Sarutobi Hiruzen's Reaction

After Uchiha Shisui left Uchiha Toko, he did not even have time to put on the pair of eyes Toko had given him. Instead, he rushed toward the Hokage Building.

Although Toko had said he would not use Shisui's eyes to control the Hokage, Shisui still did not dare take that risk.

At the very least, he had to make the Hokage aware of the danger.

Driven by that conviction, Uchiha Shisui endured the searing pain in his eye sockets and staggered to the front of the Hokage Building.

"Uchiha Shisui?" The two chunin guarding the entrance to the Hokage Building were stunned when they recognized him and saw his miserable state. This was the famed Body Flicker Shisui—how had he ended up like this?

"I need to see the Hokage! Quickly!" Uchiha Shisui said urgently.

"What happened?" At that moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen, having heard the commotion, came out of his office. When he saw Shisui's empty eye sockets, he was startled as well. The mission he had assigned Shisui that day was to investigate the Uchiha Clan meeting. Yet now Shisui had returned severely injured. Could the Uchiha Clan truly be planning a rebellion?

"Shisui! Quickly, summon a Medical Ninja!" the Third ordered at once.

"Lord Hokage, I have an urgent report to make. The Medical Ninja can wait," Uchiha Shisui said hurriedly upon hearing Sarutobi Hiruzen's voice.

"Very well." Seeing how agitated Shisui was, the Third could only bring him into his office and dismiss everyone else.

"Speak, Shisui. What exactly happened?" the Third asked with difficulty, already prepared for the worst.

Uchiha Shisui took a deep breath and recounted everything that had happened that night, including the abilities of the pair of eyes Uchiha Toko had taken from him. He did not dare conceal anything.

The Third Hokage's expression grew increasingly grave as he listened. To be honest, he had already prepared himself for the Uchiha Clan to openly rebel, but the intelligence Shisui brought was far more serious than that.

"Toko?" At some point, the Third had lit his pipe. After exhaling a long plume of smoke, Uchiha Toko's figure resurfaced in his mind.

In the Third's impression, this Uchiha, who was as famous as Shisui and had won tremendous merit in the Third Shinobi World War, was unlike ordinary Uchiha, who looked down on everyone. Compared with Shisui, he was more withdrawn and less talkative, but the Smiling Law Enforcement policy he promoted in the Military Police Force had been widely praised by the villagers. It had greatly helped ease the relationship between the villagers and the Uchiha Clan. Sarutobi Hiruzen had originally believed him to be an Uchiha like his former comrade Kagami Uchiha, someone who carried the Will of Fire in his heart. Yet he had never expected Toko to harbor such a scheme in secret. And now, he possessed the power of two pairs of Mangekyō Sharingan.

"Lord Hokage, you must be careful! Do not give Toko an opening!" Uchiha Shisui warned.

"I understand, Shisui. Calm down. Things have not yet reached the worst possible point," Sarutobi Hiruzen said, smoking his pipe as he tried to comfort him. "Go have your eyes implanted first."

"Lord Hokage!" Shisui said anxiously.

"Even if he uses your eyes to control me, his scheme will not succeed. Shisui, you must understand: the Hokage is the Hokage because everyone in the village recognizes the Will of Fire. If he thinks controlling me means controlling all of Konoha, then he is gravely mistaken!" Sarutobi Hiruzen said, patting Shisui on the shoulder. "So go without worry. We still need your strength to stop his scheme."

"Lord Hokage..." Sarutobi Hiruzen's words left Shisui choked up. "I understand! I will stop him!"

After Uchiha Shisui was taken away for the eye transplant surgery, a figure leaning on a cane slowly emerged from the shadows of the Hokage Office.

"Hiruzen, what are you still hesitating for?" Seeing Sarutobi Hiruzen sitting silently in the Hokage's chair, the newcomer said urgently, "Do you want to become that innately evil Uchiha brat's puppet?"

"Danzo, calm down." Sarutobi Hiruzen raised his eyes to glance at his old partner. "Things have not yet reached that point."

"Uchiha Toko clearly planned to rebel long ago. If we keep sitting around and waiting, it will be too late!" Seeing Sarutobi Hiruzen still hesitating, Danzo said angrily, "And the Uchiha have long harbored rebellious intentions. Once they learn that Uchiha Toko has awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, they may rise up today! We must strike first and arrest Uchiha Toko immediately!"

"Enough! Danzo! I am the Hokage!" Sarutobi Hiruzen snapped.

"Hiruzen! You will regret this!"

Bang!

After Danzo slammed the door and left, Sarutobi Hiruzen took a deep draw from his pipe and looked out into the night.

Knowing Danzo as well as he did, Hiruzen was certain that Danzo would secretly take men to intercept and kill Uchiha Toko. Sarutobi Hiruzen was more than happy to let that happen. If Danzo succeeded, then everyone would be pleased. If Danzo failed, it would merely be Danzo's personal action and would have nothing to do with him, the Hokage. For many years, this had been the unspoken understanding between the two of them.

"These truly are troubled times." In the smoke-filled Hokage Office, Sarutobi Hiruzen let out a long sigh.

The next morning, the sun rose as usual.

After waking up, Uchiha Toko washed up briefly and headed to the Military Police Force for work.

Uchiha Toko had just entered his office and had not even settled into his seat when the captain of the Military Police Force, as well as the Uchiha Clan Head, Uchiha Fugaku, walked in.

"Toko, get ready. There is an urgent mission in the village. This time, you will go with Inaho and Saito, and you will lead the team," Uchiha Fugaku said with a solemn expression.

"I understand." Uchiha Toko nodded. He was not surprised by this at all; if anything, he thought the mission had come a little too early.

"Are the Hokage's people already this unable to sit still?" After Uchiha Fugaku left, Uchiha Toko slowly drew the long sword at his waist. His face was reflected in the cold blade.

He sheathed the sword, packed his gear, picked up the Mission Scroll, and waited for his teammates for this operation at the entrance of the Military Police Force.

Uchiha Inaho and Uchiha Saito were both outstanding members of the Uchiha Clan's younger generation. Although their strength was far inferior to Shisui and Toko's, they had become chunin before the age of twenty and awakened Two Tomoe Sharingan.

But they had the same problem as most Uchiha: what little brainpower they had was entirely occupied by the pride of belonging to a great clan. Therefore, the two had always had quite a few complaints about Uchiha Toko, who advocated Smiling Law Enforcement. Still, with a mission at hand, they gave him a proper salute when they saw him.

Uchiha Toko nodded, then said, "Let's go."