Sarada sat in the grass, leaning her back against a tree and her bare shoulder against Shikamaru's shoulder. Chakra depletion weighed her body down with weakness. Her head still rang, her bandaged arm ached, her knuckles stung—the gloves offered little protection for delicate hands during such powerful strikes.
"I can't even stand," she murmured listlessly.
"Yeah..." Shikamaru echoed in the same tone.
A cool breeze whispered between the trees. Sarada tilted her head back. Patches of gray sky showed through the foliage gaps, but the sun still hid behind the clouds. Fights raged on the main arena; somewhere ahead, Mom and the Seventh were catching up to Dad, while Sarada lacked the strength to even stand. The wind rustled the leaves; a forest bird had stubbornly chirped the same note for minutes.
Sitting here in peace amid nature, it was strange to realize war raged around them. Fragments of eternal questions swirled in her head, and Sarada flitted from one to another because simple answers were impossible, and she wasn't in a state for deep, intense thought.
After everything she'd endured in the past year and a half, death had become a sharp topic for Sarada. Shisui had brought her to her senses, but death still held some exalted meaning for her, alluring... That great black abyss inexorably drawing in every living thing. Sometimes Sarada felt everything she did was meaningless. All of it meaningless. Her desires, aspirations, worries. Attempts to save loved ones, anxieties about the future. Everyone faced the same end anyway—death. Sooner or later. Better later than sooner, but what difference did it make if the outcome was the same? What were these battles for, these cries about the Will of Fire?
Sarada laboriously turned her head and looked at Shikamaru. He heard the movement, felt her gaze, and looked back. So close, a handspan or two away. Sarada, unembarrassed, studied his sparse lashes, sweat droplets on his forehead and cheeks, brown eyes, black pupils dilated in the grove's gloom. It took her a while to realize those same eyes were now looking at her.
A living person.
Sarada shifted her gaze to the motionless corpse of the Sound shinobi nearby. Looked back at Shikamaru. His gaze grew a bit confused. Shikamaru blinked rapidly, turned away, and grinned sheepishly.
"You can hypnotize even without the Sharingan, Sarada."
She blushed.
"Sorry."
She looked at the dead man again.
The feel of cool wind on her skin. The breath of a living person nearby: someone she trusted. Gray sky. Pain in her arm under the tight bandages and the heavy thump of her heart in her chest.
"For the first time, I feel this alive," she said suddenly, not knowing why.
Shikamaru gave her a strange look.
Shisui raced to the main arena at full speed. He'd managed to trap most of the Sand and Sound guests in range in genjutsu, and Ibiki, buoyed by the sudden turn in Leaf's favor, forgot about him. Jiraiya took the clash between teacher and former comrade philosophically and, for some reason, chose not to interfere.
But Shisui had no time for philosophy.
He'd never felt particular fondness for the Third Hokage, but his death right now was extremely inconvenient for all of them. One might think the head of a nearly extinct clan's remnants would wish death on the Hokage who'd allowed the massacre. But Shisui thought deeper. Despite all their disagreements and arguments, the Third kept his word. No one had touched Sasuke or Shisui once in six years. And since Sarada appeared and her unusual return was resolved, they'd left her alone too.
Hiruzen was protection for the Uchiha. He couldn't die. Not now.
After the Third's sudden death, they'd elect a new Hokage—who knew who that might be? What if Danzou? Then the persecution of the Uchiha would resume, and none of them would find peace in Leaf Village or beyond: because Konoha was their homeland, and a shinobi without a homeland couldn't dream of peace. Shisui wanted Sasuke and Sarada to become heirs to the Will of Fire, not outcasts hating the world and Leaf first and foremost. Under Danzou's rule, those kids would have only two paths: one—die at Danzou's and Root's hands; two—become missing-nin and one day return to Konoha like Orochimaru had, to destroy the village that was once home.
