Itachi's decisive answer clearly caught Fugaku Uchiha and Elder Taka by surprise.
They exchanged looks, communicating silently through their eyes. Then, Uchiha Taka spoke to Itachi with profound earnestness. "Itachi, I am glad for your father's sake that you have such resolve. I hope you never forget the glory of the Uchiha Clan."
Itachi could certainly hear the faint hint of a warning in the elder's tone. Despite this, his expression remained respectful and sincere. "Rest assured, Elder. I will do my best to steal intelligence from the village high-ranking officials regarding the clan and stand firmly by the family's side."
"Mm."
Uchiha Taka had no reason to doubt Itachi's words.
After all, Itachi joining the Anbu was originally directed by the Uchiha leadership. They wanted him to use his status to monitor the Leaf officials and act as a whistle-blower for the clan.
Conversely, Itachi's mission from the village officials was to monitor the Uchiha Clan. Consequently, he lived as a double agent existing between the light and the dark.
One could say his heart was being tortured every single moment.
After leaving the shrine, Itachi walked alone along the lonely night roads. The moonlight stretched his shadow into infinity.
Unknowingly, he arrived at the banks of the Naka River. This was the place where he and Shisui often met.
Shisui, what should I do?
Staring at the river's surface reflecting the moon, Itachi whispered a lost inquiry.
Although he had verbally promised his father and the elder that he would stand with the clan, in reality, Itachi's heart had not truly made a decision.
Whether it was the clan or the village, neither was something that could be easily discarded.
Fugaku Uchiha's words echoed in Itachi's mind once more.
Are two pairs of Mangekyo really enough to help the clan complete a coup?
While the Uchiha were indeed the Leaf's number one ninja clan, there were so many other clans in the Leaf. Each possessed great power and a variety of talents.
Furthermore, there was the Anbu, the Root, and the Sannin who might return to the village at any time. Although only two Sannin remained now, they were still a force that could not be ignored.
Even if they were currently away, if the village truly decided to act against the Uchiha, would those two masters really stand against the village?
After all, the Third Hokage was their teacher.
Even if the Uchiha possessed two pairs of Mangekyo Sharingan belonging to him and his father, it would be difficult to restore peace to the village in a short time.
Even if the coup succeeded and they killed the Third Hokage, could the Uchiha truly govern the village given their current reputation?
At that time, the village would be severely weakened by internal strife. What if other hidden villages took the opportunity to start the Fourth Shinobi World War? Would a Leaf Village that just settled an internal rebellion truly have the energy to face a world war?
The Hidden Cloud Village had been aggressively developing its armaments over the years, and their control over Tailed Beasts was becoming increasingly mature. As early as the Third Shinobi World War, Killer Bee was already a Perfect Jinchuriki who could fully control a Tailed Beast.
In recent years, the Two-Tails Jinchuriki has also risen to fame. Presumably, it won't be long before they have another Perfect Jinchuriki. Combined with the Raikage's terrifying strength, their military power alone is already equal to the Leaf.
The Tsuchikage of the Hidden Stone Village remains vigorous despite his age, and his Particle Style possesses staggering destructive power.
Although there is little news from the Hidden Mist, they have been recuperating for many years, and their strength should not be underestimated.
As for the Hidden Sand Village, which is currently engaged in small-scale warfare with the Leaf in the Land of Rivers, there is even less need to mention them. Various new secret techniques are emerging constantly, and the pressure on the Leaf is rising rapidly.
Once a problem occurs in the Leaf, the Hidden Sand would definitely not hesitate to tear a piece of flesh from it.
Under these circumstances of internal trouble and external threats, Itachi truly did not believe the Uchiha coup could achieve any positive results.
If that's the case...
After this analysis, Itachi's eyes gradually grew firm.
That same night, he appeared at the Hokage building in his capacity as an Anbu ninja.
Hiruzen Sarutobi as the Hokage, Danzo Shimura as the leader of Root, the two village advisors, and Shikaku Nara as the Jonin Commander—the Leaf high-ranking officials—were all gathered together.
"Itachi, is there some important intelligence that required calling us all together so late?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked seriously.
