Tensions Escalate, Kotoamatsukami Exposed!

When Shisui and Itachi returned to the village after completing their mission, they immediately noticed something was wrong.

The village was still the same village, but the Uchiha were no longer the same Uchiha.

"Itachi, is all of this really true?! We went away on one mission, and the whole world changed?!"

Ever since Shisui had learned about the recent changes within the Uchiha,

he had felt as though none of it was real.

"Shisui, haven't you realized how serious this is?!"

Itachi looked at Shisui with a grave expression. Clearly, compared to Shisui,

he felt he might be seeing further ahead.

He also felt there was little room for optimism.

The main issue was that, on closer consideration, this seemed extremely serious.

Had Shisui really not realized that at all?!

Seeing Itachi's solemn expression, Shisui froze for a moment.

"What's so serious about it?! The Uchiha don't seem to be ostracized in the village anymore, and I've heard their reputation among the villagers has been good lately. Isn't this what we've always wanted?!"

Shisui was baffled.

Wait, what?!

Wasn't this a good thing?!

He carefully recalled what he and Itachi had wanted to accomplish.

Hadn't they wanted to improve relations between the Uchiha and the village?!

Now the villagers were less prejudiced against the Uchiha, and the other shinobi clans could interact with them normally.

Since the Uchiha were being treated with kindness, they were also willing to set aside some of their pride and socialize with those people.

And soon, they would be able to reclaim their own clan compound.

Everything was moving in the direction they had originally wanted. Ever since the Nine-Tails' Rampage, the Uchiha had been constantly targeted.

Now the Uchiha had resolved that problem. If that wasn't a good thing, what was?!

Why was Uchiha Itachi saying this was so serious?

He simply couldn't understand what was so serious about it.

"Shisui, doing this will actually make relations with the village even more strained. The Uchiha are pushing harder at every turn. Won't that make people think the theory that the Uchiha are a threat is right!?"

Uchiha Itachi's expression was grim.

He thought of the Uchiha threat theory.

Given the current situation, wouldn't this amount to proving it true?!

He didn't know why Shisui was acting this way, either.

But Uchiha Itachi felt that if they didn't do something now,

the Uchiha would only be heading further down the road to destruction.

After hearing Uchiha Itachi's words, Shisui opened his mouth, unsure what to say.

At least as far as he could see, weren't things already improving for the Uchiha?!

They only wanted fair treatment, without discrimination. That was all the Uchiha wanted.

Why did Itachi think it was wrong for the Uchiha to ask for those things?!

Yet at that moment, Shisui Uchiha didn't know how to reason with Itachi.

He was the one who had led Itachi down this path in the first place.

But suddenly, he felt that things were a little different from what he had imagined...

Back then, he had wanted to lead Uchiha Itachi down this path, but he had never imagined something like this would happen.

Could it be that deep down, Uchiha Itachi didn't want this?!

Or... had even I become narrow-minded?

Shisui Uchiha didn't know what to say. He only felt that this was nothing like what he had imagined.

"Let's go see Lord Hokage first."

After struggling for a long time, Shisui still couldn't find anything to say and could only offer that suggestion.

They would see Hiruzen Sarutobi first and submit their mission report.

Inside the Hokage's Office.

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked warmly at Shisui and Itachi.

By now, Hiruzen Sarutobi had come to see the two of them as his saviors.

After all, tomorrow was the appointed day.

If they could get Bai Ye to change his mind now,

or persuade the Uchiha to abandon the idea, there would still be room to turn things around.

Ever since Bai Ye's last visit, Hiruzen Sarutobi had realized that there might no longer be any room for him to maneuver.

Bai Ye would never let this opportunity slip away.

That meant his authority was now on the verge of being utterly discredited.

If he didn't do something now, he probably wouldn't remain Hokage for much longer.

After all, until now, he had always kept the Uchiha suppressed.

But once Bai Ye took over, the situation had changed.

This was absolutely not what Hiruzen Sarutobi wanted to see.

Besides, these actions weren't meant for ordinary people to see. They were all being watched by the clans.

If those clans discovered that he could no longer keep Konoha under control,

he knew very well what fate awaited him.

Naturally, Hiruzen Sarutobi took this matter very seriously.

"Lord Hokage, we've completed our mission."

"Yes, well done. But there may be something else I need you to do next."

