"What exactly happened?!"
For a moment, Uchiha Itachi did not answer.
His gaze was lowered, unfocused, as if he were staring into something only he could see. When he finally spoke, his voice was hoarse, stripped of the calm composure that had always defined him.
"I lost," he said quietly. "Completely."
He recounted everything that had happened, from beginning to end. How he had been defeated by Chiba without any room to resist. How, after that defeat, he had been forced to stand by and watch,to witness, helplessly,the Uchiha clan and Konohagakure tearing each other apart in a night of blood and chaos. Brothers killing brothers. Comrades falling one after another. A massacre that spiraled far beyond anything he had foreseen.
As he spoke, his fingers trembled slightly at his side.
"I thought I understood how far things could go," Itachi continued, his tone tightening despite his effort to restrain it. "I thought… I had prepared myself for the worst." He paused, swallowing hard. "But I was wrong. Everything escaped my control."
His mind, already strained to its limit, had finally collapsed under the sheer weight of it all. In that shattered state, when Chiba turned his attention to him, resistance had become meaningless. It had taken Chiba almost no effort at all to make him surrender Uchiha Shisui's eye.
"I couldn't even protect that," Itachi murmured, the words barely above a whisper. "Nor could I protect… anyone."
The masked man's patience snapped.
"You truly are utterly useless!" he roared.
"Losing your own eyes would already be disgraceful enough, but you even lost Uchiha Shisui's Kotoamatsukami!"
Itachi did not refute him. His expression remained rigid, but the pain beneath it was unmistakable.
"Do you have any idea," Itachi said suddenly, his voice cracking for the first time, "how many variables changed tonight?" His breathing grew uneven. "Nothing unfolded the way it was supposed to. Not a single thing."
His jaw clenched. "And Sasuke…" The name slipped out before he could stop it. "I don't know where he is. I don't know what he saw. I don't even know if he's safe anymore."
Silence hung heavily between them.
"I really want to kill you right now," the masked man said coldly, "but…"
"You fought that man personally. You know his intelligence. His abilities."
"Come. As agreed, I will allow you to join the Akatsuki."
"As for how they treat you afterward, that has nothing to do with me."
Itachi said nothing more. His usual calm had abandoned him entirely, replaced by a hollow stillness and a quiet, consuming dread. The certainty he once relied on was gone, leaving only unanswered questions,and the fear that everything he had done might have been for nothing.
In the next instant, the masked man lifted his gaze toward the sky once more. Chiba,and his ice bird,were already gone without a trace.
He let out a cold snort, and with Uchiha Itachi beside him, vanished from where he stood, leaving only silence behind.
…
At that very moment, within Konohagakure, the Hokage's emergency council was in session.
The atmosphere was oppressive to the extreme, so heavy it felt as though the air itself had solidified. Every person present could sense that this meeting would leave a mark on the village that would not fade easily.
Seated at the head was Hiruzen Sarutobi, flanked by Danzō Shimura and Koharu Utatane. Nearby were the ANBU captain, Kakashi Hatake, and Root's representative, Aburame Ryūma. Naturally, the heads of the major clans had also been summoned. The Ino–Shika–Chō formation was represented by Shikaku Nara, head of the Nara clan and Konoha's chief strategist, with Chōza Akimichi and Inoichi Yamanaka seated beside him. Hiashi Hyūga of the Hyūga clan sat upright and rigid, his expression stern. Shibi Aburame of the Aburame clan was there as well, along with Tsume Inuzuka of the Inuzuka clan, and several other clan leaders whose silence spoke louder than words.
Because Hiruzen Sarutobi himself was Hokage, the Sarutobi clan had appointed its second-in-command as acting clan head,only for that man to be killed in the fighting earlier that night. The Shimura clan had suffered similarly grievous losses. And hanging over the room like a lingering shadow was the confirmed death of Homura Mitokado.
Hiruzen took a long, heavy drag from his pipe, the ember glowing faintly before he finally spoke.
"A great many things happened tonight."
His voice was calm, almost unnervingly so.
"Some of you were not directly involved," he continued, "but you should still be able to roughly guess what occurred."
"The Uchiha clan launched a rebellion, attempting to overthrow Konohagakure and place their own clan in power."
Several clan heads stiffened, their gazes sharpening, but none interrupted.
"Fortunately," Hiruzen went on, "I mobilized ANBU, Root, and the forces of the Sarutobi and Shimura clans in time, successfully suppressing them."
"Uchiha Fugaku and the majority of the Uchiha clan's combat forces have, for all intents and purposes, been wiped out."