Moreover, Shisui didn't know how Itachi would react. If the first scenario happened and Sasuke died... Would Itachi swallow the new pain like all the past? Or would it finally overflow, bringing bloody horror back to Konoha to raze it to the ground?
The Third was too young to die. He needed to live. Retire and help choose a successor, like in the days when the Fourth was elected. Hiruzen had to insist the Fifth be someone sharing his ideals, not someone like Orochimaru or Danzou. The Third's life tied directly to Leaf's future. In any scenario where the Hokage was someone loyal to Root's leader's ideals, Leaf faced destruction at Uchiha hands. Or at Sasuke and Sarada's, or at Itachi's, avenging his loved ones. Shisui didn't consider the scenario where Itachi kept his sanity and stayed loyal to Konoha no matter what, because predicting his former friend's behavior was impossible—so he had to assume the worst.
And most importantly, Shisui didn't know what he'd do himself. Whose side he'd take: the kids he'd raised, or Konoha ready to impale him on spikes.
At least for that, you have to live, old man. So the day I have to choose between family and village, like Itachi once did, doesn't come.
He moved by shunshin and quickly reached the main arena.
The barrier Ibiki mentioned was impressive. The purple walls were uneven, shimmering, flowing. In places dense like black, elsewhere more transparent lilac. And inside, something terrifying was happening. The Kage box roof had changed beyond recognition: an earthen wall rose in its midst, thick tree trunks and roots visible everywhere.
This can't be Wood Style. Only the First-sama mastered that technique.
Shisui frowned and landed on the roof where the waiting ANBU squad lurked.
"What's the situation?"
The ANBU captain in a light hooded cloak turned to him. The white cat mask with red cheek stripes and flattened broad nose looked serious, even menacing. But despite their solidity, neither the leader nor the ANBU squad could do anything.
"Orochimaru used the forbidden Edo Tensei technique and revived the First-sama and Second-sama."
"So that's really Wood Style?" Shisui said, frowning deeper. "Never thought you'd know it..."
"Can't get through to them," the ANBU captain reported in a metallic voice.
"Hm. I'll try."
"Shunshin!..."
"Don't interfere."
Shisui examined the barrier. Even dojutsu couldn't detect a single flaw or gap. Those purple shimmers had nothing to do with vulnerability—just an optical illusion. In reality, the chakra was evenly distributed.
Mangekyō Sharingan.
His eyes ached from strain, but Shisui ignored it. The world changed. Through the Mangekyō, he could sense far subtler energy flows than with even a fully developed regular Sharingan.
There it is. Found it.
A tiny section weaker than the rest: press there, and the barrier's resistance could be breached.
Pain pierced every cell of his body. The world distorted from Susanoo's chakra. Shisui waited for the skeleton to form and struck the found gap with Susanoo's fist. A deafening screech rolled across the main arena from the impact; the barrier vibrated. The collision point with Shisui's chakra burst into flame, and he recoiled to the adjacent roof.
Damn. This isn't Sarada with her toys or Root barriers. This is serious.
Now he doubted he could break through. His Susanoo was developing and strengthening. Shisui rarely used the technique to avoid blinding himself and had never brought Susanoo to this level before. For the first time, he was creating its half-completed form—not just the skeleton, but the full upper body, armor...
He pushed off the roof and leaped onto the barrier. The purple energy platform under his feet ignited, but under Susanoo's protection, Shisui felt no burning. His whole body from eyes to toes already ached anyway.
The giant, wreathed in flames from barrier contact, swung its right arm, forming a conical weapon like a drill on the fly. Fights across the arena paused. Both Leaf shinobi and Sound attackers watched in amazement what unfolded over the Kage box. The drill struck the barrier plane, enveloped in flames, but the green demon didn't care. It swung again.
"What power?" Asuma marveled, mouth agape.
His smoking cigarette stuck to his lower lip without falling.
"And you said Uchiha," Kakashi muttered nervously.
