let the birds fly

"dang, your clan's Sharingan is really something. I bet a lot of people are after it, huh?"

Toji's casual question held more weight than it seemed on the surface. He glanced over at Shisui with an innocent look, like he was just making conversation.

Shisui gave a faint smile but didn't reply. Still, someone specific came to mind—Hatake Kakashi.

Seeing Shisui's silence, Toji pressed on like a curious fool: "Since ninja techniques can be so wild… do you think there's a power that could bring someone back to life?"

That question made Shisui's foot hesitate for half a second as they walked, but he kept moving like nothing happened.

He was thinkg of what Toji was talking about.

There was a technique—an Uchiha secret jutsu called Izanagi. A forbidden skill that could rewrite reality itself in exchange for blindness in one eye. It was dangerous. Tempting. And if word got out, the Uchiha would be hunted even harder.

So, just like before, Shisui only gave a calm smile and nodded, brushing the subject away.

For once, Toji didn't push. He'd gotten what he wanted. The question had been planted, the thought seeded. Shisui might not act on it, but he'd remember it.

That was the whole point.

Toji's real goal wasn't just small talk—it was to nudge Shisui's thoughts in the right direction, to remind him that someone might already be harvesting Sharingan. That someone like Danzo might know about Izanagi. And if Shisui realized that, maybe… just maybe, things would change before it was too late.

Toji was playing a subtle game. One where he didn't need to win outright—just move the board a few inches.

Once the important questions were out of the way, he stopped acting clueless and the conversation naturally died down.

The rest of the walk was uneventful. No more surprise attacks. No signs of being followed.

After several hours, they finally reached their destination: a small border town near the edge of the Land of Fire.

"Toji-san, would you be alright with us staying a bit longer? Just to make sure everything's clear. I'm really sorry about the trouble back in Konoha… I'll be reporting this to the Hokage myself." Shisui's tone was sincere.

"That's kind of you," Toji replied with a polite smile. "I trust the Hokage will sort it out eventually."

Shisui's warmth made it hard to refuse, so Toji agreed to stay.

They picked an unremarkable hotel tucked away in the town's quieter side. While they were there, Shisui showed genuine concern for Toji's next steps. "So, what are your plans now that you're out of Konoha?"

Toji laughed awkwardly. Inside, he was cursing the entire situation.

"Probably just go back to what I know to do best. Open up a restaurant or something. Nothing fancy."

In the days that followed, Shisui and his partner stuck around to ensure Toji's safety. With no Root ninjas showing up, Toji figured they'd backed off for now or waiting. Still, he kept up appearances—asking around about shop spaces, checking prices, pretending to start a new life.

Only after Shisui was confident the threat was gone did he come to say goodbye.

"Toji-san, it's been a pleasure. I've learned a lot about how civilians view things. It's… enlightening. We've been gone a while though. Time to head back."

Toji smiled and nodded. "Hahaha, it's fine. I get it. Hope we meet again sometime, thank you for protecting me."

With that, Shisui and his comrade disappeared down the road, leaving the town behind.

That same night, Toji packed up, refunded his hotel stay, and rented a carriage to a bigger town further west.

Now truly out of Konoha's shadow, Toji finally had freedom.

Two days later, he arrived in one of the more prosperous towns in the Fire Nation. He bought out a restaurant space eerily similar to his favorite haunt back in Konoha—same layout, same furniture. Only this one had more space and a better location.

Toji's original plan had been to disappear quietly and live as a civilian while subtly pushing Naruto toward a darker path. But after receiving his first reward from the system, he realized that plan was dead on arrival.

Turning Naruto into a villain was damn near impossible.

His first attempt? A measly 1.6% blackening—Naruto realizing how hard it was to make friends.

Second time? 3.0%, when Naruto learned his origins and how the village treated him.

Third time? 3.4%, after Hiruzen told him the truth, and the villagers' rejection hit him like a punch in the gut.

Total? 8%.

It was painfully slow. And he knew the village's manipulations alone wouldn't be enough to get Naruto to fully turn.

Which meant Toji had to step up his game.

He needed more than Konoha's sins. He needed new angles, bigger plays—plans outside the village.

He already had a few ideas in motion.

But for now, his biggest problem was figuring out how to spend his precious blackening points.