Zhi Shui Joins

After dropping off the thick-headed Naruto at his home, Uchiha Kei and Uchiha Shisui walked side by side down the street.

"Are we just going to leave those ANBU there?"

Uchiha Kei curled his lip.

"Mhm, they'll leave on their own once they wake up."

"Though, since they failed their mission, they might face some punishment."

Uchiha Kei clasped his hands behind his head, a leaf he'd picked up from somewhere dangling from his mouth.

"Brother Shisui, what do you think of me these past two days?"

"Think of you in what way?"

Ripples stirred in Shisui's usually calm, unruffled eyes.

"You've been following me for two days now; don't you have anything you want to say to me, Brother Shisui?"

Uchiha Kei stopped in his tracks and turned to look at Shisui.

Shisui met his gaze directly, and only after a long moment did he break into a smile.

"You are very good."

"Tch, I thought I'd get some kind of praise, but all I get is a 'very good'?"

Shisui smiled but said nothing.

He was kind-hearted by nature, yet not particularly skilled at communication; whether dealing with acquaintances or strangers, he mostly responded with a smile.

"I chatted with Itachi a couple of days ago. I assume you already know the content of that conversation?"

Shisui nodded.

"Then, do you think this plan is feasible?"

Shisui fell into deep thought.

When he first heard the plan, he had been shocked, but at the same time, a door that had never been opened before swung wide in his heart.

After two days of careful deliberation, however, Shisui felt the plan was perhaps a bit too whimsical.

The Hokage of Konoha was not merely a symbol of leadership.

More than anything, it was about the distribution and balancing of power.

The First and Second Hokage relied on their own strength and influence, but one absolutely could not ignore the Senju clan and Uzumaki Mito.

The role those two played was, in many ways, even more significant than the strength of the First and Second themselves.

Individual strength could never truly contend with the power of clans.

Back in the day, the First Hokage had burst onto the scene, standing at the pinnacle of the entire ninja world with an invincible posture!

Was it truly the case that every ninja feared him?

Likely not.

Even someone as strong as the First Hokage was not necessarily unbeatable, provided one had accurate intelligence and sound tactics.

While other ninjas feared his individual strength, they feared the powerful Senju clan and the strongest jinchuriki, Uzumaki Mito, even more.

This was the true ninja world.

Seeing the hesitation in Shisui's eyes, Uchiha Kei naturally understood his concerns.

"Are you worried about the clan factions in the village, Brother Shisui?"

Shisui looked up at him.

"Then, how many factions do you think there are in the village, Brother Shisui?"

Shisui pondered for a moment. "The factions in the village can be divided into the clans led by the Hokage, the Ino-Shika-Cho trio—Nara, Akimichi, and Yamanaka—as well as the Inuzuka clan, the Aburame clan, the Hyuga clan, and the numerous civilian ninjas."

"And then there is our Uchiha clan."

When mentioning the Uchiha clan, a look of helplessness appeared in Shisui's eyes.

Indeed, on the surface, the Uchiha clan existed outside the Hokage's direct rule.

"Is that your perspective, Brother Shisui?"

Shisui remained silent, watching him quietly.

"Konoha isn't that simple."

Uchiha Kei spat out the leaf. "I believe the factions in Konoha can be divided into four parties."

"The first party is the Hokage faction. Strictly speaking, the Hokage's faction only consists of his direct ANBU; the Ino-Shika-Cho trio still prioritizes their own clan interests most of the time."

"The second party is the clan faction. The Ino-Shika-Cho trio, the Hyuga clan, the Uchiha clan, and several smaller clans."

"The third party is the civilian faction. This portion of power doesn't belong to the Hokage, but to Konoha itself—you must understand this, Brother Shisui."

"The fourth party is Root!"

Shisui's body went rigid in an instant, a look of disbelief flashing in his eyes.

"How could you possibly know about Root?!"

At this moment, Uchiha Shisui truly could not see through Uchiha Kei.

In Konoha, aside from the heads of the various clans, only a handful of people knew of Root's existence.

How could Uchiha Kei, just a child, be aware of it?