By now, the situation between the village and the Uchiha had reached a point of extreme tension. It wouldn't be strange for a conflict to break out and escalate into a coup at any moment.
Precisely at such a critical time, every piece of information passed by Itachi Uchiha as an insider was extremely vital.
Itachi didn't beat around the bush and spoke quickly. "There is a mysterious organization called [Akatsuki] that has been spying on the Leaf and wants to recruit me."
"That person can use a very powerful space-time Ninjutsu. He can move freely through every corner of the Leaf and is immune to all attacks."
"Akatsuki?"
Clearly, no one expected that the first piece of intelligence Itachi reported wasn't about the Uchiha Clan, but a mysterious organization they weren't familiar with.
However, Danzo had a reaction to the name.
During the Third Shinobi World War, he had teamed up with Hanzo of the Salamander from the Land of Rain to eliminate an organization named [Akatsuki].
They were a group of naive fools who believed their kindness could change the world and bring peace.
Ultimately, they paid a painful price for their naivety.
But the members of that organization were almost completely wiped out in that ambush, and no one capable of using space-time Ninjutsu was discovered...
Could it be a shared name?
Unlike Danzo's confusion, Shikaku Nara, as the Jonin Commander, raised a very important question.
"Are you saying this Akatsuki member can use his space-time Ninjutsu to penetrate the Leaf's sensory barrier and move freely within the village without being detected?"
This was the point Shikaku valued most.
The Leaf's sensory barrier enveloped the entire village. Any unidentified foreign chakra appearing in the Leaf should be discovered immediately.
But according to Itachi, the opponent likely had a way to bypass this barrier.
Itachi nodded and confirmed, "If he hadn't wanted to invite me to join the organization, I probably wouldn't have been able to perceive his presence at all."
"With such a powerful ability, what exactly is he doing sneaking into the Leaf? And what is his purpose for inviting you?"
Shikaku pinched his chin, his brow furrowed.
Although the opponent hadn't done anything to harm the Leaf yet, this feeling of being out of control was extremely uncomfortable.
Naturally, this matter also caught Danzo's attention.
After all, the Root he commanded was responsible for intelligence work. If someone had infiltrated the interior without being noticed, it was clearly a failure on Danzo's part.
"Does this intruder have any defining characteristics?" Danzo took the initiative to ask.
Itachi frowned slightly, recalling. "He wore a black cloak with red clouds and a swirl mask on his face."
"A swirl-shaped mask?"
Danzo suddenly remembered something.
"If I remember correctly, that mask is a symbol of the Jashin Religion members."
"The Jashin Religion..."
Everyone's expressions changed slightly.
There was no helping it, as the incidents caused by the Jashin Religion in the Hidden Sand Village were simply too massive.
They stole their only Tailed Beast and caused the Hidden Sand's reputation in the international market to collapse several times.
If they hadn't researched various secret techniques later and used small-scale battles with the Leaf in the Land of Rivers to boost morale, they would likely still be languishing today.
Facing such a terrifying force that could raid the Hidden Sand, even the Leaf did not dare to be careless.
Shikaku Nara guessed solemnly, "Could it be that after stealing the One-Tail from the Hidden Sand, the Jashin Religion has set its sights on the Leaf?"
Feeling the atmosphere in the meeting room was becoming too heavy, Danzo snorted coldly. "It's just the Jashin Religion. Rest assured, I will have the Root ninjas pay close attention and drag all the rats hiding in the Leaf out into the light."
Hiruzen Sarutobi glanced at Danzo. "Then I will leave this matter to you."
With Danzo's guarantee, the matter of the Jashin Religion was temporarily set aside.
This was because there was a more important matter before them now.
"Itachi, you should have other intelligence, right?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi asked, getting straight to the point. If it were only about the Jashin Religion, Itachi could have reported to him privately; there was no need to summon all the high-ranking officials.
The only thing that could make Itachi cause such a stir was that one specific matter.
Itachi did not disappoint them. Meeting everyone's gaze, he revealed a piece of explosive intelligence.
"That's right. I have another piece of vital information, and that is..."
"Fugaku Uchiha, the leader of the Uchiha Clan, has decided to launch a coup! The timing is unknown."
