After handing over his patrol duties, Uchiha Chiba returned home in silence.
He did not slack for even a moment.
Even before obtaining the Good Deeds Accumulation System, he had already pushed himself to the limits, seizing every spare moment to train.
Though his mind was occupied, he did not delay his cultivation.
Closing his eyes, he began practicing the most fundamental technique used by all shinobi—
The Chakra Extraction Technique.
Gradually, his thoughts settled.
He had never regretted his actions.
Not merely because his beliefs had always been this way—
But because, in his eyes, Konoha itself carried an original sin.
This was a city steeped in wrongdoing.
That sin did not belong only to the village leadership, the elite shinobi, or even the ordinary villagers.
It existed everywhere.
Selfishness.Ignorance.Greed.Arrogance.Jealousy.Indifference.
They permeated every corner of the village.
Living here often left Chiba with a suffocating sense of oppression.
And the way he vented that pressure—
Was by enforcing justice in his own way.
Extreme?
He had never thought so.
If anything, it was this village—this shinobi world—that was extreme.
Not him.
…
The next day, inside Police Force headquarters.
Uchiha Fugaku was overwhelmed as he dealt with the aftermath Chiba had left behind.
Fortunately, the family of three was now… complete.
They had no remaining relatives.
Aside from a few neighbors, there was no one truly in a position to lodge complaints.
Fugaku arranged for the couple's bodies to be properly buried.
As for their property—
It had long been squandered by the gambler.
Aside from a dilapidated house, nothing remained.
Yet when Fugaku prepared to process the house, several villagers suddenly appeared.
They claimed to be distant relatives and close acquaintances of the deceased.
According to them, the couple had once promised to leave the house to them.
Already exhausted, Fugaku had no patience for such disputes.
He handed the matter entirely over to the experienced elder, Uchiha Yashiro.
Just as he was about to relax, he sensed a powerful chakra approaching.
"That chakra…?"
He immediately stood and went out personally to receive the visitor.
"Hokage-sama."
The one who had arrived was the Third Hokage of Konoha—Hiruzen Sarutobi.
With a pipe in hand and the Hokage's hat resting upon his head, his weathered face carried its usual gentle smile.
Behind him stood four ANBU wearing strange masks.
"Clan Head Fugaku, I hope my visit does not disrupt the Police Force's duties."
"Not at all. Hokage-sama is welcome at any time."
Hiruzen smiled faintly, his gaze casually sweeping the surroundings.
"Is Uchiha Chiba not present?"
Fugaku already knew exactly why he had come.
"That fool acted too extremely. Though I know he meant well and intended to uphold justice, he went too far this time."
"I have ordered him to remain at home and reflect."
"Hokage-sama, are you here regarding this matter?"
Hiruzen chuckled inwardly.
Fugaku had criticized Chiba first—yet beneath the rebuke lay subtle praise. It was a calculated move meant to block him.
But Hiruzen had long since mastered such tactics.
"I know the young man acts for the village's sake, though his methods are indeed harsh…"
"I would not have come personally, but several villagers lodged complaints directly at the Hokage's office."
"If I did not appear, they might believe I favor the Uchiha."
"In truth, whether Uchiha or common villager, they are all like family to me."
"I would never treat them differently."
"Wouldn't you agree, Clan Head Fugaku?"
Fugaku smiled politely.
"Of course."
"Konoha is one great family. Hokage-sama is its pillar. Naturally, you treat everyone equally."
"I wonder what exactly the villagers requested?"
Hiruzen took a slow drag from his pipe and exhaled a ring of smoke that gradually spread through the room.
"In the past, there have been complaints about Uchiha Chiba."
"Some say he enforces the law too strictly—too harshly."
"I believed he was simply young and eager to maintain order, so I suppressed those reports."
"But this time… he truly crossed the line."
"That couple did not deserve death."
"What do you think, Clan Head Fugaku?"
The wrinkles at the corners of his eyes deepened, his expression appearing troubled.
Fugaku sighed heavily.
"Hokage-sama is right."
"When I heard what happened, I was furious. I immediately had him brought back and reprimanded him thoroughly."
"Even if the gambler was beyond saving… even if he stole his child's life-saving money and caused his own son's death… even if he tried to take the last of the household savings to gamble again…"
"You could have arrested him and placed him in prison."
"Why kill him outright?"
"And that woman—though she did not report her husband… though she defended him… though she even attempted to attack an officer—"
"Could she truly have harmed a jonin like him?"
"Why use lethal force?"
Fugaku shook his head sorrowfully.
"Even if technically within the regulations… it is hardly reasonable."
"Isn't that so, Hokage-sama?"
Hiruzen's expression darkened slightly.
"Technically within regulations?"
"It is."
"When the Second Hokage established the Police Force, he set regulations stating that in cases of severe criminal conduct, officers may execute judgment on the spot."
"Likewise, if a Police Force member's life is threatened, they may respond with force."
"So while Chiba's methods were extreme, it is difficult to claim he violated the law."
"He is young and impatient."
"That is why I ordered him to reflect."
"If he does not correct himself, I will not be lenient."
Silence filled the headquarters.
Even Uchiha Yakumi and the others were stunned by the length of Fugaku's reasoning.
But Hiruzen Sarutobi was no ordinary man.
Fugaku's carefully framed rhetoric was nothing new to him.
Yet pressing further would mean tearing away all pretense.
And Hiruzen was not ready for that.
He smiled gently.
"Since Clan Head Fugaku has spoken, I am reassured."
"I trust you will handle it fairly."
"I shall not intrude further."
"Please take care, Hokage-sama."
As Hiruzen departed, Fugaku's face—though outwardly victorious—was shadowed with unease.
…
"Hokage-sama, Uchiha Fugaku was clearly making excuses!"
"Do a few words absolve Uchiha Chiba's responsibility?!"
The ANBU members spoke indignantly.
Hiruzen merely gave a faint scoff.
"Those tricks are ones I mastered long ago."
"I simply do not wish to break with the Uchiha just yet."
"Uchiha Fugaku… do you think that will silence me?"
"How naïve."
"Hokage-sama's meaning is…?"
"Hmph."
"Someone will discipline that Uchiha Chiba."
"And that person…"
"Will be one of their own."