Having said that, he turned and headed toward the room, his mind racing at the same time.
Someone was watching Shisui... Who could it be? The Third Hokage? No, if the Third had designs on Shisui, there would be no need to monitor him. He could simply summon him. There was only one person in the entire Hidden Leaf who would do something like this...
That was Danzo!
Though it was only a guess, Uchiha Mo was certain of the answer with Mū-like conviction.
A flash of scarlet passed through Mo's eyes. He would not interfere with Shisui's own thoughts, but that did not mean he would stand by and watch Shisui become someone else's tool.
What he wanted was for Shisui to shape his own beliefs through his own eyes and experiences, not have someone else force their convictions into him.
Therefore, he would never allow Shisui to fall into the hands of that clown Danzo.
"Danzo... There aren't many Wind Release experts in the ninja world, but you, you old piece of trash, barely count as one!"
Trial Blade, First Test of a Kekkei Genkai
The next morning.
After breakfast, Mo brought Shisui to the woods near the Naka River to train as usual.
However, even after Uchiha Mo checked Shisui's training results and gave him the appropriate guidance, he did not detect anyone watching in secret. Still, he was in no hurry and simply continued training step by step.
After telling Shisui to train on his own, Mo walked up to a centuries-old tree so wide that two people could barely wrap their arms around it, then slowly gripped the black hilt at his waist.
"Shing—!"
Amid a clear sound like spring water flowing, the snow-bright blade slowly slid from its sheath.
He held Futsunomitama in a forward grip across his body, his indifferent black eyes falling upon his reflection in the straight blade.
"Let's test the blade first."
As soon as he spoke, Mo raised the straight sword and slashed diagonally down at the tree!
"Pfft!"
He did not use much strength, only the force of an ordinary slash. Yet Futsunomitama buried its entire blade into the trunk, nearly cutting through half of it before finally stopping.
The corner of Mo's lips lifted slightly as he pulled out the straight sword.
Even without chakra coating it, an ordinary slash possessed such power. That was enough to show just how sharp Futsunomitama was.
Next, Mo tightened his grip on the straight sword, took a deep breath, and his eyes sharpened as he activated the chakra within him.
"Shriek—!"
Accompanied by a piercing eagle cry, dazzling lightning instantly covered the snow-bright blade.
Unlocking the Thunderstorm ability allowed Mo to shape Chidori as freely as kneading clay. Mū matter whether it was Sasuke's Chidori system or Kakashi's Lightning Cutter system, he could use either with a single thought.
And what he was using now was precisely Chidori Blade.
Mo turned his wrist, instinctively ensuring that the entire blade remained aligned with the direction of the slash as he exerted force, then diagonally swung Futsunomitama at the tree before him!
"Pfft!"
Mo dropped to one knee, the sword tip angled toward the ground, while the tree before him slowly began to shift.
"Crack—crack—crack! Boom—!"
The thick tree crashed down. Mo rose to his feet and sheathed the straight sword, a faint curve appearing on his lips.
Judging from the results, Futsunomitama's sharpness was at least no weaker than the Kusanagi Sword in Sasuke's hands. And when both were used with Chidori Blade, it was even sharper.
Thunderstorm may have enhanced the power of Lightning Release, but the gap was clearly too great to be explained by that factor alone.
With such sharpness, in ordinary Taijutsu combat, even without chakra, an enemy's weapon would rapidly lose durability upon clashing with Futsunomitama and be ruined after only a few exchanges. If chakra was added, ordinary ninja tools would probably be cut apart in an instant, without any suspense.
Having formed a rough understanding, Mo began considering another matter.
That was developing a new Kekkei Genkai based on Lightning Release and Fire Release!
Lightning Release and Fire Release were the two most unstable of the five basic elemental releases, both possessing explosive power and intense burst potential. There were many Kekkei Genkai in the ninja world based on Fire Release and Lightning Release, such as Lava Release, Boil Release, Explosion Release, Scorch Release, Storm Release, and so on. Yet there had never been a Kekkei Genkai formed by fusing Fire Release and Lightning Release.
