Chapter 5: Opening the Door to a New World!
Uchiha Shisui fell silent for a moment.
"This is too risky," he said slowly. "But what you said… it is indeed a possible path."
After hesitating for a while, Shisui raised his head and looked at Shiraishi.
"Shiraishi, could you help me with something?"
"What kind of help?"
Shisui replied, "Help me observe Itachi. The method you proposed is worth trying. If we can gain Itachi's assistance, then my chances of becoming clan head will increase significantly."
"However, I can't say that I completely trust him to make that kind of choice."
"And I don't have enough time myself to closely observe or test him."
Shiraishi's eyebrows twitched slightly.
"That's fine. What do you need me to do?"
Shisui's proposal was exactly what Shiraishi needed.
The more contact he had with Uchiha Itachi, the more opportunities he would have to get closer to Uchiha Sasuke.
"I'll bring Itachi over here," Shisui said. "From now on, we'll make this place a frequent meeting spot. That way, you'll have opportunities to interact with him and find chances to probe his thoughts."
"You're not worried that I might give myself away?" Shiraishi asked.
Shisui smiled faintly.
"I know your abilities well. It's just that your talent as a ninja is slightly lacking—but in terms of intelligence, you're actually above me."
"Back in the Academy, I never once beat you in that regard."
"If your ninja talent were just a bit higher, you'd already be among the top-tier shinobi."
"Itachi is smart, yes—but not smarter than you."
Shiraishi nodded.
"Alright. You arrange it. I'll help you test him."
"Thank you."
"No need to thank me. By the way, Shisui—what's your own plan?"
"I plan to join the Military Police Force."
Shisui continued, "Right now, my reputation isn't enough, and neither is my seniority. With the wars over, I've thought it through carefully—joining the Police Force is probably the best platform available."
"The current situation of the Police Force is terrible."
"They have poor relations with the villagers."
"They aren't valued by the village leadership."
"And even within the Uchiha clan, there's a lot of resentment toward the Police Force."
"I plan to first rise to a higher position within it, then reform it. As long as I can significantly improve the Police Force's condition, my reputation and qualifications will naturally follow."
Shiraishi agreed with this direction.
He remembered that in the original storyline, Shisui had indeed joined the Military Police Force.
But the Police Force was a deeply complicated environment.
Managing it well was no easy task.
"If you need help with anything, just tell me," Shiraishi said.
"I will," Shisui nodded.
"I won't be polite with you, Shiraishi. After all, you're my best friend—and we think the same way. Everything we're doing is for the Uchiha, and for the village."
"Perhaps the future fate of the Uchiha rests in the hands of the two of us."
"Well then, it's getting late. I'll head out."
With that, Shisui stood up.
Shiraishi hesitated, then called out to him.
"Shisui."
"What is it?"
Shisui turned back.
"Besides helping with planning and strategy," Shiraishi said, "if you ever run into trouble that requires fighting, I can help a bit there as well."
Shisui froze for a moment.
"Shinji Hirako, come out for a moment."
At Shiraishi's words, Hirako Shinji stepped out from the corner.
"My lord."
Shisui's gaze landed on Shinji, and his pupils contracted slightly.
He had seen ninja cats before.
He had even seen fully mature ninja cats with considerable strength and human-level intelligence.
But Hirako Shinji felt… different.
Shiraishi introduced him calmly. "This is my ninja cat, Hirako Shinji. His strength is fairly decent."
"Hirako Shinji, this is my friend—Uchiha Shisui."
Hirako Shinji clasped his paws slightly in greeting.
Shisui returned the gesture.
"Nice to meet you. Please take care of me, Hirako Shinji."
After leaving, Shisui glanced back once more.
"Hirako Shinji… he was probably left behind by Granny Cat to protect Shiraishi. His strength should be solid. Still, unless absolutely necessary, I shouldn't involve Shiraishi in combat matters."
"But with Hirako Shinji around, even if something does happen, Shiraishi's safety shouldn't be a major concern."
Shisui had always worried that his actions might end up dragging Shiraishi into danger.
