

His two retainers.

In his panic, he glanced back—only to see two severed necks spurting blood in arcs of over two meters. The crimson spray painted the ground in violent splashes.

Between them stood Uchiha Iizumi, his blade slick with blood. The crimson edge glistened under the sun.

And those twin eyes—burning red, with three tomoe spinning in perfect symmetry—seemed to pierce straight into the soul.

At the very instant Yoyoenin Kyosuke’s terrified gaze met the Sharingan’s, the illusion began.

“Waaahhhhh!!” A scream, higher than any woman’s, tore from his throat. His feet tangled, and he fell flat on his face in a clumsy, desperate tumble.

The other retainers stopped, stunned.

They stared in horror as Yoyoenin Kyosuke sat motionless on the ground, his face twisted in pure terror, screaming at the empty air.

“Don’t come closer! Don’t come near me! It wasn’t me who started the fire! I only sent people to set it! I didn’t know the flames would get out of control! I didn’t know anyone would die!”

“You’re already dead! You’ve been dead for ages!”

“Don’t come! Don’t come! Aaaahhhhh!!”

His behavior was wild—mad, almost. As if he saw things no one else could.

The remaining retainers shivered. For the first time, they witnessed the Daimyo’s son—normally composed and regal—sobbing uncontrollably, tears and snot streaming down his face.

And then, a stench filled the air.

“Lord Kyosuke… he… he’s… he’s wet himself,” one retainer muttered, voice hollow with shock.

…

For no reason he could explain, Hiruzen Sarutobi felt a deep, ominous unease. The moment he realized he was about to meet the Daimyo’s envoy, the dread grew heavier—until it pressed against his chest like a stone.

His mind flashed through possibilities.

—The Fire Country’s annual funding for Leaf Village will be drastically cut.

—The Daimyo is hiring Leaf shinobi for a particularly dangerous mission.

—This “Yoyoenin Kyosuke,” the Daimyo’s second son, might not be the polite young man he’s made himself out to be. Meeting him could turn into an awkward disaster.

—The envoy was attacked.

Hiruzen Sarutobi jolted.

One name shot through his mind.

“Iizumi!”

He finally understood what he’d ignored.

Had the envoy met Iizumi?

That young woman… could she have done something wrong?

She couldn’t have. After all, as the Daimyo’s son, she had everything—why would she ever act out?

But Hiruzen Sarutobi’s face grew stony.

Because he knew—deep down—that was just self-comfort.

He knew full well: the spoiled elite, raised in luxury, never respected the law. Not truly.

Fire Country’s laws?

They were only meant to bind commoners.

“Stay close to me,” Hiruzen Sarutobi said sharply to the two Anbu guarding him. Then, in a blur, he vanished.

When he reappeared, he stood dozens of meters ahead.

The Anbu followed instantly.

Moments later, Hiruzen saw a group of people up ahead.

From the earlier report by the Leaf shinobi, this must be the Daimyo’s envoy.

And in that instant, the last thread of tension snapped in his chest. The heavy stone in his heart dropped into the abyss.

Because he saw Uchiha Iizumi.

His old face darkened instantly.

“…Oh no.”

When he saw the blade in Iizumi’s hand, the last flicker of hope—that she might have just been passing by—was extinguished.

Hiruzen Sarutobi panicked.

“Iizumi! Stop!”

He tried to shout, to warn.

Pfft—

Even from hundreds of meters away, Hiruzen felt it—a phantom sound of a blade severing a head. He saw, in the distance, a young man fall, his head cleaved clean off by a single slash.

The man’s extravagant clothes—so different from the others—left no doubt.

He was the Daimyo’s son.

Hiruzen Sarutobi froze.

He stood stunned, utterly paralyzed. His sprint had stopped mid-step. He was struck dumb.

“…Hokage-sama?” One Anbu swallowed hard, unable to hide his shock.

Hiruzen didn’t answer.

His expression was blank.

“That… that was the Daimyo’s second son!” A raw, ragged whisper escaped his throat, his voice cracked with disbelief. “What… what is he doing?!”

…

“Meow. Newcomer, this is what I meant. To Iizumi-sama, nobility holds no privilege. Iizumi-sama’s Absolute Justice grants no mercy—even to the powerful.”

Tachibana Jiro spoke calmly to Iizumi.

“Whether commoner, shinobi, noble, or Daimyo’s heir—before Iizumi-sama, we are all human. And when humans commit crimes, they must pay the price.”

“Yoyoenin Kyosuke? He committed crimes far beyond mere imprisonment. Death is the verdict of Justice for his sins.”

Izumi had prepared herself.

But even so, she was still stunned.

After all… the target’s identity was too significant.

She had never seen Fire Country’s nobility outside Leaf Village. The most powerful figure she’d ever encountered was the Hokage.

But then she thought: Izumi-san killed the Hokage’s own son. What’s one Daimyo’s heir compared to that?