Fusing the two most unstable releases into a new Kekkei Genkai was Mū's equivalent of dismantling two extremely unstable bombs and assembling them into one even more powerful bomb! Never mind the difficulty; the price of failure alone was more than ordinary people could bear.
The reason Mo was considering this was that he possessed both the abilities to control fire and manipulate lightning, granting him absolute control over the shape transformations of both fire and lightning chakra. With a versatile "bus" like Chidori providing an entry point, it became feasible. And if he succeeded, then in the future, training this new Kekkei Genkai alone would directly increase the proficiency of both releases. The efficiency would increase tremendously.
When he decided to do something, he did it. Mo immediately extended his left hand.
"Chidori!"
"Shriek—!"
Brilliant lightning burst forth, violent lightning snakes dancing wildly across Mo's left hand.
Then Mo slowly began controlling the Fire Release chakra within his body, condensing it...
"Scarlet Scorch: Chidori!"
Mo gave a low shout, and the lightning in his palm suddenly began to transform!
The blue electricity trembled wildly and gradually shifted toward blood-red, while the temperature of the arcs began to rise at a terrifying rate.
In only a few breaths, Chidori had completely turned blood-red. The lightning arcs looked as though they had caught fire, their surface glow faintly carrying the translucent texture of flames as they swayed with the wildly dancing lightning snakes. At the same time, surging heat waves spread from Uchiha Mo's palm, distorting the surrounding air!
Feeling the violent power in his palm, a bead of cold sweat slid down Mo's temple.
"What violent power! Is this the complete form of this technique...?"
Even as the controller of Scarlet Scorch: Chidori, Mo was genuinely startled by that power. What he held did not feel like a ninjutsu at all, but an out-of-control hundred-ton truck—except this terrifying monster was somehow moving in the right direction.
Shisui had been practicing swordsmanship nearby. When that terrifying chakra presence erupted, he leaped straight into the air in fright, every hair on his body standing on end!
He used the Body Flicker Technique to pull more than ten meters away before turning back toward Uchiha Mo.
After observing for a while with his heart in his throat, Shisui swallowed and shouted in deep resentment, "Nii-san! Can you tell me beforehand next time you research a forbidden technique?!"
Mo did not respond. At some point, his eyes had transformed into the Three-Tomoe Sharingan. He stared intently at the technique in his hand, sensing the state of the chakra within his body.
"The degree of Fire Release chakra nature transformation... the degree of Lightning Release chakra nature transformation... the ratio of mixed fire and lightning attributes..."
Mo stood frozen in place like a statue, recording every aspect of the fusion between Fire Release and Lightning Release in his mind with all his focus.
Who knew how much time passed? Only when the chakra in his body had nearly run dry did Mo stop supplying chakra, withdraw his Sharingan, and sit cross-legged on the ground with his eyes closed to gather chakra.
Another half hour passed. Once Mo felt that he had recovered some chakra, he impatiently opened his eyes and began experimenting again.
Following the information he had recorded earlier, he controlled Lightning Release chakra and Fire Release chakra to meet inside his body at a one-to-one ratio. Yet something strange happened.
Mo had clearly perfectly replicated the chakra conditions within Scarlet Scorch: Chidori, but when fire and lightning met, there was not the slightest sign of fusion...
"What... exactly is going on... Why can the technique do it, but I can't fuse them on my own...?"
Mo deeply furrowed his brows, unable to make sense of it no matter how hard he thought.
"Is it because Chidori's shape transformation is special?"
"..."
"No, a Kekkei Genkai is only the fusion of two chakra nature transformations. It has nothing to do with shape transformation..."
Brothers, Mo's Genjutsu Guidance
"Nii-san... Nii-san? Nii-san!"
Shisui stood beside Uchiha Mo and called out twice. When he got no response, he shouted again.
