Hikaru probably would never have imagined that the chain of actions he had taken in the past had unknowingly woven an "Anbu dream of becoming Hokage" for someone else.
He would never have imagined that he had somehow gained a devoted admirer either.
And that admirer valued him so deeply that during a clash with Tsunade, under the pressure of extreme emotion, his eyes began to change.
Stimulated by that intense feeling, the three tomoe in Shisui's eyes spun faster and faster. The chakra pouring from his body also grew stronger and stronger.
In an instant, suffocating, terrifying chakra filled with destructive pressure flooded the entire room.
Tsunade froze at the sight.
She truly had not expected Hikaru to send an Uchiha to find her.
The hatred between the Senju and Uchiha had lasted for a thousand years. Even after Konoha was founded, those old grudges had never completely disappeared.
Tsunade had to admit that under Hikaru's rule, the Uchiha seemed to have changed.
But no matter how much they had changed, certain things still remained.
And Tsunade had never particularly liked the Uchiha.
Sending an Uchiha to bring her back?
What was that supposed to mean?
In her eyes, that was no longer simple disregard or dissatisfaction.
But just as she was about to vent that anger, she suddenly realized something was wrong.
The boy in front of her was emotionally unstable.
And the tomoe in his eyes were spinning far too quickly.
As that wild chakra spread through the room, Tsunade's expression changed.
As Hashirama Senju's granddaughter, how could she not know about the Mangekyō Sharingan?
The way to awaken the Mangekyō was an absolute secret. Tsunade knew of the eyes, but she did not know how they were obtained.
But she did know one thing.
She absolutely could not be careless.
An Uchiha with those eyes was an existence that defied common sense.
Buzz!
Without hesitation, Tsunade erupted with her strongest chakra and threw a punch straight at Shisui.
She did not understand why an Uchiha who had awakened the Mangekyō would obey Senju Hikaru's orders so loyally.
But she knew that if she did nothing, she might really be dragged back with a kunai against her throat.
Of course, she also knew that attacking would bring enormous trouble.
But this was also her way of making her attitude clear.
She wanted to see exactly how Senju Hikaru would deal with her.
At that moment, Shisui had entered a strange and profound state.
The world before his eyes had completely changed.
The instant Tsunade threw her punch, he seemed to see countless lines.
Those lines guided him.
They told him how to avoid the attack, how to move, and even how to counterattack.
Not only that, his eyes also fed him a vast amount of information in that instant.
Information he had never dared imagine before.
And through that information, he realized that he seemed to have gained the power to subdue the woman in front of him.
The power to subdue one of the legendary Sannin—Tsunade.
"What a strange power. So this is the true power of the Sharingan?"
Shisui murmured softly.
And just as Tsunade's fist was about to strike him, the three tomoe in his eyes stopped spinning.
At that moment, the tomoe linked together.
A triangular, shuriken-like pattern appeared in his eyes.
Without hesitation, he guided the power contained within his eyes.
In an instant, green chakra covered his body.
The chakra wrapped around him like armor.
Under his control, it quickly formed into the shape of ribs.
Bang!
A heavy impact suddenly exploded inside the tavern.
The ground shook lightly.
The tables beside them shattered and collapsed.
The wooden doors and walls around them splintered into fragments.
The Anbu members who had not reacted in time were forced several steps back by the sudden burst of power.
Itachi, still young and not yet strong enough, was directly knocked to the ground.
Even Shisui was forced back several steps.
His chest felt tight.
Blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.
The chakra protecting him had cracked.
Tsunade truly was Tsunade.
Even though it had been a sudden attack and not a fully prepared strike, her monstrous strength was still beyond what an ordinary person could withstand.
Fortunately, it had been a sudden punch.
She had not built up her power beforehand.
And fortunately, she had still held back and had not intended to take Shisui's life.
Otherwise, that punch would have broken through his defense and even punched straight through his chest.
"What terrifying strength…"
Shisui felt the pressure in his chest, then looked toward Tsunade.
Tsunade's expression had also grown solemn.
From that punch, she had gained a clear understanding of how tough Shisui's defense was.
And she could tell what technique he was using.
If she was not mistaken, this was probably the legendary Susanoo.
Awakening the Mangekyō at such a young age and already mastering such a terrifying technique…
Most importantly, this boy was so loyal to Konoha.
So loyal to Senju Hikaru.
After what she had done, it seemed this battle could no longer be avoided.
"Tsunade-sama, you went too far."
