Absolute Justice in Naruto

Today, Uzumaki Naruto pulled another prank in the village—just to get people to notice him.

The prank worked, but it also really ticked someone off.

So Naruto wound up being chased through several streets.

Luckily, he could run fast.

Naruto figured that if he could make it two more blocks, he'd shake off the bun‑shop owner—an uncle whose health kept declining because he "delivered his marital duties" to his wife every night.

However…

Just when he was secretly congratulating himself, his feet suddenly stepped on empty air.

It felt as though someone had grabbed the back of his collar and hauled him straight up.

C—crap!

He'd been caught!

The bun‑shop owner, panting hard, finally caught up and was about to thank his rescuer—when his eyes fell on the young face of Uchiha Chizumi.

Whatever words of gratitude he'd had jammed in his throat.

"U‑Uchiha…" The shop owner went white as a sheet; the rolling pin in his hand hit the ground without him even noticing.

"Uchiha?"

Naruto, dangling in mid‑air, struggled but couldn't break free. Frowning, he craned his neck upward.

Hmm…

Don't know him!

Naruto only felt this busybody looked a bit cold, and that the way the man sized him up was like someone inspecting a rare animal.

"What did he do?" Uchiha Chizumi asked the bun‑shop owner.

"H‑he…" Cold sweat streamed down the man's cheeks.

"Tell the truth," Chizumi reminded him.

Gulp.

Under that invisible pressure, the shop owner swallowed and—trembling—explained Naruto's prank for the day: the kid had swapped the shop's wheat flour with protein powder.

Still being held up, little Naruto grumbled, "It's not like you can't make buns with protein powder—and it helps build muscle, too!"

The shop owner's blood pressure spiked. "You little brat—!"

But the moment he saw Uchiha Chizumi's utterly emotionless eyes in front of him, he hurriedly swallowed his anger again.

Terrifying! How unlucky to run into one of those infamous Uchiha "Plague"?!

All this demon‑fox brat's fault!

"So that's today's prank…" Chizumi nodded slightly and said calmly, "This kid's guardian is the Hokage. Go straight to the Hokage for compensation and tell him I sent you. If the Hokage won't pay, I'll collect it for you."

With that, Chizumi hoisted a thoroughly defeated Naruto and prepared to leave.

That stunned not only the shop owner but even Naruto himself.

Naruto struggled frantically, arms and legs flailing. "H‑hey, where are you taking me? You've already caught me—can't you put me down?!"

Chizumi raised his arm higher so Naruto dangled over a meter off the ground, then quietly locked eyes with the Nine‑Tails Jinchūriki.

The cold stare made Naruto's face freeze.

Chizumi spoke slowly: "If someone makes a mistake—man or woman, old or young—they must be punished. Your prank caused financial loss and damage to a store's reputation. On top of that, your wild dash disrupted Konoha's order and dirtied the streets."

"Counting all those offenses, even if you agreed to pay damages, you'd still get half a month in Konoha Prison. And that's only under village law. Since you've fallen into my hands, make it three months."

Seven‑year‑old Naruto was totally stunned.

"L‑locked…"

"Locked up for three months…"

He went slack with shock.

…

"Not good—the Nine‑Tails Jinchūriki is in contact with an Uchiha!" At that moment, the elite Anbu assigned to watch Naruto went pale. He felt he'd made a huge blunder.

As the Jinchūriki's monitor, the Hokage had tasked him not only to watch Naruto but also to "clean up after him."

Meaning, no matter what prank the kid pulled, he had to fix it.

Moments earlier, he'd gone back to the bun shop to switch the flour back after Naruto's prank—

Who could've guessed that in that brief absence…

The Jinchūriki got snatched up by an Uchiha ninja!

There was no mistaking the Uchiha Police Force uniform!

He clearly saw the Jinchūriki meet the Uchiha's eyes—

Those Sharingan rumored to control tailed beasts!

If another Nine‑Tails calamity like years ago broke out, his lapse would be the spark that destroyed the village—he'd be Konoha's greatest sinner.

Realizing the stakes, the Anbu didn't hesitate, ignoring the risk of exposing himself.

He sprinted toward Naruto, shouting, "Put him down!"

In full view of many onlookers, the Anbu flickered in; one hand hovered over his sword hilt while the other reached to grab Naruto.

Chizumi suddenly swung his arm to the side.

The Anbu grasped empty air, and Naruto yelped—almost flung away by the motion.

"Anbu?!" Izumi, nearby, instantly recognized the fox‑masked uniform.

She suddenly felt things turning bad.

"Uchiha! What are you doing!" After missing his grab, the Anbu's face—hidden behind the mask—twisted with emotion. He barked, "Don't tell me you don't know what that brat represents! You—huh? Uchiha Chizumi?!"

Only now, face‑to‑face, did the Anbu realize the one holding the Jinchūriki was Uchiha Chizumi—one of the few Uchihas on relatively "good" terms with the Hokage.

Well—

At least someone who often met with the Hokage's people.

Chizumi glanced at the white rectangle on the Anbu's forehead; his eyes sharpened dangerously. "Trying to obstruct Police Force duty, Yamanaka Ryoshin?"

Anbu: "!!!"

"Y‑you—"

He was stunned.

He was wearing an Anbu mask, and he'd never even met Chizumi before—how did the man recognize him?

Noticing the growing menace in Chizumi's gaze, the Anbu hesitated and slowly sheathed his sword.

He'd heard intel about Chizumi—about this "Absolute Justice" enforcer's bottom line.

Better not clash with him.

Phew.

The Anbu exhaled, forcing himself to calm down. He said in a low voice, "Uchiha Chizumi, Police Force business shouldn't involve Uzumaki Naruto, right? He's just an ordinary child, isn't he?"

He deliberately stressed "ordinary."

Chizumi replied, "He happens to be the criminal I just caught."

Anbu: "???"

Uh‑oh…

This was getting messy.

As sweat streamed down the Anbu's face and he racked his brain for a way out, a hoarse, furious shout suddenly drew near:

"Evil‑born Uchiha brat! What are you doing? What is your wicked clan plotting?!"

The Anbu froze, baffled—who was even more frantic than he was?

He turned toward the voice and saw a familiar figure.

That was…

Shimura Danzō?!