I Shadow You Regret

The Hokage world, Konoha, the Hokage Building.

Night had long since faded, sunlight streamed through the windows, illuminating the Hokage Office brightly, yet unable to dispel the heavy atmosphere in the room.

The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, let wisps of smoke curl endlessly from the pipe in his mouth, filling the entire room with a hazy fog.

Spread out on the desk before him were several freshly delivered scrolls.

Their contents were identical.

Konoha Village—no traces of any Uchiha found!

Southern border of the Land of Fire—no traces of any Uchiha found!

Northern border of the Land of Fire—no traces of any Uchiha found!

Eastern border of the Land of Fire—no traces of any Uchiha found!

Since the night before last, over a thousand people from the Uchiha clan compound had vanished from Konoha without a trace.

The Uchiha clan had defected!

Upon learning the news, the Third Hokage immediately mobilized all of Konoha's forces to search the entire Land of Fire.

But even now, there was still no news.

The Third Hokage was not alone in the office.

Shimura Danzō leaned on his cane, standing by the window with his back to the sunlight, shadows covering most of his face, making his one exposed eye look even more sinister.

Neither of the two men in the room spoke, one standing, one sitting.

The silence was suffocating.

Click.

The office door was pushed open softly, and an Anbu wearing an animal mask knelt on one knee, reporting in a low, clear voice:

"Hokage-sama, latest intelligence: the search perimeter has been expanded to the entire Land of Fire, including all border outposts, hidden valleys, underground black markets...

Still no traces of any Uchiha clan activity have been found.

The entire Uchiha clan, over a thousand people, along with most of their important supplies, seem... seem to have completely vanished from the face of the earth."

The Anbu finished speaking, lowering his head further, bracing for the wrath of his superiors.

Yet the expected reprimand never came.

The Third Hokage only waved his hand wearily, and the Anbu, as if granted a pardon, retreated silently, gently closing the door behind him.

The room fell back into dead silence, broken only by the faint crackling of tobacco burning in the Third Hokage's pipe.

"Completely... vanished."

The Third Hokage finally spoke, his voice carrying a hint of hoarseness and disbelief.

He set down his pipe and rubbed his furrowed brow.

"Over a thousand people, not one or two, but an entire clan! Overnight, from the core area of the heavily guarded Konoha ninja village, they disappeared without a trace.

No signs of a large-scale battle, not even a decent clue left behind—how is this possible?"

Danzō slowly turned around, a cold, sinister light flickering in his single eye.

"Hiruzen, even now, what are you still doubting?"

His voice was like a dull blade scraping. "This is absolutely no coincidence; this is a premeditated mass defection!

As the Third Hokage, the ruler of Konoha, you didn't discover the vast Uchiha compound was empty until dawn!

What a dereliction of duty! And what a bitter irony!"

The Third Hokage remained silent, unable to refute.

The Uchiha clan was Konoha's greatest noble house, and their Sharingan was a strategic-level power.

For such an important clan to vanish entirely without the village's knowledge was not only a massive loss but indeed the greatest mockery of Konoha's security.

"It's Uchiha Yoru."

Danzō's tone was resolute, carrying suppressed fury.

"That brat... we all underestimated him. Half a year ago, when he forcefully seized the position of clan head, we all thought he was just a radical drunk on power.

Now it seems he was likely planning all of this from that very moment!

The Mangekyo Sharingan he awakened, that power, is probably far beyond our imagination."

"The abilities of the Mangekyo are bizarre and unpredictable; historical records show each one is different."

The Third Hokage said in a deep voice, "But to send over a thousand people away without alerting the Barrier Team or the Anbu.

Even if Yoru awakened a Space-Time ability, this sounds like a fantasy!"

"Hmph!" Danzō snorted coldly. "No matter what power he possesses, betraying the village is a capital crime!

The Uchiha clan, after all, has rebellion flowing in their blood! This is a declaration of war against all of Konoha!"

"It's too early to draw conclusions, Danzo."

The Third Generation tried to stay calm. "They've simply vanished, not defected to another village. Moreover, they caused no destruction before leaving."

"That's precisely what makes it more terrifying, Hiruzen!"

Danzo slammed his cane against the floor, producing a dull thud.

"They took all their strength, all their potential!

Uchiha Yoru and Itachi both possess the power of the Mangekyo, along with hundreds of clan members who have awakened their Sharingan, lurking in the shadows.

Their threat to Konoha is far greater than an open rebellion!

They're like a venomous snake hidden in the dark—no one knows when they'll bare their fangs and strike a vicious blow at Konoha!"

At the mention of Uchiha Itachi, the Third Generation's expression darkened.

That youth of great righteousness, on whom he had pinned such hopes, was now missing as well.

Had he followed his clan willingly, or met with misfortune?

Neither answer was one he wanted to see.

"Uchiha Itachi's mission..." The Third Generation's voice carried a hint of strain.

"Do you still harbor illusions about that wicked brat? From the moment he lost contact, we should have realized the plan had gone awry!"

Danzo said without mercy.

"As things stand now, it's highly likely we've been deceived by Itachi all along—that brat was always on the Uchiha's side.

On the surface, he fed us false information about the Uchiha, but in reality, he was covering for his Big Brother secretly arranging the clan's defection.

That night we withdrew all surveillance on the Uchiha—it was all part of their plan. Our withdrawal gave them the perfect opportunity to flee.

Those brothers are in cahoots!"

The office fell silent again, suffocatingly oppressive.

"Search!"

After a long pause, Danzo squeezed out a single word through gritted teeth.

"Mobilize every resource in Konoha, contact all spies abroad, put a bounty on the black market.

Even if we have to turn the entire Ninja World upside down, we must find their whereabouts!

Alive, we see them; dead, we see their corpses! Especially Uchiha Yoru's Mangekyo Sharingan!"

The Third Generation neither agreed nor objected immediately.

He stood up, walked to the window, and gazed down at Konoha bathed in sunlight, peaceful and serene.

The Uchiha problem had plagued Konoha for far too long. Was it finally coming to a close now?

Though the outcome was slightly different, hadn't the plan from the start been to abandon the entire Uchiha clan?

Either way, the goal had now been achieved.

"First, seal the information. Announce that the Uchiha clan has been dispatched on a classified long-term mission."

The Third Generation finally made his decision, his voice regaining its usual steadiness.

"Why not issue a wanted notice! They can't have gotten far. We need to hurry and hunt them down, arrest them as soon as possible!"

Now that the entire Uchiha clan had defected from Konoha, why was the weak-willed Hiruzen still hesitating?

Traitors must be suppressed at all costs!

But the Third Generation remained unmoved. He turned and gathered all the scrolls on his desk into a drawer, his resolve firm.

"Danzo!"

"I am the Hokage!"

"Let this matter rest. Immediately recall all forces hunting the Uchiha!"

Seeing the Third Generation's unyielding stance, Danzo trembled with rage.

"Hiruzen, you will regret this!"