Uchiha orphan, so what if I'm ruthless?

Orochimaru looked at the closed door, chuckling softly as he shook his head.

"Oh, sensei, my dear sensei."

He leaned back in his chair, his golden, slit-like pupils narrowing slightly.

"Even now, how can you still fail to see reality? Konoha has never needed a Hokage who merely protects its interests, but rather one who can lead them to seize new ones."

He paused, as if savoring his own words.

"If I couldn't conduct experiments before becoming Hokage, and I still can't conduct them after becoming Hokage, then wouldn't my becoming Hokage be completely pointless?"

Finally, Orochimaru withdrew his gaze. With a low, amused chuckle, he returned his attention to the documents in front of him.

Time slipped away beneath the tip of his pen.

Document after document was reviewed; matter after matter was handled.

Orochimaru wrote quickly and with neat handwriting. Every directive was concise and clear, devoid of any unnecessary nonsense.

He had always worked this way—clean, efficient, and never dragging things out.

After finishing the last page of paperwork, he stood up, walked to the window, and stretched.

Outside, the sun was already setting in the west. The orange-red sunlight spilled over the village, bathing the houses, streets, and trees in a warm hue.

Turning around, he walked back to his desk and pressed the bell on top of it.

*Ding.*

The door was pushed open, and an ANBU operative walked in.

"Lord Hokage."

"Go and invite Clan Head Fugaku here."

"Yes, sir."

The ANBU vanished outside the door.

Orochimaru sat back down, folding his hands on the desk. His fingers tapped lightly against the surface, producing a rhythmic sound.

His gaze fell upon a map hanging on the wall. It was a map of the ninja world, detailing the Five Great Nations and dozens of smaller countries, densely packed with place names. His eyes traced a path from the Land of Fire to the Land of Hot Water, lingering in that direction for a moment before looking away.

Before long, footsteps echoed outside, followed by a knock on the door.

"Come in."

The door opened, and Uchiha Fugaku walked in.

His expression was calm, betraying no emotion. It had already been half a month since he returned from the front lines.

Only after returning did he learn of the myriad events that had transpired in the village—one after another, leaving people completely overwhelmed.

Initially, he harbored significant resentment and resistance toward the village's higher-ups.

It was only human nature. The genius of his Uchiha clan had been forced away by the village. As the clan head, he had lost face and was burning with anger.

He had even considered leading the Uchiha clan to take action, but after calming down, he abandoned the thought.

It wasn't that he didn't want to; it was that he couldn't.

Uchiha Taiga's actions had delivered far too massive a shock to the village.

Now, the various ninja clans in the village, and even the civilian ninjas, were highly wary of the Uchiha clan.

They didn't know whether Uchiha Taiga's actions were his own or a collective move by the Uchiha clan. All they knew was that a single Uchiha had nearly destroyed half of Konoha.

Under these circumstances, if the Uchiha clan made any suspicious moves, what awaited them would not be compromise, but extermination.

He had also once entertained the extravagant hope of taking the Hokage seat.

With the Third Hokage stepping down, the Fourth Hokage dead, and the Fifth Hokage position vacant, as the head of the Uchiha clan and the commander of the Police Force, it stood to reason that he wasn't entirely without a chance.

But reality was cruel. Practically no one in the village supported him.

The heads of the other ninja clans and the members of the Jonin Council—not a single one publicly voiced their support for him.

They didn't trust the Uchiha. They never had.

Therefore, he could only choose to let the Uchiha clan lay low. They ignored village affairs, stayed out of village politics, and quietly remained within their compound, waiting for the storm to pass.

However, he never expected that after Orochimaru took power, the new Hokage would actively seek him out.

During their first meeting, Orochimaru had said, "Fugaku-kun, the Uchiha clan is a part of Konoha. That will never change. I hope we can cooperate."

Uchiha Fugaku had remained vigilant about this.

During their second meeting, Orochimaru had said, "Fugaku-kun, I need the Uchiha's power, and the Uchiha need the village's acknowledgment. It's a win-win."

Uchiha Fugaku's stance had softened slightly.

During their third meeting, Orochimaru had said, "Fugaku-kun, come take a look at my laboratory. There are some things you might find interesting."

Uchiha Fugaku went, and he was deeply shaken by what he saw.

He saw Orochimaru's experiments and witnessed the limbs modified by Hashirama cells. Realizing that the man before him cared nothing for clan distinctions, he accepted the invitation to cooperate.

Because Orochimaru had offered him a condition he couldn't refuse... the future of the Uchiha clan.

"Fugaku-kun, you're here."

Orochimaru stood up and walked out from behind his desk.

"Perfect timing. Come with me to the laboratory; the experiments have yielded some results."

Uchiha Fugaku didn't waste words and simply nodded.

The two walked out of the Hokage's office one after the other. They traversed the corridors, descended the stairs, and exited through the back door of the Hokage building. Following a secluded path for about fifteen minutes, they arrived in front of an inconspicuous building.

This building was originally an underground base for Root, its entrance hidden inside an abandoned warehouse. After taking power, Orochimaru had converted it into a laboratory.

The two entered the warehouse, lifted a trapdoor on the floor, and walked down the steps.

Several lamps were embedded in the walls on both sides of the passageway, emitting a dim, yellow light.

