A few days later, a young man slowly walked through the main gates of the Leaf Village.
He wore a Leaf Village forehead protector and had short black hair. On both shoulders, he bore the fan-shaped crest of the Uchiha Clan.
He was undoubtedly a member of the Uchiha, and he was none other than the renowned Uchiha Shisui of the Leaf Village, known as Shisui of the Body Flicker.
He had returned from the eastern border of the Land of Fire.
No ninja from the Mist Village had appeared on the border recently; it seemed they had abandoned their invasion of the Land of Fire. Thus, he was able to return.
As he stepped through the gates of the Leaf Village, the ninja guarding the entrance quickly let him pass.
They were aware of Uchiha Shisui, the genius of the Uchiha Clan. They wouldn't make things difficult for him, especially since he was an Anbu under the direct command of the Lord Hokage.
After returning to the village, Shisui did not go back to the clan grounds. Instead, he headed straight to the Hokage building to report to the Third Hokage.
When he stepped into the office, the Third Hokage's face lit up with pleasant surprise upon seeing him.
"Shisui, you've actually returned. It seems the border must be stable."
"Thank you for your hard work. It is because of your protection that the Mist Village ninja dared not make any further moves."
Shisui was the son of his old friend, Uchiha Kagami, so the Third naturally felt a special affection for him. Moreover, Shisui was easier to control.
Compared to other unruly members of the Uchiha Clan, Shisui was approachable and did not hold overly radical ideologies. He was very easy to manipulate.
If he weren't a member of the Uchiha Clan, the Third would have even considered grooming him to be the next Hokage. It was a pity; he was too young, and he was an Uchiha.
Hearing the Third's words, Shisui did not show arrogance but spoke humbly.
"For the sake of the village, this is what I should do."
The Third Hokage was very satisfied internally. This was a good Uchiha—one who stayed on the arduous border for so long for the betterment of the village.
Shisui also held high prestige within the Uchiha Clan. His return would perfectly facilitate the village's acceptance of the Two-Tails Jinchūriki.
"Shisui, your Uchiha Clan won a great victory against the Cloud Village ninja army this time."
"You have made a huge contribution to the peace of the Leaf."
"However, the captured Two-Tails Jinchūriki must still be handed over to the village for control. What do you think?"
Even while on the border, Shisui had heard the news.
He hadn't expected his clan to actually defeat the Cloud Village ninja army.
The combat power of their clan was indeed strong, but logically, the power of the entire Cloud Village should have been greater than that of his family alone. It truly astonished him.
However, the Third Hokage was right. For the peace of the village, there was nothing wrong with handing the Two-Tails Jinchūriki over to the village's custody.
Even his own clan should not place itself above the village.
There was no need for the Uchiha Clan to control such powerful force; otherwise, they would become arrogant and might even harbor thoughts that didn't belong to them.
That was also why he hadn't revealed the fact that he possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan. He didn't want his clansmen to have ideas they shouldn't have. If the clan knew he had the Mangekyō Sharingan, it would likely breed even greater ambition among them.
And such ambition was obviously detrimental to the unity of the village.
Internal strife was often the main reason a village collapsed.
Especially now that the family's combat power had become this strong, he absolutely could not expose his Mangekyō Sharingan.
He spoke up.
"Lord Hokage, I also support handing the Two-Tails Jinchūriki over to the village for management."
The Third Hokage looked delighted and was extremely satisfied in his heart. Shisui was truly a good child with excellent awareness.
"Then I will entrust this matter to you."
As for asking the Uchiha Clan to resign from their positions in the Konoha Military Police Force, he didn't mention it, fearing Shisui might not be able to accept it yet.
He would let that fellow Danzō bear the fury of the Uchiha Clan regarding that matter. He would simply act helpless, as if he had no choice but to agree to Shimura Danzō's accusations and remove the Uchiha form the Police Force.
Shisui spoke respectfully.
"I will do my best to accomplish this."
Even though he had made a name for himself in the ninja world, within the clan, he wasn't even an elder yet; his seniority was a bit low.
After leaving the Hokage building, he went directly back to the clan grounds.
Naturally, he was welcomed by his clansmen.
If Uchiha Ryōsuke hadn't appeared out of nowhere, the top genius of the Uchiha Clan would have been Uchiha Shisui.
In the battle with the Mist Village, he had also demonstrated the power of the Uchiha Clan.
After returning, Shisui didn't go directly to the Clan Head. Instead, he found Uchiha Itachi, who was also in the Anbu.
Seeing Shisui return, Itachi looked pleasantly surprised.
"Shisui, I didn't expect you to be back too. How were things handled at the border?"
Shisui smiled and said, "There hasn't been any movement from the Mist Village for a long time. I estimate they no longer have any intention of attacking the Land of Fire."
Hearing this, Itachi felt equally relieved.
A stable border was a good thing for the village and the Land of Fire.
More importantly, now that Shisui was back, he had someone to consult with.
Before he could speak, Shisui voiced the question in his heart first.
"Itachi, what happened in the clan recently? How did we suddenly become so strong, able to capture the Cloud Village ninja army and even the Two-Tails Jinchūriki? That is a terrifying weapon of war for a village."
Itachi's face was filled with helplessness.
"It's that Uchiha Ryōsuke. I don't know what happened, but his strength improved by leaps and bounds. He's become terrifying. Even I am no match for him. It was he who captured the Fourth Raikage, the Two-Tails, and the Eight-Tails Jinchūriki during the great battle."
"His strength is truly monstrous."
Shisui couldn't help but be astonished. This battle record was simply too glorious.
If it weren't Uchiha Itachi telling him this, he would never have believed that such a powerful clansman existed.
One had to realize that Uchiha Ryōsuke was about the same age as him. Although he was the son of the Great Elder, his reputation had never been that impressive.
Now he had suddenly awakened? Was he hiding his strength, or was it a sudden awakening?
Then, Uchiha Itachi spoke with a grave expression.
"That guy is extremely dangerous. He is a very radical person. With his current momentum, I'm afraid he will cause a conflict between the clan and the village."
"Previously, he declared, 'Is the Leaf Village without the Uchiha still the Leaf Village?'"
"This proves that he views the Uchiha Clan as more important than the Leaf Village."
"He even claimed that the Uchiha Clan were the founders of the Leaf Village. I fear he harbors thoughts of wanting to dominate the village deep inside. It's truly too dangerous."
Shisui looked equally shocked. Was he that radical?
Ryōsuke was actually such a radical clansman. Powerful and radical in thought—did the Mangekyō Sharingan eye technique he awakened exist for this very purpose?
During the battle with the Mist Village, Shisui had also awakened his own Mangekyō Sharingan, the legendary upgraded version of the Uchiha Clan's Sharingan.
He spoke with a relaxed expression.
"There may be no need to worry so much about Ryōsuke. Even if he is a relatively radical clansman, I have a way to deal with him."
"Itachi, what I am about to show you is the Uchiha Clan's Mangekyō Sharingan."