"Itachi… did Shisui Uchiha really die back then?"
Itachi Uchiha froze for a second.
But the very next moment—
With his intelligence, how could he not understand what Minato Namikaze was implying?
"Minato-sama suspects that the masked man is Shisui?"
"It's not an unfounded suspicion," Minato replied.
"First, he has sufficient motive to hate Konoha."
"Number one. He worked tirelessly to protect peace in Konoha and the ninja world, only to be betrayed by Danzō Shimura."
"Number two. Konoha forced you to personally wipe out the Uchiha clan. Otherwise, the ANBU would have been dispatched, leaving the Uchiha with no reputation or dignity at all."
Madara Uchiha once said that the deeper an Uchiha's love runs, the more insane they become once that love is lost.
"Second," Minato continued, "the masked man only ever uses a single Sharingan. According to your memories, Shisui gave one of his eyes to you. As for whether the other truly ended up in Danzō Shimura's hands, I'll need to find an opportunity to verify that."
"Third, Shisui's build is similar to the masked man's, and both were still in a growth phase."
"And lastly, he specifically demanded that you remain by his side."
Minato laid out his reasoning point by point.
Itachi listened quietly, without any sign of offense.
Only after Minato finished did he respond calmly, "Then why didn't you suspect Obito-senpai?"
"I did suspect him," Minato answered immediately.
"Although I can't clearly determine Obito's motive for hating Konoha, the latter two points—using only one Sharingan and still being in a growth phase—do fit the masked man's characteristics."
Indeed, Obito was the other Uchiha Minato had considered.
But compared to Shisui, whether subjectively or objectively, Minato was far more inclined to believe that the masked man was connected to Shisui.
There was still one detail he couldn't explain, though. Why would the masked man throw away the flowers placed at Rin Nohara's grave? He couldn't think of any reason for Shisui to hold a grudge against Kakashi Hatake. Could it really be related to Obito's Sharingan?
"Did Shisui have any resentment toward Rin, Kakashi, or Obito?" Minato asked.
The question made Itachi pause for a moment, but he answered at once, "I've never heard of such a thing."
"And furthermore," Itachi added, "Shisui's body was recovered from the Naka River back then and was buried by the clan. If Minato-sama doubts this, you're free to investigate it yourself."
At that point, Minato had little left to say.
Itachi took the initiative and countered, "On the other hand, I've heard that Obito-senpai's body was never recovered during the Third Shinobi World War, along with his other Sharingan."
"..." Minato fell silent for a long time. "I'll discuss this matter further with Kakashi."
He needed to ask Kakashi about the details from back then, even though those same questions had likely been asked again and again by the Uchiha clan at the time.
At the same time, he needed to give Kakashi a warning in advance, just in case…
If Obito's body really had been used by someone, Kakashi would need to be prepared.
And not just Kakashi. The thirteen-year-old Obito Uchiha currently living in this house would also have to face that reality.
"Minato-sama, should Kisame and I really continue staying here?" Itachi Uchiha voiced the concern that troubled him most. "Tobi is unpredictable. Back then, his promise to me was that as long as I remained in Akatsuki, he wouldn't attack Konoha. I'm worried that…"
Minato Namikaze shook his head.
In this regard, he was very different from the Third Hokage, who had often chosen compromise in pursuit of stability and development.
Minato might look gentle and easygoing, but Konoha, his comrades, and his family were his absolute bottom line. In his eyes, there was no such thing as sacrificing one person, or even part of the people, in exchange for the comfort of a larger group.
Even if this parallel world's Minato Namikaze had chosen to sacrifice his son's childhood happiness, that decision was built on absolute trust. He trusted Naruto. He trusted that Naruto could deal with the masked man and save the future of the ninja world.
"I'll wait for him to come," Minato said.
The "him" he was referring to was naturally the masked man. The one known openly within Akatsuki as Tobi. The fake Fourth Mizukage who controlled Yagura Karatachi, as recorded in the intelligence scrolls.
"Or rather," Minato continued, "I want to meet this world's 'masked man' as early as possible."
"If his goal is to use the tailed beasts to dominate the world, then sooner or later he will make a move against Naruto, Gaara, and the other Jinchūriki," he said to Itachi. "If we wait until he's gathered the remaining tailed beasts and thrown the entire ninja world into chaos, it'll already be too late."
Itachi fell silent.
"Do you remember?" Minato asked. "That piece of intelligence we obtained when we stood in the era of Konoha's founding and met Madara-sama, Hashirama-sama, and Tobirama-sama. Black Zetsu tampered with the stone tablet in the Uchiha Shrine."
Itachi nodded. "Of course I remember."
Minato said, "Whether the masked man, Tobi, is truly the reincarnation of Madara Uchiha, or whether he's Shisui, Obito, or some other Uchiha youth who slipped through the cracks… once they realize they were deceived, manipulated into plunging the ninja world into chaos, then by that point, death may be the only ending left for them."
"..."
Itachi lowered his head slightly. Outwardly, he showed no reaction, but inside, waves were already rising.
He had always believed his thinking to be exceptionally clear. Even when it came to Shisui…
As time passed and he grew older, if Shisui were still alive, he might already have surpassed him.
That kind of arrogance was a flaw deeply ingrained in Uchiha who had awakened their eyes, something almost impossible to discard. Yet now, listening to the analysis and reasoning of the Fourth Hokage in his youth, Itachi suddenly realized that far above him stood someone who saw things far more clearly and thoroughly than he ever had.
This realization struck Itachi Uchiha hard.
