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NAJ Chapter 54: The Spark That Could Ignite a War
🕑 Added 2025-06-29 03:52:06 +0000 UTC“Izanagi!”
Uchiha Fugaku, watching from the other side, saw Danzō miraculously restore himself—and drew a steady breath.
He had already heard from Keizumi that Danzō possessed multiple Sharingan and could use the forbidden technique Izanagi.
But hearing it and seeing it with one’s own eyes were two completely different experiences.
“Fugaku-sama…”
Just then—
One of the Konoha Police Force officers accompanying Fugaku spoke up, his voice laced with shock: “That guy… isn’t his arm embedded with Sharingan?”
His words immediately drew all the other Uchiha’s eyes to Danzō’s grotesque arm.
In the next moment, their faces were filled with disbelief and stunned confusion.
Fugaku’s heart sank.
He began to regret bringing the rest of the clan with him to the scene.
Yes—he had received intel from Keizumi regarding the Sharingan in Danzō’s possession, but Fugaku had deliberately chosen not to share that information with the rest of the clan.
Because he understood—if the hawkish elements within the Uchiha learned of this, their stance would only grow more extreme. And when that happened, the conflict between the Uchiha and the village leadership would become even more irreconcilable—something Fugaku desperately wanted to avoid.
So despite the frustration and bitterness it caused him, Fugaku had chosen silence.
And yet—
Danzō had brazenly exposed the full length of his arm, embedded with Sharingan, right in front of everyone!
…
“Meow! Finally made it…”
Tachibana Jirō let out a sigh of relief as he saw that Uchiha Keizumi was completely unharmed. “Thank goodness Keizumi-sama is okay.”
Then, turning to the panting girl behind him, he grumbled, “Rookie, you’re way too slow! You totally held me back.”
Izumi flushed with embarrassment. She was a kunoichi who specialized in taijutsu, and she had already given it everything she had.
And yet…
On the way to support Keizumi-senpai, all she could do was stare at Tachibana Jirō’s swaying cat tail from a distance.
She had barely managed to outpace his younger feline kin.
Izumi quickly turned her gaze toward Uchiha Keizumi.
“Keizumi-senpai and his opponent…” Her jaw dropped as she took in the devastation before her—there wasn’t a single intact building in sight. “What kind of battle did they go through here?”
Her eyes then fell on Danzō.
The countless blood-red Sharingan embedded all over his arm immediately caught her attention.
She gasped sharply.
…
At the same time—
Yamanaka Inoichi, standing behind Sarutobi Hiruzen, stared in silence at the Yamanaka clan compound, now reduced to ruin—there wasn’t a single house left intact. His fists had clenched without him realizing it.
“Ino…”
Completely ignoring the tension hanging in the air, Inoichi began walking alone toward what remained of his clan’s estate.
His daughter, his wife, and several members of the Yamanaka clan had been taking temporary shelter in the underground chamber beneath the estate when the violent clash between Shimura Danzō and Uchiha Keizumi had erupted.
But now, faced with such devastation… could that chamber still be safe?
“Root…”
His gaze fell upon the ground—on the deep gashes sliced into the earth by Wind Blades.
He didn’t need to think twice to know this was Danzō’s doing.
…
“The Uchiha clan’s Sharingan…”
Elsewhere, the Hyūga clan had also arrived. At the forefront stood Hyūga Hiashi, the clan head—his eyes were drawn immediately to Danzō’s grotesque arm.
What he saw through his Byakugan was even more unsettling.
Hiashi’s expression turned subtly wary. Without a word, he shifted his hesitant and confused gaze toward Uchiha Fugaku.
He saw that the Uchiha shinobi were just as shocked.
It was clear—they hadn’t known anything about the Sharingan embedded in Danzō’s arm.
Which could only mean…
Hiashi narrowed his eyes slightly, a faint edge of suspicion surfacing in his gaze. When he looked at Danzō again, the distance in his eyes was unmistakable.
And—
It wasn’t just Hyūga Hiashi who grew wary of Danzō.
All the Konoha clans with kekkei genkai who had arrived at the scene were now harboring their own unsettling thoughts and feelings…
All triggered by the sight of that disturbing arm.
…
Under the weight of countless stares, Danzō was on the verge of wanting to kill.
His secret—completely and silently—had been exposed to the world!
There was no way to hide the arm implanted with so many Sharingan.
Even if he hurried to wrap it in bandages now, it would only make things more suspicious.
Danzō’s sinister gaze shot toward Uchiha Keizumi, his expression twisted with rage. His arm trembled violently as veins bulged from his clenched fist, driven by the intensity of his fury. A storm of dark thoughts swirled through his mind.
