Evening fell, and the night sky shimmered with countless stars.
Under the pale glow of the moon, Mei arrived alone at the residence where Fugaku was staying.
As for Chōjūrō, her ever-present bodyguard, she had already sent him away to assist Ao in guarding the “mud statues.”
She stood outside the gate, taking a deep breath before slowly exhaling, her chest rising and falling slightly.
“Calm down… I’m just here to replace the eye, then take the medicine…”
She muttered softly to herself, but the tips of her ears were already burning.
That line—”Stay here tonight”—kept looping in her mind like a spell.
Though she had no personal experience, as an elite shinobi of Kirigakure, she understood more than enough.
She could vaguely guess that this so-called “medicine” might not be as simple as it sounded.
“…Forget it.
Since I’m already here.”
She bit her lower lip and pushed open the courtyard gate.
The creak of the hinges echoed clearly in the quiet yard.
But the intimate, ambiguous scene she had imagined… didn’t appear.
Instead, the faint aroma of food drifted through the air.
Following the scent, she arrived at the living room.
Through the open sliding door, she saw a low table already set with a hearty dinner.
“Mei, you’re here.”
Mikoto peeked out from the kitchen, a ladle still in her hand.
“Come in and sit.
Dinner will be ready soon.”
Mei froze at the doorway, staring at the scene full of everyday warmth—it felt no different from an ordinary household in any village.
All the words she had prepared got stuck in her throat.
In the end, she could only glance around and ask,
“Um… where’s Fugaku?”
“He’ll be in the inner room,” Mikoto said with a smile.
“Since you’re staying tonight, he’s setting up your bedding.
Why don’t you go keep him company?
I’ll be a bit longer here.”
“Ah… is that really okay?”
“Hehe, what’s not okay?
Didn’t you two kiss this afternoon?”
Mei’s face instantly flushed red.
She covered her face and hurried inside.
Watching her flee, Mikoto couldn’t help but laugh softly, spatula still in hand.
The night deepened.
Elsewhere in the marketplace on the eastern coast of the Land of Whirlpools, in another abandoned courtyard overgrown with weeds, a dim oil lamp flickered in the basement, casting a dull yellow glow over two figures.
Uchiha Obito sat atop a worn wooden crate, his orange spiral mask appearing especially eerie in the dim light.
Black Zetsu emerged halfway from the wall, his pitch-black face expressionless, only his yellow eyes gleaming faintly in the darkness.
On the ground lay a White Zetsu.
Its body was spread out like melted wax, fused with the floor, only its head retaining a humanoid shape.
From where its ears should be, thin fungal filaments extended deep into the cracks of the floor, as if receiving signals.
This was one of White Zetsu’s techniques—Spore Eavesdropping.
By embedding spores into the structure of a building, it could transmit sound like a living wire.
“The operation was a success.”
White Zetsu’s mouth moved, but the voice that came out was Fugaku’s—slightly distorted, yet clear enough.
“Heh.”
Hearing this, Obito let out a scoff.
“For the Uchiha—especially those with three-tomoe Sharingan—eye transplantation is basic stuff.
Of course he’d be skilled at it.”
“Now, it’s time to take the special medicine.
Come with me to the bedroom.”
“…Huh?”
Obito tilted his masked face, puzzled.
“Why is he dragging someone into the bedroom just to take medicine?
If it’s just saliva, couldn’t you do that anywhere?”
“Shut up.”
Black Zetsu sighed, clearly exasperated.
“Just listen.”
“Alright, alright…”
Footsteps echoed.
Thump… thump… thump…
A sliding door opened.
Creak—
Then came the faint sound of water…
Splash… splash…
Then the sound of fabric rubbing—clear enough to tell someone was undressing…
Before long, White Zetsu’s mouth began transmitting a new set of sounds: the rhythmic thudding of tatami mats, the creaking of wooden boards with gaps between them… At first, it was faint—then it gradually became more distinct.
The basement fell into an eerie silence.
