Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi

Uchiha Clan compound.

Two youths, one tall and one short, returned from outside the village and entered the Uchiha Clan compound.

The taller youth wore a forehead protector and a green jonin flak jacket.

He had short hair and a rather noticeable button nose.

A Tachi was strapped to his back.

The slightly shorter youth also wore his forehead protector on his head.

He wore black underneath and a gray vest over it.

His medium-length hair was somewhat long, and his handsome features bore a faint resemblance to Uchiha Fugaku.

These two were Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi, returning from an assignment.

"Shisui."

"Itachi."

Along the way, Uchiha clansmen warmly greeted the two geniuses of their clan, proud that the Uchiha Clan had produced such talents.

Unaware that they were actually two ungrateful traitors.

One had been brainwashed by the Third Hokage, becoming his diehard loyalist and intending to use Kotoamatsukami to control the clansmen.

The other would one day murder his own kin and even his parents, destroy the Uchiha Clan, and become the chief culprit behind its downfall.

"Clan Head!"

"Father!"

The two arrived at the clan head's residence in the center of the Uchiha Clan compound and met Uchiha Fugaku, respectfully greeting him.

"Mm. You two have returned after completing your mission?"

As he looked at them, killing intent surged uncontrollably within Uchiha Fugaku.

These two ungrateful traitors had led to the Uchiha Clan's eventual destruction and even brought him the threat of death.

If he could, he wanted to eliminate them now and cut off all future trouble.

However, reason told him he could not do that.

To obtain the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, he had to wait for Uchiha Itachi to awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan.

Moreover, Uchiha Shisui had surely already awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan.

As a fellow wielder of the Mangekyō Sharingan, Fugaku had no confidence that he could defeat him.

And Shisui's Dojutsu, Kotoamatsukami, made him especially wary.

Unlike ordinary Sharingan genjutsu, this Dojutsu could not only permanently alter one's will, but could also be activated without eye contact.

"Yes, we just returned after completing the mission."

The two replied.

In truth, their mission had not yet been completed. The Third Hokage had urgently summoned them back, and their assignment had been transferred to other Anbu Ninja.

Naturally, they had no intention of letting Uchiha Fugaku know about such a thing.

Though they were Uchiha clansmen, they had long since drawn a line between themselves and the Uchiha Clan in their hearts. They believed they possessed a "height" and "foresight" that transcended the clan.

In their eyes, clansmen like Uchiha Fugaku, who revolved around clan interests and placed them first, instead lacked vision and breadth of mind.

"You must be tired. Go get some rest."

Though he could not read minds, Uchiha Fugaku could still roughly guess what they were thinking.

He knew full well that the two had become ungrateful traitors, yet he could not expose them for the time being.

He could not be bothered to exchange empty pleasantries with them. After saying a few words, he dismissed them. Out of sight, out of mind.

"Yes."

The two answered and left. They did not part ways, as they still had to report to the Third Hokage shortly.

After they left, Uchiha Fugaku stood in the courtyard, his face calm while his thoughts raced.

The return of Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi made him sense danger.

Uchiha Itachi had not yet awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan and posed no threat to him for now, but Uchiha Shisui was different.

Kotoamatsukami, a Dojutsu capable of permanently altering one's will, was like the Sword of Damocles hanging over his head.

He had no desire to have his will tampered with. If that happened, he would no longer be himself, but merely a puppet.

"How can I avoid having my will altered by Kotoamatsukami?"

Uchiha Fugaku pondered.

The best way to avoid having his will altered by Kotoamatsukami was naturally to kill Uchiha Shisui, who possessed it, then destroy Shisui's eyes or take them for himself.

However, as they were both wielders of the Mangekyō Sharingan, Fugaku had no confidence in defeating and killing Uchiha Shisui.

Even with a sneak attack, he had no confidence in killing Uchiha Shisui.

Shimura Danzō had prepared so thoroughly, with Root almost mobilizing in full force, yet Uchiha Shisui had still escaped.

If it were him, the outcome would likely be the same.

Leaving aside his own strength, the forces under his command were inferior to Shimura Danzō's.

As a clan head who was not particularly popular, only a very small portion of the Uchiha Clan was absolutely loyal to him.

"If killing Uchiha Shisui won't work, then I can only give myself the ability to resist Kotoamatsukami!"

Uchiha Fugaku thought.

Though Kotoamatsukami was a terrifying, nearly unsolvable Dojutsu, there had to be a way to resist or become immune to it.

No technique was truly without a solution.

Even Uchiha Obito's Kamui had a way to counter it. Otherwise, he would not have been defeated in the Fourth Shinobi World War.

Fugaku believed Kotoamatsukami had to be the same.

"At its core, Kotoamatsukami is a genjutsu performed through Dojutsu. As long as one's Dojutsu is strong enough, one should be able to resist it."

Uchiha Fugaku thought of the deadly battle between Uchiha Sasuke and Uchiha Itachi.

During that battle, Uchiha Itachi had used Tsukuyomi, a genjutsu housed within the Mangekyō, on Uchiha Sasuke. Yet Uchiha Sasuke had broken free of Tsukuyomi through his own Dojutsu.

Though that was partly because Uchiha Itachi had held back, it still proved that with sufficiently strong Dojutsu, one could break free from powerful genjutsu like Tsukuyomi.

By that logic, Kotoamatsukami could also be resisted, provided one possessed formidable Dojutsu.

"I already possess extremely strong Dojutsu as a wielder of the Mangekyō Sharingan. If I fuse with Hashirama Cells and remove the restrictions on using the Mangekyō Sharingan, I should be able to resist Kotoamatsukami!"

Uchiha Fugaku's eyes lit up. The more he thought about it, the more feasible resisting Kotoamatsukami through powerful Dojutsu seemed.

Fusing Hashirama Cells would grant him a pair of Mangekyō Sharingan without usage restrictions.

Though the improvement would not be as great as evolving the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, it would surely still enhance him to a certain extent and strengthen his Dojutsu.

Once his Dojutsu was strengthened, his resistance to genjutsu like Kotoamatsukami would naturally improve, giving him the ability to withstand it.

"It seems the first thing I need to do is obtain a White Zetsu corpse and use Corpse Melting to fuse with it, thereby acquiring Hashirama Cells."

Uchiha Fugaku's thoughts became clear, and he had already formed a plan for what to do next.

Without question, White Zetsu had to exist within the Land of Rain, the Akatsuki Organization's headquarters.

What he needed to do next was infiltrate the Land of Rain and seize a White Zetsu corpse.

Caw—

A cry sounded from the sky.

Uchiha Fugaku looked up and saw a messenger hawk crying as it circled above the village.

This was the signal for the village to convene a meeting and summon its middle and upper ranks.