After Shisui received the Third Hokage’s recruitment offer, Danzo originally had no chance to lay his hands on this blade.
However, Shisui’s choice to join the Konoha Military Police Force had given him the perfect opening.
Through an orchestrated “accident,” he wanted this boy to witness the supposed evil of the Uchiha and the glaring rift between the village and the clan.
Then, he would swoop in, exploit the boy’s disillusionment, and take him under his wing.
It was supposed to be a foolproof plan, but an unexpected variable had emerged…
“What happened?!”
The Root shinobi reporting to him bowed his head.
“A weirdo has recently appeared in the Konoha Military Police Force.
His behavioral style is completely different from the rest of the Uchiha; the way he speaks and acts resembles someone from the Nara clan instead…”
Listening to his subordinate’s report, Danzo quickly grasped the sequence of events.
His brow furrowed slightly as he let out a scoff:
“So, an Uchiha with a brain has actually appeared.
He even learned how to advance by retreating.”
Behind Danzo, Aburame Tatsuma, wearing his signature hood and dark sunglasses, spoke coldly:
“Does he need to be disposed of?!”
Danzo pondered for a moment before shaking his head.
“There is no need.
At the end of the day, he is just an ordinary Uchiha clansman.
No matter how smart he is, without sufficient strength, he cannot stir up any real waves within the clan.”
“Moreover, Hiruzen has recently summoned Jiraiya and Tsunade back to the village.
The next Great Ninja War is rapidly approaching.
Dealing with the Uchiha must be pushed down our list of priorities.”
“Escalating our conflict with the Uchiha at a time like this will only allow our enemies to exploit our weaknesses.
Worse, it would hand Hiruzen the perfect excuse to move against me.”
“Understood!”
“Wait!” Danzo lowered his head, looking at the dossier his subordinate had handed him.
His gaze paused on Uchiha Shingen’s photograph.
“Put this kid under surveillance.
He might serve as a useful pawn in the future.”
“Yes, Lord Danzo!”
…
Early the next morning, Uchiha Shingen clocked in at the precinct entrance right on time.
By the time he arrived at South District 4, the interrogation of yesterday’s thief had yielded results.
According to Tezuka’s report, the man was indeed just a former shinobi who had lost his ability to work.
His actions were allegedly solely driven by a desperate need to survive.
Shingen felt somewhat skeptical.
A thief with a functioning brain would absolutely not be arrogant enough to provoke police officers right to their faces.
The man’s actions yesterday felt far too deliberate.
However, since Tezuka hadn’t been able to extract any useful information even after using Genjutsu, Shingen had no intention of digging any deeper.
He drafted a report detailing the situation and his suspicions, handed it over to his direct superior, Uchiha Yakumi, and washed his hands of the whole affair.
After all, when it comes to work, playing dumb is a rare and valuable survival skill.
If the culprit could withstand Tezuka’s brutal interrogation and a Sharingan-induced Genjutsu, then even if someone was secretly pulling the strings behind the scenes—and even if Shingen somehow managed to uncover the truth—it wouldn’t be something he could handle anyway.
Digging too deep would only invite lethal trouble.
It was much better to pass the buck as soon as possible.
On the other hand, Shisui had taken a significant emotional blow.
He had stayed up all night keeping Tezuka company during the interrogation.
First thing in the morning, he painstakingly wrote out the entire truth of yesterday’s chaotic incident on the South District 4 Police Force notice board, detailing the true cause and effect.
He even plastered photos of the thief and the recovered stolen money on it.
He thought a massive crowd would gather to read it, hoping it would wash away the Police Force’s humiliation and ease the tension between the village and the Uchiha.
To his complete surprise, after waiting for over an hour, not a single person came to look at it—except for the other officers of the South District 4 precinct.
After yesterday’s incident, even though Uchiha Shingen had stepped forward to defuse the situation, the Police Force’s reputation in Konoha had inevitably taken a sharp nosedive.
Passing civilians instinctively widened their distance from the Police officers, avoiding them as if they were venomous snakes or scorpions.
It wasn’t until close to noon that a few people tentatively approached.
When Shisui eagerly went to ask them, it turned out they were just the victims from yesterday coming to formally report the crime.
For a moment, Shisui felt an overwhelming sense of despair.
The crowd of pedestrians on the street grew denser, bustling and rubbing shoulders.
From time to time, fragments of idle gossip drifted into Shisui’s ears.
“Did you hear?
It was right here yesterday.
Those maniacs from the Police Force attacked someone for no reason again!”
“That’s not all!
I heard the guy they beat up was a retired shinobi who fought for Konoha!
He was beaten black and blue, and they even robbed him of his money!”
“The First Hokage should never have handed such an important department over to those Uchiha lunatics!”
“Are you crazy?!
Keep your voice down!”
“Am I wrong?!
Aside from the wars, they’re the ones who cause the most damage to this village!”
…
Listening to the venomous voices around him, Shisui stared at the notice board he had spent all night writing.
It was completely ignored.
Even the one or two people who occasionally glanced at it harbored malicious speculation rather than trust.
A suffocating wave of complex emotions washed over him.
With his head hung low, he listlessly kicked at the dirt beneath his feet.
Suddenly, a massive onigiri appeared right in front of his face.
“Here.”
“The precinct’s lunch.”
Uchiha Shingen shoved the large onigiri into Shisui’s hands, then stood to the side and started chowing down on his own.
With his cheeks stuffed full of food, he didn’t forget to offer Shisui some advice:
“You only have the strength to work when you’re full.
Only then will you have the energy to think about other things.”
Shisui turned his head to look at Shingen, then down at the onigiri in his hands.
He took a fierce, massive bite, venting all the frustration in his heart onto his lunch.
After finishing his food, Shisui turned back to Shingen.
Recalling the look in his captain’s eyes the previous night, he couldn’t help but ask:
“Captain Shingen, did you already predict this outcome?!”
“More or less.”
Shingen nodded.
“People only want to believe the truth they’ve already decided on.
No amount of clarification after the fact holds any meaning.”
“And right now, the ‘truth’ they’ve accepted is that the Uchiha are the ones who bring trouble.”
“So, we have to wait.
We have to do things strictly according to the rules and follow proper procedures.”
“Or, let me explain it in a way you can understand.”
“Before someone reports a crime and the Police Force officially opens a case, the culprit always has a chance to regret their actions.
You can’t just strip them of their right to choose to be a good person, can you?!”
“The right to be a good person?!”
Shisui was stunned.
Although he vaguely felt that something about this logic was inherently flawed, phrasing it like this made Shingen’s approach sound incredibly righteous.
And conversely, it made Shisui’s impulsive actions from yesterday seem like he had aggressively destroyed that thief’s potential for goodness.
So that’s how it is?!
That’s right!
That must be it!
Is this Shingen-senpai’s Ninja Way?!
To never strip anyone of their right to choose to be a good person?!
Shisui’s eyes lit up brightly.
As he raised his gaze, he caught sight of the cover of Make-Out Hell in Shingen’s hands.
The previously scandalous and inappropriate illustrations suddenly took on a profound, alternative meaning in his eyes.
Shisui muttered quietly to himself:
“Shingen-senpai said that within this book lies the secret to becoming Hokage…
Should I…”
“Shisui, how can you have such impure thoughts…
You’re shameless!”
“But…”
“Quietly buying a copy just to take a look shouldn’t be a problem, right?!”
“No one will find out anyway…”
…
“Captain, stop crippling the poor kid’s worldview with your nonsense!”
Tezuka, who had wandered over to mooch some food, overheard the gist of their conversation.
The corner of his mouth twitched violently as he looked at the utterly bamboozled boy genius.