Itachi's expression became composed. "What do you want to ask?"
"You killed Shisui Uchiha, didn't you?"
"No."
Itachi frowned, wondering what Tōshirō was going to say. Many clan members had questioned him about this.
Tōshirō smiled. "Just kidding, don't be mad."
"..."
Tōshirō's smile disappeared. "The one who killed Shisui was actually Danzo, right?"
Itachi's eyes could no longer remain calm.
He knows. He actually knows.
"Hehe..." Tōshirō enjoyed the change in Itachi's expression. He deliberately drew out the suspense, his eyes filled with a smile. "Aren't you very curious about how I know?"
Itachi was silent, which was an admission that Danzo had killed Shisui.
"It's simple. Of course, someone told me in person."
"Who?"
"Uchiha Shimotsuki," Tōshirō said, drawing out the syllables. "Oh, wait. That's not what I should call him. His real name is Uma, or perhaps Gyu. He was a Root spy planted in the Uchiha clan."
Itachi's eyes widened in shock.
He wouldn't have been surprised if he himself had been exposed.
But Shimotsuki shouldn't have been exposed. After all, Shimotsuki was too insignificant.
Tōshirō lowered his eyes and said calmly, "Sometimes, a perfect disguise is a weakness, you know?"
"..."
"The Sharingan is a good thing. It can interrogate and even erase memories."
Three tomoe appeared in Tōshirō's eyes, and he smiled. "And I was quite lucky. I just did a random check, and guess what I found?"
Itachi: "..."
"It was a Root spy."
Itachi: "..."
"So, I had to use the Sharingan to interrogate him properly."
"..."
"And then, I found out some very interesting things."
From the start of the conversation, Itachi had not said a word. His mind was in turmoil. Tōshirō had interrogated Uma or Gyu with his Sharingan, which meant the order...
As if he could read Itachi's mind, Tōshirō's expression turned cold. "That's right. Besides the fact that Danzo killed Shisui, I also know about the order the elders gave you the night before the coup."
As expected...
Itachi slowly closed his eyes, like a criminal waiting for his sentence to be passed.
"Itachi Uchiha?!"
Tōshirō suddenly questioned him in a loud voice.
The smile on his face was gone, replaced by a cold, murderous look. The three tomoe quickly spun and connected into the snowflake pattern of the Mangekyo Sharingan.
"I'm asking you, are you a… complete idiot? Did you have brain surgery and move your brain to your butt?"
The fact that Tōshirō swore showed how angry he was.
Itachi's tone was low, like a criminal who had admitted his guilt in court due to irrefutable evidence. "Does Father know about this?"
His father was one of Tōshirō's direct subordinates. Tōshirō might have already told him about this, or even had him present during the interrogation of Uma and Gyu. Itachi was only asking to be sure.
Tōshirō retorted coldly, "I'm the one asking questions, not you."
Itachi was silent for a moment, looking very tired. "This was... for the greater good."
"The greater good? What greater good?" Tōshirō sneered sarcastically. "The greater good is for you to kill your clan members, your friends, your lover, your parents, and your ignorant little brother?"
"I..."
Itachi was left speechless. His whole body felt deflated. After a few seconds, he replied weakly, "...I didn't want to kill Sasuke."
Tōshirō raised an eyebrow. "You didn't?"
Itachi's expression became pained. "The Uchiha had no chance of winning against the village. I made a deal with Danzo. If I did this, the village would spare the ignorant Sasuke. Then one day, I would let Sasuke kill me, become a hero of the village, and restore the Uchiha's glory."
Tōshirō laughed out loud as if he had heard the best joke ever. He crossed his arms. "Hahaha... what a hidden motive. Itachi Uchiha, you really move me."
The laughter was harsh to Itachi's ears. It was Tōshirō mocking him.
"If you want to kill me, then kill me."
Tōshirō stopped laughing and scoffed sarcastically. "Unlike a certain person with his brain in his butt, I don't go around killing my own people."
Itachi: "..."
"And don't give me that nonsense about the greater good. If you really were for the greater good, you should have killed the entire clan."
"After all, that would be safer."
"You work in the Anbu. Don't you understand the principle of pulling up the roots?"
"If you really had the intention of killing the whole clan, maybe I would have seen you as a serious person."
"But in reality, you didn't plan to. You wanted to leave Sasuke behind."
"You say it's for the Uchiha, but it's actually for your own selfish reasons."
"Why did you leave only Sasuke and no other clan members?"
"The reason that Sasuke should carry on the Uchiha bloodline doesn't even hold water. Being a ninja is a dangerous profession, and there's often sacrifice during missions. If Sasuke were to lose his life during a mission, wouldn't the Uchiha clan be extinct?"
Tōshirō pointed his finger at Itachi's nose and scolded him. "And have you ever considered Sasuke's feelings?"
