Chapter Thirty-One: Drawing In

Because he went to bed rather early, Dongye You woke up quite early as well. At dawn, a little past five, while the sky was still cloaked in darkness, he awoke naturally and found himself unable to return to sleep.

Originally, Dongye You hadn’t decided which day to leave the village to conduct his research, but since sleep eluded him, he resolved to act at once.

After washing his face and brushing his teeth, Dongye You manipulated the air around him to create a duplicate. Then, using certain techniques from his Illusion skill, he established a connection with this duplicate, enabling him to control it remotely.

Compared to the ninja’s clone technique, this method had both clear advantages and disadvantages. The benefit was that Dongye You could control the duplicate at any time and remain aware of everything happening to it. The drawback was its lack of independent action; it required his constant attention to move.

However, Dongye You’s mental strength was already formidable, so multitasking posed no great burden.

With preparations complete, Dongye You fully unleashed his perception, extending it beyond the village. The farthest his senses reached was a forest outside the village, where he detected only wild animals and no trace of humans.

He immediately invoked the Body Flicker Technique, teleporting to the forest. As he landed, his appearance began to change—his features grew less handsome, though he retained a hint of charm.

Next, he adjusted his height, making himself taller. Finally, his clothing transformed into a loose, dark samurai outfit.

A samurai outfit called for a proper sword. Dongye You pulled the pendant from his neck, dispelling its transformation and restoring it to its original form.

The transformation complete, a roguishly handsome wandering samurai now stood lazily amid the trees.

He glanced at the sky, which was beginning to brighten. Without lingering, Dongye You set off in the direction opposite to Konoha.

Not long after, the sun rose. By gauging its position, Dongye You estimated he was heading west.

West of Konoha, bordering the Land of Fire, lay the Land of Rivers, the Land of Rain, and the Land of Grass; further still was the Land of Wind and the Sand Village.

Dongye You was uncertain where to go, but his plan was to first find a populated area and see if there were any commissions he could take. If not, he could consider seeking out an underground exchange.

The original work offered little detail about these underground exchanges, but they seemed quite formidable; with his current identity, it was worth a visit.

For now, he would simply take things as they came—who could predict what might happen along the way?

Dongye You ambled westward, his senses unactivated, strolling leisurely.

…………………………

Meanwhile, at the Uchiha compound, Shisui, after three days of deliberation, finally began to act.

Following Dongye You’s advice, Shisui’s first step was to overthrow the current clan head, become the new leader himself, and then unify all voices within the Uchiha.

He cared nothing for power, but to save the Uchiha, he had to do this.

How to overthrow the current leader? This was one of the questions Shisui had pondered these past days.

Force was important, but it couldn’t be relied upon alone. He needed to win over everyone he could, then use strength to subdue those who couldn’t be persuaded.

So, throughout the day, he visited elders who were usually close to him.

The process was fraught with twists. Nearly everyone he spoke to about usurping the clan head and taking the position himself reacted with shock.

Yet, as he patiently explained his reasoning and laid out his vision, he finally persuaded several elders to support him.

The rest, while not voicing explicit support, did not oppose him either.

Overall, the outcome was fairly positive.

But these were the ones closest to him; the rest would be much trickier.

Only as the sun neared the horizon did Shisui wrap up his day and head home.

On his way, a figure suddenly appeared before him, paused, then swiftly moved off into the distance.

Shisui drew a deep breath and chose to follow.

Itachi had something to discuss.

Arriving at that familiar forest, Shisui looked at the familiar silhouette and spoke,

“Itachi, is there something you need?”

“Shisui, I heard you’ve been visiting other clan members all day?”

Shisui hesitated for a moment.

“Yes.”

“What are you trying to do?” Itachi’s tone was cold, just as it was with others.

“I want… to overthrow the current clan head and become clan leader myself.” After a brief hesitation, Shisui spoke honestly.

“Why?” Itachi was surprised.

“If I told you I’d found a way to save the Uchiha, would you believe me?”

Itachi frowned. “What method?”

“First, I need to give the Uchiha a unified voice—that’s what I’m working on now. Then, I’ll reform the Police Force, bringing in civilian ninja and those from other families.”

“Why?”

“I told you before, some in the village are targeting us Uchiha. I have to find a way out. Only by recruiting non-Uchiha ninja into the Police Force can we bridge the gap between the clan and the village and hope for a future.”

Itachi seemed to hear only the first half of Shisui’s words.

“Shisui, you still think the village is targeting the Uchiha?”

“I don’t want to believe it, but the facts are plain.” Shisui frowned as well.

“From the village’s perspective, we Uchiha are indeed an unstable element—does that make them wrong?” Itachi asked.

“Itachi,” Shisui’s tone was earnest, “Even if the Uchiha are unstable, should the village abandon us? Should they cast us aside completely? As comrades, shouldn’t they seek to accept us, to bring us back?”

Itachi didn’t answer, instead repeating the question he’d asked last time.

“If the conflict between the village and the Uchiha becomes truly irreconcilable, which side will you choose?”

This time, unlike before, Shisui had an answer:

“I’ve never considered betraying the village. I’ll only clear away the obstacles preventing the Uchiha from integrating into Konoha.”

Shisui was not a soft-hearted person. In the past, he simply hadn’t seen things clearly, and had pursued a path with no possible outcome; now, at last, he understood.

“I see,” Itachi’s voice grew cold again. “Shisui, I’ll be watching you. I’ll report everything you do to the Third Hokage.”

“I never intended to hide anything…” Shisui paused, then asked, “Itachi, do you still not trust me?”

“…Shisui, your present resolve and thinking make you seem like an entirely different person. I find it hard to believe you won’t do anything harmful to Konoha.”

With that, Itachi turned to leave. Shisui wanted to say something more, but Itachi’s figure had already vanished from sight.