Chương 75: Chapter 73 - The Price

"Since when?" I asked, still not blinking, as I studied Fugaku's Mangekyō, watching its pattern slowly return to normal.

"That is not important." Which, of course, was the polite way to say: It is not my business.

"Who else knows?"

"Mikoto." He said, making me finally blink, nodding my head, "And now you. That's all."

"Why show me?" While I asked, it was difficult not to feel threatened by the fact. I had no idea what abilities his version possessed, as it never really got any explanation... It didn't even exist. Genjutsu? Anything like Itachi had? Both Sasuke and Itachi had Amaterasu, so... Was it hiding in his eyes somewhere? What about the Susanoo? Haaah... How much could he use it?

"The next section speaks more clearly of the cycle of hatred." He continued our talks from before, glancing at the stone tablet, "Of the power that is created through loss, the power of these eyes, Renjiro. It describes the Mangekyō and the sacrifice required to obtain it."

"Are we sure the sacrifice, whatever that means, is what needs to be done to acquire it?" I offered quickly, "If we go from my previous suggestion, that it shows modifications, and not restorations, that too can be wrong."

"It is not," Fugaku's jaw clenched for a moment, answering me through his gritted teeth, "The death of one held closest to the heart is what triggered mine. It spoke the truth about that. Because of my carelessness, my firstborn was dead before he even got a chance to cry out." Woah, woah, woah! What?! Hold your horses... WHAT?! I guess he noticed my mouth fall open, looking at him, stunned, but he didn't say more, nor did he explain exactly what happened. Geez... The fuck?!

Suddenly, I had a very strong feeling about the fact he may not really have explored his eyes at all. If I'm right, just by looking at his face, how he was looking away from me, the way he was absentmindedly staring at the tablet... I think he hates his own eyes. Huh... Wait! Wait! I'm not a son-replacement for you, am I? I am not ready for some kind of heavy roleplaying here! And for sure, I won't go calling you daddy! Go and make Itachi if you need a son! Do you hear me?

"Does it say the Uchiha must cause the death?" I asked in the end, licking my lips, trying to moisten my throat, and chase away my stupid fantasies.

"No. It does not explicitly state that the wielder must cause the death..." He answered after more than a minute of silence.

"Then anyone teaching that you have to experience the loss of your closest love, be it whatever love it is, is an idiot."

"..." Fugaku's gaze hardened as he looked at me, "Careful, Renjiro."

"No. Think about it." I gulped, gathering my thoughts, "If the eyes reflect the heart, that means the Sharingan responds to emotion. A strong emotion. I get the reason why loss may trigger something like this, but who says only that can do it? Maybe it's the quickest way. But the only way? I'm not buying that." Fugaku slowly looked back toward the stone, saying nothing, but his expression smoothed a little.

"What else does it say?" I asked, before the silence could last any longer.

"That conflict will continue while the ancient powers remain divided. That only by bringing them together can true peace be achieved."

"Bringing what together?" I asked despite knowing what he meant, but, as I guessed, he wasn't that sure about it yet. I can't just lay it out so... I had to play along within a logical frame. Haaah... This was harder than anyone would think.

"The tablet is unclear." He said in the end, looking at me again, "These eyes are still not the end of the road, Renjiro."

"Oh... And what is after that?"

"The Mangekyō is a weapon one must not use carelessly." He began explaining to me, "Usage blinds the eye; its power is too immense. To retain its light, it needs to fuse with another of its kind. It is not enough for it to be a Mangekyō either," He added seriously, looking at me, "You must share the blood with its owner."

"Ouch." I grimaced and asked, without holding back anything, "Would you do it?"

"No." He answered so quickly and so flatly, I knew he was telling the truth.

"I didn't want this knowledge, the power or the guilt it comes with. I would give it up, at any chance if I could, and have my son, instead of these eyes." This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

"I understand." I said with as much honesty as I could, "And Fugaku-san, you could still have children. Maybe even two geniuses, hm?"

"..." He looked away for a brief moment, exhaling a held breath, "Maybe... Maybe you are right... I'm just not... ready to try."

"Also," I smiled to myself, dragging the topic back to the present, "The tablet might not be an Uchiha prophecy at all."

"...?!" That shocked him more than anything else had.

"What? Why do you even think of something like that?"

"It talks about our eyes, yes. But it also talks about an opposing power...? And who would be that opposing power, hm? Because if it's the Senju, too bad; they are pretty much gone. Are we supposed to oppose the world then? Bullshit. So, going from there, then... If the complete message requires something beyond the Mangekyō, maybe it was never intended for a pure Uchiha alone, hm?"

I tried nudging him again, hoping to plant some seeds that would make him prefer working together with others rather than going it alone, and finally to try and take over leadership within the village.

"You are a weird Uchiha..." He muttered, looking into my eyes, making me grin.

"I'll take it as a compliment. Though, this?" I pointed at the stone tablet, "This thing is sketchy."

