A breeze blew past,
and the mottled shadows of the trees rustled in the moonlight.
"Why isn't that old bastard here yet?"
Haruma lay in a rocking chair in the courtyard, his eyes half-closed as though he were about to fall asleep.
Beside him, Shisui looked calm as he said softly, "Perhaps the clan leader has other important business to attend to. I'm in no hurry to have my eyes replaced."
"You're not in a hurry! I am!"
Haruma responded irritably, "What time is it already? Don't we need to sleep? We've been waiting for him for three hours!"
While the two were talking,
someone pushed open the courtyard gate.
Fugaku was still dressed entirely in black, but now he also wore a black cloth mask over his face.
Uchiha Mikoto, likewise dressed in ninja attire, followed prettily behind him, her face slightly flushed.
"Mikoto, you're here."
Haruma stood up and first greeted Uchiha Mikoto behind the old bastard.
Then he looked at Fugaku, setting aside the cloth mask concealing his face for the moment.
With Haruma's current dynamic vision, he could clearly see the little tuft of hair standing on end on Fugaku's head, as well as the curled hairs on his hands.
There was also a faint smell of scorched meat in the air.
"What... happened to you?"
Haruma had intended to complain about the long wait, but now he was puzzled.
These were clearly signs of a fight, and one that had happened not long after Fugaku left the courtyard.
At that thought,
Haruma's expression turned serious. He looked up at Fugaku and asked solemnly, "Were you spotted coming here and got into a fight with the ninja watching us?"
Though phrased as a question, Haruma sounded utterly certain.
This was the Uchiha Clan's home base.
Any ninja who dared attack Fugaku could not possibly belong to the clan!
That left only Danzo's Root or the Anbu Ninja directly under the Hokage.
And whoever had attacked him was no weakling!
After all, Fugaku was a Kage Level powerhouse!
The situation is even worse than I expected!
They already dare to attack Fugaku, our clan leader, right here in the compound!
I'd planned to keep developing quietly for another few months, earn more money, and act once I'd grown much stronger.
But now, it looks like the plan needs to move up even further!
Having let his imagination run wild, Haruma's eyes flashed coldly.
He was already working out version 1.0 of the Konoha Crush Plan in his mind!
"Ahem, ahem."
"No, no. I just sparred a little with the second elder at the training ground."
Fugaku awkwardly avoided Haruma's gaze, then changed the subject. "It's nothing, nothing. Let's get Shisui's eyes replaced first."
Damn it.
I can never admit that my own wife beat the hell out of me at the training ground, not even if it kills me!
Who knows how this brat would laugh at me!
Three hours earlier.
Dodging while asking what was going on, Fugaku learned that after he had lied and left, his wife had gone to the second elder's house and failed to find him...
Which had escalated matters into an all-out brawl.
Only after explaining everything to his wife did he bring her along, arriving late.
He should have vented his resentment and anger over this undeserved disaster on Haruma.
But...
Loyal to her friend, Mikoto had not revealed that Haruma's earlier remarks, combined with her husband's lie, had caused her outburst.
Mikoto was looking out for Haruma, too. She did not want her husband taking his resentment out on the boy.
So she only said she had attacked because she went to the second elder's house and failed to find him.
Thus, Fugaku had no idea that Haruma had actually played a supporting role in the beating his wife had given him.
One could even call him the true instigator of the "beat up the clan leader" event.
And Haruma, who likewise had not learned the truth that Fugaku had been beaten up by his wife,
had confidently filled in the blanks and concluded only that the situation had changed.
Perhaps the Uchiha's sudden clan meeting today, or the moves to replace personnel in the Konoha Military Police Force, had prompted the village leadership to test them.
So Haruma, who should have had another year to develop slowly,
just because he had run his mouth a little with Mikoto...
ended up moving the Konoha Crush 1.0 plan onto the agenda ahead of schedule.
Mikoto took Shisui into the inner room and began the operation.
Haruma and Fugaku remained silent in the courtyard.
One was thinking about advancing the two proposals from today's clan meeting, as well as how to deal with the hawks led by Setsuna.
The other was gradually revising and refining the so-called 1.0 plan in his mind, factoring in the current timeline and situation.
After a long silence,
Haruma looked up at Fugaku and asked gravely, "Do you have the clan's remaining Sharingan on you?"
Fugaku nodded slightly and replied, "I do."
"Leave them with me for safekeeping."
Haruma had been about to offer an explanation, only to see the old bastard Fugaku toss a scroll straight to him.
"They're all in there."
Having fully accepted the space-time ability, Fugaku had already intended to entrust the clan's treasures to Haruma.
So he handed them over without any hesitation.
Since when did this old bastard become so sensible?
Slightly puzzled, Haruma had no intention of asking. He simply put away the scroll containing the Sharingan.
Then the two sank back into their respective thoughts.
Silence was tonight's...
Time ticked by.
Half an hour later, Uchiha Mikoto came out looking relaxed.
"All done. Shisui should be fine when he wakes up tomorrow morning."
"Sorry for the trouble, Mikoto," Haruma said gently.
Mikoto gave Haruma a warm smile and said softly, "It's fine. It was just a simple eye replacement operation."
Mikoto already had a favorable impression of Haruma, who was close in age to her eldest son.
Now, on top of that, Fugaku had told her the secret of the boy's eyes, and that he bore the responsibility of restoring the Uchiha Clan's glory...
That added another flattering filter to the way Mikoto saw Haruma.
After all, when it came down to it, Haruma was now the Uchiha Clan's true leader.
After Mikoto and Haruma exchanged a few more pleasantries in the courtyard, Fugaku left with her.
The night was dark and windy.
Alone, Haruma stared at the shop panel and once again broke into a lecherous grin with a "Kekeke!"
[Character name: Uchiha Haruma] [Affiliation: Konoha (changeable)] [Chakra attributes: wind, fire, lightning, earth, water, yin, yang] [Ninjutsu repertoire: (fire) Great Fire Annihilation, (water) Water Dragon Bullet, (lightning) Sharp Spear, (earth) Earth Style Wall...] [Overall combat power: elite Jonin] [Mangekyō Sharingan (left): bound (awaiting upgrade)] Description: Don't use it if you've got the guts. Use it, and I'll steal it! The Shinobi World's rising Ninjutsu master thief! Ability description: flawless imitation! [Mangekyō Sharingan (right): bound (awaiting upgrade)] Ability description: absolute domain! Three-second time limit (upgradeable) Description: the legend of the three-second real man will one day resound throughout the Shinobi World! [Beginner Ōtsutsuki Bloodline: bound (awaiting upgrade)] Description: devour planets! A terrifying clan that transcends death! The Shinobi World is merely the starting point for conquering the stars! Go for it, young man!!!
Planting the God Tree in a planet's soil to devour its life force, then waiting for its seed to mature before harvesting and consuming it, could just barely count as devouring a planet.
Besides, for members of the Ōtsutsuki Clan with pure bloodlines, living over a thousand years was merely standard.
They could also reincarnate through "Kāma," so describing them as beings that transcended death had some merit as well.
"The description might be a little chuuni, but there's no denying how powerful the abilities are!"
Having finished shopping, Haruma enjoyed the wondrous changes taking place within his body and could not help voicing his admiration.