Kiyohara was now the Hokage, and in Shisui's eyes, the Hokage's orders naturally took priority above everything else.
"By the way."
Kiyohara looked at Shisui.
"I need you to come with me for a moment."
Although puzzled, Shisui nodded and silently followed him.
Before long, the two of them arrived at Training Ground Three.
"Shisui, use a genjutsu on me."
Shisui blinked in surprise.
"I recently developed a new technique. I need you to use genjutsu against me so I can test it."
Kiyohara explained calmly.
"I understand."
Shisui immediately grasped the reason.
Kiyohara knew countless techniques, and he was constantly creating new ones as well.
Closing his eyes, Shisui took a slow breath.
When he opened them again, they had already transformed into scarlet Sharingan.
Three tomoe slowly revolved around his pupils as powerful ocular chakra spread outward. Invisible Yin Release chakra quietly permeated the surrounding air.
"Kiyohara, I'm starting."
Kiyohara gave a slight nod.
"Go ahead."
Shisui inhaled deeply.
Invisible ocular power surged from his eyes, transforming into an unseen wave that swept toward Kiyohara.
A Three Tomoe Sharingan genjutsu was more than enough to instantly overwhelm the vast majority of elite jonin, dragging them into an illusion before they could even react.
Yet the instant that invisible power approached Kiyohara, it felt as though it had collided with an invisible wall.
Kiyohara remained standing exactly where he was.
Not even the slightest movement.
His expression never changed.
He did not even furrow his brows.
Shisui's pupils contracted slightly.
Only then did he notice that Kiyohara's entire body had somehow become enveloped in a thin layer of dark purple mist.
The mist was incredibly light, clinging closely to the surface of his skin as it slowly flowed around him, vaguely taking the shape of a suit of armor.
The moment Shisui's Three Tomoe genjutsu touched that layer of mist, it was immediately repelled.
"Continue."
Kiyohara had already confirmed that ordinary Three Tomoe Sharingan genjutsu could be blocked with ease.
Hearing that, the three tomoe inside Shisui's eyes began spinning faster and faster.
The tails of the three tomoe gradually connected together, forming an entirely new pattern around his pupils.
The Mangekyo Sharingan.
Its dojutsu power was several times stronger than before.
The genjutsu cast through the Mangekyo Sharingan was powerful enough to momentarily throw even a Tailed Beast into confusion.
Yet the outcome remained exactly the same.
The instant that overwhelming ocular power struck the dark purple mist, it was once again effortlessly reflected away.
Shisui stood frozen in place, breathing heavily.
Using the Mangekyo Sharingan placed a considerable burden on his body.
But at this moment, he paid no attention to that.
His eyes remained fixed on Kiyohara.
On that slowly flowing layer of dark purple mist surrounding him.
On that "armor" which had casually repelled even Mangekyo-level genjutsu.
"This technique... actually blocked my genjutsu..."
Shisui's face was filled with disbelief.
"What is this technique called?"
Kiyohara raised his hand and looked down at the dark purple mist flowing across his palm.
"It is called..."
"'Yin Release Chakra Mode.'"
He answered calmly.
"By covering the entire body with specially refined yin chakra, it forms a layer of chakra armor. It greatly enhances perception, strengthens dojutsu, and at the same time..."
He paused briefly before lowering his hand.
"It resists genjutsu."
Shisui opened his mouth slightly.
Resists genjutsu...
Even Mangekyo Sharingan genjutsu?
"Th... this is something you developed recently?"
Kiyohara nodded.
"You could say that."
Shisui remained silent for a long time.
Eventually, he gave a bitter smile.
"Kiyohara... you're truly a genius."
Kiyohara looked at him and gently shook his head.
"It's only a technique. As long as someone spends enough time researching it, anyone can achieve it."
Shisui did not respond.
He knew that wasn't true.
When other people said, "Anyone can do it if they spend enough time," it was humility.
When Kiyohara said it, it somehow sounded like simple fact.
