My Foolish Little Brother

The moon shone bright amid sparse stars.

The Uchiha Compound was exceptionally quiet tonight.

Without warning, Uchiha Itachi and the masked man appeared outside the Konoha Military Police Force headquarters.

"Let's start here!"

Itachi said expressionlessly. He then put on the rabbit mask symbolizing Konoha's Anbu and rushed straight into the police force headquarters.

Hmm?

Once they entered, both of them froze.

The police force headquarters had clearly been brightly lit from outside, yet there was not a single person inside.

Something was wrong!

Uchiha Itachi and the masked man exchanged a glance. Without another word, they vanished and pressed deeper into the Uchiha Compound.

No one. No one. Still no one.

As Konoha's largest clan, the Uchiha Compound, home to over a thousand people, was completely empty tonight.

"Itachi, where did your clansmen go?"

The masked man's voice was laced with suspicion. Though he believed in Konoha's ability to brainwash Itachi, the empty Uchiha Compound could only mean one thing.

The plan had been exposed.

And the most likely person to have leaked it was his companion on this mission, Uchiha Itachi.

Beneath his mask, Itachi offered no explanation. Without a word, he raced toward his home.

He had a feeling that all the answers were waiting there.

Glancing up at the towering building, Itachi flashed over to the largest reception hall.

The wooden door of the reception hall was slightly ajar, orange-red light spilling through the gap. Just as Itachi was about to peer inside, a voice sounded from next door.

"Over here. No traps. Come in—I've been waiting for you!"

It was Big Brother's voice.

Uchiha Itachi instinctively gripped the longsword on his back. In this operation, his greatest enemy was his Big Brother, Uchiha Yoru, who also possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan.

Carefully pushing open the wooden door, Itachi saw only his father and brother seated on the floor.

His father, as always, wore a stern expression, while his brother Uchiha Yoru looked at him with a smiling face.

"Itachi, so you really decided to stand with them?"

Fugaku closed his eyes, his face full of anguish.

"Dad, Big Brother, I..."

The words of Itachi's defense never left his mouth. He merely slowly raised his longsword, making his stance clear.

"Itachi, I found an answer to the question you asked back then, but I never had the chance to tell you.

"You asked why life struggles... Perhaps it is because we have too many things we cannot bear to let go of. Love, trust, the village, little brothers... When the things we cherish are threatened, or when different 'cherished things' come into conflict, struggle becomes inevitable. Your pain comes from cherishing both the clan and the village, only for them to end up on opposing sides."

Uchiha Yoru slowly rose and walked toward the wary Itachi.

"Now that I have a way to ensure the clan and village are no longer opposed, will you still insist on that decision?"

"What way?"

"My Mangekyō controls Space-Time. After consuming an enormous amount of Eye Power and mental strength, my left eye can open a gateway connecting different worlds. Today, I opened the World Gate at Naka Shrine. Under my arrangements, over a thousand clansmen have all migrated to the New World. Without my permission, they will never be able to return to Konoha and threaten it again. Are you satisfied with this solution?"

Faced with Uchiha Yoru's calm account, Uchiha Itachi's hand holding the longsword trembled slightly. Beneath his mask, his face was filled with stunned disbelief.

He had imagined countless possibilities and had even prepared himself for the worst—to kill his own family with his own hands. Yet he had never expected an ending like this.

"Wh-why?" Itachi's voice was dry, carrying a barely noticeable choke. "Why did you do this? Big Brother, you clearly knew..."

"What did I know?"

Uchiha Yoru cut him off, his gaze sharp as a blade, as though it could pierce through the mask and stare directly into his little brother's soul.

"I knew Konoha High Command's suspicion and oppression of the Uchiha had long since taken root. I knew Danzo's greed for the Sharingan was endless. I also knew that the so-called 'coup' proposed by some Uchiha was merely a helpless act of resistance born from despair. And I knew that you and Shisui... had both tried to prevent the worst outcome in your own ways."

At the mention of Shisui, Itachi's body visibly stiffened.

"Shisui's Kotoamatsukami may have been the key to changing the situation, but he was too naive, and he used it on the wrong target. As for your choice, Itachi..."

Yoru's voice dropped, carrying an indescribable sorrow. "Bearing infamy, slaughtering your own kin, trading the blood of the entire clan for the village's peace... Is that the answer you found?"

"This is... the only way to avoid a larger-scale war!"

Itachi struggled to speak, as though he were trying to convince Yoru, but even more so himself. "The Uchiha coup would never succeed. It would only drag Konoha into civil war. If Konoha fell into chaos, the entire Ninja World would once again be plunged into war."

"So you would water this false peace with the blood of the whole clan?"

Yoru stepped forward. The pattern in his Mangekyō Sharingan slowly rotated, revealing a trace of compassion.

"Itachi, you are too arrogant. You took every burden onto your own shoulders, believing you had chosen the path with the fewest sacrifices, yet you never truly trusted the clan, trusted Father, trusted me..."

"I..." Itachi was at a loss for words. His brother's words were like hammer blows against the hard defenses around his heart.

"My method may not be the optimal solution. It may even be full of uncertainty."

Yoru spread his arms. "But I gave the clansmen a chance to live, gave the Uchiha name a chance to endure, instead of letting them become sacrifices beneath your 'great' sacrifice—or letting you bear a sin that could never be washed away for all eternity! Now that the clansmen are safe, Konoha's threat has naturally been removed.

Will you... still insist on carrying out that inhuman order from the High Command?"

At that moment, space twisted strangely. The mysterious man wearing an Uzumaki mask abruptly appeared in the corner of the room, his tone teasing and dissatisfied.

"Wow, what a touching reunion between brothers. But, Itachi, it seems we've been played. The targets for the promised 'cleanup' have disappeared. That isn't what we agreed on."

Uchiha Fugaku immediately looked at the masked man warily. He could sense the dangerous aura coming from him. This must be the unknown enemy Yoru had mentioned earlier.

Itachi did not answer the masked man, nor did he look at his father and brother. He only lowered his head deeply, his heart caught in a fierce struggle.

His brother's plan had thrown everything into disarray. The survival of the clansmen meant Konoha High Command's threat had not been completely removed, and Danzo would never let this go.

But to continue carrying out the extermination order... faced with an empty compound and a father and brother determined to preserve the clan, what meaning did that order still have?

After a long while, Itachi slowly raised his head. His gaze became firm once more, yet there seemed to be something different within that resolve.

The longsword in his hand slid back into its sheath with a clatter.

"The mission... has changed."

Itachi's voice regained its usual calm, though it carried a trace of relief. "The Uchiha clansmen have been confirmed 'missing.' The cause is unknown. Our cooperation is officially terminated."

The masked man tilted his head. "Oh? Is this an impromptu script revision? I haven't received the new script."

"Shut up, Obito. Your problem is even bigger—so big that I do not even want to acknowledge you as a member of the Uchiha Clan."

Hearing Itachi's answer, Uchiha Yoru was very satisfied. With no interest in watching the masked man play dumb any longer, he directly exposed the masked man's greatest secret.

Ignoring the frozen Obito at the side, Yoru smiled at Itachi.

"Remember next time: don't recklessly take responsibility for things that aren't yours, my foolish little brother!"

Uchiha Yoru's large hands suddenly covered Itachi's soft hair, messing up his hairstyle.

It was as natural as it had been when they were children.