41-45

*Chapter 41: How Exactly Does the Mangekyō Get Activated? (Vote! Invest!)*

After decades of peace, without any external threats since its founding, the Hokage Building was, for the first time in its history, experiencing the agony of internal conflict.

Sougen and Danzo were locked in a fierce battle. Before either of them could shed blood, the Hokage Building had already taken a significant beating. Thankfully, as the administrative center of Konoha, its structure was incredibly durable and wasn’t easily reduced to rubble.

The fact that neither Sougen nor Danzo used large-scale destructive ninjutsu helped, as neither wanted to escalate things further, especially within the Hokage Building. Bringing it down would cause major chaos in the village.

Danzo, still obsessed with the position of Hokage, figured it was better to conserve chakra by focusing on single-target ninjutsu rather than waste energy on wide-range techniques.

As for Sougen, he was having a blast!

When Akimichi Torifu led the Ino-Shika-Cho trio to sit this one out, the other clan heads wisely abandoned their plans to pressure the Uchiha alongside the Third Hokage. After all, even the Ino-Shika-Cho, who were close allies of the Sarutobi clan, had pulled back. They couldn’t be blamed for not going all in.

Now, the situation had turned into a direct face-off between the Uchiha and Danzo. The Third Hokage hesitated because of Torifu’s unexpected retreat, wondering what kind of trump card the Uchiha might have up their sleeve. He couldn't make a decision and simply shouted for Sougen and Danzo to stop, but made no real move to intervene.

Anyway, as long as no one dies, Danzo getting roughed up isn’t a big deal.

The ANBU, following orders, evacuated the office staff and imposed a gag order, forbidding anyone who witnessed the fight from gossiping—at least not until the Hokage gave an official order.

“Earth Release: Rock Pillar Spear!”

Sougen formed a one-handed seal.

In the next second, a forest of rock spikes erupted from the ground like a field of spears.

This technique didn’t harm Danzo at all, but Sougen wasn’t trying to hurt him; he just wanted a more manageable weapon. Shuriken were too sharp, and accidentally killing Danzo would cause complications.

To be honest, though, beating Danzo was incredibly satisfying, so much so that Sougen’s eyes started to itch.

Maybe… Danzo was the trigger?

Could it be that activating the Mangekyō didn’t actually require intense negative emotions? Perhaps his mastery of Yin Release was so advanced, and his ocular power in the Three Tomoe Sharingan so fully matured, that he didn’t need the overwhelming despair others required to ignite the Mangekyō’s light.

Maybe… that was the real answer.

To Sougen, power wasn’t inherently good or evil. It’s just that deep, lasting sorrow and despair seemed to produce stronger emotional waves for the Uchiha, propelling their Sharingan to higher levels of evolution. Of course, this was just a fleeting thought. Whether it was true or not could be tested later. Right now, the priority was to keep beating Danzo and maintain this fleeting burst of happiness. Who knows? He might awaken the Mangekyō today.

He reached out and snapped off one of the stone spears.

The power of "A Knight Never Dies Empty-Handed" flowed into the staff, turning what was originally a brittle stick into an indestructible weapon. He swung it with great force, shattering Danzo’s Wind Release techniques. His physical strength surged, and he charged right up to Danzo, delivering blows that caused deep pain but weren’t enough to knock him out completely.

Of course, Danzo wasn’t just a punching bag.

Anyone bold enough to aim for the Hokage’s position had some serious skills. A silent Wind Release technique sliced through Sougen’s sleeve, leaving bloody cuts on his arm. While they weren’t deep enough to reach bone, the pain was definitely real.

“Can I only stop the bleeding?”

Sougen calmly observed the state of his wounds.

It was clear his skill in Yang Release hadn’t reached the level of the First Hokage’s legendary no-seal healing technique. He could only stop the bleeding from these minor cuts, not fully heal them. But Sougen wasn’t bothered by this. His Samehada sword helped him train both Yin and Yang Release.

Most of his focus was on Yin Release, so while he had made progress in Yang Release, it still had a long way to go.

But this was enough.

Whether stopping bleeding or relying on his already impressive physical strength and speed, Sougen was satisfied. Desire motivates progress, but excessive greed is a path to self-destruction.