"Shisui."
Kiyohara's voice interrupted his thoughts.
Shisui raised his head.
"Your Mangekyo genjutsu is already extremely powerful. It's just that this technique of mine happens to counter genjutsu."
"I understand."
Shisui nodded.
Afterward, Kiyohara had him cast several more genjutsu techniques one after another.
Each one was successfully blocked.
However, Kiyohara deliberately chose not to test Kotoamatsukami.
(TN: Kotoamatsukami is Shisui's ultimate dojutsu.)
He wanted to perfect this technique further before taking such a risk.
At the same time, he intended to transform Yin Release Chakra Mode into an automatic defense.
Just like the Chakra Armor developed in the Land of Snow, where the armor often reacted automatically before its wearer even realized they were under attack.
If he could accomplish that, then he would no longer have to fear any surprise genjutsu attack.
After leaving Training Ground Three, Kiyohara first walked through the streets of Konoha.
He stopped by a small dango shop and bought two boxes of colorful three-flavored dango.
Then he visited the confectionery shop next door and carefully selected several pastries that Rin particularly liked, placing them neatly into a paper bag.
"Rin."
Kiyohara returned to Rin's home.
The living room lights were still on.
A half-finished cup of tea sat on the coffee table, already completely cold.
Rin was curled up in one corner of the sofa, hugging her knees tightly against her chest.
She was still wearing the pale pink bathrobe she had worn that morning.
The sash had loosened slightly, leaving the collar open enough to reveal a stretch of her fair collarbone.
Her long hair hung loosely over her shoulders in slight disarray.
Several damp strands rested against her cheeks, and the ends of her hair were still wet, making it obvious she had just taken a bath.
She buried her face against her knees, exposing only part of her forehead beneath her scattered bangs.
As Kiyohara walked over, he noticed a trace of quiet resentment lingering in her eyes.
"Kiyohara-kun... why did you leave all by yourself?"
"I attended Sasuke's birth celebration, then stopped to buy a few things."
Kiyohara lifted the paper bags in his hands.
"I see..."
The blush that still lingered across Rin's cheeks had not completely faded, and now it was mixed with a touch of grievance.
"It's just... I'm a little uncomfortable..."
She spoke so softly that her voice almost disappeared.
Kiyohara's eyebrows twitched slightly.
"Where does it hurt?"
"You know exactly where."
Rin gently bit her lower lip.
The moment she said that, Kiyohara immediately understood.
Because Rin's endurance was better than Kurenai's, he had unconsciously become much less restrained.
After all, with his current physical body, he could even engage a Tailed Beast in close combat.
If he truly stopped holding back, he could easily cause Rin serious injury.
Without another word, Kiyohara gently took hold of her hand.
Warm Yang chakra flowed from his palm into her wrist.
The comforting chakra spread through her chakra pathways, traveling up her forearm, across her shoulder, and finally dispersing slowly through her waist and lower abdomen.
Gradually, Rin's body relaxed.
The tension in her shoulders faded away.
Her legs, which had been tightly curled together, slowly stretched out.
A soft, quiet hum escaped her lips, sounding much gentler than before.
Kiyohara released her wrist.
"Feeling better?"
Rin nodded but still avoided meeting his gaze.
"Mmm..."
Kiyohara placed his hand gently on top of her head and softly rubbed her hair.
"If you're uncomfortable next time, just tell me. You don't have to endure it."
Rin's eyelashes trembled lightly.
Slowly, she raised her head and met his eyes.
Within those warm brown eyes were reflected both the dim yellow light of the living room and his face.
"Kiyohara-kun..."
"Hm?"
"Are... are you leaving again?"
Kiyohara quietly looked at her.
"No."
He answered gently.
"I'll stay with you tonight."
Only then did a smile finally bloom across Rin's face.
As long as he only stayed away for one night, Tsunade probably wouldn't have anything to say about it.
Kiyohara stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"Oh, right."
Rin suddenly remembered something.
