The head of the Shimura clan was quickly summoned.
This man—who never once appeared in the original timeline—had no presence whatsoever even now.
After all, everyone knew the Shimura clan followed only one person: Shimura Danzō.
This so-called clan head was merely a decoration. His words were worth less than a fart.
Uchiha Rokuro examined him carefully, using a sensory tool to scan him—and to his surprise, the man's chakra reserves were only at chūnin level.
That was absurd.
Even small clans like the Inuzuka or the Aburame had clan heads who were tokubetsu jōnin at minimum. Their chakra capacity was never below standard jōnin level—maybe they weren't as advanced in chakra nature transformation, but still, they weren't weak.
Yet the Shimura clan head standing before them was only a chūnin—and judging from his combat ability…
Uchiha Rokuro didn't even need to activate his Sharingan.
Just with normal eyes, he could see the man's unstable footing, dull gaze, and complete lack of physical conditioning—paired with a beer belly like a five-month pregnancy.
Anyone could tell: this guy had zero combat strength.
Sarutobi Hiruzen clearly understood this man's state better than anyone.
So he showed no mercy—immediately ordering the Shimura clan to compensate the Uchiha with a huge sum.
The Shimura clan head didn't dare rebel and agreed on the spot.
Rokuro glanced sideways at Uchiha Setsuna.
Setsuna spoke at once.
"Now that the truth is clear, Lord Hokage… shouldn't you return justice to the Uchiha? The Nine-Tails incident years ago was never caused by our clan."
"Yes, yes. Back then, that case was also investigated by Danzō. He deliberately hid the truth to frame the Uchiha. Ah, Danzō… you really were Konoha's greatest sinner!"
Hiruzen spoke through gritted teeth, as if he'd bite Danzō's head off if he could.
"Since everything has been clarified, our old clan grounds should be returned to us, correct?"
"This…"
Hiruzen hesitated.
The original Uchiha district had long been occupied by the Sarutobi and Shimura clans.
Having the Shimura give up the land was no problem—they no longer had any strong fighters, not one person of credibility left.
But having the Sarutobi clan give up land?
That he could hardly stomach.
While hesitating, Hiruzen noticed the faint killing intent rising in Rokuro's eyes—and his heart jumped.
"Elder Setsuna is correct. Now that the truth is revealed, their land should naturally be returned. Give me one week—I will clear the district and return it to your clan."
"In that case, let's settle the matter for today. From now on, we are all part of Konoha and should coexist peacefully."
"Yes, peace above all—peace is the righteous path."
Uchiha Setsuna accepted the Root assets, sent people to take over the secret bases, and then led the clan members away.
Once the Uchiha departed, Hiruzen secretly exhaled in relief.
But he failed to notice how coldly the other clan heads were staring at him.
Back in the Uchiha compound, Rokuro exchanged a few words with Setsuna, then returned home with Uchiha Izumi and Uchiha Ashikaga
After seeing off a few visiting clan members, he finally slipped into the underground chamber.
"Rokuro, you're just going to let it end like that? Why didn't you kill that old snake Sarutobi right there?"
Izumi puffed her cheeks. Rokuro poked them lightly—and immediately earned a glare.
"Killing Hiruzen is easy. You alone could do it. But do you know why he gathered all the clan heads today?"
"Why else? As backup, right? But with our strength, we don't need to fear them!"
Rokuro shook his head and looked at Ashikaga.
"Mother, what do you think?"
Ashikaga, unlike Izumi, wasn't naïve.
"It was a form of confrontation. If a fight had broken out, not all clan heads would have helped Hiruzen. Some—like Hyūga Hizashi—may have helped us.
But the real problem would come after the battle. Izumi, think—if we killed Hiruzen just now, what would happen to Konoha?"
Izumi froze.
The words 'Uchiha would rise and Rokuro would become Hokage' almost slipped out—but she had experienced enough to know that was impossible.
"With the Uchiha's reputation today, we could never replace the Sarutobi. Becoming Hokage is even more impossible.
If we seized power by force, the village would split. Some clans would leave Konoha entirely."
"Exactly. That's why we didn't strike.
And to be fair, Hiruzen cutting ties with Danzō—however ugly—worked. At that moment, we had no legitimate reason to kill him."
Ashikaga sighed.
"As disgusting as Hiruzen is now… his political skill is real."
