When Shimizu arrived at Shisui's home at top speed, the entire area was shrouded in deep, oppressive darkness.
The large residence stood silent.
Empty.
In that instant, his heart sank.
From what Shimizu knew, Shisui's ancestor was Uchiha Kagami—a powerful shinobi who had died young, leaving behind countless secrets. Kagami had once been a disciple of the Second Hokage alongside Danzo. What kind of hidden dealings had existed between the two of them?
Shimizu had no way of knowing. Even the Third Hokage might not have been privy to the full truth.
And in any case, those were matters buried decades in the past—things he neither could nor needed to concern himself with.
But Shisui, who was still nothing more than a blank slate…
As his teacher, that was someone he had to watch over.
…
When Shisui finally returned home, his body weighed down by exhaustion, he immediately sensed something unusual.
A faint, almost imperceptible breathing sound lingered within the house.
Someone was there.
Because he relied so heavily on his eyes in combat, Shisui had long trained himself to compensate for the possibility of losing that advantage. Over time, he had developed a keen ability to locate targets through sound alone.
He removed his shoes as usual and stepped inside—
But unlike usual, he didn't put away the short blade at his back.
Instead, he prepared to subdue the intruder the moment an opportunity presented itself.
"Your intent is too obvious," a young man's voice called out from the darkness.
That voice…
Shisui quickly turned on the lights.
Standing there… was Shimizu.
Relief washed over him as he let out a quiet breath. "Sensei… why are you—"
Visiting in the dead of night like this… what could it be?
"When you stepped into the entryway, the way you took off your shoes was stiff," Shimizu said calmly. "That tells me you were tense."
"When you walked into the living room, you deliberately tried to mask your footsteps. It wasn't natural. If no one's supposed to be home, what exactly were you trying to hide from?"
"And anyone who knows you understands you always carry a short blade. No one wanders around their own house holding a weapon like that…"
In short, this was not the behavior of a qualified ANBU operative.
Which meant, at the very least, Shisui had not undergone Root's training.
"Yes! I understand, Sensei!" Shisui straightened immediately, accepting the criticism without hesitation.
Shimizu's gaze settled on his eyes. "Shisui, I've told you before—if anything happens, you report it to me. You don't keep it hidden."
"Yes. I remember." Shisui met his gaze directly.
"Then think carefully. Did anything unusual happen tonight?"
"Tonight…?" Shisui frowned slightly, sifting through his memories. After a moment, he answered uncertainly, "It seemed like there were more people than usual at Training Ground 43."
"...?" Shimizu blinked, momentarily thrown off.
"I thought I was the last one to leave," Shisui continued slowly, "but before I came back, I saw at least a few people still there."
"I don't know who they were, though." It simply wasn't in Shisui's nature to go up and question others out of curiosity.
"I see…"
According to him, he had just returned from Training Ground 43.
And compared to his earlier tension, Shisui had noticeably relaxed after realizing that the intruder was Shimizu.
Instinctive reactions like that couldn't be faked.
So… it wasn't Shisui?
Then who?
A small figure, someone worth Root's attention…
Megumi?
Who else…
Obito?
"Keep it up. Don't slack off," Shimizu said before turning to leave, leaving behind a thoroughly confused Shisui.
The night had deepened, and the entire Uchiha district lay asleep.
Shimizu knew his own limitations—compared to his combat ability, his stealth skills weren't particularly refined. Continuing to investigate recklessly might only lead to misunderstandings he couldn't explain away.
Shisui, at least, was his student. There was trust there. Even if something went wrong, it could be smoothed over.
But if the same situation involved Megumi…
If he didn't dig all the way to the truth, she definitely wouldn't let it go so easily.
And then there was Obito…
The kid had only come to see him once since everything happened, and even then, he'd only talked about trivial, inconsequential gossip. When it came to his own situation, he barely said a word.
Thinking about it now, compared to how he used to be, Obito had really changed.
There was something different about him… darker, perhaps.
Because of what had happened the night before, Shimizu no longer felt like seeking out Orochimaru. Instead, early the next morning, he "happened" to run into Obito at Training Ground 43.
"Ah, it's Shimizu-senpai."
"Yo, Obito. How've you been lately?"
"Not bad, I guess."
"Then you must be doing pretty well," Shimizu said, as if he could see right through him. "Something good happen?"
Obito scratched his head, looking a little embarrassed. "Rin… agreed to be my girlfriend."
So that was it.
After carrying Rin all the way back to Konoha, something must have shifted between the two of them. Their relationship had progressed rapidly, though Rin, still holding onto a sense of reason, had used their age as a reason to keep things from going too far—for now.
Still, she had left him with a promise.
The condition was simple: when he became a jonin.
At the rate Obito was growing—almost as if he were cheating the system—it probably wouldn't take many years before he reached that level.
"…Of course, not right now," Obito added, suddenly breaking into a foolish grin. "I only realized now that Rin's been paying attention to me all along."
"She wants me to become a real strong shinobi."
"But I won't just become strong—I'm going to become Hokage!"
…That's it?
Shimizu found himself oddly unimpressed by this kind of childish romance.
Still, he wasn't about to crush Obito's enthusiasm. "As long as you stick to it, you'll get there."
"Thank you for the encouragement, Shimizu-senpai!"
Despite carefully setting up this "chance encounter," Shimizu hadn't gotten the answers he was looking for. In the end, it seemed he'd have to go and find Orochimaru after all.
With guidance from Root, he made his way to Orochimaru's underground laboratory—a place steeped in an eerie, unsettling atmosphere.
"I didn't expect you to come looking for me personally, Uzuki-kun," Orochimaru said without even turning around, still absorbed in tinkering with his various instruments and containers.
"Had nothing better to do," Shimizu replied casually, glancing around. The lab was filled with unknown tissues and organs, all suspended in jars of formalin.
"Is this because you've been temporarily relieved of your position?"
"I thought someone cooped up in a place like this wouldn't know anything," Shimizu said dryly.
Orochimaru chuckled. "You jest. I've been keeping a close eye on you, after all. In a sense, we're both victims of the village's unfair treatment."
Shimizu simply shrugged, neither agreeing nor denying it.
If anything, this temporary removal from office was a blessing in disguise—it gave him the freedom to fully devote himself to training.
"So, any results with the Hero Water?" Shimizu asked. He had already provided Orochimaru with two batches and wanted to know how things were progressing.
"There's been… some progress." A flicker of excitement gleamed in Orochimaru's eyes as he continued, "Give me one more sample, and I believe I can produce preliminary experimental results."
That fast?
It far exceeded Shimizu's expectations. He had assumed this kind of research would take years just to yield the slightest hint of progress.
"No problem. I'll bring it to you when I head back," Shimizu agreed readily.
"As for the exact effects, we'll have to wait until the results come in," Orochimaru added. "When the time comes, I'll let you witness the true potential of the Hero Water."
"Fine. Just let me know."
Orochimaru finally paused, tilting his head slightly. "You didn't come all this way just for that, did you?"
"Of course not. I came to ask you for someone," Shimizu said, not hiding his purpose.
After a brief moment of contemplation, Orochimaru guessed, "One of my two students?"
"To be precise—just one." Shimizu met his gaze. "Uchiha Megumi."
...
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