In the Uchiha clan's dimly lit clan leader's mansion, two figures sat opposite each other.
There was only a weak candlelight from a candlestick, which reflected the shadows of the two people on the wall.
The shadows continued to sway and twist with the candlelight, and just like that, there was an atmosphere of oppressive silence in the room.
"As expected of my son, you have a bright future if you can join the Anbu..."
Uchiha Fugaku interrupted the dull atmosphere.
Although they were words of relief, there was no trace of joy in his tone.
"But you have to remember my words."
He stared at Itachi who was bowing his head in silence in front of him, and warned with a serious expression: "You are not only the Itachi of the ANBU, but also the Itachi of the Uchiha clan!"
And Uchiha Itachi also slowly raised his head and responded expressionlessly: "...Yes."
Looking at his son, Fugaku felt a little more comforted and a little less depressed.
During this time, he was really tired.
Recently, clan meetings within the Uchiha clan have become more and more frequent.
The radical faction is becoming more and more powerful, and more and more Uchiha people support them.
Although he, the clan leader, is more conservative, after all, the Uchiha clan is not his one word.
Some highly qualified elders also supported the radicals behind the scenes, which made him, the patriarch caught in the middle, miserable.
"However, since the Third Master asked Itachi to join the ANBU like Shisui, he probably had the intention of easing the relationship."
With Shisui and Itachi maintaining the relationship between the village and Uchiha, at least it won't be completely broken.
No matter what happens, if the day of rebellion really comes, Shisui and Itachi can become their sources of information.
However, Fugaku did not notice the flash of disappointment in his son's eyes.
"Father, can your eyes only see the Uchiha clan?"
In a daze, he seemed to see the scene when he was first brought to the battlefield by his father.
Konoha ninja, Iwagakure ninja, Kumogakure ninja...
Countless kunai shurikens made a piercing roar, and the ninjas roared towards the enemy with their weapons in hand.
There is only hatred, anger, and fear in their eyes, and even their own hearts are filled with hatred.
When they kill an enemy, they are killed by another enemy, over and over again, ad infinitum.
On this battlefield, fresh life is disappearing all the time.
Haze swept across the entire sky, cold rain continued to drip from the sky, and the tangy smell of blood made people nauseous. The entire land was dyed dark red with blood.
That war was witnessed by Itachi who was only four years old.
He just stood there blankly, watching his father kill all the invading enemies.
The father's face no longer had the gentleness and smile of the past, only endless hatred and hatred.
Stab! !
The enemy's blood spattered onto Itachi's young, dull face.
His bright black eyes reflected everything that was extremely cruel in front of him, and his young mind was deeply shocked by this scene.
"This is, the Ninja World War..."
That war lasted until the sun rose.
There was no winner, only countless corpses were left in the end.
While Itachi was walking among the corpses, a severely injured and wailing Iwagakure caught his attention.
"Uh-huh!!"
Under Fugaku's expressionless gaze, Itachi didn't care about his Iwagakure identity.
Instead, he raised his head and fed him his own water.
"Thank you, thank you..."
The Iwagakure ninja slowly opened his eyes, only to see the ninja tool on his waist.
He came back to his senses in an instant, and took advantage of Itachi's turning head to stab his vital part with the kunai in his hand.
He didn't care at all that he had just saved his life.
Stab! !
The gift of powerful reflexes made Uchiha Itachi instinctively stretch out the kunai in his hand.
With just one knife, the Iwagakure ninja's throat was slit.
"Father, why..."
Looking at the ninja who fell to the ground with his head up, Itachi's tone was full of confusion and fear: "Why does this ninja want to kill me? Obviously, I didn't do anything..."
Fugaku slowly came to his side and said with a cold expression: "Because this is war."
"It's not a fight between people, but a fight between countries, so there will be meaningless fights between strangers."
War?...
"War, is that it?"
Uchiha Itachi lowered his head, looked at the corpse with a distorted face, and slowly clenched his fists.
A strong feeling of disgust surged into his heart, making him feel so suffocated that he almost fainted.
Their deaths and their will are just for their own villages and their families behind them...
Such a battle, without distinction between justice and evil, is simply meaningless.
"This is the world of ninjas!"
Fugaku didn't pay attention to his expression and continued: "Listen, Itachi."
"Don't forget what's before you."
His father's cold and heartless words hit Itachi's heart hard.
He couldn't understand.
What is the meaning of war?
Are human struggles absolutely inevitable?
"war……"
Is this the world he lives in?
A world like hell...
Itachi's body was trembling, and he could only desperately suppress the fear in his heart.
But the corpses all over the place, as well as the twisted and desperate faces, kept popping up in his mind.
No! !
Fighting is the wrong way to solve problems.
anyway……
This world needs to change!
Knock knock~
"Fugaku, Itachi, it's time to eat."
A sudden knock on the door interrupted Itachi's thoughts, bringing him back to his senses from the shadow of his childhood.
"Wait a minute, we're coming."
Fugaku responded, glancing at his son who lowered his head and said nothing, but didn't pay attention.
He opened his mouth and reminded: "Sasuke will also be entering school in a while. His talent is not as good as yours. As an older brother, you should teach him more in your spare time."
Itachi's eyes flashed with joy when he heard his father mention Sasuke.
"……good."
No matter what, he didn't want Sasuke to live in a world full of fighting.
No matter what the cost.
…………
After eating, Uchiha Fugaku left his residence and came to the captain's office of the police force.
Although most of the functions of the police force have been taken over by the Anbu, there are still things large and small that need to be handled by him every day.
After processing most of the files, it was almost evening.
Bang! !
Just when Fugaku stood up and wanted to leave.
"Oh no, Captain!!"
A conservative member of the Uchiha clan pushed open the door directly and came in with an extremely anxious and panicked look on his face, and reported: "Some clan members have had a conflict with the Sarutobi clan, and now they are fighting!"
"What?!"
Uchiha Fugaku's heart tugged violently and he quickly asked: "For what reason??"
"The members of the Sarutobi clan were talking about our previous violent law enforcement, but Yashiro's people heard it, and the two groups had a quarrel, and eventually they fought."
"These idiots!"
Uchiha Fugaku cursed secretly.