Shisui stared at her with a dark expression.
He gently wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.
Then the chakra around him erupted even more violently.
The green chakra covering him grew denser.
The cracked ribs became whole again.
As his chakra surged, the green chakra gradually formed a human shape.
First, the torso became complete.
Then a massive skull quickly took form.
But it did not stop there.
The Mangekyō in his eyes slowly rotated, and a line of blood flowed from the corner of his eye.
He ignored it.
The giant covering him grew larger and larger, and its skeletal frame was filled in with chakra.
In only a few breaths, the skeletal giant gained a full human form.
The green giant released a roar, as if announcing its own power.
That roar made the entire tavern tremble.
An invisible wave of force slammed toward Tsunade, forcing her to take a defensive stance.
"Tsunade-sama already attacked first.
"That means Tsunade-sama clearly does not regard us as shinobi from the same village. Instead, you treat us more like enemies."
Shisui's voice was cold now.
Wrapped inside the giant, he looked especially terrifying.
"In that case, I will not hold back either.
"Hokage-sama ordered me to bring Tsunade-sama back. I will complete that order.
"From this moment on, you are no longer a Konoha shinobi.
"You are our enemy.
"I will use everything I have, even if all I bring back is your head."
…
"This world isn't completely worthless after all.
"Even if it's occupied by inferior creatures, their imagination is rather impressive."
Inside a hot spring inn in the Land of Hot Water, Urashiki Ōtsutsuki soaked comfortably in the bath.
This kind of experience was rare for him.
As an Ōtsutsuki, he needed to do everything possible to increase his own strength.
If his strength failed to keep up, he might end up becoming a guardian.
He knew very well how tragic a guardian's fate was.
Every time the God Tree was summoned, a guardian had to pay with their life.
True, the Ōtsutsuki did not truly fear death.
But who would willingly die and wait through a long resurrection?
Especially when Ōtsutsuki resurrection was extremely troublesome.
They had to find a suitable body, mark it with a Karma, and nurture it.
Only once that body possessed Ōtsutsuki power and could withstand their strength could they revive through it.
Otherwise, an ordinary body could not withstand their power at all.
Even releasing chakra might cause it to collapse.
And if the vessel lacked strength and longevity, it could easily die before the process was complete.
No Ōtsutsuki wished to experience that.
Naturally, guardians did not want to either.
Unfortunately, they had no choice.
In truth, the Ōtsutsuki could attempt to use Karma to cultivate bodies that possessed Ōtsutsuki power.
A blank Karma that only carried power was not impossible to create.
But the Ōtsutsuki Clan was deeply conservative.
They feared that if such a thing was created and the marked individual was not controlled properly, it could lead to irreversible consequences.
Imagine someone who did not belong to the Ōtsutsuki gaining Ōtsutsuki power.
That would be a heretical existence.
If such a person turned against the Ōtsutsuki, they would truly possess the strength to do it.
To avoid such accidents, blank Karma was essentially forbidden.
And so the guardian system had continued until now.
If nothing unexpected happened, after completing this mission and returning to the clan, Urashiki would also have to choose his own guardian.
Although he was a younger Ōtsutsuki, his talent and strength had already been recognized.
Therefore, he was qualified to become a protected member.
From then on, someone else would have to sacrifice their life so he could obtain the God Tree's fruit.
"I wonder which unlucky fool it'll be."
Urashiki stretched lazily.
Honestly, he did not care who it was.
The Ōtsutsuki were cold by nature.
He might appear polite and refined before other Ōtsutsuki, but in truth, he was no different from the rest.
To the Ōtsutsuki, affection was either a luxury or a useless burden.
Only overwhelming power allowed one to exist forever and stand at the top of the world.
Power was their only pursuit.
Everything else was meaningless.
"Still, when I summon the God Tree in other worlds later, I suppose I can enjoy that world's local specialties first.
"That can count as granting that world the honor of receiving me."
Urashiki stretched again, then stood up with a satisfied expression.
His words were absurd.
But to him, that was the most natural mindset an Ōtsutsuki could have.
Aside from the Ōtsutsuki, all other living creatures were nothing but insects.
"Hm?"
At that moment, Urashiki suddenly paused.
Then a smile appeared on his face.
"What strong Yin Release. I didn't expect someone in this world to wield such power."
Yin Release had always been a powerful force.
The only power comparable to it was Yang Release.
Of course, above those two were Yin-Yang Release and natural energy.
Even the Ōtsutsuki had to treat those two powers carefully, because they could truly harm them.
