Chapter 20: Late Night Discussion in the Secret Room
When the lights of the underground secret room came on, Itachi Uchiha had indeed woken up and was leaning against the stone tablet that recorded many unknown secrets.
Legend has it that this stone tablet was written by the Six Paths Sage, and its contents could only be seen by following the sequence of Sharingan - Mangekyo Sharingan - Rinnegan.
Fugaku knew what was written on it, and since the stone tablet had been tampered with by Black Zetsu, he couldn't be bothered to look.
He turned his gaze to Itachi Uchiha, who was leaning against it.
Itachi Uchiha's hands and feet were bound, making it difficult for him to even sit up. He was motionless at the moment; if not for the slight rise and fall of his chest, anyone who saw him in his current state would likely mistake him for a corpse.
Itachi Uchiha's eye sockets were deeply sunken, his eyes like profound black holes, devoid of any light or vitality.
But his expression was very calm, even with a hint of relief.
"You're awake?"
Fugaku walked up to him and said indifferently.
Seeing Itachi Uchiha unresponsive, Fugaku chuckled, not taking it to heart, and continued to speak to himself, "The Uchiha Clan has launched a coup. I led our clansmen to storm the Hokage Building and killed the Third Hokage, Danzo, Homura Mitokado, and Utatane Koharu."
Hearing about the coup, Itachi Uchiha still didn't react, as if it was within his expectations, but upon hearing that his father had led people to storm the Hokage Building and killed the four adults including the Third Hokage, Itachi Uchiha became anxious and instinctively blurted out a denial, "Impossible."
Fugaku scoffed, "Why impossible? Those old geezers like Hiruzen Sarutobi, do you think they're hard to deal with? It took me less than a piss break; I killed them all, one by one, with a single slash."
Itachi Uchiha was silent for a moment, then opened his mouth: "Father, you've changed, so much that I can't see clearly."
He considered himself to know his father well; in his eyes, his father was a dignified but indecisive person.
As the clan leader, he could neither rebel against the Hokage above nor unite his clansmen below. Externally, he turned a blind eye to the increasing oppression from the Hokage faction against the Uchiha, not thinking about how to resist the Hokage. Internally, he had no reaction to the restless clansmen who were growing increasingly dissatisfied with the Hokage faction.
He was a good father, but not a good clan leader. The relationship between the Uchiha Clan and the Village grew increasingly tense, yet he made no progress.
The Uchiha Clan, dissatisfied with their treatment by Konoha Village, attempted to launch a coup to seize power. Once the coup erupted, Konoha Village would inevitably fall into internal strife, and other countries would likely take advantage of the chaos, triggering a large-scale war that would bring about the Village's destruction.
Itachi Uchiha deeply understood the cruelty of war. To prevent the Village from falling into conflict, he decided to sacrifice the Uchiha Clan for the peace and stability of Konoha Village. However, he never expected that while he was still hesitating, his father would act a step ahead, ambushing him, taking his eyes, and imprisoning him.
And what surprised him most was that his father also possessed the Mangekyo Sharingan.
Itachi sighed.
"What's the use of you killing Hokage-sama? With Hokage-sama dead, Konoha will soon fall into internal strife, and other countries are highly likely to take advantage of the chaos, triggering a large-scale war that will bring about the Village's destruction."
"Heh heh, you don't even have pubes yet, what do you know?"
Fugaku's blunt mockery made Itachi Uchiha's face flush red.
He opened his mouth, then suddenly had a thought; logically, the Village should have been in chaos by now, yet his father still had time to come here? Could it be?
He found it somewhat hard to believe.
"The Village isn't in civil war?"
Itachi Uchiha asked in surprise.
"Of course not."
Fugaku chuckled, "After I killed Konoha F4, I was surrounded in the Hokage Building, but they didn't make a move. The Konoha Ninja have suffered under the Third Hokage and Danzo for too long. I merely proposed sitting down to negotiate, and they readily agreed."
Fugaku wore a smug smile, as everything had gone too smoothly, even beyond his expectations.
He had thought he would have to fight a few more battles and suppress a group of Ninja.
'Konoha F4?' Itachi Uchiha was utterly bewildered, finding the term somewhat difficult to understand, but he quickly reacted, realizing that his father was likely referring to the four adults: the Third Hokage and Danzo.
What Konoha Ninja suffering under the Third Hokage and Danzo for too long, what readily agreeing to negotiations…
The more Itachi Uchiha listened, the more outrageous it became. Listen, is this even human speech?
He couldn't help but interject, "Father, are you telling a cross-talk?"
Fugaku rolled his eyes and said, "Anyway, Konoha won't fall into chaos. The negotiations went smoothly. I'm taking over as Fifth Hokage, Nara Shikaku as Hokage Assistant, Hyuga Hiashi as Hokage Advisor, and I plan to give another Advisor position to the Great Elder."
Listening to his father's words, which didn't sound like lies, Itachi Uchiha fell silent.
This was too absurd, wasn't it?! He simply couldn't believe any of this was true.
Was the Uchiha Clan's coup really that simple?
Even if his father had a Mangekyo Sharingan, it shouldn't have been so easy to succeed in a coup, right?
"Just watch, Konoha Village will only get better and better from now on."
Fugaku said indifferently.
Itachi Uchiha opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but nothing came out.
Fugaku looked at the silent Itachi Uchiha and said nothing more, giving him a few minutes to digest the information. He cleared his throat and spoke again, "I've told you so much. If you don't believe me, then go out and confirm for yourself whether what I said is true or false."
Itachi Uchiha's heart stirred. That's right, I am my father's son after all; he can't keep me locked up forever.
"But my eyes…"
Itachi Uchiha hesitated.
Fugaku waved his hand and said, "Don't even think about your own eyes. I will have someone transplant a pair of Three-Tomoe Sharingan from the clan for you."
Upon hearing this, Itachi Uchiha's mouth tasted a bit bitter.
But he quickly dismissed it; he only wanted to go out now and confirm whether what his father said was true or false.
The Village truly isn't in civil war? Only the Third Hokage and the four adults died? No other Ninja clans opposed it? The Village will get better and better?
To be honest, if it were his old father, he definitely wouldn't have believed it, but today his father had thoroughly taught him another lesson, making him realize that he didn't truly understand his father.
"Alright, Three-Tomoe it is. When will you replace my eyes?"
Itachi Uchiha took a deep breath and asked.
Fugaku glanced at him and said, "Anytime, even now, but there's a prerequisite."
Fugaku licked his lips; finally, it was time for the main topic.
A question mark appeared on Itachi Uchiha's forehead. Prerequisite?
"You speak."
Itachi Uchiha asked, puzzled.
"Give me Shisui's eyes."
Fugaku said in a deep voice!
At these words, Itachi Uchiha's expression changed.
He then realized something and showed a bitter smile: "So you knew everything, Father."
He thought everything he had done was seen by his father, even knowing about the one Mangekyo Sharingan Shisui had entrusted to him.
Fugaku did not answer his question, feigning mystery.
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