Over an hour later, Izumi realized that Kaede-sensei's "stroll" was anything but ordinary. It looked like he was just wandering aimlessly through Konoha.
She didn't see him question anyone. He didn't seem to search for evidence. Just walking. From the streets of Konoha to the Uchiha compound, even a loop past the Hokage Building.
Izumi was completely bewildered. She had no idea what to do or what this so-called investigation entailed.
Just as she was about to ask—Kaede stopped.
Finally! No more wandering!
Izumi almost cried with relief. "Sensei, where is this—"
Then she noticed something strange. Before them stood the compound of Konoha's Gekko Clan.
The Gekko were a small, minor clan. Nowhere near the prestige of the Uchiha. A dozen ninja, perhaps.
Kaede spoke calmly. "This is the last location we haven't eliminated. If the murderer isn't here, then it's either Anbu… or Root."
"Wait, what?" Izumi blinked. "How did you figure that out?"
But she didn't get an answer.
A furious shout broke the silence. "Uchiha Kaede! You cold-blooded, murderous bastard! How dare you show your face here?!"
Two Gekko clan members stormed forward, chunin by rank, both seething with hatred.
Izumi sensed the tension. "Sensei, are they…?"
"You're not welcome here, Kaede!" one of the Gekko shouted. Kaede's hand rested on his blade. Calm eyes swept over the pair.
"The police are investigating a murder. Stand aside. Obstructing justice is punishable by death."
His tone never changed. Izumi shivered. The blade at Kaede's side had shifted—drawn just one centimeter.
The two Gekko ninjas sweated, visibly tense… but did not step back.
"Two years ago," one of them hissed. "You came under the same pretense. You said you were investigating. You stormed our compound… and you killed our clan head, Moonlight Yuichiro-sama! You killed two of our elders!"
Izumi gasped.
This was personal. A blood feud. Kaede drew his sword.
"I don't remember," he said coldly. "I don't remember the names of those who die resisting justice."
His gaze shifted—to the inside of the compound. A crimson tag appeared in his mind:
[Gekko Seiji – Last night, during a quarrel over his mother's favoritism toward his younger brother, he killed her in a rage and buried her body. Crime Level: RED.]
Three seconds. That's all he gave them.
"Three. Two…"
"You arrogant bastard!" one of the Gekko shouted. "You think you can—"
Kaede stepped past them. A flash of silver. Two thuds.
"—One."
Behind him, bodies hit the ground. Blood pooled beneath.
Izumi froze. Kaede didn't stop. His gaze locked onto the terrified Gekkou Seiji.
"This is your second lesson," he said to Izumi. "Obstructing justice is siding with evil. Those who side with evil die without mercy."
Izumi stared at the corpses. The blood was at her feet. Her breath hitched. But her body moved. As if compelled, she stepped forward—over the bodies, across the blood.
She followed Kaede. She drew her kunai.
Somewhere inside, a voice screamed that this path had no return. That if she followed Kaede now, she would become something else. But she followed anyway.
...
Elsewhere, Moonlight Hayate arrived home with offerings in hand. He was smiling.
"I finally got a day off. It's been weeks. I'll see Mother and Seiji, and we'll pay our respects to Father." He turned the corner.
Villagers were crowding around the Gekko compound. Whispers. Nervous eyes. Blood. Heads. Hayate dropped the offerings.
Two corpses. Two heads. The villagers were murmuring… "Uchiha"… "Police"…
And one name. "Uchiha Kaede."
The man who killed his father.