Rotten Roots Buried in the Mud, Snakes

By the time they left the Great Elder's residence, it was already afternoon.

Uchiha Mo took Shisui home to rest for a while, then quickly headed to Kurenai Yuhi's house.

An afternoon passed, and Kurenai Yuhi's performance exceeded Mo's expectations.

Judging from her portrayal in the original work, Kurenai Yuhi should have been nothing more than an ordinary person with modest talent, with jōnin likely being the highest level she could reach in her life. Yet in a single day, she had nearly mastered the "Demonic Illusion: This Place Is Not That Place Technique." Some of the questions she asked even struck directly at the key points, in Mo's view...

This level of genjutsu talent might not have matched an Uchiha prodigy like Shisui, but among ordinary people, it was already exceptionally outstanding.

Even so, Mo did not pay it much mind.

Without the Sharingan or Rinnegan to bolster it, the upper limit of genjutsu was too low. A specialist in genjutsu was destined never to enter the highest ranks. Even Mo himself had only learned genjutsu for its utility and to improve his own resistance to illusions.

By the time the lesson ended, night had already fallen.

Uchiha Mo bade Kurenai Yuhi farewell with Shisui and set off for home.

The Hidden Leaf was somewhat deserted at night, with few people on the streets. Yet warm lights shone from the houses around them, and now and then, laughter from family dinner tables drifted out onto the road.

"Kenta! Don't be picky with your food~ You need to eat more vegetables if you want to grow taller."

"I don't want to! Vegetables taste awful, Mom!"

"You child..."

"Alright, alright, honey. If Kenta doesn't want to eat, then let him be..."

"..."

The laughter and conversation reached his ears clearly. Shisui suddenly looked up at Uchiha Mo's profile.

There had been no trace of parents in his memories, yet he had never felt even the slightest sense of loss. That was all because one person had shouldered everything with equally young shoulders.

Though Mo's personality was cold, Shisui had personally experienced what it meant to have an elder brother who was like a father.

So, hearing such a conversation now, he felt no wistful longing. Instead, a question rose in his heart... What would it be like if someone like Brother started a family someday?

As he thought this, an image immediately surfaced in his mind—Uchiha Mo smiling at the dinner table as he pleaded on behalf of a child...

"Honey..."

The instant he imagined that scene, Shisui shuddered in revulsion and hurriedly rejected the thought.

"That's way too disgusting..."

But then he suddenly remembered how attentive Kurenai Yuhi had been whenever she faced his brother. His curiosity was immediately nourished anew, growing wildly like a feather lightly tickling the tip of his heart.

He raised his head to look at Mo's profile and asked, "Nii-san, do you know Sister Kurenai..."

Before he could finish, Shisui saw Mo suddenly stop. Then Mo pulled him behind himself, his eyes lighting up with a crimson glow as he stared straight toward the entrance of the clan compound.

"Vermin, get out here!"

"..."

Shisui snapped back to his senses and quickly poked his head out from behind Mo, warily looking toward the red torii gate ahead.

"Tap, tap, tap..."

A figure slowly stepped out from behind one of the torii's side pillars. Only after reaching the center did he stop and slowly turn around.

He was a grim-looking man with a hooked nose and narrow triangular eyes. A few wrinkles crept across his face, revealing the first signs of age. His face was somewhat gaunt, with prominent cheekbones and an X-shaped scar on his chin. White bandages tightly wrapped his forehead and left eye, making him instantly recognizable.

(Danzo Shimura [Bandages Revealed])

"Brat, didn't you say that if this old man wished to see you, then I should personally crawl my ugly self into the light? Now that I have come, what are you afraid of? Why do you hesitate to step forward...?"

Uchiha Mo did not answer. Instead, he looked up at the pitch-black night sky and suddenly let out a soft laugh.

"..."

Shisui could clearly see the veins at the man's temples bulge sharply. His hands clenched tightly around his cane, and visible fury erupted from his body. Yet after only a few breaths, he strangely calmed down.

"Uchiha Mo, Uchiha Shisui. This old man is Danzo Shimura, a council elder. The Hidden Leaf needs the strength of you two brothers."

"The Hidden Leaf has always been using my strength."

Mo's expression remained calm as the tomoe in his eyes slowly turned.

"Then leave. This old man needs to speak with Shisui."

Danzo Shimura shifted his gaze onto Shisui, who was peeking out from behind Mo.

At this point, Danzo Shimura had already realized that Uchiha Mo was not someone easily dealt with. Though he appeared to be only ten years old, his sense of self was already extremely strong, making him difficult to mold into the shape Danzo desired. Besides, Danzo's original target had been this younger, more manageable Uchiha.

Mo glanced at Shisui and was about to speak, but Shisui suddenly stepped out from behind him and spoke first.

"I have nothing to discuss with you. You were the one who had people spying on me before, weren't you? I don't approve of that kind of method!"

Hearing this, the corners of Uchiha Mo's lips lifted slightly, and he said nothing more.

Danzo Shimura narrowed his eyes and said in a deep voice, "Childish brat! This is precisely how we protect the village. The Hidden Leaf is such a vast entity—do you think everything is as bright and beautiful as it appears to you? Where there is light, there will be shadow... The Hidden Leaf needs leaves that bask in the sunlight, but it also needs roots buried deep in darkness... The prosperity and flourishing you see exist only because people like this old man bear certain heavy burdens for the village in the shadows..."

As he spoke, an indescribable presence spread from Danzo's body. It was an incomparably steadfast will.

Although some of the things Danzo did later harmed the Hidden Leaf more than they benefited it, at this time—before Hiruzen Sarutobi's second term in power—he had not yet fallen into madness because of his obsession. He was indeed qualified to say such words.

"Uh..." Shisui looked helplessly at Uchiha Mo. No matter how talented he was, at five years old, he was clearly no match for an old fox like Danzo Shimura in an argument.

Mo grabbed Shisui's wrist with one hand and replied indifferently:

"Then carry it yourself."

As he spoke, he led Shisui toward the clan grounds, intending to pass by Danzo.

Danzo Shimura's expression darkened further. His lone eye narrowed as he stared gloomily at the two approaching figures and barked:

"No one refuses this old man a second time, Uchiha Mo. Can you bear this old man's wrath?"

"Your anger is not worth mentioning before the Uchiha name..."

Uchiha Mo pulled Shisui past Danzo's side without even looking back, speaking with a calm expression.

The moment his words fell, Danzo suddenly thrust his cane viciously at Uchiha Mo without any warning!