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"Father, if that's the case, I'll gather the elite of the ANBU right now and storm the Uchiha compound."
Sarutobi Shinnosuke vaulted in through the window, landing in the Hokage's office with barely contained excitement.
He'd clearly overheard Sarutobi Hiruzen's analysis from outside.
And the more he thought about it, the more convinced he was his old man was right. This was the perfect chance to get rid of Uchiha Akira once and for all.
His hatred for the Uchiha clan ran just as deep as his father's.
After all, what kind of son watches his own father get humiliated and can't do a damn thing about it?
That helpless, suffocating frustration still burned in his chest.
So the moment he heard there might be an opportunity to kill Akira, he stepped forward without hesitation.
"Father, let me lead the squad. I'll personally take Uchiha Akira's head!"
"…What if Uchiha Akira really is in seclusion cultivating? Charging in like this would be suicide."
From behind his mask, A's voice carried a note of unease.
He didn't share the father-and-son duo's optimism. The idea that Akira was quietly recovering didn't sit right with him.
"Hmph. Seclusion? You actually believe that?" Shinnosuke snorted. "No ninja locks himself in a room to train. If you're training, you go to the training grounds."
He folded his arms, expression darkening.
"And someone as arrogant and wild as Uchiha Akira? Locking himself up for days without eating? There's no way. He's recovering from his injuries. And even if he's not, this is his weak period. Our chances of killing him are high."
A fell silent. It was true—Akira's behavior defied common ninja sense.
This was the ninja world, not some cultivation fantasy. Nobody talked about "closed-door training" here.
Shinnosuke turned on A coldly.
"And you. You've done a pretty lousy job as a spy."
"What did I do?!" A shot back.
"Heh." Shinnosuke's smile was sharp. "Something like this happens to Uchiha Akira and you don't report it immediately? If I hadn't gone looking for you, we would've missed this entirely. Typical Uchiha—good for brainless fighting, useless at intelligence work."
The more he spoke, the angrier he became. They had nearly missed a golden opportunity because of A's delay.
A good scolding was the least the man deserved.
The Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, raised a hand to calm things down.
"A , Shinnosuke is simply too worked up. Please don't take it to heart."
Then he turned sharply to his eldest son, anger flashing across his face.
"A chose to abandon darkness and embrace the Will of Fire. He is one of us. How dare you insult a comrade like that?"
"Apologize to him."
Shinnosuke didn't budge. Apologize? To someone like that? Not happening.
Instead, he pressed urgently, "Father, it's already been days! Akira's injuries might be almost healed by now. We can't waste any more time. If we delay and he fully recovers, this opportunity is gone!"
"No need to rush."
Hiruzen waved him off. Unlike his hotheaded son, he was cautious by nature.
He pushed aside the pile of paperwork on his desk and retrieved a crystal ball from beneath it, placing it carefully on the table.
"While it's likely he's recovering… just in case, we'd better confirm the situation first."
His hand brushed the crystal sphere, and a wry thought crossed his mind.
I used to use this thing to check on the village women's… physical well-being. Nice to finally put it to proper use.
"…Father, isn't this overkill? And what if he notices? Wouldn't that tip him off?" Shinnosuke frowned.
"Better safe than sorry. It won't take long."
Hiruzen stroked his beard confidently.
"As for being discovered? Impossible. This technique is extremely covert. No one can detect it."
Years of experience observing the women's bathhouse had given him absolute faith in that.
"A . The exact location."
"The Uchiha meeting hall. It's at the center of their compound."
A stepped closer, eyes fixed on the crystal ball.
Hiruzen formed hand seals and intoned,
"Ninja Art: Telescope Technique."
The crystal ball shimmered.
An image appeared—an aerial view of the Uchiha district, as if a camera had been installed in the sky above it.
With a subtle motion of his fingers, Hiruzen adjusted the image, zooming slowly toward the building at the compound's center.