Rokuro added:
"Actually, even if we fought, we might not win. Izumi, remember what I told you—the entire shinobi world still holds a sealing technique I can't break?"
Izumi nodded.
"You said it wasn't in the Hidden Cloud… meaning it's in Konoha?!"
"Yes. A forbidden jutsu called Shiki Fūjin—the Reaper Death Seal.
It sacrifices the caster's soul to summon the Shinigami and forcibly pulls the enemy's soul into its stomach. If caught, you die no matter what."
"When the Fourth Hokage used it, he split Kurama in half—one half sealed into the jinchūriki, the other half eaten by the Shinigami along with his own soul."
Izumi and Ashikaga both turned pale.
Rokuro continued:
"Shiki Fūjin can target more than one person. If Hiruzen were driven into a corner, he could drag both you and me into death with him. Even if I broke out afterward, my body would already be dead."
Ashikaga nodded grimly.
"No wonder he held the Hokage seat for decades. He's not to be underestimated."
Izumi clenched her fists.
"So we just let him go? He's only acting weak now because he needs time to counterattack. He'll strike again once he recovers!"
Rokuro waved casually.
"Relax. Sarutobi Hiruzen must die—and he will.
He just cannot die by Uchiha hands.
I already have the perfect executioner in mind. And we won't have to wait long."
Later that night, Uchiha Shisui died in his cell.
Some said suicide, some said murder—but it didn't matter.
In Rokuro's plan, Shisui had to die.
Even without his eyes, Shisui was too dangerous a wildcard to leave alive.
So Rokuro removed him.
To clean up loose ends, several of Fugaku's loyalists and the pacifist faction also met "accidents" over the next week—falling off cliffs, drowning, all sorts of tragedies.
As for the culprit of the Clan Downfall in the original timeline—Uchiha Itachi—the "devoted son" managed to narrowly escape death.
On the day Fugaku was cornered, Itachi happened to be away on a mission.
Once he heard the news, he instantly defected—never returning to Konoha.
Rokuro regretted being unable to kill him, but had no choice.
Instead, he pressured Hiruzen into branding Itachi as a rogue ninja—same as the original timeline.
Fugaku's older son was gone. His wife and younger son remained.
Rokuro didn't care about Uchiha Mikoto.
Though the databook said she was once a high-rank jōnin, she had long become a full-time housewife—her strength faded.
The only one he cared about was Sasuke.
As Indra's reincarnation, Sasuke couldn't be killed. Rokuro needed him for the future against Ōtsutsuki Kaguya.
Because Sasuke had to live, Mikoto lived as well.
The two moved into a normal house, constantly judged by the clan.
Mikoto silently endured.
Sasuke often fought other children who mocked him—living through the same treatment Naruto once suffered.
Now nearly six years old, Sasuke had entered the Academy. Despite the changes, his personality still drifted toward isolation.
After Fugaku's death, Setsuna became acting clan head.
Everyone knew this was temporary—once Rokuro reached adulthood, he would become the next clan leader.
And no one opposed it.
The Uchiha respected strength.
If Uchiha Madara could be clan head despite his terrible personality, then Rokuro—with Madara-level power and a good attitude—was unquestionably qualified.
With Setsuna handling clan affairs—compensations, reclaiming the old district—Rokuro dedicated himself to studying the Six Paths tool: the Amber Purifying Pot.
Using his deep knowledge of sealing arts, he tried to decipher the unknown script on it, raising his sealing mastery.
While immersed in study, a small snake slithered beside him, spitting out a tiny scroll.
Rokuro wasn't surprised. He opened it, wrote a few words using chakra, then placed it back into the snake's mouth.
With a puff, the snake dispersed and returned to Ryūchi Cave.
Two days later, Rokuro and Izumi arrived in the Land of Sound, in the northern Fire Country.
At a small rural inn, they met Orochimaru and Yakushi Kabuto.
"Long time no see, Orochimaru-sensei. You're as radiant as ever."
"You're the one who dazzles me, Rokuro-kun. Rumors of your exploits with this young Uchiha girl have spread across the entire shinobi world. They say the heavily wounded Fourth Raikage still hasn't escaped danger."
Orochimaru's tongue flicked instinctively as he stared at the pair with scorching fascination.
Rokuro ignored it. Izumi frowned slightly but remained calm.
After some pleasantries, Orochimaru got to the point.
"I hear the Uchiha have returned to their ancestral district. You've reclaimed your former glory?"
Rokuro smiled lightly.
