Uchiha Naoki was only two years old.
A prodigy like Kakashi had graduated from the Ninja Academy and become a genin at the age of five. The Uchiha Clan's talent was no worse than Kakashi's.
Which meant...
By the time Naoki turned five, he'd probably be a genin too.
Hmm...
When you looked at it that way...
A jōnin challenging a genin sounded much better than a jōnin beating up a toddler.
Sure, both were examples of the strong bullying the weak.
But a jōnin challenging a genin could at least be described as helping the youngster experience the harsh realities of the ninja world early.
Makes sense.
Having reached that conclusion, Asuka glanced sideways at Elder Mato.
He could wait another three years.
Then he'd see what kind of surprises this system had in store.
After all...
Sasuke's system now belonged to him.
That made it his system.
---
"Lord Fourth Hokage, Lady Kushina, congratulations on your marriage!"
"Thank you very much."
"We couldn't help but envy the two of you. With such a capable wife beside you, Konoha's recovery is sure to outpace every other village once again."
"The peace of the ninja world was bought with great sacrifice," Minato replied with a warm smile. "Konoha has no intention of starting another war. Preserving this peace is something all of us must work together to achieve."
"Lord Hokage, when you have time, please visit the Hyūga Clan. Perhaps you could share some combat experience with those disappointing youngsters of ours, so they won't throw away their lives on future battlefields."
"You flatter me, Clan Head Hyūga. After this, I plan to visit each of Konoha's major clans and share whatever experience I can."
"..."
Watching Minato and Kushina politely greet every guest—whether they were Konoha civilians or shinobi from other villages—Asuka let out a quiet sigh.
Now that's what you call a powerful alliance.
Meanwhile...
The Uchiha, Konoha's strongest clan, were still obsessing over marrying within the clan.
Clan Head Fugaku's vision really is too narrow.
Why can't he think of the clan's future, get divorced, and pursue Tsunade—the last heir of the once-great Senju Clan?
Clatter!
For some reason, Itachi's chopsticks slipped from his hand.
Asuka casually handed over his own pair.
"Keep eating."
"I wasn't talking about Clan Head Fugaku."
"I heard everything."
"Oh?"
Asuka smiled.
"Then what do you think about my proposal for uniting the Uchiha and the Senju through marriage?"
"Besides, Lady Tsunade is the only remaining member of the Senju Clan."
"In terms of status, the only person in the Uchiha Clan qualified to marry her is Clan Head Fugaku."
"If he doesn't get divorced..."
"Who else is going to do it?"
---
Hearing the proposal again, Itachi shook his head without hesitation.
His face practically had the word REJECT written across it.
Some time ago, he'd gone shopping with his mother and accidentally overheard someone discussing this exact plan.
His heart had nearly stopped.
His mother had become so furious that she'd almost gone home to put on her combat gear and hunt down whoever proposed it.
Objectively speaking...
The plan itself was surprisingly sound.
It had almost no logical flaws.
The problem was...
The person who proposed it had apparently never considered the opinions of Fugaku, Mikoto, Tsunade...
Or anyone else involved.
More importantly...
Neither clan would ever agree to something like that.
---
Seeing Itachi remain silent, Asuka reached into his clothes and pulled out one of the books from the Beginner Gift Pack.
Its title read:
Detailed Explanation of the Ninja Academy's Will of Fire Course
After flipping through a few pages, he muttered,
"When I attended the Ninja Academy, my teacher taught us that Konoha is one big family."
"We're all members of that family."
"So when dealing with problems, we shouldn't think only as individuals."
"Nor should we think only as members of our own clan."
"We should view everything from the perspective of the village."
Ignoring Elder Mato's look of utter disdain, Asuka casually tore the book's cover off, crumpled it into a ball, stuffed it into his pocket, and continued reading.
"Only by resolving internal conflicts can we confidently face external ones."
Closing the book, he stood up, grabbed Itachi by the arm, and dragged him to a quiet corner.
Then he crouched so the child wouldn't have to crane his neck to look up at him.
Glancing toward the wedding banquet, he looked back at Itachi.
"You're a genius."
"You're intelligent."
"Calm."
"And very thoughtful."
"Clan Head Fugaku praises you all the time."
"Even though you're only four years old, I hope you'll start thinking about the issue of your parents getting divorced from the Hokage's perspective."
"Don't let yourself be limited by the narrow boundaries of the Uchiha Clan."
"Think from the Hokage's position."
"Oh, and if your father divorces your mother but fails to win Lady Tsunade's heart..."
"He can always remarry your mother afterward."
"That way you'll recover the two hundred thousand ryō."
"You might even make a profit."
"Either way, your family won't lose anything."
Having finished, Asuka gave Itachi an encouraging smile.
He wasn't worried about earning a reputation for corrupting the clan heir.
Everything he'd said came straight from the purest interpretation of the Will of Fire.
It had even been personally annotated by Ninja Academy instructors.
Besides...
Shisui had already begun teaching Itachi to think from the village's perspective.
Since that was the case...
Why not also consider Father divorcing Mother to marry Tsunade from the village's perspective?
---
After Asuka walked away, Itachi remained crouched on the grass.
Absentmindedly plucking blades of grass one by one, he quietly reflected on everything he'd just heard.
As the clan head's son, he naturally knew about many of the Uchiha Clan's internal problems.
The Uchiha had helped found Konoha alongside the Senju.