Only the sounds relayed through White Zetsu’s technique remained—low, uneven breathing, the soft creak of tatami, and, from time to time, Mikoto’s muffled laughter as she covered her mouth…
“D-damn it!!”
Uchiha Obito suddenly jumped to his feet, kicking over the wooden crate beside him.
“Does that guy have nothing in his head except this kind of thing?!”
“And three people at once?!”
“I swear, his right eye must have some kind of ability related to that!”
“And that Uchiha Mikoto!
She’s actually watching—and even laughing?!”
Time passed, second by second.
Obito went from anger, to numbness, to complete boredom.
At some point, he even started counting the cracks on the ceiling.
But truthfully, he had nothing better to do.
The Akatsuki was still in its early stages under Nagato—there wasn’t even a stable team yet.
That was why he remained here in the Land of Whirlpools with Black Zetsu.
And right now, Fugaku was the only man who even remotely held his interest.
Finally, when he reached the three hundred and twenty-seventh crack, the sounds stopped.
The basement fell silent once more.
After a while, new voices emerged.
It was Mikoto, her voice low but clear.
“Is she asleep?”
“Mm.
She is.
Don’t worry—the kind that won’t wake up.”
That was Fugaku.
“Dinner earlier… thanks for the effort.”
“Not at all.
You worked harder, Fugaku.”
“By the way… giving her that eye—are you sure it’s okay?”
“Relax.
The amount of chakra she possesses—whether compared to the Uzumaki or the Senju—it’s on a completely different level.
You wouldn’t believe it without seeing it yourself.
A once-obscure clan producing someone like her… no wonder she became the leader at such a young age.”
“With that level of chakra, plus my assistance, she’ll be able to use Kotoamatsukami multiple times in a short period…”
“Kotoamatsukami?!”
Obito shot upright, eyes widening beneath his mask.
He turned to Black Zetsu, whose pupils visibly shrank—rare for that expressionless black face.
“Kotoamatsukami…”
Obito repeated in a low voice, disbelief clear in his tone.
“The other eye… is really in his hands?”
Black Zetsu didn’t answer immediately.
It listened intently, catching every word relayed through White Zetsu.
“What I’m asking is—if you transplant the eye into her, will your control still work?”
“It will.
Shisui’s two eyes—his right eye, the one Danzō had—has a short cooldown when used alone, but requires continuous control.”
“As for my left eye—its effect is permanent.
It won’t disappear just because the eye is no longer with me.”
“What a terrifying ability…”
Mikoto murmured.
“Yeah… terrifying.”
Fugaku’s voice suddenly turned cold.
“That fool Uchiha Shisui—having such a power, yet only thinking about surrender.
Pathetic.”
A dull thud followed—he had slammed his hand against the floor.
Then came the faint sound of skin brushing—like someone gently stroking another’s face.
“Heh… Mei really came at the perfect time.
Through her, I can easily control the entire clan… even Kirigakure’s upper ranks.”
“And since she’s already submitted to me… sooner or later, the whole of Kirigakure will fall into my hands.”
“HAHAHAHA!!”
His laughter rang out—arrogant, unrestrained, filled with ambition.
In the stillness of the night, it sounded especially jarring.
Black Zetsu’s pupils contracted again.
Because that laugh… reminded it of Uchiha Madara.
That man used to laugh like this too—when his plans succeeded, when he believed everything was under his control.
After a long while, everything fell quiet again, leaving only steady breathing.
“…That rumor you made up…”
Obito took a deep breath, his voice dry.
“…turned out to be true.”
Black Zetsu remained silent for a moment before speaking slowly.
“Unexpected… yet reasonable.”
“When he crushed Danzō’s eye so decisively, I should’ve realized—unless he had a better replacement, why would he destroy Kotoamatsukami?”
“What do we do now?”
Obito’s tone turned serious.
He knew all too well the power of Kotoamatsukami—silently altering a person’s will, permanently.
If Fugaku truly used Mei to control Kirigakure’s leadership… then the entire village would become his personal army.
