Chapter 222: I Do Not Regret It
What Obito truly thought was something Hikaru knew perfectly well.
That man had long since gone off the deep end. If anything, he wanted the world itself to collapse.
In the original course of events, Obito had even taken part in the Uchiha massacre. How could someone like that possibly hope Kakashi would protect the clan?
But in the eyes of the world, Obito was dead.
And that made him useful.
Hikaru could take full advantage of that fact.
Not only could he untangle Kakashi’s tendency to trap himself in his own guilt, he could also use it to make him understand that what he had done tonight was still the right choice.
Because in Kakashi’s eyes, even Obito would have wanted it that way.
The dead had no need for opinions.
Even the falsely dead were no exception.
With Kakashi’s problem settled, Hikaru finally felt a little relief.
But he also knew more problems were already waiting for him.
"For instance, the boy’s chakra is a real problem. He’s like a child holding a weapon he can’t properly swing."
Kakashi was not a true Uchiha. His body already struggled to bear the burden of an ordinary Sharingan.
And now, with the Mangekyō awakened early by Hikaru’s interference, the worst part was that Kakashi himself had no control over it.
The result was obvious.
His chakra shortage would only become even worse.
Hikaru still intended to rely on Kakashi. If something as basic as chakra reserves dragged down his efficiency, that would be a miserable waste.
"I really am starting to look more and more like the kind of man who’d be hanged from a lamp post."
The thought made Hikaru smile bitterly.
He was beginning to notice a rather ugly tendency in himself.
He wasn’t thinking first about anything else. His first concern was always whether someone could keep working and keep producing value for him.
Shaking his head, he pushed the thought aside.
Kakashi’s problem would have to be observed carefully. Or perhaps Hikaru would need to find some other way to improve the boy’s chakra reserves.
"I wonder if I can cultivate fruits I already possess, then pass them on to others?"
He had actually considered that idea long ago.
At the time, though, his own chakra had been too limited.
And beyond that, there was the issue of trust.
He hadn’t been certain he could trust the people he might choose. And if he couldn’t trust them, then what would he do afterward? That created another problem entirely.
But now things were different.
Whether he trusted them or not, his strength was already enough to deal with the consequences.
And his chakra seemed sufficient as well. As long as he could maintain the cultivation of the Three-Tails chakra and preserve his own strength, raising a few mid-grade seeds no longer seemed impossible.
"Maybe I can use Kakashi as a trial case. His current condition likely won’t be stable anyway."
Hikaru was someone who liked to prepare for danger before it arrived.
He had to admit there was an element of experimentation in that thought.
But he was also genuinely considering Kakashi’s situation.
In the original story, Obito never reclaimed Kakashi’s eye.
Part of that had been pride. He never believed that by then he could be inferior to Kakashi.
The other reason was that he wanted to sever that bond completely, so Kakashi would never learn the truth that he was still alive.
And back then, there had been no Hikaru.
No "masked identity" controlling the power of the Nine-Tails and rampaging across the battlefield.
Obito had already been beaten twice by Hikaru under two different identities. The second time, Hikaru had even gone straight for the weakness of his missing eye.
And Hikaru could easily imagine that their clashes would only continue.
Again and again, Obito would be taught unforgettable lessons by different masks, different methods, different hands.
In the end, Hikaru held a weakness Obito could not ignore.
If Obito didn’t find a way to solve that problem, he would remain under Hikaru’s thumb forever.
Which meant Hikaru really did need to consider the possibility that one day Obito, driven into desperation, might appear before Kakashi and simply rip the eye back out.
If that happened, then strengthening Kakashi became not only necessary, but useful in several ways at once.
If Kakashi grew stronger, perhaps he would no longer have to fear Obito at all.
After all, in the future, Kakashi would not be helpless before him.
And once Kakashi became stronger, he would also be able to shoulder more work, fully realizing his value within ANBU.
But beyond all that, the most important point was this:
If Hikaru could truly raise Kakashi’s strength, then with that special ability of his, he could start drawing far more people to his side.
A lone wolf had never fared especially well in the world of Naruto.
Even someone as powerful as Uchiha Madara had still chosen to cultivate White Zetsu as his own hands and feet.
Hikaru had no intention of becoming such a man.
Back when he was still in the Academy, he had made quite a few friends.
But because he had fallen so deeply into ANBU, he had never been able to preserve those friendships in any truly deep or lasting way.
And in any case, he had only spent three years at the Academy before leaving.
It simply had not been enough time.
