"What clan, clan this and clan that—because you overestimated your own capacity and failed to understand mine, you were beaten to the ground by me—"
"Obsessed with the organization, obsessed with the clan, obsessed with a title—"
"Itachi—why didn't you attend the gathering last night?" "To bring myself closer to the pinnacle."
All those things Itachi Uchiha had said in the past surfaced by his ears once more.
That man had been gentle and considerate before him, yet in front of the other clansmen, he had become silent and distant—
The lonely figure cast by the setting sun against the courtyard wall still seemed to stand before his eyes.
Why had he instinctively forgotten?
Sasuke Uchiha stood frozen in place, frowning as he lowered his gaze.
Left Mysterious Fugaku said flatly, "You wanted the truth. This is the truth. Many people in the Uchiha Clan were eager to make a move and wanted to stage a coup, so they were wiped out in advance. It was that simple."
Left Mysterious Mikoto fell silent.
Sasuke Uchiha looked up, his expression somewhat lost. He asked sadly, "I—never knew that the clan had been like that behind the scenes. I was the only one naive enough to—like some idiot who knew nothing, wasn't I?"
"The Uchiha Clan had few members," Left Mysterious Mikoto said. "Sasuke, you were the youngest child at the time. Everyone instinctively wanted to protect you."
"Young?" Sasuke Uchiha gave a bitter smile. "If I remember correctly, when Itachi was my age, he had already killed people on the battlefield and awakened his Sharingan."
Left Mysterious Fugaku said, "Six- and seven-year-old children attending gatherings—that was something done in the War Era. I—precisely because children were made to take part in conflicts too early, and because we regarded ourselves as the