Chapter 220: Fugaku, the Classic Useless Teammate

Words : 1606 Updated : Oct 8th, 2025

Kakashi left. He left in high spirits—his face might be hidden, but just from the look in his eyes, you could tell he was brimming with motivation. Ah, youth... so easy to fire up. What a sucker! Kyoichi sighed inwardly. If only Madara and Black Zetsu were as easy to fool as Kakashi, he’d have no worries at all. Of course— He wasn’t just manipulating him. Kakashi was simply lost, lacking direction. All he needed was someone to point the way, and he'd charge forward. Sooner or later, he'd break through the mental wall himself. The mission to Amegakure was exactly that—a stage set for him. Looking at it now... The results were promising. However... Changing Obito would be a whole different level of difficulty. Hopefully, Kakashi could succeed. That would mean one more pillar of strength for Konoha. As for Shisui... Kyoichi was hoping he could dig up some answers. The Uchiha situation had been partially investigated by the ANBU, and they had recovered some files, but Fugaku was always on guard. There were still plenty of things he hadn’t disclosed. For instance— Exactly how many Uchiha have gone missing? Madara wasn’t the type to put all his eggs in one basket. Especially after the failed capture of Itachi due to Kyoichi’s intervention, focusing solely on him would be plain stupid. He had to have backup candidates. That’s why the list of missing Uchiha was critical intelligence. And yet... Fugaku was dragging his feet, still hadn’t handed it over after a day or two. Whether he was being dense or willfully obstructive, the result was the same—he was dead weight. A classic useless teammate. Which made Kyoichi seriously consider replacing or sidelining him altogether. Not because he wanted to control the Uchiha—but because having a "teammate" like this was honestly worse than having an enemy like Madara. Back in the Uchiha compound, Shisui didn’t go straight to Fugaku or Inahori. He went to see Tekka first. Why? Because Tekka was the most gullible and easiest to extract info from. After a bit of probing— He got the gist of the current situation. The Uchiha’s internal unrest clearly had the hand of another force manipulating it, just as his teacher had warned. Then he cautiously brought up Inahori. Judging from Tekka’s response, it sounded like Inahori had some doubts about Fugaku too. That gave Shisui the green light. He sought Inahori out directly. Just returned from an ANBU mission, Inahori visibly relaxed when he saw Shisui again. Before the boy could speak, he had already pulled him into his home. Then came a long, heart-to-heart. Inahori shared everything—every single detail—about the Uchiha’s recent developments, including intel obtained through ANBU. “That’s the situation in full.” “I see.” Shisui fell into deep thought. After a long moment, a frown crept across his face. “But if Elder Ki got stronger because of that mysterious backer, how did his genjutsu improve so drastically?” he asked. “Yeah, that’s the weird part. Everyone in ANBU is puzzled, but we still don’t have an answer. Worst of all, Uchiha Ki self-destructed, so we couldn’t even recover a body for intel,” Inahori said with a sigh. Shisui considered for a few more seconds before saying gravely, “Our enemy knows Konoha far too well. So well, in fact, they wouldn’t even risk leaving a corpse behind.” “Exactly. That’s what we think too. The real question is—did Uchiha Ki power up because his Sharingan evolved, or because he was coached by this shadowy figure?” Inahori looked pained. He’d discussed the issue with Yamanaka Inoichi, but neither had found a definitive answer. Right now, he needed an ally from inside the Uchiha. And Fugaku? Wasn't even in his top five. “I remember Ki’s genjutsu wasn’t even that strong to begin with. Unless he awakened the mythical Mangekyō Sharingan, there’s no way his illusions could’ve become that unbreakable.” “Exactly. Which means... the person behind this is a top-tier genjutsu user?” “Yep.” Shisui nodded. “Someone powerful enough to instruct someone like Ki. Also, you said Itachi was the target?” “Yes. And according to Elder Eight, a few more clan members disappeared after the unrest. No one knows if they fled or were taken,” Inahori replied. “Inahori-nii, can you get me the list of missing persons? If we can locate even one of them, we might find some real leads.” Shisui’s instincts were sharp. That list could be critical. Because those who vanished might’ve already joined the enemy—and tracking them down could be the key to uncovering the enemy’s hideout. “I’ll do my best,” Inahori said through clenched teeth. “Let’s split up. I’m going to find Sensei—he might know even more.” “Be careful.” Inahori didn’t stop him. Shisui was right—the priority now was tracking those people, not hesitating or worrying about what the village thought. After working