Uchiha Chizumi's voice exploded in Izumi's ears like a clap of thunder.
She drew a deep breath, the metallic scent of blood in the air growing ever stronger.
As she rose slowly to her feet, she could still hear the short man at her feet whimpering in pain, his cries weakening by the second.
"I've told you everything … please, save me … I beg you, save me … I don't want to die …"
Izumi pressed her lips together.
For a genin who had graduated from the Academy less than a month ago, the scene before her was far too shocking.
"Where do you live?" Now that she knew this brute had murdered his own daughter, Izumi felt no sympathy. She asked for his address first, determined to locate the child's body.
When the man, barely audible, mumbled out an address, Izumi summoned her courage and turned to Uchiha Chizumi. "Senpai, should we split up? I can take him to Konoha Hospital, and you can go look for the child's body."
Chizumi replied flatly, "Rookie, do you know what sentence Konoha gives for killing someone while drunk?"
Izumi froze. "L–life imprisonment?!"
Chizumi shook his head. "Ten years. After ten years a creature like this walks in the sun again. If he behaves well, he might be out in seven or eight."
"I ask you: does that punishment match the crime?"
Izumi faltered. "Ten years … feels a bit short. It doesn't look like equal retribution at all."
At twelve, the young Uchiha genin's own moral baseline screamed that the sentence was far too lenient.
Was the cost of murder in Konoha really so low?
Or could drunken murder be forgiven?
"Justice that isn't absolute is not justice at all, and evil never gets the punishment it deserves." Chizumi's tone was quiet. "No need to split up, and no need to take him to the hospital. Drag him to the address he just gave."
"Oh, right."
Chizumi retrieved the blood‑stained ninja blade from Izumi, sheathed it, and added, "Remember—drag him. You'll haul this piece of ninja world trash and follow behind me."
Izumi's small face went blank with shock.
This senpai … within the Uchiha clan he must belong to the most extreme faction.
She swallowed hard, her gaze drawn to the short man.
Drag him?
Gulp.
…
Izumi felt immense pressure.
Under the stunned or horrified eyes of villagers and shinobi alike, she clenched her teeth, grabbed the man's collar with both hands, and struggled to keep up with Uchiha Chizumi.
The man's mangled leg scraped along the ground, and he screamed in terror, thrashing.
Izumi's heart ached.
But when she looked at Chizumi‑senpai's tall, unyielding back—and remembered the icy chill of his gaze when she hesitated during the interrogation—
She could only harden her resolve.
She dared not look back; she could only picture the man's crimson blood painting a long straight line along the street.
His struggles grew weaker and weaker.
She felt the fearful stares of nearby villagers, as though she were an accomplice.
The screams faded … and faded …
Until—
Silence.
Startled, Izumi glanced back, then hurriedly called out, "Chizumi-senpai, he's gone into shock!"
Chizumi paused, did not turn, and asked mildly, "Can you wake him?"
"Let me see …"
Izumi carefully checked the man's breath. A chill shot through her. "It's … it's too late. He—he's dead!!!"
Chizumi sighed in regret. "A pity."
Izumi blinked.
He went on, "He died too quickly. Not enough to pay for his sins. My plan was to have you drag him home, fish out the child's body, and execute him in front of it."
"And," Chizumi glanced back, "I intended to let you, the rookie, do it."
Izumi was stupefied.
"S‑senpai …" she murmured. "I've read the Police Force code of conduct. It says we mustn't mete out private punishment to suspects. Hokage-sama added that rule."
Chizumi asked, "Rookie, do you think the lofty Third Hokage represents 'justice'?"
Izumi dared not answer.
Chizumi fixed his gaze on the half‑blood Uchiha girl and said slowly, "If you want to be a good police officer, you must first know who justice's enemies are. Every evil in the ninja world is an enemy of justice."
"The world has been riddled with countless evils. Only by enforcing absolute, thorough justice can we set it straight."
In‑including Hokage-sama?—Izumi only dared think it; she could not voice it.
"Including the Hokage."
The next moment, as though reading her mind, Chizumi spoke the words unflinchingly.
Izumi was stunned speechless.
…
What Izumi did not know was that the instant the short man died of blood loss,
a golden‑finger prompt flashed before Chizumi's eyes:
[Ding! You have slain a "Red‑Name" villain! Chakra slightly increased! Congratulations, you obtained: Gambling‑Skill EXP Book × 2]
[Name: Uchiha Chizumi]
[Age: 18]
[Affiliation: Konoha Uchiha Police Force]
[Rank: Jōnin]
[Kekkei Genkai: Sharingan, Lava Release]
[Taijutsu: Uchiha‑style swordsmanship, shurikenjutsu, kunai combat …]
[Ninjutsu: Great Fireball, Phoenix Flower, Great Fire Annihilation, Mind Transfer…]
[Other Skills: Cooking, calligraphy…]
…
This was the golden finger Chizumi awakened upon transmigrating to Konoha years ago.
He could see everyone's "evil," whether already committed or yet to come.
Those who had committed unforgivable evil bore a crimson frame above their heads: Red Name.
Those destined to commit such evil bore a white frame: White Name.
Killing them not only increased his chakra but also let him seize any ninjutsu, taijutsu, kekkei genkai, secret arts, or skill experience they possessed.
The golden finger fit perfectly with the "Absolute Justice" Chizumi upheld.
In just a few years, his hands had been stained with the blood of countless villains.
He had dulled several ninja blades through overuse.
As for the "Lava Release" listed under Kekkei Genkai, it had come from the golden finger's starter pack—
Described as: "A greeting from a believer in Absolute Justice from across the sea."