"The truth?"
Shisui Uchiha stared intently at Obito Uchiha.
At this moment, Shisui was already certain of one thing—
Obito's real body was absolutely not here.
Ren had already submitted detailed combat intelligence regarding Obito. Shisui knew very well that this man specialized in hiding within a space of his own, only revealing his true body at the moment he attacked.
What Shisui couldn't confirm was whether genjutsu could affect Obito while he remained in that alternate dimension.
That uncertainty was exactly why he hadn't acted rashly.
For now, he chose to stall—slowly trading words with Obito, testing him, and observing how things unfolded.
"Yes. The truth."
Obito nodded calmly, his gaze fixed on Shisui, his voice still low and even.
"I'm curious—what kind of understanding do you truly have of your teammate, Ren?"
"…Ren."
Shisui frowned slightly.
Claiming ignorance would be a lie.
Ren had never hidden his relationship with Danzō Shimura. From the very beginning, he had made it clear that he came from a deeper training institution within ANBU.
Shisui might not know every detail of that place, but one thing was certain—
It belonged to Danzō.
"Ren is Danzō's man," Obito said calmly.
"And Danzō… is famously known as the darkness of the shinobi world."
Much of this intelligence had come from White Zetsu.
"As the disciple of the Second Hokage, he perfectly inherited that man's hostility toward the Uchiha clan.
And as a classmate of the Third Hokage, he received protection beyond imagination."
Obito paused briefly before continuing.
"Tell me—have you heard of what happened to the man once known as Konoha's White Fang, Hatake Sakumo?"
Shisui didn't respond, but of course he had heard of it. The incident had shaken the village, and one of his fellow ANBU—Kakashi Hatake—was Sakumo's son.
But what did that have to do with Danzō?
"What kind of nonsense are you spouting?"
Shisui scoffed after a brief silence.
"You just said he committed suicide. Are you claiming someone murdered him?"
"Murder might be too strong a word," Obito replied casually.
"But he was driven to death—by Konoha's own public opinion."
Obito spoke without hesitation. The details didn't need to be perfect—many things were never recorded anyway. What mattered was laying the groundwork.
Danzō had done far too many dirty things. Shisui himself had seen some of them. Add Ren's existence into the mix—
Even if Shisui didn't collapse emotionally, his mindset would definitely shift.
And that was all Obito needed.
"At the time, Konoha was locked in a brutal war. Every mission was critical.
Yet the White Fang broke that rule—he chose to save his comrades and abandon the mission."
"That decision caused massive losses for the village. For Konoha back then, such behavior had to be eradicated."
"And don't forget—his prestige was enormous. Push things a little further, and he might've even had a shot at becoming the Fourth Hokage."
Obito's tone remained flat.
"And Danzō? He's a man who has always desperately wanted to become Hokage."
Years spent in Kirigakure—manipulating the Mizukage from the shadows—had taught Obito plenty about conspiracies and half-truths.
Actually carrying them out might trip him up.
But weaving a story—blending examples, inserting plausibility?
That, he could do effortlessly.
Especially when he knew to mix nine parts truth with one part falsehood.
"That's why he guided public opinion," Obito continued.
"Turning the entire village against its former hero."
"The White Fang was proud. Too proud to defend himself."
"So he chose death."
Obito watched Shisui closely as he spoke.
"Maybe Danzō never expected him to actually kill himself. But once it happened, Konoha had no better option."
"It served as a warning."
"And as the Third Hokage's classmate, Danzō suffered no consequences at all."
He paused.
"And that? That's only a tiny fraction of what he's done."
"Doesn't it feel familiar?" Obito asked softly.
"Doesn't it resemble the public atmosphere surrounding the Uchiha right now?"
"And do you know who made the final decision on your second forced relocation?"
Obito smiled faintly.
"Danzō."
Shisui fell silent.
Rationally, he knew this man was an enemy. Every word should be treated as manipulation.
Yet emotionally—
The relationship between the Uchiha and Konoha was fragile. Tense. Unstable.
"I told you before," Obito continued quietly.
"As the Second Hokage's disciple, he inherited that man's will—an ingrained hostility toward the Uchiha."
"That hostility traces back to Madara, to the Warring States era, to the endless bloodshed between Senju and Uchiha."
"Maybe the First Hokage let it go.
The Second never did."
"And neither did the Uchiha."
"The First relocation was ordered by the Second Hokage.
The second was decided by Danzō."
"And you think that's the end?"
"No."
"They don't trust you."
"You thought sending elite clan members into ANBU would build a bridge."
"But Ren is Danzō's man."
"So tell me—why is he your teammate?"
"And do you really think the Third Hokage doesn't know exactly who Ren is?"
Obito paused deliberately, then spoke with chilling emphasis.
"Stop fooling yourselves."
"You are nothing."
"Everything you've done is meaningless."
"Danzō will not let you go."
"And Konoha… probably won't either."
"That," Obito said softly,
"is the truth of the Uchiha."
Shisui had nothing left to say.
Logic screamed that this was manipulation.
But emotion whispered that the situation Obito described… wasn't impossible.
Then, after a long silence, Shisui spoke coldly.
"Then what about you?"
"You attacked and framed Ren."
"What does that make you?"
Obito shook his head slowly.
"I'll tell you this much—I did intend to lure Ren into doing something."
"But I never planned for Uchiha Itachi to die."
"That night, he was baiting me—but I felt his killing intent."
"If I hadn't shown myself, he would've killed to clear his name and disposed of the body without hesitation."
"That's something a Root operative can do."
"And he wouldn't feel a shred of guilt."
"Then what about the night of the Nine-Tails?"
A new voice cut in.
Footsteps echoed—clear, unhurried.
Both Shisui and Obito turned in shock.
On the nearly deserted road leading toward the Uchiha district, a figure walked toward them calmly.
"…Ren?"
"Ren."
Shisui stared in disbelief.
Behind the mask, Obito's expression had already changed.
Neither of them understood how Ren had appeared here.
Especially Obito—
He was hidden within space itself.
So why… was Ren here?
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