The Possibility of Evolution!

"A three-tomoe Sharingan at thirteen—there haven't been many in the history of the Uchiha clan."

"The few who did achieve it basically reached another realm later on."

Fugaku Uchiha stopped there, leaving his point hanging as he gazed at Shingen Uchiha.

"Another... realm?!"

Shingen Uchiha repeated the keywords from Fugaku Uchiha's words.

He had originally assumed that the three-tomoe was the limit of the Sharingan, but it seemed there was a possibility for these eyes to evolve further.

Just as he was about to press for more information, Fugaku Uchiha shifted the topic, asking about Jiraiya:

"I heard you've been getting quite close to Jiraiya lately."

Upon hearing this, Shingen Uchiha shot a disgruntled look at Shisui, whose young face instantly flushed to the tips of his ears as he buried his head like a quail.

"Shisui, does this have anything to do with you?!"

Seeing this scene, Fugaku Uchiha felt a sense of amusement while shifting his gaze toward Shisui.

"I... I... I just..."

Shisui shuddered, stammering and unable to form a coherent sentence for a long time.

After hesitating for a while, seeing he couldn't bluff his way out, he decided to just come clean:

"It was Captain Shingen. He said that book held the secret to becoming Hokage, so I thought I'd try it out. I didn't expect to run into Lord Jiraiya."

"So you sold me out without a second thought?!"

Shingen Uchiha's mouth twitched.

He should have gone harder earlier; he shouldn't have pulled his punch on that last strike!

"I..."

Shisui didn't know what to say and buried his head once more.

Hearing this, Fugaku Uchiha roughly reconstructed the sequence of events in his mind:

"So, ever since then, Jiraiya has been seeking you out, dragging you along to discuss 'creative writing' all day long?!"

"You knew?!"

Shingen Uchiha's face turned red. Being caught slacking off on the job by his direct superior was definitely not a pleasant experience.

Am I going to get fired for this?!

Damn it!

I shouldn't have been so greedy for money back then. If I really get fired, where am I supposed to clock in for my daily check-ins?!

Fugaku Uchiha swept a calm glance over him, and he immediately understood the situation.

Combined with the previous report from the second-in-command of the Police Force, Yakumi Uchiha, it was likely that Jiraiya and Shingen Uchiha were truly just discussing creative writing.

It was not the Third Hokage attempting to reach his hand into the Uchiha.

Currently, the relationship between the Uchiha and the Konoha high command was gradually easing; the Third Hokage had no reason to do such a thing at this time, and even if he did, he wouldn't be foolish enough to do it so blatantly.

As for Danzo, that was even less likely.

Jiraiya's lack of interest in Konoha's internal power struggles had long been laid out on the table.

The expression on Fugaku Uchiha's face softened:

"Regarding tonight's incident, I will demand an explanation from the Hokage."

"In the future, if you encounter similar situations, notify me immediately. No matter what, the Uchiha will always be your strongest backing."

"Of course, if you have any needs, feel free to bring them to me."

Shingen Uchiha naturally understood the olive branch Fugaku was extending.

He let out a sigh of relief; at the very least, his position within the Police Force was safe for the time being.

With the clan head having spoken, Shingen Uchiha's mind began to stir.

Tonight's sudden incident served as a wake-up call for Shingen Uchiha.

Without sufficiently powerful strength, his life of slacking off in the Police Force could be ruined simply by the whim of a big shot like Danzo.

While abilities like Kekkei Genkai and chakra could be boosted through attribute points, he would likely have to rely on himself to solve the issue of ninjutsu.

Speaking of ninjutsu.

Shisui's Sword Leap Flame from tonight had left a deep impression on Shingen Uchiha.

That technique, which compressed fire-style chakra onto the blade to unleash a flaming strike, was incredibly fast and required almost no hand seals.

At the very least, Shingen Uchiha hadn't seen Shisui perform any hand seals at all.

In other words, this was highly likely a form of seal-less ninjutsu.

In the battles of ninjas, the side that masters seal-less ninjutsu will hold an absolute advantage in initiative.

And often, the advantage of initiative can even determine the course of a battle.

Moreover, since the clan head had taken the initiative to show goodwill, refusing him would seem rather suspicious.

Thinking of this.

Uchiha Shingen spoke up:

"I would like the Sword Leap Flame Technique."

"A technique? I understand."

Fugaku Uchiha was not surprised by this; he stood up immediately and reached out to take a crimson scroll from the bookshelf behind him.

He paused slightly, then casually took out a few other scrolls as well, bringing them over and placing them on the coffee table in front of Uchiha Shingen.

"This is the scroll containing the Sword Leap Flame Technique, and it also includes the insights left behind by previous clansmen."

Fugaku Uchiha picked up the crimson scroll and shook it, then pointed to the other scrolls and said:

"You have now awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan, and participating in the jonin examination is only a matter of time. You should find these common techniques useful as well."

"Thank you, Clan Head."

Uchiha Shingen nodded and reached out to take the scrolls.

Feeling the heavy weight in his hands, Uchiha Shingen finally realized that for him to have awakened the Three-Tomoe Sharingan at thirteen meant even more to the Uchiha clan than he had originally thought.

As for the other level of the Sharingan that Fugaku Uchiha had just mentioned in passing, Uchiha Shingen was in no rush for the time being.

After all, given his current situation, even if he just followed his routine of checking in, he could raise the level of his Sharingan by relying on attribute points.

Fugaku turned his head and asked Shisui about his needs.

Shisui followed suit and requested several secret Fire Release ninjutsu of the clan, and at the end, he gathered his courage and added:

"Lord Clan Head, I also bear responsibility for this matter. Please do not punish Captain Shingen; he is very important, both to the Uchiha and to Konoha."

Upon hearing this, Fugaku Uchiha reached out and ruffled Shisui's hair, his eyes softening with a touch of kindness as he nodded, effectively agreeing to let the matter go.

It was past midnight by the time Uchiha Shingen and Shisui walked out of the clan head's mansion.

The night was deep.

The temperature had dropped, and dew hung on the leaves along the path.

A cold breeze blew, causing Uchiha Shingen to tighten his clothes and stifle a yawn, before he turned to look at Shisui and scolded him with a laugh:

"You brat, you sold me out just like that?!"

As he spoke, Uchiha Shingen raised his hand and ruffled Shisui's hair vigorously, ignoring the latter's struggles:

"Now we're even!"

"Don't be late tomorrow!"

The moment his voice faded.

Uchiha Shingen's figure vanished at the fork in the road.

Shisui stood in place for a long time, smoothing out the hair that Uchiha Shingen had just messed up, a hint of a smile appearing in his eyes.

He turned and walked toward his own residence, his steps light, as if he had shed some kind of shackle.

Fugaku Uchiha, who had just received a notification from the Hokage and was preparing to head to the Hokage Building for an emergency meeting, saw this scene, and a rare smile appeared on his stiff, serious face:

"They are both good children."