"Speaking purely from a personal standpoint," Hagoromo said calmly,
"I don't actually think 'eye collecting' is a bad habit. It's no different from stamp collecting—both are refined hobbies meant to cultivate the spirit. Plenty of people like red eyes. Others really have no business commenting."
This wasn't Hagoromo's thinking being warped—it was a perfectly reasonable conclusion after firsthand experience.
This world itself operated on a basic rule of reality:
Training for a lifetime is often inferior to being born into the right bloodline.
When someone's lineage was that advantageous, of course others would set their sights on it.
"But this one," Hagoromo continued,
"is different. It's too special."
"So I can't let it stay in your hands."
No matter how much Danzō truly loved Shisui's Sharingan, the two were simply not fated to be together.
Even people who weren't collectors wanted the legendary Monkey Stamp—some things transcended personal taste.
The Shimura line truly seemed to have a tradition of hoarding eyeballs. Even the new recruit had once stolen Kakashi's Sharingan. One could reasonably speculate that their organization belonged under a filing label like:
"The Phantom Troupe – Konoha Branch Office."
At this point, Hagoromo had already retrieved the eye.
It was sealed inside a transparent glass container, submerged in a preserving liquid—clearly not yet modified or transplanted.
Formalin?
Probably not.
Anything soaked in that would be unusable.
In truth, during that brief clash earlier, Hagoromo could have done far more than simply nullify Izanagi.
If he wanted to kill a living being, the conditions were trivial:
He could see the target.
The target was within reach.
That was enough.
He couldn't do something as absurdly overpowered as "look at someone and make them pregnant," but being both seen and touched by him was extremely dangerous.
As for Izanagi—
Yes, it was an ultimate technique.
But Hagoromo's eyes happened to be its natural counter.
No matter how powerful the Sharingan was, Izanagi was still fundamentally a genjutsu—at best, a distortion of reality.
It did not create the future.
During its activation window, it erased unfavorable outcomes.
Against any ordinary shinobi, that ability was nearly unsolvable.
But Hagoromo's eyes, though limited in scope and incapable of elemental feats, were perfectly suited for one task:
Destroying falsehood.
"So," Danzō asked quietly,
"what do you intend to do with that eye?"
His final trump card was gone.
The plan to use Izanagi to ambush Hagoromo had failed completely.
The transfer of the Sharingan was now inevitable.
He could not escape Hagoromo's restraint.
"No matter what," Danzō continued,
"after tonight, Uchiha Shisui will not survive."
He was not foolish enough to ask how Izanagi had been neutralized.
Hagoromo's explanation earlier had clearly been mockery.
The truth was obviously tied to those abnormal eyes—but Danzō did not expect that secret to be revealed.
What he did care about was what Hagoromo would do next.
If Hagoromo returned the eye to Shisui, overturning everything Root had prepared—
That outcome was worse than losing the eye itself.
Danzō's words also alerted Hagoromo to something else:
This had never been an impulsive move.
Root had a complete operational plan.
Seizing the eye was only the first step.
Shisui was terrifyingly strong—especially with Kotoamatsukami. No one in Konoha could defeat him head-on.
But strength meant little when ambushed repeatedly.
Especially when surrounded.
"Don't worry," Hagoromo said.
"This eye carries an ability everyone desires, but to me it's nothing but trouble—dangerous and unnecessary."
"I'll destroy it."
"As for returning it to its owner—no."
"Once something is lost, a shinobi must accept the possibility it will never be recovered. That is the most basic resolve, whether the loss is an eye or something else."
There was no reason to give it back.
None at all.
"You," Hagoromo added,
"will remain here for now. I still have other matters to attend to."
As long as Danzō couldn't reach the Uchiha, he was harmless enough.
Hagoromo glanced once more at the eye in his hand—then turned and left.
One eye was not enough.
He still needed to confirm Shisui's condition.
After moving some distance, Hagoromo felt it—
A gaze.