Hiruzen Sarutobi casually leafed through the mission scroll.

His mind wasn't on it at all.

The most important thing right now was resolving the Uchiha issue.

If they couldn't resolve it,

then he would have no choice but to burn his bridges and take another path.

"Please tell us, Lord Hokage!"

Shisui nodded in agreement. Although Hiruzen Sarutobi hadn't said anything yet, Shisui could already roughly guess what task he intended to assign them.

It was probably about the Uchiha.

"Shisui, Itachi, you know what's been happening between the village and the Uchiha lately, don't you?!

We have little objection to returning the Uchiha Clan Compound, but this will only deepen the conflict between both sides.

You're both children who have inherited the Will of Fire. This matter has put me in a difficult position, too. If possible, I hope both sides can calm down.

After all, the conflict between the village and the Uchiha seems to be growing worse.

The Uchiha threat theory has surfaced in the village again. Although I've done everything I can to suppress it, quite a few people are still talking about it... Sigh..."

As Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke, he looked at Shisui.

Then he continued, "Shisui, you once said you had the power to stop all of this, didn't you!?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi remembered Shisui mentioning it a long time ago.

He had once said he possessed the power to stop all of this.

But the situation had been going so well that Hiruzen Sarutobi hadn't taken Shisui's words seriously at the time.

Now Hiruzen Sarutobi hadn't yet come up with a solution.

So he could only try it as a last resort.

Hearing Hiruzen Sarutobi's words, Shisui froze for a moment. Beside him, Itachi couldn't help looking over as well.

He knew what Shisui's solution to their current predicament was.

Kotoamatsukami!

As long as he controlled Bai Ye with Kotoamatsukami, the Uchiha issue would be put on hold.

But Shisui was feeling conflicted.

Did I really want to do that now?!

He didn't know himself...

If I used Kotoamatsukami to control Bai Ye now, would that really be better for the Uchiha?!

Hiruzen Sarutobi seemed to notice Shisui's hesitation, but he continued unhurriedly, "Shisui, wherever leaves dance, fire burns on.

If internal strife breaks out between the village and the Uchiha, the other villages will certainly take advantage of our weakness.

When that happens, both the village and the Uchiha will suffer devastating blows."

After Hiruzen Sarutobi finished, Danzo spoke up. "Shisui, do you want to see internal strife break out between the village and the Uchiha?! It seems the Second Hokage's Uchiha threat theory was right!

First, Madara Uchiha returned with the Nine-Tails to fight the First, indirectly causing the First Hokage's death.

Then the Nine-Tails' Rampage caused the Fourth Hokage's death.

Now the Uchiha are becoming more and more brazen. Do you intend to cause the death of yet another Hokage?!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo played good cop and bad cop.

They pushed Shisui to the limit.

Although they didn't know what Shisui's solution was,

he had said he had one before, even if that had been back when Uchiha Fugaku was in charge.

But looking at it another way, perhaps it could resolve the issue with Bai Ye, too?!

So no matter what, they had to find out whether Shisui truly had a solution.

Under their pressure, a bead of cold sweat appeared on Shisui's face. Then he closed his eyes. When he opened them again, a Mangekyo Sharingan pattern had appeared in his pupils.

"Lord Hokage, I have now awakened the Uchiha's strongest ocular jutsu, the Mangekyo Sharingan. My ability can alter someone's will without them noticing, so... if something truly does go wrong, I will use this ability to change the Clan Head's will."

Shisui had been wavering over whether to tell them, but given the situation, he knew very well that he could no longer remain silent.

Once he finished speaking, the room fell much quieter.

Especially after seeing the Mangekyo Sharingan in Shisui's eyes, they didn't know what to say for a moment.

But the four of them soon recovered.

This!!!!

It was actually the Mangekyo Sharingan!?

And most importantly, this ability could actually change someone's thoughts.

If that was the case, didn't it mean Shisui really could change Bai Ye's will, and then...

Wouldn't that solve everything?!

They had thought this would be a difficult problem to solve, but after Shisui revealed his ability,

they suddenly felt it might not be difficult at all.

Danzo, in particular, could barely conceal the greed in his eyes.

The Mangekyo Sharingan!!!!

And it could even change other people's thoughts?!

Why should an Uchiha be the one to possess a Mangekyo Sharingan like that?!