"Lord Third Hokage saw through the lies and restored justice to us. We are grateful."
"Heh, save the polite lies. I didn't call you here for that.
I've come to offer the Uchiha a favor—helping you eliminate Sarutobi-sensei, the man you want dead but cannot kill."
He went straight for the emotional leverage.
"Orochimaru-sensei must be mistaken. We get along quite well with the Third. Why would we kill him?"
"Heh… if he lives, your clan will never be at peace. But whoever kills a Hokage will be branded a criminal and exiled forever. Since you have no plans of founding an independent village, you cannot kill him yourselves."
Rokuro remained silent.
Irritation flashed in Orochimaru's eyes—killing intent leaked from him.
At that moment, Izumi's eyes shifted
her Mangekyō Sharingan appeared.
And she glared directly at Orochimaru.
With just a single look, Orochimaru felt as though ten thousand blades had pierced straight through his heart.
And not just him—Kabuto, who had attempted to react, was also instantly bound in place. He couldn't even move a single finger.
In just a few seconds, sweat began forming on Orochimaru's forehead.
He was a shinobi whose abilities were fully developed in ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu—someone who theoretically feared no type of enemy.
Especially after completing his body-modification research and perfecting the Orochi-style substitution technique, his defining trait—"unkillable"—had only grown more exaggerated.
In the original story, even when he couldn't use hand-seal-based ninjutsu, he survived being torn in half by a Four-Tails-transformed Naruto. That was how troublesome he was.
Unfortunately for him, before clone technology matured, Living Corpse Reincarnation carried far more drawbacks than benefits.
After performing multiple transfers, Orochimaru—facing Uchiha Izumi's Mangekyō Sharingan, a pure genjutsu-type set—was utterly suppressed, unable to fight back at all.
"Alright, Izumi. Orochimaru is still my teacher—give him some face, okay?"
Uchiha Izumi retracted her Mangekyō. Orochimaru and Kabuto immediately gasped for breath.
Even though the genjutsu had been dispelled, their heads were ringing as if they had gone several days without sleep—utterly drained.
"Lord Orochimaru, let's skip the pleasantries. Tell me your conditions.
What do you want? If it's something I can give, I won't hesitate to use it in exchange for Sarutobi Hiruzen's life.
If not… then I'll simply kill that old monkey by other means."
Orochimaru first shot Izumi a venomous glare, then the heat in his eyes intensified as he looked at Rokuro.
"I should congratulate you, Rokuro. Back then, you said you wanted to recreate Uchiha Madara's power.
I didn't take it seriously—though I did offer some help.
I didn't expect you to actually succeed."
"It was a transaction, but I still appreciate your assistance, Orochimaru-sensei.
That's why I made time from a packed schedule to visit this little Land of Sound."
On the surface, master and disciple spoke politely, but neither yielded an inch.
In the end, Orochimaru was forced to take the first step back—the gap in their strength was simply too massive.
It was then he realized just how rash he had been in choosing to perform Living Corpse Reincarnation again.
"I've looked into it. Before Rokuro awakened his Mangekyō, he collected the gene samples of the entire Uchiha clan under the pretext of marking them with Curse Seals.
I want those genetic samples."
"In exchange, I'll kill Sarutobi Hiruzen…
and severely cripple the Sarutobi clan.
If that still doesn't satisfy you, I can add the Shimura clan as well.
So—what do you think?"
Now that he held control of the negotiation, Rokuro naturally didn't rush to answer.
"Before I respond, I want to ask Orochimaru-sensei a single question.
If you can answer truthfully, our discussion can continue."
"Ask."
"Have you completed your research on Edo Tensei?"
At those words, Orochimaru shot to his feet.
Terrifying killing intent flooded out of him, while Kabuto activated his Chakra Scalpel, fully prepared for battle.
To avoid falling into another illusion, Kabuto consciously avoided eye contact with Rokuro and Izumi.
"Rokuro… it seems your intelligence network is quite formidable."
"Heh. Same to you, Orochimaru-sensei.
Even while living in the Land of Sound, you remain fully aware of everything happening in Konoha.
So—your answer?"
Being repeatedly pushed into a disadvantageous position infuriated Orochimaru.
But he couldn't win a fight here—and that only made his anger worse.
Yet the more he felt this humiliation, the deeper his desire for the Mangekyō Sharingan grew.
In the original timeline, being defeated by a certain filial prodigy was enough to make him obsess over Uchiha power.
