Shisui: I Will Lurk in the Shadows

[Enemy Aburame Ryoma killed. Fate Points plundered. Obtained 5 Random Fate Cards.]

The moment Aburame Ryoma's death was confirmed, a notification about plundering fate appeared before Yecheng's eyes.

And this time, there were no fewer than five fate cards!

"Five whole cards. It probably depends on how strong the enemy I kill is. Looks like I might draw something good this time."

Yecheng did not draw the cards immediately, because he still had other things to do.

He wanted to recruit Shisui Uchiha into [Shadow] to serve him in secret, so that Shisui could also contribute to overthrowing Danzo in the future!

The battle with Aburame Ryoma took a long time to describe, but in reality, only a few minutes had passed before it ended in Aburame Ryoma's violent death.

Yecheng first stored Aburame Ryoma's corpse in his Shadow Space. Then, using the Shadow Clone Technique, he gave everyone remaining a stab to the head, whether they were alive or dead, before storing them in his Shadow Space.

Unfortunately, none of those Shisui Uchiha had killed or severely wounded yielded fate card draws from plundering Fate Points. It seemed there was a deeper connection involved.

After briefly tidying up, Yecheng reached out and "pulled" over a shadow, forming a black bandage that he wrapped around his eyes.

The other man's Mangekyō Sharingan ability was [Kotoamatsukami], which could rewrite someone's will. Yecheng did not dare look directly into his eye.

In any case, with Yecheng's current sensory abilities, even a blindfold did not stop him from observing his surroundings.

Once ready, he dispelled the barrier he had set up here and pursued Shisui Uchiha in the direction he had left.

A Ninja Crow was still following Shisui, so Yecheng could easily pinpoint his location.

"Cough, cough..."

Shisui Uchiha did his best to suppress it, but he still could not help coughing and had to stop on a massive tree to catch his breath.

The earlier battle against the Root elites had consumed a great deal of his stamina and chakra.

He had also forcibly activated the Third Power-Susanoo-with a single eye, placing an enormous burden on his body!

Shisui Uchiha reckoned that he was now weakened to the extreme. If any more enemies pursued him, he would probably have no choice but to fight for his life!

He had no idea who that person who suddenly appeared was, or why he had helped him.

Shisui Uchiha's mind was a jumble as he recalled what had happened today.

With nothing but sincerity and loyalty, he had gone to Konoha High Command to reveal his eyes' ability and his plan to use it to control the Uchiha Clan's council of elders.

Yet he had never expected that, right after receiving the Hokage's approval, Shimura Danzō would ambush him and take one of his eyes.

Losing an eye certainly hurt, but what hurt him even more at this moment was that the conflict between the Uchiha Clan and the village leadership seemed to have reached a point where it could no longer be eased!

He loved his clan and took immense pride and honor in the Uchiha name, but he also loved Konoha, which had protected so many ninja and children.

If he absolutely had to choose between the two!

He... could not do it.

Shisui Uchiha closed his eye in anguish, sinking into an intense struggle and pain.

The Uchiha Clan had long been stirring and plotting a coup, and quite a few people in the village knew about it!

Once the Uchiha launched their coup, Konoha would suffer a devastating blow, whether it succeeded or failed!

Konoha had still not recovered from the Nine-Tails' Attack. If an Uchiha coup occurred now and weakened Konoha's strength again...

The Fourth Shinobi World War would probably break out immediately!

When that happened, it was anyone's guess whether Konoha would even survive!

Were the village and his clan truly destined to face such destruction?

Shisui Uchiha sank into despair.

Just then, the Ninja Crow on his shoulder suddenly spoke.

"What a wonderfully pleasing expression, boy. Has something good happened?"

"Hm?"

Shisui Uchiha opened his eye in surprise and looked at the Ninja Crow.

"Who might you be?"

With his Sharingan, he could sense that this Ninja Crow had not yet reached the chakra level required to transform into a Summoning Beast. Yet it could now speak human language, so it was clearly being controlled by some technique.

"My name is [Crow], an emissary of [Shadow]."

The crow paused, then continued, "What good thing happened? Tell me about it."

Shisui Uchiha gave a bitter laugh and shook his head.

Since this was a companion of the person who had rescued him, he probably meant him no harm.

But how could he tell an outsider about Konoha's internal affairs?

