Natsume sat on the floor, a bit dumbfounded.
Before he could react, Tsunade had already thrown on a coat and fled the crime scene.
"How is this my fault?"
Natsume shook his head, opened the door, and left the room.
In the hall, both Tsunade and Shizune were gone. Only a little loli, Kurama Yakumo, remained.
She hadn't gone home last night and slept here.
"Good morning, big brother."
Kurama Yakumo greeted him politely.
"Yakumo, you can head back for now."
Natsume smiled and reminded her, "Sensei's pretty busy these days, she might not have the time."
"Mm."
Kurama Yakumo nodded. "Lady Tsunade already told me what's going on. I'll come back tomorrow."
After seeing her off, Natsume went to the Daimyo's residence in the Land of Waves.
"Shisui, how have things been these past two days? How's everyone's mood?"
"Barely stabilized."
Shisui gave a slight bow. "On behalf of the remaining members of the Uchiha clan, thank you for saving our lives."
"There's no need."
Natsume helped him up. "From now on, settle down in the Land of Waves. One day, the glory of the Uchiha will return."
"If you need anything, just command us."
Shisui clearly knew how to return a favor.
And he understood Natsume wasn't a pure-hearted good guy.
With his power, he obviously could have stopped Itachi, yet he didn't.
Either he looked down on the Uchiha radicals, or he had his own special goal.
Either way, compared to complete annihilation, this was already the best outcome.
Shisui didn't dare hope for more.
"I actually do have something to discuss with you."
Natsume didn't hold back. "I want you to give me your Mangekyō Sharingan, and then transplant Fugaku's eyes."
He'd tested this earlier.
If he fused Fugaku's Mangekyō Sharingan into his own, upgrading to Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan while keeping four ocular techniques, it would cost 1,000 Fate Points.
But using Shisui's would reduce the cost to just 300.
The difference came from bloodline proximity.
Shisui's new Mangekyō came from his ancestor Uchiha Kagami.
Compared to Fugaku, the blood relation was clearly closer.
Natsume's only worry was that Shisui might refuse.
Though both are Mangekyō Sharingan, the awakened techniques differ.
Fugaku's techniques looked busted on paper but were actually quite limited.
Fate often changes drastically due to tiny shifts, making the future unrecognizable.
His ocular ability only sees the greatest possibility at this very moment.
A few minutes or hours later, the result could change again.
Most importantly, the cooldown was far too long.
Even more absurd than Kotoamatsukami.
As for the abilities awakened by Shisui's Mangekyō Sharingan, Natsume didn't know.
But generally speaking, they wouldn't be bad.
"Alright."
Shisui agreed without much hesitation.
Right now, his priorities were the Uchiha first, the Konoha second.
"But you need to promise me one condition."
His gaze was sharp. "If one day you become Hokage, I want the Uchiha to return to Konoha."
Natsume hadn't concealed his identity from him.
As Tsunade's student with unmatched strength, becoming Hokage was practically a certainty.
"I promise."
Natsume patted his shoulder. "From today, you're the Uchiha clan head, and a future Hokage advisor."
He casually promised a pile of benefits.
Shisui's weak point was simple.
Being able to win him over with this was a steal.
Natsume called Kabuto to perform the eye transplant for Shisui, then spent 300 Fate Points to absorb his Mangekyō Sharingan.
Two new ocular techniques appeared in his mind.
Left eye: Yomi-no-Izumi — can make someone forget a certain segment of memory for a set time.
Right eye: Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto — casts a massive domain that can accelerate the user or slow enemies.
The Mangekyō Sharingan is called the Eye that Reflects the Heart.
Both techniques are deeply tied to the awakener.
For example, Obito's Kamui was because he wanted to tear away and escape this world.
Shisui's two techniques were easy to understand too.
Yomi-no-Izumi:
After witnessing Itachi's crimes, he remembered it was he who taught Itachi the Will of Fire, and so he wished he could make him forget.
Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto:
He wanted time to flow backward and return to the past. But because that's too heaven-defying, it's heavily nerfed.
For Natsume, Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto was undoubtedly a god-tier skill.
Whether in combat, or in other situations.
Ahem.
Because of the surgery, Shisui needed a few days' rest.
When Natsume left the room, he bumped into Mikoto.
Her complexion had basically recovered; she looked quite spirited.
"Aunt Mikoto."
"Natsume."
Mikoto's eyes brightened slightly. "How's Sasuke now?"
"He's awakened his Sharingan; he's alright."
Natsume paused, then added, "And the village plans to let him keep living normally."
"When can I see him?"
Mikoto finally let out a breath and immediately asked, unable to wait.
"Mm, give it a few more days."
Natsume was thinking once Tsunade became Hokage, it wouldn't matter—easy to arrange.
"Thank you."
After sincerely thanking him, Mikoto asked, "When do we start on the Mangekyō Sharingan?"
That question gave Natsume a bit of a headache.
Awakening the Mangekyō isn't that simple.
Suddenly, a lightbulb went off. "When we go see Sasuke, let's try to trigger an emotional response."
Mikoto froze for a moment.
So he wanted to use maternal love to push her into awakening Mangekyō?
She didn't ask further and nodded in agreement.
After saying goodbye to her, Natsume returned to the Konoha.
…
Tsunade was sitting on the sofa, looking unwell.
"What's going on?"
Natsume pulled Shizune over to learn the details.
After hearing it, he was surprised.
Sarutobi Seinosuke's wife miscarried, and Sarutobi Konohamaru died as a result.
Something's off here.
Could it be Danzo?
"It's fine, go on."
Natsume gave Shizune a reassuring look and sat down beside Tsunade.
He took her left hand and started fiddling with it.
Soft and warm, like a piece of warm jade—he couldn't put it down.
Tsunade's tense expression gradually relaxed.
As a medical ninja, having a life vanish right before her eyes had made her uncomfortable.
But with Natsume fussing over her like this, she calmed down.
"Hey, isn't your birthday coming up?"
At that, Tsunade frowned; she hated birthdays now.
Because she was getting older.
"Let's go to the beach."
Natsume lifted his head and whispered sweetly, "I bought a really great present."
Yup, a sexy swimsuit.
Heh heh.
Tsunade's irritation vanished instantly, replaced by anticipation.
She reached out to ruffle his hair. "Then I'll be waiting for your present."