Besides, Sougen needed the bloodstains on his sleeves and clothes to prove that Danzo wasn’t a pushover. That way, the Third Hokage and others wouldn’t feel the need to step in and play favorites. From the looks of things, Danzo was fine, thanks to his repeated use of Earth Release to protect himself. It was Sougen, bleeding and battered, who seemed like he might collapse any second.

Not everyone was fooled by Sougen’s act, though.

There were plenty of skilled sensor ninja on the scene. But—

Ever since Hiashi Hyuga’s younger brother was forced to commit suicide to protect him, Hiashi had lost his competitive drive to surpass the Uchiha as the top clan in Konoha. He also harbored resentment toward the Third Hokage for caving to the Cloud’s demands. So, he wasn’t about to ruin this show.

Yamanaka Inoichi, leader of the Analysis Team, glanced at the calm Torifu Akimichi and chose to remain silent as well.

Even without a report from a sensor, the Third Hokage wasn’t completely oblivious to Sougen’s tricks.

But just as he prepared to step in, Sougen, fully caught up in his excitement, took Danzo’s Vacuum Blade to his right leg, then smashed his indestructible stone staff down onto Danzo’s right leg in return.

The sound of bones breaking was music to Sougen’s ears.

The only downside was that Danzo was tough—his leg was a bloody mess, but he didn’t even scream.

“Oh well… Since you helped me open that door, I’ll let you be the first to witness my eye technique!” Sougen whispered, his voice so low that only those within arm’s reach could hear.

In the next moment, his crimson eyes underwent a dramatic transformation.

From this day forward, Sougen, a Uchiha, shattered the belief that the Mangekyō Sharingan could only be awakened through hellish despair.

The Uchiha could awaken the Mangekyō… with joy!

(End of chapter)

*Chapter 42: The Blossoming of the Wood Flower (Vote! Support!)*

The pattern of the Mangekyō Sharingan is unique, and there can never be two identical ones. Sougen was no exception.

Using Danzo's pupils as a mirror, Sougen saw the windmill-like six-petal pattern in his eyes, similar to Shisui's four-petal blade design, but with two extra petals. The blades were also slimmer, with a greater curve.

"Aren’t these eyes beautiful?" Sougen smiled, clearly pleased.

However, to Danzo, that smile was more repulsive than a demon's, and the six-petal blade-shaped Sharingan in Sougen’s eyes stirred deeply buried memories. Uchiha... has this evil power reappeared?

He opened his mouth to shout, but it was already too late. The moment he witnessed Sougen's dramatically transformed eyes, he was drawn into the change.

"Welcome to my world."

The voice abruptly rang in Danzo's ears, snapping him out of his thoughts. Looking around, he realized he was no longer in the wrecked hallway of the Hokage building but in a serene courtyard garden, complete with stone lanterns, ponds, small mountains, and bamboo groves.

He looked up at the boundless blue sky, which seemed so vast it could swallow him whole.

This is fake.

Danzo, now fully aware, looked down at his unharmed body. He felt insulted, as if belittled. Sure, the Uchiha clan’s genjutsu is impressive, but did they have to humiliate him like this? Did Sougen really think he couldn’t break free from this bizarre illusion?

Fine!

After several failed attempts, Danzo had to admit he couldn’t break free from this seemingly harmless genjutsu. He began to inspect the courtyard, pondering the type of illusion. It didn’t appear to be an offensive one, so it seemed to be designed to trap. Something like the "Fox Heart Technique"? No, that wasn’t right. The Fox Heart Technique tricks the target into wandering a labyrinth, draining their stamina.

In this case, though, he couldn’t even feel control over his own body. Was it more like the "Mist Servant Technique" or the "Space Displacement Technique"? None of them seemed quite right...

"Danzo, assistant to the Hokage, don’t you think this courtyard is missing something?"

The voice came again, interrupting his train of thought. In the blink of an eye, Sougen appeared just a few steps ahead, sitting on a fallen bluestone slab on the grass, smirking at him.

Sougen sat leisurely, a relaxed air about him.

He pointed to the courtyard. "There’s a mountain, water, bamboo, grass, a stone lantern, and even a small shrine—but no beautiful trees in bloom. So, how about you help me by adding a lovely cherry blossom tree here?"

"What are you planning, Uchiha Sougen?"