"Right now I stand as the head of ANBU. I command a great many shinobi, especially after expanding the entire organization. But how many of them are truly willing to stand behind me to the end? That’s not something I can answer with certainty."
"But if I possess a method that can raise their power—improve their chakra nature, deepen their understanding, expand their potential—then..."
Then he would truly be able to gather a group that was willing to stand behind him.
Absolutely willing.
Of course, Hikaru also knew that such a power could not be exposed lightly.
If it spread too far, it would bring him disaster.
So when choosing people, he would have to know everything about them in detail.
He would also need the right point of entry.
Otherwise, if he handed power to the wrong person and they sold him out, killing them afterward would no longer solve anything.
"So I’ll start with the ones around me. The ones I truly trust. Then expand outward little by little."
At present, the person Hikaru trusted most completely was Ayame.
After all, her mother lived under his roof, and they came from the same clan besides.
Beyond her, there was the Senju four-man group.
And after them came Kakashi, Pakura, and Saya.
The number was not large, but neither was it small.
For someone like Hikaru—someone with almost no real foundation, who had climbed to the position of ANBU Minister through calculation and strength alone—it was perfectly reasonable.
And these were the people he intended to focus on.
Especially Ayame and Kakashi.
If the results were good, he could continue.
If they were poor, he could stop in time.
"Looks like I’ll need to gather more seeds. Especially low-grade ones..."
With the search for low-grade seeds now placed firmly on Hikaru’s agenda, he naturally intended to deal with it properly.
As for Kakashi, after receiving an answer that satisfied him—and shook him to the core—he no longer felt guilt over what he had done.
If anything, he felt regret.
Regret that he had performed so poorly.
Regret that he had failed to understand what the change in his eye had truly meant.
Still, one thing was clear:
there was nothing else he needed to do tonight.
Because Hikaru had never intended to wipe everyone out.
At that realization, Kakashi could only sigh.
All he could do was wait for the next chance.
Though somewhere in his heart, he already felt that perhaps there would be no next chance at all.
"Go on. That’s enough for tonight."
Once Hikaru had sorted through his thoughts, he finally turned and said that to Kakashi.
"Go back and become familiar with the power in your eye. Even if you still can’t control it fully, it is still Obito’s gift to you. In time, the help it will give you will be beyond measure."
"Yes, minister."
Kakashi nodded lightly.
Then he hesitated.
In the end, however, he lowered his head and spoke anyway.
"I’m sorry, minister."
"It’s fine."
Hikaru waved him off with an easy smile, calmly watching him.
"There’s no need to apologize. I didn’t tell you everything from the start."
"And it’s only natural that you couldn’t know more about the Sharingan than you already did."
Then Hikaru’s tone grew a little steadier.
"But Kakashi, remember this well."
"You are no longer an ordinary shinobi."
"You already stand high enough to see more than others. And I believe that in the future, you’ll stand even higher."
"But the higher you stand, the greater the responsibility. Your way of thinking has to rise to match your position."
"Sometimes you cannot afford to act too much from emotion. Even when your heart has its own opinion—like tonight, when you clearly disliked the mission—you could still have carried it out while leaving a little room to maneuver."
"If you do that, you leave yourself space to negotiate afterward."
"In the future, don’t let too much emotion guide your work. Understood?"
After saying that much, Hikaru said no more.
His chakra stirred slightly within him.
That was enough.
Many things had to be understood through one’s own reflection.
Truth be told, Hikaru knew he probably should not have said even this much to Kakashi.
But Kakashi was one of the few people he truly trusted.
And if the future allowed it, Hikaru had even considered the possibility that once he himself became Hokage, Kakashi might be the one to take over ANBU.
The kind of ANBU Minister Hikaru desired could not be someone like himself—too ambitious, too sharp-edged.
Nor could it be someone like Murashima Takumi.
The role required someone who could grow into it.
Someone who respected Konoha’s laws and Hikaru’s orders alike, but still retained his own judgment and temperament.
Kakashi remained standing there in silence.
He watched Hikaru’s figure pause slightly—then vanish.
One hand rose to cover his Sharingan.
Everything that had happened tonight felt unreal.
He had received the gift Obito left behind for him.
He had also seen clearly how poor his own performance had been.
Hikaru’s words had struck him deeply.
More than deeply—they had driven straight into his heart.
Not even setting aside the question of whether he could have defeated Uchiha Tatsumi, his attitude alone had been deeply flawed.
"Perhaps... I truly disappointed them..."
Kakashi murmured to himself.
But soon enough, his eyes hardened once more.
