"Yes."
Mabui nodded and left the office.
A few minutes later, there was a knock at the door.
"Shinho, I heard you were looking for me?"
Kakashi walked in, his signature dead-fish eyes staring lazily ahead.
"Kakashi-sensei, do you know about Madara from the Akatsuki?"
Shinho pondered for a moment before asking.
"I've heard of him,"
Kakashi replied, his expression shifting into mild surprise. "Is he really the Uchiha Madara?"
"Yes,"
Shinho answered with a perfectly serious face, spinning a web of nonsense.
After a brief moment of thought, he decided to hide the truth about Obito.
For Kakashi, knowing the truth would only add unnecessary pain, there was no point.
"During the war with Kumogakure, I encountered Madara,"
Shinho said, pulling out a glass jar. "I found a Mangekyō Sharingan on him."
"Mangekyō?"
Kakashi instinctively leaned in, inspecting the Sharingan floating in the jar.
Because of Shinho's butterfly effect, Kakashi hadn't discovered that his own eye was a Mangekyō Sharingan like in the original timeline.
The only Mangekyō Sharingan he'd seen belonged to Itachi and Sasuke.
"This belongs to Uchiha Madara?"
Kakashi asked curiously. "Why is there only one?"
"Other than his own he had one more eye in his possession, this is the extra one,"
Shinho replied casually.
"It's not his?"
Kakashi fell into deep thought. "Were there any other Uchiha in history who awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan?"
By all logic, a ninja like that wouldn't have gone unnoticed, but he genuinely hadn't heard of any others.
"I've been investigating the Uchiha clan for the past couple of days and came up with a theory,"
Shinho said gravely. "This eye might belong to Uchiha Obito."
"What?!"
Kakashi's calm demeanor shattered, and he grew visibly agitated.
"I called you here to test that theory,"
Shinho explained. "If it really is Obito's eye, it should resonate with yours."
Kakashi stared at the eye in the jar, his expression complex.
He never imagined that, after all these years, he'd face something like this.
"How do we test it?"
Kakashi took a deep breath, his voice steady but heavy with emotion.
"We'll swap your eyes,"
Shinho paused for a moment before adding, "If it's not his, we'll swap them back."
In the shinobi world, eyes were practically plug in item, so it was a straightforward process.
The only downside was that Kakashi would have to endure some pain.
But for his dear friend Obito, Kakashi likely wouldn't care.
"Alright."
Kakashi hesitated for a few seconds before agreeing.
If it involved Obito, he had to try.
And if it really was Obito's eye, then his supposed death had been far from simple.
"Let's head to the Hospital, then,"
Shinho grabbed the glass jar from his desk and walked out.
Kakashi, burdened with a heavy heart, followed close behind.
Soon, the two arrived at Konoha Hospital.
Under Shinho's orders, an operating room was immediately prepared.
With all the equipment set, Kakashi lay down on the surgical bed.
The surgery was personally performed by Shinho.
Since I'm here anyway.
In a scenario that defied all logic, Kakashi successfully had Obito's eye transplanted.
When the anesthesia wore off and Kakashi woke up, he was immediately stunned.
He felt... different.
Due to the influence of Obito's eye, Kakashi's original Sharingan rapidly evolved, eventually activating Kamui.
A flood of information surged into his mind.
"It... it's his eye,"
Kakashi muttered, his expression vacant, not even pausing to marvel at Kamui's power.
Shinho was just about to say a few comforting words when suddenly, two lines of text appeared in his vision.
His gaze sharpened instantly.
It was a new achievement.
…
[Achievement Unlocked: 'Tears Hidden in Kamui.' Reward: Shared Senses Gu.]
[Shared Senses Gu: Rank Six Immortal Gu. Allows two parties to perceive each other's conditions and share all five senses.]
…
Immortal Gu?
Now that's a solid gain.
Though, the Gu's effect was... peculiar.
Shinho felt it wasn't exactly suitable for his own use.
But then, an idea struck him.
What if I used it on Tsunade and Shizune?
Double the pleasure?
Shinho took a sharp breath.
Once he reached the sixth rank, he definitely had to give it a try.
"Shinho,"
Kakashi's heavy voice pulled him from his thoughts. "Why would Uchiha Madara have Obito's eye?"
"Madara was killed before any information could be obtained from him,"
Shinho snapped back to reality and replied, "But I suspect Obito's death might have been orchestrated by Madara."
"Bastard!"
Kakashi couldn't help but clench his fists tightly.
"No matter what, Madara is already dead,"
Shinho said, locking eyes with him. "And Kakashi-sensei, you're still alive."
"..."
Kakashi was silent for a moment before nodding. "I understand."
Seeing this, Shinho felt relieved.
As long as Kakashi didn't do anything foolish, everything would be fine.
"Shinho, you go ahead with your work,"
Kakashi closed his eyes, his voice low. "I need some time alone."
Shinho nodded and left the hospital room.
"Shinho!"
A familiar voice called from behind.
Shinho instinctively turned his head.
It was Sakura, dressed in her white medical coat.
"Long time no see, Sakura,"
Shinho greeted her with a smile.
