Chapter 65: Parental Beatdown
"Father,"
Uchiha Itachi called out.
After finally regaining his composure, he took a deep breath. His gaze firmed.
"There's really no need for the Uchiha clan to continue existing."
"What did you just say?"
Uchiha Fugaku, who had been about to leave, stopped in his tracks. He turned sharply, his voice cold.
"Itachi, you're not only my son—you're a member of the Uchiha clan! I won't allow you to speak such treasonous nonsense ever again!"
"...No."
Itachi looked conflicted, guilt flickering across his face. But in the next moment, he pulled out a kunai and declared resolutely:
"If you don't want to leave Konoha, then you have to die here, Father. It's either the village or the clan."
"Haah..."
Fugaku's eyes narrowed slightly as he sighed deeply. His voice turned heavy.
"Itachi, you're still my son."
"I'm not just your son. I'm also a ninja of Konoha!" Itachi shouted. "I've been burdened with too much... far too much. Can't you see that?"
His eyes reflected a deep pain.
But as he thought of the Will of Fire, of the irreconcilable rift between the Uchiha clan and Konoha, and especially of his younger brother Sasuke...
Itachi steeled himself, voice rising with finality:
"The Uchiha clan must be destroyed. As my parents, you should understand—there's no future for both the clan and the village to exist together!"
WHOOM!
In an instant, his Sharingan evolved. Crimson light burst in his eyes as the pattern of the Mangekyō Sharingan took shape.
Clearly, Itachi had snapped. He had lost control. In his frenzy, he prepared to strike down Uchiha Fugaku and Mikoto... and bring ruin to his clan.
"Itachi... I've truly failed as a father," Fugaku muttered, his gaze sharpening.
Then, to Itachi's horror, Fugaku's own eyes also transformed into the Mangekyō Sharingan.
He looked his son in the eye and said coldly,
"Sasuke still has a future. If your mother and I spoil you, should we let him fall into darkness too?"
"Father... how could you say that?"
SMACK!
Itachi's mind reeled. His expression blanked. For a brief moment, he was that little boy again—remembering the days his father had looked at him with pride.
"Itachi, you are my pride. My son..."
But now, Fugaku's words cut deeper than any kunai. Had he given up on him? Chosen Sasuke instead? Was he truly willing to rebel against Konoha?
How could everything turn out like this...?
Itachi's eyes widened in anguish.
"Why won't anyone understand me? I'm doing the right thing! So why... why does it feel like the whole world is against me?"
His voice turned to a growl:
"Then die!!"
"So be it..."
Fugaku took out a kunai as well.
"I'll show you the power of a real father."
The battle between father and son was moments from erupting.
In the original timeline, the extermination plan had been delayed by two years. Itachi had grown stronger, and Fugaku had given up resistance. The result: the entire Uchiha clan had been destroyed in one night.
But this time...
Itachi had only just awakened the Mangekyō. Fugaku's will was unbroken.
"Itachi, you've truly disappointed me..."
Suddenly—
Before either of them could strike, a shadow flashed.
Uchiha Mikoto, carrying young Sasuke in her arms, appeared between the two.
Her Sharingan spun into its three-tomoe form.
SLAP!
The sound rang out loud and clear.
Mikoto had struck Itachi clean across the face. The sheer force sent him stumbling back several steps.
There was no doubt—Uchiha Mikoto wasn't holding back.
Though she rarely revealed her strength after marrying into the clan, Mikoto was still a true elite jonin. Backed by her Sharingan, her palm strike stunned even Itachi.
He stared blankly.
He couldn't believe it.
His gentle, doting mother—had slapped him.
"Mikoto... let me try too."
Fugaku stepped forward, took a stance, and—
SLAP!
The other cheek was met with equal force.
"You ungrateful brat! You dare betray your clan, your family, your own blood?"
SLAP!
Mikoto delivered another.
SLAP!
Fugaku followed up.
SLAP-SLAP-SLAP!
Within seconds, Itachi's face had swollen. He stood there dumbfounded, red cheeks glowing under the moonlight.
"...My brother is getting beaten," whispered little Sasuke, peeking from Mikoto's arms. "Should I still pretend to be asleep?"
He shut his eyes tight again.
Better to play dead. Definitely safer.
Of course, young Sasuke didn't know the deeper reason his parents were so angry.
To him, Itachi had simply done something wrong—and was being disciplined.
But to Fugaku and Mikoto...
It was a betrayal worse than any other.
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