"Sasuke, I've brought your companions."
Fugaku sensed the ripple in the barrier outside. In the next instant, Shisui's figure appeared in the room.
At this moment, Shisui was not wearing a prosthetic body, so Sasuke and Karin could not see him at all.
Upon appearing, Shisui nodded slightly toward Fugaku.
As Fugaku's voice fell, a series of hurried footsteps echoed from outside the house.
The wooden door was roughly pulled open. Sasuke turned his head to see two figures walking in quickly.
"It looks like you two are fine as well—Jugo, Suigetsu."
These two were Jugo and Suigetsu Hozuki, who had remained in the Land of Iron during the Five Kage Summit.
Seeing that Sasuke's body was intact and he was mostly unharmed, the tall Jugo's expression calmed.
"Suigetsu and I were originally captured in the Land of Iron. Just a moment ago, an invisible figure rescued us and brought us here, saying you were here, Sasuke."
"I'm relieved to see you're safe."
Compared to Jugo's calm reaction, Suigetsu Hozuki on the side was much more agitated, his face filled with resentment.
"Our capture was your fault to begin with, Sasuke!"
"You were the one who abandoned us back there!"
Facing Suigetsu's accusations, Sasuke remained expressionless. However, Karin, standing beside him, snapped back with annoyance.
"Suigetsu, getting caught was entirely due to your own incompetence. You can't blame that on Sasuke!"
"Don't just butt in, you eyesore! I wasn't talking to you."
Suigetsu shot back.
This caused Karin's fists to pop and crack. A cross-shaped vein bulged on her forehead as her anger flared up.
Just as she was about to step forward and blow Suigetsu's head off with a punch, Sasuke spoke up to stop her.
"Enough, Karin."
As soon as his voice rang out, Karin immediately stopped her movements, coyly moving back to Sasuke's side.
Ignoring the infatuated Karin, Sasuke looked toward Jugo and Suigetsu, his voice calm.
"I left the two of you there because I had to catch up to Danzo."
"Besides, with your abilities, you should have been perfectly capable of escaping the guards in the Land of Iron."
Hearing Sasuke's words, Suigetsu puffed out his chest with pride.
"Of course! Who do you think I am? I'm the genius of the Hozuki clan!"
Jugo simply nodded, remaining as silent as usual.
After calming the two, Sasuke turned his gaze back to Fugaku.
"Were you the one who sent someone to fetch them?"
"The invisible figure Jugo mentioned... the one who ambushed Madara and brought me here, was it the same technique?"
Fugaku said in a deep voice, "They are your companions, after all. There was no harm in bringing them along."
"As for why they are invisible, that is confidential information. I cannot tell you for now."
Naturally, it was Shisui who had brought Jugo and Suigetsu over.
After Fugaku had brought Sasuke here, Shisui had set off back to the Land of Iron.
These people had been willing to accompany Sasuke through the chaos of the Five Kage Summit where many powerhouses gathered; it was clear they were loyal to him.
To better protect the last remaining seedling of the Uchiha clan, Shisui had brought the two here.
By the time he reached the Land of Iron, the Five Kage Summit had long since ended. The entire nation was mobilizing to participate in the Great Ninja War sparked by that masked man.
This allowed Shisui to rescue the two without any effort at all.
"If you don't want to say, then forget it. I don't necessarily need to know," Sasuke said coldly.
His attitude brought a light chuckle from Shisui as a trace of nostalgia appeared on his face.
'Sasuke's reaction now is exactly the same as when he was a child.'
When Sasuke was young, he loved following behind Itachi, and Itachi loved looking for him so they could train and talk together.
Back then, Shisui would occasionally tease him too.
The young Sasuke couldn't handle the teasing and would react exactly as he was doing now.
'Even though he is mired in hatred, Sasuke's true nature hasn't changed.'
Looking at Sasuke, a trace of a smile also appeared on the face beneath Fugaku's mask.
Considering there was serious business ahead, he forcibly suppressed his emotions and regained his solemnity.
He looked at the girl standing by Sasuke and said deeply, "Your name is Karin, right? You're the medical ninja of Sasuke's team?"
Seeing that the man was speaking to her, Karin nodded. "I am a medical ninja. Why bring me up all of a sudden?"
Sasuke and the others looked over in confusion.
"Catch."
Fugaku lightly tossed the small glass bottle toward Karin.
Karin caught it and saw the two eyeballs inside the bottle staring back at her.
"Are these... Sasuke's brother's eyes?"
"Does this mean you want me to..."