A faint ripple passed through the room at those words.
"However," Hiruzen added, "some slipped through the net, escaping the village along with the remaining members of the Uchiha clan."
Silence descended upon the upper echelon of Konoha.
It was Shikaku Nara who finally spoke, his tone cautious and measured. "Hokage-sama, what were Konoha's losses?"
At the question, a surge of fury rose within Hiruzen. For a brief moment, his grip on the pipe tightened, but he forced himself to suppress the emotion.
"ANBU suffered fifty-six casualties. Root lost thirty-eight."
He paused, letting the numbers sink in.
"The Sarutobi and Shimura clans, along with the other ninja who joined the battle…"
"One hundred and eighty-four casualties."
"That brings the total to two hundred and seventy-eight dead."
"And every single one of them," Hiruzen said, his voice hardening, "was elite combat strength."
"Though the Uchiha rebellion has been quelled, Konohagakure itself has paid a devastating price."
No one could deny it. Any ninja who could enter ANBU or Root was, without exception, a true elite. In the present era alone, ANBU included figures such as its captain, Kakashi Hatake,a prodigious genius, son of the White Fang of Konoha, disciple of the Yondaime Hokage Namikaze Minato, and a man fated to become the Sixth Hokage. He stood as the undisputed leader of Konoha's new generation.
There was also Vice-Captain Yamato, the sole inheritor of the Shodai Hokage Senju Hashirama's Wood Release. His power, versatility, and strategic value made him irreplaceable. Another vice-captain, Uchiha Itachi, had already defected, yet even now, no one could deny the terrifying strength he possessed.
Beyond them were operatives such as Morino Ibiki, Gekkō Hayate, Uzuki Yūgao, Aburame Kenpei, and many others,each one a pillar of Konoha's hidden might. And yet, even an organization like ANBU had lost more than half its force. This was damage that might take decades to recover from, if it could ever be recovered at all.
Root had fared no better. Once merely a subdivision of ANBU, it had been expanded by Danzō Shimura into his personal power base. That night, it too had been gravely wounded. As for the Sarutobi and Shimura clans, they accounted for the majority of the casualties. Even the secret, elite forces cultivated in the shadows by Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzō Shimura, Koharu Utatane, and Homura Mitokado had lost more than half their numbers in this single battle.
This was a loss Hiruzen could scarcely bear.
Shikaku's brow furrowed deeply. "Two hundred and seventy-eight casualties, all of them elite ninja from ANBU, Root, and the Sarutobi and Shimura clans… such losses are indeed unbearable."
"And the Uchiha clan was not completely exterminated," he added after a pause.
"To think they possessed such power…"
"We truly underestimated them all along."
With Hiruzen's words, the nature of the Uchiha incident had already been defined: rebellion. In a room like this, at a moment like this, no one would speak in their defense. This was political instinct, ingrained and unforgiving.
Hiruzen let out a cold snort. "Hmph. The Uchiha clan alone, even in rebellion, could never have caused damage of this magnitude."
"Behind them," he said slowly, "there were at least three others."
"Which three?" someone asked.
"First, Uchiha Itachi," Hiruzen replied. "He was once my confidant. Yet tonight, he betrayed me as well and defected from Konohagakure."
The room fell into silence.
Uchiha Itachi… wasn't he supposed to be Hiruzen's man?
Questions churned behind many eyes, but no one dared to voice them.
Hiruzen continued, "Second, the masked man who calls himself Uchiha Madara."
Everyone present had heard the rumors. Naturally, they knew who he meant. Those who had actually fought knew the truth,that Uchiha Itachi and the so-called 'Uchiha Madara' had struck primarily at the Uchiha clan, not Konoha itself. Even so, no one contradicted the Hokage.
"And the last one," Hiruzen said, his voice growing heavier, "the most critical of them all."
"The new Mizukage of Kirigakure,Chiba!!!"
Shock rippled through the entire room.
"The Mizukage of Kirigakure? Chiba?!"
"He… he was involved in tonight's events as well?!"
The connection sounded almost absurd, and their astonishment was only natural.
Hiruzen then laid out the deductions he, Danzō Shimura, and Koharu Utatane had reached. He spoke of how three carefully planted rumors had been spread, deliberately intensifying the conflict between the Uchiha clan and Konoha, forcing the rebellion to erupt ahead of time. He explained how Chiba had guided both sides into open conflict, ensuring mutual destruction, with the unmistakable goal of draining Konoha's strength.
He did not explain how it had been accomplished. After all, to admit that Chiba had stopped Uchiha Itachi,thus allowing the battle to break out,would be to acknowledge that Itachi had originally stood on Konoha's side.