Danzo stood at full alert, watching Sougen approach cautiously. Yet, oddly enough, Sougen seemed to grow taller, as if Danzo were kneeling at his feet, looking up at him.

"Still haven’t realized? Too slow, Danzo. You, a master of sealing techniques, haven’t noticed anything strange about your situation?"

Sougen looked down at Danzo, who was now half-buried in the ground, with an ever-widening grin of delight. Sougen wasn’t a sadist who took pleasure in others' suffering—he was just genuinely amused to see Danzo struggling.

On the battlefield, Sougen always made sure his enemies were truly dead to spare them any lingering agony. He was even kind enough to offer a full cremation service!

Like waking from a dream, Danzo finally noticed he was buried waist-deep in the earth.

But honestly, he wasn’t panicking—not at all. He knew this was Sougen’s genjutsu world, where anything could happen. It would be odd if Sougen didn’t pull some tricks.

"Is this all you've got, Uchiha Sougen?"

Danzo looked up at Sougen with disdain.

"This is just the beginning, Danzo."

Sougen smiled, pointing at Danzo. "Look, it’s already sprouting!"

A tender green sprout burst through the skin of Danzo’s left shoulder, growing rapidly before his eyes.

"AHHH!!!"

Though Danzo had endured a crushed leg without a sound, he now screamed in pain as roots burrowed into his body, wriggling like snakes. Outside, thick roots coiled around him, binding him tighter and tighter.

Before long, a towering cherry blossom tree stood tall in the courtyard, its branches covered with thousands of pink buds.

"Uchiha Sougen!! What... what have you done?"

That was a good question.

Sougen looked down at Danzo, who was now shriveled like a mummy, ensnared by the tree’s dense roots. Sougen's eyes sparkled with satisfaction.

"Let me tell you something. When every blossom on this tree blooms, it will mark the moment of your death. All of your spiritual energy will be drained and turned into fuel to make me stronger."

Danzo began to struggle violently.

But even before this, he had been unable to break free, and now, tangled in the tree’s roots, all his efforts were in vain. This was Sougen’s Mangekyō Sharingan technique—unless someone with equal or greater ocular or spiritual power appeared, there was no escape from the illusion called Kono-hana-sakuya.

Kono-hana-sakuya—the power Sougen awakened with the Mangekyō. It wasn’t just a genjutsu technique but more akin to a yin-release ability. As Sougen had explained, this technique caused a cherry tree to grow from the target’s body, gradually absorbing their spiritual energy as it bloomed. This had surpassed ordinary genjutsu, reaching the realm of reality-bending illusions.

It was yin-release.

Yin-release ocular power.

Sougen bent down, his face close to Danzo’s, smiling as he said:

"Don’t worry—I’m not going to kill you just yet. After all, you’re the Hokage’s assistant. I can brawl with you under some pretext, but without solid evidence of your disgrace, killing you would cause me too much trouble... Of course, I won’t let you live to trouble me either."

"I’ll leave a few buds on the tree for you. You’ll linger on for another month or two, long enough to die of old age. By then... your death won’t be directly tied to me at all."

Snap!

Sougen snapped his fingers, and all the buds on the tree began to bloom, except for a small cluster in the corner that remained untouched.

(End of Chapter)

*Chapter 43: The World of the Strong! *

Heavy blossoms weighed down the branches, as the once fully-bloomed cherry blossoms began to wither. Danzo’s gaze dimmed little by little, as if his soul was being sucked away. If not for the slight twitching of his eyes, he would have resembled a dried-out corpse.

The mental energy fed back to Sougen replenished the consumption of his eye technique, *Mokuhanasakuya*, and even left a small surplus, filling him with an indescribable sense of pleasure within the illusionary space. He lightly flicked the few remaining unopened buds on the branch.

Looking at Danzo, wrapped tightly like a cocoon by the tree roots, he smiled and slowly closed his eyes, releasing the eye technique.

Though the growth of the flower tree seemed slow, in the real world, only a moment had passed. Sougen was still standing in front of Danzo. As he looked at Danzo’s empty gaze, he stepped back. The sudden movement caused blood to spurt from the wound on his thigh, only to be slowly stopped by the power of Yang Release.

“Hiss! That hurts!”

Sougen let out a somewhat exaggerated scream.

