168 Shisui's Way of Survival

As the night grew deeper, the full moon slowly rose.

Within the Uchiha clan's residential district, two youths, one older and one younger, walked side by side down the street.

Itachi suddenly raised his head and said gently, "Shisui-bro, are you troubled by something?"

"Huh!?"

Shisui was frowning in deep thought. Taken aback by Itachi's sudden question, he blinked in surprise and asked, "Is it really that obvious?"

Itachi nodded slightly, his dark eyes as calm as still water, clearly reflecting a troubled face.

"Well, it is not exactly a major problem."

Shisui rubbed his brow hard and sighed, "I just heard some unpleasant things from the villagers."

"It must be about Lord Orochimaru."

To Shisui's surprise, Itachi guessed it instantly. "I also heard about Lord Orochimaru, the Hyuga, and Kumogakure, though I learned of it from my classmates."

"It has even spread to the Ninja Academy? That is somewhat unusual."

Shisui's brow furrowed deeply as he caught the faint scent of a conspiracy. Although still young, he had lived through the major incident of Hatake Sakumo's suicide. The current rampant wave of public opinion was clearly artificially manufactured.

"This cannot be allowed to continue."

Shisui muttered to himself, heavy-hearted. Usually, he would part ways with Itachi earlier than this, but tonight he found himself walking all the way to Itachi's doorstep.

Looking at Shisui, Itachi suggested, "If Shisui-bro cannot figure it out, why not ask my father? He surely knows something."

Shisui paused at the main gate, then followed Itachi to Fugaku's presence.

After listening to Shisui explain the purpose of his visit, Fugaku pondered for a moment and said slowly,

"This involves confidential village matters, so I cannot reveal it to you. However, I can assure you that Lord Orochimaru will be fine."

Shisui frowned slightly, but the phrase "confidential village matters" made him hesitate to press further.

"Will you stay for dinner tonight?"

Fugaku glanced at Itachi, his gaze softening somewhat.

"Itachi has made tremendous progress lately. I am very grateful for the guidance you have given him during this time."

Although some within the clan looked down on Shisui now that he kept a low profile, believing him to no longer be a match for Uchiha Shinsuke, Fugaku knew Shisui's true strength all too well—not to mention the possibility that his Mangekyo Sharingan might recover.

"Itachi is simply gifted; I haven't really done anything."

Shisui shook his head. Under the disappointed gazes of the father and son, he politely declined Fugaku's invitation to the family dinner.

"Clan Head, I still have some matters to attend to, so I won't intrude any longer today."

Seeing Shisui's deliberate distancing, Fugaku nodded slightly without minding. He understood Shisui's character; if the clan were in trouble, Shisui would never stand by idly, and today's invitation had not been an attempt to recruit him.

...

At the front gate, Itachi's young face remained calm, but his gaze carried clear disappointment. Sharp-witted as he was, he could sense that Shisui seemed reluctant to linger at his home.

Shisui ruffled Itachi's hair and smiled, "It isn't that I truly dislike being there, but there are certain things I must be mindful of."

Presently, the Uchiha clan had cast off their past shackles, and their influence within the village was at its absolute peak. Yet, standing out too much invited targeting. After all, "prestige" was a finite resource per unit of time—how could they let the Uchiha hog all the glory?

Having just witnessed the easing of relations between the village and the Uchiha, Shisui was fiercely opposed to the clan engaging in excessive conflicts with other ninja clans or individual ninja.

At times like this, to serve as a bridge of communication between the two sides, he chose to stand on the opposite side of his clan, defending outsiders and suppressing the arrogant members of his own kin during disputes.

Leaning outward would inevitably draw criticism from his fellow clansmen. To make other ninja clans trust that he could deliver true justice, he had to maintain his voice within the clan while intentionally keeping his distance from them.

Doing this was far from easy, but for the sake of both the clan and the village, Shisui was willing.

Distancing himself from the Clan Head, who represented the clan's interests, was merely one step. If he hadn't wanted to understand the clan's future leader, Shisui wouldn't have deliberately drawn close to Itachi.

Naturally, after coming to a clear understanding of Itachi's character, Shisui had grown to truly view him as a younger brother.

With a smiling wave to Itachi, Shisui turned and strode down the street, vanishing into the night before long.

...

On his way home, as Shisui pondered the information revealed by the Clan Head, he suddenly came to a halt as he rounded a corner.

"Tsk tsk tsk... Such sharp perception."

A slender figure with a sinister smile stepped out from the shadows. Taken aback, Shisui blurted out in astonishment, "Lord Orochimaru?"

He had not expected the person troubling his thoughts to appear before him so effortlessly.

Just as he was about to speak and ask questions, Orochimaru waved a hand. "Save whatever you have to say for later. This time, I am here to fulfill our agreement."

Flipping his hand, he produced a small nutrient tank from a scroll. Inside the pale green solution, an eyeball floated up and down.

Though one human eyeball looked much like another, Shisui recognized his own eye at a glance, feeling a mixture of disbelief. "Are you saying its vision has already recovered?"

Truth be told, Shisui had long since abandoned all hope regarding this matter—not merely due to the limitations of medical technology, but also because he trusted Orochimaru's character. Furthermore, from the village's perspective, restoring his Mangekyo Sharingan probably wasn't for the best, given how overwhelming the Uchiha's current influence already was.

"Only the vision in one has been restored; the remaining one will need a little more time."

Seeing that Shisui didn't look entirely overjoyed, Orochimaru thought for a moment and smiled.

"Rest assured, very few people know of this—not even the old man is aware. Whether we keep it hidden or expose it depends entirely on your own wishes."

"Thank you, Lord Orochimaru." Shisui breathed a sigh of relief, then calmly accepted the eye-transplantation procedure.

Watching Orochimaru put away the replaced Sharingan, a thought stirred within Shisui. Without saying more, he tested his Mangekyo Sharingan and cried out in wonder, "What is this? The ocular power of my eye has actually increased?"

Hearing this, Orochimaru chuckled. "A normal phenomenon. If you undergo the physical enhancement procedure as well, your ocular power will continue to rise, though we'll have to wait until both eyes are fully restored for that."

Although the chakra symbolizing Yin Release within Yamato's body could not match the raw intensity of the Mangekyo Sharingan's own Yang Release (Note: contextually adjusted for flow), the initial fusion of the two had generated a trace of the power of creation, which naturally stimulated an enhancement in ocular power.

Not only that, Yamato's own constitution would also receive a certain degree of stimulation, which was precisely why Orochimaru had kept that particular Sharingan.

After testing his Mangekyo Sharingan a bit further, Shisui returned it to its normal state. Looking at Orochimaru, he hesitated for a moment before asking, "Over the past couple of days, I've heard some rumors about you in the village. They say—"

"Ah, that matter. I know, and in fact, I am the one who brought it about."

Orochimaru smiled and simply summarized the contents of that day's meeting, entirely unburdened by Fugaku's reservations.

"I see." Shisui suddenly understood.

"More important than that, however, is a matter where I need your assistance."

A dark gleam flashed through Orochimaru's eyes. "In a few days, Kabuto is going to strike the Root..."