Uchiha Chiyu understood perfectly well the worries of people like Fugaku and Shisui. They were afraid that his extreme actions would hasten a complete breakdown between the Konoha leadership and the Uchiha clan, leading to all-out civil war.
But no one knew better than Chiyu that, for the Uchiha, that outcome would still be far more merciful than what awaited them otherwise. So not only did he feel no fear of such consequences, he even seemed to be quietly pushing matters in that direction.
"The Sarutobi clan… What happened?"
Uchiha Aoki and Uchiha Yamakaze exchanged a look.
"Well… a member of the Sarutobi clan killed someone…"
"And the victim was a common villager…"
"Who did it?"
Uchiha Yamakaze said in a trembling voice, "It was the second son of the Patriarch of the Sarutobi… Sarutobi Jirō!"
Chiyu's mind stirred. Officially, the Sarutobi Patriarch was Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Hokage himself, but given his responsibilities, most family matters were handled by another clan member. The current head was Sarutobi Nichio, Hiruzen's cousin by blood. As for Sarutobi Jirō, he would be Hiruzen's nephew.
Without a word, Chiyu simply quickened his pace.
"C-Captain Chiyu, wait for us! Shouldn't we report to the Patriarch first—"
But Chiyu was already almost out of sight.
…
The Sarutobi Clan Compound
"You can't leave… you can't!"
"Out of my way!"
Several villagers were grouped together, trying to stop Sarutobi Jirō from leaving. They had no real strength compared to a shinobi, but they were desperate for justice, ready to risk their lives. One clung to his leg, another formed a human barrier in front of him.
More and more onlookers—both villagers and ninja—gathered around. Sarutobi Jirō's anger grew more intense by the second.
"Do you all have a death wish?! You really think I don't dare to strike you down?!"
An elderly woman's tears ran down her deeply lined face. Despite her shaky legs and her cane, she still planted herself in front of Jirō.
"You… you beast! You killed my granddaughter…"
"I-I'll fight you to the end!"
She tried to swing her cane at Jirō, but before she could even touch him, she stumbled and fell, hitting her forehead on a hard stone. Blood gushed out.
"Ma!!"
The man clinging to Jirō's leg let go and rushed toward his mother to check her injury.
"Ma, y-you're bleeding…"
Frantically, he pressed a hand over her wound, tearing at his clothes to make a bandage and stop the bleeding.
"I-I'm fine… just don't let that beast get away…"
"You bastard, Sarutobi Jirō! You killed my daughter—now you want to kill my mother, too?!"
Jirō sneered. "She fell on her own. What does that have to do with me? Anyway, she tried to hit me with her cane. Even if she died, it would be her own fault."
"You… you…"
A wave of shocked, angry murmurs spread through the watching crowd.
"What's going on? Did he really kill her daughter?"
"I heard she was burned alive…"
"What? Why?"
"Not sure. He's so arrogant he doesn't even see us as human. Who knows what set him off?!"
"Shh, keep it down—that's the son of the Sarutobi Patriarch. Do you want to die?!"
Even among the nearby shinobi, no one dared act hastily.
"Isn't this too much, though?"
"Should we report this to the Hokage?"
"The ANBU have probably already gone to inform him."
"Sigh… let's just hope the Hokage will handle this fairly."
"I'm not so sure. He is a member of the Sarutobi clan, the Hokage's nephew—"
"Cut it out! The Hokage wouldn't protect scum like that, right?"
"Well… hopefully not…"
At that moment:
"Move aside, everyone—move."
A man pushed through the crowd with authoritative bearing. He looked somewhat like Sarutobi Hiruzen, only younger.
"Patriarch!"
Members of the Sarutobi clan hurried to greet him with respectful bows. The newcomer was Sarutobi Nichio.
"Father, finally you're here! These pesky commoners are clinging to me like leeches. Hurry up and lock them all up!"
But…
Nichio strode forward and slapped Sarutobi Jirō hard across the face.
Smack!
Jirō was knocked to the ground, a bright red mark instantly blooming on his cheek. It began to swell.
"Father, you—"
"Wretched fool! Don't think I don't know. You killed that girl, didn't you?!"
No one in the crowd had expected this turn of events. They stared in surprise—yet they also felt a measure of grim satisfaction.
"Well done, Lord Nichio!"
"He should punish that little monster, no matter what."
"Kill him!"
"Kill him!"
Jirō clutched his face, eyes bulging in terror, as though he no longer recognized his father.
"Father, I-I didn't mean to…"
"You didn't mean it? Then why did you kill that girl?! Explain!"
Nichio radiated a powerful aura. Not only Jirō, but all who stood around felt the oppressive atmosphere pressing down on them like a mountain, wind whipping across their faces.
"I… I was just training…"
"T-training?"
"Yes, training with our family's Fire Release technique, the 'Great Fireball Jutsu.' My subordinates told me that if I mastered it, I could create extremely high-temperature flames—hot enough to turn someone instantly to ash. They said I'd already perfected it, so naturally, I should be able to do that…
"Then… they saw something moving in the bushes and said it might be a rabbit or a deer, so they told me—told me I should try my technique out and see its power. B-but then…"
A tense silence fell over the crowd, and furious rage washed across the faces of the victim's family members. Their fists clenched of their own accord.
Nichio's face turned grim. "So you used someone's child as your test subject?!"
"N-no! It was those subordinates who said something was rustling in the grass. We had no idea it was a person! Besides, my Great Fireball Jutsu isn't as powerful as they bragged—it couldn't turn someone to ash in an instant… All I could do was watch as that girl screamed, burned alive, rolling on the ground in agony. I… I'll never forget that scene…"
The moment he confessed this, recounting the horrific details, it was too much for the girl's grieving family.
"You beast! I'll kill you!"
The father, still tending to his injured mother, let out a roar, eyes red, and lunged at Sarutobi Jirō. But…
Nichio blocked him with ease.
"…I understand your anger—I'm a father myself. But until we get to the bottom of this, please don't do anything rash. I promise on behalf of the Sarutobi clan that we will handle this fairly. Please trust me."
"I… but my daughter… she died so horribly. She was only eleven…"
Tears streamed down the father's face. He knew he was no match for them, so he could only clench his teeth and plead desperately. "Lord Nichio, please give us justice!"
Nichio, full of righteous conviction, gripped the man's hand.
"You have my word—I'll give you a fair resolution!"
"Th-thank you…"
Nichio then turned to his son. Suddenly, his attitude changed.
"So… from what you're saying, you didn't know there was a person in that bush?"
"In other words, it was an accident?"
Jirō's face changed drastically. For all his arrogance, he wasn't stupid. He realized his father was helping him escape punishment.
Everyone else present stood frozen, instantly grasping that Nichio's earlier display had been nothing but posturing. In the end, he was going to protect his son after all.
~~~
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