However, there weren’t many people paying attention to him. After all, this wasn’t the Uchiha’s stage. Neither Shisui nor Fugaku came to play along. Everyone’s focus was on Danzo, who had silently collapsed to the ground, limp as a corpse.

“Danzo?!!”

The Third Hokage’s eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at the fallen Danzo.

“Danzo? Someone! Quickly! Where are the medical ninjas? Hurry up!” Mitokado Homura shouted in rage.

Even Choza Akimichi couldn’t sit still anymore. Whether they liked Danzo or not was one thing, but if Danzo died here... it would definitely be a huge problem. If Sarutobi chose to go to war with the Uchiha, they would inevitably be dragged into it!

Inoichi Yamanaka formed a hand seal.

Although not a medical ninja, as a top-tier sensory ninja, he could assess Danzo’s current state. Using the Yamanaka clan’s mental techniques, he almost thoroughly examined Danzo.

“How is he, Inoichi?”

“Hmm…”

Inoichi furrowed his brows, clearly troubled.

Now it wasn’t just Choza who was puzzled, even Shikaku Nara looked at him in surprise. As lifelong friends and members of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, Shikaku had rarely seen Inoichi so conflicted.

At that moment, the medical ninjas stationed in the Hokage building arrived at an incredible speed.

A group of white-robed specialists immediately surrounded Danzo, using medical ninjutsu to check his body and heal his visible injuries. As for Sougen, who was equally covered in blood, nobody cared.

“Tsk!”

Sougen clicked his tongue.

Having no more energy to pretend to be in pain, he lazily leaned against the wall, watching the medical ninjas argue around Danzo.

Clearly, Inoichi wasn’t the only one conflicted. These highly skilled, well-traveled medical ninjas were also confused, each holding a different opinion, leading to a heated argument. Not far away, the Third Hokage, Mitokado Homura, and Koharu Utatane were getting dizzy from all the shouting.

“Enough! All of you, shut up! Someone just tell me if Danzo is alive or dead!”

Koharu was the first to snap, silencing the frenzied medical ninjas.

The oldest among the medical team finally stepped forward and respectfully said, “Elder Koharu, Advisor Danzo is still alive. Although his breathing is weak and he hasn't regained consciousness, without a doubt, he is alive…”

“Then what were you arguing about?”

“Well, we had some disagreements about the cause of his coma…”

“Fine, I don’t need to know the technical details. Just get Danzo to the hospital. Your job is to wake him up and restore him to normal.”

The medical ninjas fell silent for a few seconds. None of them dared to mention that the chances of Danzo waking up were slim, not wanting to risk the potential dangers of being involved.

Meanwhile, not far away, Uchiha Sougen, covered in blood, was still watching them.

Without even calling for a nurse, two younger medical ninjas hoisted Danzo onto a stretcher and sprinted toward Konoha Hospital.

Just like that, Danzo, who had fallen into a deep coma, was taken to Konoha Hospital.

As the medical team disappeared from view, the destroyed corridor fell into an eerie silence. Aburame Ryoma, who had previously stopped fighting Shisui when Danzo collapsed, silently followed the medical ninjas, like Danzo’s shadow.

With one focal point gone, everyone’s attention shifted to another.

The culprit who had put Danzo in a coma.

“Why are you all looking at me? By the way, are there any medical ninjas left? Danzo’s Wind Release technique is no joke! My thigh was almost sliced off.” The culprit sighed, patting his bloody leg with a pained expression.

The message was clear: don’t think that Danzo being sent to the hospital was a big deal. His injuries weren’t light either!

“Uchiha Sougen... if anything happens to Danzo…” The Third Hokage began to speak harshly, glaring at Sougen’s feet.

But—

“Danzo’s almost seventy years old. For all we know, he might slip and drown in a toilet one day. Whether he lives or dies has nothing to do with me. Besides, the grudge between my clan and Danzo isn’t over yet!” Even before the Third could finish, Sougen rudely interrupted him.

Activating his Mangekyo Sharingan, Sougen could feel his power soaring.

He now had the confidence to throw his own harsh words back.

“Third Hokage, clan leaders, remember this: the Uchiha will always be Konoha’s Uchiha. But that doesn’t mean we’ll just roll over and be bullied. Don’t bother throwing excuses at me. You all know the truth. I won’t dig into the past, but from now on, if you think the Uchiha will be as tolerant as before... feel free to test us and see if the Uchiha have a temper!”