in ANBU, he knew full well: If Kanda Kyoichi wanted a Sharingan, he wouldn’t need to go through all this trouble. ANBU was practically his domain now. His authority even surpassed what the Third Hokage once had, and Tsunade didn’t bother micromanaging either. If Kyoichi really wanted Sharingan eyes, all he had to do was secretly stash a body away. No one in ANBU would rat him out. There was absolutely no need for official procedures or inviting Uchiha into ANBU. That whole process? Pure theater. Which is why— Instead of relying on that hesitant clan head, Inahori would rather trust Kanda Kyoichi. --- Shisui came to Kyoichi immediately. But— Without the list, there wasn’t much Kyoichi could offer that they hadn’t already discussed. He added only a few more insights: Such as... The enemy likely wasn’t just skilled in genjutsu—they also had intimate knowledge of the Uchiha and excellent infiltration capabilities. In fact— They might have been watching the Uchiha for a long time. Which meant: If they failed this time, they might try again. Shisui left, deeply troubled. He was beginning to understand why his teacher had taken him to Amegakure. The Uchiha situation was more complicated than he thought—and Kyoichi likely had intel the clan itself didn’t. At the very least— He knew more than Fugaku. Shisui held no resentment. Because once he thought of Fugaku, he immediately understood his teacher’s good intentions. With a clan head like that... Even if Kyoichi had spoken plainly, Fugaku would’ve just accused him of meddling. Worse yet, if the enemy really was watching, making bold moves might’ve spooked them off. Especially given Fugaku’s disposition. Thinking this, Shisui sighed. “A clan leader this useless is the death of the clan.” What a shame... If only he were ten years older—he was confident he could take his place. Shisui’s initiative surprised Kyoichi a bit. Still... He was really hoping for that missing persons list. Also— Inahori siding with Shisui was another good sign. Fugaku’s blundering had clearly alienated more of his own supporters. Good! If the guy didn’t keep digging his own grave, it’d be much harder for Kyoichi to replace him. That said... There was just so much on his plate right now—keeping tabs on the Uchiha, monitoring the Land of Water, and expanding the production line— Yamato had arrived, and now they had a second Wood Release workhorse. To be specific— Yamato was even stronger than Kazamatsuri Toshiki. Toshiki’s Wood Release was more of a “grass-based” variation. Yamato, however, could manipulate actual wood, and the scale and area he could cover with his chakra were far superior. Once he’s trained up... Crop and medicinal herb production would speed up considerably, and the Military Rations Pill supply chain could finally get rolling. According to intel— The leaders who returned from Konoha were already eager to implement reforms. Sunagakure, in particular, was moving fast. Ebizō had guts. Initially, Rasa was against the reform plan. But Ebizō even brought out the semi-retired Chiyo. As the village’s two senior elders, they had the authority to supervise and submit proposals for restarting the Kazekage election. That was exactly what made Rasa wary of them. Their power and status were simply too high. Ebizō hadn’t wanted to pressure anyone—but since Rasa had tried to obstruct his reform agenda, he wasn’t afraid to be accused of abusing his position. And so— Rasa gave in. By the time Minato’s team left Amegakure, Sunagakure had already sent delegates to discuss potential cooperation with the Small Ninja Village Alliance. Even more surprising— Ebizō was willing to send a few teachers to assist with Amegakure’s ninja academy. This was exactly what Amegakure lacked. Still... Kyoichi suspected Ebizō had more than education in mind. But no matter the motives, if they wanted to grow stronger, they needed cheap, mass-produced Military Rations Pills. Of course... Someone like Chiyo would easily realize that these cheaper pills only retained about 60% of the potency of standard ones. But— If the price was low enough, it would still massively disrupt the existing market. Yamato didn’t disappoint either. His Wood Release was good not just in battle, but also in construction and agriculture. His innate talent far surpassed Kazamatsuri Toshiki. He mastered several techniques with ease. Now... Even at just five or six years old, he could already tend to a larger herb garden than Toshiki—sending the poor kid into a spiral of self-doubt and near-depression. Even so— Kyoichi wasn’t satisfied. He ordered Konoha Hospital to continue researching ways to cut costs further. Koharu Utatane had tried to curse him out multiple times. But— What could she do? For the sake of Konoha! She gritted her teeth... And worked overtime.

Chapter 220: Fugaku, the Classic Useless Teammate

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