The leader of Root knew all too well what it meant to lose an arm.
It meant he would soon be deemed unfit for duty, squeezed out of his position as Root's commander, and reduced to someone expendable…
Danzo Shimura sat in silence, brooding.
The theft of the Sharingan had already left him seething—he had nearly coughed up blood in rage.
And now, to make matters worse, Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, had summoned him late at night. As the head of Root, he had no choice but to comply.
Hokage's Office
Hiruzen Sarutobi sat behind his desk, puffing on his pipe.
His sharp eyes scrutinized Danzo as he spoke in an even tone:
"Danzo, I am well aware that the Uchiha's Sharingan is in your possession tonight.
However, the Sharingan belongs to the village. It is only right that you hand it over to me for safekeeping."
Danzo's expression darkened.
Was this a negotiation? No, this was outright robbery!
So that was why Hiruzen had maintained his neutral stance earlier, allowing Danzo to handle the Uchiha issue however he pleased. Now it all made sense—this old schemer had been waiting for the right moment to take the spoils for himself!
And now, using his Hokage authority, he was pressuring Danzo into submission?
Hypocrite.
Already enraged over the stolen Sharingan, Danzo's face turned as dark as ink. His voice was cold and sharp:
"Sarutobi, I'm afraid you'll be disappointed. The Sharingan was stolen tonight.
Root has been searching all night, but we found no trace of the thief."
Hiruzen narrowed his eyes. His voice, now tinged with suspicion, grew colder.
"Do you really expect me to believe that, Danzo? You insult my intelligence."
Danzo nearly spat out blood in frustration.
This isn't an excuse! It's the truth!
He had truly lost the Sharingan, yet Hiruzen refused to believe him.
Did the Hokage think he was lying just to keep the eyes for himself?
What a ridiculous misunderstanding!
But no matter how aggrieved he felt, Danzo had no evidence to prove his innocence. The thief had covered their tracks perfectly, leaving behind no clues.
Danzo clenched his fists. "Believe what you want. I don't have the Sharingan."
Hiruzen's expression darkened.
Danzo had been defying his authority far too often lately. And now, he dared to keep something as valuable as the Uchiha's Sharingan from him?
Perhaps it was time to remind Danzo who truly held power in Konoha.
"If your subordinates are so incompetent that they can't even handle a single mission,
Then perhaps there's no need for Root to exist."
The tension in the office thickened.
For a moment, the two old war comrades—once allies, now bitter rivals—locked eyes, each refusing to back down.
The battle between the Hokage and the Shadow of Konoha had reached a new turning point…
Meanwhile…
Kazuki, the one responsible for the theft, had been moving cautiously through the village all night.
With his concealment mask in place, he strolled casually through the streets, ensuring that Root's ninjas had failed to pick up his trail.
Once he was certain he was in the clear, he returned home and promptly went to sleep.
Little did he know, at that very moment in the Hokage's office, Hiruzen and Danzo were at each other's throats because of his actions.
If Kazuki had witnessed the two old men tearing into each other over something he had stolen, he would have laughed himself to sleep.
The Uchiha Massacre Aftermath
A few days later, all of Konoha was abuzz with shocking news:
Uchiha Itachi, the eldest son of the Uchiha clan, had annihilated his entire family.
The incident sent shockwaves through the village.
Some were horrified, others grim, while some could only sigh at the tragedy.
It quickly became the hottest topic of conversation.
At the same time, Konoha's security had noticeably tightened.
The village's Anbu Black Ops had taken over the former duties of the Uchiha Police Force.
Even in broad daylight, Kazuki could spot Anbu agents—masked figures lurking in the shadows, moving swiftly across rooftops as they scoured the village for any signs of suspicious activity.
The storm in Konoha had only just begun.
However, Kazuki didn't care about it at all.
A suspicious person?
What did that have to do with him?
He was a talented young shinobi of Konoha, an heir to the Will of Fire with deep roots in the village!
Kazuki felt no shame or guilt when thinking about himself. Of course, to avoid suspicion, he had always kept the Sharingan hidden in his storage ring since obtaining it, never once taking it out.
A month later, it seemed that both Sarutobi Hiruzen and Shimura Danzo had given up hope of recovering the stolen Sharingan, leading to the withdrawal of Konoha's heightened security measures.
Another month passed.
Winter arrived, and the people of Konoha gradually lost interest in discussing the Uchiha clan's massacre. The once-great first ninja clan of Konoha had been buried alongside the falling snow, fading into obscurity. Since then, their name was rarely spoken of again.
Two more months passed.
With the arrival of the new year, Konoha entered its 58th year. Kazuki was now 11 years old.
During these past few months, he had gradually obtained several two-star and three-star forging blueprints:
Small Enchantment Crystal Ball (Two Stars) – Creates a five-square-meter space that isolates sound, light, and external interference.Tracker (Two Stars) – When placed on a target, allows tracking of their geographic location for 30 days.Silver Ice Bow (Three Stars) – An ice-attribute weapon capable of firing ice arrows with a range of 500 meters.
However, none of these compared to Kazuki's most prized creation—the Eye of Three Tomoe Sharingan.
The moment he had obtained the Sharingan, his system had already marked the task as complete, revealing the blueprint for forging the Three Tomoe Eye in his mind.
As expected, the Sharingan itself was the most critical material in forging the Eye of Three Tomoe. But what truly shocked him was the difficulty level—the forging blueprint was rated at four stars!
Understanding the significance of the Sharingan as a non-renewable resource, Kazuki exercised extreme caution. Despite having multiple Sharingan in his possession, he knew he had to ensure the highest possible success rate.
Thus, he spent an entire month meticulously preparing before even attempting the forge.
When the time finally came, he carefully followed the complex forging process, step by step. The difficulty of a four-star blueprint was far beyond anything he had encountered before, requiring hundreds of intricate steps.
This level of complexity was unprecedented in Kazuki's previous forging experience. He dared not relax for even a second, focusing all his attention on the forging table, striving for perfection at every stage.
Fortunately, his extensive practice with forging one-star, two-star, and three-star weapons, along with his rigorous physical training, had built up both his mental and physical endurance. Despite the enormous challenge, he pushed forward relentlessly.
Days and nights blurred together.
At last, on the forging table, the shape of the Three Tomoe Sharingan began to take form...
"Ding! Forging successful. Obtained: Eye of Three Tomoe Sharingan!"
Kazuki's efforts had paid off—his first attempt was a success!
A scarlet bead, roughly the size of a human eyeball, rested in his palm. Three comma-like tomoe adorned its surface, radiating an ominous glow.
Excitement flashed in Kazuki's eyes as he checked his system.
[Eye of Three Tomoe Sharingan]
Rank: Four-star weapon (Upgradeable)Attribute: Illusion-basedSkill: Releases A-rank Genjutsu (Usable 3 times, cooldown: 1 day)Contract: No
Kazuki's heart pounded.
An A-rank Genjutsu?!
Even among elite shinobi, Genjutsu was a difficult art to master. Even Kurenai Yuhi, Konoha's foremost Genjutsu specialist, could only use B-rank illusions at best.
Even the legendary Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, who created the Bringer-of-Darkness Technique, had only classified it as A-rank.
And now, with this newly forged Three Tomoe Sharingan, Kazuki could cast one of the strongest A-rank illusions, on par with the best the Uchiha clan could achieve—second only to the Mangekyō Sharingan!
His strength had taken another massive leap forward.
The only drawback? A one-day cooldown after using the ability three times.
With a drop of his own blood, Kazuki formed a contract with the Three Tomoe Sharingan and carefully stored it away, ready for future battles.
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