In Iwagakure, inside the Tsuchikage's Office, Third Tsuchikage Ōnoki floated in midair, watching Morpheus's image on the Canopy Screen. His small frame radiated tension.
"Hmph. The 'Paradise Organization'? What a load of nonsense."
Ōnoki snorted, his eyes full of suspicion. "This kind of scheme to destroy an opponent from within sounds like a new trick those brutes from Kumogakure would pull."
"They failed to abduct the young lady of the Hyuga Main House, so they set their sights on the Uchiha instead?"
He turned to Kitsuchi beside him. "What was Kumogakure doing back then? Were there any unusual personnel transfers or secret movements of funds?"
"Lord Tsuchikage, we found no clear evidence at the time."
"But that's exactly what makes it suspicious. Perhaps they used some extremely covert method we don't know about."
Ōnoki pondered for a moment. His seasoned political instincts left him uneasy. "Whether or not it was Kumogakure, things are about to get complicated."
"Tell our people undercover in Konoha to watch and wait for now. But they must uncover the Paradise Organization's true origins at any cost! I suspect something deeper may be behind all this."
And so an absurdly ironic picture took shape across the Shinobi World:
Konoha suspected Kumogakure or Iwagakure of having been behind it. Kumogakure angrily accused Iwagakure of framing them, while Iwagakure sneered and suspected Kumogakure of trying a new trick.
Kirigakure and Sunagakure also suspected Kumogakure and Sunagakure of being behind it.
Meanwhile, Hyuga Xiu lay on the grass munching an apple, watching his Belief Points climb in the system's backend. Inwardly, he kept sneering.
Go on, suspect each other. The more you do, the more I can accomplish in the real world. Sooner or later, I'll rewrite this damned destiny that rules the world of the Hokage.
The next day, the Canopy Screen resumed its broadcast.
[Outside Konoha, along the lower reaches of the Naka River, Itachi Uchiha appeared silently by the water in the setting sun.]
[Before long, another figure—Shisui Uchiha—appeared a short distance away, using a Body Flicker Technique almost too fast for the eye to follow.]
[Standing a few steps apart, they watched the flowing river side by side. Neither spoke for a while.]
[A heavy, tense silence hung in the air.]
[At last, Itachi Uchiha broke it. "Why did you ask me here?"]
[Shisui sighed softly and lowered his voice. "Itachi, I want to know what you really think."]
["How likely do you think the Uchiha are to stage a coup?"]
[At the word "coup," Itachi Uchiha's body tensed almost imperceptibly. After a long silence, he spoke, his voice calm to the point of indifference:]
["The Uchiha are growing increasingly dissatisfied with the village. If things stay as they are, I'm afraid they'll reach the limit of their patience."]
[Shisui Uchiha turned to look at Itachi Uchiha. "If the village changes its policies, will the Uchiha change course?"]
[Itachi Uchiha shook his head with a bitter smile. "It won't help. Unless the Uchiha change first, the village won't change either. As long as both sides continue to distrust each other, things will only get worse."]
["I want to put an end to that distrust!" Shisui Uchiha looked at Itachi Uchiha with determination.]
["Do you think you can?" A trace of hope slipped into Itachi Uchiha's question, though he did not notice it himself.]
[Shisui Uchiha paused, then spoke quietly. "I don't know. But I have to try. If the Uchiha launch a coup, it will end in tragedy for both them and Konoha."]
[Itachi Uchiha nodded. "I oppose the coup too. But stopping it will take unconventional measures."]
["I know," Shisui replied firmly. "But Itachi, you'd better not act rashly."]
["Why?" Itachi Uchiha asked, baffled.]
[Shisui lowered his voice to almost a whisper. "The Military Police Force already suspects you. They ordered me to watch you!"]
[Itachi fell silent. The sound of the flowing river seemed to swell around him.]
[He felt the weight of Shisui's gaze. It held concern, warning, and an unspoken understanding of the immense pressure he was under.]
[After Shisui Uchiha left, Itachi remained by the river alone, standing there for a long time.]
[The scene suddenly shifted. In a hidden, sealed Stone Chamber within the Uchiha Compound, the Four Elders stared fixedly at the strange Remote Control.]
[At last, the moment First Elder Setsuna Uchiha pressed the button, the cold Blue Holographic Projection formed before them again.]
["It seems you've made a wise choice." Morpheus's voice was steady and emotionless, as though he were merely stating a fact.]
[The First Elder took a deep breath and stepped forward as their representative. His aged face looked especially resolute in the blue light.]
["Envoy of the Paradise Organization, you say you can give the Uchiha the power to survive. But words aren't enough. We need to know what you can provide—and how."]
[Morpheus nodded slightly, as though he had expected the question.]
["The support I can offer comes in three forms." He raised three fingers, his tone as calm and matter-of-fact as a salesman describing a product.]
["First, individual enhancement." He pointed to one of the elders. "Using our technology, I can forcibly awaken the physical potential of a group of Uchiha clan members you select, provided they meet the requirements. It will happen within a short time."]
["Their Taijutsu speed, strength, reflexes, and precision with thrown weapons will rise far above those of an ordinary Chunin, perhaps even approaching the level of a Special Jonin."]
["Bear in mind that this applies only to Taijutsu and thrown weapons. It will not increase their Chakra reserves or improve their Genjutsu or Ninjutsu."]
["The state is also temporary. Once it ends, they will suffer a prolonged period of weakness."]
[The Four Elders' eyes lit up. They could forcibly create a group of ninja close to Special Jonin level?]
[Even with a time limit, such fighters would be a razor-sharp blade at the crucial moment of an assault!]
["Second, material support," Morpheus continued. With a sweep of his hand, blue light sketched three-dimensional images of Kunai, Shuriken, Explosive Tags, and other weapons in the air.]
["We can produce standard-issue weapons and Explosive Tags for you in bulk—enough to arm every clan member capable of fighting."]
["These items, too, are temporarily sustained by our energy. Like Shadow Clones, they will last only for a limited time before disappearing on their own."]
["But they should be enough to carry you through an intense assault."]
[The elders' breathing grew heavier.]
[Supplies had been one of their greatest problems! A large-scale coup required vast quantities of weapons, but buying them in bulk would inevitably alert ANBU.]
[The Paradise Organization's temporary weapons were exactly the help they needed!]
["Third, a guaranteed escape route." Morpheus lowered his hand. "If the plan goes wrong, or if you need to leave the village temporarily to regroup..."]
["We can give you the coordinates of an absolutely secret rendezvous point outside the Land of Fire."]
["It has ample basic supplies, enough for any survivors to lie low."]
[Three of the elders were stunned by the offer, which far exceeded their expectations. They could barely conceal their excitement and longing.]
[Only the Second Elder remained wary. He stared hard at Morpheus's projection and asked the most important question in a hoarse voice:]
["And what is the price?"]
Before you continue