Yet aside from Shiraishi, there was no one else he could truly talk to.
Among the entire Uchiha clan, Shisui trusted no one more than Shiraishi.
In his eyes, the others were too narrow-minded—either lacking vision or clarity. Only Shiraishi could truly see the situation between the Uchiha and the village for what it was.
And only Shiraishi could think about it rationally.
Now that he had seen Hirako Shinji, Shisui felt more at ease regarding Shiraishi's safety.
"The world really isn't fair…"
"If only Shiraishi had better ninja talent."
"If that were the case, with the two of us working together, the chances of resolving the Uchiha's problems with the village would be much higher."
Shisui let out a quiet sigh as he left.
Shiraishi withdrew his gaze and secured the doors and windows.
After washing up, he entered the bedroom.
Hirako Shinji stood guard outside the door.
If anything unusual happened nearby, Shinji would be able to respond immediately.
"With Shisui acting as the bridge, Itachi shouldn't grow too suspicious."
"Then I'll be able to get closer to Sasuke."
"I wonder who will respond once Sasuke's favorability increases."
"But whatever I gain, it probably won't be another life-skill reward."
Shiraishi felt anticipation rise within him.
At his current level—a single tomoe and chūnin-level strength—it simply wasn't enough.
Hirako Shinji was strong, but Shiraishi wanted his own strength to increase as well.
The next morning, Shisui arrived early.
Behind him was Uchiha Itachi.
"Good morning, Shiraishi."
"Good morning, Shisui. Good morning, Itachi."
Unfortunately, their timing wasn't perfect.
There were customers at the shop, so Shiraishi first went to the warehouse to retrieve the required ninja tools, handed them over, collected the payment, and only then turned his attention back to Shisui and Itachi.
The customers who had already left the shop couldn't help but glance back.
After all, those two were Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi.
Genius-level figures.
"You came at just the right time," Shiraishi said. "Alice just finished making some breakfast. Let's try it together."
He led them into the adjacent resting room.
As for the shop itself, Hirako Shinji temporarily watched over it.
For the Uchiha, seeing a mature ninja cat wasn't unusual. At most, they'd feel a bit curious seeing one run a shop.
Shisui and Itachi sat down.
At first, neither of them paid much attention to the so-called breakfast.
But once they sat down and saw what was on the table, things changed.
An enticing aroma wafted into the air.
Just a single whiff was enough to make one salivate.
"Don't be shy—go ahead and eat."
Shiraishi looked at Itachi and said, "Shisui is my good friend. You're Shisui's good friend, Itachi, which makes you my good friend too. Treat this place like your own home."
As he spoke, Shiraishi picked up a piece himself.
Shisui didn't hesitate and followed suit.
Only then did Itachi do the same.
The moment the food entered their mouths, both of their eyes widened uncontrollably—like they had just discovered the entrance to an entirely new world.
"It's… incredible!"
Shisui immediately looked at Shiraishi.
"Shiraishi, what is this? It tastes unbelievably good—crispy, refreshing. I've never eaten anything like this before. After swallowing it, I feel like all of yesterday's exhaustion has vanished."
Itachi looked at Shiraishi with the same eager expression.
Before this, Itachi's favorite food had been dango.
He had always believed that his love for dango would last his entire life.
But now, he had changed his mind.
Compared to the food in front of him, dango no longer seemed appealing at all.
"This dish is called Rainbow Vegetable Jelly," Shiraishi said. "It's a creation by Alice. You won't find it outside. She's the chef here at the ninja tool shop."
In reality, this dish originated from Food Wars, created by Tadokoro Megumi.
It was simply that Alice could make it as well—and the ingredients had conveniently been purchased the day before.
After Shisui proposed bringing Itachi over, Shiraishi had thought deeply that night.
Using Shisui as a bridge to gain Itachi's trust.
Using Itachi as a bridge to gain access to Sasuke.
Shiraishi already had ideas on how to raise Sasuke's favorability.
But he hadn't completely given up on improving Itachi's either.