Itachi's expression was calm, as if the Fugaku Uchiha he just mentioned wasn't his own father.
As soon as these words were spoken, the meeting room fell into a dead silence.
Hiruzen Sarutobi puffed on his pipe, Danzo Shimura's face was dark, and the two advisors remained silent, seemingly waiting for Hiruzen to take a stand.
Shikaku Nara, hailed as the brain of the Leaf and the smartest person present, looked grave.
Since Fugaku Uchiha had decided to launch the coup, there was essentially no room left for negotiation. What he needed to think about now was how to minimize the losses to the village caused by this Uchiha coup.
The key to this battle lay in the calm youth standing before them.
A pair of Mangekyo could decide many things.
Thinking of this, Shikaku naturally turned his gaze toward the Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi.
The latter clearly read Shikaku's gaze and spoke. "Itachi, what are your thoughts?"
Itachi answered without any hesitation, "I fully follow the orders of the Hokage."
Faced with such a blunt answer, Hiruzen Sarutobi was the one who fell silent first.
According to the high-ranking officials' contingency plans, that specific plan was simply too painful and heavy for Itachi.
Seeing Hiruzen hesitate to speak, Danzo Shimura, his face clouded with shadows, finally opened his mouth. His voice was raspy. "Since none of you want to be the villain, let this old man do it."
He leaned on his cane, stood up, and looked at Itachi with eyes full of snake-like coldness.
Facing this bone-chilling gaze, Itachi remained calm and looked back at him without fear.
If Itachi had to choose the person he hated most among the village high-ranking officials, it was undoubtedly this elder known as the "Darkness of the Shinobi"—Danzo Shimura.
His actions were shadowy and unscrupulous. As long as the Leaf could obtain victory, there was no lower limit to what he would do.
Itachi accepted a certain degree of darkness, but he absolutely could not accept this bottomless darkness.
As he thought this, Danzo began to speak.
"Itachi, I know you are very strong, but against the entire village, the Uchiha Clan has no chance of victory. If a coup is truly launched, it will be nothing more than a mantis trying to stop a carriage."
"I will give you two choices now."
"One, choose to stand with the Uchiha, launch the coup with the clan, and become an enemy of the village. Ultimately, you will be destroyed by the village, the long-standing glory of the Uchiha will vanish, and you will be nailed to the village's pillar of shame."
Danzo's remaining cold eye was like an abyss, and his voice sounded like the whisper of a demon.
"Or, before the Uchiha launch the coup, you take action yourself to massacre the Uchiha, stopping the coup. Then, you will leave the village as a rogue ninja."
"In this way, the glory of the Uchiha Clan can be preserved. Furthermore, we will allow your younger brother, Sasuke Uchiha, to stay and inherit the Uchiha legacy."
"Consider it carefully yourself."
Danzo's voice stopped, and all sound in the meeting room ceased with it.
The only thing that could be heard was Itachi Uchiha's heavy breathing.
His eyes were fixed on the floor.
Should he stand with his clan and risk total annihilation in a desperate struggle, or should he personally stop the coup and trade the lives of the entire clan for his brother's chance to live?
This was a choice—a choice that was destined to be bloody no matter which path he took.
"Think it over. I hope you can give us an answer as soon as possible."
After saying this, Danzo took the initiative to get up and leave.
The two advisors followed Danzo out of the room after taking one deep look at Itachi.
Finally, only Hiruzen Sarutobi remained. He walked up to the trembling Itachi, patted his shoulder heavily, and said with profound meaning, "Itachi, I believe in you. You will definitely not fail the Will of Fire."
Then, the Third also disappeared.
Only Itachi Uchiha was left alone in this empty room, being swallowed bit by bit by the darkness.
What kind of decision will you make, genius of the Uchiha?
In Root, Simu opened his eyes from his bed, a playful glint in his gaze.
Itachi Uchiha's choice was vital to his next plan.
If Itachi stood firmly with his clan, then regardless of whether the coup succeeded, it would cause maximum damage to the Leaf.
If Itachi truly chose to slaughter his own kin, then that would be...
Truly filial.