Rasengan, Chidori!

"Don't rush. The real show's only just beginning!"

But Uchiha Jin had clearly been prepared for this. He pressed a hand against Shisui's trembling shoulder and spoke with a gentle, almost amused smile.

"Jin, what are you trying to do?"

Uchiha Shisui's brow furrowed until it looked like a fan. If his years of experience in the Anbu hadn't taught him to stay calm, he would probably have forced his way out of the clan compound by now.

But if he did that...

Uchiha Shisui glanced at Uchiha Jin beside him. Feeling the hand on his shoulder, which made no move to restrain him, he couldn't help but feel a strange thought rising within him.

He really was a madman!

Uchiha Shisui closed his eyes in anguish, realizing that everything before him was part of Uchiha Jin's scheme.

If they let things take their course, the Uchiha would only grow stronger and eventually follow the Radical Faction down the path of an armed coup.

But if he forced his way out now and reported to the Hokage Building, such a sudden move would give Uchiha Jin ample grounds to twist the truth.

And at this very moment, all the Uchiha clan's elite were gathered here, while the outside world was nowhere near ready to respond...

No!

No matter who won or lost in the end, this wasn't what Shisui wanted to see.

"Jin, do you really have to do this?"

Shisui's voice caught in his throat as he looked at Uchiha Jin with pleading eyes.

"What a shame. I thought I could save myself some trouble."

Uchiha Jin gave a contemptuous chuckle, then nodded toward the arena in front of them.

"Relax. I don't mind starting a fight with those fools right now, but it's clearly not the right time..."

He let out an exaggerated sigh and complained in a low voice toward the grandstand.

"What can I do? I'm not the clan head!"

Shisui's spirits lifted at that, and a wave of relief washed over him.

That was right!

As long as he didn't force his way out of the Uchiha Clan Compound, Uchiha Jin would have no excuse to twist the truth—for now.

And even if the Uchiha grew much stronger and the Radical Faction eventually gained the upper hand, staging a coup wasn't something they could do overnight.

Besides,

Uchiha Fugaku was the clan head. As the Moderate Faction's leader, if he refused to switch sides, he could surely delay things for a long time.

That would give the Third Hokage time to prepare a better response.

That was it.

A glint appeared in Shisui's eyes as his restless thoughts gradually settled. What he needed to do now was watch events closely and submit a more thorough report as soon as they were over.

"Foolish Shisui!"

Uchiha Jin didn't even need to guess. Shisui wore his every thought on his face; how could he hide anything from Jin?

Hmph!

Uchiha Jin snorted in disdain. It was exhausting trying to communicate with an idiot who only understood strength. Then he turned his gaze back to the two opponents facing off in the jōnin division.

"Habara, Chiya, I'm counting on you!"

"Understood!"

Uchiha Habara and Uchiha Chiya bowed toward Uchiha Jin, then quickly retreated to opposite ends of the arena.

"Everyone, pay attention!"

Uchiha Jin swept his arm toward the jōnin arena, and rows of scarlet Sharingan turned to follow.

Light!

A blinding flash!

A shrill cry!

Like ten thousand birds shrieking at once, it shattered the meeting hall's deathly silence.

What was that?

The Uchiha gathered there, along with the elders and clan head on the grandstand, all fixed their eyes on the sudden change in the arena.

"Could it be...!"

Shisui was confused at first, but as the increasingly familiar sensation welled up inside him, he finally realized what the two onstage were doing!

"Ox, Rabbit, Monkey—Chi~dori!"

"Rasen~gan!"

In an instant, a chakra sphere formed in Uchiha Chiya's hand. Surrounded by boundless flames, she charged forward like a rocket.

Across the arena, Uchiha Habara had long been ready. Arcs of electricity raced over his right hand, growing denser by the moment. Within the mass of lightning chakra, it was as if a thousand birds were chirping at once, their cries spreading farther and farther.

The moment Uchiha Chiya moved, Uchiha Habara charged as well, his eyes brimming with excitement and resolve.

Rumble!

Without the slightest hesitation, the moment the Rasengan and Chidori collided, the two seasoned Uchiha elite jōnin used the Body Flicker Technique to retreat.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Three shuriken from each side flew into the air and collided. Their clear, ringing clangs echoed through the night breeze. Flecks of sparks flashed and vanished as all six shuriken fell helplessly to the ground.

Uchiha Style: Throwing Technique!

It was a unique Uchiha Clan throwing technique that could only be used in conjunction with the Sharingan—not some common trick anyone could buy on the market. Even an ordinary jōnin had to treat it with caution.

Yet in the clash between these two Uchiha elite jōnin, it was only a basic probing move.

"Uchiha Style: Gale Sword."

"Uchiha Style: Sword Leap Flame."

Uchiha Habara and Uchiha Chiya reappeared after briefly vanishing from the arena. Their sudden charge had been just a feint; the real killing blow lay in the kunai beneath the flames and gale!

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Amid another shower of sparks, Uchiha Habara and Uchiha Chiya flashed across the arena. Their brutal fight to the death somehow carried a striking elegance.

In that brief instant, Uchiha Habara and Uchiha Chiya had displayed the clan's intricate and cunning fighting arts without holding anything back.

The exhilarating, spectacular opening had the Uchiha watching on the edge of their seats, their blood boiling. The fighting instinct in their blood had been roused to the fullest.

That was precisely why Uchiha Habara and Uchiha Chiya had deliberately slowed the buildup of the Rasengan and Chidori at the start of the fight. Those secret techniques were now etched even more deeply into the minds of every Uchiha present.

"That's the Fourth Hokage's Rasengan, and the Lightning Release Ninjutsu developed by Hatake Kakashi—the Chidori..."

Shisui was stunned. As the man known as Body Flicker Shisui, he understood even more clearly what these two techniques meant for the Uchiha Clan.

The village was in danger!