"Move. You're blocking me," Shinnosuke snapped, elbowing A aside as he leaned in.
Damn it. Arrogant bastard. Hope karma bites you sooner or later.
The image drew closer… then passed through the walls of the meeting hall.
And the moment they saw what was inside—
All three men froze.
Their throats went dry.
"W-What the hell is that monster?" Shinnosuke's voice trembled. "Is that… Uchiha Akira's true form?"
On the screen sat a massive humanoid figure nearly four meters tall.
Thick hair. Eyes closed. Seated cross-legged.
Its body was a terrifying sculpture of muscle, every inch radiating oppressive power.
That was Akira?
Injured?
It didn't look injured. It looked like it could crush them with a single slap.
Hiruzen's mind went blank.
So much for his brilliant analysis.
Looking at that monstrous figure, he had the sinking feeling it could turn him into a smear on the floor with one hand.
—
Inside the hall, Akira—currently compressing his physique—felt it.
Someone was watching him.
His eyes snapped open.
Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan.
Six-tomoe Rinnegan.
Both flared to life in an instant.
"Who?!"
The roar cracked like thunder.
A sinister purple light burst from his left Rinnegan. A surge of overwhelming mental force shot outward, following the thread of that prying gaze.
Boom!
In the Hokage's office, the crystal ball exploded.
Razor-sharp shards blasted in every direction.
A heartbeat later, the Rinnegan's mental force erupted into a shockwave centered on the shattered sphere, tearing through the room.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
None of the three had time to react. They were flung through the air and slammed into the walls, coughing blood.
The Hokage's desk splintered into fragments. Documents disintegrated into a storm of shredded paper.
The office was wrecked.
"AAAAH!"
Shinnosuke collapsed to his knees, clutching his face, screaming.
He'd been standing too close.
Most of the crystal shards had embedded themselves in his face. His eyes were pierced—blinded instantly.
Blood streamed down his ruined features.
Ha. Serves you right.
Despite his own injuries, A couldn't suppress a flicker of satisfaction.
His mask had shattered, revealing a scorched face, and his chest bled where fragments had struck him. But compared to Shinnosuke's devastation, his wounds were minor.
Across the room, Hiruzen pressed a hand to his bleeding abdomen, shock etched across his face.
What kind of technique was that?
To transmit power across such distance—through the crystal ball itself—and injure them?
He'd never heard of anything like it.
Uchiha Akira's threat level needed serious reassessment.
He was so stunned that he barely registered his son's agonized screams.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Several figures burst into the room.
"What happened, Third Lord?"
"Is the Hokage Tower under attack? Where's the enemy?"
The guard unit had rushed in at the sound of the explosion and screams.
Hiruzen coughed lightly and waved them off, forcing calm into his voice.
"No enemy. Don't panic. I was conducting a secret technique experiment. There was… a minor accident."
He coughed up blood again, wiping it away with his sleeve.
"Take Shinnosuke to the hospital immediately. His injuries are severe."
With Konoha's medical capabilities, replacing a pair of eyes wasn't difficult.
Hiruzen remained outwardly composed, as if this really had been a failed experiment.
The guards exchanged uneasy looks.
The destroyed office. Shinnosuke's mangled face.
A "minor accident"?
That was a stretch.
Still, they swallowed their doubts and lifted Shinnosuke to carry him out.
"Wait," Hiruzen called.
"After you send him to the hospital, inform the two elders and the Hyūga clan head. Tell them to attend a meeting."
"Yes, sir."
They moved again.
"Wait!"
Hiruzen glanced around at the wreckage and rubbed his temples.
"And send someone to clean up my office."
"Yes, Third Lord. Anything else?"
"No."
But they didn't move.
After a brief silence, Hiruzen cleared his throat.
"You should hurry. Don't let Shinnosuke's condition worsen."
Who's the one wasting time here…
The guards silently complained and turned to leave.
"Hold on!"
Their expressions turned faintly resentful.
