Chapter 498: The Sage of Six Paths
So, Ishiro had rescued Shisui Uchiha from the bottom of the cliff. Itachi, seizing the opportunity during their conversation, had unleashed the inextinguishable Amaterasu on him.
Who would have thought that Ishiro was already prepared? What Itachi had seen from the very beginning was just one of Ishiro's porcelain clones.
When the clone was burned by Amaterasu and crumbled into chakra-less rock, Itachi finally saw the real Ishiro, who had been hidden from view.
However, Itachi could no longer tell if this Ishiro was, like the last one, another clone meant to bait his attack.
What made him feel most powerless was that his newly awakened Mangekyo Sharingan had deactivated after that single dōjutsu. Although he knew it was temporary, a result of not having fully mastered the power, the sudden disappearance of his greatest trump card at such a critical moment made him feel as though he had been toyed with by fate.
Although Ishiro had deliberately avoided eye contact and hadn't seen the change in Itachi's eyes, he could feel his aura suddenly weaken. The change was so obvious that even without his Mind's Eye, he could have clearly identified it and made an accurate judgment.
That's more like it. When Sōkai first awakened his Mangekyo, he fell unconscious. Even if Itachi is a genius, he should be at his limit after using a dōjutsu, Ishiro concluded.
However, he did not immediately move to kill Itachi. Instead, he said, "I will trade Shisui Uchiha's life for the Sharingan in your hand."
"At the same time, I give you my word as the Tsuchikage: I will let you leave safely and will not trouble you further."
Ishiro's Mind's Eye had not yet recovered. He could wait a bit and talk, but he had already decided that if Itachi tried any more tricks, he would take the eyes by force.
With three Mangekyo Sharingan on the field, he felt it wasn't impossible to snatch one or two. Although Itachi's was less valuable than Shisui's, it was still better than getting nothing when Konoha's reinforcements arrived.
Sensing Ishiro's undisguised killing intent, Itachi said directly, "I don't trust the Tsuchikage's guarantee. I don't think you have any reason to let us go."
He was trying to stall for time, both for reinforcements to arrive and for his dōjutsu to recover.
Ishiro smiled. "Killing you both directly would certainly be beneficial to me. But if I can publicize the fact that Konoha's leadership is targeting Uchiha geniuses, I think that's also a good option. So, if Shisui lives, he can be used to sow discord between your clan and Konoha's leadership. That's no loss for me."
"And if I can get his Mangekyo in the process, that's even better. How's that for a reason? Does it fit my style?"
Ishiro didn't know the specific relationship between Itachi and Konoha's leadership and was trying to sow some discord.
Itachi asked again, "Lord Tsuchikage, after the exchange, how can I trust that you will let us go?"
Ishiro sighed. "I already told you, I give you my word as the Tsuchikage. You need to understand, we are enemies. A transaction between us can never be perfect."
As they spoke, the change in Ishiro's Mind's Eye was complete.
He sensed it for a moment. As expected, his maximum perception range had doubled again. He could now sense things one hundred and sixty kilometers away. His Mind's Eye had taken another huge step on the path of a Beyond-S-Rank jutsu.
Unfortunately, there weren't many geniuses left in the Uchiha clan to give him another free ride. Otherwise, with a few more evolutions, he might really be able to sit in his office and monitor the entire shinobi world.
He pulled his thoughts back. "The people looking for you are coming. You're out of time. Tell me, the eye, or his life?"
"By the way, I can tell you something. Your big brother Shisui once activated the ultimate dōjutsu of the Mangekyo with a single eye: Susanoo. As long as you get the other eye and transplant it back for him, he can regain his Kage-level strength. Losing one Mangekyo is not a big deal. Make your choice."
Itachi sensed his impatience. He didn't dare to bet his brother Shisui's life on Ishiro's patience. "I choose Brother Shisui. But you have to give him back to me first, then I will give you his Mangekyo."
Ishiro smiled faintly. "You have no experience in negotiation. Let me teach you. You're not willing to give me the eye first, and I'm not willing to release him first. How about this? We each take a step back."
With that, as Itachi's eyes blazed with fury, Ishiro tore one of Shisui's arms off.
"This is for you first, as a show of my sincerity. I've made a concession. Now it's your turn," he said calmly, tossing the arm to Itachi.
Itachi's heart sank. I'm still too naive. Trying to play mind games with someone who has spent his life scheming was foolish.
He didn't dare to hesitate any longer and threw the Mangekyo he was holding. Ishiro caught it and inspected it. "It would have been better if you'd just done this from the start."
With that, he released the porcelain seal on Shisui and tossed him to Itachi as well.
Itachi sealed Shisui's severed arm in a scroll, then, holding Shisui with one hand and a sword in the other, he quickly retreated.
Watching Itachi flee toward Konoha, the porcelain clone in the air did nothing.
But the real Ishiro, hidden in the shadows, quickly formed hand seals, preparing to unleash a devastating attack in Itachi's direction.
But just at that moment, a sense of crisis that made his hair stand on end suddenly appeared.
The feeling came out of nowhere, without any warning, and it was extremely intense. Ishiro couldn't even determine what level the person giving him this feeling was at. At the very least, Nagato could not give him such a feeling.
Without a second thought, Ishiro aborted the jutsu, turned, and ran. At the same time, the clone in the air made the same choice.
Because he was already prepared for a quick getaway, his movements were smooth. One second, he was filled with the determination to land a killing blow; the next, he was already dozens of meters away.