Yet they had been passed over for the Hokage position four consecutive times.
That disappointment had accumulated year after year.
At the previous clan meeting...
The elders had nearly come to blows.
If things continued like this...
The conflict between the Uchiha and the village would eventually erupt.
The simplest solution was obvious.
An Uchiha needed to become Hokage.
But Shisui had once told him how difficult that was.
Not only because of the Uchiha's emotional tendencies...
But also because of external political factors.
However...
If the Uchiha married Lady Tsunade...
Everything would be different.
Tsunade was the granddaughter of the First Hokage.
The granddaughter of the Second Hokage.
The disciple of the Third Hokage.
And a trusted comrade of the soon-to-be Fourth Hokage.
Her legitimacy was unquestionable.
Any child born between Tsunade and an Uchiha would possess an almost perfect claim to becoming Hokage.
Hmm...
Thinking that, Itachi looked toward the main table.
His father and mother sat side by side.
Peaceful.
Harmonious.
Happy.
His heart became even more conflicted.
If I persuade my parents to divorce...
I'm an unfilial son.
But it benefits both the clan and the village.
If I don't...
I'm being filial.
But perhaps I'm allowing future conflict to grow.
...But why Father?
Is it simply because he's the clan head?
Does that mean he should sacrifice himself for the clan?
---
As the afternoon wore on, the banquet gradually came to an end.
After exchanging farewells with Minato and Kushina, Fugaku and Mikoto prepared to leave.
Mikoto glanced around the venue.
Several elderly women were happily packing leftovers to take home.
The sight reminded her of her own childhood.
She remembered being too sick to attend a wedding once.
Her grandmother had brought home a bag full of leftovers just for her.
Lost in the warmth of those memories, Mikoto suddenly noticed a child in the corner diligently packing leftover food into plastic bags.
A smile appeared on her face.
Even now...
She still remembered how delicious those leftovers had tasted.
Then the child looked up.
Recognizing the familiar face, Mikoto blinked in disbelief before leaving Fugaku's side and walking over.
"Itachi?"
"What are you doing?"
"Mother!"
Seeing her approach, Itachi lifted the plastic bag in his hand.
It was stuffed with leftovers.
"Someone told me the clan's finances are under a lot of pressure."
"Our income and expenses are seriously unbalanced."
"As the future clan head, I can't increase the clan's income yet..."
"So the least I can do is help reduce expenses."
"He also told me that after the Second Shinobi World War, Konoha was very poor."
"Whenever there was a wedding, people packed leftovers to take home and reheat later."
"And since you lived through that period, Mother..."
"...I thought you'd understand."
---
Mikoto's smile froze.
A moment ago, she'd assumed Itachi was gathering food for the stray cats around the compound.
She hadn't expected...
He was planning to bring it home for the family.
Although...
It did smell rather good.
Suppressing the complicated emotions welling up inside her, Mikoto crouched down and gently stroked her son's head.
"It really was like that back then."
"But things are much better now."
"And besides..."
"You've packed far too much."
"We'll never finish all of it."
"No."
Itachi shook his head.
Setting the bag down, he began counting on his fingers.
"Father and Mother got married very early."
"Back then, Mother didn't know Lady Kushina."
"So Lady Kushina never gave you a wedding gift."
"But today..."
"Our family gave two hundred thousand ryō."
"Even if Lady Kushina gives me two hundred thousand ryō when I get married..."
"We'll still have to return another two hundred thousand when Naruto gets married."
"No matter how I calculate it..."
"Our family still loses two hundred thousand ryō."
"...Unless..."
---
Mikoto's heart skipped a beat.
Suppressing the uneasy feeling rising inside her, she looked at her son.
Seeing the conflicted expression on his face, her voice softened.
"Unless... what?"
Itachi sniffled quietly.
After struggling with the issue for a long time...
He had finally reached a conclusion.
Village > Clan > Family.
Convincing his parents to divorce clearly offered more benefits than drawbacks.
Of course...
If he said that outright, he'd probably get beaten.
He needed to be subtle.
Perhaps...
He should first find out what his mother thought about divorce.
Just like years later, on the night of the Uchiha massacre...
Itachi once again chose to sacrifice the small family for the greater good.
Finally making up his mind, he stepped forward, hugged Mikoto tightly, rested his little head on her shoulder, and said with all the innocence of a child,
"Unless..."
"Father and Mother divorce..."
"...and then get married again."
"That way our family won't lose any money."
"We could even donate part of the wedding gifts to the orphanage..."
"And use the rest to improve the lives of the widows and orphans in the clan."
---
Mikoto's expression went completely blank.
Looking at her son, she suddenly felt that letting children start school too early wasn't such a good idea after all.
As long as he graduated from the Ninja Academy normally...
Surely he wouldn't start persuading his own parents to divorce over wedding gifts.
Someone had obviously filled this foolish child with nonsense.
"Who taught you that?"
Hearing the icy voice above him, Itachi suddenly felt an ominous chill.
Without the slightest hesitation...
He sold Asuka out.
"It was..."
"The man who nearly got himself killed trying to persuade Father to divorce."
"...Uchiha Asuka."
Mikoto slowly picked Itachi up.
Then she turned toward the Uchiha Compound.
Her lips were bitten so hard they had lost all color.
That idiot...
Has he completely lost his mind?
Why is he so obsessed with convincing Fugaku and me to get divorced?