"Tomorrow is Obito's memorial day. Are you going to visit?"
"His memorial day..."
Kiyohara considered it for a moment before shaking his head.
"There isn't really any reason for me to go."
Even so, he had a feeling that Obito might secretly return to Konoha around that time, so he planned to have the ANBU strengthen their patrols.
The following day.
Uchiha Obito stood quietly before a gravestone.
It belonged to his grandmother.
Since both of his parents had died when he was very young, it had been his grandmother who had raised him almost entirely by herself.
Just as Obito prepared to leave, he suddenly heard voices nearby.
"Kakashi, you've come to visit Obito again?"
A woman's voice rang out.
Obito immediately concealed himself.
"Yeah."
Kakashi answered.
"I come every month."
"If that idiot Obito knew I was still visiting him after all this time, his nose would probably be sticking up in the air from pride."
His tone remained as calm as ever.
Several meters away stood Rin.
Today was Obito's memorial day.
Both Kakashi and Rin had come to pay their respects.
She knelt down and gently placed a bouquet of fresh flowers before Obito's gravestone.
"Obito... I'm here to see you."
"How have you been lately? I suppose you're doing pretty well. At least you don't have to stay as busy as the rest of us."
She paused for a moment before smiling softly.
"Kiyohara-kun has become Hokage. Did you know that?"
Kakashi leaned against a dead tree with his arms crossed, quietly listening to her speak.
"Oh, and Kiyohara-kun appointed me as the deputy director of Konoha Hospital."
There was unmistakable happiness in Rin's voice.
"When I first heard it, I honestly thought I'd misunderstood. Such an important position... I never imagined it would be given to me. But Kiyohara-kun said that he trusted me."
She carefully straightened the bouquet, gently brushing her fingers across the flower petals.
"So I'll do my best. I don't want to let Kiyohara-kun down."
Kakashi looked at her.
The single visible eye above his mask narrowed slightly, as though he were smiling.
"You and Kiyohara... have gotten very close lately."
For some reason, Kakashi felt that every movement Rin made now carried a feminine grace that she had not possessed in the past.
She was like a flower that had been nourished by gentle rain, blooming more beautifully with each passing day.
"H... Have we?"
"We have."
Kakashi nodded without hesitation.
"That's because... Kiyohara-kun has helped me so much..."
Rin lowered her head softly.
Seeing Rin's reaction, Kakashi felt as though he had finally pieced together part of the truth.
As far as he was concerned, he had absolutely no worries about Rin being with Kiyohara.
After all, Kiyohara was someone Kakashi trusted completely.
The only thing he had noticed recently was that Rin did not seem to be the only woman who had grown close to Kiyohara.
Kakashi fell silent for a moment.
After thinking it over, he decided not to dwell on it any further.
With both hands tucked into his pockets, he quietly gazed at Obito's gravestone.
"Obito."
"You always used to say you were going to protect Rin."
"Now that Kiyohara is here, you can finally rest easy."
Hidden within the shadows, Obito slowly clenched his fist.
Anger.
Jealousy.
Unwillingness.
Those emotions churned violently inside his chest like molten lava, threatening to erupt at any moment.
Obito slowly drew in a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the storm raging inside him.
Not long afterward, Rin was the first to leave, leaving only Kakashi standing before the grave.
"Oh, right."
"Kushina's due date is almost here."
"I bet it'll be a very adorable child."
Kakashi continued talking to Obito's gravestone as though speaking to an old friend.
Obito remained hidden beneath the shadows of the trees, silently listening to every single word.
He slowly closed his eyes.
A plan gradually began taking shape within his mind.
The next instant, his figure disappeared from the cemetery without making the slightest sound.
...
Deep beneath Konoha, inside the Root headquarters.
Danzo sat upon a massive stone chair, his restrained right arm resting calmly on the armrest.
His single eye narrowed slightly as he carefully observed the man standing before him.
"Shinnō."
"Orochimaru told me... that you're capable of helping us."