"How will he live after losing everything? And even if he finally gets his revenge in the end, it would just be a carefully constructed lie. What's even more pathetic is that he'll continue to be a tool for the village, an assassin who serves the murderers of his entire clan. Is that the glory you were hoping for?"
With every sarcastic word, another hole appeared in Itachi's heart. Only then did he realize what kind of person he was.
Itachi's eyes looked as if he hadn't slept in days. They felt incredibly heavy, and he couldn't help but close them. The air he inhaled felt as heavy as a lead block. "You're right..."
Tōshirō had knocked Itachi down enough. He changed the subject, not wanting to cause him to have a mental breakdown. "Although I've never met Shisui, from the information I have, he should have also awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan, right?"
"How do you know?"
Itachi's wide eyes showed shock. Tōshirō even knew that Shisui had the Mangekyo Sharingan.
Uma and Gyu should have only known that Danzo killed Shisui, not that Shisui had the Mangekyo Sharingan.
Tōshirō chuckled. A mysterious smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. "I told you, I'm also a Mangekyo Sharingan user. I know what this eye brings to the user."
"Once awakened, the Mangekyo Sharingan not only brings a unique ocular jutsu but also improves certain basic stats. And these abilities actually follow a certain pattern, you know?"
Itachi was surprised. "A pattern?"
"That's right. The Mangekyo Sharingan can be roughly divided into two types based on their outline: the straight tomoe and the curved tomoe. It roughly means straight lines and curved lines."
"The straight tomoe improves perception, allowing the body to react better. The curved tomoe improves chakra flow control, which specifically enhances genjutsu."
"Although this classification might not be completely accurate, it's a good reference point."
Tōshirō further explained, "Although I haven't seen the patterns of your Mangekyo Sharingan, based on the information I have, both of you are very good at genjutsu. So, let me guess, the pattern of your Mangekyo Sharingan should be the curved tomoe, right?"
Itachi's eyes widened, and he took a deep breath. Tōshirō was completely right. He was so surprised that this man knew so much about the Mangekyo Sharingan!
Tōshirō saw the surprised look and knew he had guessed correctly. This was normal, since he could see all the facts. It would have been weird if he didn't guess it.
Tōshirō continued, "The reason why you two have such high proficiency in genjutsu and reached a level that many ninjas can't reach in their lifetime at such a young age is partly because you are indeed gifted, but mostly because of the benefits this eye brings."
"A ninja's strength has a clear growth curve. Between the ages of 13 and 17, their strength will experience an explosive growth because during this time, the human body matures quickly. After that, as the body's growth slows down, their strength growth will also enter a slow period. Unless there are special circumstances, a ninja's peak strength won't be much more than what it was at 17."
"In other words, it's not normal for you two to have such power when you're just starting to approach your peak. People who don't know the reason will attribute it to your talents, which is not wrong. But as an expert, I can make a good guess with a little bit of deduction."
Tōshirō's words explained how he was able to deduce that they had the Mangekyo Sharingan.
Because he knew the answer beforehand, Tōshirō was just reverse-engineering it. But to an outsider, it seemed incredibly profound.
Itachi looked at Tōshirō with both wariness and admiration.
From a young age, everyone around him had called him a genius. But after listening to Tōshirō's analysis, his so-called talent was nothing compared to Tōshirō's.
The things Tōshirō had just said were basically consistent with what happened, except for some minor details.
What kind of intelligence does it take to investigate all the problems and their causes in just a few days after returning to the village?
No wonder his father, who had been the clan head for so long, was so convinced. He didn't even hesitate to give up the position of clan head.
Tōshirō put away his sharp aura and said sadly, "Since you have the Mangekyo Sharingan, you should be able to somewhat understand how I felt when I awakened it."
Itachi pondered for a moment and thought of a person. "Did... Lady Tsunade die in front of you?"
Tōshirō's crimson eyes were filled with a strong killing intent. "That's right... That guy Danzo killed her."
Itachi looked shocked. "How could that be..."
Tōshirō scoffed. "Why not? There's nothing that guy wouldn't do."
With that, he sighed. "I'll tell you everything now."
Itachi listened quietly.
Tōshirō told Itachi about his experiences.
Itachi was very surprised by what he heard. If the situation was true, he could somewhat understand why Tōshirō wanted to get into a conflict with the village and even disbanded the Leaf Village police force after returning to the village. The pain of having a cherished person killed was the same for everyone.
However...
Tōshirō knew what Itachi was thinking. "Are you going to say that if I hadn't had such a strong desire for revenge, things wouldn't have escalated to this point?"
Hearing him say that, Itachi was quite direct. "Although you might not be happy to hear it, based on the outcome, it seems that's the case."
"Wrong?"
Tōshirō smiled coldly. "I'm not the one who's wrong. This world is."
(End of Chapter)
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