Kotoamatsukami

Upon hearing Shimura Danzo's words, Uchiha Yan looked at him expressionlessly, his tone calm: "Shimura Danzo, the time limit for your Izanagi is almost up, isn't it?"

"You..." Danzo's face flashed with a hint of panic the moment he heard those words.

His expression betrayed a flicker of terror, though he suppressed it almost immediately.

Danzo's expression returned to a state of calm. "Although I do not know who you are, this barrier of yours must have a time limit."

"Even if you possess great strength, it is impossible for you to kill me silently in such a short time. Why don't we make a deal?"

Uchiha Yan raised an eyebrow at Danzo's suggestion.

He let his scarlet Three-Tomoe Sharingan rotate slowly and said, "Oh? A deal? What kind of deal exactly?"

He did not mind stalling for a while.

Danzo looked at him and said, "If you let me go, I will delay the surveillance and restrictions on the Uchiha, and I will strive to have Fugaku appointed as an advisor."

It sounded like a very sincere bargaining chip.

However, upon closer inspection, these promises from Danzo were nothing more than empty checks.

Delaying, buying time—even if Danzo kept his word, these were not things he was strictly obligated to do.

Uchiha Yan knew clearly that the moment he let Danzo go, the Uchiha compound would be surrounded by Root, Anbu, and other major Konoha clans by the very next day.

After all, those clans had long coveted the resources and secret techniques of the Uchiha; for them, the more they could take, the better.

Danzo looked at Uchiha Yan with eyes full of anticipation.

However, the emotionless eyes beneath Uchiha Yan's mask said everything.

Uchiha Yan's tone remained calm: "Danzo, accept reality."

Following this, a crow appeared directly within the completely sealed Anbu headquarters.

In the crow's eye sockets, a pinwheel-shaped Mangekyo Sharingan rotated, looking exceptionally conspicuous.

Danzo could not help but widen his eyes. "That is Shisui's eye. Could it be that you have already..."

Uchiha Yan did not react, then activated Kotoamatsukami.

The moment Kotoamatsukami was triggered, Danzo's eyes went vacant, and he stood frozen in place.

Danzo's thoughts were completely altered by Uchiha Yan.

Previously, Danzo had consistently upheld the attitude toward the Uchiha held by his teacher, Tobirama.

But through Kotoamatsukami, Uchiha Yan added something to Danzo's subconscious.

Or rather than adding, it was more like amplifying.

Kotoamatsukami amplified Danzo's desire for the position of Hokage.

At the same time, it changed Danzo's strategy.

If Danzo's original plan was to first cooperate with the Third Hokage to exterminate the Uchiha clan and divide their resources and Sharingan, and only then vie for the position of Hokage, his new mindset was to prioritize seizing the Hokage seat, oust the Third Hokage, and then use the power and influence of the office to deal with the Uchiha.

Furthermore, Uchiha Yan used his genjutsu to seal Danzo's memories and implant false information.

As the seal's duration ended, Uchiha Yan left gracefully, leaving behind only a few corpses with blurred features.

Only Danzo remained, clutching a blood-stained kunai, his heart still trembling with lingering fear.

Uchiha Yan located the Root archives, and after searching through them, successfully found two files.

One concerned the truth behind the death of Hatake Sakumo, and the other detailed the secret dealings between Danzo and the Cloud Village.

Most crucially, these documents bore the personal seal of the Third Hokage.

In other words, the Third Hokage had been aware of all of this.

Before leaving, Uchiha Yan sought out the sensory ninja, Yamanaka Fu.

It would be troublesome if he discovered that something was wrong with Danzo.

Uchiha Yan appeared before Yamanaka Fu.

Yamanaka Fu looked at Uchiha Yan in surprise, then asked, "Is something the matter? Didn't Danzo order you all to search for traces of Uchiha Shisui?"

Uchiha Yan's tone was flat: "I came here mainly to borrow something."

"Borrow something?" Yamanaka Fu walked up to Uchiha Yan and said, "Borrow what?"

"I'm borrowing your life." As Uchiha Yan's words fell, a kunai pierced directly into Yamanaka Fu's vital point.

Yamanaka Fu looked at the Uchiha Yan before him in disbelief.

Uchiha Yan extended his other hand and crushed his windpipe.

The future right-hand man of Danzo had died just like that.

He died in a way that was somewhat absurd, and somewhat laughable.

As for the system reward, Uchiha Yan chose the sensory ability.

Having finished everything, Uchiha Yan finally departed from the scene.

At this moment, the spy Sarutobi Hiruzen had planted within Root reported the news of Uchiha Shisui's disappearance.

Upon hearing this, Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression darkened visibly.

He spoke to the Anbu hidden in the shadows, "Bring Kakashi to me."

The Anbu acknowledged the order and vanished from the Hokage's office.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression softened as he looked at the spy he had placed in Root.

"You've worked hard," he said in a gentle tone. "I will take care of your child's promotion to Chunin."

Having received Sarutobi Hiruzen's promise, the spy lowered his head in gratitude. "Thank you, Lord Hokage."

"Mm, you may go." Sarutobi Hiruzen waved his hand, signaling that he could leave.

After the Root spy departed, Kakashi walked into the Hokage's office.

He knelt on one knee, his tone respectful. "Lord Hokage."

Sarutobi Hiruzen slowly lit his pipe and took a puff.

White smoke billowed from his nose and mouth, shrouding his somewhat aged face.

As the smoke cleared, Sarutobi Hiruzen spoke with feigned casualness, "Kakashi, the main reason I called you here is to ask: where is Itachi?"

Kakashi looked up, though he remained on one knee. He replied with a blank expression, "Itachi? Reporting to Lord Hokage, Itachi told me yesterday that Shisui had invited him to take on a mission, so I am not sure where he is."

Hearing Kakashi's words, Sarutobi Hiruzen's previously amiable face turned gloomy once more.

He tapped his fingers rhythmically against the desk.

The sound was jarringly sharp in the quiet Hokage's office.

Kakashi could sense the irritation radiating from the Hokage before him.

At the same time, the air in the office seemed to have been sucked dry, making it suffocatingly heavy.

Sarutobi Hiruzen remained silent for a long time before looking at Kakashi, his tone softening slightly. "You've worked hard, Kakashi. Do not let this interfere with your mission to protect the jinchuriki."

Kakashi nodded and slowly backed out of the Hokage's office.

Only after leaving the office did he realize his back was soaked with cold sweat.

He suddenly felt as though he no longer recognized the Third Hokage, who was usually so kind and always asked his subordinates and villagers with a smile if they were tired.

This Third Hokage gave him a feeling more akin to Danzo, or perhaps Orochimaru.

The thought made Kakashi shiver, and he shook his head to stop his mind from wandering.

However, the words Uchiha Yan had spoken to him not long ago were like a seed, constantly sprouting in Kakashi's heart.

Should he go find Uchiha Yan today and ask for the truth?

What exactly was the inside story from back then?

Once this floodgate was opened, Kakashi could no longer suppress the doubts in his heart.

His father's silence after the failed mission, the baseless accusations from the comrades his father had saved.

Thinking of this, Kakashi's gaze turned resolute.

He decided that once his mission ended today, he would go to Uchiha Yan and get to the bottom of it.