Uchiha Sasuke's path wasn't random; after venting his rage, his first thought was to storm straight back to Konoha, find the man named Danzo Shimura, and use these newborn Mangekyo Sharingan eyes to wring every last truth from him.
He would force the rat hiding in the shadows to confess his crimes with his own tongue.
The night was deep, the towering walls of Konoha already in sight.
From the forest gloom Sasuke coiled like a cheetah ready to pounce, crimson Mangekyo glinting cold and lethal in the dark.
The Chakra inside him seethed, Amaterasu's black flames ready to burst forth and incinerate any obstacle.
Just as he prepared to move, to crash into Konoha in the crudest way and strike straight at the Root base, a cool, calm voice rose behind him without warning.
Going after Danzo now is no different from suicide.
Sasuke's body snapped taut, Mangekyo locking onto the sound.
Who?! Who could get this close without him noticing?!
He spun around; beneath the moonlight Hyuga Hinata stood quietly on a branch, hair and hem fluttering in the night wind, pale Byakugan eyes calmly meeting his.
You?! How did you know I was here?" Sasuke's gaze sharpened.
Hyuga Hinata! You've been tailing me?!
Hinata watched Sasuke huff, rolled her eyes in silence.
I simply sensed you; didn't realize how glaring you are.
Besides, I guessed you might do something reckless. You're too impatient.
Reckless? Impatient?" Sasuke sneered, the Mangekyo pattern slowly revolving, pressing down like a weight.
I have power now—power to crush every lie and obstacle! I'll demand answers; who dares stand in my way?!
You could die, you know. Danzo's waiting for you to walk right in." Hinata spoke without mockery, stating fact.
Sasuke burst into laughter, Mangekyo Sharingan flaring.
Hahaha! I possess the Mangekyo Sharingan—who dares kill me? Who can kill me?!
Hinata looked at his arrogance and thought he might start reciting poetry next.
In the desolate valley the cold wind blows… she continued.
You think Danzo has held his position as head of Konoha's Root all these years because of his own strength?
He relies on schemes, on networks, on that transplanted Mangekyo Sharingan eye taken from Uchiha Shisui.
Hinata slowly uttered the forbidden name.
Uchiha Shisui?
Sasuke froze; he had heard the name—once a prodigy of the Uchiha, elder brother's closest friend.
Yes. Danzo stole one of Shisui's eyes. That Mangekyo's ability is—" Hinata's pale eyes seemed to bore into his Soul, word by word.
Kotoamatsukami. It can slip into a victim's mind unnoticed and rewrite their will. They call it the ultimate genjutsu.
Rewrite will?" Sasuke frowned.
He pictured it—burning with fury, he reaches Danzo, only to be controlled in an instant, turned into a hollow Puppet, blade reversed on comrades… or eyes gouged out.
The reason Danzo dared force Itachi into that choice is because he's confident he holds the trump card. Do you think he doesn't know you'll come? He's waiting—waiting to add your newborn Mangekyo to his collection or turn you into his sharpest, most obedient blade.
Hinata's voice swept over Sasuke like an icy stream, cooling his fevered brain.
Danzo will never tell you the truth.
Go to him now and only two things can happen: one, he controls you with Kotoamatsukami and you lose yourself. Two, you force him to use it; perhaps, warned by me, you dodge, but it ends in mutual ruin and alerts the whole Village. Then you face Konoha's full force, and the truth sinks forever.
Sasuke had to admit Hinata was right.
His arrogance looked foolish and reckless before a power as sinister as Kotoamatsukami. Charging straight at Danzo was suicide.
Sasuke fell silent; his Killing Intent ebbed. He glanced at Konoha so near, then at the girl who always produced shocking intelligence and seemed to see everything.
So why tell me this? What do you want?" he finally asked.
Hinata answered with a smile.
We're in the same class, helping each other is normal, don't you think, Sasuke?
Without waiting for an answer she vanished with a pop—only a Shadow Clone. In the forest only Uchiha Sasuke remained, no longer pondering her motives.
Her words were cold chains, temporarily binding the impulse to destroy everything.
Kotoamatsukami—its very existence forced him to reassess. A direct assault on Root was foolish.
But just walk away? No.
Sasuke's gaze returned to Konoha beneath the night. Since he couldn't confront Danzo yet, he could at least gather information, verify Hinata's claims, prepare for what came next.
He needed to know more about Danzo, about Root, about Konoha's undercurrents after the Uchiha massacre.
He drew a deep breath, reining in the surging Chakra and murderous aura, sheathing the drawn sword.
Silently he slipped into the Village, concealing himself with the Sharingan.
Inside, he avoided familiar streets and the compounds of clans like Hyuga or Sarutobi, instead drifting like a shadow through back alleys, tavern yards, and gray zones where low-ranked Ninjas gathered.
He suppressed all presence, even dampened Sharingan power, relying only on basic insight and minor genjutsu.
In a noisy Genin bar he used faint Sharingan hypnosis on a drunken Chunin who loved to boast, coaxing scattered words: Lord Danzo seemed busy lately, Root was secretly investigating something.
Near the mission desk he eavesdropped on two Ninjas complaining that Root grew ever bolder, even trying to muscle in on their last mission.
He risked approaching the perimeter of the Root base. Though he couldn't enter, with Mangekyo's heightened perception he sensed the thick, suffocating darkness and death around the building, and several powerful, icy Chakra signatures hidden nearby.
It confirmed Danzo commanded formidable forces.
The intel was fragmentary, some mere hearsay, but pieced together it gave him a clearer picture of Konoha's power structure and how active Root had become.
He could feel the Village was not monolithic; fierce undercurrents swirled beneath the surface.
He even slipped into the Hokage Building and skimmed records. Little was documented, but he learned several movement patterns and haunts of the Akatsuki Organization.
Days later Sasuke left Konoha as quietly as he had come, unnoticed.
The information hadn't revealed the full truth of the Uchiha massacre, but it sobered him to his enemies' strength and position.
Then his silhouette melted back into the dark forest, continuing toward the Akatsuki Organization—toward Uchiha Itachi.
Hinata opened her eyes at home, having watched Sasuke's every move, and murmured.
Pretty smart, Second Pillar. Not so far gone you can't still listen to reason.
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