However, although they valued those powers, they would not fear them too much.
If the person wielding such power could not hit them, then it was meaningless.
As Ōtsutsuki, they did not only need powerful techniques.
They also needed exceptional taijutsu.
"Still, power like this is worth taking a look at. It isn't far anyway."
Urashiki casually put on his clothes.
After sensing the distance, he made his decision.
He was not in a hurry to find the hidden Ōtsutsuki.
If an Ōtsutsuki wanted to hide, finding them would not be easy.
At least, Urashiki did not believe he could locate that person by blindly searching this world.
But he was not worried that the person would never show up.
After all, the Ten-Tails' power was scattered across the land.
He had even sensed the Ten-Tails' husk.
That was why he was not afraid the person would stay hidden.
With his own strength, he did not believe anyone in this world could resist him.
The only reason he had not acted yet was simple.
He had not had enough fun.
With that thought, Urashiki's chakra rippled slightly.
A black portal appeared in front of him.
Spatial manipulation was not difficult for him.
Heaven had granted the Ōtsutsuki an overwhelming advantage.
They could gain all kinds of abilities in countless ways.
They could increase their strength and merge chakra to obtain kekkei mōra.
They could plant God Trees and eat the fruit.
From any of those methods, they could obtain special powers and raise their upper limit.
Moreover, even if they did nothing, they were born with special abilities.
Urashiki stepped through the black portal.
The next second, he appeared in another town.
But very quickly, his expression changed slightly.
Earlier, he had only sensed someone using Yin Release.
Only after arriving here did he notice something else.
This Yin Release came from the power of a God Tree fruit.
There was a very obvious trace of God Tree fruit power inside it.
Looking at the green giant in the distance, Urashiki smiled again.
Only this time, his smile was strange and playful.
"Well now… this just became much more interesting."
…
The battle between Shisui and Tsunade erupted almost instantly.
Neither side had any intention of holding back.
To Shisui, Tsunade was one of the Sannin and a veteran of Konoha.
But after years in Anbu under the influence of Hikaru's thinking, he truly did not care that much about someone who had barely participated in the Third Shinobi War, then disappeared when Konoha suffered the Nine-Tails' attack and Kumogakure's invasion.
Jiraiya was slightly better.
But Jiraiya had also failed to appear during the Nine-Tails incident and the conflict with Kumogakure.
In simple terms, when Konoha needed them most, neither of them had contributed anything.
By contrast, Orochimaru had staged a defection.
But Shisui knew there were hidden details behind that.
After all, he had once accompanied Kakashi to contact Orochimaru.
He naturally knew that although Orochimaru's defection had partly been caused by his own problems, a large part of it had also been to take the blame.
And after defecting, Orochimaru had still made many contributions to Konoha.
Could Jiraiya and Tsunade compare to that?
On top of that, Tsunade had attacked him first.
If his eyes had not evolved and protected him, that strike might have caused him serious trouble.
How could he have any good impression of Tsunade now?
That was why he had said that even bringing back only her head would be acceptable.
Tsunade, meanwhile, was in a bad position, but she was also furious.
She knew she was in the wrong.
After all, she had attacked first.
She also knew that attacking Anbu was extremely inappropriate.
But as one of the Sannin, she truly had never placed Anbu too highly in her eyes.
Although the Sannin had not held many concrete posts in Konoha, they had still been counted among Konoha's upper ranks.
Now Shisui was speaking to her like this.
That infuriated her.
Even if she admitted she had acted wrongly, this boy had directly defined her as "not a Konoha shinobi" and even wanted her life.
No one could accept that easily.
However, she was still rational.
She had already made one mistake. She would not make a second.
She did not intend to kill these Anbu shinobi.
Because she knew that if she did, Senju Hikaru might truly come after her.
Judging by how little he cared about her title as one of the Sannin, and how little he seemed to care that she was also a member of the Senju Clan, he was absolutely capable of doing something like that.
He might even genuinely want to kill her.
"Would my return affect him?
"And I'm the Third Hokage's disciple. Is he trying to clean out the Third's old faction?"
Tsunade was not stupid.
In the original future, her position as Fifth Hokage had been the result of compromise.
But if she had no brain at all, she would never have been able to sit in that seat so securely.
Unfortunately, she had been away from Konoha for too long, and she had not paid enough attention to the village.
So she knew very little about many things.
At the very least, she did not know that Hikaru's purge of the Third Hokage's faction had already ended.
