After a moment of silence, Shisui frowned slightly and asked,
"Jin-kun… have you awakened your Sharingan?"
"No." Jin shook his head casually. "This is just preparation for the future."
For a moment, Shisui was silent.
Scrolls containing techniques like Izanagi and Izanami were no small matter — they were tightly guarded clan secrets.
But because it was Jin's request, and because he felt responsible for Jin's suffering, Shisui finally nodded.
"I know both techniques well. I'll bring you the scrolls myself," he said after some thought.
"As for the katana and kenjutsu scrolls, I have both at home. I'll prepare them for you later."
"As for the detonating tags and soldier pills, I'll speak with the clan head. He won't refuse."
His voice was calm and decisive.
Jin, however, was left staring at him in shock.
Good grief…
He didn't even need to petition the clan or the Hokage for anything — Shisui had just offered to handle almost everything himself.
That meant the clan would only be giving him the cheap stuff — tags and ration pills — while Shisui personally fronted the truly valuable things.
I never realized it before, but this guy is seriously loaded.
Then again, it made sense. Shisui was from the Uchiha's main branch. His grandfather was Uchiha Kagami, a direct disciple of the Second Hokage.
Before Jin could say anything else, a masked ANBU appeared in the courtyard, his presence sharp and commanding.
"Uchiha Shisui. Uchiha Jin," the ANBU said curtly.
"By order of the Hokage, you are both to report to the Hokage's office. Immediately."
The two exchanged a look, surprise flashing in their eyes.
But since it was a direct Hokage summons, neither dared to waste time.
They set out at once, heading straight for the Hokage Building.
---
Along the way, Shisui's face remained calm, but Jin's eyes glinted with calculation.
Yes — he already had a pretty good guess why they were being summoned.
If my hunch is right, someone must have already discovered what happened yesterday.
His expression darkened slightly.
He hadn't expected the village to react so quickly.
It had barely been a night, and they had already investigated and traced the matter back to him.
Too fast…
He had left behind the frozen corpse of a Kumogakure shinobi in the Forest of Death, making it look like the one responsible for the deaths. He had been confident that his cleanup was flawless.
But apparently, the higher-ups weren't so easy to fool.
Still, Jin's expression returned to calm.
He trusted his own handling of the matter — there should be nothing left that could incriminate him.
---
Ten minutes later, they arrived at the Hokage Building and pushed open the office door.
Jin's eyes narrowed slightly, then widened at the sight before him.
Inside were the Konoha F4 — Sarutobi Hiruzen, Koharu, Homura, and Danzō — all seated together.
Beside them stood Uchiha Fugaku, clan head and police force captain, as well as Nara Shikaku, Yamanaka Inoichi, and even the ANBU Commander.
Huh, Jin thought dryly. If I had to guess, that ANBU Captain is probably Sarutobi Shinnosuke. Old man Hiruzen never gives control of ANBU to outsiders.
Sarutobi Hiruzen sat at the desk, his expression calm but thoughtful as he looked at the two young Uchiha.
After a long moment, he finally spoke with a faint, grandfatherly smile.
"Uchiha Jin, correct?"
Jin bowed slightly. "Yes, Hokage-sama."
"According to ANBU's investigation," Hiruzen said mildly, "you were the last person seen with Uchiha Yoshio and his two companions yesterday."
"Today, all three are missing."
His tone was soft, but his gaze was sharp.
"I'd like you to tell us everything you know. This matter is of great importance."
Notably, Hiruzen did not mention the words dead or killed. He simply said "missing."
This was standard — Jin's status was too low for him to be told outright about internal village security issues unless his involvement was proven.
Beside him, Shisui's brows furrowed slightly.
As someone who often interacted with Konoha's higher-ups, he knew very well that this much firepower wouldn't be mobilized just for the disappearance of three chunin.
His concern deepened.
---
Jin, meanwhile, stayed perfectly calm.
He bowed politely and spoke in a respectful tone, his expression neutral.
"Yesterday at noon, after lunch, I was indeed stopped by Uchiha Yoshio and his two companions," he said evenly.
"They intended to attack me. I was no match for them, so I ran away."
"I eventually hid near the edge of the Forest of Death."
"After that… I don't know what happened to them. When night fell and they still hadn't appeared, I assumed they had given up, so I went home and slept."
When he finished, Jin lowered his head again and fell silent.
He knew how this game was played.
Sarutobi Hiruzen might look like a kindly old man, but in official settings he was every bit the Hokage — disciplined and strict about protocol.
Someone at Jin's level had no right to ask questions. He gave his account and shut his mouth.
The room fell quiet.
Several of the elders frowned slightly, but no one spoke immediately.
Everyone was processing Jin's words, weighing their truthfulness.
Finally, Shisui couldn't hold himself back. He stepped forward, his voice urgent.
"Hokage-sama," he said, "may I ask what exactly happened?"
As a clan prodigy and one of the youngest ANBU members, Shisui was permitted more leeway than a normal genin.
And right now, his worry for Jin overrode his usual restraint.