Department and Completely Disconnect from Konoha
Back home, Andrew didn't bother to meet with Terumi Mei or the others from Kirigakure. The situation was far too complicated now. Shisui's departure from Konoha, along with the majority of the Uchiha clan members, wasn't just a minor rebellion—it was a seismic shift. Fugaku was expected to act against the Mist Shinobi as a warning, to make it clear to them that this alliance wasn't blind trust. After all, with such upheaval inside the village, Konoha had every reason to watch Kirigakure closely. They might be allies for now, but they weren't part of the same village—there were still lines drawn in the sand.
Andrew stood in front of a mirror and activated his Mangekyō Sharingan. What he saw made him pause—a strange pattern forming beneath the Mangekyō, intertwining with the existing design. The chakra signatures weren't conflicting; rather, they were blending—affecting each other subtly.
"Luckily, this fusion doesn't impair my vision," he muttered to himself. If he had gone temporarily blind after this fusion, as happened with others after eye transplants, that would have been disastrous. He had assumed that acquiring the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan would require a massive investment of feedback points from the system's store, especially since he had no blood brother to transplant eyes from.
But unexpectedly, the fusion happened on its own—without the traditional ritual or any pain.
"I didn't think it would awaken this way… Looks like luck is on my side."
Meanwhile, inside the Hokage Building, the atmosphere was anything but calm. The sun had begun to set, but the village buzzed with rumors and anxiety over the morning's events. Inside his office, the Third Hokage listened silently as an Anbu operative delivered the latest intelligence.
"Sir Hokage, the casualty report has been finalized. We lost sixteen Jōnin and twenty-three Chūnin in the operation. Another forty-eight ninja were injured, and multiple civilian homes sustained structural damage. The second basement level of the Police Department's prison has collapsed."
Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression was stone-cold. He processed the report in silence for a moment, then finally asked:
"What about the Uchiha?"
Although the Police Department was technically no longer under Uchiha control, the position of its captain was still held by one. And when things went wrong, the village always knew where to point fingers.
"There's been no movement from them, Hokage-sama. Not a single Uchiha member has been seen at the Police Department today—no patrols, no guards, no sign of the captain. It's like they've abandoned the entire department."
Hiruzen narrowed his eyes, then smirked bitterly.
"Abandoned it, huh? They're probably laughing to themselves behind closed doors…"
He could imagine the Uchiha clan celebrating, hidden away behind the safety of their district walls. But then, his thoughts drifted to the battle earlier in the day. Andrew's display of power had made him reconsider everything. Even with eighty percent of Konoha's elite forces focused on capturing Danzo, they had barely made an impact. Compared to that, Andrew's single-handed suppression of Danzo was overwhelming.
"His Susanoo… It was even more massive and more suffocating than Itachi's during the Shimura incident," Hiruzen thought.
"When Andrew changed its form, the pressure it released disrupted chakra flow and made ninjutsu almost impossible. How do we fight against something like that?"
What Hiruzen didn't know was that Andrew's transformation was due to the awakening of the Eternal Mangekyō, not just a different stage of Susanoo. He only knew one thing for sure—this Susanoo was in a class of its own.
"Summon the two elder advisors and all the heads of the major clans," Hiruzen ordered grimly. "Make sure Uchiha is included. We're holding a high-level emergency meeting."
Danzo was gone. Orochimaru had fled. Blaming the Uchiha now wouldn't serve any purpose. What mattered was handling the fallout from Danzo's unauthorized use of Senjutsu chakra, a power that should have never been in his hands.
Far from the walls of Konoha, other shinobi villages had begun to stir. The ripples caused by Uchiha's actions—and whispers of a new power—were spreading rapidly.
Inside Iwagakure, Ōnoki sat at a round table with his top advisors.
"Akatsuki. The Immortal Eyes. The Uchiha behind the Nine-Tails incident." Ōnoki's voice was low. "How credible is this intel?"
The room was quiet for a moment before one of the advisors spoke.
"Very credible, Tsuchikage-sama. The Uchiha have always been under suspicion for the Nine-Tails Rebellion. If they weren't responsible, they'd want to prove it—and their recent moves suggest just that."
Another added, "We don't even need to confirm it completely. The fact that they're stirring Rain Shinobi Village is reason enough to probe. If this so-called 'Immortal Eye' exists, we can't afford to miss it."
"Rain is close. We can send a team. What's the worst that can happen?" another Rock Shinobi commented. "Hanzō of the Salamander? He's a relic."
Rain Shinobi was still under Hanzō's command—or so the world believed. Nagato and Konan, however, had already taken silent control. Outsiders rarely got a glimpse of what truly went on inside the village.
Meanwhile, in Kumogakure, the response was more direct.
"Immortal Eyes? We're not wasting time—grab them!" roared the Fourth Raikage. Without waiting for a council meeting, he dispatched elite teams to test the waters around Amegakure.
Even Sunagakure, which usually avoided entanglement, sent scouts. With Konoha distracted and Kirigakure overseas, the other three villages were free to act.
Back in the Hokage's meeting room, Hiruzen Sarutobi sat at the head of the council table, his expression heavy.
"Everyone knows what happened today. Danzo escaped and was killed, but his reckless use of Senjutsu chakra might bring calamity upon us. We must act fast or risk war on a scale worse than the last Shinobi World War."
"Escaped from prison?" Utatane Koharu scoffed, turning toward Fugaku and Andrew. "Shouldn't the Police Department's captain provide an explanation?"
Fugaku simply closed his eyes and said nothing. He had already removed himself from village affairs. If not for his status as clan head, he wouldn't have even bothered attending. Andrew, on the other hand, raised an eyebrow in surprise. Was this woman insane?
"Konoha is on the brink of collapse, and you're still trying to blame Uchiha?" he said flatly. His words echoed across the room, making several other clan heads glance at each other uncomfortably.
"Koharu," Hiruzen snapped, clearly irritated. "Danzo escaped by colluding with Orochimaru. That's not something the police could have predicted or stopped. Andrew even forced Danzo to commit suicide in the end. Lay off the blame."
But Andrew stood up with a neutral expression.
"It is, indeed, my failure. I accept full responsibility."
"Effective immediately, I resign from the position of Police Department captain. All Uchiha personnel stationed there will be recalled. I trust this satisfies the elders?"
There was a moment of stunned silence. Then Koharu, satisfied with herself, nodded slightly. Hiruzen, however, looked alarmed.
"Andrew, you don't have to—"
"It's fine." Andrew cut him off. He turned to Fugaku. "Clan head, let's go. We still have matters to attend to at the harbor. There's no longer anything for us here."
"Wait!" Hiruzen stood up. "Fugaku, please reconsider. We need Uchiha's strength if we are to weather what's coming."
He had hoped that by inviting Uchiha to today's meeting, he could bring them back into the fold—offer them a voice in village matters. But it was already too late.
Fugaku didn't even respond. He simply walked out beside Andrew, leaving a stunned silence behind.
Hiruzen clenched his jaw.
"So this is Uchiha's decision… They're not just strong—they're confident. Confident enough to abandon Konoha entirely."
He could feel the tide shifting—and he wasn't sure Konoha would survive it.
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