She also did not know that the two advisers and their families had already been dead for years.
Bang!
With a massive explosion, the tavern they had been in was reduced to rubble.
The huge blast wave destroyed the surrounding buildings as well.
The Anbu shinobi who had come with Shisui were quickly evacuating the nearby civilians.
There was not much else they could do once a battle like this broke out.
Especially now.
The battle before them had already surpassed their imagination.
Itachi in particular was seeing Shisui fight someone else for the first time.
He had always known Shisui was strong.
After all, someone who could become an Anbu squad commander could not possibly be weak.
But exactly how strong?
That, Itachi had never truly understood.
He had trained with Shisui for a long time, and Shisui had taught him many things.
Because of that, he thought he understood Shisui's strength.
But looking at the scene before him now, he realized he had understood far too little about this older brother of his.
Shisui had no idea what the others were thinking.
He only knew he had to end the battle quickly.
Tsunade's strength was far too great.
Almost every strike against Susanoo made it tremble violently.
Although that would not make Susanoo collapse, the terrifying force still reached his body and made him extremely uncomfortable.
When strength reached a terrifying level, even a person carrying a shield could have trouble defending.
After all, the shock could pass through the shield and strike the body directly.
Worst of all, Shisui could feel pain in his eyes.
He did not know why his eyes could not be used for long, but he clearly understood that they were approaching their limit.
He had a very strong feeling.
If this continued, his eyes might go blind.
"Looks like I'll have to use a special method. I hope it works."
Shisui thought quietly.
When Tsunade's fist was about to fall on him again, he controlled Susanoo without hesitation and punched back.
The ground beneath their feet cracked instantly, unable to withstand the force they released.
But after that punch, Shisui quickly dismissed Susanoo and flashed in front of Tsunade.
He regretted wiping the blood from his eyes earlier because it had interfered with his plan, but he did not care about such details anymore.
He quickly pulled out a kunai and stabbed forward.
Tsunade did not expect him to abandon his protection and rush directly in front of her.
To her, this was a foolish move, and she would not be polite.
But in the next second, her entire body froze.
Her body became completely stiff, and she even began trembling.
In front of her eyes, Shisui's kunai had not stabbed toward her body.
Instead, it had pierced his own palm.
At that moment, bright red blood sprayed out and splattered onto her face.
Tsunade's momentum instantly collapsed.
It was as if she no longer had the courage to continue fighting.
Shisui would not miss that chance.
He quickly stepped forward and looked straight into Tsunade's unfocused eyes.
In the next instant, strange chakra erupted from his Mangekyō.
Tsunade's eyes became even more vacant.
Then her body trembled more and more violently, until finally, she let out a scream.
With that sharp, miserable cry, Tsunade completely lost consciousness.
…
"So you defeated her using her fear of blood?"
Inside the Hokage's office in Konoha, Hikaru looked at Shisui with a strange expression.
He truly had not expected so many things to happen after sending Shisui to bring Tsunade back.
First, Tsunade mocked the Hokage.
Then she angered one of his devoted admirers.
After that, his devoted admirer fought Tsunade and used the information about her fear of blood to knock her out.
Did this count as Tsunade losing in the most embarrassing way possible?
Hikaru thought about it for a while but still could not reach a proper conclusion.
But now he had a bit of a headache.
He had not expected Tsunade's temper to be this explosive.
The reason he had asked for Tsunade to be brought back was simply to deal with Hashirama.
However, Hikaru had not planned to reveal Hashirama's situation.
So Shisui had not known what attitude to take.
And when facing Tsunade, he had not given her a better reason either.
That had led to the conflict between the two.
Thinking about it, Hikaru shook his head.
Since she had been brought back, Shisui's mission was complete.
But Tsunade had gone too far.
She had actually attacked Anbu.
She had been one of the Sannin for so long that she no longer understood who ruled Konoha now.
Attacking Anbu was, in a sense, attacking the Hokage.
In the past, the Sannin could disregard Anbu because they were part of the Hokage's direct line.
If ranks were counted properly, Anbu had been far below them.
But now Anbu was Hikaru's Anbu.
Everything was different.
Likewise, the Sannin were no longer the Sannin of the past.
Could anyone still gather all three of them together now?
To put it bluntly, one word from Hikaru could strip the Sannin title of all status.
Besides, that title had been given by Hanzo, whose grave probably no longer even had grass on it.
An enemy shinobi—well, now technically someone from a vassal country—who had cooperated with the traitor Danzo and later been killed by Nagato.
