Chapter 34 A Dangerous Proposition

Uchiha Shisui stood frozen, his mind blank.

What… did I just hear?

Son of the Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato… and the Red-Hot-Blooded Habanero, Uzumaki Kushina?

Naruto?

Shisui's heart pounded in his chest. This can't be real… can it?

He knew that Kushina-sama had been pregnant—back then, it was common knowledge in Konoha. But after the Nine Tails' attack, everyone had believed that both she and the child perished in the chaos.

Yet here Naruto stood, claiming to be their son.

Shisui swallowed hard, his body still stiff with shock. The more he thought about it, the more the puzzle pieces fell into place.

The golden hair… the Adamantine Sealing Chains…

Kushina-sama's bloodline was unmistakable, and those chains were a power only the Uzumaki clan could wield.

But there was one question that wouldn't leave his mind—how did Naruto know?

Would Hiruzen-sama really have told him?

No. That was impossible. If Naruto had learned the truth, it wasn't because someone told him. He figured it out himself.

A chill ran down Shisui's spine.

A child raised in a world of malice, abandoned by the village he was meant to call home… yet he discovered the truth and still smiles like nothing happened?

No.

That smile wasn't innocence.

It was a mask.

Naruto's voice broke through his thoughts.

"Shisui, what do you want to do?"

Shisui hesitated, his lips dry. "…What do you mean?"

Naruto gave a casual shrug. "As far as I remember, during the Fourth Hokage's time, the Uchiha clan's relationship with Konoha wasn't this bad. It was tense, sure, but nothing like now." His blue eyes darkened. "But after my father died, everything changed. The Uchiha were pushed further and further into isolation, until now they're on the brink of rebellion."

Shisui's stomach turned uneasily.

Naruto continued, his tone light, but the weight behind his words was anything but.

"Don't you think that's a little… convenient?"

Shisui's breath hitched. He had always suspected it, deep down, but hearing Naruto say it so bluntly sent a shiver through him.

Naruto turned toward the distant glow of Konoha's lights, his voice calm yet carrying an unmistakable edge.

"I think I'd do a better job running this village than that old man, Sarutobi Hiruzen."

Shisui's blood ran cold.

A coup.

Naruto was talking about a full-blown coup d'état.

For a long time, Shisui said nothing.

He had assumed Naruto saved him by coincidence, but now he realized—it was all planned.

Every move, every step…

And Shisui was just another piece on the board.

He's dangerous.

Not just because of his abilities. Not just because of his bloodline.

But because no one knew what lay beneath that mask of his.

Shisui finally let out a bitter chuckle. "Never thought I'd hear something so insane right before I died."

"But it's too late," he said, shaking his head. "Even if I wanted to—"

Naruto cut him off. "Too late? You're still breathing, aren't you?"

Shisui sighed. "It's not that simple. The Root won't let me live, and if you stay here, they'll come after you too."

Naruto tilted his head. "You mean those guys wearing masks?"

Shisui blinked. "What?"

"They're already here."

A sharp gust of wind rustled through the trees.

Then—

Shff! Shff! Shff!

Three figures appeared in the clearing, clad in black cloaks and eerie white masks.

The Root.

"They found Shisui," one of them muttered emotionlessly. "Alive, but heavily injured."

"The second Mangekyō Sharingan is missing. Likely passed on."

"The other target is Uzumaki Naruto—Nine Tails' Jinchūriki. No immediate threat."

Their voices were cold, mechanical. As if discussing objects, not people.

Shisui's hands clenched into fists. Damn it.

One of the Root operatives turned to Naruto. "Uzumaki Naruto, is Uchiha Shisui's Sharingan in your possession?"

Naruto ignored him completely. Instead, he looked at Shisui.

His voice was quiet, but it carried a weight that couldn't be ignored.

"Shisui, make your choice."

Shisui swallowed.

"Do you want to die here for nothing?"

"Or do you want to follow me… and witness the birth of a new world?"