248 Naruto: Snatching the Mangekyō

Even the Mangekyō Sharingan and the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan couldn't achieve this level of control.

Only after being enhanced by the power of the Six Paths could Shisui accomplish such a feat.

Instead of forcibly twisting a person's will, his dōjutsu now evolved into a process with real logical coherence and self-consistency.

If one were simply forced to change their mind, there was always a risk that, if prompted, they could recall inconsistencies and realize something was amiss.

Now, with the power of the Six Paths reinforcing it, the illusion was airtight and left no room for doubt.

Understanding this, Uchiha Akira felt slightly more at ease.

Just as he was about to withdraw from the genjutsu space, a thought struck him, and he asked,

"Shisui, in your setup, who exactly resolved her hatred? Don't tell me it's me. I'm not the type to give grand speeches."

Shisui chuckled awkwardly. "Uh, Akira, I kind of instinctively set it up that way..."

Akira's mouth twitched at the response.

He was terrible at persuasion and had no interest in playing the role of a wise mentor.

"So when I talk to Hikari in the future, she won't notice anything strange, right?" Akira asked, still feeling uneasy.

After all, only Hikari, the one affected by Kotoamatsukami, truly knew how her hatred had been dissolved. If the details ever came up in conversation, the illusion could unravel instantly.

"Uh..." Shisui's face changed as he realized the flaw.

One problem had been solved, but a new, even trickier one had emerged.

Seeing Shisui's troubled expression, Akira sighed in exasperation.

"Shisui, you've really set me up for disaster!"

Just imagining himself struggling to bluff his way through future conversations made Akira's temples throb. This was going to be a headache.

"Akira, you're the Hokage! You'll be fine!" Shisui laughed nervously, realizing that his impulsive decision had created trouble.

He thought to himself regretfully, Maybe I should have just used Kotoamatsukami without any additional conditions.

"What are you two whispering about over here?" Suddenly, Hikari's voice rang out.

Both of them turned to look and saw the illusionary world shift as Hikari's figure materialized.

As an Uchiha, and a Ten-Tails Jinchūriki no less, her perception was razor-sharp, and her Mangekyō Sharingan dōjutsu was deeply tied to illusions. It was no surprise that she had detected their secret conversation.

Akira's eyes darted to Shisui before he smirked.

"Shisui's not getting any younger, so I was giving him a pep talk about finding a girlfriend."

Shisui's expression stiffened. He had just opened his mouth to protest when he caught Akira's sharp warning glance and quickly forced an awkward smile.

"Tch. How boring." Hikari snorted, giving Akira a cold glance before remarking dryly, "Someone here is much older than Shisui. Shouldn't he be the one worrying about that?"

With that, she vanished from the illusionary space.

As she left, Akira and Shisui exchanged glances.

"Is it just me, or has her personality changed a lot?" Akira mused.

"Yeah... it does feel pretty drastic," Shisui admitted.

Though Kotoamatsukami was his technique, the way it altered someone's personality was beyond his control.

Akira shook his head. "Forget it."

With that, he dispelled the genjutsu, and their consciousnesses returned fully to reality.

Akira had already made up his mind—he would minimize contact with Hikari from now on to avoid exposing any inconsistencies.

No one, not even a Ten-Tails Jinchūriki wielding the power of the Six Paths, should be underestimated.

Every dōjutsu had its limits, and he had to tread carefully.

"What do you plan to do about Nagato? I only managed to seize a portion of the Ten-Tails from him," Hikari's voice interrupted his thoughts.

She was now intently watching the battle between Nagato and Jigen.

Before Akira could answer, she continued, "Speaking of which, who is that fighting Nagato? He's stronger than I expected."

"That's Jigen," Akira explained. "A lot has happened while you were away from Konoha. I'll fill you in once this is over."

He then added, "As for Nagato, we need to extract the Ten-Tails from him."

Akira turned to Hikari. "And that might require your help."

"Me?" Hikari raised an eyebrow.

Akira nodded. "Nagato's Ten-Tails and yours were once a single entity. There might be a way to use that connection to pull it away from him."

Hikari folded her arms, her expression unreadable. "That depends on whether we can subdue him first."

Meanwhile, Shisui looked toward Tobirama with a troubled expression.

The moment he realized Tobirama was caught in an illusion, Shisui had attempted to dispel it, but to no avail.

Noticing this, Hikari smirked smugly. "That's my dōjutsu—Hachisen. It's not so easily broken."

Akira shot Hikari a look. "You should release the illusion on the former Hokage."

At that moment, Tsunade and Uchiha Fugaku arrived, having sensed the situation was under control.

Akira gave them a knowing glance, and they immediately understood what had transpired.

"You damn Uchiha brat! I'll kill you with my own hands!" Tobirama's furious roar echoed as he lunged at Hikari, kunai in hand, his killing intent surging.

Hikari remained unfazed, showing no emotional reaction.

To her, controlling Tobirama had been a necessary measure to ensure her own safety while extracting the Ten-Tails. Now that the task was done, it was up to the Hokage to explain things.

Akira flashed forward, intercepting Tobirama's strike and gripping his wrist tightly.

"Second Hokage, calm down! She is one of Konoha's own!"

Tobirama hesitated, his piercing gaze locking onto Akira.

He could tell this man was an Uchiha—he'd recognize those features anywhere. But his eyes were unlike any Sharingan he had ever seen. Even the Mangekyō Sharingan wasn't this complex.

Shisui stepped forward. "Second Hokage, he is the Fifth Hokage of Konoha."

"...The Fifth?" Tobirama's expression shifted from anger to bewilderment, his chakra settling.

"Second Granduncle!" Tsunade's voice rang out.

"Tsunade?" Tobirama turned toward the voice in surprise, his gaze landing on her for the first time.

Only then did he truly take in the battlefield before him—a wasteland of devastation, with monstrous energy still rippling through the air.

Even with all his experience, Tobirama had never witnessed destruction on such an immense scale. He stood in stunned silence, his mind struggling to grasp the sheer magnitude of the battle that had unfolded.