Until he figured out their true identities, he would not divulge any information about Konoha.

Just then, Yecheng, transformed into Megumi Fushiguro, arrived as well.

"It's just more persecution by Danzo. I've seen so much of it in Konoha that I'm sick of it."

With black bandages wrapped around his eyes, Yecheng chimed in.

Shisui Uchiha: ...

He had no response. The other man had directly stated what he wanted to conceal, so he clearly knew a great deal.

"[Demon], what happened to that Aburame Ryoma?"

[Crow] asked.

"He was pretty good. He lasted three minutes against me before dying."

[Demon] spoke indifferently.

Shisui Uchiha was shaken by those words.

Aburame Ryoma was Danzo's trusted subordinate, an elite of Root. His strength was not to be underestimated; he was an elite among jōnin!

Although he had fought Shisui, he had not sustained any particularly serious injuries.

Even at his peak, Shisui would have needed some effort to deal with him without using Kotoamatsukami or Susanoo!

Yet against this [Demon], he had lasted only three minutes before losing!?

This man was strong!

[Shadow]...

What sort of organization was it, to have such an expert among its ranks?

[Demon] looked at him. "Shisui Uchiha, I've been watching you for a long time."

Shisui Uchiha's thoughts stirred again. Didn't those words imply that this man was someone from Konoha?

And very possibly someone in a high position!

No wonder he was so familiar with Shisui's affairs, laying out the conflict between the Uchiha Clan and Danzo as soon as he spoke!

But who exactly was he?

Shisui Uchiha quietly considered this.

At least for now, the other man also appeared to be Danzo's enemy, which made him a natural potential ally.

"Shisui Uchiha, you're very talented and very powerful. It would be a shame for you to die like this."

[Demon] spoke slowly, getting straight to the point and extending an invitation.

"Join us, and become the [Shadow] of this Shinobi World!"

"Shadow?"

Shisui Uchiha froze. Only the leaders of the Five Great Nations' ninja villages could bear the title of "Kage," or "Shadow," yet these people actually dreamed of becoming the "Shadow" of the entire Shinobi World?

Could their ultimate goal be to rule the entire Shinobi World?!

What terrifying ambition!

"I don't want to rule the world. I only want to protect everyone from the shadows and safeguard the village and my clan."

Shisui Uchiha spoke gravely.

"That's exactly what [Shadow] is!"

[Demon] suddenly threw back his head and laughed.

"We are [Shadow]. We lurk in the shadows and hunt the shadows!"

Not only [Demon], but even [Crow] on Shisui's shoulder recited the words with him.

[Demon] looked at Shisui again.

"I have high hopes for you, but we made a bit too much noise earlier. Let's leave this place for now."

After a pause, he continued, "Besides, you should still have things to do.

Once you've settled down and thought things through, contact me through [Crow].

One day, you too will understand what the Shinobi World's true darkness is!"

With that, [Demon]'s figure melted into the shadows like a pool of thick ink and vanished!

[Crow] did exactly the same, slipping into a shadow and disappearing.

What kind of technique was this?

Shisui Uchiha was shaken again. Even with his Mangekyō Sharingan's visual prowess, he could not see through the technique the other man had used!

[Shadow], a mysterious and powerful organization!

And their goals did not seem to conflict with his?

Perhaps he could join them and see how things went.

Taking a deep breath, Shisui Uchiha gathered himself and headed for the place where he had arranged to meet Uchiha Itachi.

He soon found him, then invited him to come along to the Naka River.

"Shisui, what happened?"

Uchiha Itachi stopped, his expression pained.

With his keen eyes, how could he fail to notice Shisui's numerous injuries and immense chakra depletion, leaving him looking utterly spent?

His body was already battered to pieces!

Shisui Uchiha slowly turned, looking at him calmly with his sole remaining eye.

"Shisui, you...!"

Uchiha Itachi was profoundly shaken. Even his fingertips could not stop trembling, though he forcibly suppressed it.

To the Uchiha Clan, their eyes were their glory, their greatest source of pride, proof of their very existence, and the most direct embodiment of the Uchiha name!

But now?

Shisui was missing an eye.

And it had clearly been taken from him!

Such a grudge ran even deeper than the hatred for someone who tried to kill you!

"The Uchiha Clan's coup can no longer be stopped."

