Almost instantly.
Fugaku pressed a hand onto Shisui, sealing all of his Chakra and directly gouging out his eyes.
Immediately after.
He began sealing Itachi's Chakra. Only five seconds later did Fugaku deactivate his Mangekyo.
Yet even in those mere five seconds, a trail of blood ran from Fugaku's eyes, enough to show that while this Dojutsu was powerful, its consumption of Fugaku's Dojutsu Power was beyond imagination.
"Fugaku, what are you doing?!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen shouted furiously.
Shisui and Itachi had been his pawns, especially powerful ones. And now they had simply been crippled?
He shot to his feet, smashed his desk to pieces with one slap, and tore off his Hokage Robe, revealing the combat uniform beneath.
At that moment, he was truly enraged!
Yet he did not actually make a move, because Fugaku's methods had frightened him as well.
That was right!
Mangekyo Dojutsu came in all sorts of strange forms. Only a few abilities, such as Amaterasu and Kamui, could be seen by outsiders; most were actually completely silent.
Just like Tsukuyomi, unless one was the target of the technique, outsiders could not sense it.
Fugaku's Mangekyo technique was the same. At the very least, from Sarutobi Hiruzen's perspective, Fugaku had merely leisurely sealed Shisui and Itachi's Chakra before casually taking Shisui's eyes.
Shisui and Itachi seemed like fools, not even putting up the most basic resistance.
There was no helping it.
Fugaku's Dojutsu Power was limited to Shisui and Itachi themselves, and this was also the option that consumed the least Dojutsu Power.
Therefore.
Sarutobi Hiruzen naturally could not see through it, but that only made him even more horrified.
After all, he knew perfectly well that Shisui and Itachi, despite their formidable strength, had been unable to resist. If it had been him instead, he would most likely have been unable to resist either.
Imagining himself unable to offer even the slightest resistance beneath Fugaku's bizarre Dojutsu, only to be easily stabbed to death by Fugaku with a Kunai, made his scalp tingle. His wariness toward Fugaku rose to its highest point.
"Clan Head, why?"
"Father, how could you do this?"
Shisui and Itachi both spoke up. Beyond anger, what they felt most was incomprehension.
After all...
In their hearts, Fugaku should not have been like this!
This kind of action was far too improper.
And in response.
Fugaku's expression remained as cold as ever as he spoke indifferently.
"Jin-kun was right about one thing. No matter what you think, there absolutely cannot be a Civil War within the Uchiha!"
"Under normal circumstances, it would not matter if one or two people died in internal fighting. But the Uchiha are now at a critical juncture, and every Shinobi Clan in Konoha is watching us."
"The Uchiha's situation is already dire. If word gets out that the Uchiha are killing one another in internal chaos, the other Shinobi Clans will only look down on us even more."
"If the Uchiha descend into internal strife even while facing the threat of extermination, then no matter how great Jin-kun's victories are in the future, the other Shinobi Clans likely would not dare to easily choose to join us."
"So..."
"This is why you two had to be brought back before we went to war with Danzo."
"Of course."
"Jin-kun merely wanted you not to participate. Fundamentally, he was unwilling to imprison or seal you, because Jin-kun had absolute confidence in himself. He was confident that even if you sided with the Konoha Higher-ups, he still had absolute confidence in winning his competition against them."
"This is his conviction, more like a path of invincibility!"
"That is why he has always disdained using schemes. From beginning to end, he has used nothing but absolute Open Conspiracies!"
"But I, Fugaku, am not!"
"I was present throughout the last conversation between the Hokage-sama and Jin-kun. After truly understanding the Konoha Higher-ups' attitude, I realized just how terribly wrong I had been all these years as Clan Head."
"If Jin-kun had not appeared out of nowhere, the Uchiha would most likely have been destroyed in my hands!"
"So, I must atone!"
"While Jin-kun is unwilling to interfere, I, Fugaku, will cripple both Shisui and Itachi even if it costs me my reputation!"
"There is little else I can do to help Jin-kun, but I, Fugaku, am still capable of handling this small matter before me."
"There is no need to mention Itachi. He is my child!"
"As his father, I am only considering that he is still young and confining him at home to study properly. I imagine no one in all of Konoha could say anything about that."
"As for you—Shisui!"
"Though you are not my child, I am your Clan Head!"
"Konoha is not permitted to interfere in the internal affairs of Shinobi Clans. This was declared by the First Hokage, Hashirama-sama, so as Clan Head, I have the right to discipline you, and Konoha may not interfere for any reason."
"If you choose to leave the Uchiha, that is fine. But you must surrender your Sharingan as well."
"That is the clan rule!"
"So, Shisui, I am giving you a choice!"
"If you choose to leave the Uchiha, I will find you a pair of ordinary eyes afterward, and then you may follow your Hokage-sama."
"If you choose the Uchiha, then come back with me. I will find you a pair of Three Tomoe eyes to replace them!"
Fugaku's tone was icy as he explained his reasons for acting.
That was right!
The Uchiha had seemed exceptionally disorganized in the past, nowhere near as united as other Shinobi Clans such as the Hyuga or Ino-Shika-Cho. But in truth, that was only because the Uchiha were arrogant and disdained using authority.
Which faction one wished to join depended entirely on one's own wishes!
But in reality.
Clan rules existed, and every Shinobi Clan had them!
When Root went to other Shinobi Clans for manpower, it was the Clan Head who decided whom the clan would hand over. The ordinary clan members had no right to choose.
Konoha's noninterference in the internal affairs of Shinobi Clans was also a rule Senju Hashirama had personally established when Konoha was founded.
Therefore.
Fugaku's argument was absolutely sound!
Every Shinobi Clan had to acknowledge this. Sarutobi Hiruzen could not refute it either; when it came to a Shinobi Clan's internal affairs, his status as Hokage-sama was far from sufficient.
If he dared interfere, the other Shinobi Clans would certainly stop him as well!
So, as the saying went, never underestimate anyone!
Now that Fugaku had truly cast aside the Uchiha's pride and acted as the Uchiha's Clan Head, he might not have had the ability to interfere in village affairs, but he possessed absolute authority over how to deal with Shisui and Itachi.
Of course.
Fugaku's actions alone were enough to show just how enormously Sarutobi Hiruzen's true face, revealed last time, had changed Fugaku's entire worldview.
Shisui froze.
After hearing Fugaku's words, he pondered for a long while before sighing.
His earlier anger completely dissipated.
Though he had wanted to help the clan in his own way, he also acknowledged his identity as an Uchiha and knew that clan rules had to be obeyed.
Perhaps Itachi would choose the village outright, but Shisui was different from Itachi. The Uchiha held a greater place in his heart!
Everything he had done now was also for the sake of helping the Uchiha.
So, alas!
After a helpless sigh, Shisui spoke directly. "I choose the Uchiha. I am willing to accept the Clan Head's judgment!"
Before you continue