He ran without stopping, not halting until he was over ten kilometers away and the fleeting sense of crisis had completely vanished.
After a while, the clone that had fled with him arrived. After taking Shisui's eye from it, Ishiro turned to look in Konoha's direction and let out a soft sigh.
Before and during the casting of the jutsu, his Mind's Eye had been monitoring everything around him. He was 100% certain that there was no living being nearby that could threaten him.
And yet, he had felt that death threat so vividly.
There was only one possibility. The existence that had given him that warning was not something he could currently comprehend. Its level was far above his. If it hadn't deliberately revealed its presence, he would never have known it was there.
"The Sage of Six Paths!" Ishiro silently said the name he had long suspected.
If he hadn't been worried about the Sage interfering, why would he have wasted so many words on Itachi? Wouldn't it have been better to just kill him? With both brothers dead, Konoha's strength would be greatly diminished, and suppressing them would be much easier.
Today had been fruitful. At least he had confirmed that the Sage of Six Paths was indeed watching over his two sons. He wasn't, as Ishiro had initially imagined, awakened from his slumber only after sensing the revival of the God Tree.
Floating in the air, ten kilometers from Konoha, Ishiro's Mind's Eye remained fixed in that direction.
He struggled for a long time, then shouted loudly, "I am also trying to protect the shinobi world! The current world has no ability to resist an invasion from an external force!"
"I need to unify the world and increase its strength! Konoha only creates internal strife! Look at the Iwagakure I govern! Isn't its strength far greater than before?"
"If I unify the world, its strength will surely rise again, just like Iwagakure's! Our goals are the same! You can't stop me!"
"And I have never laid a hand on your sons! You are interfering with the normal development of the shinobi world! I won't accept it! This does not conform to the image of justice you created when you founded Ninshū!"
His words were filled with frustration, grievance, and unwillingness.
After he finished, he waited for a while. Nothing happened.
As expected, I was overthinking it. The Sage of Six Paths couldn't possibly care about the words of an ant like me, Ishiro thought.
But after a moment of silence, he spoke again. "I want compensation! Otherwise, I'll fire a Light Release at Itachi!"
With that, he flew a little higher, forming his hands into the cross-shape for Light Release, and aimed at the oblivious Itachi, who was ten kilometers away, checking on Shisui's injuries.
He didn't actually gather any Light Release chakra. He was nervous. What if the Sage wasn't some perfectly righteous being, but a petty person who went back on his word, just like him? What if the Sage found this ant too annoying and just slapped him to death? He didn't dare to take the risk, so his probing was very cautious.
But after he held the pose for a moment, a barely audible sigh echoed by his ear. Then, a spatial distortion appeared beside him, and an object suddenly fell out of it.
Ishiro was overjoyed. He snatched the object, stuffed it into his coat, and then flew toward Iwagakure without looking back.
At this moment, there was no longer any frustration, grievance, or unwillingness on his face. All that remained was pure joy.
"Big win! Big win! This trip was worth it!" Although he didn't know what the Sage had given him, he figured it couldn't be anything ordinary.
Konoha. Itachi took Shisui to a secluded place. He first bandaged his wounds, then woke him up.
"Brother Shisui, how are you feeling?" Itachi asked quickly.
Shisui couldn't see, but he was confused as to why he wasn't dead. "Itachi? Why am I not dead?"
Itachi said, "The Tsuchikage appeared in time and saved you from the bottom of the cliff. He traded your life for your Sharingan."
Shisui didn't care about his eye. Hearing Itachi mention it, he asked urgently, "Itachi, your Sharingan..."
Itachi knew what he was concerned about. "Don't worry, Brother Shisui. I have awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan."
Shisui sighed in relief. He had struggled to escape from Root and had insisted on dying in front of Itachi for the explicit purpose of stimulating him to awaken his eyes. Although the situation was dire, at least his dear little brother Itachi had awakened the Mangekyo. He now had the ability to protect himself and to mediate the relationship between the clan and the village.
He struggled, trying to get up.
Itachi quickly said, "Brother Shisui, don't move. Your left arm was torn off by the Tsuchikage. Rest now. I will find someone to reattach it for you later."
Shisui sighed. "Itachi, from now on, resolving the conflict between the clan and the village leadership is up to you. I believe you can do a better job than I did."
Hearing this, Itachi's face contorted. He cried out, tears streaming, "Brother Shisui, you're in this state, and you're still thinking about those bastards in the clan?!"
Shisui reached out with his good right hand and patted Itachi's head. "Itachi, it's not for any one clan member. It's for the entire clan, for the entire village."
"Itachi, don't act on emotion. Besides the radicals, there are many children in the clan, like Sasuke. For their sake, we must also be calm."
"Sasuke," Itachi murmured to himself.
Sure enough, hearing Sasuke's name, he calmed down. But the part about "children like Sasuke" didn't even register in his ears.
After a moment of silence, Itachi finally remembered to ask, "Brother Shisui, who took your right eye?"
Shisui hadn't told him before, fearing it would make Itachi resent Konoha's leadership. Now that he was alive and Itachi was asking, he no longer hid it. "It was Lord Danzō. He didn't trust me. He was afraid I would use Kotoamatsukami to control him and the other elders, so he took my eye."
Itachi's fists clenched. Through gritted teeth, he forced out two words: "Danzō..."
He was still a member of Root, Danzō's subordinate. In his mind, Danzō had been a respected senior, just like Grandpa Third.
But in that moment, Itachi had finally grown up. He began to see the village leadership from a different perspective.
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