Finally came the most unsettling revelation of all: the surviving members of the Uchiha clan had all been relocated and taken away by Chiba himself, the Mizukage of Kirigakure.
When Hiruzen finished, the room was left in stunned silence.
Shikaku Nara broke it, his voice filled with disbelief. "To accomplish all of this, one would need an intimate understanding of the entire village of Konoha. Not only that, but also complete knowledge of Uchiha Shisui, Uchiha Itachi, and even the masked man calling himself Uchiha Madara."
"And beyond that," he continued, "the mind to plan it all, combined with unparalleled strength and audacity…"
"Is someone like that truly possible?"
Hiruzen snorted. "And yet, he did it."
Shikaku fell silent. After a long moment, he let out a heavy sigh. "Then he may well be the most terrifying enemy Konohagakure has ever faced."
"He clearly knew that a clash with Konoha was inevitable, which is why he chose to strike first."
"We took in the Sand ninja who invaded Kirigakure, and now he has taken in the Uchiha who rebelled against us."
"It seems he has already resolved to become our enemy."
Hiruzen nodded slowly.
"That is the situation as it stands. Now, the most important question is…"
"How do we deal with it?"
"First, Uchiha Itachi and the man calling himself Uchiha Madara are both potential threats to Konohagakure and must be eliminated."
"Second, the surviving members of the Uchiha clan will inevitably seek revenge and wage war against Konoha again. They too must be dealt with."
"Third, Kirigakure and that Mizukage, Chiba, have clearly decided to oppose Konoha at any cost. Naturally, we must find a way to resolve that as well!"
As Hiruzen spoke, the clan heads exchanged uneasy glances. This time, there was no convenient scapegoat to shoulder the blame alone. In the past, the narrative that Uchiha Itachi had single-handedly committed the massacre might have been sold to the village,and to the clans. But now, with the truth laid bare before them, that illusion could no longer be maintained.
Hiashi Hyūga's expression darkened noticeably.
The Hyūga clan had only recently sacrificed one of their own for the sake of the village, giving up blood and dignity in the name of "peace." And now, they were being asked to accept that an entire clan had been annihilated under the Hokage's watch,labeled as rebels and erased almost overnight.
Horror flickered behind his eyes.
If the Uchiha could be destroyed so completely… then what about the others?
What about the Hyūga?
Koharu Utatane finally sighed, breaking the silence. "Hiruzen, what you say is correct. But with Konoha so gravely weakened, I fear we may not be capable of accomplishing any of this."
"And more importantly," she added heavily, "after this incident, the other great ninja villages will surely watch Konoha like hawks,perhaps even launching a war of invasion at any moment."
The room fell silent once more.
This, indeed, was an even more terrifying threat.
Since the end of the Third Shinobi World War, Konohagakure had scarcely enjoyed any true period of peaceful development. Not only had it suffered repeated localized conflicts with Iwagakure and Kumogakure, but it had also endured the Kyuubi' attack,an event that wiped out more than half the village's population and claimed the lives of Namikaze Minato and Uzumaki Kushina.
And now, the shadow of another catastrophe loomed over Konoha.
On top of everything else, the Uchiha clan's rebellion that unfolded during the night was the final weight that crushed an already exhausted Konohagakure, pushing the village deeper into despair. Like frost layered upon snow, disaster piled upon disaster, leaving no room to recover or even to breathe.
There was no longer any room for doubt,this was the darkest hour Konoha had faced since the day it was founded.
As for the true reason behind this steady collapse…
No one dared to speak it aloud. Yet in the silence between glances and the heaviness in their chests, the same thought lingered in everyone's heart, whispered again and again like an unspoken curse.
All of this was likely the result of Hiruzen Sarutobi,and the so-called elders of Konoha who stood beside him.
Of the two great clans that had once laid the cornerstone of the village, the Senju clan had already faded into near oblivion, its name surviving more in legend than in blood. And now, after this night soaked in blood and fire, the Uchiha clan had been reduced to little more than a hollow remnant, existing in name alone.
Konoha's strongest pillars, the legendary Sannin who once embodied the village's might, were also gone. Orochimaru had defected long ago, abandoning the village without hesitation. Tsunade, disillusioned and broken by loss, had turned her back on the shinobi world altogether. Jiraiya, too, had left Konoha behind, choosing to wander the world alone, untethered by allegiance.
Even Hatake Sakumo,the White Fang of Konoha, a man once revered and feared on the same level as the Sannin,had been driven into a corner so merciless that death became his only escape.