"No."
His voice was low, but steady.
"I won’t disappoint either of you again, Hikaru... Obito..."
Within the Uchiha compound, Saya’s father and Uchiha Shin stood there in silence.
Once Hikaru had resolved the main problem, Saya’s father had finally succeeded in capturing the First Elder and the others.
Still, the operation had gone badly.
Very badly.
Their performance could only be called poor.
Of course, it was not only they who had performed poorly.
Even the ANBU support team had not looked especially impressive.
In particular, minister Kakashi had also been defeated.
And yet, even so, Kakashi’s performance had far surpassed that of the Uchiha themselves.
His use and display of the Sharingan had been far better than theirs, despite the fact that they were genuine members of the clan.
That contrast was humiliating enough to leave them speechless.
And beyond even that, there was another truth that crushed them.
Hikaru’s strength.
The man who had defeated both Saya’s father and Kakashi had looked untouchable, terrifying, impossible to resist.
Yet according to Saya’s father’s own description, when that same man stood before Hikaru, he had looked like a child facing a full-grown adult.
No chance to resist.
No possibility of victory.
Most frightening of all, Hikaru had not even used the great lizard he had summoned against the Nine-Tails.
Nor had he used the Wood Release for which the Senju were famed throughout the ninja world.
Instead, he had used some completely unfamiliar technique—something tied, perhaps, to his eyes.
"Has he already become that strong?"
Uchiha Shin let out a weak sigh.
But soon afterward, curiosity flickered in his eyes.
"Those eyes of his... what exactly are they?"
"I don’t know."
Saya’s father shook his head, even more lost than before.
"All I know is that the pressure from them was overwhelming."
Then, after a pause, he added carefully,
"There’s never been any talk of the Senju possessing eyes like that. Perhaps it has something to do with his parents’ bloodline..."
"Don’t say such things."
Shin cut him off immediately.
He had no intention of leaving behind a loose remark that might later become evidence against them.
After the Senju declined, many of its surviving descendants had indeed continued to marry within the clan—but far more had mixed into the wider population of Konoha.
Under such circumstances, some unusual trait appearing in a descendant’s bloodline was not impossible.
Perhaps some civilian’s family line had once been significant, then faded into obscurity before joining Konoha.
Who could say?
But even so, this subject was best left untouched.
Hikaru was, after all, the only person in all these years to inherit the legacy of the First Hokage and wield Wood Release.
If anyone began casting doubt on the purity of his bloodline, the trouble that followed would be impossible to predict.
More importantly, this man was now the head of ANBU.
He held immense power in his hands.
And in more ways than one, he was also one of the pillars they were currently relying on.
If they truly provoked him, none of them would end well.
"Enough of this. Let’s go see the First Elder."
Shin shook his head sharply before speaking again.
"And the clan? Have things been calmed down? The commotion tonight was not small."
"I understand, Father."
Saya’s father nodded.
He had no intention of thinking any further about Hikaru’s eyes.
"And please don’t worry. The disturbance wasn’t small, but with ANBU’s help everything is still under control. The aftermath, however..."
"The aftermath is not your concern. I know how to handle it."
"Yes, Father."
Following Uchiha Shin, the two of them soon arrived at the room where the prisoners had been locked away.
After Hikaru defeated Tatsumi, Saya’s father had gathered the elders and confined them all together.
Because he knew his father would want to speak with them.
These old comrades.
These old enemies.
Whether they accepted his words or not was something Shin himself had to face.
And Shin had indeed intended exactly that.
Having come this far, he had already seized the initiative.
Now he could face them from the position of the victor.
When Shin slid open the door and stepped inside, he found the elders outwardly composed.
But their eyes betrayed much.
Some held despair.
Some were sunk deep in thought.
Some showed a hint of fear.
And some, already understanding the logic of victory and defeat, merely lifted their chins and looked at him in silence.
"Though I never wished for it to come to this," Shin said quietly as he walked before them, "it seems the ending was already decided."
He spoke calmly.
No harsh words. No triumph.
Even as the victor, facing members of his own clan—some of whom had once been his comrades in war—he simply could not bring himself to speak cruelly.
"You won, Shin."
The First Elder slowly shook his head.
His tone and expression were just as calm.
"And you won beautifully. I think... I finally understand."
"Oh?"
Even Shin was caught off guard.
He had expected ridicule.
Or stubborn refusal.
Perhaps accusations that he had only succeeded because he brought in outside help.
Perhaps claims that he had betrayed the pride of the clan, or destroyed its traditions.
