Kotetsu

Uchiha Toma had wanted to stop him, but when he looked into Setsuna Uchiha's eyes, he found himself unable to say a word.

At that moment, he had a strange illusion.

It was as if the person he was pushing wasn't a frail old man in the twilight of his life, but a beast that had just broken free of its chains and was ready to devour anyone in its path!

"Understood."

"Mm."

Setsuna Uchiha straightened up in his seat again. After sweeping his gaze around the mansion, he directed Uchiha Toma to push his wheelchair.

They entered the study he had once used.

Most of the books and scrolls in the room had been eaten away by insects. Only the wooden box on the highest shelf remained intact.

Not only had the insects left it alone, but it hadn't even gathered any dust.

It was as if even those mindless crawling creatures had sensed the danger inside the box and deliberately kept their distance.

"This is..."

Uchiha Toma's gaze fell on the wooden box. For some reason, a chill swept across his neck, as if someone had suddenly chopped off his head.

He hurriedly raised a hand to feel his neck. Only after confirming he was unharmed did he finally breathe a sigh of relief.

In the instant Uchiha Toma was distracted, the wooden box had already landed in Setsuna Uchiha's hands.

With a creak, the box opened, revealing what had been kept inside.

It was unmistakably a sword!

The sword's design was extremely plain. Its blade gleamed silver, without any fancy patterns, yet the killing intent radiating from it made one instinctively uneasy.

"Just the killing intent stored in the blade is enough to make me hallucinate?!"

Uchiha Toma felt his hair stand on end. The moment he saw the sword, his breath caught.

"Is this the sword Lord Izuna used back then?!"

As an old member of the Uchiha, Uchiha Toma had been born before Konoha was founded and had even fought on the battlefield.

Naturally, he had witnessed Uchiha Izuna's battles against Second Hokage Tobirama Senju. Back then, Uchiha Izuna had wielded this very sword!

"I remember its name was..."

"Kotetsu!"

Setsuna Uchiha murmured softly. His gaze rested on Kotetsu, as if recalling the days long past.

"After Lord Izuna passed away, this sword eventually came into my hands. I never thought that after all these years, I'd have the chance to see it again!"

"Unfortunately..."

"I'm past the age when I could wield it."

Bang!

After closing the wooden box again, Setsuna Uchiha felt no attachment to this place. He had planned to head straight to his residence and summon his old subordinates, but for some reason, he paused and said:

"I heard the clan has a remarkable young talent."

"I'll go take a look."

"You don't need to come with me. I can manage on my own."

"Yes!"

Konoha.

South District 4.

After hurriedly clocking in at the Konoha Military Police Force, Uchiha Shingen brought Shisui here.

Jiraiya had unusually failed to show up today to discuss his new book. Uchiha Shingen was a little surprised, but his attention was soon drawn to something else.

As they walked, everyone around them wore grave expressions.

Remembering the strange atmosphere at the Police Force that day, Uchiha Shingen pulled Shisui over and asked:

"Did something happen in the clan?!"

"Captain Shingen, you haven't heard?!"

Shisui looked surprised, but when he saw that the confusion on Uchiha Shingen's face seemed genuine, his little face immediately turned solemn as he explained:

"Elder Setsuna has been released from prison."

"Setsuna?!"

"Setsuna Uchiha?! The one who rebelled against the Second Hokage back then?!"

Shisui nodded and continued:

"Relations between the Uchiha and the village had just started to show signs of improvement. Now the village has let this man out. I'm afraid there'll be trouble."

Uchiha Shingen's expression turned more serious as he listened.

Neither Konoha nor the Uchiha had ever been forthcoming about the coup launched by Setsuna Uchiha, but there was no doubt that Setsuna Uchiha had ultimately failed.

Yet that very coup had torn apart the already fragile trust between Konoha and the Uchiha even more completely.

It could be said that, aside from the Konoha High Command's wariness and the attacks by the previous clan head, Uchiha Madara, this man bore the greatest share of the blame for the Uchiha's current predicament.

That old geezer's coming out now couldn't interfere with my grand plan to slack off at the Police Force, could it?!

That absolutely couldn't happen!

With his grand plan to slack off at stake, Uchiha Shingen considered whether there was any way he could intervene.

Shisui slipped out of his grasp and headed toward the intersection in the distance.

Uchiha Shingen looked in Shisui's direction and saw an old man sitting in a wheelchair by the intersection, his hair silver and his face gaunt.

The old man was Setsuna Uchiha, who had come from the Uchiha compound to see the two most outstanding younger members of the Uchiha in this era.

Unaware of who he was, Shisui approached him of his own accord.

"Grandpa, is there anything I can help you with?!"

"..."

Setsuna Uchiha was clearly uncomfortable with Shisui's sudden friendliness.

Seeing that Shisui hadn't recognized him, he decided to play along and pointed toward the bookstore in the distance.

"I'd like to go there and buy a few books."

"I'll push you over."

With that, Shisui pushed the old man to the bookstore Uchiha Shingen often visited. He settled him at the tea table Jiraiya had set up outside the entrance.

After pouring Setsuna Uchiha a cup of tea, Shisui saw that he didn't need anything else and returned to Uchiha Shingen.

Sitting at the tea table, Setsuna Uchiha surveyed his surroundings before fixing his gaze on Uchiha Shingen in the distance. His aged brows immediately knitted together!

Even though this was the first time he'd seen Uchiha Shingen, he sensed something familiar about him!

"He's Nara!"

"Could Uchiha Shingen be of mixed Nara descent?!"

"Still."

"Although the Nara Clan is a little lazy by nature, they have the brains most Uchiha lack. That would explain why young Fugaku values him so much."

"I'll observe him first and see what he's really like."

"If he truly is exceptional, I can consider bringing him into my service!"

When Shisui returned, Uchiha Shingen gestured toward the old man with his chin.

"You know him?"

Shisui shook his head.

"I don't, but he seemed pitiful sitting there alone, so I went to ask."

Uchiha Shingen acknowledged this. He hadn't sensed anything unusual, so he let his guard down and picked up where they'd left off.

"Speaking of which, how much do you know about Setsuna Uchiha?"

Shisui shook his head, his brows drawing together slightly.

"Though it's not nice to talk behind someone's back, from what I know..."

"Setsuna Uchiha is an extremist with an iron-fisted style. He's the kind of person who'll draw his sword and cut you down if you disagree with him."

"His showing up among the Uchiha at a time like this may not be a good thing!"

"I've also heard that he didn't do many good things within the clan back then!"

Bang!

Shisui was getting into his story when a sudden crash came from the tea table in the distance.

Uchiha Shingen couldn't help turning to look. With his eyesight, he could clearly see the teacup shattered in the old man's hand.

Maybe it was just his imagination, but he thought the veins on the back of the old man's hand were bulging unnaturally.

Was something wrong with his health?!