Konoha Outskirts.
After parting ways with Youhu, Kakashi, and Yamato, Itachi patrolled the outskirts of the village alone.
For nearly half a month, Itachi had been in a terrible mood.
First, Brother Shisui had told him that the clan was secretly plotting a coup. To stop it, Brother Shisui planned to use the Mangekyō Sharingan to control his father, leaving Itachi caught in a painful dilemma.
Just as he was torn between protecting his family and protecting everyone, something unexpected happened.
Youhu had suddenly appeared, exposed the Hokage Faction's twisted sexual orientation, and suggested that his father marry the Third Hokage and become the Hokage Husband, saving the clan without bloodshed.
What shocked Itachi was that after Youhu made this outlandish suggestion, the clan had actually abandoned its plans for a coup.
Even Tiehuo, a key member of the hawkish faction, had returned to his regular duties and stopped gathering supplies.
After hearing the rumors and gossip, the Third Hokage had gone so far as to recruit Youhu into the Anbu, making him one of his colleagues.
This left Itachi feeling deeply defeated.
He and Brother Shisui had worked so hard for the clan and the village, yet in the end, they hadn't done as much as Youhu's spur-of-the-moment idea.
Could it be that the clan hadn't really intended to stage a coup?
Itachi couldn't make sense of the relationship between the clan and the village. He couldn't understand the Third Hokage, either.
Just then, a rustling sound drifted over on the wind from the distance. Itachi looked up toward it and saw a black-cloaked figure standing on a tree branch ahead.
The figure wore a Tiger-patterned Mask. It was unmistakably the Mysterious Masked Man they had seen on surveillance earlier that day.
The Masked Man had appeared!
Itachi's heart lurched. He gripped the Kunai hidden in his sleeve.
He watched the Masked Man before him, ready to fight at any moment.
Obito leaned against the tree trunk. His figure blurred and vanished, then appeared in front of Itachi the next second. He placed a hand on Itachi's shoulder and said leisurely:
"Don't be nervous, Uchiha Itachi. I'm not your enemy. We've met before, after all."
Itachi was someone Obito had chosen.
Obito had taken notice of Itachi when he was still a Genin, and had even personally helped him awaken his Sharingan.
After Itachi became the top scorer in the Chunin Ninja Exams and joined Root Ninja, Obito had kept an even closer eye on him.
In Obito's view, Itachi was a Uchiha well worth cultivating, and a good fit for the Akatsuki.
Itachi could hardly forget the Masked Man. He had awakened his Sharingan after watching him kill his comrade, and had nearly died at the Masked Man's hands himself.
At the thought, Itachi quickly pulled away from Obito and pointed his Kunai at him.
"What exactly are you after, sneaking into the village this time?"
Obito chuckled, then said, "I'm a Uchiha, too. Why shouldn't I come back to Konoha for a look? Besides, if I really wanted to do something, could you stop me?"
"There's never been anyone like you in the clan."
"Konoha isn't the only place with Uchiha. Throughout Konoha's history, there have always been a few Uchiha who left the village for a time, for one reason or another."
Obito didn't reveal his identity, offering only this vague explanation.
A Uchiha who had left Konoha for one reason or another?
Could he be Uchiha Madara?
Itachi could think of only one person: the legendary shinobi of the Uchiha Clan, Uchiha Madara, who was as famous as the First Hokage.
But given Uchiha Madara's age, even if the First Hokage hadn't killed him back then, he would be old enough to have died of old age by now.
So the man couldn't be Uchiha Madara. He most likely had some other identity.
"If you're not a Uchiha from the village, were you behind the Nine-Tails' Rampage?"
After thinking quickly, Itachi recalled Youhu's suggestion from earlier that day. He might as well keep the conversation going and use the chance to gather information about the Masked Man, then decide what to do later.
Besides, they had already reported the meeting to the Third Hokage, so it wasn't as if they were conspiring with an enemy.
The Masked Man fell silent for a few seconds, as if weighing the pros and cons. Then he gave a slight nod.
"The Nine-Tails' Rampage did have something to do with me. But Konoha owed me for that, and we're even now. These days, I'd rather see how you Uchiha Juniors grow."
"But all I see is a mediocre clan, and a young Uchiha with ambitions but nowhere to put them."
After saying this, the Masked Man fell silent, as if waiting for Uchiha Itachi to speak.
Itachi found something odd about the whole thing. The Masked Man had appeared here in the dead of night and suddenly said all this. Could he be trying to recruit him?
This Mysterious Masked Man was powerful, but he didn't seem particularly bright.
Just as Uchiha Itachi was about to humor him and pretend to agree, hoping to get more information, several figures darted through the darkness and reached Itachi and the Masked Man within a few breaths.
They were none other than Youhu, Kakashi, and Yamato, along with the others.
After finishing the barbecue with Naruto, Youhu had suggested bringing some over for Yamato and Itachi, too. It would serve as a welcome for the new members joining the Anbu.
Kakashi thought it was odd for a new member like Youhu to be talking about a welcome, but he agreed anyway.
They had to pass through the area where Itachi was patrolling to take Naruto home, and there was no reason to turn down Youhu's kind offer.
But as they searched for Itachi, Kakashi hadn't expected to see an enemy of Konoha—the Mysterious Masked Man who had crossed the Konoha Barrier and caused the Nine-Tails' Rampage.
And Itachi was confronting him.
They had actually brought the Jinchuriki right to the Masked Man.
"Yamato, get the Jinchuriki out of here!"
Kakashi signaled Yamato to retreat with a look. Yamato understood at once and hurriedly carried Naruto away. The other Anbu Ninja followed behind them. Their main mission was to protect the Jinchuriki.
Neither Itachi nor Obito had expected Youhu and the others to show up at that moment and stumble upon their meeting.
Obito glanced at Youhu and Kakashi, then said to Itachi:
"Looks like you'll have some explaining to do when you get back. With your intelligence, you should be able to handle this properly. I look forward to seeing you again."
Just as Obito was about to use Space-Time Ninjutsu to leave,
Youhu used the Body Flicker Technique to appear in front of them. A smile tugged at his lips as he said to Itachi, "Senior Itachi, you've bought us enough time. Let's work together and keep the Masked Man here."
Itachi wanted to say that this was just an accident. He really hadn't expected the Masked Man to seek him out.
But now that Youhu and Kakashi had caught him meeting with the Masked Man, not making the first move would probably make things very difficult for him.
Kakashi, who had just arrived, froze for a moment, but quickly removed his eye covering and entered battle stance.
Whoever the Masked Man was, he had entered the village and was clearly an intruder. Naruto was nearby, too. They had to hold out long enough for the main force to arrive.
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