Minutes later, the office was left with only Uchiha Fugaku, the Uchiha ninja who had reported on the Moonlight clan case, and the Uzumaki Naruto whom Uchiha Ikeizumi had tossed there. Ikeizumi and Izumi had already left the Military Police Force building.
Fugaku and Naruto sat facing each other, eyes locked. Looking at the young Jinchuriki's somewhat disheveled, innocent face, Fugaku saw traces of the Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato.
When Minato was alive, relations between the Uchiha clan and Konoha were relatively calm. Unfortunately…
A complex expression crossed Fugaku's eyes as he recalled the questions he had asked Ikeizumi before he left the office:
"Ikeizumi, are you prepared for the backlash if you insist on imprisoning Uzumaki Naruto in Konoha Prison?"
"What you did today will spread across the village in no time. Everyone will know you brought Naruto to the Uchiha headquarters."
"And…"
"Are you ready to suppress the restless elements within the Uchiha clan?"
If the hawkish faction inside the clan learned that the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki was currently within the Uchiha base, their schemes would surely flare up instantly.
Fugaku couldn't guarantee what extreme outcomes might follow.
He remembered Ikeizumi's succinct reply: "Absolute justice knows no favoritism."
Fugaku understood Ikeizumi's meaning: if any extremists within the clan sought to exploit the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki's power to trample justice, Ikeizumi would not hesitate to kill even his own kin—just as he had done to Root ninjas.
"Absolute justice…" Fugaku took a deep breath, staring at Naruto and murmuring to himself, "It truly is absolute."
More vividly, Fugaku recalled the shocking information Ikeizumi had revealed just as he left:
Shimura Danzo had Sharingan transplanted onto him—and not just one.
He also wielded the forbidden Sharingan technique, Izanagi.
This incredible revelation sent chills down Fugaku's spine.
Indeed, Ikeizumi felt no obligation to keep Danzo's secret; he had laid bare Danzo's trump card.
—
Back at the Root base, Danzo's fury was barely contained. His old teeth were clenched so tightly they threatened to shatter.
A brief clash had cost Root two elite shinobi, one of Danzo's three-tomoe Sharingan eyes, and an ear.
Danzo's bandages, once to conceal his transplanted Sharingan, now wrapped his ear to dull the stabbing pain.
Worse still, the power of Izanagi might have been exposed to the enemy.
The consequences of hunting Bloodline Limit users were becoming unbearable even for Danzo.
"Damn it! If that monkey hadn't suddenly appeared, I would have killed that evil Uchiha brat long ago and snuffed out the risk of exposure in its cradle!"
The more Danzo thought, the angrier he became.
Suddenly, a voice interrupted: "If I hadn't appeared in time, you might still be unaware that you have a Sharingan implanted!"
Danzo's pupils contracted.
He recognized Sarutobi Hiruzen's voice.
Looking toward the sound, he saw the Third Hokage had arrived uninvited.
Two Anbu squads accompanied Hiruzen, silently subduing several Root ninjas before Danzo could be warned.
"I don't know what you're talking about!" Danzo's first reaction was denial.
With a grim face, he sneered sarcastically, "I just recently changed the Root base a few months ago, and you still found it… Hiruzen, you sure have good intel!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen stood with his hands clasped behind his back. "I am the Hokage of Konoha. It is only natural that I know everything happening in the village."
"Danzo, Ikeizumi has already revealed your secret to me. You say you don't know what I'm talking about, but can you show me what you're hiding beneath those bandages?"
His gaze was sharp and unwavering.
Danzo's expression visibly darkened.
Hiruzen's voice lowered. "We've been comrades for many years. Your expression may fool others, but not me. Now, give me a reason why I shouldn't remove you from your post."
"Remove me?" Danzo's face twisted in disbelief. "After all the contributions I've made to Konoha over the years, you want to remove me just because of some Sharingan?"
Hiruzen's eyes grew colder. "So I'm giving you a chance. You need to provide an explanation that satisfies everyone."
Danzo sneered, "You mean an explanation that satisfies you, right?"
Hiruzen said nothing, only watching Danzo silently.
…
Meanwhile, news of Ikeizumi's capture of the Jinchuriki spread rapidly among Konoha's upper echelons. Two of them, Konohamaru Sarutobi and Homura Mitokado, received the baffling report.
Though most villagers only knew Naruto as the boy rumored to be the "Fox's incarnation," few truly understood the concept of a Tailed Beast Jinchuriki.
"And Hiruzen was present too?" Konohamaru found it hard to believe. "How could he allow the Jinchuriki to be taken by the Uchiha? And brought to their base, no less!"
Unable to sit still, Konohamaru paced anxiously. "No! We must bring the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki out. He cannot remain in the Uchiha stronghold!"
"Otherwise…"
Recalling the horrors of the Nine-Tails' attack years ago sent chills down her spine.
Noticing Homura's silence, Konohamaru shot him a sharp look. "Say something!"
Homura spoke gravely, "Do you think it's that easy to retrieve the one Ikeizumi captured? That Uchiha is even a headache for Hiruzen."
Konohamaru gritted her teeth. "So we just let the Nine-Tails incident happen again?"
"We don't need direct conflict with Ikeizumi," Homura replied softly. "We only need to pressure Fugaku. After all, he is the head of the Military Police, and Ikeizumi is just a member."
"I believe Hiruzen thinks the same. There are many ways to get the Jinchuriki back without confronting Ikeizumi's so-called 'absolute justice.'"
"Konoha has always been a village of balance and order, not one of absolute justice."
Hearing this, Konohamaru gradually calmed.
"Then it's up to Hiruzen to decide what to do next."