I had to get my hands on that Mangekyo Sharingan!

If I obtained Kotoamatsukami's power, wouldn't I be able to change everything, too?!

A thought called greed instantly rose in Danzo's mind.

If there hadn't been other people around, Danzo wouldn't have been able to restrain himself.

More importantly, as far as Danzo was concerned, this ability couldn't be left in the hands of the dangerous Uchiha.

But there was nothing he could do now. With so many people watching, Danzo knew very well that he had no opportunity to act.

Still, a plan had already formed in his mind.

He simply needed to summon Shisui to his Root alone later.

At that thought, his mind was made up. He absolutely had to get his hands on Kotoamatsukami!

For now, however, Danzo kept his expression unchanged and pretended not to care.

The key now was what Hiruzen Sarutobi intended to do.

After recovering from his shock, Hiruzen Sarutobi silently smoked his pipe without immediately making a decision.

Hiruzen Sarutobi knew very well that the best solution was to have Shisui act.

But... he couldn't bring himself to ask.

"Sarutobi, what are you still hesitating for?! Do you really want to watch the Uchiha and the village go to war?!"

At that moment, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu could no longer sit still.

Seeing Hiruzen Sarutobi still wavering, they immediately urged him.

Although, for a brief moment, they had thought about the danger of this ocular jutsu and even wondered whether Shisui might control them on the spot,

right now, they still wanted Shisui to control Bai Ye's thoughts first.

They would resolve the immediate problem first. Everything else could wait until later.

"Shisui, talk to him first. There's no need to use your ocular jutsu right away. I believe Bai Ye is also a child who has inherited the Will of Fire. It's just that there are still too many misunderstandings between the village and the Uchiha, which is why things have come to this..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi took a deep breath and settled the matter.

As soon as he finished, the two beside him looked at him anxiously.

Shisui, however, breathed a sigh of relief. He was deeply conflicted and didn't know whether doing this would truly be right.

So Hiruzen Sarutobi's words gave him a little breathing room.

"Understood, Lord Hokage."

"Then go!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi had Shisui leave first. At that moment, he was deeply wary of Shisui.

The main reason was that he had suddenly realized something.

If Shisui could control Bai Ye, couldn't he control me too?!

If I fell under Kotoamatsukami, wouldn't the Uchiha succeed?!

What a terrifying ocular jutsu!!!!

Just thinking about Shisui's ocular jutsu sent cold sweat pouring down Hiruzen Sarutobi's back.

Beside him, Mitokado Homura could no longer sit still. He looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi and asked, "Sarutobi, what exactly are you thinking?! Why not have Shisui control Bai Ye?"

"Exactly. And that ocular jutsu of Shisui's is terrifying. I think it's dangerous..."

Utatane Koharu immediately chimed in.

That ability was far too dangerous.

It wasn't just Homura; all four of them shared the same thought.

"Let that boy Shisui give it a try first. There's no need to rush."

No need to rush?!

Tomorrow is the last day!!!

After hearing Hiruzen Sarutobi's words, a cold sneer flickered across Danzo's lips, but deep down, he understood perfectly.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's indecisive, somewhat hypocritical nature was rearing its head again.

If Danzo were in his place, he would seize Shisui's ocular jutsu without hesitation, then move directly against the Uchiha.

"If there's nothing else, I'll be leaving." With that, Danzo rose to leave.

Seeing Danzo's attitude, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu both froze for a moment.

That wasn't right, was it?!

In the past, Danzo would definitely have launched into a lengthy speech!

Why wasn't this going the way they'd expected?!

Danzo was suddenly saying he was leaving!?

"Danzo, you're just going to leave like that?!"

"Heh. There's no point in discussing this any further. I'll be going."

Having said that, Danzo offered nothing more. After all, he knew perfectly well what he needed to do.

If he wanted to seize Shisui's eyes, he had to make preparations now.

Once I have Shisui's eyes, won't I be able to handle all of this however I please?!

As Hiruzen Sarutobi watched him leave, his eyes flickered, but he made no move to stop him.

Meanwhile, Shisui looked at Itachi. "Itachi, head back first. Let me go talk to Bai Ye alone!"

He had decided to speak with Bai Ye privately about this matter.

At that moment, Shisui's faith in the convictions he had held until now began to waver.

He wanted to find the real answer...