Before she could finish, the man claiming to be an Uchiha ghost nodded, his mask trembling slightly.
"You will be the one to transplant Itachi's eyes into Sasuke."
"Since you are a medical ninja, a minor surgery like an eye transplant shouldn't be a problem for you."
As he spoke, Fugaku's fox mask turned toward Sasuke.
"Compared to a stranger of unknown origins like me, you would trust your own companion more, right?"
Sasuke's Mangekyo Sharingan carefully scrutinized the mysterious person before him. His eyes flickered with a sharp light, and various doubts surfaced on his face.
After a moment of silence, his handsome face returned to a calm expression. He shifted his gaze to Karin, who was tightly clutching the glass bottle.
"Karin, I'll leave my eyes to you."
"Leave it to me! There won't be any problems at all!" Karin shouted confidently.
Fugaku pointed toward the adjacent wall.
"In the next room, there are all the tools needed for the surgery, as well as instructions regarding the Sharingan."
"I have set up a barrier here, and with your two companions standing guard, no one will disturb you."
"You've really thought of everything, old man," Karin praised instinctively before looking at Sasuke. "Sasuke, I'll perform the surgery for you now. Let's go."
Sasuke followed behind Karin toward the exit. When he reached the door, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.
"Sasuke?" Seeing that Sasuke wasn't following, Karin looked back in confusion.
Sasuke ignored Karin and slightly turned his head to look at the mysterious black figure behind him.
"Going to such lengths to look out for me... who are you, really?"
Whether it was taking him away from Madara's side, giving him Itachi's eyes to complete the Eternal Mangekyo, or even bringing his companions here so Karin could perform the surgery for his peace of mind...
If all this was just a trade between them, it seemed far too meticulous.
It wasn't like Madara. Madara helped him with the clear intention of using him.
But from this person's various actions, he couldn't sense even a shred of malice or the intent to exploit him.
It was as if they were genuinely concerned for him from the bottom of their heart.
This made Sasuke, who had been alone for a long time, feel a sense of awkwardness.
After asking his question, he heard the person behind him let out a clear sigh. After a pause, the muffled voice spoke again.
"I have already told you. I am merely a ghost of the Uchiha clan lingering in the ninja world, nothing more."
"Is that so..."
Sasuke nodded slightly and didn't press further, walking out of the room.
Jugo and Suigetsu glanced at the mysterious man before following Sasuke.
Only Fugaku and Shisui remained in the room.
"It seems I made it too obvious; I probably sparked his suspicion."
"Sasuke has always been very smart," Shisui remarked.
It was only natural for a parent to love their child.
Moreover, for a father and son separated by the veil of death, it was inevitable for true feelings to leak into their words and actions.
An eye transplant was a common procedure in the ninja world, even more so for the Uchiha clan.
With Karin's hands, the surgery was completed perfectly.
After receiving Itachi's eyes, Sasuke stayed in the manor to rest and adapt to his new eyes.
During this time, Fugaku and the others made new breakthroughs in their actions.
Yashiro, who had gone to the Hidden Leaf, had returned.
Throwing the purple-haired ninja he was carrying onto the tatami mat, he said to Fugaku and Shisui, "This is the disciple Orochimaru once left in the Hidden Leaf."
Shisui stepped forward and carefully checked the woman's appearance. It matched his memory, and he nodded inwardly.
He pulled back her collar, and the tomoe-shaped curse mark came into view.
"Confirmed to be the Cursed Seal of Heaven."
"Anko Mitarashi has been successfully captured."
Fugaku's expression relaxed. "Good work, Yashiro."
"This way, we can revive Orochimaru and obtain the souls of the four Hokage in one go."
At that moment, Fugaku suddenly paused, sensing a familiar spiritual pressure entering the barrier.
A figure knelt on one knee in the courtyard, their active Sharingan revealing their identity.
"Lord Fugaku, Lord Shisui, Senior Yashiro. Kabuto Yakushi has appeared and is currently in contact with the masked man."
"Furthermore, Kabuto's appearance has changed drastically; he looks a lot like Orochimaru did."
Fugaku looked at the clansman. This was a member of Tekka's squad who had been sent to monitor the masked man.
His sudden return brought important news.
"Looks like Orochimaru?"
"What exactly does he look like?"
"Please look, my Lord."
The Uchiha raised his head, his three-tomoe Sharingan spinning.
Fugaku and the other two looked into his eyes and were instantly pulled into an illusionary world.
Inside the illusion created by the Uchiha, everything was pale. A dark red figure appeared before the three of them.