"You stand before our clan's oldest relic and call it untrustworthy." He chortled, shaking his head.

"Yeah, I do. I don't need a stone to tell me how to live my life or grow stronger. I can do that by myself, thank you very much."

"Haaah... I sometimes can't decide what kind of man you will be after growing up." He shrugged, shaking his head.

"You are an anomaly amongst us, but maybe that is what we will need in the future."

"Once again, Chief... Thanks?"

"I don't think I intended it as a compliment," He smirked, making me roll my eyes with a grin, "You immediately concluded that an ancient relic had been altered. I should have expected it, though, because you are just as reckless with your words as you are with your actions. Throwing a kunai into your senior's hand..."

"I immediately concluded it was suspicious." I snorted, "Both Tetsucchy and this tablet."

"Careful with the naming," He raised a finger, wagging it at me, "He is still your elder. Also, you will tell no one what you saw here."

"Obviously."

"No one, Renjiro. Not your parents, not Sayuri Yamanaka or Kushina Uzumaki." Then he paused, looking me dead in the eye, "Not Minato Namikaze."

"Sure," I pursed my lips, so he became even more serious, his Mangekyō coming online for a moment.

"This knowledge is restricted to the clan's highest leadership."

"Am I counted as a leader now?"

"If you keep growing," He whispered, deactivating his eyes and surprising me, "You could be my successor." Before I could blurt out anything else, Fugaku looked toward the sealed passage.

"You already carry powers that do not belong to a child at all. Now, you have the knowledge, too. I don't know what life has in store for us, but with war looming on the horizon, there is a very high chance that..."

"Yeah, no." I said as I shook my head, "I don't think Minato will bite the dust, especially not because of me, Fugaku-san."

"Everyone you are close to will be in danger when war comes, Renjiro. Not if, but when."

"..." I hated that he had a point, and I had nothing to shoot back with.

"You are not suggesting that I can get together with Sayuri, just so then when she dies I get new eyes... Are you?"

"I'm not." He said firmly, looking at me, and I suddenly felt ashamed I brought it up like that.

"S-sorry..."

"I don't like what you are doing," He sighed quietly, "But I won't interfere. HOWEVER!" He raised a hand as I looked up, "I won't help either. If others in the clan try to break things up, it is up to you to solve the issue. And if the Yamanaka clan steps in... I will remain impartial. Do you understand?"

"Naturally. And that's more than I expected." I said with a renewed grin, "Thanks, Daddy! OW!"

"That was a long-time-coming punishment." He snorted while I now had a massive bump growing on the top of my head, where his knuckles landed. But I caught a smile on his face before turning away, "Let's go. You need to get home and sleep." Naturally, I followed, without saying a word after. As for sleeping? Naaah. That didn't occur; how could I sleep after something like this, hm? Exactly. So, when Minato woke up, I opened my mouth, but he raised a hand.

"Stop."

"Huh?"

"Don't tell me anything, Renjiro." He sighed, rubbing his face, looking tired.

"You were taken away for a secret clan meeting, weren't you?"

"Yeah?" I nodded, "Was it that obvious?"

"From how you acted?" He looked at me with a half-smile, "Yes."

"And you aren't curious?!" I almost yelled, because if the roles were reversed, I would be.

"I am, but you can't tell me, Renjiro; I'm not of your clan."

"You are my brother!" I snorted, crossing my arms, "That is just as good."

"That's why I trust you." He countered me, putting his hands on my shoulders, looking into my eyes without blinking.

"Yes... You are my brother, Renjiro. So I don't need to know what is going on with the Uchihas. I have complete trust in you, and thus, you don't have to tell me anything. Just do what you must do..."

"Tsk..." I clucked my tongue, gently punching his stomach, making him grunt and chortle as he let me go, "Bastard. Stop acting cool, I'm not Kushina, you won't get a peck on your lips from me."

"Idiot..." He groaned, rubbing his front, grinning, "Who would want a kiss from you?"

"Are you badmouthing Sayuri now?" I raised a brow, making him flinch, "Careful, Minato, I'm the better tongue-warrior between us."

"Are you?" He asked, squinting at me, not willing to back down, "Are... you...?"

"..." It took me a second to understand the double-meaning, "Damn... You are living it up with Kushina, huh? Okay, okay! I don't want to know more either! I still want to eat breakfast! OW! OI! NOT ON MY BUMP! Geez... hitting me where Fugaku did..."

"..." He just kept looking at me, noticing that I still had a tiny bump that was starting to swell once again.

"What?" I grinned, with one eye closed, touching the top of my head, hissing, "Well, you told me not to tell you jack shit, so... tough luck! I am not telling you what happened, but just so you know, I'm super badass, and make sure that you are careful around Tetsuma Uchiha."

"You just can't keep your mouth shut... Can you?"

"Sorry," I said, sticking out my tongue, "I have bad impulse control."