Awakening the Mangekyo

[Detected intense emotional fluctuations]

Target: Uchiha Shisui

Bitter Fruit type triggered: Regret Bitter Fruit

Content: He failed to take his clan members' advice seriously, resulting in their deaths. He felt guilt and helplessness.

Harvesting...

[Harvest successful!]

[Extractable trait reward: Ultimate Yin Release Chakra (can be used to awaken the Mangekyo)]

There was only one reward, but Hayato was delighted.

This was his chance to awaken the Mangekyo, and unlike ordinary Uchiha clan members, he didn't need to be pushed to the brink by some intense shock to awaken it.

"Mangekyo..."

Hayato murmured the word to himself, then chose to extract the reward.

In the next instant, chakra so cold it seemed to reach the extreme appeared in Hayato's brain, then traveled along the nerves to his eyes.

Hayato grunted and clenched his teeth.

A burning, stinging pain that seemed to reach his very bones seized him. He felt as though some external force were churning his brain. Even with his eyes shut, the darkness before him was drenched in blood-red.

A violent surge of ocular power churned around him.

After quite some time, the fluctuations finally subsided.

Only then did Hayato dare to open his eyes. The three tomoe in his Sharingan slowly connected and changed shape, forming a unique pattern.

Hayato raised a hand and sent a small stream of water onto the ground, then lowered his head to take a look.

His vision was awash in scarlet. Within it, three hook-shaped blades surrounded a central point. It looked much like Uchiha Itachi's Mangekyo Sharingan would in the future, the only difference being that each blade ended in a comma-shaped curve like a tomoe.

As shown.

"So this is my Mangekyo?"

Hayato's lips curled into a smile. The instant he awakened the Mangekyo, he had grasped the two unique abilities of his eyes.

They were fascinating, and powerful. At the very least, he now had far more confidence in his plans for the future.

"Hayato!"

Shisui's voice rang out. Hayato closed his eyes and remained in the same position.

When Shisui arrived and landed nearby, he saw Hayato like that and his expression softened. "Hayato, are you all right?"

"Yeah, I'm fine."

Hayato's voice carried a hint of exhaustion, and he really was worn out.

Whether it was escaping Orochimaru's attempt on his life or enduring the pain of awakening his eyes, it had all left him utterly drained.

Hayato slowly opened his eyes and looked at Shisui. Putting on a puzzled expression, he asked, "What's wrong, Shisui? Weren't you going to find that Anbu?"

Seeing Hayato in such a state, Shisui couldn't help but let go of some of his suspicions. Hayato clearly wasn't doing well.

How could I be such a bastard? Hayato's already in this state.

A guilty look crossed Shisui's face. "He's dead. He must not have been able to avoid the aftershocks of the fight."

That was the truth. The Fire Style jutsu he and Hayato had combined, and the combination technique Hayato had used on his own afterward, had both been incredibly powerful.

Even Orochimaru's summoned creature had appeared.

Hayato's expression turned mournful. "I'm sorry. I should have gotten him out of there right away."

"It's not your fault. I was the one who didn't listen at first." Seeing Hayato like this, Shisui panicked instinctively.

Hayato fell silent for a long while. Just as Shisui was silently blaming himself, Hayato let out a long sigh. "Never mind. When we get back, I'll explain things to the clan head and have him pass the details on to the Third Hokage."

"At the very least, he deserves proper recognition."

"Yeah!" Shisui nodded solemnly. It was true—if this man hadn't held Orochimaru back earlier, neither of them might have survived.

Hayato's response also made Shisui think that he was only struggling to come to terms with certain things. Perhaps if Shisui kept trying, Hayato could eventually follow the same path as him.

Thinking of that, Shisui recalled Hayato telling him not to reveal his Mangekyo abilities to the village.

He couldn't help asking, "By the way, Hayato, why did you say I shouldn't tell the village about my ocular jutsu, not even the Third Hokage?"

Hayato wasn't surprised by the question. Even if Shisui hadn't brought it up, he would have emphasized it again.

"Shisui, you have to understand: right now, the clan and the village leadership are like a pile of dry firewood soaked in oil."

"Your Kotoamatsukami can control people without them even realizing it... If word of that power gets out, it'll sound to certain people like an ability that could enslave the Hokage at any moment."

Shisui's heart jolted.

"Lord Third Hokage is kind and worthy of respect, but if this reaches his ears, he'll have to deal with it as Hokage."

"For the sake of the village's stability, he might even have to place you under surveillance. That doesn't mean the Third Hokage wouldn't trust you. It means that as Hokage, he has to consider the worst-case scenario."

"And you know the situation within the clan. If anything happens to you, even if it's not something Lord Third would want, will the clan members really care?"

"All they'll see is a clan prodigy being put under surveillance—or even having his eyes stolen—under pressure from the village leadership."

"No way!" Shisui said, unable to believe it.

But Hayato's argument made sense, and he had solid reasons to back it up.

"Shisui, there's something right in front of us that we both understand." Hayato looked Shisui in the eye and spoke slowly.

Right in front of them...

"Orochimaru...?" Shisui asked uncertainly.

"Yeah. He was once one of the Sannin. In his pursuit of forbidden jutsu and power, he treated living people as disposable test subjects. But how did Lord Third handle it?"

Shisui fell silent. The best course would have been for the Hokage to execute Orochimaru himself. But if he did that, Konoha's scandal would spread across the Ninja World, and the village would lose its credibility.

That was why Shisui had insisted on capturing Orochimaru and taking him back himself.

Handling it in secret was the only effective option Konoha could take at the moment.

And this matter could also give him, Uchiha Shisui, a chance to talk with the Third Hokage and use the opportunity to ease the tension between the village and his clan.

"I understand how you feel, but—Shisui, I need to make one thing clear: we can't, and mustn't, take Orochimaru back."

Hayato's voice was calm, so calm it was as if the words hadn't come from him at all.

"Right now, the village leadership is extremely sensitive about what Orochimaru left behind. If we're the ones who bring it back, our abilities will be exposed."

"Then think about it. Your ability can control other people's will. In the eyes of certain people, that's already on the same level as Orochimaru's inhumane experiments."

Shisui stood frozen, Hayato's words echoing in his mind.

They were heavy, but all too real.

After a long while, Shisui finally nodded. "...You're right. This has to stay buried."