Obito and Zetsu

There was no other way.

Just like the White Fang of Konoha in the past.

No matter how tolerant or great he, the 'strongest Hokage in history,' might be.

He could never tolerate the existence of anyone in Konoha who exceeded the Hokage's control.

This was a matter of principle.

He shouldered the heavy burden of the entire Konoha.

Once Uchiha Shisui harbored malicious intent.

And turned him, the Hokage, into a puppet, the danger to Konoha would far exceed that of the Nine-Tails.

Just as the Third was lost in thought, an Anbu knocked hurriedly on the door.

"It's bad, Lord Third."

The corners of Sarutobi Hiruzen's mouth lifted slightly; even through the door, he could sense the other party's urgency.

It seemed Danzo had succeeded.

"Come in."

Sarutobi Hiruzen felt a flicker of joy in his heart, but on the surface, he remained composed, ordering the Anbu ninja to enter and speak.

Creak, the office door opened in response.

The Anbu ninja walked quickly to the center of the room, knelt on one knee before Sarutobi Hiruzen, pressed his right fist to the floor, and lowered his head slightly, waiting until the Hokage spoke before looking up.

"What happened?" Sarutobi Hiruzen asked, feigning ignorance in a soft voice.

The Anbu ninja took a deep breath and reported the intelligence monitored from the Uchiha compound, "Lord Hokage, Uchiha Shisui. He is dead."

Hearing this, a trace of joy flashed obscurely in the depths of Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes.

Yet, he still feigned shock, standing up abruptly with wide eyes, and asked with a pained expression: "What?! Shisui is dead? How could this possibly happen?"

"Reporting to Lord Hokage, Uchiha Shisui is indeed dead. The Anbu ninja responsible for surveillance saw Uchiha Shisui's body with his own eyes."

"It is said to be a suicide, and a suicide note was left behind. But the cause of death is still under investigation."

Seeing this, the Anbu ninja sighed at how considerate Lord Third was toward his subordinates, then organized his words and relayed all the intelligence he currently possessed.

"However."

Changing the subject, the Anbu ninja suddenly added: "Uchiha Shisui's eyes seem to have been gouged out. Furthermore, someone saw him being summoned by Root ninjas under Lord Danzo earlier today."

"Danzo." Hearing this name, the Third's cloudy old eyes immediately became profound. It seemed his old partner had reaped quite a harvest.

Still, he would have to give him a warning, lest he start harboring bad intentions toward him.

Meanwhile.

Land of Water, Kirigakure.

Uchiha Obito was manipulating the Fourth Mizukage, methodically implementing the Bloody Mist Village policy to slaughter ninjas with bloodline limits.

All to console the spirit of Nohara Rin in heaven.

Just as Obito was contemplating his next move, the combined entity of Black Zetsu and White Zetsu emerged from the ground.

Black Zetsu said in a hoarse voice: "Obito, something major has happened in Konoha."

"I've told you many times, call me Lord Madara." Obito's brow furrowed beneath his mask, and he said coldly.

"Understood, Lord Madara." Black Zetsu replied respectfully on the surface, while inwardly feeling disdain.

Whether it is you or Uchiha Madara, you are all just pawns for resurrecting Mother.

Hearing this, Obito's tone softened slightly, "Speak, what exactly happened?"

White Zetsu spoke first: "Uchiha Shisui, known as the strongest genjutsu ninja of the Uchiha clan, is dead."

"Uchiha Shisui is dead?" Obito was stunned, "When?"

If one were to ask who Obito feared most in Konoha since the death of the Fourth Hokage?

Sarutobi Hiruzen?

Danzo?

Uchiha Fugaku?

No, no, none of them. In the face of his Kamui, these were nothing more than mere rabble.

It was Uchiha Shisui.

For no other reason than that the man had awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan, and his abilities were extremely bizarre and powerful.

Even he, who had also awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan, dared not engage him head-on.

How could such a powerhouse die?

"Yesterday. The Uchiha clan is holding the funeral now." Black Zetsu replied, his voice so hoarse it sounded like wind blowing through fallen leaves, making it extremely grating to the ear.

White Zetsu added: "They say it was a suicide."

"You actually believe that nonsense?" Obito said, sounding annoyed.

Black Zetsu took up the thread: "Uchiha Shisui did indeed commit suicide. The Uchiha clan was on the verge of a coup, and to prevent a civil war in Konoha, Shisui willingly took his own life to crush the morale and combat strength of his clan."

"However, before his suicide, it seems he intended to use the power of his Mangekyo Sharingan to control Uchiha Fugaku, reorganize the Uchiha, and halt the coup."

"The attempt failed."

"He was ambushed by Danzo, who stole his right eye."

"Hmph, a naive fool. Someone with eyes and strength of that caliber, only to end up falling into Danzo's hands—ridiculous." Obito let out a cold snort, his words dripping with disdain. "Is Shisui's eye in Danzo's possession now?"

"No, it seems Danzo did not obtain the Sharingan."

"According to intelligence gathered by my Spore Clone from Root, not only did Danzo fail to secure Shisui's right eye, but at the very moment he tried to seize it, a mysterious person suddenly appeared, severed his left arm, and snatched it away."

Black Zetsu organized his thoughts and relayed the information he had gathered through his White Zetsu clones, point by point.

White Zetsu added with a gloating tone: "Right now, Danzo suspects that you were the one who did it."

"A mysterious person? Interesting. It seems Konoha isn't as simple as it appears on the surface." Obito repeated, then continued to ask: "What about the left eye?"

"Unknown. However," Black Zetsu pondered for a moment before adding, "the first person to discover Uchiha Shisui's body was Uchiha Itachi."

"Uchiha Itachi was Shisui's closest friend. After Shisui's death, he also awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan. I suspect Shisui's left eye is likely in his possession."

"Itachi, is it?" Obito frowned. "Another troublesome fellow to deal with."

"Madara, what do you intend to do?" Black Zetsu asked.

"Although the Uchiha coup has been thwarted for now, it is only a matter of time before it erupts again. Once I finish handling matters here, I will head to Konoha and find an opportunity to recruit Itachi into the Akatsuki," Obito said. "An Uchiha who has awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan has the qualifications. In the future, he will be an asset in capturing the Tailed Beasts."

"In the meantime, find a way to track down the person who snatched Shisui's right eye. To be able to snatch prey from Danzo's jaws within Konoha, they must either be a user of space-time ninjutsu or someone from within Konoha itself."

"Understood." Hearing this, Black Zetsu responded respectfully, his figure slowly merging into the ground until he vanished completely.

The following day, the news spread like wildfire: Uchiha Shisui, the Uchiha clan's strongest genjutsu ninja, known as Body Flicker Shisui, was dead.

The Uchiha clan, having lost the support of their strongest Mangekyo user, was devastated.

Their morale plummeted instantly, and even the hawkish elders quieted down, no longer mentioning the coup.

Konoha thus fell into a brief period of peace once again.

Of course, this was merely the calm before the storm.

ps: Second update.