"Come out," he said, stopping in place.
"You've been following me for a while. Why act now?"
"What's your objective?"
The direction of his stare made it clear he wasn't bluffing.
"Objective?" a familiar voice replied.
"Nothing in particular. I'm just… interested in your eyes."
Only one person could move so quietly at a time like this.
Orochimaru.
"You're not interested in my eyes," Hagoromo said calmly.
"You're interested in Uchiha Shisui."
"But unfortunately, no matter what happens tonight, I can't let you come into contact with him."
Orochimaru's presence in Konoha was dangerous enough already.
If he merely collected eyes, that was one thing.
But Shisui—
Whether alive or dead, Orochimaru could not be allowed near him.
Because once contact was made, Orochimaru would possess another Kotoamatsukami.
And Hagoromo knew Orochimaru's signature technique all too well.
Edo Tensei.
If that scenario occurred, reclaiming the eye would have been meaningless.
"You're right," Orochimaru admitted with a pale, crooked smile.
"I am fascinated by the eye beyond the Sharingan."
At this stage, Orochimaru had only just begun uncovering the secrets of the Mangekyō.
He did not know about Kotoamatsukami.
Not even Danzō would share such information.
Had he known, his attitude would be very different.
In truth, Orochimaru was also intrigued by the eyes Hagoromo now displayed—so beautiful, so alien.
But like the Rinnegan he had once seen on that man—
They were clearly untouchable.
"Still," Hagoromo said,
"this is one interest you'll have to abandon."
"Shisui is the one exception."
"Otherwise, you and I become enemies—immediately."
"Heh," Orochimaru chuckled, then asked,
"There's something I've always wanted to know."
"What is it you're trying to do, Hagoromo?"
"You mean with the Uchiha?"
"No. That part I understand."
"I'm asking about your true objective. Your long-term purpose."
Orochimaru had already seen through Hagoromo's stance.
On the surface, he obeyed the Third Hokage.
In reality, he leaned toward Danzō.
He intended to watch the Uchiha fall—perhaps even help if necessary.
What Orochimaru was asking about was something deeper.
Purpose.
Just as Orochimaru pursued all jutsu without end—
What did Hagoromo seek?
"I think I understand your question now…"
"Is it a secret?"
"No," Hagoromo replied.
"There's nothing I can't say."
"But tell me—if I said my goal was to uphold love and peace… would you believe me?"
Orochimaru laughed softly.
"You're not that kind of person."
"Peace cannot last. War will never vanish."
"They simply alternate."
"The longer peace endures, the longer the next war will be."
"To pursue peace is to pursue war."
"It's an illusion—an unreachable mirage."
This world, at least, still had people who understood it.
"Then what if I said… I want to destroy the world?"
"Now that," Orochimaru replied seriously,
"sounds far more believable—and far more feasible."
"…."
After a pause, Hagoromo spoke again.
"Life does require something worth doing. Otherwise it's unbearably dull."
"But peace or destruction… neither truly matters to me."
"If I had to name it—"
"I want the world to return to what it originally was."
What that meant, even Hagoromo did not fully know.
So he continued:
"That's just grandiose talk."
"In truth, my actions are driven by something far more personal."
"What I really want… is to destroy certain things."
"The rest is just a byproduct."
"I think I understand," Orochimaru said thoughtfully.
"What a disappointing ambition."
He believed Hagoromo.
And that belief left him slightly disappointed.
Novel—but not transcendent.
"I look forward to finding Shisui first," Orochimaru added.
"That way, I obtain what I desire."
"But I also look forward to not finding him."
"That way, I won't have to oppose you so soon."
"Honestly," Orochimaru said at last,
"if possible, I'd prefer not to become your enemy."
Even if Konoha was restrictive, Orochimaru would not abandon his goal for a single warning.
The Mangekyō Sharingan—
He would never give that up.
Now it was only a matter of—
Who moved faster.
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