Entrustment was not a trivial matter.
It wasn't something that could be settled with a few empty words and a pat on the shoulder.
At midnight, Uchiha Yoru slipped into Shisui's mansion.
Following a faint trace of blood-scent that refused to dissipate, he found Uchiha Nobuyuki—waiting.
The old man was dressed in formal attire, layered with armor in the style of the Warring States era. He sat on a small stool. Behind him stood several large chests. Another one rested in front of him.
He smiled.
"Now that I see you here tonight… I'm truly at ease."
"There are seven chests in total. They belong to Uchiha Nobuyuki, Uchiha Junshan, Uchiha Yuehui, Uchiha Feizuosheng, Uchiha Changdian, and Uchiha Yuji."
"And the last one?"
"That one… was left behind by Uchiha Madara."
"When he looted the clan treasury, we tried to stop him and were beaten down. After that, he deliberately left this chest behind."
[…Damn!!]
Nobuyuki patted the chest in front of him, chuckling.
"Heh, we were surprised back then too. That man didn't say a word—just took what he wanted and left. Only this chest remained."
"This afternoon, everything I said to you… was a gamble."
"I was betting whether you would come tonight."
"Fortunately… you came."
"Grandpa, from what you're saying… you've made this kind of bet more than once?"
"Not just me. All of us did."
"And we all lost."
He laughed, but there was bitterness underneath.
"The people of the Uchiha clan… either too foolish or too pure. All of them floating in the clouds, forgetting that people need to eat."
"Forgetting that saving a clan… requires money."
"We kept losing. Losing again and again."
"Until the old ones died one by one… leaving only me, barely clinging on, still trying to secure a future for the Uchiha."
He looked at Yoru.
"We're placing such a heavy burden on you… you won't blame us for not doing enough ourselves, will you?"
Yoru shook his head.
"I won't."
How could he blame them?
The first ten years after Konoha's founding were the honeymoon period of Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha.
A god and a demon stood side by side, suppressing the entire shinobi world.
Even if the Uchiha were dissatisfied, they didn't dare speak.
Ten years later, Madara regretted it—but the world had already changed.
In the age of hidden villages, there was no space for a clan to exist independently. The Uchiha could not follow him down that path.
After Madara left—
He returned and fought Hashirama again.
That single act pushed the Uchiha into an awkward position, allowing Tobirama Senju to tighten his grip.
Even knowing many decisions were traps—
They had no choice but to step into them.
By the time Tobirama died, these elders were already old.
In the shinobi world, strength spoke louder than anything else.
They could no longer revive the clan with their own hands.
They could only wait—
For the next generation.
But the Uchiha seemed cursed.
Talents emerged endlessly—
Yet none strong enough to unify the clan.
Worse—
These so-called geniuses all seemed to lack something.
Either they blustered and demanded brute force—
Or they naïvely trusted the Hokage.
Yoru sneered inwardly.
[As if all Hokage are the same.]
The First Hokage—
Absolutely worthy of trust.
The Second—
Scheming, but at least honest face-to-face.
The Third—
Too many things he said, he couldn't even guarantee himself.
Anyone who believed him blindly—
Was a fool.
They waited.
And waited.
Until they died—
Still without finding someone worthy of entrustment.
Yoru lowered his voice.
"If I didn't exist… would you have given these seven chests—and your hopes—to Shisui?"
Nobuyuki shook his head.
"No."
"Shisui is too kind. Too pure. It hurts to watch."
"Giving him this burden… would crush him."
"I don't want to be the one who kills him."
"If I hadn't met you…"
"I would have placed everything in the Cat Fortress."
"And after that… left it to fate. Or to the cat matriarch."
Yoru nodded.
He didn't say it out loud—
But even without these chests, Shisui's talent alone was enough to get him killed.
It wasn't a matter of strength.
It was—
He was too kind.
Too trusting of authority.
He didn't truly understand who his enemies were.
Nor did he have the resolve to use his power.
Without both—
Power became a death sentence.
But one thing was certain—
Before the Fourth Great War, Shisui would be overwhelmingly strong.
If Yoru could replace the Third Hokage as the authority Shisui trusted—
Then that strength could become deterrence.
Internally—
He could suppress the Uchiha and unify their ideology.
Externally—
He could deter the Third Hokage and Danzo Shimura.
If luck was on their side—
When the Fourth Hokage rose, no matter who it was—
Orochimaru, Jiraiya, or Minato Namikaze—
The Uchiha could integrate into Konoha.
If luck wasn't—
Even if Minato still died and the Third returned—
It didn't matter.
A unified Uchiha clan, led by Shisui, could endure until the Fifth Hokage.
By then—
With two Mangekyō securing them—
They could follow the Senju model.
Disperse into Konoha like mycelium.
Preserve the Uchiha name through Sharingan users—
Like mushrooms above the surface.
Even if destroyed—
They would regrow.
Perfect.
Absolutely perfect.
So—
[If I control Shisui…]
[The Uchiha revival is guaranteed…]
[Which means all this capital… is it all mine?!]
[Even more perfect!!]
[With this money, I'll never go out again!]
[To hell with missions—financial freedom!!]
[Calm down… don't let the mind monkey run wild…]
[…Still can't calm down!]
[Wait—]
[I don't even know how much this is yet… or if it's even money…]
[...Alright. Calm.]
Yoru coughed lightly.
"This is… quite a responsibility."
"But my surname is also Uchiha."
"So I'll take it."
Nobuyuki nodded in satisfaction.
He opened all seven chests.
"To be honest, I only know what's in mine and Madara's. I haven't seen the others either."
Two pairs of three-tomoe Sharingan—
Swept across the contents.
Moments later—
They finished counting.
One was a veteran of the Warring States.
The other a transmigrator who prided himself on clarity.
Both—
Were stunned.
Nobuyuki muttered,
"This… might not be less than the clan's current visible wealth."
Yoru let out a long breath.
"This is way too much."
"Forget putting it into operation—even converting it into cash would be a massive undertaking."
"…We hide it first."
"Everything except gold and cash—hide it."
Nobuyuki looked at him.
"You have a way?"
Yoru smiled faintly.
"Please rest assured."
"I do."
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