Questioning the Third Hokage

Hokage Building.

Late at night.

The Third Hokage sat in his office, his expression uglier than ever before.

Before him, Shisui recounted the entire incident from beginning to end.

Uchiha You stood to one side, his expression calm.

Uchiha Chuan and several other witnesses were also present.

Danzo was receiving emergency treatment from two medical ninja.

His right arm was wrapped in bandages, yet strange black-red chakra continued to seep through them.

The medical ninja's foreheads were covered in cold sweat.

"Lord Hokage, this corrosive chakra is very strange."

"We can't remove it completely."

"Lord Danzo's right arm meridians have been severely damaged. I'm afraid they won't recover anytime soon."

Uchiha You said flatly:

"Anytime soon?"

"You're being too optimistic."

Danzo suddenly looked up, his single eye fixed fiercely on him.

The Third Hokage said in a deep voice:

"You!"

Uchiha You looked at the Third Hokage.

"Lord Hokage, the issue right now isn't his arm."

"The issue is that he tried to take Shisui's eye."

The office fell deathly silent.

Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura had also been summoned.

Both wore extremely grim expressions.

Koharu frowned.

"There may have been some misunderstanding here."

A mocking smile appeared on Uchiha You's face.

"A misunderstanding?"

"Root setting up a barrier was a misunderstanding."

"Danzo personally demanding that Shisui hand over his eye was a misunderstanding."

"His attempt to gouge out Shisui's eye was also a misunderstanding."

"Advisor, then what wouldn't count as a misunderstanding?"

He looked at Utatane Koharu, his tone dripping with sarcasm.

"Would Shisui have to actually lose an eye before the evidence was conclusive?"

Utatane Koharu's face turned livid.

"Uchiha You, don't push too far!"

Uchiha You said coldly:

"Pushing too far?"

"Shisui Uchiha was the one whose eye was targeted."

"We were the ones ambushed."

"Root were the ones who died."

"Danzo was the one injured."

"The witnesses are standing right here."

"Tell me, how exactly am I pushing anyone?"

"Or is it that, in your eyes, Danzo can kill Uchiha, but Uchiha cannot resist?"

Mitokado Homura said in a low voice:

"No one said that."

Uchiha You immediately followed up:

"Then punish Danzo."

Mitokado Homura: "..."

The office fell silent again.

Uchiha You's words were too direct.

So direct that they had no way to avoid them.

The Third Hokage took a deep drag of his pipe, his voice weary.

"Danzo."

"You went too far."

Danzo said coldly:

"Hiruzen, I did it for Konoha."

Uchiha You sneered.

"Here we go again."

The Third Hokage's brow twitched.

Danzo glared at Uchiha You.

Uchiha You looked right back at him without the slightest courtesy.

"Lord Hokage."

"If saying it was for Konoha is enough to justify taking a comrade's eye..."

"Then could I go to Root tomorrow, for Konoha's sake, and take a few Sharingan?"

Danzo's expression changed drastically.

"How dare you!"

"Why are you getting so worked up?"

"I was just giving an example."

Uchiha You's familiar rhetoric nearly made Danzo cough up blood in fury.

That line again.

Why are you getting so worked up?

He realized that the most disgusting thing about this brat Uchiha You was not his strength.

It was that he could always use rules and rhetoric to provoke people into losing control, while leaving them unable to refute him directly.

The Third Hokage rubbed his brow.

He knew he had to give the Uchiha Clan an explanation.

Otherwise, Shisui would completely side with the Uchiha Clan, and Itachi would waver as well.

The Uchiha Clan would also believe that the higher-ups were preparing to seize their eyes and wipe out their clan.

When that happened, the situation would only get worse.

The Third Hokage said in a deep voice:

"From today onward, Danzo will be suspended from his position as Hokage Advisor."

Danzo abruptly looked at the Third Hokage.

"Hiruzen!"

The Third Hokage continued:

"All Root surveillance operations against the Uchiha Clan will cease temporarily."

"The relevant personnel will be investigated by ANBU."

"Danzo, you are forbidden from contacting Shisui Uchiha privately again."

The moment this punishment was announced, Uchiha Chuan and the others immediately looked displeased.

Just a suspension? Stopping the surveillance?

What kind of punishment was that?

Uchiha You was so angered by Hiruzen Sarutobi's words that he laughed.

"Lord Hokage."

"I'd like to ask one question."

