The pattern of the Mangekyō Sharingan is unique, and there can never be two identical ones. Sougen was no exception.
Using Danzo's pupils as a mirror, Sougen saw the windmill-like six-petal pattern in his eyes, similar to Shisui's four-petal blade design, but with two extra petals. The blades were also slimmer, with a greater curve.
"Aren't these eyes beautiful?" Sougen smiled, clearly pleased.
However, to Danzo, that smile was more repulsive than a demon's, and the six-petal blade-shaped Sharingan in Sougen's eyes stirred deeply buried memories. Uchiha... has this evil power reappeared?
He opened his mouth to shout, but it was already too late. The moment he witnessed Sougen's dramatically transformed eyes, he was drawn into the change.
"Welcome to my world."
The voice abruptly rang in Danzo's ears, snapping him out of his thoughts. Looking around, he realized he was no longer in the wrecked hallway of the Hokage building but in a serene courtyard garden, complete with stone lanterns, ponds, small mountains, and bamboo groves.
He looked up at the boundless blue sky, which seemed so vast it could swallow him whole.
Danzo, now fully aware, looked down at his unharmed body. He felt insulted, as if belittled. Sure, the Uchiha clan's genjutsu is impressive, but did they have to humiliate him ? Did Sougen really think he couldn't break free from this bizarre illusion?
After several failed attempts, Danzo had to admit he couldn't break free from this seemingly harmless genjutsu. He began to inspect the courtyard, pondering the type of illusion. It didn't appear to be an offensive one, so it seemed to be designed to trap. Something like the "Fox Heart Technique"? No, that wasn't right. The Fox Heart Technique tricks the target into wandering a labyrinth, draining their stamina.
In this case, though, he couldn't even feel control over his own body. Was it more like the "Mist Servant Technique" or the "Space Displacement Technique"? None of them seemed quite right...
"Danzo, assistant to the Hokage, don't you think this courtyard is missing something?"
The voice came again, interrupting his train of thought. In the blink of an eye, Sougen appeared just a few steps ahead, sitting on a fallen bluestone slab on the grass, smirking at him.
Sougen sat leisurely, a relaxed air about him.
He pointed to the courtyard. "There's a mountain, water, bamboo, grass, a stone lantern, and even a small shrine—but no beautiful trees in bloom. So, how about you help me by adding a lovely cherry blossom tree here?"
"What are you planning, Uchiha Sougen?"
Danzo stood at full alert, watching Sougen approach cautiously. Yet, oddly enough, Sougen seemed to grow taller, as if Danzo were kneeling at his feet, looking up at him.
"Still haven't realized? Too slow, Danzo. You, a master of sealing techniques, haven't noticed anything strange about your situation?"
Sougen looked down at Danzo, who was now half-buried in the ground, with an ever-widening grin of delight. Sougen wasn't a sadist who took pleasure in others' suffering—he was just genuinely amused to see Danzo struggling.
On the battlefield, Sougen always made sure his enemies were truly dead to spare them any lingering agony. He was even kind enough to offer a full cremation service!
Like waking from a dream, Danzo finally noticed he was buried waist-deep in the earth.
But honestly, he wasn't panicking—not at all. He knew this was Sougen's genjutsu world, where anything could happen. It would be odd if Sougen didn't pull some tricks.
"Is this all you've got, Uchiha Sougen?"
Danzo looked up at Sougen with disdain.
"This is just the beginning, Danzo."
Sougen smiled, pointing at Danzo. "Look, it's already sprouting!"
A tender green sprout burst through the skin of Danzo's left shoulder, growing rapidly before his eyes.
Though Danzo had endured a crushed leg without a sound, he now screamed in pain as roots burrowed into his body, wriggling like snakes. Outside, thick roots coiled around him, binding him tighter and tighter.
Before long, a towering cherry blossom tree stood tall in the courtyard, its branches covered with thousands of pink buds.
"Uchiha Sougen!! What... what have you done?"
That was a good question.
Sougen looked down at Danzo, who was now shriveled like a mummy, ensnared by the tree's dense roots. Sougen's eyes sparkled with satisfaction.
"Let me tell you something. When every blossom on this tree blooms, it will mark the moment of your death. All of your spiritual energy will be drained and turned into fuel to make me stronger." Nᴇw novel chapters are publɪshed on novel⦿fire.net
Danzo began to struggle violently.
But even before this, he had been unable to break free, and now, tangled in the tree's roots, all his efforts were in vain. This was Sougen's Mangekyō Sharingan technique—unless someone with equal or greater ocular or spiritual power appeared, there was no escape from the illusion called *Kono-hana-sakuya*.
*Kono-hana-sakuya*—the power Sougen awakened with the Mangekyō. It wasn't just a genjutsu technique but more akin to a yin-release ability. As Sougen had explained, this technique caused a cherry tree to grow from the target's body, gradually absorbing their spiritual energy as it bloomed. This had surpassed ordinary genjutsu, reaching the realm of reality-bending illusions.
Yin-release ocular power.
Sougen bent down, his face close to Danzo's, smiling as he said:
"Don't worry—I'm not going to kill you just yet. After all, you're the Hokage's assistant. I can brawl with you under some pretext, but without solid evidence of your disgrace, killing you would cause me too much trouble... Of course, I won't let you live to trouble me either."
"I'll leave a few buds on the tree for you. You'll linger on for another month or two, long enough to die of old age. By then... your death won't be directly tied to me at all."
Sougen snapped his fingers, and all the buds on the tree began to bloom, except for a small cluster in the corner that remained untouched.