Uchiha Kaede's voice cracked through the air like thunder. Izumi flinched. The metallic tang of blood was getting stronger now—saturating the air around her. She took a breath, willing herself to stay calm. The short man at her feet was still groaning weakly.
"I told you everything… Please… Save me… I don't want to die…" Izumi's lips tightened. A moment ago, she had hesitated—her heart torn between fear and compassion. But now, having heard the confession from this man's own mouth, that flicker of empathy was all but extinguished.
He was no victim. He was a murderer. "Where is your home?" she asked coldly. The man barely murmured out an address between fading breaths. Izumi turned toward her examiner. "Kaede-senpai… should we split up? I'll take him to the hospital, and you—"
"No." Kaede cut her off. His voice was calm, but firm. "Newbie, do you know what the punishment is for drunken murder in Konoha?" Izumi blinked. "Isn't it… life imprisonment?" Kaede shook his head. "Ten years. If he behaves well inside, maybe even seven or eight."
He paused. "Now you tell me—does that sound like justice?" Izumi's gut twisted. "…No. It… doesn't." Even as a newly graduated Genin, something inside her recoiled at the thought. That a man could kill his own child—and one day walk free again?
She looked back down at the groaning figure. The blood from his severed leg had painted a wide arc on the stone path. Was this truly what Konoha called justice? "If justice isn't enforced absolutely," Kaede said, "then it's nothing but mercy for evil."
He turned slightly. "No splitting up. And no hospital. We take him to the address he gave. Now." Kaede reached out and calmly took back his blood-stained sword, sheathing it with a practiced hand.
"drag him with us," he instructed. "Grab this scum by the collar—and follow me." Izumi stood frozen for a heartbeat. Drag him...? She looked down. The man had passed out again, barely conscious. Blood was pooling under him, trailing slowly down the slope of the street.
Civilians were watching—eyes wide, mouths agape. Some were horrified. Others whispered in fear. But none intervened. Izumi gritted her teeth, grasped the man's collar with both hands, and began to pull. The rough scrape of his body across the stone was unbearable.
She winced at the sound of his flesh dragging over the gravel, at the crimson streak she was leaving behind. But when she looked up—and saw the straight-backed silhouette of Uchiha Kaede walking without pause—She forced herself to continue.
She couldn't show weakness. Not again. Not in front of him.
They hadn't gone far when the man's body suddenly went limp. Izumi stopped. "…He's not moving," she muttered, alarm creeping into her voice.
She rushed to check his pulse. "Kaede-senpai—he's gone into shock!" Kaede paused mid-step. He didn't turn. "Can you wake him up?" he asked quietly.
Izumi checked again—trembling. "…It's too late," she said. "He… he's dead!" Kaede remained still for a moment. Then finally he sneered: "That's a pity."
Izumi looked up, stunned. He continued, tone devoid of regret, "His death was too quick. It wasn't enough to atone for his sins." Kaede's eyes drifted back toward her.
"My original plan was for you to drag him home, recover the child's body from the well, and execute him in front of it. "Izumi's jaw dropped. "And," Kaede added casually, "I was going to let you carry it out. As your first task."
Her lips trembled. "But… that's not in the police force's regulations. I—I read the handbook. The Hokage forbids extrajudicial executions…" Kaede turned fully toward her. "Newbie," he said slowly, "Do you think the Sandaime Hokage represents justice?"
Izumi froze. She didn't answer. She didn't dare. Kaede stared at her for a long moment before continuing. "To be a real officer of the law… you must first understand who the enemies of justice are."
His voice was steady, unwavering. "All evil in this world… is the enemy of justice." "The ninja world is infested. Rotten. Corroded from the inside out. If we don't enforce justice completely—without exception—it will never heal."
His Sharingan spun faintly in the night. Izumi's mind echoed with the unspoken question:Even the Hokage...? "Including the Hokage," Kaede said.
The air felt cold. Like he'd read her thoughts. Izumi's heart pounded. Unbeknownst to her—at that exact moment—the death of the short man triggered something unseen.
A faint ding echoed only in Kaede's mind.
[Ding! You have successfully killed a "Red level" civilian!] Chakra slightly increased! You have obtained: Gambling Skills Experience Book x2
And in the same instant, a translucent window opened before him:
[Name]: Uchiha Kaede[Age]: 18[Affiliation]: Konoha Police Force – Uchiha Unit[Strength]: Jōnin[Kekkei Genkai]: Sharingan, Scorch Release[Taijutsu]: Uchiha-ryū Kenjutsu, Shurikenjutsu, Kunai Counter[Ninjutsu]: Fireball, Phoenix Fire, Fire Release: Extinguishing Flames, Heart Transmigration[Other Skills]: Cooking, Calligraphy, Gambling Mastery, Seduction Techniques[...]
This was the cheat Kaede had possessed since the day he awakened in this world. He could see the moral status of every soul. Those who had already committed unforgivable crimes bore a Red level.
Those who would one day do so wore a White level. When he eliminated them, he not only enforced justice—but gained power. Their strength, their skills, even their bloodlines—he could absorb pieces of it all.
His justice was not symbolic. It was final. Over the years, his hands had executed countless evildoers. He'd gone through three blades already. And his Scorch Release—a gift granted when his "Justice System" first activated—was described in only one line:
"Punish all evildoers with the heat of your justice"