But if that eye fell into his hands…
Obito’s breathing grew slightly heavier.
With Kotoamatsukami, combined with Kamui’s mobility and Hashirama cells sustaining his Sharingan…
He could infiltrate anywhere.
Control anyone.
Clan heads.
Daimyō.
Even the Five Kage.
The entire shinobi world could fall under his control—without a single sound.
His fingers tightened unconsciously, joints turning pale.
Collecting the tailed beasts, reviving the Ten-Tails, activating Infinite Tsukuyomi—that all required time, patience, careful balance.
But with Kotoamatsukami…
Everything would become simple.
“Black Zetsu.”
He spoke, barely containing his excitement.
“We must get that eye.
But what about your plan?”
“We proceed as planned.”
Black Zetsu slowly emerged from the ground.
“For that plan, whether the rumor is true or false doesn’t matter.
Though… true is better.”
“The only variable is—you must be ready to seize the eye at any moment.”
“…Got it.”
…
On the western coast of the Land of Whirlpools, within Konoha’s sphere of influence, inside a marketplace building overlooking the sea—
Homura Mitokado stood by the window, watching the rising sun over the horizon.
“Lord Homura.”
A Konoha ninja entered and knelt on one knee—he was the administrator of the western marketplace.
“Report everything you know.”
Homura didn’t turn, still gazing outside.
“Yes.”
The man began summarizing all gathered intelligence.
Most of it concerned Kirigakure’s forces—numbers of ninja, distribution of ranks, reinforcement details…
Homura showed little interest.
This wasn’t going to turn into a battle—numbers didn’t matter.
“And lastly…”
“There’s a rumor spreading in the eastern marketplace… about Fugaku and Mei.”
“What?”
Homura asked calmly.
The ninja hesitated, then took a breath.
“Three nights ago, Mei went alone to Fugaku’s residence and didn’t leave until the next morning.”
“During that time… there were sounds of beds moving, voices… and it’s said that Mikoto was also present.”
“…Heh.”
Homura raised an eyebrow.
“So Mikoto compromised for the clan’s future.”
“Still, that kind of information has limited value.
Why mention it last?”
“Cough—Lord Homura, I’m not finished.”
The ninja quickly added.
“After that night, a rumor began spreading in the eastern marketplace…”
“That Kotoamatsukami has two eyes.”
“One belonged to Elder Danzō—destroyed by Fugaku.”
“And the other… is now in Mei’s possession.”
Homura suddenly turned around.
“Go on.”
“The rumor claims Fugaku destroyed Danzō’s eye so easily because he had the other one.”
“And that he used it to control Mei.”
“Now, by giving her the eye, he intends to secretly control Kirigakure’s leadership through her.”
“This rumor has already caused unrest.
Someone in the alliance raised doubts during a meeting, though Hōzuki Mangetsu suppressed it.”
“But the rumor won’t stop spreading.”
“And Kirigakure’s Fourth Mizukage has already dispatched forces—his personal ANBU.
They’re expected to arrive this afternoon.”
“Kotoamatsukami…”
Homura fell silent.
Then he turned back toward the window.
There were two eyes—that was fact.
The second one’s whereabouts—unknown.
Could it be in Fugaku’s hands?
…It was possible.
Given the power and strategy Fugaku had displayed, acquiring Shisui’s other eye wasn’t strange.
And thinking back to how decisively he crushed Danzō’s eye… it did feel like someone who had nothing to fear.
“Does the rumor mention what Kotoamatsukami actually does?”
“No.
It only says ‘control.’ No details on how or to what extent.”
Homura tapped lightly on the window frame.
Then… he smiled faintly.
Whether the rumor was true or not didn’t matter.
What mattered was its impact.
If Kirigakure was divided internally, their support for Fugaku would weaken.
Which meant—during negotiations, Konoha could apply pressure.
And perhaps… pay a lower price.
“By my authority,” Homura said calmly,
“inform the village—dispatch another ninja force here immediately.”
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