The clan leaders remained silent. No one was willing to provoke Sougen at this moment. Until they figured out how Danzo had been defeated, and learned the full extent of Sougen’s power, no one wanted to take any risks. Even the Third Hokage regained his usual gentle expression, while Homura and Koharu were solely focused on Danzo’s condition, without demanding an explanation from Sougen.

This is the ninja world.

A world where the strong reign supreme.

Rules and customs bend under the will of those with overwhelming power, adapting to suit their preferences.

(End of Chapter)

*Chapter 44: Let's Enjoy Our Hospital Stay Together! *

Hold Uchiha Sōgen accountable?

Don’t be foolish.

Senju Hashirama dared to discipline Uchiha Madara, the rogue ninja, because he had the strength to pin down his old friend and beat him senseless.

Danzo’s swift defeat filled the Third Hokage with dread. He silently questioned himself—he didn’t think he could defeat Danzo so easily, even with Uchiha illusions. Normally, such a thing wouldn’t put Danzo into a coma unless...

A worrisome thought crossed his mind.

He glanced at Sōgen, who was covered in blood but clearly not severely injured, and silently sighed. He then shifted his gaze to Uchiha Shisui, who had calmly held off Aburame Ryoma the entire time, and Uchiha Fugaku, who had merely stood by, uninvolved. Fugaku was another matter entirely.

Just those two were enough to give anyone a headache.

Not to mention that the Uchiha clan still had many powerful Jonin!

It seemed that their plans against the Uchiha would need to be put on hold. Pushing them too hard could force a desperate confrontation, which would leave the Hidden Leaf Village gravely weakened, only to be taken advantage of by the other four villages... That was something the Third Hokage could not allow.

"Uchiha Sōgen, the Police Force is not anyone's toy. I hope you don’t go down the wrong path."

The Third Hokage spoke each word clearly.

Then he turned and left.

The surrounding area of the meeting room was in shambles. Earth Release ninjas couldn’t handle repairing the steel-reinforced concrete of the building—it would require a professional engineering team. Fortunately, the Hokage’s office wasn’t nearby, so it hadn’t been affected by the earlier battle. At least the Hokage didn’t have to move to a new office.

Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado, the two elder advisors who had lived through countless battles, also left without saying a word.

“The future of the Uchiha clan is naturally the responsibility of me, its clan leader. There’s no need for the Hokage to worry,” Sōgen called out loudly as he watched the Third Hokage walk away.

And with that, the meeting ended in an anticlimactic fashion.

The Third Hokage and his party failed to achieve their goal, and instead, Danzo was taken out of the picture. Moreover, the Hokage’s parting words effectively acknowledged Sōgen’s position as the head of the Leaf Police Force. The Hokage clearly wanted to avoid escalating tensions to the point where a small misunderstanding, or someone’s intentional provocation, could lead Sōgen to start a war with the village.

The risk of starting a fight before fully understanding how powerful Sōgen had become was far too high!

In this world, where the strength of a single individual could alter the outcome of a war, numbers sometimes meant nothing. The Third Hokage knew this better than anyone, having witnessed the battles between the First Hokage and Uchiha Madara.

Uchiha Sōgen,

Perhaps he, like Madara, possessed the power of the Mangekyō Sharingan!

As the Third Hokage walked toward his office, his mood grew heavy. The only consolation was that Sōgen didn’t seem intent on waging war with the village—at least for now, there were no signs of that. This gave the Hokage some relief.

“Uchiha... sigh! Teacher, you were absolutely right. The Uchiha are a dangerous and sinister clan.”

---

In the wrecked meeting room area,

The clan leaders present began to disperse, chatting quietly in small groups. Without exception, they all avoided Uchiha Sōgen. Not opposing the Uchiha didn’t mean they wanted to befriend them—after all, not many people liked associating with a group that looked down on others.

The plump old man Torifu Akimichi hurried away. The moment the Hokage left, Torifu dragged Shikaku Nara and Inoichi Yamanaka with him, fleeing as if his life depended on it. Even though Uchiha Kagami had helped him many times in the past, personal favors couldn’t replace the importance of his clan!