And in truth, even Shin himself could not deny that he had reached this point only by leaning on Hikaru.
He had indeed allied himself with a Senju.
Even if, back then, he had not known Hikaru’s true identity.
But Shin had never intended to argue that point.
Because in the current situation, he would rather bear a measure of infamy.
He would rather cooperate with a Senju—
than watch the clan sink and disappear.
Besides, had the Uchiha not once joined with the Senju before?
Otherwise, where would Konoha itself have come from?
And yet the First Elder’s response still confused him.
Only for a moment, though.
Because in the next instant, Shin understood.
The First Elder had become the leading elder not only because of his achievements in war, but because he was clever.
A clan needed strength to remain stable, yes—
but it also needed sharp minds to lead it forward.
The First Elder had been one of those people.
And the very reason Shin had moved against him was precisely because a man that clever, once driven by extreme thinking, was too dangerous to leave in place.
"I mean that I think I understand why you moved against me."
The First Elder slowly raised his head.
His gaze was astonishingly clear now, even carrying a trace of ease.
"But I have one question."
"It was you who approached that Senju first, wasn’t it?"
"And when did you first make contact with him?"
"As for that, when I first met him, he wasn’t even using the Senju name."
Shin sighed and gave a bitter smile.
That first meeting with Hikaru had not been pleasant.
But without it, there would never have been a second.
And without the second, there would never have been everything that followed.
"As for the one behind him, at first I thought it was the Third Hokage."
His eyes lowered slightly.
"Later, I learned the truth. It was the Fourth Hokage."
The First Elder’s lips curved faintly.
That answer confirmed many things for him.
And once those things connected, the shape of Shin’s path became clear.
"I see."
His smile faded somewhat, and his expression turned stern.
"If I’m not mistaken, when you first tried to send Shisui into ANBU, he refused to give you an answer."
"But later, he agreed."
"Am I right?"
"Yes."
Shin nodded without concealment.
"And that was the first time I learned he was already a minister in ANBU."
"ANBU minister... At that age. Extraordinary."
The First Elder sighed.
Someone so young had already climbed to such a position. That alone showed how frightening Hikaru truly was.
"Then when you approached him again, he must have agreed to cooperate—but only after giving you two choices."
He fixed Shin with a sharp gaze.
"Either continue the standoff, while they openly support you, widening the rift between you and us until the clan sinks even deeper..."
"Or use another method. A far harsher one. A method that leaves the clan with only one voice, allowing a complete and stable transition."
"I assume... I’m not wrong."
Shin stared at him for a moment, then slowly nodded.
That day.
Those two choices.
The ambition that had spread through his heart like weeds in spring, impossible to restrain.
He would never forget any of it.
That had been the day everything changed.
"Then I was right."
The First Elder seemed calmer than before now.
Perhaps because he had finally pieced together the whole of Shin’s transformation.
"You chose the second path."
"Compared to the first—letting the clan shatter completely—it was the only one you could ever choose."
"You would never let the clan fall into total ruin. And you could not let an opportunity for its survival pass by."
"That was why Shisui entered ANBU. And after him, more and more followed."
He gave a slight glance aside.
"I imagine some of them were among those who acted tonight."
Then he let out a quiet breath.
"It was a good move. Very good. Namikaze Minato is not Sarutobi Hiruzen. Choosing him was far wiser."
When he finished, he simply kept looking at Shin, as if waiting for a response.
And inside, he had in fact become much calmer.
From the moment Shin began changing, to the events of tonight, everything had once filled him with shock, fury, and hatred.
But now, at last, he found that he understood.
Not only Shin’s change in attitude—
but why he had chosen this path at all.
"You truly are as sharp as ever."
After a long silence, Shin suddenly laughed.
"You still see through things at once, just like always."
"And yet in the end, I still grew old."
The First Elder shook his head, not caring at all about the elders watching from the side.
"Especially after seeing the strength of that young Senju... Hikaru, was it?"
"Once I saw him, I understood even more clearly why you acted as you did."
"At first, I thought you simply wanted power. Because only with enough power could you claim the right to speak."
"Later, I thought Hiruzen and the others had completely won you over—that you had betrayed the Uchiha entirely."
"But now I see the truth."
"You are still yourself."
"It’s only that the path you chose was never understood."
He paused, and his voice became quieter.
"The clan truly has no way to resist Konoha by force. Especially not when Konoha has that man within ANBU."
Though his voice was not loud, it carried clearly enough for everyone present.