He thought: *Interesting, is this just a technique or his Sharingan's power?*
The surviving Uchiha clan members didn't claim his eye—Obito's farewell gift—but loved reminding him Kakashi wasn't a blood dojutsu bearer and thus couldn't unlock its full potential. The Sharingan was a fearsome weapon, but until now, Kakashi hadn't suspected how much.
With the new strike, the barrier sagged, changing shape; the side planes rounded as if pressured from within. Kakashi noticed the ANBU squad on the roof by the barrier retreating. The leader signaled, and the dark-cloaked figures slipped away. The captain stayed at the roof edge, ready to follow his subordinates at any moment.
"This is bad," Kakashi said.
He was starting to understand what would happen next.
Shisui struck one last time. The drill pierced the upper plane with a deafening screech, and in the next instant, the entire barrier erupted in blinding light.
"Damn... Down!" Kakashi yelled and dropped into the aisle.
Asuma lay down and covered his head with his hands. An explosive shockwave of immense force slammed the stadium. Drowsy people on seats were swept from their places. Some slid into row aisles, others tumbled onto steps between sections, but the initially sleeping had support—they were fine. Gai hadn't grouped in time and was flung to the far wall.
The wave passed; Kakashi cautiously rose.
Shisui and his Susanoo plunged into the battlefield and landed on a twisted tree trunk. Hiruzen stood with legs wide, palms pressed together. Orochimaru looked around worriedly. The barrier was gone.
Shisui deactivated his Mangekyō and stood beside the Third.
"Uchiha Shisui. As always, untimely," Orochimaru said displeased. "First you interrupted my chat with your student, now you cut short my talk with my teacher."
"Third, you okay?" Shisui asked, ignoring Orochimaru.
"Hm," the old man only replied.
Behind the sannin stood the First and Second Hokage.
"Never thought," Shisui said quietly, "I'd get to fight the Founders."
The revived Hashirama Senju clasped his hands. Thick shoots burst from the tiled roof and struck straight at the motionless Hiruzen.
Shisui swiftly formed seals and exhaled flames, but his Sharingan saw the shoots weren't stopped. They charred but kept growing and slammed into the armor of the emerging Susanoo. Shisui breathed heavily; he had to activate the Mangekyō again. He and the Third were protected, but Hashirama showed no signs of stopping. Shoots chased Shisui and Hiruzen, brazenly trying to coil around the green giant.
Fire technique isn't enough. This damn tree grows faster than the flames burn it.
Shisui glanced back—no retreat. An earthen wall loomed behind, sprouting new shoots; twisted trunks blotted the sky above. Hashirama roared. Tiles bulged and cracked under the pressure of breakthrough trees racing toward them at wild speed.
"Damn it... Third, fire!"
Hiruzen nodded. He understood.
Shisui formed seals and exhaled a massive air vortex at the Wood Style. Slicing gusts shredded the sprouting branches. The Third inhaled deeply and breathed flames straight into Shisui's vortex. The combined Wind and Fire nature techniques merged into a mighty fire tornado that rolled toward Hashirama, incinerating his forest. The Second appeared before his brother and used Water Style. Amid the hiss of dying flames came the crack of expanding trees. Hashirama's Wood Style, unbound by barrier limits, spread beyond the Kage box, sprouting through stands, shifting sleeping spectators.
"There are people there!" Hiruzen exclaimed in despair. "Shisui-kun, you shouldn't have interfered..."
"Not shouldn't!" Shisui retorted fiercely. "I don't want you to die! Kakashi-san and ANBU are there. Our job—Orochimaru!"
In the hot mist shrouding the arena, his Sharingan saw enemy chakra. Kakashi killed three more. The steam gradually cleared.
So many jonin showed up.
He could see Asuma, Gai, and the others normally again. The ANBU squad dispersed across the arena, fighting the Sound Four. Trees sprouted through the stands. Concrete walls and steps cracked, releasing shoots that thickened into trunks before their eyes, literally demolishing rows where sleeping people sat and lay.