However,

Among the many clan leaders, one person had secretly stared at Sōgen for a long time. Only when he was urged by two other clan leaders to leave did he reluctantly depart with his friends.

“Sōgen, what are you looking at?” Shisui approached.

“Nothing. I just felt someone staring at me for a while. I’m a little curious who it was...” Sōgen shook his head. “Never mind that. Shisui, did you see it? This so-called peace was fought for!”

He pointed to the crumbling walls and cracked, hole-ridden floor.

Shisui responded with a helpless smile.

Though he felt deeply moved, when Danzo had fallen, Shisui had thought everything was ruined. He expected an inevitable bloodbath between the village and the Uchiha clan. But then, in a surprising turn of events, instead of bloodshed, Sōgen had been approved as the head of the Police Force.

“This is too absurd,” Shisui muttered in frustration.

Though the outcome was good, he couldn’t shake the feeling of disappointment. He struggled to accept that the village’s leaders were so arbitrary, lacking consistency or backbone. Their ability to change faces so quickly left him speechless.

“It’s not absurd at all. This is the law of the world we live in: the strong reign supreme, and the victors rule!”

With a ripping sound, Sōgen tore off a piece of his sleeve and used it as a bandage to wrap his leg wound. The bleeding had stopped, but without medical ninjas, the superficial wounds would take a day or two to fully heal.

“Hey, Shisui! Are you going to keep sulking? Can’t you see I hurt my leg? At least come help me out!” Sōgen shouted, irritated, at the still-brooding Shisui.

And so,

Shortly after Danzo’s hospitalization, the new head of the Uchiha clan and the newly appointed chief of the Police Force were also admitted to the hospital. Though the doctors said his superficial wounds could heal at home, Sōgen insisted on staying in the hospital—not to prevent Danzo from making a comeback, but simply to enjoy a couple of quiet days.

These past two days had been exhausting!

First, he had rushed to take over the position of clan leader, and then he had endured pressure from the village. For now, the obvious threats to the Uchiha had been temporarily resolved. As for the unseen undercurrents lurking beneath the surface, he’d deal with them after a couple of days of rest.

Besides, he needed time to ponder his eye techniques.

If he went home, as clan leader, he’d be overwhelmed with tasks. If he went to the Police Force, his duties as chief would keep him equally busy. After thinking it over, he decided to stay at the Leaf Hospital, pretending to be a wounded man and take the opportunity to rest.

(End of Chapter)

*Chapter 45: A Visitor from Kurama (Vote! Invest!)*

*Konoha Hospital.*

In a single-patient room on the second floor, near the corridor's corner, lay Uchiha Sougen’s room.

The hospital life wasn’t as pleasant as one might imagine. Sougen had misjudged the extent of his current influence. After Shisui relayed the events that transpired at the Hokage’s office to the elders, they exaggerated the story and spread it among the clan.

And so,

the clan exploded in excitement.

The fact that the despised Danzo had been reduced to a vegetative state by clan leader and was lying in a hospital was the best news they had heard in five years. Especially the radical faction, who had previously expressed dissatisfaction with Sougen's firm opposition to a coup during the clan assembly, now suddenly became his staunch supporters.

When they learned that the clan leader had also been injured during the battle with Danzo and was currently hospitalized at Konoha Hospital, groups of clan members started arriving with fruit baskets and various gifts, nearly wearing down the threshold of Sougen’s hospital room. There were so many gifts that they had nowhere to put them, so they had to send the perishable fruits to the police force to be shared.

Sigh!!!

Leaning back on the bed, Sougen let out a helpless sigh.

“If I had known this would happen, I would’ve just gone home. Those little rascals from the clan wander the hospital late at night instead of going home to sleep, saying they're patrolling to protect me from being ambushed… Honestly, if I’ve fallen to the point where I need their protection, I might as well jump out the window.”

“Don’t say that. It’s a sign of their affection. Everyone knows you're strong and skilled, but there’s a saying: ‘It’s easier to dodge an open attack than a hidden one.’ They care for you, which is why they’re doing this!”

Uchiha Ranzan, sitting in the chair beside the bed, was peeling an apple.

The small fruit knife danced in his hand like a butterfly, quickly revealing the white, juicy flesh beneath the red skin.