It’s all that cursed Uchiha brat’s fault!
Why won’t he just die already?!
Just as Danzō took a step forward, Sarutobi Hiruzen’s voice rang out, cold and thunderous, stopping him in his tracks. His face darkened instantly.
“Danzō! Do you even realize what you’ve done tonight? You nearly destroyed Konoha! Just look at the ‘good deeds’ you've brought upon us!”
“I already warned you last time! Or do you simply choose to ignore the orders of me—the Third Hokage?!”
Before Danzō could grit his teeth and respond—
Suddenly.
One of the more radical Uchiha clan members, unable to contain his emotions, stepped past Fugaku and pointed angrily at Danzō’s arm.
“You bastard! Where did you get those Sharingan from?! Have you been hunting Uchiha shinobi to steal their eyes?!”
“Otherwise, why would Uchiha Keizumi fight you in the first place? That guy has the power to see through evil itself! He must’ve seen the truth in you—that’s why he struck!”
The accusations from the Uchiha hardliner struck a nerve. Many other Uchiha suddenly saw things in a new light—and their anger surged.
A single, burning thought took hold of their minds—Shimura Danzō might have been hunting Uchiha for their Sharingan.
Every gaze directed at Danzō was now filled with hostility.
Several Uchiha shinobi even placed their hands on their sword hilts.
The already-tense atmosphere suddenly grew even more volatile, teetering on the brink of explosion.
Over twenty Uchiha Police Force shinobi had silently surrounded Danzō. Their faces were filled with fury—each of them a member of the radical faction. Even the more moderate ones wore grim expressions.
At this point, Fugaku knew that if he, as the clan head, didn’t step forward now, it would be unacceptable.
He slowly walked forward. As he passed by Uchiha Keizumi, his steps paused for a moment, and his lips moved slightly.
In a voice only he and Keizumi could hear, he said, “Keizumi-san, leave this to me. I know what you want to do, but I am the head of the Uchiha clan. I have a more appropriate way of handling this. Besides, Hokage-sama and the others are already here. Hokage-sama doesn’t want to see internal conflict within the village.”
Fugaku feared that Keizumi, in his pursuit of Absolute Justice, would stir up even greater turmoil.
Even if he knew these words and actions might displease Keizumi…
He also understood all too well that in such a volatile, knife’s-edge atmosphere, if Keizumi clashed with the Hokage, he would have no way of stopping the radical Uchiha from joining in.
Those radicals would absolutely side with Keizumi and attack the Hokage!
And that would mean a complete and irreparable break between Konoha and the Uchiha!
The tragedy of the 'future' could very well unfold ahead of its time!
And the Uchiha Clan couldn’t withstand that kind of internal collapse.
Fugaku wanted to change the future in his own way.
With his mind racing, he finally stepped up to Danzō and met the cold, sinister gaze of the man.
“Danzō-sama.”
Fugaku’s voice was deep and steady.
“We demand a proper explanation from you. The Uchiha Clan has served Konoha diligently for many years. We are not lambs to be slaughtered at will. Where exactly did the Sharingan in your possession come from?”
No sooner had he asked than a new thought struck Fugaku—
Wouldn’t it be simpler to just ask Keizumi directly?
That ability of his—to perceive the evils of both past and future…
There truly was no way to hide any secrets from it.
However...
A glance at the surrounding devastation made Fugaku decide—it was best not to drag Keizumi any further into this.
“An explanation…?”
Danzō’s cold gaze swept over the scene. Even surrounded by so many Uchiha shinobi, he showed no fear. With a chilling sneer, he said: “It is I who should be demanding an explanation from you! What is the meaning of this? Are you planning to kill me and rebel against Konoha? Fugaku, what is the meaning of this aggression?”
“Danzō!”
Hiruzen’s voice cut through the tension like a blade.
“You do owe the Uchiha Clan an explanation—where did those Sharingan come from? And you owe me an explanation as well—why were you engaging in internal conflict behind my back, causing such massive destruction within the village?”
Danzō froze. His expression stiffened as he whipped his head around to glare at Hiruzen, utterly incredulous.
He couldn’t believe Hiruzen was siding with the Uchiha Clan!
Danzō’s fists clenched, and his teeth ground so hard they nearly cracked.
To explain himself was tantamount to yielding to the Uchiha—the clan he deemed innately dangerous and evil. Even a momentary concession made his skin crawl. It made him want to kill someone just to vent the fury boiling inside him.