Danzo spoke calmly.
"That depends."
Shinnō looked directly at Danzo.
"On what exactly you want."
"Power."
Danzo slowly straightened his posture.
"I want a method that can significantly increase the strength of Root's shinobi within a short period of time."
Shinnō studied him quietly for several moments.
"Orochimaru should already have told you."
"I possess that capability."
"He did."
Danzo nodded.
"But I need to witness it with my own eyes."
He slowly raised one hand before making a casual gesture.
Two figures immediately emerged from the surrounding darkness.
One was Shigaraki Tanuki.
The other was Aburame Tatsuma.
Tatsuma's black cloak concealed most of his face, exposing only the lower half beneath a pair of dark sunglasses. The purple markings running across the right side of his face appeared and disappeared beneath the flickering light.
"Test him."
Danzo ordered flatly.
Shigaraki Tanuki tilted his head before rolling his shoulders.
"Lord Danzo... what if I accidentally kill him?"
"You won't."
Danzo interrupted him without hesitation.
"Begin."
The moment his words fell, Aburame Tatsuma was already in motion.
He lifted one hand.
Countless streams of black insects poured from his sleeves, spreading rapidly through the air.
Parasitic Destruction Bugs.
The insects filled the room with a faint buzzing sound.
Within the blink of an eye, nearly half the chamber had become covered by the dense black swarm.
Shigaraki Tanuki inhaled deeply until his chest expanded to its limit.
"Wind Release: Great Sickle Weasel!"
A tremendous gale erupted from his mouth, carrying the massive swarm of insects toward Shinnō.
The wind moved at astonishing speed.
The insects tumbled wildly within the violent current before quickly regaining formation, surrounding Shinnō from every direction.
At that moment, something beneath Shinnō's skin began writhing.
His veins bulged outward.
His muscles visibly expanded, stretching his clothing until it became taut.
Even his black hair grew noticeably longer.
Forbidden Medical Technique: Physical Activation.
The next second, Shinnō threw a punch.
The strike was so fast that only an afterimage remained.
His fist slammed directly into the center of the approaching swarm.
BOOM!
The surrounding air exploded.
The force generated by the punch scattered countless insects in every direction, filling the room with shattered black fragments.
Tatsuma's brows furrowed slightly.
The insects that had been destroyed represented only an extremely small portion of the colony living inside his body.
He calmly raised both hands and spread all ten fingers.
Even more Parasitic Destruction Bugs poured from his sleeves and collar.
This time, there were several times more than before.
Secret Technique: Insect Sphere!
The countless insects no longer attacked individually.
Instead, they merged together into an enormous black sphere that completely engulfed Shinnō.
Inside the Insect Sphere, the bugs immediately began devouring his chakra.
Shinnō could clearly feel them attempting to burrow beneath his skin, crawl through his chakra pathways, and consume everything inside his body.
"Excellent insects."
He gave a calm evaluation.
"But..."
"I possess plenty of chakra."
Forbidden Medical Technique: Physical Regeneration!
In an instant, every cell inside Shinnō's body accelerated its rate of division and reproduction.
The insects that had invaded his body were crushed apart by newly regenerated tissue before being forced back out.
His body suddenly shook.
BOOM!
The entire Insect Sphere exploded apart.
Black fragments scattered throughout the chamber.
Aburame Tatsuma instinctively stepped backward.
Behind his sunglasses, shock flashed across his eyes.
Shigaraki Tanuki gave him no chance to recover.
"Wind Release: Wind Bullet!"
A compressed sphere of high-pressure wind burst from his palm, screaming through the air toward Shinnō.
The attack possessed enough force to shatter solid rock.
Yet Shinnō simply stood where he was and allowed the attack to strike him directly.
BOOM!
Smoke erupted across the room.
A smile appeared on Shigaraki Tanuki's face.
But only for a brief moment.
The instant the smoke dispersed, his smile froze.
Shinnō was still standing exactly where he had been.
A horrifying wound had been torn open across his chest.
