Uchiha Itachi's words suddenly plunged the atmosphere at the dining table into an eerie silence, until the oblivious Uchiha Sasuke reached out with his chopsticks to pick up a piece of tempura.
Sasuke suddenly sensed that something was off, and his little hand froze momentarily.
He looked left and right.
He found that neither his father, nor his mother, nor his beloved brother moved an inch in their seats.
Sasuke also noticed that his brother was looking at their father, while their father and mother were both staring at his brother.
"What's wrong with you all?"
Sasuke swallowed hard; he couldn't help but want to break the silence.
Yet, he realized that his father ignored him and spoke directly to his brother instead. "Itachi, I told you earlier today that in such a critical moment, I absolutely cannot allow you to act against our clan members without any proper reason."
"And..."
Fugaku said firmly, "You and Chisen are both talented individuals who will carry the Uchiha Clan into the future. If you two were to come into conflict, how would others view our Uchiha Clan?"
"We are already facing exclusion; if it becomes known that we have serious internal discord, the Uchiha's situation will become even more precarious."
"Itachi, although you are only twelve, you should understand the reasoning behind my words. You are a mature child."
Uchiha Itachi shook his head.
"Father, I won't come into conflict with him," he said expressionlessly. "I just want to talk to Uchiha Chisen."
A moment later, Uchiha Itachi added, "I promise."
...
The next day, before dawn.
Uchiha Itachi stood in front of a modest two-story building.
His eye bags were slightly darkened, clearly indicating that he hadn't slept well the previous night.
He lifted his gaze to the doorbell in front of him.
"Ring it."
A somewhat heavy voice came from behind him: "Didn't you say you wanted to talk to Chisen?"
The speaker was Fugaku!
Fugaku believed that since Itachi had made a promise to him, he would never resort to violence against Uchiha Chisen. He considered himself to know this eldest son, who made him feel incredibly proud, very well.
However...
He also thought he knew Uchiha Chisen fairly well, and Fugaku wasn't sure if Chisen would attack Itachi. After all, several years ago, Chisen had already acted against Itachi once.
Though Chisen seemed to have "calmed down" since then, even if they happened to cross paths, it was just a brief exchange of glances.
But Fugaku still didn't want to see that kind of risk.
So he followed Itachi.
Just then, both Uchiha Itachi and Fugaku shifted their gazes upward.
They saw an orange Ninja Cat squatting on the railing of the second-floor balcony, its eyes fixed on the two of them.
—What a fat cat.
That was the first impression both father and son shared.
"That's Chisen's Ninja Cat," Fugaku said to Itachi. "It's a remarkable Ninja Cat that has been by Chisen's side since the Third Shinobi World War, following him through battles. It's said that even elite Jonin have a hard time catching this Ninja Cat."
"I recognize it," Uchiha Itachi replied indifferently. "On the day Uchiha Chisen and I had our conflict, this Ninja Cat left three deep wounds on my ankle. Even now, the scars still remain on my ankle."
Fugaku fell silent.
It seemed that the Ninja Cats around Uchiha Chisen were no pushovers!
"Lord Fugaku."
Kijiro still showed some respect to Fugaku.
But it didn't extend the same courtesy to Uchiha Itachi; it didn't even greet him.
Kijiro licked its paw and continued, "Lord Chisen is already in the living room on the first floor. The tea is ready, meow. You don't need to ring the doorbell; the door is open, just push it and come in."
Fugaku was taken aback.
Then he realized that his eldest son had been standing at the door for over three minutes without ringing the doorbell.
They must have been spotted by Uchiha Chisen the moment they appeared.
Uchiha Itachi stepped forward.
He pushed the door open.
This was his first time entering this place, and it was also the first time in years that he stood face to face with Uchiha Chisen—this young man, who was several years older than him, was a peer of Shisui and seemed to be slightly older than him. Chisen's reputation within the Uchiha Clan had once been on par with Shisui's.
Fugaku followed him inside.
Fugaku realized he was the most nervous of the three present.
He feared that the two young men in front of him might come to blows.
He was ready to intervene. Even if it meant revealing his Mangekyo Sharingan, he couldn't just stand by and watch as the two geniuses of the Uchiha Clan became mutually destructive in their internal conflict.
…
Uchiha Itachi didn't take a seat. Instead, he walked over to a sofa and looked at Uchiha Chisen, who was sitting there in casual home attire.
"I thought the moment I walked in, I would be met with a torrent of lava. I was prepared for a fight to the death."
Uchiha Itachi glanced again at the few steaming cups of strong tea on the coffee table.
His previously tense emotions eased a little.
What he said wasn't just small talk; it was his genuine thought.
Facing a man who was once on par with Shisui, Uchiha Itachi felt no sense of carelessness.
Even with the legendary eyes he possessed, he didn't let himself feel overconfident—because he wasn't sure if this remarkably "capable" man in front of him… also had a pair of those eyes like his own and Shisui's?
Uchiha Itachi removed the ninja blade from his waist and set it aside, speaking in a calm tone, "That incident from years ago has left me puzzled. As far as I recall, I never offended you."
"Then why do you want to kill me?"
…
Meanwhile.
Not far outside the door.
"Ah, I finally made it…" Having learned a lesson from being late once, Uchiha Izumi had sworn not to be late again and woke up before dawn to hurry to Uchiha Chisen's residence.
But just then, she suddenly noticed that the door to Uchiha Chisen's home was wide open!
The girl paused in surprise.
The thought that her senior's home had been robbed flashed through her mind but was quickly dismissed.
Izumi felt that Konoha shouldn't have anyone so reckless as to attempt to steal from Uchiha Chisen's home.
With a mix of curiosity, she patted her slightly drowsy face.
She quickened her pace.
Approaching the door.
"Senior! Konoha Military Police Force trainee 'Uchiha Izumi' reporting for duty!" The girl raised a hand and shouted energetically at the door, catching the attention of the three pairs of eyes inside.
"Eh?"
"Eh!"
Izumi hadn't expected to see the head of the Fugaku family and Itachi-kun in Uchiha Chisen's home!
Oh no!
Was she arriving at the wrong time?
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