"It really is you!"
Sakura's face lit up with realization. "No wonder everyone seems to be working so hard and looking so motivated today."
Huh?
It felt like one of those moments when a boss comes to inspect the workplace.
Shinho hadn't realized he had that kind of influence now.
"What brings you to Konoha Hospital today?"
Sakura stepped up in front of him.
"We found another Sharingan,"
Shinho replied casually. "So I was performing a surgery on Kakashi-sensei."
"...I see,"
Sakura glanced toward Kakashi's hospital room. "I'll visit him in a bit."
"How's the hospital been lately?"
Shinho asked as they walked down the corridor.
"Busy,"
Sakura explained. "It's all patients from other villages though."
"How's the Fourth Raikage?"
Shinho suddenly remembered and asked.
"His injuries were very severe. He's still unconscious,"
Sakura paused before continuing, "but his life is no longer in danger."
As she spoke, she realized the person responsible for those injuries was standing right in front of her, and her expression turned a bit awkward.
"Which room is he in? Take me there,"
Shinho thought for a moment and said.
"This way,"
Sakura turned and led him toward the stairs.
They stopped in front of the third room on the third floor.
Shinho thanked her and pushed the door open without hesitation.
…
"You... what are you doing here?"
Yugito Nii, who was standing guard, immediately tensed up, like facing a mortal enemy.
"Why wouldn't I be here?"
Shinho countered with a question of his own. "This is Konoha."
"..."
Yugito gritted her teeth, positioning herself protectively in front of the Fourth Raikage.
"What's with that reaction?"
Shinho chuckled. "If I wanted to kill him, I would've done sp already."
"Wh-who knows if you might change your mind now?"
Yugito still didn't lower her guard.
"That's actually a fair point."
Shinho nodded in agreement.
Yugito Nii's body instantly stiffened, a wave of panic spreading through her chest.
"You're quite amusing,"
Shinho stepped closer to her, leaning in slowly.
Yugito's pupils dilated in shock, and for a moment, she didn't know how to react.
"Looks like he's recovering well,"
Shinho suddenly shifted his gaze toward the Fourth Raikage lying in the hospital bed.
"..."
Yugito wanted nothing more than to punch him, but she didn't dare.
"You smell pretty nice,"
Shinho sniffed lightly, his warm breath brushing against her neck.
Yugito was so startled that she stumbled back two steps, her cheeks flushing with a faint pink hue.
Shinho was a bit surprised by her reaction.
She seems pretty innocent.
The amusing game of teasing the "cat" had come to an end.
Shinho walked toward the hospital room door and casually reminded her, "When the Fourth Raikage wakes up, if he causes trouble, you know what the consequences will be."
Yugito's heart tightened.
Given the Fourth Raikage's personality, it would be difficult for him to submit to Konoha just like that.
But if he didn't submit, the entire Kumogakure might be dragged down with him.
Without waiting for Yugito's response, Shinho left the room.
Soon, he was back in the Hokage's office.
With so many matters to handle, he barely had time to wander around, but he did anyway.
While he could technically take a break, that would just put more pressure on his three Hokage secretaries.
…
Nightfall;
The Hokage building remained brightly lit.
But it wasn't because of overtime, it was for the celebration banquet.
This time, there were far too many attendees for an ordinary restaurant to handle.
With a grand wave of his hand, Shinho had the banquet set up right in the plaza in front of the Hokage building.
7:00 PM;
The plaza was filled with mouthwatering aromas.
Ninjas took their seats one after another.
"Is brother-in-law sitting at our table?"
Hinata's younger sister, Hanabi, looked around, searching for Shinho.
"He's the Hokage,"
Hiashi Hyuga shook his head, answering calmly.
"So what if he's the Hokage?"
Hanabi puffed up her cheeks in protest. "Sis, don't you think so?"
"Hanabi!"
Hinata tried to suppress her shyness as she spoke, "You're about to graduate. As a shinobi, you should show the appropriate respect toward the Hokage."
"Alright..."
Hanabi pouted but ultimately didn't argue.
"Has your team leader been decided yet?"
Hiashi suddenly thought of something and asked.
"Not yet,"
Hanabi sighed. "Brother-in-law's so busy now, he probably won't be able to be my squad leader."
"You can ask him about it later,"
Hiashi suggested.
In the current shinobi world, Shinho was undoubtedly the most powerful and influential figure.
Hinata becoming the Hokage's wife wasn't officially confirmed yet.
But if Hanabi could become his student first, that wouldn't be a bad move either.
All in all, a double layer of security would be even more beneficial for the Hyuga clan's future.
"That's right!"
Hanabi's mood instantly brightened.
"Hinata, you should go too,"
Hiashi added.
With Hinata's connection, even if Shinho refused, he'd definitely find an outstanding squad leader for Hanabi.
This was his open strategy.
Even if Shinho saw through it, he wouldn't be upset.
"Eh?"
Hinata was momentarily stunned.
"Sis!"
Hanabi grabbed her hand, blinking her eyes at her pleadingly.
"Alright,"
Hinata ultimately didn't refuse.
Besides, she wanted to go too.