The Uchiha Clan Leader's residence.
The bedroom.
"Come in. There are no traps!"
Uchiha Fugaku and his wife, Uchiha Mikoto, knelt on the floor with indifferent expressions, their actions responding to the tragic wails echoing from the clan's grounds.
The bedroom door was pushed open.
Uchiha Itachi, covered in the blood of his clansmen, stepped inside. He wore the Konoha forehead protector and was clad in the grey armor of the Anbu, holding a sharp ninja blade in his hand.
Fugaku sensed his son's hesitation and lowered his head, sighing in resignation, "I see... You've sided with them."
"Father, Mother... I..."
Itachi's eyes were red, and he dared not look at his parents' backs directly.
"We understand, Itachi," Mikoto said coldly.
"Itachi, promise me one thing: take care of Sasuke," Fugaku calmly requested.
"I know..." Itachi's eyes, marked by the Sharingan's three tomoe, brimmed with tears. His hands trembled uncontrollably as he gripped his sword.
"Don't be afraid. This was your decision, right? Compared to you, our pain will only last a moment," Fugaku said firmly. "Even if our views differ, we're still proud of you."
Itachi's sword, smooth as a mirror, was poised between his parents, reflecting their cold expressions on either side.
At last, Fugaku spoke quietly, "You're such a kind child."
Itachi's heart pounded violently as he clenched his teeth, tears flowing uncontrollably, dripping onto his trembling hands gripping the sword.
For the peace of Konoha! For the clan's ambitions! With no way out! For the promise to his friends!
For a world where there is no more war!
All of it...
It all turned into chains of black lines binding his heart.
Uchiha Itachi, suffocating under the pressure, pointed his sword toward the black chain closest to his heart, the one called "family."
It seemed that if he cut it, he might finally find peace.
He didn't ponder for long.
"I... understand."
With a heart already prepared to fall into hell, Itachi swung his sharp ninja blade down mercilessly.
*Splat—*
Blood splattered onto the wooden floor like a brush dipped in red, casually streaking across a canvas.
Fugaku collapsed to the ground.
At that moment, Mikoto's body trembled slightly, her pupils glowing red as the Mangekyo pattern of the Mangekyō Sharingan spun in her eyes.
Just as Itachi raised his blade for another strike, a kunai slid out from Mikoto's sleeve. She gripped its handle tightly, turning sharply and using it to block Itachi's sword head-on.
*Clang—*
The kunai collided with the sword, emitting a metallic ring and scattering sparks.
Itachi furrowed his brow, stunned, and lifted his head to look at his mother with his Sharingan, exclaiming in shock:
"Mangekyō!"
Mikoto's mouth hung open, her expression blank and confused, as if her body was no longer under her control.
At that moment, it was as if her body had a will of its own, telling her that it didn't want to die here.
Without hesitation, Mikoto's body pulled back, crashing through the bedroom window.
*Crash—*
The window shattered as Mikoto fled into the darkness without looking back, vanishing from sight.
"..."
Itachi looked at his dead father lying on the ground, then at his mother's retreating figure, his emotions swinging wildly, leaving him disoriented.
What just happened??
Regarded by Hiruzen Sarutobi as having the mind of a Hokage, Itachi quickly composed himself after a moment of thought.
"Was it because of Sasuke?
Father is already dead.
Mother awakened the Mangekyō?
But still...
Even if she survives, it won't change the situation now."
Itachi left the clan leader's residence and returned to the streets, glancing around. There was no one in sight.
"If both Father and Mother had the Mangekyō, the one who would have died would be me."
Itachi continued deeper into the clan's grounds, pausing briefly to glance toward the Uchiha Police Force headquarters, where the sounds of battle had already ceased.
He estimated he had about fifteen minutes left.
...
...
On the outskirts of the Uchiha district, the forest was pitch black and eerie. The sounds of light footsteps and rustling branches mixed together, echoing continuously.
Several teams, each consisting of three people, gradually arrived.
They wore masks with blue-green patterns and gray-white harnessed armor, with tattoos on their left arms and ninja swords strapped to their backs. These were Danzo's trusted followers, forming an independent organization under the name of the Anbu Training Department.
At this moment, members of the Root organization either stood or crouched on the branches.
Each exuded a dark aura, like beasts long dwelling in the shadows.
