Inside the Hokage's office.
"Hiruzen, have you considered letting Uchiha Shisui join my Root for training?"
Once the room had gone quiet, a man wrapped in bandages stepped out from the shadows of the office. Judging by his expression, he had clearly heard every word of the earlier conversation.
This was none other than the leader of Root—Danzō.
The Third Hokage placed his pipe to his mouth, remaining silent for a long time before answering.
"Uchiha Shisui is the descendant of Kagami. I will not have his descendant enter the darkness of Root."
"It's exactly because he's Kagami's descendant that he should join Root. My Root needs talent like him!"
Danzō thought back to the times Kagami's Sharingan had saved his life, a flicker of greed passing through his eyes.
The Third Hokage's brows furrowed.
"Uchiha Shisui is not suited for Root."
At that, Danzō gave a cold laugh.
"Hiruzen, you're not him—how do you know what he's suited for? For all you know, joining my Root might be the place where he truly belongs."
"No. Uchiha Kagami embodied the perfect Will of Fire, and I believe his descendant is the same."
Hiruzen's gaze turned icy as it locked onto Danzō.
"Danzō, I am the Hokage! You'd better remember your place. From now on, you will address me as Hokage-sama!"
"Hmph, Hiruzen—you'll regret this!"
Face flushed with anger, Danzō slammed his cane on the floor and stormed out.
Neither man mentioned Uchiha Ryosuke even once.
In their eyes, Ryosuke was still a complete nobody, far less important than the clan's rising new prodigy—Uchiha Shisui.
Meanwhile, under ANBU escort, Ryosuke arrived home.
When he pushed open the door, Shisui stepped out from the back room.
"Big brother, you're back."
"Here, catch."
Shisui's eyes lit up with curiosity as he saw the box in Ryosuke's hands.
"Big brother, what's this?"
It didn't feel like there was much inside, so he couldn't help asking.
"Nothing much. Just our parents' keepsakes."
Shisui's expression turned serious.
"You should open it and take what you need."
"Huh? Isn't this…"
Shisui looked uncertain, but Ryosuke cut him off.
"Open it."
Seeing Ryosuke wasn't joking, Shisui obediently opened the box.
"Take these ninjutsu scrolls."
Ryosuke glanced over a few basic scrolls inside and shoved them into Shisui's arms.
"Big brother, the clan head already has people teaching me. I don't need these."
Ryosuke shook his head.
"What the clan head teaches you may not cover the basics. You can't overlook them."
Shisui thought for a moment, then smiled.
"All right, I'll listen to you."
"And these ninja tools…"
Before Ryosuke could finish, Shisui shook his head firmly.
"Big brother, the clan head has all kinds of tools available. Don't worry about it."
Ryosuke nodded.
After rifling through the box a few more times and confirming nothing was missing, he finally pulled out the conspicuous book from earlier.
He flipped through it, a look of understanding flashing in his eyes.
It was a history book about Konoha. That alone wasn't unusual—but the amount of hidden propaganda inside was considerable.
Ryosuke smirked inwardly. This had to be part of the Third Hokage's plan.
In short, it was a book designed to indoctrinate its reader with the Hokage's ideology.
He looked up at Shisui.
So… was this book not actually meant for him? Was the Hokage trying to use him to pass it to Shisui?
"Big brother, what kind of book is this?"
Ryosuke casually tossed it to him.
Shisui opened it curiously.
"Whoa!"
Hearing Shisui's impressed tone and seeing his serious expression, Ryosuke suddenly reached out and snatched it back.
"Do you know what kind of book this is?"
Shisui blinked, startled by the seriousness in Ryosuke's eyes.
"Isn't it just a history book about Konoha?"
He smiled broadly.
"I've already read it before, actually."
Ryosuke's pupils contracted.
He'd already read it?
If Shisui had already gone through it, why would the Third still give it to him?
He'd checked all of the keepsakes. This book was by far the most unusual item.
Had he guessed wrong?
Was the Hokage bypassing Shisui to make him the successor of the Will of Fire—trying to indoctrinate him instead?
But that didn't make sense.
He'd never shown his true ability. At most, his little display at the academy was just above-average speed and decent taijutsu.
Against an average genin, he would still fall short.
Why would they value him enough to go out of their way to "charge him up" with the Will of Fire?
Besides, an Uchiha who didn't use his eyes but focused on taijutsu—no matter how far he developed—wouldn't be worth much in their eyes. It was a dead-end path with no future.
These people had to know the power of the Sharingan—just look at Uchiha Kagami, once the Second Hokage's trusted aide.
How could they take interest in someone like him?
"Big brother, what's wrong? Is there something wrong with this book?"
Pulled from his thoughts by Shisui's concerned voice, Ryosuke met his younger brother's gaze.
He took a deep breath and asked seriously, "Look carefully—do you notice anything different about this book compared to the one you read before?"
Shisui accepted the book again and examined it carefully.
After a while, he closed it and shook his head in puzzlement.
"No, it's the same as the one we had at home."
"No difference? Strange… could it really be meant for me?"
Ryosuke muttered under his breath, his guard rising.
Seeing him lost in thought, Shisui tugged on his sleeve.
"Big brother, it's really late. Have you eaten?"
"Yeah, I've eaten."
"Are you worried about something?"
Ryosuke smiled faintly but didn't explain.
What was he supposed to say—that he might have caught the attention of the Hokage faction?
…Wait.
The Hokage faction!
He studied Shisui carefully.
His younger brother came from a long line firmly tied to the Hokage's camp.
And the Third had specifically told him earlier to take good care of Shisui.
Yes, that had to be it.
They wanted him to be Shisui's first line of defense before he grew into his potential.
Realizing this, the tension in Ryosuke's chest eased.
No wonder the old man had said caring for his younger brother was an important expression of the Will of Fire.
So that was the real point!
[End of Chapter]