After arguing with Fugaku, Itachi walked alone to a cliff near the Naka River.
The river rushed violently below, crashing against the rocks.
Just like his thoughts.
Messy. Loud. Nowhere to go.
Looking down at the water, Itachi felt completely exhausted.
The quarrel just now made one thing painfully clear—
In the past six months, he had failed.
He couldn't change the clan.
He couldn't change the village.
He couldn't change his father.
He couldn't stop the coup.
Even with the supreme power of the Mangekyō Sharingan… he still couldn't change reality.
For a so-called genius, that was pretty ironic.
He sighed softly.
This place…
He used to come here with Shisui.
Back then, they shared the same goal. They worked together, trying to balance the clan and the village, desperately preventing the conflict from escalating.
But Shisui was dead.
Dead for half a year.
And now the "bridge" between the two sides was just him.
One person.
Trying to hold back two mountains.
As a double agent, he was pressured by both the higher-ups and the clan every single day.
Honestly, it was amazing he hadn't gone insane yet.
When he was alone, he had even thought about killing himself.
Just ending it.
Quick. Simple. Done.
But he gave up on that idea.
Shisui had already proven something with his life—
One or two deaths wouldn't solve anything.
This wasn't a tragedy between individuals.
It was a clash between two interest groups.
Unless one side was completely crushed, the conflict would never end.
If he died now, it would only pour oil on the fire.
The clan would explode even faster.
So whether Fugaku questioned him or not… he already had to choose.
Village.
Or family.
But the day he awakened the Mangekyō—
He had already made that choice.
He couldn't abandon the entire village just to support one clan's rebellion.
That path would destroy both sides.
So…
He could only abandon the Uchiha.
The only person he truly cared about—
Was Sasuke.
"…Sorry," he muttered to the night.
Just then—
Space twisted.
A vortex slowly formed.
Obito stepped out.
After watching Itachi quietly for a while, he spoke lazily,
"Still worrying about the Uchiha? Your vision is too narrow."
"Why care about such trivial things? Leave Konoha with me. We'll change the entire ninja world. End war. Create a new order."
His voice was smooth. Tempting.
Almost convincing.
If you ignored the fact that he was a walking disaster who caused half the world's problems.
Itachi didn't react.
He didn't trust this masked man at all.
This was the guy who killed his comrades, triggered the Nine-Tails incident, and sneaked around the village like a ghost.
Taking him away?
Yeah right. As if it were that simple.
There was definitely another agenda.
Still…
With his Mangekyō, he could keep Obito in check.
And to stop the clan…
He might actually need this madman's help.
After weighing the pros and cons, Itachi finally spoke.
"I can join your organization."
"But first, you must help me with something."
"And you must promise not to attack Konoha."
Obito tilted his head, curious.
"Oh? What do you want me to do?"
Itachi's voice was flat.
Cold.
"Help me break the shackles of the clan."
"…And help me destroy the entire Uchiha clan."
Even Obito paused.
Then his eyes narrowed.
Interesting.
He had unleashed the Nine-Tails just to weaken Konoha.
And now this kid wanted to wipe out his own clan?
That was some next-level family drama.
After a moment, Obito smiled.
"Alright. Deal. When do we start?"
Under the moonlight, Itachi's shadow looked almost monstrous.
"I'll choose the right time. I'll contact you."
Obito chuckled.
This was going to be fun.
At the same time—
Inside a hidden room within the Uchiha compound.
Shisui had been busy.
After weeks of secret work, he had gathered dozens of people.
Mostly chūnin and jōnin.
Not everyone actually wanted the coup.
Many were scared.
If the rebellion failed, their families would be wiped out.
So they secretly sent their wives and children to Shisui.
"Take them away."
"At least leave some bloodline alive."
Even if the clan died… they wanted a spark to remain.
Shisui couldn't persuade them to give up the coup.
But he never refused anyone who wanted to protect their families.
Let the ambitious idiots die if they wanted.
He would at least save the women, children, and elders.
The biggest problem was—
How the hell were they supposed to leave Konoha?
This wasn't some tourist village.
It was a military fortress.
Even civilians needed Hokage approval to leave.
And the Uchiha?
Yeah, the higher-ups would watch them like hawks.
Sneaking out during the coup was their only chance.
Invisible. Quiet.
No one noticing.
After endless discussion, they came up with one option—
Reverse summoning.
Using the ninja cat clan.
Problem:
Not everyone had contracts.
And reverse summoning used the summons' chakra, not theirs.
The ninja cats weren't exactly a giant army either.
So only a small number could escape this way.
Shisui decided—
Kids under twelve first.
Everyone else… take their chances the hard way.
Thankfully, most agreed.
Later, a few clan members approached him.
After hesitating, one said,
"You're not Lihuo… are you?"
Shisui's eyes narrowed slightly.
They quickly waved their hands.
"Don't misunderstand! We're not attacking you."
"We just found the real Lihuo unconscious… so we guessed."
"We don't care who you are. We just want to know… why you're helping us."
Shisui loosened his grip on his sword and shrugged.
"Who I am doesn't matter."
"I've already given everything to both the clan and the village."
"I'm just… tired."
They exchanged looks.
They had a guess.
But didn't dare say it out loud.
Very few people had given everything to both sides.
And all of them were supposed to be dead.
…Right?
After they left, Shisui let out a long breath.
He hadn't expected so many people to oppose the coup.
Turns out…
The loudest radicals didn't represent everyone.
Maybe he had been too arrogant before.
Then he thought of Itachi.
A small smile appeared.
His best friend must be trying to save the Uchiha too.
If Itachi knew this plan, he'd definitely be happy.
After all—
They were the kind of friends who didn't even need to talk to understand each other.
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