Chapter 24:Success!

Homura Mitokado still expressed disbelief. "Do you really think Uchiha Sasuke is capable of such a thing?"

Danzo snorted coldly. "If he can subdue Nine-Tails and control one of my subordinates, nothing should surprise you."

Homura Mitokado stared at Danzo intently. "But why would he take such a huge risk infiltrating your base and attacking Uzumaki Naruto? Surely he couldn't have acted alone."

Danzo paused mid-sentence. He harbored deep suspicions about Sasuke, rooted in the belief that Uchiha Fugaku's Sharingan wasn't just ordinary.

But he refrained from revealing the whole truth.

Sensing Danzo's concealment, Homura Mitokado frowned in displeasure.

Danzo turned to the Third Hokage. "Hand Sasuke over to me! Whatever plans or secrets he harbors, I'll make him divulge."

Hiruzen shook his head firmly. "Sasuke cannot be handed over to you."

Danzo glared at Sarutobi Hiruzen for a moment, then silently turned and left the Hokage's office.

Only after exiting the Hokage Building did Danzo instruct his subordinates, "Keep Uchiha Sasuke under 24-hour surveillance. I want to know everything about him."

"Yes, sir!" The two Root ninjas nodded in acknowledgment.

One of them hesitated briefly before asking, "Master Danzo, should we continue surveillance on Shinji Uchiha as well?"

Danzo's tone turned cold. "No need."

While mastering the C-rank Fireball Jutsu at age eight was commendable, such talents weren't uncommon in the village.

But awakening the Sharingan at seven, even at one tomoe, and possessing the strength to subdue the rampaging Nine-Tails—this was no ordinary individual.

Such a dangerous Uchiha needed to be controlled or eliminated swiftly.

In his apartment.

Shinji gazed out the window, feeling somewhat dazed.

The night shrouded Konoha in an uneasy calm, with ninjas and villagers cleaning up debris and tending to the wounded in the streets.

Fortunately, the crisis had been swiftly resolved.

Despite Nine-Tails' devastating power, Shinji's intervention had minimized the damage to just a few blocks near the river.

Casualties were minimal, primarily among Konoha ninjas who had responded to the incident first.

"Who could have attacked Naruto?" The question nagged at Shinji's mind.

Such an event hadn't occurred in the original timeline, making the current state of the ninja world increasingly unclear to him.

He began contemplating motives.

Among those with both the capability and motivation, only other major ninja villages came to mind.

Hence, his first suspicion fell on Kirigakure, whose previous attempts to unleash Three-Tails and undermine Konoha were still fresh in memory.

However, suspicion of Kirigakure raised the question of whether other villages might be using them as a pawn to incite war against Konoha.

"A headache!" Shinji rubbed his temples.

Lacking crucial information, he found it impossible to unravel the mystery.

Reining in his thoughts, he closed the window and drew the curtains.

He checked the surroundings for any prying eyes and, satisfied that he was alone, proceeded cautiously.

In the bathroom, he turned on the water tap to mask any sound.

Then, amid the rushing water, he bit his finger and performed a sealing jutsu.

Boom.

Out of the rising smoke emerged the cautious Yukimaru.

Shinji asked anxiously, "Did you succeed?"

Satisfied with the safe environment, Yukimaru straightened proudly. "Do you doubt me? I, the Yukimaru, the night's beloved, moon's sprite, ghost's shadow dominator, never fail!"

"Excellent!" Shinji's eyes gleamed.

Yukimaru retrieved a palm-sized nutrient jar from his bag and handed it to Shinji. "Here it is."

Taking the jar, Shinji examined the pair of eyeballs floating in the nutrient solution.

The pupils were an ordinary ink color, akin to regular eyes, likely because Uchiha Fugaku hadn't activated his Sharingan before his demise.

Determining if transplanted Sharingan were Mangekyo wasn't straightforward; even if they were transplanted into another's socket, recognition might not be immediate.

Kakashi, for instance, only realized his left eye bore Mangekyo, awakening it simultaneously with Obito's right eye, years after receiving it.

In the original timeline, it wasn't until Naruto began training with Jiraiya that Kakashi discovered his Mangekyo and mastered the Kamui.

Hence, Danzo's failure to uncover Fugaku's Sharingan's secrets was understandable.

"Finally got it!" Shinji felt the elaborate planning and risky venture had paid off.

Yukimaru groomed himself, grumbling, "You have no idea how perilous it was. Danzo's vault was packed with Sharingan, but I managed to find this pair without getting caught."

Shinji patted Yukimaru's head, elated. "Thank you for your hard work!"

Yukimaru batted away Shinji's hand. "Don't pat my head, I won't grow taller!"

Shinji chuckled, then pulled out a substantial sum of ryo. "Here's five thousand as promised, keep the rest as a reward."

Yukimaru stashed the banknotes in his bag. "By the way, Shinji, why risk stealing these Sharingan from Danzo when you've already awakened your own Sharingan?"

"These eyes are incredibly valuable to me." Shinji evaded a detailed explanation.

During previous interactions, Yukimaru had sensed Shinji's Sharingan awakening, but masked by a mask, Yukimaru in the shadows hadn't realized Shinji's Sharingan were Mangekyo.

Shinji opted not to elaborate, trusting Yukimaru and avoiding unnecessary complications.

After all, awakening Mangekyo Sharingan at such a young age would stir significant controversy in the village.

End of chapter.