Black Zetsu's gaze was deep and ghostly, unnaturally bright in the darkness.
◎
The next day.
Shisui once again came to the Hokage Building to meet the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi.
This time the Anbu didn't block him like they had last night, but let him enter the office directly to see the Hokage.
As soon as Shisui went in, he noticed the presences in the office fading away one after another; all the Anbu had withdrawn, leaving only him and the Third Hokage.
After a brief silence, Shisui suddenly didn't know how he should start speaking.
But in that wordless silence, it was still Hiruzen who first broke the awkwardness.
"Shisui, you've come because of last night's Uchiha Clan gathering, haven't you?"
Hearing that Hiruzen had already raised the topic, Shisui knew it was impossible to hide it; he also felt a bit relieved and nodded. "Yes."
Hiruzen sighed, a trace of helplessness in his smile. "You… you're still this conservative. If it weren't for Itachi, we might have known nothing about what happened there."
Shisui felt a twinge of shame. As Konoha's covert Anbu, he should have reported the contents of the Uchiha Clan's gathering here at the first possible moment, to prove his loyalty to the village.
However, if that kind of content was exposed, a single misstep could plunge both the clan and the village into irredeemable disaster.
Before he could find a solution, Shisui didn't think that was something that could be casually disclosed.
"I'm sorry, Hokage-sama, I…"
"Don't blame yourself like that. Things reaching this point is something neither side anticipated. I also understand how you feel right now. You're Kagami's descendant; there's no need to be so tense with me. No matter what, I have always believed in your loyalty to the village."
Hiruzen's attitude remained gentle, carrying a sense of closeness.
"Yes. I failed to consider it properly, Hokage-sama."
Hearing Hiruzen speak like this, Shisui felt even more guilty inside.
"According to Itachi's report, we have already discussed the matter of the Uchiha Clan gathering. Although Danzo seems to advocate suppressing them by force, I don't think the situation has reached that extreme yet. There is still time for the village and the Uchiha to ease tensions. It's not appropriate to continue provoking the radicals in the Uchiha at this time."
Hiruzen's words allowed Shisui to relax.
At least for now, as Hokage, Hiruzen still wished to prioritize peace.
If even the Hokage insisted on using military suppression against the Uchiha Clan, that would be the worst-case scenario.
"However, all of this is premised on the Uchiha Clan not having launched a coup yet, and there still being room to ease things. Once the coup begins, it will no longer be something that can be solved through negotiation. This point, I hope you can understand, Shisui."
"I understand that, Hokage-sama."
"Good. I hope you and Itachi, one in the light and one in the shadows, will continue to buy time for me, so that I can have enough time to think of a countermeasure. You don't need to worry about Danzo. I will keep him in check and won't let Root act recklessly. So, next…"
Hiruzen was about to lay out his thoughts when Shisui hesitated for a moment, then, as if making up his mind, cut him off:
"Hokage-sama, I have a better way to resolve this matter."
"Oh?"
Shisui's words immediately drew Hiruzen's attention; he very much wanted to know what solution Shisui had.
If it was feasible, then the village and the Uchiha Clan could avoid coming to blows.
Shisui took a deep breath and, in a calm tone, spoke a long-hidden secret:
"Hokage-sama, do you know the legend of the Mangekyo Sharingan in our Uchiha Clan?"
"Mangekyo Sharingan?"
Hiruzen's eyes widened at once; he stared at Shisui in shock.
Of course he knew about the Mangekyo Sharingan.
His own teacher, the Second Hokage Senju Tobirama, was the one who had researched the Sharingan most thoroughly.
In the vast number of documents he left behind, many were classified materials concerning the Sharingan.
Among them was partial information about the Mangekyo Sharingan.
For Shisui to suddenly bring this up now, a bold conjecture arose in Hiruzen's heart.
"Shisui, you, could it be…"
Shisui raised his head and met Hiruzen's gaze.
The Three Tomoe in his eyes began to change, forming an enlarged, Magatama-like pattern that broke away from the usual Magatama configuration.
A chilling sense of dread rose from the depths of Hiruzen's heart; he forced himself to suppress his inner shock.
In that instant, Hiruzen had a clear intuition: Shisui was already capable of threatening his life.
"Hokage-sama, this is my Mangekyo Sharingan, and it is also the source of my confidence in stopping the clan's coup."
Shisui's words were full of confidence.
"Impossible. Even with a Mangekyo Sharingan…"
"I can do it, Hokage-sama. The Pupil Technique of my Mangekyo Sharingan is called Kotoamatsukami. It can, without anyone noticing, invade the other person's brain and rewrite their will. As long as I use this Pupil Technique to control Clan Leader Fugaku and make him oppose the coup, then no matter how hard Hachida and the others push, it will be useless—they cannot bypass the Clan Leader's authority to start a coup."
Shisui's firm voice echoed through the office, representing his resolve.
In Shisui's view, Hiruzen's method was far too slow and simply didn't fit the current situation.
It was entirely possible that while they were still pondering countermeasures, the Uchiha Clan would suddenly launch their coup.
That was what worried Shisui the most.
So, Shisui did not shy away from Hiruzen's gaze, but instead affirmed his own stance and duty:
"The Uchiha Clan's problem should be resolved by the Uchiha Clan's ninja. Please rest assured, Hokage-sama, I will handle this matter properly."
In this way, the Uchiha Clan that the higher-ups feared would effectively cease to exist.
After that, he would have enough time to cooperate with the Third Hokage's actions to ease relations between the village and the clan.
As for Itachi… Shisui sighed inwardly.
His original intention in wanting Itachi to join the Anbu had been to have him, as the Young Master of the Uchiha Clan, build a bridge of communication between the village leadership and the Uchiha Clan.
Yet judging by the current situation, Itachi had not fulfilled this task.
On the contrary, because of his existence, the conflict between the clan and the village had further intensified, forcing Shisui to reveal his Mangekyo Sharingan at this very moment.