“Um…?” Izumi turned back, frowning. “Tachibana Jiro-san… did you hear someone shouting ‘Stop!’ behind us?”

Tachibana Jiro didn’t turn.

“Hear it? That was the Third Hokage. He saw Iizumi-sama execute the Daimyo’s son.”

Izumi’s eyes widened.

“Oh… so it was the Hokage—”

“…Huh?!”

She gasped.

“The Hokage saw it all?!”

…

Tick-tock... tick-tock...

A slow, steady rhythm of red droplets rolled down the blade’s edge, landing on the ground, splattering like crimson blossoms.

Yoyoenin Kyosuke’s head lay on the earth, rolling once, then settling. His face was frozen in terror—eyes wide, pupils hollow, still locked in disbelief.

The headless body swayed for a moment, then collapsed entirely.

Blood gushed from the neck, painting the ground in a spreading red stain.

【Ping! You have successfully eliminated a “Red Mark” criminal! Your chakra has been slightly amplified! Congratulations! You’ve obtained: “Gambling Skill” Experience Book ×10!】

“Lord Kyosuke!!” A retainer screamed in disbelief, rushing forward to scoop up the severed head, desperately trying to press it back onto the neck.

Another retainer screamed, his eyes bloodshot, finger trembling as he pointed at Uchiha Iizumi.

“Y-you… you know what you’ve done?! He’s the Daimyo’s second son! The highest-ranking noble in Fire Country! The Daimyo adores him! He’s one of the top candidates to become the next Daimyo!”

“Why… why did you kill him?! Are you trying to start a rebellion against Leaf Village?!”

Uchiha Iizumi gave a light flick of his wrist.

Blood sprayed from the blade.

His voice was calm, flat.

“Justice was carried out by me, not Leaf Village. Who gave you the idea that I acted on behalf of Leaf Village? That I executed this Evildoer for the village?”

He stared ahead, his Sharingan unblinking.

“Arson. Direct murder. Indirect homicide. Murder by drowning. One crime after another. He does not live, Justice cannot be served.”

“Madman… you’re insane!” One retainer screamed, face twisted in anguish. “Even if all these crimes are true, you have no right to kill Lord Kyosuke! The Daimyo’s heir holds the highest authority in Fire Country! Even if he kills, even if he burns… what then?”

“Fire Country law is clear! Nobles are granted exemption from punishment! A minor mistake in youth? A short confinement is all it takes!”

“How dare you kill him? What right do you have? Your Leaf Village shinobi are all mad!”

“Whether the others are mad or not, I know one thing,” Izumi stepped forward, her voice sharp, her silver teeth clenched. “Iizumi-san is the kind of person who has Zetsu in his mind.”

Her pale face flushed with anger—she didn’t even know why.

Especially when she heard, “Nobles are exempt from punishment.”

That sentence ignited her fury.

Her voice rose.

“Ask me what right Iizumi-san has to kill this Evildoer? Then ask me—what right does Fire Country’s law have to pardon a noble who commits evil?”

“Ah… now I understand. That’s why there are so many criminals in the Ninja World, walking free—because it’s become a twisted, accepted norm.”

“I’ll say it for her: Absolute Justice is never bound by Fire Country’s law. It never bows to any noble or privileged class.”

“Absolute Justice knows no rank. If you do evil, you pay. When Justice is absent, someone must stand up—for the victims.”

“You who cling to the Ninja World’s evil… you are the last ones who should question Absolute Justice.”

Her voice cracked from shouting so much.

She blinked, slowly regaining herself.

She glanced up at Iizumi’s profile.

Her mentor showed no reaction.

Izumi realized—he didn’t care. He simply didn’t bother arguing with vermin who wouldn’t listen.

But she felt it was her duty to speak.

Because this wasn’t for the retainers.

It was for the people of Leaf Village.

So more of them could understand her mentor’s Absolute Justice.

She convinced herself.

“Meow. Not bad for a newcomer,” Tachibana Jiro said, eyeing the stunned retainers. “You’re getting closer to meeting Iizumi-sama’s standards.”

“R-really?” Izumi’s anger melted into a shy smile. “I just said what I thought…”

Tachibana Jiro smirked, one eye half-lidded. “Try not to grin like a fool.”

…

At that moment, figures appeared before them—shimmering into view.

Hiruzen Sarutobi and a squad of Anbu had arrived.

In truth, Hiruzen had snapped back to his senses five minutes earlier.

But when he realized it was Uchiha Iizumi ahead, he held back his instinct to confront her.

He had only two Anbu with him.

With so few, he lacked the courage to face her.

He remembered Danzō’s fate.

Even if Hiruzen believed himself innocent, he still sent a signal—summoning nearby Anbu.

Only when a dozen of them gathered did he lead them forward.

Now, the three headless bodies—two in the distance, one on the ground—came into view.

Hiruzen’s eyelids twitched violently.

…

…

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end