Chapter 229 — Uchiha Yota
Uchiha Mikoto nodded softly.
"Yes. It was a long time ago. I was only fifteen then, and I came here with my squad to carry out a mission."
"Fifteen?"
Sasuke blinked. "That's only three years older than Itachi-aniki!"
"Huh? So… fifteen minus three…" Naruto muttered, counting on his fingers. "Itachi-aniki is only twelve?!"
He stared at Itachi with wide eyes, completely shaken.
He'd always thought Itachi was in his twenties. Twelve felt impossible.
Itachi chuckled and gently ruffled Naruto's hair.
Even though Naruto's fish soup yesterday had caused him a small disaster, Itachi didn't care.
Naruto wasn't his real brother, but he treated him more sincerely than many blood relatives.
Naruto messed up sometimes—but Itachi still drank whatever Naruto served him.
Because valuing one's younger brother mattered more.
"I really thought you were in your twenties!" Naruto admitted honestly.
Itachi laughed again.
Sasuke pressed a hand to his forehead.
"You idiot. Didn't I tell you Itachi-aniki's age before?"
"Huh? You did?" Naruto asked, completely lost.
Sasuke gave up immediately. Wasting time explaining was beneath him.
"What are we doing next?" Sasuke asked, excitement returning.
Their destination lay in the Land of Hot Water—meaning they'd need to travel by boat.
"Are we going to find a ship now?" Sasuke asked.
"No rush," Fugaku said, shaking his head. "We'll eat first. Then we'll find a boat."
---
One hour later.
After their meal, Fugaku led the group to the docks to search for transport toward the Land of Hot Water.
---
Konoha Village — Uchiha District
Inside a modest civilian home, a consciousness from another era suddenly opened its eyes.
"Where… is this?"
The young man sat upright on the bed, dazed and unfocused.
Then pain exploded in his skull.
Grabbing his head, he screamed, rolled across the mattress, and finally collapsed unconscious.
A cup of tea's time later, he woke again—this time with clarity.
His confusion vanished, replaced by bubbling excitement.
"I actually transmigrated into the Naruto world! Amazing! And I'm even an Uchiha! I can see Itachi in real life!"
He grinned to himself—until a chilling thought hit him.
"Wait… it's already the end of Konoha Year 56? That means the Uchiha massacre is about to happen! I want to meet Itachi, sure, but I don't want to die right after meeting him!"
He rolled on the bed like a panicked worm.
At that moment, the door burst open.
An older woman rushed in. When she saw him awake, her eyes widened, and joy burst across her face.
"Yota! You're finally awake!"
She threw herself forward and hugged him tightly.
Uchiha Yota stiffened.
He wanted to push her away… but stopped himself.
He had taken over the body of her son. Letting her hug him was the least he could do.
From the original owner's memories, he quickly pieced things together.
This body's owner—Uchiha Yota—had graduated from the Academy last year.
He had been seriously injured during a Chūnin promotion mission, struck on the head, and had remained unconscious… until the transmigrator took over.
Poor guy. Rest easy. From today on, I am Uchiha Yota—and I'll make your name known across the ninja world.
The older woman sobbed with relief beside his ear.
Yota wasn't used to this—at all—but communication was easy; thankfully, everyone here spoke his native language.
"Kaa-san…" Yota croaked.
His voice was hoarse from nearly a year of disuse, but his mother had cared for him well enough that his body was still functional.
"Yes, I'm here," she said, wiping her tears.
When she finally released him, Yota subtly sighed in relief.
He hesitated, then asked:
"Kaa-san… where's the clan leader?"
She blinked in confusion.
"Yota, why are you asking about the clan leader first thing after waking up?"
Yota waved impatiently.
"Don't ask why. Just tell me."
He knew the timeline clearly: the Uchiha massacre would occur at the end of Year 56.
Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Obito would strike together.
And no matter how much he admired Itachi, he wasn't about to die for fanboy reasons.
His only hope now lay with Uchiha Fugaku, the Uchiha clan leader.
From the manga, he knew Fugaku possessed a Mangekyō Sharingan he kept secret—revealed only to Itachi right before his death.
If Yota could warn Fugaku ahead of time, the clan might be saved.
Even if Fugaku was known for being cautious and politically restrained, no man would calmly wait to die if he knew exactly when the blade would fall.
If that failed… he had a backup plan: defecting to Hiruzen Sarutobi.
But that carried risks.
The Third Hokage could easily order the Yamanaka clan to read his memories.
If that happened, Yota would lose all leverage.
So that option was strictly last resort.
His mother finally answered:
"The clan leader should be at the Hokage Building right now."
"The Hokage Building?" Yota muttered. "Great. Just great."
He could imagine it already—Fugaku being summoned by Hiruzen for another round of "gentle persuasion," political pressure, and psychological manipulation.
Hiruzen wanted to calm the Uchiha down… while secretly preparing to deal with them.
The old schemer was soothing Fugaku on the surface while sharpening the knife behind the scenes.
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