Mo came back to his senses, raising his clear black eyes to look at the little bean sprout in front of him.
"What is it?"
"It's already noon. We should go home for lunch!" Shisui raised a hand and pointed at the sun overhead.
Mo looked up. The sun had indeed reached its highest point in the sky. He slowly stood up.
"Got it. Let's go."
Supporting the straight sword at his waist, Mo took the lead down the path home, and Shisui hurried after him.
"Nii-san, what do you want for lunch?"
Shisui smiled as he ran ahead of Mo and looked up to ask.
"Anything."
Mo was still thinking about why his fusion had failed and had little mind to spare for lunch.
"Telling the cook 'anything' is really difficult, you know~" Shisui pouted in dissatisfaction.
"..." Mo was still thinking and did not respond.
Shisui knew that his older brother simply did not want to answer questions that meant nothing to Mū, so he could only change the subject.
"Then will you train with me again this afternoon, Nii-san? Those people watching me this morning don't seem to have appeared again."
As soon as he finished speaking, Mo glanced at Shisui and replied,
"This afternoon, you're coming with me to Kurenai's house. Uncle Shinku isn't home, and I need to teach Kurenai Genjutsu to repay a favor. You can learn with her too."
Since Shisui had already been targeted, Mo naturally could not let him leave his sight for too long. For all he knew, if he looked away for a moment, Shisui might return with a Tongue Bane Curse Mark on his tongue...
If that happened, he would have no choice but to kill Danzo ahead of schedule.
Shisui became excited at once. "Can I finally learn Sharingan Genjutsu?"
Mo shook his head, pouring a bucket of cold water over Shisui.
"No. You can only learn ordinary Genjutsu with her. I told you, you are not allowed to learn Sharingan Genjutsu before the age of seven. You should use your eyes less as well."
"Eh—? Why?!" Shisui pursed his lips, his shoulders slumping as he lowered his head in disappointment.
Every Uchiha looked forward to the Sharingan, and Shisui was no exception.
Yet after awakening his eyes, he had a brother hailed as the strongest Uchiha genius since the founding of the Hidden Leaf. Still, not only had he received no instruction on how to use the Sharingan, he had instead been ordered to use it less. That contrast made him feel especially miserable.
Mo glanced at the dejected Shisui, stopped walking, and placed his right hand on Shisui's head, gently patting it.
"You're still too young. Your body is still developing. Having overly strong ocular power isn't a good thing."
As the saying went, running fast did not necessarily mean winning; not falling was what truly mattered. With Shisui's talent, there was no need to rush for immediate gains and expose his body to danger.
Shisui's emotions settled somewhat, but he still puffed out his cheeks and muttered in dissatisfaction, "But don't the clan head and the elders all think awakening the Sharingan earlier is better? And aren't you only ten too, Nii-san? You already have the Three-Tomoe Sharingan, and there's nothing wrong with your body!"
"That is why they are all mediocrities."
"..."
Shisui looked at his expressionless older brother and did not know what to say for a moment.
Mo looked down at the stunned Shisui. His right hand suddenly moved from Shisui's head to his shoulder, then pulled him up with force and carried him on his back as he continued home.
"Time to go home and cook..."
Shisui came back to his senses. Once he realized what had happened, he stretched out his arms around Mo's neck. His eyes curved as he gazed brightly at Mo's calm, indifferent profile, a smile rising on his lips as a faint blush colored his childish cheeks.
"Yeah!"
After lunch, Mo led Shisui through the streets of the Hidden Leaf and arrived outside Kurenai Yuhi's home.
"Knock, knock, knock!"
After knocking on the door, Mo quietly waited to the side.
Hurried footsteps soon sounded from inside. They drew closer and closer until stopping at the door.
A moment later, the door opened with a creak.
The girl's ruby-like eyes shone brightly as she stared at the boy standing at the entrance.
"Mo, you're here. Have you had lunch?"
Uchiha Mo nodded.
Before you continue