Shōen Uchiha's gaze swept over Akizawa Uchiha before landing on Shirakawa's group of three.
When he saw Yuhaku, he frowned slightly.
There was no mistake—it must have been these three who attacked the clan members. But what was going on with Akizawa?
The dozen or so Uchiha jōnin were clearly surprised to see Akizawa standing with outsiders. Their confusion quickly turned to anger.
Shirakawa turned to Akizawa and said, "I advise you to kill them all. Otherwise, if the information leaks, they might harm your sister."
Akizawa surveyed everyone present with a blank expression. "A dozen jōnin plus the Great Elder. There are too many of them. If they run, I won't be able to catch them all."
"Well, since you agreed to cooperate with me, I will naturally help you."
Shirakawa snapped his fingers lightly.
A purple barrier suddenly rose from the ground on all sides, trapping everyone inside.
Akizawa glanced at the barrier and fell silent.
Everything was within this man's calculations. Such an enemy was truly terrifying.
Shōen surveyed the barrier and took a step forward. "You're Akizawa, right? Can you tell me what's going on?"
Akizawa didn't speak. The Sharingan in his eyes spun rapidly, eventually morphing into the complex pattern of a Mangekyō.
He wanted to test whether the Great Elder knew about the Mangekyō's existence.
If he didn't know, then Madara Uchiha was lying. If he did know... then there would be no turning back.
Seeing Akizawa's Mangekyō, Shōen understood everything.
He sighed heavily. "As I thought."
The Uchiha jōnin began to whisper among themselves.
"Akizawa's Sharingan... what is that?"
"It's not a three-tomoe. I've never seen a pattern like that before."
"Shut up!" Shōen shouted in a low voice. "That is the forbidden power of the Uchiha, the Mangekyō Sharingan. Do not be careless."
Hearing this, Akizawa spoke calmly. "Great Elder, since you know of the Mangekyō's existence, I assume I don't need to explain further."
"An explanation isn't necessary, but I am very curious. Where did you learn how to awaken the Mangekyō, and who are the three people behind you?"
"Since you're all going to die anyway, it doesn't matter if I tell you. These three are just puppets—Madara Uchiha's puppets."
Hearing Madara's name, the Great Elder's face changed drastically. "Impossible! He's already dead."
"That is the truth, which is why I awakened the Mangekyō."
Akizawa stopped talking, and his Mangekyō began to spin.
The Great Elder knew how terrifying the Mangekyō was and quickly warned his men. "Everyone, don't look at his eyes! Be careful of his dōjutsu!"
But his warning was useless. Akizawa wasn't using genjutsu. His Mangekyō ability was a physical attack.
"Amaterasu!"
Black flames suddenly ignited on one of the Uchiha, followed by a second, and then a third.
Ten seconds later, every single body was burning with black flames. Even the Great Elder was no exception.
A strange smell began to permeate the air, and painful screams reached their ears.
Blood trickled from Akizawa's eyes. His expression was complicated as he whispered, "It's over."
The Mangekyō slowly closed.
Shirakawa fell into deep thought.
Can Amaterasu really burn people to death?
Hmm...
Amaterasu is completely useless against me. Even if this body is a substitute, I have other ways to deal with it.
For example, the Shell-Breaking Jutsu I developed myself. In my fusion mode with Makoto, I also have the ability to manipulate physical changes. At worst, I could just cut off whatever part is burning.
It's a substitute anyway; as long as I consume some lifespan, it can grow back.
Speaking of which, it seems I'm really not a normal person anymore. I'm barely classifiable as a pervert.
Wait, is it too arrogant to compare a "pervert" to ordinary people?
Except for the Great Elder, almost everyone else had died instantly upon contact. This dōjutsu that could burn you to death just by looking at you was simply a mobile slaughterhouse for the weak.
Sure enough, an Uchiha who has awakened the Mangekyō is a true Uchiha.
But to kill them so easily... all these preparations he made...
Alright, it was all for nothing.
Without comparison, there's no pain. Shirakawa felt a little bit of defeat in his heart.
I spent half a day setting this up, and you solved it with a single glance.
So what if your bloodline is good? Look how capable you are!
He would never admit he was jealous. Damn it.
"You just said you couldn't catch them, and in the blink of an eye, you've dealt with the entire group. You did it on purpose, didn't you?"
Akizawa replied faintly, "I just didn't expect them to be so weak."
"..."
The barrier began to dissipate, and Akizawa slowly walked out.
As he passed by the Great Elder, he looked down at the old man who was still struggling and said, "Go in peace. I will do what I must."
Hearing this, the Great Elder's painful expression froze. He looked up at Akizawa, the Sharingan in his eyes spinning rapidly.
"This is..."
Akizawa's eyes suddenly widened, then returned to calm.
He sighed, raised his hand, and shot a shuriken straight into the man's heart.
The Great Elder showed a look of relief, his eyes finally closing.
Shirakawa noticed this exchange and seemed lost in thought.
In the plot, Itachi and Sasuke could exchange information just by looking at each other. He couldn't spy on mental exchanges in the world of genjutsu.
Could these two have already exchanged information?
It seemed he still needed to be on his guard.
"Aren't you going to cooperate with me? Hurry up and follow, I still have many things to ask you."
Akizawa's impatient voice called out, and Shirakawa smiled. "Coming right away!"
The group walked further and further away until they disappeared from sight.
A gust of wind blew, and the Great Elder, who had supposedly been burned to ashes, suddenly reappeared out of thin air.
He gasped for air, one eye tightly closed. He glanced in the direction they had left, quickly got up, and disappeared after a few leaps.
Gisei Shiraishi slowly walked out from behind a tree not far away, a smile on his lips.
"Izanagi... the Uchiha's forbidden dōjutsu."
The Great Elder and Akizawa must have already made contact. He wanted to see what these two were planning to do.
To deal with him, they had to find him first. As long as he hid deep enough, not even that spirited fellow Black Zetsu could find him.
As for why he used Madara to deceive Akizawa? It was because Madara's name was very useful.
He originally just wanted to test if Akizawa could awaken the Mangekyō, but not only did he awaken it, he also possessed power beyond his imagination.
This first step had gone slightly awry.
Judging from the result, it wasn't all bad, but what should he do next?
Try to lure him into awakening the Eternal Mangekyō?
Judging from Akizawa's sister-complex attribute, he would most likely fulfill Rinka Uchiha's wish.
So the question is: how should he manipulate Rinka to awaken the Mangekyō?