Yet Shisui Uchiha spoke calmly, as if nothing had happened.

"And once Konoha falls into internal strife, other countries will inevitably seize the opportunity to invade. That could very well lead to the Fourth Shinobi World War.

That's something I don't want to see."

"Shisui..."

Uchiha Itachi opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but could not get the words out.

He could tell that this man, who was not his brother but was closer than one, had struggled back on his last breath to see him one final time and entrust him with his final wishes!

"I wanted to use Kotoamatsukami to stop this coup, but Danzo took my right eye. That man doesn't care what anyone else thinks. He only wants to do things his own way."

Shisui Uchiha looked at Uchiha Itachi, two trails of bloody tears running down his face beneath his gentle smile.

"I'm sorry, Itachi. You're the only one I can entrust this to. Please protect the village and the Uchiha name."

Uchiha Itachi forcibly steadied his trembling eyes and closed them. When he opened them again, they had become crimson Sharingan with three tomoe.

"I accept what you've entrusted to me, Shisui."

Uchiha Itachi spoke as calmly as he could. "What do you plan to do next?"

"I'm going to fake my death. I've already written my suicide note. I have some standing among the younger generation, so my death might delay the coup and buy us some time."

Shisui took two steps back. "I'll lurk in the shadows and become a blade in the darkness, protecting the village and the clan.

During that time, we'll surely find an opportunity to change things."

"Wait, Shisui!"

"Goodbye, Itachi."

Or perhaps we'll never see each other again.

Shisui thought.

He fell backward, plunging headfirst into the Naka River behind him and disappearing.

Uchiha Itachi lay at the cliff's edge, reaching toward the river, but he could grasp nothing, nothing at all.

Shisui had been a brother to him as he grew up, a forerunner, a guide.

He loved the village and the clan more than anyone.

Yet despite loving the village and his clan so deeply, he now had no choice but to leave the place he loved, conceal his existence, and even fabricate his own death!

For Shisui, this was simply crueler than death!

Death would have ended everything, but living on meant enduring this pain and torment every moment!

Immense grief and pain frantically assaulted Itachi's emotions and nerves. Surges of powerful, cold chakra arose from nowhere and poured into his eyes.

His pair of crimson, three-tomoe Sharingan began spinning.

The clan's coup and the village leadership's wariness had already brought the situation to the brink, yet Danzo was still scheming in the shadows and intensifying the conflict!

Caught in the middle, Uchiha Itachi had been under tremendous pressure all along!

Though people had called him a genius since childhood, and adults had praised him as an outstanding talent who possessed the Hokage's Way of Thinking.

Almost everyone had overlooked the fact that he was still only a boy of around ten!

His heart had long since become exhausted and riddled with wounds.

He had risked his life and passed through countless brushes with death, but that did not mean he was a mature adult.

Wanting to save someone but having to kill them because they were an enemy, being forced to oppose the family that had given him life, watching his companions die while powerless to help...

All those accumulated moments of despair had made him what he was today: a boy filled with despair!

Next, he would walk toward that truly irredeemable abyss.

Hell. This Shinobi World was nothing but hell.

Watching this unfold from the shadows through a Ninja Crow's eyes, Yecheng thought to himself.

By the time Uchiha Itachi's expression grew calm again, the eyes in his sockets were no longer three-Tomoe eyes, but the Mangekyō Sharingan, bearing the pattern of a three-bladed shuriken!

The abilities of his two eyes were none other than [Tsukuyomi] and [Amaterasu]!!

Shisui, I will inherit your will!

In a forest not far from Konoha.

Shisui Uchiha found a cave and hid inside.

His injuries had already become very serious, and he needed treatment as soon as possible.

Otherwise, never mind becoming a blade in the shadows-he would probably die tonight in this forsaken place, his corpse left exposed in the wilderness.

Shisui Uchiha took bandages and a portable vial of medicine from his ninja tool pouch and gave his injuries some basic treatment.

Ninjas had far stronger constitutions than ordinary people. Scrapes, bruises, and even cuts could all heal gradually, as long as no vital areas were injured.

The most important thing was the injury to his eye. If he did not treat it soon, it would certainly leave serious complications.

After pondering for a long time, he finally called out.

"We are [Shadow], lurking in the shadows, hunting the shadows!"