Under the leadership of Hiruzen Sarutobi, Konohagakure was no longer merely weakened. Step by step, it was sliding toward the very bottom of decline, with no clear path back to the light.
…
After lengthy deliberation within the Hokage council, where Konoha's so-called upper echelon debated behind closed doors, Hiruzen Sarutobi finally delivered his verdict.
To the outside world, an official statement was issued: the Uchiha clan's rebellion had been the result of long-suppressed resentment and internal contradictions toward Konoha, tensions that had finally exploded after being deliberately incited by Kirigakure's newly appointed Mizukage,Chiba.
Under the unified command of Hiruzen Sarutobi and Konoha's leadership, the rebellion had already been quelled.
However, it was also acknowledged that a small number of survivors had slipped through the net, having been led out of the village by Chiba himself.
Orders were issued immediately. ANBU and Root were to enter a period of recuperation, along with the Sarutobi and Shimura clans, restoring their strength by any means necessary. Internally, efforts were made to appease the major clans and calm the unrest among the ninja ranks, stabilizing a populace shaken to its core. Externally, Konoha moved to solidify its alliance with Sunagakure, binding the two great villages together through shared,advancing and retreating as one, for better or worse.
At the same time, Kirigakure was publicly condemned for inciting internal turmoil and interfering in Konoha's internal affairs.
Naturally, these condemnations were little more than hollow rhetoric.
More troubling still, Hiruzen Sarutobi could sense it keenly,war loomed on the horizon, ready to erupt at any moment. Konohagakure stood at the edge of a life-or-death crisis unlike anything it had faced before. With no other choice, ANBU operatives were dispatched across the lands, tasked with locating the wandering Jiraiya and Tsunade.
Only by bringing these two legendary Sannin back could Konoha hope to reclaim even a fraction of its former strength.
In the present era, they were the village's true trump cards.
…
At the same time.
High above the sea, Chiba's ice bird soared through the sky, its crystalline wings reflecting the pale light as it cut toward the horizon. Before long, the vast ocean came into view.
Waiting there were ships from Kirigakure, already dispatched to receive them.
With a thought, Chiba guided the ice bird downward. One by one, he and the surviving members of the Uchiha clan stepped onto the decks of the ships, leaving behind the land where their clan had nearly been erased.
The one who had come personally to receive Chiba was none other than Terumī Mei.
At the sight of the Uchiha clansmen, surprise flashed across her face,but it lasted only a moment. Almost immediately, she pieced together the truth of what had transpired. What followed was not suspicion, but deep admiration for the methods of Kirigakure's new Mizukage.
By now, Konoha's official announcement had begun to spread throughout the entire shinobi world.
Every village was shaken by Chiba's actions.
And soon after that shock came something deeper,respect, and even awe, for this newly appointed Mizukage.
With his own strength alone, he had not only severely weakened a formidable enemy like Konohagakure, but had also rescued the surviving Uchiha clansmen, transforming them into a new source of power for Kirigakure.
Such means were nothing short of astonishing,like commanding clouds with a single gesture, or overturning the heavens with a turn of the hand.
Terumī Mei could not help but feel sympathy for the Uchiha survivors. Throughout the journey, she showed them constant care and consideration, ensuring that none of them were neglected.
At last, the fleet reached the port of the Land of Water.
Following Chiba, the once-lost and bewildered Uchiha clansmen finally stepped onto the soil of Kirigakure, a land that would determine their future.
Only then did Uchiha Yashiro finally exhale, the tension he had carried for so long loosening at last. Gratitude welled up in his chest as he looked at the man who had saved their clan from annihilation.
"Mizukage-sama," he said solemnly, lowering his head, "from this day onward, the Uchiha clan will follow your commands without hesitation."
Chiba's lips curved into a faint, calm smile. "As long as you remain loyal," he replied evenly, "from today onward, Kirigakure will be your new home."
Hearing those words, the hearts of the Uchiha clansmen,tightened by fear and uncertainty for far too long,finally relaxed, even if only a little.
Uchiha Mikoto then stepped forward, leading the still-silent Uchiha Sasuke by the hand. Without the slightest hesitation, she knelt before Chiba.
"Sasuke," she said softly, yet with unmistakable resolve, "your life, mine, and the lives of everyone standing here were all saved by Lord Chiba."
"You must remember this for the rest of your life."
Uchiha Sasuke slowly raised his head, confusion and grief mingling in his eyes as he looked toward Chiba.
After a long moment, he nodded.
Chiba reached out, gently resting his hand atop the boy's head, and offered him a calm, reassuring smile.
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