It's Konoha Year 57, a year before the Uchiha Clan Downfall.
Inside the Konoha Military Police Force headquarters, Uchiha Fugaku held a list in his hand. With a stern face, his gaze swept over the young generation of Uchiha gathered before him. These kids, ranging from 12 to 16 years old, were the future of the Uchiha clan.
"Next... Uchiha Izumi," Fugaku said in a deep voice.
"Huh? Here!" The twelve-year-old Uchiha girl quickly raised her hand to respond.
Fugaku stared at her, questioning, "Do you have the resolve to take the Uchiha Military Police Force recruitment exam?"
Izumi's pretty face was serious. "I'm ready!"
Fugaku nodded. "The exam will last for one month. During this month, a full member of the Military Police Force will serve as your examiner. If they believe your performance is good enough to pass, you'll officially join the Uchiha Military Police Force and become an enforcer of Konoha."
Fugaku pointed to names written on a board behind him. Many of them had circles drawn around them.
"You can choose your own examiner," Fugaku continued, "but only from the names that haven't been circled."
Izumi looked up at the dense list of names. Uchiha Shun, Uchiha Tsukinashi, Uchiha Akainu, Uchiha Ishin... The young girl realized she didn't recognize a single one!
"Then... how about Senior Akainu?" Izumi whispered softly. She chose this senior simply because their names sounded quite similar: Uchiha Izumi, Uchiha Akainu—only one character difference.
Fugaku paused. "Akainu..." A complex look flickered in his eyes, and he asked suggestively, "Are you sure? Once you pick, you can't change."
Izumi didn't pick up on the clan head's hint, thinking he was just rushing her. "I'm sure," she said, quickly sealing her choice.
Fugaku thought for a moment and then warned her, "Uchiha Akainu is an elite ninja of the Military Police Force. His assessment requirements will likely be more stringent than anyone else's. Remember, do not defy his orders... if you wish to survive."
Izumi froze. She swallowed hard. The clan head hadn't given such a warning to any of the other clan members. Did this mean she'd made the wrong choice? The young girl started to panic.
Izumi was still a bit dazed as she left the Military Police Force building. In her hand, she held an "assessment commission." Once she handed this to Senior Akainu, her next month would be filled with the Military Police Force's hellish assessment.
"If Itachi-kun were here, I could ask him about Senior Akainu, what kind of person he is," Izumi mumbled softly. She wanted to ask other clan members for information, but then she remembered she wasn't very close with anyone else in the Uchiha clan.
Izumi was unique within the Uchiha clan, the only one who didn't quite fit in with her peers. Her mother was Uchiha, but her father was a civilian ninja. Until she was five, Izumi took her father's surname. It wasn't until the Nine-Tails Attack, when her father died protecting her, that her mother brought her back to the Uchiha clan, and she took her mother's surname.
"Calm down, calm down... As long as I have a good attitude, even if Senior Akainu is strict, it shouldn't get too bad." Izumi decided to buy a small gift first.
However, before she could act, a gasp came from nearby: "The Military Police Force ninja are back!"
Izumi turned her head. She saw a group of Uchiha Military Police Force members walking together—each dressed in ninja combat gear, equipped with various ninja tools, exuding a powerful, imposing aura. There probably wasn't time to buy a gift. If Senior Akainu was among them and she didn't greet him promptly, she might leave a bad impression.
Izumi quickly jogged over, gathering her courage to ask, "Excuse me, which one of you is Senior Uchiha Akainu?" She nervously showed them the commission in her hand. "I'm a trainee for the Military Police Force recruitment exam. My name is Uchiha Izumi."
The Uchiha Military Police Force ninja stopped. Pairs of surprised eyes focused on her, as if they were staring at a rare summoning animal. Among them, a female Uchiha Military Police Force member walked up to Izumi and, with a strange expression, asked her, "You picked Uchiha Akainu as your examiner?"
"Yes," Uchiha Izumi nodded.
"...Good luck to you," the female Uchiha patted Izumi's shoulder, her voice filled with sympathy. "He's not here. If you're looking for him, you can try your luck in the rowdiest streets in the village; he's probably there."
"Good luck. Sometimes just surviving is luck."
Izumi: "???"
Izumi's face turned pale with fright. She quickly asked, "Senior, is Senior Akainu very strict with us new recruits?"
The female Uchiha shook her head. "It's not about being strict. He's... how should I put it, a bit of a lone wolf, even Lord Fugaku finds it hard to give him orders. I'll give you a piece of advice: you'd better prepare a will. Trust me, it'll come in handy very soon."
Izumi: "..." She noticed that all the seniors in the Military Police Force were looking at her with a hint of pity.
Meanwhile, in Konoha Village's famous "bathhouse, casino, and red-light district" street, a young man dressed in Military Police Force attire arrived. The moment he stepped onto the street alone, the air in the entire area seemed to quieten.
After a full three seconds, panicked shouts erupted.
"Damn it! That Uchiha Plague God is here again! Last time he came, he threw over fifty people into Konoha's prison! Quick, go tell the boss, close the casino doors!"
"Why is he back again? Has it even been a month?"
"Hey! Uchiha Akainu! You're going too far! We're all legal businesses! Konoha doesn't ban gambling, or prostitution, and only a few illegal drugs are prohibited. Why do you keep targeting us?"
"Shhh! Are you crazy? If you piss off that Uchiha Plague God, you'll be locked in a Konoha prison dark room for life."
"You, don't look at me, I'm just passing by!"
"..."
Uchiha Akainu casually rested one hand on the hilt of the ninja sword at his waist, his gaze subtly sweeping around, searching for the prey his eyes could "see."
Suddenly, Uchiha Akainu's gaze stopped. "Found a little rat."
In his vision, a short man was hiding his head, cautiously blending into the crowd on the street. At first glance, he didn't seem remarkable. But in Uchiha Akainu's eyes... the short man stood out like a firefly in the night, impossible to ignore. Because Akainu could clearly see a crimson red box floating above the man's head, with lines of red text inside.
[Akiyama Jiro — Two days ago, after losing a bet, he drank to drown his sorrows. While drunk, he brutally abused his four-year-old child, leading to their death. Sin Level: Red Name!]
This... was Uchiha Akainu's special ability in this life.
Uchiha Akainu walked expressionlessly toward the man. A crowd of passersby scattered in fear, worried that this "Plague God" from the Uchiha Military Police Force would come after them.
Just as the man also tried to hastily leave with the crowd, Uchiha Akainu spoke: "Akiyama Jiro, where do you think you're going?" He looked down at the short man, his gaze as calm as still water, as if he were looking at someone who was already doomed.
Just then, a breathless voice of a young girl suddenly sounded behind Uchiha Akainu: "I... I finally found you! Excuse me, are you Senior Uchiha Akainu?"