If Hikaru acknowledged the title, it had value.
If he did not, it was worthless.
All of this depended entirely on his will.
His authority could not be challenged now.
So Tsunade could stay in the Anbu prison for a while.
She could clear her head and properly understand who had the final say in Konoha.
"Yes, Hokage-sama. I apologize for making such a mess of the mission."
Shisui did not know what Hikaru was thinking.
He lowered his head and spoke with complete sincerity.
"This was my mistake. Please punish me, Hokage-sama."
"Enough. Don't do that in front of me."
Hikaru came back to himself and rolled his eyes.
"You did well.
"You defended the Hokage's reputation and completed your mission. I can't find anything worth criticizing.
"Congratulations. Your first mission as squad commander was completed perfectly.
"I look forward to seeing you continue like this and eventually become a division commander—or even Anbu commander."
"Thank you, Hokage-sama!"
Shisui resisted the urge to kneel.
He nodded firmly.
But very quickly, he hesitated.
Then his gaze became resolute.
"Hokage-sama, there is one more thing I need to report in person."
"Oh?"
Hikaru looked at Shisui in surprise.
Then he picked up the file in his hand and asked, "You didn't write it in the report?"
"I apologize, Hokage-sama. I did not write this matter down.
"Although I believe Hokage-sama would learn of it soon anyway."
Shisui slowly closed his eyes, then continued.
"During my confrontation with Tsunade-sama, her attitude caused my emotions to become too intense. Because of that, something unexpected happened.
"I discovered that my eyes had changed.
"And because of that change, I gained enormous power."
Shisui explained everything without hiding anything.
Hikaru, meanwhile, stared at him with question marks practically floating above his head.
Based on Shisui's description, Hikaru naturally knew what had happened.
He truly had never expected that Shisui had not awakened the Mangekyō because a teammate died, or because he personally killed someone he loved.
Instead, Tsunade had cursed at Hikaru, insulted the Hokage position, and somehow pushed Shisui hard enough to awaken the Mangekyō?
What the hell was that?
Hikaru had always known the Uchiha did not necessarily need an extremely tragic event to awaken the Mangekyō.
Those cruel events were simply the easiest way to give them overwhelming stimulation and push their minds into an extreme state.
And what was faster than killing someone deeply loved?
Every Uchiha had a different trigger.
Without the most extreme method, even they might not know where their own trigger lay.
That was why Indra had used it.
Madara Uchiha seemed to have used it as well.
Not only did Madara use it himself, he also used it on Obito.
Facts proved that the method was indeed effective.
In the original future, Itachi Uchiha had also experienced it passively.
After all, Shisui died right in front of him.
But now Shisui had created this situation for Hikaru instead.
It really left Hikaru unsure whether to laugh or sigh.
Still, no matter what, this was good news.
And according to Shisui's explanation, Hikaru realized that his eye techniques had changed drastically.
The original Kotoamatsukami, the terrifying power that had made people wary, seemed to be gone entirely.
But that made sense considering his growth environment and current mindset.
The Uchiha had been integrated by Hikaru.
They no longer looked like they were about to fracture at any moment.
Naturally, Shisui no longer had those specific worries.
So it was normal that he did not awaken something like Kotoamatsukami.
According to him, one of his abilities released black flames that could not be extinguished.
The other allowed him to use Susanoo relatively easily without worrying too much about damaging his eyes.
Hikaru knew the first one.
If nothing had changed, it should be Amaterasu.
As for the second, he had never heard of it before.
But considering the situation at the time, facing a violent woman like Tsunade, Shisui's current strength truly might not have been enough.
Perhaps because he had desperately wanted stronger power, he had awakened these two abilities?
After thinking it through, Hikaru felt this was the most reasonable explanation.
Otherwise, many things would be difficult to explain.
"Take a week off.
"Go home and talk to your elder about this. Or speak to your clan head."
Hikaru thought for a moment, then spoke.
"Those eyes are called the Mangekyō Sharingan.
"They are extremely dangerous eyes.
"It will be better for you to discuss their secrets with your clan."
"This…"
Shisui hesitated.
He had just become squad commander. Taking leave immediately seemed inappropriate.
But in the end, he nodded.
Then he said with great seriousness, "I understand, Hokage-sama. Then I will take my leave."
Hikaru nodded and said nothing more.
But after Shisui left, his gaze drifted toward the window.
"Shisui came back with a tail.
"Let me see exactly what kind of thing you are."
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