"This… yes, Orochimaru… Orochimaru-sama."
Hearing that, Orochimaru paused slightly, then curled his lips into a meaningful smile.
Jinsuke's reaction was a little strange.
With the Sharingan's ability to observe, how could he not notice the ninja standing next to the clan leader right away? Or did he fail to recognize Orochimaru's very distinctive appearance?
By common sense, neither of those should be possible.
Uchiha Jinsuke recognized Orochimaru. Thinking of the clan's recent troubles, he quickly understood why the clan leader would stand with Orochimaru—he wanted to rely on Orochimaru's name and power.
Jinsuke was quick-witted, worthy of being called smart. But what did he do?
He didn't bow respectfully to the man who was now the one his clan turned to for help, and after receiving help, he didn't show much gratitude either. Instead, his eyes shifted toward his almighty clan leader.
Why?
The reason was clear—he didn't think accepting Orochimaru's help was something to be proud of.
Orochimaru licked his lips, quietly thinking it was amusing.
Smart, arrogant, defiant… that was Jinsuke's first impression on Orochimaru.
And maybe it was true that people of the same kind flock together, because every member of this guard squad standing here wore an expression and carried themselves almost exactly like Jinsuke.
The attitude of youth.
Fugaku's face was dark. If Orochimaru could see it, then as clan head he saw it even more clearly. Watching Jinsuke still not moving, he barked, "Do as Orochimaru-sama said. Now go."
"Yes!"
Jinsuke bowed out, then disappeared with the guard squad in a flash.
"Clan head Fugaku, your clansmen really opened my eyes."
Orochimaru smiled, trying not to let his tone sound mocking. "With people of this character, your choices are very limited."
Hearing that, Fugaku's face grew even gloomier.
"They can let emotions rule them. But you, as clan head—are you going to wait until things are beyond saving before you regret it?"
Orochimaru dropped his usual cold smirk, and his tone became almost like a patient teacher. "The Uchiha must go through this. You should understand, the real culprit hasn't been caught yet. Do you want every attack on the village from now on to be blamed on the Uchiha?"
"The village has its limits too. Once that limit is crossed, the backlash will come, and you know exactly what that means."
Fugaku lowered his head, silent, his face shifting with thought.
"Or is it that you'd rather lead the Uchiha to rebel, just so you can seize control yourself?"
"That's enough, you don't need to go on. This matter… I agree."
Fugaku lifted his head, gritting his teeth, forcing each word out like it was stuck in his throat.
Right now, Fugaku was full of hate. He hated that Madara once led the Tailed Beast to attack the village, planting the seed of mistrust between Uchiha and Konoha. And he hated the shadowy figure behind this incident, acting openly, with no concern at all for the clansmen inside the village.
"Good. Then let's move on to the details."
…
In the Uchiha compound.
Under the shade of a tree, Itachi had just finished lunch. Holding little Sasuke, who had only been born not long ago, he was feeding him milk.
Watching Sasuke happily sucking on the bottle, Itachi couldn't help but smile.
He truly enjoyed the way his younger brother depended on him and loved him.
"Itachi-kun…"
A girl with a ponytail came running over from far away, waving her hand as she came closer.
"Izumi."
Itachi gave her a small nod, then turned his attention back to watching Sasuke drink.
Uchiha Izumi was the girl he had met on the night of the Nine-Tails' attack. He had saved her by chance, and ever since then, she often came to talk to him.
"Ah, little Sasuke is drinking milk. He's so cute."
Izumi bent down, bringing her face close. "Can I hold him?"
Itachi refused without hesitation. "No. You'll make him cry again. Just like last time."
Izumi's face scrunched up at the reminder of being rejected before. "That was an accident. This time I'll be very careful, really careful. I'll hold him while he's busy drinking."
Saying that, she reached out both hands and carefully took Sasuke from him.
As expected, little Sasuke easily sensed her real intention. He started to struggle and cry.
Itachi quickly took him back and soothed him without any trouble.
Meanwhile, Izumi was rejected twice in a row, leaving her in self-doubt. Even her ponytail stopped bouncing.
"..."
"That's Father."
Catching sight of a figure from the corner of his eye, Itachi's heart stirred and he jogged straight toward that direction.
Soon, he reached Uchiha Fugaku's side and clearly saw the person standing next to his father. Instinctively, he felt this man was dangerous, and he stopped in his tracks.
But as if noticing him, the two walked over.
Orochimaru looked Itachi up and down, something flashing in his eyes. "This is your son? Introduce us?"
At the mention of his son, the stiffness on Fugaku's face eased a little, and his voice carried a trace of pride. "He's my eldest, Itachi. The younger one is Sasuke. Itachi, this is Orochimaru-sama."
"Yes, Father." Holding Sasuke in his arms, Itachi bowed slightly. "Orochimaru-sama."
"Itachi?"
Orochimaru softly repeated the name.
For some reason, he sensed a hint of hostility in it.
Perhaps because in nature, the weasel was a natural enemy of snakes.
"Natural enemy."
The word flashed across his mind, and Orochimaru couldn't help but laugh.
"Orochimaru-sama?" Fugaku looked puzzled, not knowing why he was laughing.
"No, nothing."
Orochimaru shook his head, but his eyes were drawn to Itachi's calm presence, especially those quiet eyes—he found himself liking them more and more.
He turned his head and asked, "Itachi, you haven't entered the ninja academy yet?"
Fugaku nodded. Itachi was six this year, and would officially start when the new term began.
"I can tell he's a genius."
Orochimaru said it outright. "I want to take him as my student. What do you think?"
"This…"
Fugaku's expression shifted slightly, unsure how to respond.
To be fair, the Sannin were the strongest in the ninja world. Having one of them as a teacher meant the highest quality training.
But Orochimaru's reputation was not good.
"Clan Head Fugaku, in Konohagakure, does Uchiha also think they can look down on me?"
Orochimaru saw through Fugaku's hesitation at a glance. He let out a cold snort, clearly displeased.
But not wanting to scold a father in front of his child, Orochimaru said evenly, "I want to take Itachi as a student partly because of his talent. On the other hand…"
He paused. "Jiraiya's student became Hokage. If I can't do the same, wouldn't that mean I'm one step below him?"
"Hokage?!"
That word made Fugaku's heart pound heavily, his emotions stirring.
Yes, Orochimaru might have a bad reputation, but he was still the Third Hokage's student, part of the Hokage's line.
Suppressing his excitement, Fugaku smiled. "Orochimaru-sama, you're overthinking it. I was only worried whether Itachi was good enough."
As he spoke, Fugaku gave Itachi a look.
Seeing this, Itachi could only bow. "Teacher Orochimaru."
---
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