Gouging out eyes

Every ninja born in Konoha had once imagined sitting in the Hokage's seat, commanding the village and receiving thunderous cheers.

There were surely ninja who did not want to become Hokage, but none of them would be Konoha ninja.

The Hokage's seat here was actually open to the public. Anyone could sit in it, and Uchiha Itachi found himself settling into it almost against his own will.

It was nothing more than an ordinary chair, no different from any other chair Uchiha Itachi had sat in. Yet sitting there and looking at everything before him still stirred a wealth of emotions.

"Ah! I knew you'd be here!"

He had barely settled into the seat when a familiar voice suddenly came from the doorway. A black-haired head poked in, its large eyes blinking as she smiled at him in his seat.

It was his niece, Sarada Uchiha. The red dye she had used earlier was easy to wash out, so her hair had already returned to the black befitting the Uchiha Clan.

Her clothes, however, were now bright red, and she wore ninja boots. While he had been watching the movie, she had simply gone to change.

Sarada ran over, took Itachi's hand, and announced loudly in her sweet voice:

"I told Dad you were back, Uncle, but he wouldn't believe me."

His hand touched Nagato's face, which had not yet turned cold. Then he suddenly remembered that digging out eyes with his fingers hardly seemed elegant, so he reached toward his side for a kunai instead.

But Uchiha Itachi had not come to admire the scenery. He was looking for someone. He found the stairs leading downstairs, which were not even locked. With a gentle push, he entered the stairwell and stepped into the real Hokage Office.

"Sorry, Sarada. I