Knowing that Naruto was the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki, he suddenly understood that in this parallel world, the deceased Fourth Hokage may have entrusted everything to his son out of trust. The power of the tailed beast, and the responsibility of resolving the masked man, had all been placed on Naruto's shoulders.
By contrast, the path he himself had laid out for Sasuke…
Seemed to be nothing but control and arrangement.
In the end, he too had failed to escape that deep-rooted Uchiha arrogance. That tendency to push away comrades and bear everything alone.
The thin, black-haired Uchiha youth remained kneeling on the tatami. Slowly, he bowed his head and bent his back, until the loose strands of hair at his forehead were only a finger's width away from the mat in front of his knees.
"Everything will be done according to your wishes."
"..."
Obito's SSS-rank mission was to kill the masked man.
Minato from the Kannabi Bridge Timeline, guided by the mission scroll, traveled back to the night of the Nine-Tails' Rampage. He witnessed Kushina's death during childbirth, the newborn Naruto's life placed in mortal danger, and Konoha being ravaged by the Nine-Tails.
It wasn't that he didn't hate the masked man. In fact, more than anyone else, he wanted him to suffer the consequences of his actions.
And yet, before uncovering the full truth, he was still willing to leave one door open for Naruto's SSS-rank mission.
An SSS-rank mission.
To save the masked man.
…
When Minato Namikaze and Itachi Uchiha dispelled the sealing barrier and stepped out of the room, several pairs of curious little ears immediately perked up.
Sasuke in particular. By all rights, it was already deep into the night. If he stayed here now, there was no way he could go back, which meant he would almost certainly have to find a room in the Hatake estate for the night, maybe squeezing in with Naruto and Minato.
On the table, aside from the glutinous rice dumplings left for Itachi, lay the Mangekyō Sharingan Naruto had obtained after completing an S-rank mission during the first stage of the Chūnin Exams.
Its pale, almost lifeless color, much like the Hyūga clan's Byakugan, made it clear that this eye was already useless.
"This is…"
Itachi looked at the eyeball with visible surprise.
"Shisui!"
"That's right. This is Shisui Uchiha's eye." Sasuke stared straight at Itachi. "Answer me, Itachi. About the clan massacre… did Shisui Uchiha use his Mangekyō Sharingan to alter your will?!"
"..."
This was the first time Itachi had directly confronted Sasuke's way of thinking.
It could only be described as a complete defeat.
"No," Itachi said calmly. "Why would you think that?"
"This Mangekyō Sharingan can change anyone's will!" Sasuke shot back. "It even made someone like Gaara go eat ramen with Naruto! Are you really saying you were never controlled by an eye like this?!"
"I said no," Itachi replied flatly. "Where did you get this eye?"
Sasuke didn't answer. Itachi's response clearly didn't satisfy him, and he immediately sulked.
Itachi fell silent as well, his dark eyes fixed on Sasuke, silently demanding an answer about where the eye had come from.
Sasuke stiffened his neck, stubbornly refusing to explain.
Seeing the two brothers at odds again, Naruto stepped in to explain for Sasuke.
"I got it when I completed that S-rank mission," Naruto said. "The one that asked me to pass today's exam together with at least seventy other candidates, dattebayo."
"What time exactly did you complete the mission?" Itachi Uchiha asked.
Naruto scratched his head. He honestly couldn't remember.
"Exactly 3:50," Sasuke's cool voice answered for him.
Minato turned his head slightly. "What's wrong, Itachi?"
Itachi was silent for two or three seconds before speaking. "I received my scroll at roughly the same time."
"Your scroll?"
Everyone gathered there froze.
Kisame, Zabuza, and Haku weren't present, and neither Itachi nor Minato had intended to hide this. Minato Namikaze explained, "Itachi also received a mission scroll, the same kind Naruto and Obito did."
"!!!!"
Sasuke sprang to his feet.
"Let me see it!!"
"..."
The tension between the brothers flared up again.
Sasuke's Sharingan spun into view, while Itachi's eyes remained sealed, unable to use his own.
Yet the pressure he gave off seemed to say clearly: you think having the Sharingan is enough to deal with me?
Sasuke was furious.
Minato hurried to smooth things over. "Itachi has two missions. One is an SSS-rank mission, just as difficult as Naruto's and Obito's, and it also targets the masked man. The other is a D-rank mission, with only gold coins as a reward."
Naruto blinked in surprise. "A D-rank mission? Is it another one where you read Icha Icha Paradise out loud?"
"..."
Itachi's expressionless face was actually filled with disgust. He had no idea what Icha Icha Paradise was, but it certainly sounded like the name of a book.
"It's that book Kakashi-sensei reads, dattebayo!" Naruto enthusiastically explained. "It's full of stories about curvy, busty, perky big sisters, the kind the Third Grandpa likes, dattebayo!!"
Both the teenage Kakashi and the adult Kakashi blushed so hard they practically wanted to crawl under the table.
"Naruto, Itachi was once my subordinate. Can you at least leave your sensei a little dignity?" Adult Kakashi said. Even through his mask, he could feel the heat rushing to his face.
Sasuke first complained about Kakashi reading that kind of book, then hesitated before awkwardly warning Itachi not to throw away his dignity just for a million in rewards.
Adult Kakashi: Losing my dignity like that would really let you down, huh.
Young Kakashi: It's all that idiot Obito's fault! All that idiot Obito's fault!! All that idiot Obito's fault!!!!
Itachi clearly had no interest in discussing his D-rank mission any further, nor did he intend to show his scroll to Sasuke.
Minato smoothly changed the subject. "In the coming period, not only for the Chunin Exams but also to prepare for the future confrontation with the Masked Man, each of you needs to strengthen your abilities."
Prepare...
...
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