The Eve of the Plan's Beginning

The Cursed Seal was quite a useful thing.

Though its side effects were severe, and it carried a certain degree of danger.

It had already come into contact with Natural Energy. If he could thoroughly study it, Uchiha Shunichi might be able to master Sage Mode.

By then, the burden of the Mangekyō Sharingan would no longer be a problem. Compared to the limited chakra within his body, the Natural Energy outside was inexhaustible.

Moreover, according to Uchiha Shunichi's speculation, Natural Energy seemed capable of extending one's lifespan. After all, the creatures of the three great summoning holy lands that had mastered Senjutsu all possessed astonishingly long lives.

There was no reason animals could accomplish something that humans could not.

Natural Energy was clearly not so easy to study. If it had been, Orochimaru would have mastered Sage Mode long ago.

Ryūchi Cave also possessed Senjutsu, yet Orochimaru had not learned it and instead used Cursed Seals.

Therefore, Uchiha Shunichi guessed that Orochimaru had likely attempted to cultivate Senjutsu but failed. His snake-like body was the best proof of that.

Of course, it was also possible that Orochimaru had modified his body and could no longer cultivate Senjutsu.

But regardless of the outcome, Orochimaru had conducted some research into Natural Energy. Thinking of this, Uchiha Shunichi suddenly felt like taking him as his master.

However, compared with Orochimaru, Uchiha Shunichi actually preferred another target—Tsunade!

"Looks like the Chūnin Exams are about to begin. I'm actually looking forward to them. Under those circumstances..." A trace of killing intent flashed through Uchiha Shunichi's eyes. He sealed the Cursed Seal on his shoulder and walked out of the laboratory.

Over the following days, Uchiha Shunichi had no missions.

Whether it was because defenses were being tightened during this period or because of Orochimaru, Uchiha Shunichi had rarely enjoyed such leisure for several days.

Uchiha Sasuke, however, was rather helpless. He had finally gone out on a mission, only to return to the village and be assigned the same sort of miscellaneous chores children played at.

Though those jobs could be easily dealt with and left him plenty of time to train, Sasuke was still dissatisfied with the pace of his growth.

In truth, Sasuke had grown very quickly. At the very least, he could now easily defeat two or three versions of his former self.

But his sights were set far ahead. The people he compared himself to were figures like Uchiha Shunichi and Kakashi Hatake. Compared to them, his strength was indeed weak.

"Shunichi, do you really have no other way? Kakashi hasn't been willing to teach me ninjutsu lately." In the end, Uchiha Sasuke could no longer suppress his impatience and spoke to Uchiha Shunichi.

"There are plenty of ways, but all of them would damage your potential. If you still want to take revenge on your brother, then settle down. In three or four years, you should be able to do it," Uchiha Shunichi said unhurriedly.

He was pondering the proportional relationship between Natural Energy and chakra, so he was not paying much attention to Uchiha Sasuke.

A few days had been enough for Uchiha Shunichi to solve the problem of the Cursed Seal. Though he could not yet use it for enhancement, he could already create similar Cursed Seals on his own.

That was the difference!

The Cursed Seal on Anko Mitarashi's body could only be sealed away; it could not be resolved at all. Yet Uchiha Shunichi had not only cracked it within days, but had also made a similar substitute.

When Uchiha Sasuke heard Uchiha Shunichi mention Uchiha Itachi, he immediately fell silent.

Of course he understood the issue of age, but what he wanted more than anything was revenge.

"Want to try awakening the Mangekyō Sharingan? Picking up a blade and killing me might awaken it. Want to give it a shot?" Uchiha Shunichi suddenly handed him a kunai.

"W-What kind of joke is that?! Even if I die, I'll never want that filthy power!"

Uchiha Sasuke erupted at once, hurling the kunai in his hand violently aside. His intense anger made him perform beyond his limits, and the kunai pierced straight through the wall.

"Just as I thought. Extreme emotions can evolve the Sharingan. Since you're so furious, you should try anger. If it reaches its peak, perhaps you can awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan!"

Imitating Uchiha Itachi, Uchiha Shunichi reached out and flicked Uchiha Sasuke's forehead.

Hearing that, Uchiha Sasuke froze for a moment. He swatted away Uchiha Shunichi's approaching finger and hurried over to the mirror.

Sure enough, the Sharingan had changed somewhat. What had originally been one Two-Tomoe Sharingan and one single-tomoe Sharingan had now both become Two-Tomoe Sharingan.

The limit of an ordinary Sharingan was the Three-Tomoe Sharingan. Even an Uchiha Clan member with poor talent would reach Jonin-level strength as long as they awakened a Three-Tomoe Sharingan.

It could be said that, for the vast majority of the Uchiha Clan, the Sharingan was the greatest proof of their strength!

"Don't use that method again," Uchiha Sasuke said sulkily.

Though the changes in his Sharingan made him happy, the anger from just now had not faded so quickly.

"The Chūnin Exams are about to begin. This is an opportunity for you. Whatever choice you make, I won't care."

"Don't count on me to save you. You may not be an adult yet, but you're already a ninja. That means you must pay the price for the choices you make. As for what that price will be..."

Uchiha Shunichi suddenly spoke in a solemn tone, startling Uchiha Sasuke.

"Shunichi... did something happen?" Uchiha Sasuke keenly sensed that something was wrong.

"Something like that. I don't know how it'll turn out, but I'm going to do it. You can't help me as you are now, but you need to take care of yourself," Uchiha Shunichi said ambiguously.

He had already decided that during the Konoha Crush Plan, he would kill Danzo! It was the best opportunity for revenge, but there was also a high chance of failure.

First, there were too many people in Root, and Danzo himself was actually very strong. Though Danzo could only use those Sharingan on his arm as extra lives, they were still troublesome.

More importantly... Uchiha Shisui's Mangekyō Sharingan. Kotoamatsukami truly was a Dōjutsu that made one wary!

"What exactly happened? Tell me!" Uchiha Sasuke shouted anxiously.

"I told you, you can't interfere! Just wait. I won't die, but it may be worse than death."

"Once everything is over, I'll tell you why."

Uchiha Sasuke wanted to say something else, but a single sentence choked the words back down.

"If you want me to fail, then keep asking!"