"If Uchiha You had led people into an ambush today, intending to gouge out Lord Danzo's eye..."

"Would the punishment also have been a suspension?"

The Third Hokage's body stiffened.

Danzo roared:

"Uchiha You!"

Uchiha You ignored him outright and looked only at the Third Hokage.

Everyone in the office fell silent.

Because the answer was obvious.

If the Uchiha Clan had dared do such a thing, it would not have ended with a suspension.

They would have been branded rebels on the spot.

ANBU, Root, and even ninja from every clan would have been mobilized.

But Danzo had done it, and all he received was a suspension.

It was blatant double standards.

Shisui also looked at the Third Hokage.

At that moment, the last trace of warmth in his eyes cooled further.

The Third Hokage noticed Shisui's gaze and inwardly realized that things had gone badly.

He knew he had to concede another step.

"Danzo will hand over all Root Archives related to the Uchiha Clan."

"They will be jointly sealed and reviewed by ANBU and the Police Force."

Danzo's expression changed drastically.

"Hiruzen, no!"

There were too many things in the Root Archives that could not see the light of day.

Once they were handed over, even if only the Uchiha-related portions were included, more problems might be exposed.

The corners of Uchiha You's lips lifted slightly.

Here it came.

This was what he truly wanted.

Danzo's Root Archives.

They contained not only surveillance records on the Uchiha Clan, but also Wood Release experiments, Sharingan research, and clues about operations in the Land of Rain.

As long as he got hold of some of it, he could continue peeling away Danzo's skin.

Uchiha You looked at the Third Hokage.

"Lord Hokage is wise."

"In that case, the Police Force is willing to cooperate with ANBU in the joint review."

The Third Hokage glanced at Uchiha You.

He knew he had been forced to take another step back.

But he had no choice but to agree now.

The Third Hokage said in a deep voice:

"Shisui, You."

"The village will give the Uchiha Clan an explanation."

Uchiha You said flatly:

"I hope so."

Shisui also said quietly:

"Lord Hokage, I hope so too."

The Third Hokage's heart sank.

Shisui's words hurt him even more than Uchiha You's sarcasm.

Because they meant that Shisui no longer trusted him unconditionally as he once had.

Danzo saw it too.

He stared fixedly at Uchiha You.

This brat.

Not only had he ruined his plan to seize Shisui's eye.

He had also caused Shisui to begin slipping out of his control.

And he had taken the chance to force Hiruzen to hand over part of the Root Archives.

He had lost this round in an utterly disgraceful manner.

And before Uchiha You left, he did not forget to twist the knife once more.

He looked at Danzo with a gentle smile.

"Lord Danzo."

"After tonight, remember to go out less often."

"After all, your right hand isn't very convenient right now."

"If you fall while walking at night, Konoha will lose another old man who has devoted himself to the village."

Danzo's lone eye reddened with fury.

"Uchiha You!"

Uchiha You turned and left.

"Don't get worked up."

"Your right arm is already crippled. If you anger yourself sick too, that won't be good."

The office door closed.

Uchiha Chuan and the others followed behind Uchiha You, their shoulders trembling.

They were holding back their laughter.

Shisui followed them out as well.

He just wasn't laughing.

His expression was heavier than ever before.

In the corridor,

Uchiha You stopped and looked at Shisui.

"Do you believe me now?"

Shisui was silent for a long time.

At last, he said quietly,

"I do."

Just two words.

But those two words represented a thread of fate that had once led to Uchiha Massacre Night, forcibly severed.

"Good."

"Then next, we should talk about Itachi."

Shisui looked up.

"Itachi?"

Uchiha You gazed out at the night beyond the window, his eyes unfathomable.

"Danzo failed to make a move against you."

"Next, he'll definitely place even more pressure on Itachi."

"Shisui."

"If you don't want Itachi to become the second person to be used."

"You'd better join me and pull him back."

Shisui slowly clenched his fists.

This time, he did not run away.

"Alright."

Another system notification sounded in Uchiha You's mind.

[Shisui Uchiha has officially joined the host's camp.]

[Side Quest: Win over Itachi Uchiha and unlock the key prerequisite.]

[Current main quest completion has increased.]

[Reward: Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan is one step closer.]

The corners of Uchiha You's lips curled up slightly.

Shisui had been saved.

Danzo had been injured.

The Root Archives would soon be in his hands.

Next came Itachi.

The blade of Uchiha Massacre Night was due to point in another direction.