Shisui was all smiles, relief clear on his face.
Heaven only knew how bitter the last two days had been for him.
Never good at lying to begin with, he'd spent the past days being hounded by clansn, forced to spin falsehoods over and over.
Thankfully, the Uchiha weren't exactly the most discerning when it ca to subtle expressions. Had it been anyone else, they'd have seen instantly how unnatural his tone and face were.
So when he saw Uchiha Kai awaken at last, he finally let out a long breath.
"Kai, you ought to thank Shisui," Nara Kazama chuckled. "You don't know how miserable he's been these past two days."
"He's never been one for lying, yet he's had to keep fooling your clansn. I was worried sick for him!"
That made everyone laugh—even Shisui, though his expression was helpless.
Lying simply wasn't his forte.
Hearing this, Uchiha Kai grinned.
"Shisui, that won't do. From now on, you'll need to lie more often. Consider this practice."
"This… I—" Shisui wanted to protest, but after a mont's thought he sighed. "Alright, I'll try. Still, I can't help but fear that my weakness at it will spoil things."
Kai shook his head with a smile. He wasn't concerned in the least.
"Don't worry, Shisui. It's because you aren't a good liar that your lies will be more believable."
"That's human nature."
"People who lie all the ti are the ones nobody trusts. But soone honest like you—so long as you just act normal, no one will suspect a thing."
"If you don't quite get it, I'll give you a comparison."
"Think of Might Duy. Would you ever believe he was lying to you?"
At those words, everyone fell into thought.
Might Duy!
Among the whole of Konoha, he was a rather unique figure. Having no aptitude for chakra, he walked the path of pure taijutsu.
But sadly, despite so many years, he remained a genin.
That in itself had made him famous—no one in Konoha knew of him.
Imagine his earnest face—if he ever told a lie? Impossible!
Even Shisui had to admit he couldn't imagine Duy lying.
"…Fine, I get it," Shisui chuckled. "I never expected you to compare to him though."
Kazama laughed too. "If you hadn't brought him up, I'd have forgotten Konoha even had such a ninja."
"Might Duy's spirit is admirable," Hyuga Aya added, "but he really isn't suited to being a ninja."
Kai, however, looked at them with an expression full of silent ridicule.
"What is it, Kai?" Kazama asked sharply.
He'd noticed the fleeting mockery in Kai's gaze—even if it lasted but a mont. And given their friendship, he didn't hesitate to ask outright.
Shisui and Aya also turned to Kai curiously.
Kai fell silent, weighing whether to speak. But then he thought of their shared ordeal against the Seven Ninja Swordsn. They already stood on the sa boat now, bonds forged through hardship. And each of them had their own ss of troubles.
They really had beco friends.
So, he spoke plainly:
"It's nothing, really. Just that I heard a bit of disdain in your voices when you spoke of Might Duy. And that makes look down on you instead."
"Don't be fooled. Might Duy is a strong man."
"If he truly went all out… to be honest, even I would barely survive—and I'd co away gravely wounded."
"Of course, he'd die. But compared to you, if you faced him, you wouldn't even withstand a single kick."
Hiss!
Everyone inhaled sharply.
For a mont, they thought Kai was joking. But the seriousness in his eyes left them stunned.
"Kai… you aren't joking?" Kazama asked first.
Aya looked even more astonished. "If he's really that strong, how could Might Duy still be just a genin?"
Shisui said nothing, but his expression grew intense.
Yes—he, a genius of the Uchiha, was now being told this ridiculous-sounding truth. How could he not be intrigued?
And the thought of that man—dressed in his green jumpsuit, shouting endlessly about youth…
Shisui shivered.
Kai only smiled.
"I'm not joking. It's just that your standards are too high, so you look down on soone like Might Duy by instinct."
"But his taijutsu… even I find it terrifying."
"Ever heard of the Eight Gates Formation?"
"This was sothing Might Duy pieced together himself from ancient records, training it to completion."
"Once he opens the final gate—Death Gate—the power he releases is beyond even ."
"Even opening just the Sixth Gate, the Gate of View, he'd rival an elite Jounin."
Everyone fell into stunned silence.
None of them had ever heard of the Eight Gates Formation—not even Hyuga Aya, despite his clan's vast records of shinobi history.
But one thing was certain—they now felt a genuine respect for Might Duy.
Especially Nara Kazama.
Already, his mind was moving.
Could he recruit Duy into his own camp?
Yes—Kai had said his heart was pure, but in the end, he was only human. He had a wife and child, didn't he? He needed food, shelter, and livelihoodṣ. Could a re genin provide that?
If Kazama could secure those things for him, and slowly influence him with talk of justice and greater good, then he wouldn't even need Duy's absolute loyalty.
Even if, at a critical mont, Duy rely chose to stay neutral—that alone would be a victory.
"…Enough chatter."
"Let's get back to the main issue. Word of your awakening has already spread."
"By tonight at the latest, Clan Head Fugaku will co in person."
"Kai, can you really bluff your way past him about this Mangekyo Sharingan?"
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