The commanding tone in Setsuna Uchiha's voice left the ninjas under Fugaku Uchiha deeply dissatisfied. It looked as though they were ready to strike at the slightest provocation.
After all, a move like this was almost tantamount to directly challenging the clan patriarch's authority!
Uchiha Yakumi was just about to speak up and reprimand him when Fugaku Uchiha stopped him with a hand:
"Leave first."
"But, Clan Leader!"
"I said, leave!"
Fugaku Uchiha's voice grew increasingly stern.
Seeing this, the men behind him were unwilling to go, but they had no choice but to obey and leave. The veteran Jonin behind Setsuna Uchiha also turned and walked away.
Uchiha Shingen naturally had no desire to get caught up in what came next. He blended into the crowd, hoping to slip away unnoticed, but as he turned, Setsuna Uchiha called out to him:
"You two brats, stay. What happens next will benefit you as well."
"Uh..."
Uchiha Shingen stopped in his tracks.
"I don't think I need to stay. On paper, I'm only a Chunin, so I'm not even qualified to take part in this Clan Meeting."
"Neither am I."
Seeing Uchiha Shingen's reaction, Shisui immediately chimed in.
He was gradually beginning to understand.
When he couldn't make sense of something, following Uchiha Shingen might not get him anything good, but it would definitely keep him out of trouble.
"What do you think?!"
Setsuna Uchiha gave a cold laugh, his aged face crumpling like a piece of tree bark.
"Clan... Leader!?"
Fugaku Uchiha glanced at the two of them and immediately saw through Uchiha Shingen's little scheme. He gave a helpless smile and said:
"Stay. I have a rough idea of what Elder Setsuna wants to do. As he said, what happens next can only benefit you."
"Do you remember what I told you before? The Sharingan's limits don't stop at the Three-Tomoe. It can go even further, remember?!"
Uchiha Shingen's pupils contracted slightly, and he couldn't bring himself to take another step.
The Three-Tomoe Sharingan was already an exceptional Kekkei Genkai. What kind of realm lay beyond it?
He'd be lying if he said he wasn't curious.
Besides, the clan leader had spoken. Uchiha Shingen had no reason to stubbornly refuse.
He immediately led Shisui to stand in a corner.
As the Jonin present filed out, the hall fell quiet. Only Setsuna Uchiha and Fugaku remained, facing each other.
The air grew heavy with tension.
An invisible force seemed to clash and kill between them. The hidden Reptilian Beasts sensed the presence of some kind of monster and scattered in all directions.
Even simply standing there, the two radiated an aura powerful enough to shatter an ordinary person's sanity.
Uchiha Shingen's gaze fell on Fugaku.
For the first time, he realized that the clan leader, usually so mild-mannered, had another side he kept hidden!
"Let me see whether you have what it takes to lead the Uchiha!"
"If you can't satisfy me, I won't hesitate to put someone else in your place!"
Setsuna Uchiha's hoarse voice echoed through the empty hall.
The three red Tomoe in his eyes spun rapidly. A dark, overwhelming ocular power began to spread from him like a rising tide!
The power was so sinister that even Uchiha Shingen, standing in the corner, instinctively felt uncomfortable.
Shisui was already breathing heavily, the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end!
"So this is... what lies beyond the Three-Tomoe?!"
Uchiha Shingen murmured, then rejected his own guess:
"No, that's not it!"
"This ocular power is strong, but it hasn't undergone a qualitative change. It's only accumulated in quantity. If the Sharingan really has a higher level, it should..."
Uchiha Shingen's voice abruptly stopped.
He had clearly seen the Tomoe in Setsuna Uchiha's eyes spinning faster and faster, until they seemed to reach their limit and twisted into a three-leaf clover shape.
Then came a dense, suffocating Chakra, like an evil spirit crawling out of the abyss.
A violent gust of wind surged through the hall!
Uchiha Shingen instinctively raised a hand to shield his face, but his gaze remained fixed on Setsuna Uchiha's eyes.
If that earlier ocular power hadn't yet reached the threshold of a qualitative change, then this power now belonged to an entirely different dimension!
There was no way I could ever beat this monster!
Even though he was still sitting in a wheelchair, even though he was already at death's door and had little time left to live.
Since his face-off with Danzo, Uchiha Shingen had felt this bone-chilling fear for the first time. But more than that, he felt curiosity and delight.
If he kept checking in at the Police Force on schedule, he could have eyes like these himself in as little as a few months—or perhaps a few years.
"This is..."
"The Mangekyō Sharingan—the Sharingan's true form. A powerful force born from the deepest pain."
Fugaku answered Uchiha Shingen's question.
His gaze rested on Setsuna Uchiha, and his eyes held undisguised astonishment.
"You awakened it through decades of imprisonment?"
"That's right."
Two streams of blood trickled down Setsuna Uchiha's face. Combined with his chilling ocular power, they made him look grotesque and twisted.
Such immense power naturally came with a corresponding price.
Every time the Mangekyō Sharingan was used, it caused irreversible damage to the user's eyesight, eventually robbing them of their sight entirely.
And yet countless Uchiha Clan members still yearned for it, because the power it offered was great enough to make them overlook the cost.
Setsuna Uchiha lowered his eyes to his hands, his expression growing increasingly savage.
"After I lost to Tobirama Senju all those years ago, I gained these eyes in prison. This power could have changed my fate, but it came too late."
"Fortunately..."
"I still have a chance to start over!"
Setsuna Uchiha suddenly raised his head. His aura surged, kicking up a gale that swept through everything around him.
"Now that you've seen these eyes, you should understand that no one in the Uchiha Clan can stop me."
"Become my right hand and rule Konoha alongside me. You're qualified!"
"That's an interesting proposal, but I refuse!"
Fugaku Uchiha shook his head, utterly calm.
"You..."
Setsuna Uchiha's gaze narrowed slightly.
Even after seeing his Mangekyō Sharingan, the man before him showed no fear at all. Either he was a hopeless fool, or he had absolute confidence in himself.
And though Fugaku Uchiha favored gentle methods, he was certainly no fool.
"Stop, Elder Setsuna."
"The Uchiha of this era no longer need a monster who knows nothing but slaughter!"
As Fugaku Uchiha's words rang out, an equally powerful ocular force burst forth, its presence even surpassing Setsuna Uchiha's!
Before you continue