“Hmph, stop with the excuses. If you ask me, those kids are just bored and need something to do. Speaking of which, how’s the situation with the police force? Any trouble there?” Sougen had entrusted Ranzan with handling the police force during his hospital stay, while he took the opportunity to relax.

“Pretty good! The news about Danzo becoming a vegetable has lifted everyone’s spirits. Even the recent covert harassment and interference with the police force have stopped. Everything’s going well!”

Ranzan bit into the apple, its sweet juice spraying out.

“Good to hear.”

Sougen didn’t bother asking further.

As things stood, the Uchiha should enjoy a period of relative peace, as long as he remained standing. The Third Hokage and his people wouldn’t act rashly again. Of course, if they did, it would be a thunderous strike… But that was for the future. For now, he had more immediate problems to worry about.

Knock, knock!

A knock came at the door.

“Another one?”

Sougen twitched slightly at the corner of his eye.

He glanced at the table and coffee table, both overflowing with gifts, and sighed wearily. “Come in! It’s not locked!” he said listlessly, while mentally guessing who the new visitor could be. But when the door opened—

Sougen raised an eyebrow.

“Sougen, how’s your injury?”

The man who entered had a gentle appearance, an affable smile, and a scholarly aura. He carried a delicately crafted fruit basket that clearly wasn’t cheap.

“Sōgyun-senpai.”

Sougen sat up straight.

He was somewhat surprised to see this familiar face, though their relationship wasn’t particularly deep. Kurama Sōgyun, the newly appointed head of the Kurama clan, had teamed up with Sougen several times during the Third Great Ninja War. At the time, as a Jonin, Sōgyun had looked after Sougen.

However, after the Third War, the Nine-Tails incident occurred soon after, and the Uchiha clan’s situation deteriorated. Sougen hadn’t seen Sōgyun in two or three years… Wait. A flash of insight crossed Sougen’s mind as he recalled the meeting four days ago at the Hokage's office. After defeating Danzo, Sougen remembered sensing someone watching him. The gaze’s owner had seemed to be Kurama Sōgyun.

“Looks like you’re recovering well!” Sōgyun glanced at the gifts piling up on the coffee table and casually placed his fruit basket on the bed.

“Just a minor injury. But Sōgyun-senpai, you’ve got guts. If people find out you came to visit me… It won’t do you any favors. On the contrary, if you anger those elders, things could get tough for you.”

As the saying goes, “no one visits without reason.”

Kurama Sōgyun wasn’t a bad person, but he wasn’t the type to lend a hand without expecting something in return. Their relationship had always been lukewarm, not close friends by any stretch.

For him to risk his clan’s reputation to step into Sougen’s hospital room, there had to be something driving him.

“Four days ago, you must have awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, right?” Sōgyun acknowledged Ranzan, who politely stood up to make space, and sat down as if it was no big deal to reveal such a secret.

“Ranzan, keep an eye on the door. I need to have a private chat with Sōgyun-senpai.”

Ranzan shot a deep look at Sōgyun, tossed the apple core into the trash, wiped his hands with a napkin, and exited the room, closing the door behind him as he leaned against the wall to stand guard.

Inside the room,

Sougen sat cross-legged on the bed, studying Sōgyun with interest. “Sōgyun-senpai, where did you hear about the Mangekyō Sharingan?”

“That’s no secret!” Sōgyun replied calmly. “In its prime, the Kurama clan was said to rival the Uchiha in genjutsu. An ancestor of ours once battled an Uchiha who had awakened the Mangekyō. Thanks to that encounter, I happen to know about the Mangekyō Sharingan.”

“I see.”

Sougen nodded,

though he didn’t really care whether it was true or not. True or false, it didn’t matter. He didn’t mind showing his power to the world. As long as he was strong enough, what could anyone do if they knew he had the Mangekyō Sharingan? Did they think they could figure out how to counter his eye techniques?

Despite the constant disturbance from clan members over the past few days, Sougen had found time to study his eye techniques. Breaking them wouldn’t be an easy task.

“So, Sōgyun-senpai, what brings you here?” After the pleasantries, Sougen got straight to the point.

“Still as direct as ever, Sougen!”

A hint of bitterness appeared on Sōgyun’s face as he took a deep breath and said, “I’m here to ask you for a favor!”

(End of Chapter)