Kawasaki had originally planned to wait until Orochimaru became the Fifth Hokage to gradually seize power from the Third, eventually reducing him to a mere figurehead. But now, he saw that the plan could be changed. A power grab, after all, required action.
The Third Hokage had spent so many years sucking Konoha dry to fatten up the Sarutobi clan. It was time they repaid the village by serving as shields. Clearing out these destabilizing elements would only make it easier for Orochimaru to consolidate his power later.
Besides, Orochimaru was currently a commander with no army, followed by only a handful of subordinates—a single top operative in a mask and a few children. Even if he were to make a move, he had no one to command.
All those loyal to the Third down to their very bones would be sent to a glorious death. The Sarutobi clan was numerous; sacrificing a few of them would actually benefit Konoha's stability. The only problem was that the Third Hokage kept the Sarutobi hidden away too well. He would have to be forced into revealing his hand.
Kawasaki mentally rehearsed the plan several times, then recorded the details one by one.
Although Itachi and Fugaku were with Orochimaru, Kawasaki couldn't visit the lab frequently. The Third's Anbu were watching him too closely. Therefore, Kawasaki first packaged the intelligence and sent it via one of Orochimaru's snake summons to keep him informed. It would save a great deal of trouble to wait until Itachi's eye fusion was complete before they discussed matters in person.
In Orochimaru's laboratory, he checked his snake summons at a set time each day, just in case Kawasaki had sent any urgent information.
After receiving today's report, Orochimaru began to ponder. He already had his own plan to seize power after taking office. The Anbu, in the end, would all fall under his command. The main branch of the Sarutobi family, however, would not be so easy to deal with. They were loyal only to Sarutobi Hiruzen, regardless of who held the title of Hokage.
Hiruzen had kept them hidden for so long that, aside from the two village advisors, none of the other ninja clans knew their true strength. The Third Hokage could completely control the Sarutobi clan's voting power. Orochimaru knew this because he had been sabotaged by this very tactic during the previous Hokage election. The Third would undoubtedly try to pull the same trick again in the selection of the Fifth.
The time bomb buried within Konoha was the Sarutobi clan. They might not be top-tier ninja, but their numbers were significant.
"Those who cannot be used by me are enemies." Orochimaru's gaze turned cold as he recalled all the despicable things the Third Hokage had done over the years to cling to his position. His expression grew grim. "You have become corrupt... Sensei..."
Meanwhile, in Konoha, the day of the election for the Fifth Hokage was drawing nearer. Kawasaki had visited every major clan and secured all the votes he could. It was worth noting that the practical combat curriculum he had implemented had earned him immense popularity, especially among the genin and chunin. And since genin and chunin constituted the majority of Konoha's ninja forces, the Uchiha clan's prestige had soared.
Nowadays, whenever an Uchiha clansman walked through the village, the younger children would greet them with a respectful "senpai." Some Uchiha had even grown fond of taking strolls around town just for this reason.
Today, Kawasaki arrived at Orochimaru's base. Itachi's Sharingan fusion was complete, as was the duplication of Fugaku's eyes. Thanks to the constant replication experiments during this period, Orochimaru's cloning techniques had become remarkably refined, significantly shortening the time needed to grow the new eyes for Fugaku.
The replicated eyes were, as expected, unawakened orbs. Orochimaru quickly performed the transplant.
Under everyone's watchful gaze, Fugaku slowly opened his eyes. Despite being in an underground facility, the room was surprisingly bright. He shielded his eyes with his hand, taking a moment to adjust. Although this had been the plan all along, the long-lost sensation of sight still sent a thrill through his heart.
Kawasaki patted Fugaku on the shoulder. "Welcome back to the world of light."
A smile bloomed on Fugaku's face.
"Your eyes are currently in an unawakened state," Orochimaru stated. "You must be prepared for the possibility that they may never reawaken."
Fugaku nodded. "I understand. Thank you, Lord Orochimaru."
"Come, let's go see Itachi. His Sharingan fusion is complete," Orochimaru said, leading them all into an adjacent laboratory.
Itachi was sitting in a chair, his eyes wrapped in bandages. The fusion of his ocular powers was finished, and Orochimaru had already completed his data collection. The bandages had been left on so that Fugaku could be the first to witness Itachi's Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan.
Hearing the footsteps, Itachi knew they had all arrived. "Father, you're here."
Fugaku walked forward and took his son's hand. "I am."
At that moment, Shisui, who was standing nearby, began to unwind the bandages from Itachi's head.
Itachi slowly opened his eyes. The three tomoe in his pupils gradually transformed into the pattern of the Mangekyo Sharingan. Itachi's original design was already similar to Fugaku's, and the fusion had now added Fugaku's unique black dots to the pattern.
As the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan took form, an astonishing ocular power radiated from him. Fugaku felt this immense strength and was overcome with joy. "Hahaha, marvelous! Marvelous! Marvelous!"
Even Fugaku, a man who rarely showed his emotions, repeated the word three times, a clear sign of the intense delight he felt.
Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through Fugaku's own eyes. His vision blurred violently for a moment before snapping back into focus with stunning clarity.
Kawasaki, watching from the side, smiled. Just as he'd expected, Fugaku's true sight had returned.
News that Uchiha Itachi and Fugaku had recovered their sight quickly reached the Third Hokage. The report from Orochimaru stated that both Itachi's and Fugaku's eyes were now no different from an ordinary person's, and that the Uchiha clan's combat strength would be drastically diminished.
The Third Hokage let out a secret sigh of relief. With Kawasaki currently in the running for Fifth Hokage, he had been worried about potential turmoil if Kawasaki were to lose. In this situation, the possibility of the Uchiha resorting to force was now virtually zero.
Kawasaki led everyone back to the Uchiha compound. Although Fugaku regaining his sight was a joyous occasion, his newly cloned eyes were still fragile. After an examination, Orochimaru advised him to rest and recuperate. Thus, Fugaku was sent home to rest.
Upon inquiry, Kawasaki learned that with the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, both of Itachi's primary abilities had been greatly enhanced. Since Fugaku's Mangekyo was genjutsu-oriented, Itachi's Tsukuyomi had been strengthened, increasing the realism and duration of the illusionary space. The activation of his Amaterasu had also become more subtle; it no longer required a focused line of sight, allowing the black flames to ignite anywhere within his peripheral vision.
Itachi's Tsukuyomi was indeed far stronger. Now, Kawasaki was ready to begin his own experiment.
"Go bring Yozuki to the laboratory."
After Kawasaki gave the order, Shisui went to find Yozuki while the others headed to the Uchiha's underground lab. When Orochimaru was previously stationed there, he had trained a young man named Akira to be his assistant. Akira had a natural talent for such work and had learned exceptionally fast.
With the Uchiha's substantial financial backing, the clan had quickly constructed their own underground laboratory. Some of Orochimaru's earlier experiments involving the separation of Hashirama cells had been transferred here. Orochimaru would give the instructions, and Akira would perform the experiments, subsequently sending the data back to him.
Though a bit cumbersome, this process ensured the security of the Uchiha's operations. Meanwhile, back in Konoha, Orochimaru focused exclusively on his cloning research, all in the service of perfecting the technology needed for his own ideal vessel.