Instilling the Correct Values in a Young 'Itachi'

A small town on the border of the Land of Fire.

Under the night sky, inside a simple civilian house, three ordinary samurai lay unconscious in the haze of sleeping smoke.

Rip. The wooden door slid open, revealing three figures—two adults and one child. The eyes of the two in front were blood-red. The shorter one clearly had Three Tomoe, while the taller one, who seemed to be the leader, only had One Tomoe.

A peculiar sight. Usually, the stronger one would be the leader, but this time was different.

The ever-cautious Uchiha Shisui raised his hand and flicked three senbon, which struck the acupuncture points on the necks of the three unconscious samurai, plunging them into a deep sleep. If anyone had been faking it, this would have exposed them too.

After finishing, Shisui carefully scanned the surroundings, his Three Tomoe Sharingan fixed on the children tied together in a row with straw ropes—eight of them in total.

"Brother Yoru, these three are slave traders. According to intelligence, they gathered these eight children to sell in the Land of Iron."

Hearing Shisui's report, Uchiha Yoruro nodded lightly. But Uchiha Itachi, who had followed along, wore a confused and lost expression.

At this time, Itachi was only six years old and hadn't yet entered the Ninja Academy. Though he had witnessed the cruelty of war at age four, he was even more lost now.

Looking at the scene before him—especially the children tied up like livestock with straw ropes—Itachi hesitated. Seeing this, Shisui sighed softly, lowered his head, and spoke in a deep voice. "They were either abducted from the common folk or orphans found on the streets. They all share one trait: they have the constitution to refine chakra. That's why they're sought after by various nations."

"Aside from the Five Great Nations and a few other powerful countries, the smaller nations need to buy children from the common folk to maintain their number of ninja."

Those who can refine chakra are always a minority. In war-torn small nations especially, they need fresh blood, and children are the best candidates.

Hearing Shisui's explanation, Uchiha Yoruro let out a mocking laugh. "Shisui, Itachi isn't an ordinary child. You might as well tell the truth. Forget 'aside from the Five Great Nations'—you should say the Five Great Nations are the biggest buyers."

With the danger cleared, Yoruro crouched down by the fire, set up a pot, and took out the dried rations the three samurai had prepared to roast them. Shisui shook his head helplessly, stepped forward, and patted young Itachi's head. "Itachi, this world is cruel."

But after setting everything up, Yoruro glanced at the children and a gleam flashed in his eyes. Right in front of Itachi, he began forming hand seals: Boar—Dog—Rooster—Monkey—Ram.

"Summoning Jutsu!"

In an instant, a puff of white smoke appeared, revealing a brown python. Looking at the summoned beast, Yoruro pointed at the children in the distance and said hoarsely, "The kids are over there. Remember to bring these eight to Teacher Orochimaru."

Noticing the greed flickering in the snake's eyes, Yoruro snorted coldly, radiating killing intent as he snapped, "If you dare eat even one, I'll roast and eat you. You know the consequences!"

Under the threat dripping with bloodlust, the massive python shrank back in fear, then reluctantly slithered toward the children. Watching this, Uchiha Itachi stared in disbelief. Finally, he voiced the biggest question in his heart.

"Brother Shisui, why is this mission about finding children with chakra constitutions?"

At this age, Itachi was still a child full of confusion and uncertainty about the future. And it was precisely this emptiness that would later be filled by the so-called Will of Fire when he entered the Ninja Academy.

Yoruro naturally saw Itachi's confusion and understood it deeply. So this is when the eldest son of the Uchiha Clan head gets brainwashed into the Hokage faction? Only at the Ninja Academy. Before that, with his status, no outsider could easily approach him, let alone manipulate him.

He had to admit, the Uchiha Clan had been careless in this regard. Or rather, the Hokage Faction's methods were too clever—hiding right under their noses. The Uchiha Clan focused on watching the other Uchiha children, and Clan Head Fugaku trusted his son too much, so they overlooked Itachi. No one expected the clan head's eldest son to turn traitor.

After analyzing everything in his mind, Yoruro decided he had to seize this golden opportunity to leave a deep impression on this kid. He absolutely couldn't let Itachi become the turncoat from the original story.

Looking at the fire, the room was filled only with the disgusting sound of the snake opening its greedy mouth and slowly swallowing the children.

"Shisui, Itachi isn't an ordinary child. He was taken to the battlefield by the clan head at age four and experienced war's cruelty firsthand. He's a genius of the Uchiha."

After a round of praise to put young Itachi at ease—since no matter how mature he acted, he was still just a six-year-old—Yoruro saw Itachi frown and walk over like a little adult. A smirk tugged at Yoruro's lips, but his face showed only a mocking smile.

"These children's futures are already sealed. They'll either become tools for other powers or die along the way. Don't think the so-called neutral Land of Iron is any better, and don't imagine the Five Great Ninja Villages are all sunshine. Reality is this cruel and cold."

"Brother Yoru!" Shisui spoke up with a worried look, as if hinting that Itachi was too young for this.

Yoruro shot Shisui a glare of utter disappointment. It's because of people like you. If you're worried he's too young, then why take him to the battlefield at four? Let him experience war's brutality firsthand, then fail to teach him the right values? Teaching half a lesson—no wonder he became a turncoat.

In the original story, young Itachi even contemplated suicide. Experiencing war too early without forming his own worldview and values left a hole in his heart, which the Hokage Faction exploited. It was simply deserved.

"These children's futures are already cruel. But if we aren't cruel to other nations, that cruelty will fall on Konoha in the Land of Fire."

Seeing Itachi's confused gaze, Yoruro sneered. "That calm expression of yours really lives up to being a little adult who's been to war. Worthy of the clan head's eldest son."

After another round of praise, Yoruro changed the subject and looked at Shisui, shaking his head. "When we get back, teach Itachi about the customs of other nations. If he wants to enjoy certain things, he has to pay the price."

As the eldest son of the Uchiha Clan head, if you want to enjoy all the glory, you must also bear the heavy burdens that come with it.