Thud—
A dull sound of a cane striking the ground came from behind. The Root members beneath the trees turned their heads, then quickly lowered them, stepping aside to clear the path.
A frail but steady figure emerged from the shadows, step by step.
He walked through his subordinates and reached the front.
The dappled moonlight illuminated his old face, covered in wrinkles and crisscrossed scars.
Shimura Danzo leaned on his cane with his left hand, a white bandage wrapped around his head covering his right eye, while his right hand, wrapped in a black robe, was placed in front of his chest.
He raised his head and stared into the depths of the forest.
His cloudy left eye narrowed slightly.
His shadow swallowed the moonlight behind him, as if wherever he stood, no light could ever reach.
"Shimura Danzo!!"
On the tree branches, Uchiha Naruki and the others mingled among the Root members. When they saw who had arrived, their pupils contracted, and their breath stopped.
Did Kuroki bring them here to cause trouble for Danzo? Was this a suicide mission?
This action felt like a heavy hammer pounding on their hearts, jolting the Uchiha out of their sorrow.
This was an absolutely impossible task.
The opponent was the Hokage's advisor!!
Even if the few remaining Uchiha, including Kuroki with his Mangekyo Sharingan, teamed up, it would still be impossible to take down Danzo, who was protected by more than a hundred Root members.
Kuroki had controlled nine of them, but there were still hundreds more Root members nearby. Could he control them all? This was the common thought running through the minds of the Uchiha.
This was an absolutely imposible mission!
Swish—
Two Root members, who had just returned from the depths of the forest, half-knelt before Danzo, heads lowered, and respectfully said:
"Lord Danzo, the battle at the Uchiha compound will soon end."
Danzo kept his head raised, his left eye drooping as he glanced at his close subordinates, his voice low, "Go. Make haste and collect the eyes."
"Yes... Lord Danzo!"
Suddenly, the Root member on the right raised his head, and beneath his mask, his eyes emitted a red glow. The three blade-like shapes of the Mangekyo Sharingan silently spun in his right eye, taunting, "I wonder if you mean collecting these kinds of eyes?"
He slowly stood up and removed his mask.
Kuroki's face appeared.
The red glow of his Mangekyo Sharingan contained the energy of the Yin Release, which, through eye contact, instantly pierced Danzo's wide-open left eye, but was met with resistance from the familiar power of the Three Tomoe Sharingan.
It only took a moment.
The overwhelming force of the Mangekyo crushed the weak flow of the Three Tomoe like a landslide engulfing a small stream.
On the trees, countless Root members, upon hearing the commotion, lowered their heads. Their eyes met the red glow, and they were instantly frozen in place, as if turned to stone.
The Uchiha were stunned.
Kuroki had really done it. In just a moment, he had controlled everyone present.
This showed just how overwhelmingly powerful Kuroki's Mangekyo really was!!
"What's happening?"
"Lord Danzo!"
"Enemy attack!!"
The Root members couldn't speak; they stood frozen, panicked in their minds, but their bodies wouldn't respond.
"How can there be an Uchiha here?" Danzo stood there, dumbfounded, trying to break free, but his thoughts suddenly stalled. "My body won't move."
Kuroki had caught him off guard.
How could Danzo have anticipated that while he was treating the entire Uchiha clan as his prey, one of the Uchiha had treated him as prey?
In an instant.
The Root member on the left suddenly lunged at Danzo, his mask falling off in midair, revealing the baby face of Tamahiro.
"You old bastard, take this!!"
Thud—
He pressed up against Danzo, stabbing his ninja sword straight into Danzo's heart with a clean and decisive move.
Though synchronized and controlled by Kuroki, Tamahiro was elated because he had finally struck down the old man he had always wanted to kill!
At the same time.
Kuroki reached out his hand, clawing toward Danzo's bandaged right eye. His fingers, like the talons of an eagle, accurately ripped through the bandages, accompanied by a spray of blood, and he plucked out a Sharingan.
It was none other than the Kotoamatsukami Mangekyo!
The nearby Uchiha, hidden in the trees, stared at the red and white eye, their minds racing, their anger ignited.
They now understood many things.
Shisui's death was related to Danzo!
Blood bloomed like flowers in both Danzo's right eye socket and his left chest, staining his bandages and clothes red.
(End of Chapter)