The air was somewhat damp and carried the scent of disinfectant. Their footsteps echoed rhythmically down the corridor.

At the end of the passage was a metal door. Beyond it lay the laboratory.

The laboratory was massive, even larger than Danzo's previous one.

The shelves against the walls were filled with bottles and jars containing liquids of various colors. Several tables held microscopes, petri dishes, and other unidentifiable instruments.

The smell of disinfectant permeated the air, mixed with an indescribable, metallic sweetness.

In the center of the laboratory was an operating table, and a person lay upon it.

The man wore a white hospital gown. His hair was gray, and the wrinkles on his face were deep, making him look at least sixty or seventy years old.

His eyes were closed, and his breathing was steady, as if he were sleeping.

Seeing that face, Uchiha Fugaku's footsteps faltered for a moment.

"Is this..."

"Uchiha Setsuna."

Orochimaru finished the sentence for him.

"An elder of your Uchiha clan. You should recognize him."

Of course Uchiha Fugaku recognized him.

Uchiha Setsuna was the oldest elder in the Uchiha clan, a generation senior even to Fugaku's father. This man had long stopped concerning himself with clan affairs. Fugaku never expected him to appear in Orochimaru's laboratory.

"Why is he here?" Uchiha Fugaku asked.

"I brought him here."

Orochimaru said as he walked over to the operating table, reaching out to pat Uchiha Setsuna on the shoulder.

"Elder Setsuna, Fugaku-kun is here."

The man on the operating table opened his eyes.

They were a pair of cloudy eyes, looking no different from those of an ordinary old man. But the moment those eyes saw Uchiha Fugaku, they changed.

The grayish whites of his eyes were dyed scarlet. A single tomoe surfaced, followed by a second, and then a third.

The Three-Tomoe Sharingan.

Uchiha Fugaku's pupils shrank slightly.

But what shocked him even more came next.

The three tomoe began to spin, connect, and merge. The pattern on his irises shifted from three tomoe into a different shape—a design composed of three curved arcs, resembling three boomerangs connected end-to-end.

The Mangekyo Sharingan.

"This..."

Uchiha Fugaku's voice grew tight.

"The Mangekyo?!"

Uchiha Setsuna sat up from the operating table and grinned. His smile carried the cunning and smugness unique to an old fox.

"Does the Clan Head seem surprised that I possess the Mangekyo?"

His voice was hoarse, like the sound of sandpaper rubbing together.

"I suppose it makes sense. I've been quiet for so long that the clan has probably long forgotten about this former elder, treating me as nothing more than a lingering ghost watching over the shrine."

Uchiha Fugaku's expression darkened.

He didn't speak, but instead turned his head to look at Orochimaru.

The meaning in his eyes was clear: *I need an explanation.*

Orochimaru smiled.

He took a small booklet from his chest pocket, held it in his hand, and flipped through a few pages.

"Do you know what this is?"

Uchiha Fugaku shook his head.

"This is Taiga-kun's diary."

Orochimaru licked his lips, a flash of excitement gleaming in his golden, slit-like pupils.

"It contains quite a few of Taiga-kun's true thoughts. For example, his evaluation of the Uchiha clan, his evaluation of the village, and his evaluation of certain individuals."

He closed the diary.

"Of course, that's not the main point. The point is that Elder Setsuna's Mangekyo had suffered severe vision loss due to overuse in his early years."

Uchiha Fugaku looked at Uchiha Setsuna's eyes.

Those eyes were indeed not very sharp, as if covered by a thin layer of mist.

Orochimaru continued, "I helped him do some repairs. The vitality of Hashirama cells, modified through special methods, can restore the degraded vision of the Mangekyo."

He paused.

"Now, let Elder Setsuna tell you the results."

Uchiha Setsuna picked up the conversation, chuckling darkly.

"Lord Orochimaru's experiment is excellent. My vision is currently recovering."

He hopped off the operating table, walked over to Uchiha Fugaku, and waved a hand in front of his eyes.

"Fugaku, my boy, do you know what this means?"

Uchiha Fugaku didn't answer, but a tempest was already raging in his heart.

The deterioration of vision in the Mangekyo Sharingan was irreversible.

This was an acknowledged fact within the Uchiha clan for thousands of years.

The more it was used, the worse the vision became, ultimately leading to complete blindness.

This was an ancient curse passed down through the Uchiha clan.

But now, Orochimaru was saying it could be repaired using Hashirama cells?

Uchiha Fugaku's throat felt a bit dry.

"What do you want?"

He looked at Orochimaru, his voice heavy.

Orochimaru smiled—a faint but seemingly genuine smile.

"I already told you, Fugaku-kun. I need the Uchiha's power, and the Uchiha need the village's acknowledgment."

He walked over to the operating table and picked up a petri dish containing two Sharingan eyes.

"We can cooperate. I will help you repair your Mangekyo, and you will help me complete my experiments. A win-win."

Uchiha Fugaku fell silent.

He looked at Orochimaru's golden, slit-like pupils, then at Uchiha Setsuna's scarlet eyes, before closing his own.

"Alright."

He opened his eyes.

"I agree."

Orochimaru licked his lips.

"Excellent."

Uchiha Fugaku immediately followed up, "But I want to take a look at Taiga's diary."