Uchiha in Zenless Zone Zero

At the top of the building, beneath the lively crowd below, where no light could reach, Zhong Yan and Zhao Anmen stood face to face. After a long silence, it was Zhong Yan who finally spoke first.

"Those guys... have things really gotten so out of hand for the New Eridu Public Security Bureau that they need you to appear like this?" Zhong Yan's voice was calm and deep, completely devoid of any emotional fluctuation.

In contrast, Zhao Anmen appeared somewhat tense — a typical reaction of the weak before the strong.

However, upon hearing those words, Zhao Anmen let out a quiet sigh of relief. At the very least, it meant Zhong Yan didn't intend to strike him down.

So, he sighed and said with a trace of helplessness, "This has nothing to do with the New Eridu Public Security Bureau. I'm here entirely because of my personal emotions. But you... you've had your reputation dragged through the mud lately by some ill-intentioned people."

Zhao Anmen had faced Zhong Yan more than once before, so he could tell — just from his presence — whether the man before him was truly Uchiha.

Had it been any other impostor, they'd likely have been caught by now.

"Like you said, I'm also acting out of personal emotion. These parasites... they just keep coming. But that won't stop me from continuing to cleanse them. From that perspective, you and I share the same goal."

Zhong Yan spoke slowly. His views on the Nin-Village had undergone a significant shift from the beginning — he'd even come to owe them a favor.

All of that, entirely thanks to Zhao Anmen. Without him, the Nin-Village might've been annihilated long ago.

Luckily, those people under Zhao Anmen's command had behaved themselves. Otherwise, who knew how dire the village's situation would be by now?

"You sure made quite the stir back in Hollow Zero. The higher-ups now see you as a thorn in their side. If they had the means to capture you, you'd already be New Eridu's most wanted criminal."

Zhao Anmen sighed again, visibly worn down by his complicated relationship with the Uchiha.

To call them friends would be inaccurate — their positions were too different. But to call them enemies didn't feel quite right either, as they hadn't reached the point of a battle to the death.

Of course, Zhao Anmen knew — if it did come to that, he'd be the one to die.

"In the short term, I saved the Hollow Special Operations Section 6 and those investigators. That's a good deed, right? In the long run, I took down countless colossal Ethereal and shrank Hollow Zero. You could even call me a city hero."

"I just didn't expect those profit-chasing bastards to treat a hero like that."

Zhong Yan chuckled coldly, and his mocking tone pierced Zhao Anmen's heart like a dagger.

Indeed, Zhao Anmen held deep resentment toward those at the top. Their decisions always hinged on personal gain. For that, they would even abandon moral principles.

It was something Zhao Anmen simply couldn't accept — but without the power to change it, all he could do was endure.

If he could ever reach the same heights as those in power, perhaps he could truly make a difference. But for now, such a goal felt hopelessly out of reach.

"A single mayoral re-election was enough to make them lose their composure. And now, with something as explosive as this? Do you realize that your presence alone is enough to threaten the current mayor?"

Zhao Anmen said this frankly. Those causing trouble under the name of Uchiha — weren't they trying to push him into the mayor's seat?

"Mayor, huh?" Upon hearing Zhao Anmen's words, Zhong Yan paused in thought, then said, "Tell me — if I became mayor, wouldn't New Eridu be a whole lot better off?"

The moment he said that, Zhao Anmen was visibly startled. For a second, he genuinely wondered if Zhong Yan was considering it.

But soon, he brushed the thought away. Given the man's nature, he would never covet the mayor's position. If he had, he could've seized it long ago by force. Why wait until now?

With that in mind, Zhao Anmen's thoughts stirred. Then he spoke: "Uchiha, I truly appreciate everything you've done for New Eridu. If possible, I sincerely hope we can become friends... Let's end our conversation here for today. There's still plenty waiting for me back at the New Eridu Public Security Bureau."

He gave Zhong Yan one last deep look, then vanished in an instant.

Once Zhao Anmen was gone, Zhong Yan didn't linger either. He activated Kamui and disappeared into the Kamui dimension.

...

Meanwhile, in a dark corner of New Eridu.

A figure in black robes sat before a computer, browsing the latest trending topics on the Net.

In the topic list, he looked through the search frequency of several keywords — namely: Hollow Special Operations Section 6, Uchiha, Phaethon, and [Null_Face].

Out of 100,000 searches, the keyword "Uchiha" alone accounted for 90,000.

Hollow Special Operations Section 6 came next, with over 7,000 searches.

Phaethon followed with more than 2,000.

As for [Null_Face] — only a few dozen searches.

Clearly, in the eyes of the public, [Null_Face] was utterly insignificant compared to Uchiha — and that was after they thought they'd made quite the scene.

Seeing this, the black-robed figure couldn't hold it in any longer. In a rage, he grabbed his monitor and smashed it onto the floor.

"Damn Uchiha... This should have been the era of Null_Face! And now he's hogged all the spotlight — and he's just a filthy Hollow Raider…"

Halfway through his rant, he suddenly stopped, then slumped back into his chair, drained of energy.

True, Uchiha was seen by New Eridu's authorities as an unwanted Hollow Raider. But putting that aside, his power alone was enough to send tremors through the entire city.

Fortunately, he hadn't shown any major ambitions yet. Otherwise, New Eridu would be in even worse chaos than it is now.

"What, are you seriously thinking of making a move against Uchiha? Don't be stupid. We don't even know who he really is, let alone track his movements. Acting rashly could bring total annihilation upon us."

At that moment, one of his companions chimed in, timely enough to douse that dangerous thought.

But it also gave him a new idea.

If they couldn't touch Uchiha...

Then they'd target the ones in second place.

The Hollow Special Operations Section 6.