As the sound of approaching footsteps echoed closer, Shisui's expression turned anxious. "It must be a clan jonin. If they discover us, our plan to take the Sharingan will fall apart."
With that, he quickly pressed a hidden mechanism and led Naruto into a concealed tunnel.
While hiding inside, Naruto remarked with amusement, "I didn't expect there to be a secret passage here. Looks like you've had your eye on these Sharingan for a while now."
"That's because Grandpa Kagami told me about it…"
Shisui began to explain, but his expression darkened as he thought of Shimura Danzo.
If Kagami hadn't been friends with Danzo, Shisui wouldn't have trusted Danzo's lies and walked right into Root's trap.
Naruto chuckled. "Sometimes you have to die once to see things clearly."
Shisui was about to reply when voices from outside interrupted him. He fell silent, and Naruto perked up his ears, trying to gather any useful intel.
---
There were quite a few Uchiha gathered in the underground chamber of the Naka Shrine.
Among them was Clan Head Fugaku, along with both the hardliners and the so-called moderates. In truth, even the moderates weren't against revolting—they were just more concerned that a failed coup would doom the clan entirely.
As for the Uchiha who once believed in peaceful coexistence with the Hokage—Shisui—he had been missing for six months and was presumed dead.
After surveying the jonin in front of him, Fugaku nodded. "Looks like everyone's here. Let's begin planning our attack on the Hokage building. Speak freely—let's work together to create a flawless strategy."
"My proposal is to stabilize the rest of the village first, then focus on storming the Hokage building."
"No, that'll spread our forces too thin. We should strike the Hokage building directly—no other clans dare stand against us."
"I think…"
As the Uchiha jonin discussed their plans, Shisui's expression grew increasingly grim.
He wasn't angry that the clan was plotting a coup—he was troubled by the stark power gap between the Uchiha and the village. No matter how perfect the plan, the Uchiha didn't stand a chance of victory.
Naruto frowned as well, disappointed by their so-called strategy.
The Uchiha's plan was to release prisoners to divert the attention of the ANBU and other security forces, then launch a surprise attack on the Hokage building, aiming to assassinate Hiruzen and seize control.
On the surface, it sounded flawless.
But the fatal flaw was that they didn't have the strength to defeat the Third Hokage. And with the Sarutobi, Shimura, and other powerful clans behind him, even a brief respite would allow the village to annihilate the Uchiha completely.
As Naruto kept listening, he even heard his own name mentioned.
In order to increase their chances, the Uchiha intended to seize control of Naruto beforehand and use the Nine-Tails' power. They even discussed sending Sasuke to build a relationship with the jinchūriki.
Naruto yawned in boredom and started flipping through his newly acquired training memories.
After about an hour, the meeting finally concluded. With the sound of fading footsteps, Fugaku and the other jonin exited the Naka Shrine.
Once they were gone, Naruto and Shisui emerged from the tunnel. Shisui's face was clouded with gloom.
Naruto noticed and said with mock seriousness, "So what do you think of their coup plan? Who knows, maybe it'll bring forth the Fifth Hokage—assuming they can actually kill the Third."
Shisui said nothing. He walked to the altar and began placing Sharingan into a special storage container.
Once he had collected them all, he finally spoke, voice low and resolute: "You're right. If the clan continues down this path, it'll only lead to self-destruction. The only way out is to lead them away from Konoha."
"These Sharingan shouldn't be wasted in a doomed rebellion—they should be used to secure a real future."
Naruto gave him a meaningful smile. "So what's your next move? Secretly contact your close friends? Or reach out to the more moderate Uchiha and try to persuade them to join your escape plan?"
"The Shisui who once tried reasoning is dead. All that's left is the ruthless version. Since we're all Uchiha, we'll let our fists do the talking. I'll make them listen."
Shisui's eyes burned with growing determination, and his path became ever clearer.
After packing up the Sharingan, the two prepared to leave the Naka Shrine.
Just before exiting, Naruto paused in front of the Uchiha's ancient stone tablet, rumored to hold the clan's greatest secrets. He stared at it for a moment and asked, "Shisui, has the bottom of this stone always been blank?"
Shisui stopped as well. "It's always been blank. Looks like no one got around to carving the rest."
"I wonder what was supposed to be written there. Could it be hiding some shocking truth?"
Naruto's voice was tinged with regret, then he added thoughtfully, "But even the part that is written is already disturbing enough. To awaken the Mangekyō, you have to kill the one you love most. Your clan is brutal—do you think anyone has ever created an 'accident' just to unlock those eyes?"
"Some have tried," Shisui said quietly, shaking his head. "But they all failed. Someone who gains the Mangekyō that way would never truly care about the clan again."
He feared Naruto might try to artificially engineer a Mangekyō awakening, which would only lead to more tragic fratricide or patricide in the clan.
---
After leaving the Naka Shrine, one man quietly returned.
It was none other than Uchiha Fugaku.
He glanced at the stone tablet near the entrance, eyes narrowing slightly, then walked toward the room where the Sharingan were stored. Standing before the jars containing the eyes, he fell into deep thought.
As clan head, Fugaku knew many of the Uchiha's forbidden techniques.
Izanagi, Izanami, and the Transcription Seal used to transfer ocular power—these jutsu surpassed ordinary ninjutsu, and using them came at a steep price: complete blindness in the Sharingan.
To protect the clan, knowledge of these techniques was restricted to a very few.
Fugaku hesitated. Should he reveal these techniques to the jonin? Doing so would greatly increase the chances of a successful coup, but it might also cause the forbidden arts to spiral out of control.
While pondering, Fugaku casually opened one of the containers—only to find it empty.
The Sharingan was gone.
His eyes widened, and he looked around in disbelief. When he confirmed that no one else was present, his expression darkened.
Very few people knew that Sharingan were stored beneath the Naka Shrine.
Aside from him and a few retired clan elders, no one should have had access. Had someone from within moved the Sharingan? Or had an outsider managed to infiltrate and steal them?
But what would an outsider want with Sharingan? Without Uchiha blood, they were more burden than boon.
Only those who knew the forbidden arts could fully utilize them.
(End of Chapter)
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