Bright red muscle and stark white bone were fully exposed beneath the gaping injury.
Yet the massive wound was visibly healing before everyone's eyes.
Fresh muscle tissue rapidly sprouted from the edges.
Within only a few breaths, the fatal injury had completely disappeared.
His skin returned to its flawless state.
Not even a scar remained.
Shigaraki Tanuki swallowed involuntarily.
"Th... that's impossible..."
Shinnō casually rolled his shoulder.
His joints cracked sharply.
"Nothing is impossible."
He slowly raised one hand with his palm facing upward.
Pitch-black chakra began pouring from his palm.
The chakra condensed in midair.
Eventually, it transformed into a crimson monster.
Its body resembled a gigantic serpent.
The creature's head was concealed beneath a white mask.
Upon that mask was engraved a single character.
"Zero."
The Zero-Tails.
Countless tentacles split apart from its body, slowly writhing through the air.
Danzo remained seated upon his stone chair, his lone eye fixed firmly upon the crimson monster.
"So this..."
"...is the Zero-Tails?"
Orochimaru nodded.
"An artificial Tailed Beast."
He slowly licked his lips.
"It feeds upon the darkness inside the human heart."
"As long as humanity cannot rid itself of darkness..."
"...the Zero-Tails will never run out of power."
"Exactly."
Shinnō nodded in agreement.
"The Zero-Tails draws its strength from the darkness within mankind."
"As long as darkness continues to exist..."
"...its power is limitless."
Danzo slowly spoke.
"Interesting."
He rose from his seat before walking toward Shinnō.
"Can this technique..."
"...be taught to Root?"
Shinnō calmly looked at him.
"It can."
"But I have one condition."
"What condition?"
"I want Konoha's research."
"Medical research."
"Ninjutsu research."
"Fuinjutsu techniques."
"And everything else."
Danzo's brow furrowed slightly.
"What do you intend to do with all of that?"
"Restore the Land of the Sky."
Shinnō answered calmly.
He had no intention of hiding his ambitions from Danzo.
Danzo pondered the proposal carefully.
Finally, he nodded.
"Deal."
In Danzo's opinion, even if the Land of the Sky were restored, it would still be nothing more than a minor nation.
It posed no threat whatsoever to Konoha.
...
Inside the Hokage's Office.
Kiyohara sat behind his desk with several documents spread neatly before him.
Mitokado Homura stood to the left with both arms crossed tightly over his chest, his face clearly showing his dissatisfaction.
Utatane Koharu stood beside him with deeply furrowed brows.
"Hokage-sama."
Homura's voice was low and stern.
"Why didn't you discuss the increase in the ANBU's salary with us beforehand?"
"That concerns Konoha's financial expenditures."
"It is not your personal property."
Kiyohara leaned back in his chair and calmly looked at him.
Over the past few days, he had made several additional adjustments to the structure and organization of the ANBU.
As expected, Koharu and Homura had immediately come looking for him.
"The additional funding comes entirely out of my own pocket."
"Not a single coin from Konoha's treasury has been used."
"That isn't the issue."
Homura stepped forward.
"This is a matter of procedure."
"A reform as significant as restructuring the ANBU must first be reviewed by the council of advisors."
"Procedure?"
Kiyohara interrupted him before he could continue.
"The ANBU reports directly to the Hokage."
"Those were the rules established by the Second Hokage."
"When exactly were they changed?"
"How is it that I never heard about it?"
Homura's words became lodged in his throat.
For a long while, he could not say a single thing.
Koharu finally spoke instead.
"Hokage-sama."
"We're not trying to interfere with your authority."
"But once the ANBU's benefits are increased, every other department in Konoha will inevitably demand equal treatment."
"When that happens..."
"Konoha's finances simply won't be able to support it."
"I know."
Kiyohara slowly stood.
He walked toward the window and looked out across the village.
"Which is precisely why..."
"...I intend to carry out economic reform."
(End of Chapter)