The scene of Hikaru crushing Tatsumi with casual ease was still carved into his mind.
And he knew perfectly well that Hikaru had not even used his full strength.
To put it bluntly, judging from what Hikaru displayed on the night of the Nine-Tails attack, if Konoha truly wished to erase the Uchiha, Hikaru alone might well be enough.
The Senju and Uchiha had never gotten along.
If someone like Hikaru were unleashed, he would never show mercy.
In that case, the whole clan might well go up in flames in a single night.
What exactly did the clan have that could stand against an entire village?
Thinking of that, the First Elder could only feel bitterness.
That was reality.
Cruel enough to be unbearable.
If Shin had not made his choice now, then perhaps the clan really would have continued walking toward destruction.
Taking a breath, the First Elder forced himself calm.
He had already lost. Which meant he had already lost everything.
But he would not let himself appear broken like a stray dog stripped even of his final dignity.
"He is no longer a minister."
Shin’s voice interrupted the silence.
He had hesitated before saying it.
But in the end, he made his choice.
"On the night of the Nine-Tails attack, he personally killed the former ANBU Minister, Murashima Takumi. He is now the head of ANBU."
"What?"
The First Elder blinked once.
Then, unexpectedly, the smile on his face deepened.
"What a ruthless, calculating creature."
"And that wasn’t the only task he gave me."
Shin looked him straight in the eye and spoke with absolute clarity.
"His task to me was not merely to leave the clan with one voice."
"The Clan Head is unfit. And long ago, we ourselves stood together to reject Uchiha Madara."
"You—"
The First Elder’s smile vanished at once.
For the first time that night, true shock crossed his face.
"Do you understand what that means?"
"I do."
Shin raised his chin slightly, expression cold and steady.
"Because I agreed. And because I have come to think the same way."
"Our forebears cast aside hatred and joined hands. Why can we not do the same?"
"We ourselves once rejected a clan leader. Why can we not reject one again—or even replace him?"
"I know from beginning to end that in this cooperation, I will always remain under his pressure."
"I know that through such cooperation, I may become no more than his subordinate."
"But I also know this—without that cooperation, our future is only darkness."
"Worse than darkness."
"The clan itself might cease to exist."
"So I agreed."
"When choosing between two benefits, take the greater. When choosing between two harms, take the lesser."
"And all of this—I will bear it myself."
"I will not leave it for the descendants of the Uchiha to bear in my place."
He stopped there.
His gaze was unwavering.
Every word was from the heart.
The elders he had captured all fell silent.
After hearing the exchange between Shin and the First Elder, they now clearly understood why Shin had acted as he had.
And now, hearing his own resolve, they understood even more.
Everything about it felt heavy.
But everything about it also felt necessary.
After a long while, the First Elder laughed bitterly and shook his head.
"It seems this time I truly lost."
"Completely."
"In means, in breadth of vision, in strength of heart—I lost to you, Shin."
"In truth, we all merely lost to the Second Hokage."
Shin slowly closed his eyes, then opened them again.
He drew a kunai and looked at the First Elder with perfect calm.
"Are you ready?"
"Naturally."
The First Elder smiled and nodded.
At that moment, he seemed to have no regrets left.
"I know why you have to kill me. Because of my influence, isn’t it?"
"Yes."
Shin nodded.
"Hikaru told me that some people must die. The core of those who oppose me. The ones who can lead the thinking of a whole group."
The kunai rose.
Its tip leveled at the First Elder’s throat.
"You can make them quiet, and they will become quiet," the old man said with sudden pride. "Then what if you tell them to take up weapons?"
"So yes."
He laughed softly.
"I truly do need to die."
Then he lowered his head slightly.
"But I have one last request. Let me do it myself, and you may act as my second."
"I refuse."
Shin rejected him immediately.
Blue chakra flared faintly around the kunai in his hand.
The First Elder gave a small, helpless shake of his head and closed his eyes.
The sound of the kunai tearing through the air came sharply to his ear—
but in the next instant, his expression changed in disbelief.
The blade had not struck his throat at all.
Instead, it had passed by his ear and slammed into the wall behind him.
"From this moment onward, you are dead."
Shin’s voice sounded again, low and firm.
"I refused because I know I cannot stand against Senju Hikaru’s influence alone."
"I refused because I have no intention of becoming completely suppressed beneath him, reduced to a mere dependent."
"So I need someone to help me."
"Perhaps this is my resistance against him. Perhaps it will bring enormous trouble."
He drew a slow breath.
Then looked directly at the First Elder.
"But I do not regret it."
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