"The whole arena will collapse," Asuma noted.
Kakashi's sharp eye spotted members of another ANBU squad dispersing in a strange formation—a rectangle. Light flashed where their figures had been, and a new barrier enveloped the stadium stands—different, but similar to the previous one in its odd shimmers.
"What is that? Now we're trapped?!" Gai yelled.
"No," Kakashi replied. "ANBU. They protected the people. Don't slack, Gai!"
"Not a chance, my eternal rival!" the encouraged Gai exclaimed and smashed a frail Sound shinobi into the concrete. "This is the power of youth!"
A scorched clearing formed before them, shrouded in hot steam. They remained under Susanoo's protection, watching for nearby enemies.
"Shisui-kun, they can't be beaten," Hiruzen rasped. "Their bodies regenerate. We need to end the technique."
Shisui bit his lower lip until it bled and grimaced.
"I can trap Orochimaru in genjutsu," he said quietly, "and force him to dispel the Edo Tensei."
But for some reason, Hiruzen stayed silent. Didn't rush to agree.
"Third!"
"Great brothers... Their souls mustn't be defiled by this cursed technique. What if someone in the future wants to summon them again and use against Leaf?"
Shisui faltered.
"I know what to do. Buy me some time."
"How the hell do you plan to end Edo Tensei?" the voice trembled with strain.
"You'll see. Just buy me some time."
"I don't know what you're planning, but… Third Hokage, please, don't die."
The old man smiled sadly.
"My life has no value anymore. Orochimaru is right. I'm no longer capable of protecting Konoha."
"You're wrong!" Shisui exclaimed, but a spasm gripped his throat, and he couldn't force out another word.
He hadn't come to the arena to watch with his own eyes as the clan's only hope for peaceful existence in Konoha sacrificed his life. Shisui wasn't expecting a reply anymore, but the Hokage suddenly spoke again:
"It's time for a new generation, Shisui-kun," the Third's voice was remarkably calm. "After my death… I want you to become the Fifth Hokage."
"What?" Shisui gasped.
Hiruzen frowned.
"I'm guilty before you and your entire clan. If you become the first Hokage from the Uchiha clan since the village's founding, I hope it will at least partially atone for my guilt and give you and those children a chance to start over."
Shisui was speechless.
"Me… The Council… They would never allow it…"
"They'll come to it themselves, Shisui-kun. No one else can lead the Leaf."
"But… Jiraiya-sama…"
The Third grinned.
"That old pervert is too much of a free spirit. He would never agree."
Shisui wanted to say something else, to remind him about Danzou, but he couldn't find the words.
"I've already said you remind me of my friend Uchiha Kagami. We didn't get along well, Shisui-kun, but I see the Will of Fire in you, and you're the only one capable of fighting me on equal terms against Orochimaru and the founding brothers. Right now, in the entire village, only you are worthy of becoming the Fifth. That's my word. And I'm sure the others will come to the same conclusion. Don't interfere, Shisui-kun. I'll rid the world of Orochimaru and ensure no one else sullies the memory of Shodai-sama and Nidaime-sama."
The black staff with golden tips behind him opened an eye.
"Sarutobi, what are you planning?"
"I'm using the Fourth's technique."
The resurrected Hokage and sannin, flung back by the whirlwind, returned and drew closer.
"Sarutobi-sensei!" called Orochimaru's maniacal voice. "Enough hiding behind Uchiha Shisui. Show me your technique!"
"You scoundrel," Hiruzen muttered.
"So you were planning to use it even before I arrived?" Shisui asked quietly. "And now… you're absolutely sure?"
"Now that I see there's someone I can leave Konoha to, I'm even more certain. Buy me a little time, Shisui-kun."
Shisui deactivated his Mangekyo. The Third created two shadow clones and began forming seals. Orochimaru thrust the Kusanagi Sword into the gently sloping tiled roof like a cane and announced predatorily:
"Of course, I won't let you do that so easily."