Uchiha Emiki was dead. He had lost his life while carrying out a mission to hunt down a wanted criminal, fighting with all his might until his very last breath.
His deeds inspired many shinobi in Konoha, and he was hailed as a hero of the village—a man born of noble lineage, who had died a glorious death!
Yet within just a few days, it seemed as though everyone had completely forgotten about him. Few could even recall his name clearly anymore.
However, there was one person who simply could not bring himself to let go of what had happened...
"What am I supposed to do? Do I stand by my clan, or do I stand by my Captain?!"
Inside Uchiha Yuuya's mind, the image of the Uchiha crest—a red fan set against a white background—kept flashing back and forth alongside the unfathomable, knowing smile of Aoi Ren.
While other members of the Uchiha clan might only have doubts about the ANBU's official account of events, Yuuya knew for certain...
Neither Elder Emiki nor his cousin Moni had been killed by Kakuzu. Because Kakuzu had already been killed by Captain Aoi Ren all the way back in the twelfth year since the founding of Konoha!
Although he had not accompanied Aoi Ren on that mission himself, he had heard every detail of what had happened countless times from Hyūga Masutari, who had been there.
He had listened as Masutari told him how brilliantly strategic Aoi Ren had been, how he had deliberately made himself appear weak and vulnerable in order to lure his enemy into a trap, and how his superior skill and experience had allowed him to defeat and kill Kakuzu in the end...
Yuuya knew every single detail of that story by heart!
But the more he knew, the greater his pain became. If he remained silent, he would be betraying his own clan. Yet if he spoke up, he would be betraying Aoi Ren!
Between his clan and Aoi Ren, he was forced to choose one or the other...
This weighed especially heavily on Uchiha Yuuya. On one side stood the clan he had been born into and had always taken such pride in; on the other stood the powerful leader he had resolved to follow and serve for the rest of his life!
"Dear heavens... why did I have to be the one who knows the truth?"
For the first time, Uchiha Yuuya found himself hating the very fact that he knew what had really happened.
Yet what he did not realize was that every part of this situation had been planned out by Aoi Ren from the very beginning.
"Uchiha Yuuya... just which side will you end up choosing? I am looking forward to finding out!"
Aoi Ren shook his head with a smile as he sat comfortably in his office within the ANBU headquarters, steeping a cup of tea made from leaves sent to him by Uchiha Makoto.
Life was peaceful and pleasant...
However, his peace lasted less than half a minute before the door to his office was flung open with a loud bang.
The Raccoon ANBU operative came bursting in, his entire body bound tightly with heavy iron chains.
"I have analyzed the complete list of known shinobi from all five major nations, and there is only one person among them all who could have pulled this off!"
"This tea really is far too bitter..." Aoi Ren sighed and rested his forehead in his hand in exasperation. Is this man an idiot?
Even now, he is still fixated on the death of Tsuruta, refusing to let it go. What is it about this matter that makes him so stubborn and single-minded?
"There you go again, pestering the Captain once more!" The Panda ANBU operative rushed in right behind him and grabbed him firmly by the collar.
"Next time you try this, I will use a sealing jutsu to lock you away somewhere where you can't bother anyone!"
"It will do you no good!" The Raccoon ANBU shouted back, refusing to give in. "I will never stop until I uncover the whole truth!"
"You really are impossible..." Panda said, letting out a frustrated sigh. "Is there seriously no jutsu in existence that can shrink a person down and trap them inside a small box forever?"
"Erm..."
The Raccoon ANBU fell silent, looking somewhat taken aback. After hesitating for a moment, he replied, "I haven't conducted any research into techniques of that nature yet, but it does sound like something worth investigating..."
"Then what are you still doing standing here? Get out of here!"
Panda dragged the Raccoon operative away—chains and all—right out of the office.
As soon as they stepped outside, Panda leaned against the wall and began gasping for breath.
"You fool... why do you always insist on doing things that could get you killed? Why do you keep provoking the Captain like this?"
"It is my destiny," the Raccoon ANBU declared without hesitation, his tone serious and resolute.
"I am willing to give everything for the sake of justice and truth—even my own life, if that is what it takes!"
"Your own death wouldn't be the problem. Just make sure you don't drag your entire family down with you," Panda retorted, rolling her eyes in annoyance.
"And who knows... I might end up being forced to share your fate too!"
Hearing this, the Raccoon ANBU's eyes widened in shock. "Do you mean to say that Aoi Ren would kill my family too? Isn't he afraid of the consequences?"
"Afraid? He wouldn't be afraid of anything!" Panda gave the Raccoon operative a sharp smack on the head.
"You know about the deaths of Uchiha Emiki and his grandson Moni recently, don't you?"
"Yes, of course..." The Raccoon ANBU nodded eagerly, his expression full of admiration. "I heard they died fighting against Kakuzu. It was a noble end worthy of true heroes!"
"Noble end? Don't make me laugh!" Panda lowered her voice and leaned in closer, her expression turning secretive.
"Think about it: those two had only just gotten into a serious conflict with Aoi Ren, and the very next day they were both dead. Even the most simple-minded person could work out exactly what happened here!"
"So you mean to say... this was murder?!" The Raccoon operative's eyes lit up with excitement.
"You absolute idiot—keep your voice down!" Panda quickly clamped her hand over his mouth. "Unless you want to end up being hailed as a hero yourself one day too, you had better keep this to yourself!"
Panda had hoped that using this example would finally make the Raccoon operative see reason and give up his dangerous investigation.
However, what she failed to notice was that the look in his eyes had grown brighter and more determined than ever...
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