"The first and fourth factions are hopeless, but the second and third factions still hold a lot of promise."

Uchiha Kei skipped over Shisui's question entirely.

Ever since he decided to make Itachi the Fifth Hokage, Uchiha Kei had begun organizing the memories in his mind.

The difficulty of wanting Itachi to become the Fifth Hokage was no less than the First Hokage founding the ninja village.

This statement might seem like an exaggeration, but in reality, it was the truth.

In the eyes of Konoha's people, the Uchiha clan was synonymous with arrogance and tyranny.

Whether it was the Second Hokage or the Third Hokage, both held extreme disdain for the Uchiha clan.

The difference between the two was that one's hatred was open and blatant, while the other's was extremely subtle.

Anyone could become Hokage, except for the Uchiha clan.

The Hokage faction thought so, the clan factions thought so, and the civilian faction thought so even more!

However, to Uchiha Kei, none of this mattered.

Was the Uchiha clan really that unbearable?

Not necessarily; it was more a result of the public opinion led by the Third Hokage.

When it came to waging a war of public opinion, Uchiha Kei was confident that Sarutobi Hiruzen was no match for him.

"Brother Shisui, I am certain I can win over the second and third factions. If that happens, do you still think Itachi becoming the Fifth Hokage is just a fantasy?"

Shisui's mouth went dry as he stared at him, murmuring.

A long silence passed.

"It's too risky. One slight misstep, and the Uchiha will be annihilated."

Even though the future Uchiha Kei painted was bright, Shisui still refused after careful consideration.

Once this matter began, there would be no turning back.

Moving one part would affect the whole, and the Uchiha clan would inevitably be dragged deep into the fray.

Neither he nor Itachi could bear the weight of such a possibility.

"Too cautious, are you?"

Uchiha Kei muttered to himself, his lowered eyes suddenly snapping open.

Complex patterns spread across his pupils, converging into the shape of a sharp sword, rotating eerily.

"Four pairs of Mangekyo Sharingan—with such a foundation, even if we fail, the Uchiha clan should remain unscathed, right?"

A sense of danger instantly permeated the air, and Shisui couldn't help but take a step back.

"Man... Mangekyo??"

"Ding, received shock from Uchiha Shisui, Shock Value +99."

"Ding..."

"Ding..."

The system sent four consecutive notifications.

"Brother Shisui, why be so shocked? Don't you also possess a Mangekyo?"

Shisui's mind went blank.

His Mangekyo had been awakened accidentally after the death of his parents, a process that was far too unique to be replicated.

Moreover, besides Itachi, it was impossible for a third person to know about it.

How did he know?

Soon, Shisui focused on what Uchiha Kei had said.

"Four pairs?"

"You, me, Itachi, and the Clan Head."

"The Clan Head! How is that possible!"

Based on Shisui's understanding of the Clan Head, if he possessed a Mangekyo, he would have seized power by force long ago; he wouldn't have allowed the Uchiha clan to be suppressed like this.

"If the Clan Head had a Mangekyo, the position of Hokage would have been the Uchiha's long ago."

Shisui shook his head.

Uchiha Kei scoffed, "Brother Shisui, aren't you underestimating Konoha's combat power?"

Thinking you can seize power by force with just one pair of Mangekyo? You're probably thinking too highly of it.

Although Konoha did not have many top-tier experts at this moment, it was not a place that a single pair of Mangekyou Sharingan could resolve; whether it was the Third Hokage, Might Guy, or Kakashi, any of them were enough to contend with such power.

Even with four pairs of Mangekyou, Uchiha Kei felt no certainty in his heart.

"Four pairs of Mangekyou are not the foundation for seizing power by force, but the foundation for us to attempt it."

Watching the slowly rotating Mangekyou, Shisui's expression shifted constantly before finally settling into calm.

"Fine, I'm in."

Uchiha Kei flashed a toothy grin. "Welcome aboard, Brother Shisui."

Two pairs of hands, not yet calloused by age, clasped together.

It signaled...

The sky over Konoha was about to change!