Trying meant there was a chance.
Not trying meant there was none.
After recalling everything he knew about Itachi, Shiraishi arrived at a method.
Food.
Most humans had preferences when it came to food.
In the original storyline, Itachi loved visiting dessert shops and enjoyed dango.
And Alice's cooking—dimensional-tier for this world—was something Shiraishi didn't believe Itachi could resist.
And now, reality matched his expectations perfectly.
"If you like it, you can come here often," Shiraishi said. "I'll just have Alice make a bit more."
"Really?" Shisui asked.
"Of course. We're all friends."
As he spoke, Shiraishi glanced at Shisui and Itachi.
The number above Shisui's head had already changed to 92.
Meanwhile, the number above Itachi's head shifted slightly—from 66 to 68.
[68 — A fairly decent person, acknowledged by Senior Shisui.]
"Only two points… Raising Itachi's favorability really is difficult."
Numerically, Itachi's favorability increased by two points, while Shisui's only rose by one.
But their base favorability levels were different.
Which meant the difficulty wasn't comparable at all.
One point for Shisui was far harder to obtain than two points from Itachi.
"If you like it, eat more. I get to eat this every day anyway."
"Then I won't hold back," Shisui said.
He had been exhausted lately, and the delicious food truly gave him a sense of relief.
Itachi ate a few more pieces as well.
Before long, all of the Rainbow Vegetable Jelly was gone.
Shiraishi cleared the plates.
When he returned, Shisui turned to Itachi.
"Itachi, from now on, let's make this our regular meeting spot."
Itachi froze slightly—this hadn't been mentioned before.
"This place is secluded and safe," Shisui continued. "What we discuss here won't be overheard. Compared to forests or waterfalls, this is a far better choice."
"And Shiraishi can serve as a reference point for us."
"His ninja talent may not be outstanding," Shisui said frankly, "but here—"
He tapped his head.
"I've never beaten him in that department."
"The Uchiha's current situation isn't good. That's why we, the younger generation, need to work even harder."
"And both of us are busy with our own responsibilities. We might not always be able to meet."
"But Shiraishi is always here."
"We can each talk to him separately. He can summarize and relay things to the other."
"That would be far more efficient."
"Most importantly—Shiraishi is someone we can trust one hundred percent."
Itachi was silent for a moment, then nodded.
"Alright."
Once Itachi agreed, the atmosphere noticeably relaxed.
Both Shisui and Shiraishi had achieved their goals.
Shisui could now have Shiraishi observe and test Itachi.
And Shiraishi had gained frequent access to Itachi—meaning it wouldn't be long before he could reach Sasuke through him.
Shisui briefly mentioned his plan to enter the Military Police Force.
After that, the discussion shifted more toward the current situation of the Uchiha clan.
In truth, however, Shisui's judgment of Itachi was slightly off.
Shisui believed that when faced with a choice between the village and the Uchiha, Itachi would likely lean toward the clan.
After all, Itachi was Fugaku's son.
Thus, Shisui emphasized that, given the Uchiha's current state, a conservative approach was more appropriate.
But in reality, when choosing between the village and the Uchiha—
Itachi leaned toward the village.
Time passed quickly.
Shisui glanced outside and abruptly stood up.
"I almost forgot—I still have something very important to do. I need to leave immediately."
"But there's still so much we haven't discussed," Shiraishi said.
Shisui patted Itachi on the shoulder.
"Itachi, I'll head out first. You stay and continue with Shiraishi. When I have time, I'll come back."
"Whoever's here at the time can pass on what was discussed."
With that, Shisui vanished in a blur.
Itachi hesitated slightly.
"Senior Shiraishi…"
"Let's not talk yet," Shiraishi interrupted with a smile. "Alice's lunch should be almost ready. Since Shisui's gone, the two of us can eat more."
"No sense letting it go to waste. We'll talk after lunch."
Itachi hesitated, then nodded.
"Alright. Sorry for the trouble, senior."
"No trouble at all," Shiraishi replied. "We're friends."