The next morning.
The Third Hokage rose from the sofa in the Hokage Office, rubbed his bleary eyes, then lit his pipe and relied on the nicotine to force himself awake.
Ever since his wife, Biwako, had died, the Third Hokage had gradually returned to his clan compound less and less.
Later, his eldest son and daughter-in-law had died on a mission, and Asuma had stormed off to become one of the Guardian Ninja serving the Daimyo. He had even less reason to go home.
That empty house only reminded him of how powerless he had been.
With a soft sigh, the Third Hokage recalled his meeting with Shisui the day before. If Shisui hadn't brought it up himself and revealed his Mangekyō Sharingan in front of everyone,
he never would have imagined that the grandson of his old friend had awakened the Mangekyō in secret.
That was the Mangekyō—the Sharingan once possessed only by Uchiha Madara and Uchiha Izuna. Even the First Lord and Teacher Tobirama had needed to exert tremendous effort to defeat those legendary eyes.
And the ocular technique recorded in Shisui's Mangekyō was the deeply unnerving Kotoamatsukami, a technique capable of altering someone's will.
From the moment he learned what Kotoamatsukami could do, the Third Hokage had decided never to meet Shisui alone again. It wasn't that he distrusted Shisui; as Hokage, he simply had to avoid unnecessary risks.
After finishing his pipe, the Third Hokage remembered Shisui's mission and tapped on the desk. "Anbu, has Shisui still not come to report in? Has anything happened in the Uchiha District?"
"Reporting to the Third Lord: Shisui hasn't returned since he left yesterday. The Guard Division, however, has caused quite a stir."
"Uchiha Tiehuo brought a large number of Uchiha Ninja. They're currently downstairs at the Hokage