The person under the hood was undoubtedly Kabuto Yakushi, still wearing those round-rimmed glasses. However, his skin had turned a grayish-yellow, and his face was covered in snake-like markings—under closer inspection, there were even traces of scales.
Under those glasses, he wore purple eyeshadow like Orochimaru's, but it was much wider. His eyes had turned into yellowish-brown vertical slits, exuding a certain sharpness.
Yashiro frowned and looked closer, his face full of confusion.
"Lord Fugaku, this is completely different from the pictures in the previous reports. How could he change so much in such a short time?"
"He is Orochimaru's disciple. He likely performed human body modifications on himself," Fugaku said.
Shisui scrutinized the figure, recalling the battle between Naruto and Pain, and shook his head. "It's likely more than just body modification. He has probably mastered Sage Mode as well."
"Sage Mode?"
"It's a technique similar to Lord Jiraiya's. It involves mixing natural energy to create Senjutsu chakra. Once active, it causes certain physical changes."
Shisui explained briefly.
Fugaku understood immediately.
"I see. One of the Three Great Sage Regions!"
"Looking at his snake-like appearance, he likely went to Ryuchi Cave to learn Sage Mode."
"No wonder we couldn't find him in the ninja world all this time; he was at Ryuchi Cave!"
After seeing enough, the three exited the illusion.
Looking at the Uchiha clansman, Shisui asked, "He contacted the masked man. What did they discuss?"
"He made a deal with the masked man to start the Great Ninja War together." The man looked at Fugaku and lowered his head. "He will provide the masked man with sufficient military force. In return, he wants Sasuke's body for research after the war."
"What!"
Fury flared up within Fugaku, and his reason nearly snapped.
Itachi was already dead, and his soul had been taken back to the Soul Society to face execution.
As of now, he only had this one son left. Sasuke was the last seedling of the Uchiha clan, and he was incredibly precious.
He was the hope of Fugaku and the entire Uchiha clan.
Hearing that someone was targeting Sasuke, a murderous aura erupted uncontrollably from him.
"Lord Fugaku, your killing intent is leaking out. Don't let it affect Sasuke's recovery."
Shisui's words immediately calmed Fugaku, and he pulled back his murderous intent.
"Apologies. I got too emotional."
"It's understandable when it concerns Sasuke."
Shisui waved his hand and turned his attention back to the clansman. "Even if Kabuto Yakushi has mastered Sage Mode, he still wouldn't be a match for the five great hidden villages."
"In fact, that alone wouldn't be enough for the masked man to take him seriously, let alone cooperate... Kabuto must have other trump cards."
"That is exactly what I was about to report next," the man confirmed. "It's the Reanimation Jutsu!"
"Kabuto used the Reanimation Jutsu to summon the deceased members of the Akatsuki as well as powerhouses from various hidden villages. He used this as leverage to join the masked man's plot."
After hearing the report, the three looked at each other, finding it logical.
"That explains it."
"With those deceased powerhouses, he does have the standing to negotiate with the masked man."
"It seems we must get this man named Kabuto Yakushi under our control!"
Shisui's expression became resolute.
Previously, he felt that with Orochimaru, Kabuto was optional.
But now that Kabuto suddenly revealed so many trump cards, his importance in Shisui's heart skyrocketed.
Based on those souls of powerful warriors alone, they could not let him go easily.
"Besides these, there is one more thing to report to you both."
Seeing he had more to say, Shisui asked, "What is it?"
"When Kabuto Yakushi was showing his trump cards to the masked man, he summoned our ancestor—Uchiha Madara!"
These words immediately made the three look solemn.
Fugaku asked sharply, "Is what you're saying true? You didn't misidentify him?"
"There is absolutely no mistake!"
"To think he even brought Madara back with Reanimation... this Kabuto Yakushi is certainly bold!"
Uchiha Madara was a name known to almost everyone in the ninja world.
He had founded the Hidden Leaf alongside the First Hokage and later became his arch-enemy.
His reputation was so legendary that the masked man was able to start a war just by using the name 'Uchiha Madara.'
The fact that a mere name could force the five hidden villages to be so on guard spoke volumes.
To the Uchiha clansmen, his overwhelming power remained the pride of the clan even after all these years.
They would never allow anyone to desecrate it.
"Tekka did the right thing. Since Kabuto has Uchiha Madara, we cannot act rashly."
With a solemn face, Shisui jumped into the courtyard and began walking out.
"I will go there personally and bring him back."
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]