The Hokage Building, the Hokage's office.
The windows were shut tight, and smoke curled through the entire room.
Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi sat behind a mountain of documents. His trademark hat lay off to one side, and the pipe in his hand glowed and dimmed, its light illuminating a face that had aged considerably over the past six months.
In a shadowy corner of the room, Shimura Danzō leaned on his cane, one eye half-closed, its chilling glint sending a shiver through the air.
"Namikaze Minato. Nishikawa Tetsu."
Hiruzen exhaled a smoke ring. His voice was gentle, yet carried an authority that brooked no refusal. "Jiraiya already sent back the report on your mission in the Land of Rain by carrier hawk. You did well. You cut off their supplies and made it back alive."
"It was our duty as shinobi of Konoha," Minato replied calmly.
"Hmph. Your duty?"
The man in the shadows snorted, his cane striking the floor with a heavy thud. "If you knew your duty, then why were you so vague about Uchiha Fugaku's eyes in your report? That solid mass of black Chakra, and those black flames... You saw them with your own eyes, didn't you?"
The air froze.
Tetsu narrowed his eyes. That old bastard Danzō.
But he wasn't intimidated. He had already prepared what to say on the way back.
"It was an extreme transformation of Chakra brought on by intense emotions."
Tetsu spoke with a straight face. "The situation was dire. Several of us were on the verge of death. Captain Fugaku overtaxed his life force in his overwhelming anger and grief, and that was what unleashed that power. As for the specifics, they fall under the Uchiha Clan's Kekkei Genkai. As an outsider, I can't investigate further."
"Overtaxed his life force?" Danzō narrowed his eye. "Are you saying it was a fluke?"
"Whether it was a fluke doesn't matter, Danzō."
Hiruzen cut off Danzō's interrogation. He picked up a scroll from his desk, his expression turning grave.
"What matters is... the whole world knows now."
The Third Hokage tossed the scroll to the two of them.
Tetsu opened it, his brow furrowing at once.
It was a proclamation Hanzo of the Salamander had sent to the daimyos of the Five Great Nations.
In his letter, Hanzo lavished them with praise, saying that Konoha had produced three shinobi who had survived an encounter with him—the Sannin—as well as a young Uchiha with a pair of eyes capable of destroying the world.
Hanzo went into detail about how the black skeletal giant had crushed an Elite Jonin with ease, and how the black flames could not be extinguished.
At the end, Hanzo added a particularly cutting remark:
"Congratulations to Konoha. Though Madara Uchiha is gone, a new Asura has been born."
"This is meant to provoke us."
Tetsu closed the scroll, immediately seeing through Hanzo's malicious intent. "He's deliberately exaggerating the threat posed by Senior Fugaku. He's trying to excuse his defeat, and... make someone else do his dirty work."
"Exactly."
Hiruzen sighed.
"Now Iwagakure and Cloud have both sent Konoha 'concerned' inquiries, and espionage has surged. They're afraid a second Madara Uchiha might appear. And within the village..."
The Third Hokage paused, worry flashing in his eyes.
"The rumors are already out of control."
When they left the Hokage Building, the long-awaited sunshine brought little warmth.
The villagers seemed to be going about their usual business, but whenever anyone mentioned the Police Force or the Uchiha, their faces grew uneasy.
"Have you heard? They say Captain Fugaku from the Police Force is a monster..."
"Shh! Keep your voice down! I heard his eyes can kill people on the spot, then burn their bodies to ash!"
"How terrifying... The Uchiha Clan was already creepy, and now they've got a monster like him. Is this village even safe anymore?"
Hearing the villagers whispering nearby, Minato's expression darkened. "This is ridiculous. Senior Fugaku only did it to save us..."
"People only believe the fears they want to believe."
Tetsu looked toward the Uchiha Clan Compound in the distance. Its gates were shut tight, making the place seem especially desolate and forbidding.
"Hanzo's move was vicious. He's stirred up trouble outside the village and fanned the flames of Konoha's internal strife. Senior Fugaku must be at the very center of the storm right now."
And the village hadn't even tried to stop the rumors. Tetsu suspected that bastard Danzō was fanning the flames behind the scenes, too.
If Tetsu had any influence or enough strength right now, he'd be ready to cut the old bastard down himself.
"Come on. Let's go see Senior Fugaku."
The private training ground near Naka Shrine, in the Uchiha Clan Compound.
This was forbidden ground for the Uchiha Clan, and usually only core members were allowed in.
But because of Fugaku, the guards didn't stop Tetsu and Minato.
Before they even stepped into the training ground, they heard a series of ragged gasps from inside.
"Again!"
"Young Clan Leader, your body..."
"I said, again!"
Tetsu and Minato walked into the grounds and saw a shocking sight.
Uchiha Fugaku stood bare-chested, drenched in sweat.
The bandages had been removed from his eyes, and his black pupils had returned.
Facing him were three Uchiha Jonin. All of them were panting, staring at their Young Clan Leader in fear.
"Senior Fugaku," Minato called.
Fugaku paused.
He turned and saw the two of them. The iron tension in his face finally eased a little, and he waved for the sparring partners to leave.
"You're back."
Fugaku walked to the edge of the training ground, picked up a towel, and wiped away his sweat. His voice was calm, but carried a deep weariness.
"How's your recovery?" Tetsu asked, glancing at Fugaku's eyes. "Has your vision been affected?"
"It's a little blurry, but nothing serious."
Fugaku sat down and took a long drink from a water jug. "As long as I don't activate those eyes, I'm fine in my day-to-day life. But..."
He gave a wry smile and gestured toward the outside of the compound.
"The pressure outside is giving me a bigger headache than the side effects of my eyes."
"We saw Hanzo's letter," Tetsu said, sitting beside him. "The village leadership is wary of you now."
"It's not just the leadership."
A cold glint flashed in Fugaku's eyes. "The clan's in turmoil, too. The old men in the hardline faction saw me awaken the Mangekyo, and they're practically bursting with excitement. Every day they go on about 'the glorious revival of the Uchiha' and 'restoring the honor of our ancestor Madara,' trying to get me to lead the clan in a bid for more power."
"And the moderates and the ordinary clan members..." Fugaku paused, his voice turning bitter. "They're afraid of me. I can feel it. Even people who share my name look at me like I'm a monster who could lose control at any moment."
"The leadership distrusts you, enemies are watching you, your clansmen fear you, and the clan itself is divided."
Tetsu summed it up. "Senior Fugaku, you're stranded on an island."
Minato looked worried. "What should we do? If this goes on, Senior Fugaku will be driven mad."
"Mad? I'm not going mad."
Fugaku snorted and flung his towel to the ground. "I'm just disgusted. We risk our lives on the front lines, then come home only to face this kind of suspicion."
"This is exactly what Danzō and Hanzo want."
Tetsu's gaze sharpened.
"They want to isolate you and push you to extremes. If you do something reckless out of anger, they'll have an excuse to move against the Uchiha."
Fugaku looked irritated. The conversation was too heavy for a reunion with teammates he hadn't seen in a long time.
He waved a hand. "Let's not talk about this. Come on, let's go to the barbecue place. It's time I made good on my promise."
Before you continue