Shisui's Bewilderment: Sarutobi Hiruzen Learned to Answer Before the Question Was Finished?

Shisui held his breath for an instant, pulled out a kunai and held it across his chest, staring warily at the masked man who had suddenly appeared.

That bizarre entrance was undoubtedly a space-time ninjutsu!

Aside from the Fourth Hokage, there was actually a second ninja in Konoha proficient in space-time ninjutsu!

And those eyes...

Shisui's mind trembled.

They shocked him far more than the space-time ninjutsu.

The Sharingan!

Was this guy an Uchiha as well?

"Who exactly are you?"

Shisui asked warily.

This place was very close to the clan grounds. Once a fight broke out, the clan members would definitely notice quickly.

The most urgent matter was figuring out this man's identity!

"Shisui, a double agent caught between the village and the clan. You must be terribly lost and miserable, aren't you?"

Obito did not directly answer Shisui's question. His voice seemed to carry an irresistible hint of temptation.

Like tentacles, it sought to probe into Shisui's heart.

Shisui remained silent.

The wariness in his eyes deepened.

This man seemed to know him very well.

"Who exactly are you?"

Shisui repeated, his voice icy.

Obito sneered.

"Don't be nervous. I came to seek your cooperation. A village like this isn't worth your loyalty, and the clan doesn't deserve your sacrifice either."

"You have another choice. Stand with me, and together we can..."

Behind the spiral mask, Obito's eyes were cold.

"Take revenge on this village."

The air in the forest seemed to grow several degrees colder.

This time, Shisui understood.

This guy had come to recruit him.

This Uchiha held an unusual hatred for Konoha.

That hatred had extended to the clan as well.

And Shisui was the target he had chosen for cooperation.

"What do you say? Don't let the confusion before your eyes trap you. Standing with me is the correct choice."

Obito continued his gentle enticement.

Shisui nearly rolled his eyes.

Which eye of yours saw me as a double agent?

I clearly only serve the Uchiha.

Confusion...

Perhaps he had felt it once.

But ever since Mirai emerged from seclusion, he had already found his direction.

Only by following Uchiha Mirai's will could the Uchiha Clan's circumstances be changed.

That was Shisui's current conviction.

"Why should I believe you?"

Shisui glared at Obito across from him, his gaze unfriendly.

"Must I cooperate with every ninja who appears here and casually says a bunch of incomprehensible things?"

He wanted to draw out more information.

"You may call me... Madara!"

"Uchiha Madara!"

Obito stared at Shisui, his voice utterly devoid of emotion.

Yet Shisui seemed to feel the temperature around him plummet, threads of cold seeping into him.

Madara???

Wasn't Uchiha Madara already dead?

"What nonsense are you talking about? You're from the Uchiha Clan too, aren't you? Madara was from how many years ago?"

Shisui glared at him furiously.

"How could someone from history possibly still be alive today?"

Obito remained indifferent and offered no explanation. A twisting vortex began to swallow his body.

"Believe it or not, the choice is yours."

Buzz!

Space returned to normal, and the masked mysterious man suddenly vanished.

A trace of shock still lingered in Shisui's eyes.

He did not believe that the other man was Uchiha Madara.

But that mysterious space-time technique was probably no less formidable than the Fourth Hokage's.

Most importantly, the other man was also from the Uchiha Clan.

Yet he seemed to harbor a cold hatred toward the clan.

"Calling himself Madara... could he be Uchiha Madara's descendant?"

Shisui's eyes flickered uncertainly.

Back then, when Uchiha Madara had wanted to leave the village, not a single clansman had been willing to follow him.

It was understandable if his descendants bore resentment toward the Uchiha Clan.

But hadn't Uchiha Madara died fighting Senju Hashirama?

When would he have had the time to leave behind descendants?

But if he was not Madara's descendant, were there other members of the clan wandering outside?

Shisui couldn't make heads or tails of it!

His mind felt like it had been stuffed with paste; no matter how hard he tried, he could not sort it out.

He simply gave up thinking about it.

Since this Madara was so certain that he would seek him out again, it would not be too late to figure out his identity later.

Wait!

A flash of insight struck Shisui's mind.

He had to complete the mission Future had assigned him.

Wasn't this the perfect opportunity?

As long as he reported Madara's information, he might find a chance to give Danzo a shot...

Shisui's eyes grew brighter and brighter.

Hokage's Office.

A trace of shock appeared in Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyes as he stared fixedly at the half-kneeling Uchiha Shisui below him.

"You're saying that near the Uchiha Clan Compound, you encountered a ninja claiming to be Uchiha Madara?"

"Yes."

Shisui nodded seriously.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's breathing quickened as he hurriedly asked, "Did that person also possess a space-time technique?"

The half-kneeling Shisui was stunned.

"Lord Hokage, how did you know?"

Had the Hokage learned to answer his own questions?

Was he really that amazing?

Ignoring Shisui's astonished expression, Sarutobi Hiruzen leaned back in his chair and felt his heart pounding violently in his chest.

Uchiha Madara!

The one who had attacked Danzo's Root had also called himself Uchiha Madara!

And he had likewise possessed a space-time ninjutsu.

Could it be... that they were the same person?

"Shisui, immediately report every detail of your encounter with him."

Sarutobi Hiruzen gave the order in a grave voice.

He felt that he was drawing close to an enormous secret.

"Understood!"

Shisui nodded and pondered for a moment.

"I was just about to report this to you. In the forest surrounding the Uchiha Clan Compound, I happened to encounter that man. He seemed to harbor immense hatred toward Konoha..."

Shisui calmly recounted his encounter with Obito.

However, he skillfully concealed the part about the other party trying to recruit him.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression grew increasingly grave.

His eyes were as deep as the sea.

That was right.

There was absolutely no mistake!

If what Shisui said was true, then that man was undoubtedly connected to the Night of the Nine-Tails.

He possessed space-time abilities, could enter and leave Konoha with ease, harbored deep hatred toward Konoha, and was an Uchiha...

Sarutobi Hiruzen could not think of anyone else besides him who could have unleashed the Nine-Tails...

The theft from Danzo's Root had definitely been his doing as well!

But why had he done it?

Could he really be Uchiha Madara, as he claimed?

Sarutobi Hiruzen felt as if his head were splitting apart.

Uchiha Mirai alone had already given him enough of a headache, and now another man claiming to be Uchiha Madara had appeared.

He also wielded strange space-time secret techniques and was highly likely to be the mastermind behind the Night of the Nine-Tails!

What was wrong with this world?

Trouble kept appearing one after another.

No matter what, he had to contact Danzo immediately.

He figured Danzo had been waiting for news about this Madara long enough to go mad.