Hiruzen coughed awkwardly.
"I'm old. It's normal for my memory to slip."
He straightened slightly, voice turning firm.
"What happened today—this must not be mentioned to anyone."
"Yes!"
The members of the Shadow Guard answered in unison.
This time, Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't stop them. At last, he let them carry the unconscious Shinnosuke away.
…
Once they were gone, Hiruzen and A stood there staring at each other.
The silence was… awkward. Just a little.
"Ahem."
Hiruzen cleared his throat first, breaking it.
"So. It seems that Uchiha Akira really has been hiding himself well. Even I miscalculated."
He sighed, though his eyes remained sharp.
"Still, our move wasn't without gain. At the very least, we've confirmed his true nature. That thing is a monster wearing human skin. And that piece of information is extremely important to me."
He paused, then added calmly, "There were… some unexpected setbacks. But overall, I'd say it was worth it."
A screamed internally.
Worth it? You got injured, your son's face is ruined, and he's blind in both eyes—and you're calling that 'worth it'? That's some next-level self-comfort right there.
On the outside, though, A nodded vigorously, looking completely convinced.
"Now that we know what he really is," Hiruzen continued, his aged face turning grave, "I have a very difficult task for you."
He fixed A with a heavy stare.
"What… what task?"
A bad feeling crawled up A's spine.
Whatever it was, it had to involve Uchiha Akira.
And sure enough, Hiruzen said slowly,
"I want you to expose him. At a critical moment, you will reveal Uchiha Akira's true identity."
He leaned forward slightly.
"Preferably during an Uchiha clan assembly. When everyone is present. You will let the entire clan know that this so-called Akira is nothing but a monster who infiltrated their family."
"…What?"
The color drained from A's already charred-looking face.
"Lord Third… if you want me dead, just say it outright. No need to wrap it up like this."
Expose Akira as a monster in front of the entire clan?
That wasn't a mission. That was suicide.
"Forgive me, but I refuse this task."
He shook his head hard. He wasn't about to volunteer for a funeral.
"Don't be so quick to refuse," Hiruzen said, shaking his head slowly, a calculating smile tugging at his lips. "On the surface, it appears extremely dangerous. In reality, it's far less so."
He began laying out his reasoning like a chess player explaining a checkmate.
"This creature possessing the Uchiha's Sharingan… I suspect, like Danzō, it acquired them through transplantation."
"It went to great lengths to disguise itself as Akira and infiltrate the Uchiha clan. It has worked diligently to help them, earning their goodwill."
"As for its true objective, even I cannot say."
He looked at A steadily.
"But if you, as an Uchiha, expose it in front of the entire clan… yes, it may fly into a rage. It may severely injure you. But it will not kill you."
"I don't believe that for a second!" A shot back, shaking his head like a rattle. "If I do that, I'll die horribly."
"Foolish," Hiruzen said evenly. "Did I not just explain? That creature has its own agenda. It needs the Uchiha's trust. With so many clan members present, if it still desires their approval, it will not dare kill you outright."
He pressed further.
"Think carefully. When has it disciplined an Uchiha and taken their life? Were any of them killed?"
A paused and thought it over.
…No.
Whenever Akira punished clan members, he never delivered a killing blow. The worst he did was cripple them.
But that didn't make A feel any better.
"I still refuse," he said firmly. "Even if I don't die, being crippled is just as bad. If that happens, my life as a shinobi is over."
"You needn't worry about that," Hiruzen replied immediately. "I give you my word. No matter how severe your injuries, Konoha will spare no effort to restore you."
Seeing A still hesitate, Hiruzen played his trump card.
"If you succeed in exposing that monster and shatter its schemes, you will become the greatest hero in Konoha's history."
He let the words sink in before delivering the real bait.
"I will personally authorize you to study the Sealing Scroll for one full day."
"For that entire day, any forbidden technique within it will be yours to learn."
"..."
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