And at that time, Itachi's strength was only that of a typical Kage-class shinobi.
Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu were deadly only on first contact; once prepared, they weren't hard to deal with.
Against Sage-Mode Jiraiya, Itachi could, at best, fight to a draw.
But Rokuro and Uchiha Izumi, as they were now, surpassed Itachi in every conceivable way.
Naturally, Orochimaru's hunger for power grew even stronger.
"There's no need for tension, Orochimaru-sensei.
I simply want to retrieve something from two deceased individuals—and only you possess the means to accomplish that."
Rokuro gave him a step down.
Orochimaru withdrew his killing intent and sat again.
"Who are you looking for?"
"The two brothers from the Hidden Cloud—Kinkaku and Ginkaku.
They possess several of the Six Paths Tools.
Sarutobi Hiruzen's life, the crippling of the Sarutobi and Shimura clans, and the Six Paths Tools from the brothers—these are my terms.
If you can accomplish all that, I'll trade you the Uchiha genetic samples."
Orochimaru fell silent for a long time.
He had, of course, heard of Kinkaku and Ginkaku—strictly speaking, they were the ones who killed his grand-teacher.
They were the only Cloud-nin rogue shinobi ever depicted in the original story.
After them, the Hidden Cloud never produced another missing-nin—at least none that appeared on record.
As for the Six Paths Tools, Orochimaru had researched them before.
They were sealing-type artifacts, powerful in the right hands.
Considering sealing was Rokuro's specialty, Orochimaru understood why he wanted them.
However, he hated being the passive party.
Licking his lips with his long tongue, he stared at Rokuro.
"Your terms aren't excessive.
But I want one more thing."
"Please, speak. If I can give it, I will not hold back."
"I want the formula for that seal you invented—the Qi Seal."
"The Qi Seal?"
Rokuro was surprised.
This curse-seal, modeled after Tsunade's Byakugō, was mainly used to unleash large-scale ninjutsu or gain a decisive edge in close, evenly matched battles.
In other words—it was useless for beating the weak or challenging someone far above one's level.
For mopping up small fry, you didn't need extra chakra.
For fighting someone stronger, extra chakra only prolonged your death by a few minutes.
And once someone reached Kage level, chakra shortages virtually never occurred.
Orochimaru himself never displayed chakra deficiency in the original story, whether before or after his arms were sealed.
Suddenly, Rokuro recalled Orochimaru's other creation—the Heaven and Earth Curse Seals, derived from Jūgo's unique physiology.
In the original story, the most iconic users of those seals were the Sound Five and Sasuke during the "Snake Squad" era.
Sasuke, especially—
he relied on the power of the curse seal to defeat Deidara, and even forced Itachi to use Susano'o in the battle where Itachi was holding back.
"In the original timeline, both the Heaven and Earth Curse Seals carried immense risk.
Orochimaru surely implanted them in far more people than the Sound Five, but their success rate was simply too low."
"Could it be… he wants the Qi Seal to perfect the Heaven and Earth Curse Seals?"
With that thought, Rokuro nodded slightly.
"That can be arranged.
How about this—we split our deal into two stages.
First stage: Orochimaru-sensei retrieves the Six Paths Tools from the Kinkaku-Ginkaku brothers, and I hand over the Qi Seal formula.
The remaining matters—second stage—we settle afterward.
How does that sound?"
"…Deal."
After reaching a verbal agreement, Rokuro and Uchiha Izumi left using the Flying Thunder God Technique.
Once they were gone, Orochimaru's expression turned pitch-black.
His complexion was already ghost-pale by nature; now he looked like an enraged black mamba, ready to bite.
"Kabuto—starting today, conduct a full purge of the entire village.
I want to know who leaked information about Edo Tensei.
Once identified, don't report to me—execute them immediately."
"Understood, Lord Orochimaru!"
Kabuto understood perfectly.
Edo Tensei was Orochimaru's second most treasured forbidden technique—second only to Living Corpse Reincarnation.
It was his greatest trump card.
And now that this trump card had finally become combat-ready…
someone leaked it.
Of course he was furious.
"Orochimaru-sama, regarding Kinkaku and Ginkaku… shall I go to the Land of Lightning?"
"No need. I'll go personally.
If those Six Paths Tools matter so much to Uchiha Rokuro… I want to see for myself just how powerful they really are."
END OF CHAPTER
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