The Fugaku Family

"This... is, Lord Orochimaru."

Orochimaru heard this and paused slightly, then his lips curled into a meaningful smile.

Shinsuke Uchiha's reaction was a bit strange.

With the observational prowess of the Sharingan, had he not seen the ninja standing with the clan head at the very first moment? Or perhaps he hadn't recognized Orochimaru, who possessed such distinct personal features?

Logically speaking, both of these questions could be dismissed.

Shinsuke Uchiha had recognized Orochimaru, and by associating him with the clan's recent predicament, he realized the significance of Orochimaru standing with the clan head: the clan head intended to rely on Orochimaru's reputation and power.

Shinsuke Uchiha was quick-witted and deserved to be called clever, but what did he do?

He did not immediately bow respectfully to the person the clan was seeking help from, nor did he show much gratitude on his face after receiving assistance; instead, he cast his gaze toward his all-powerful clan head.

Why?

It was obvious: he did not consider accepting Orochimaru's help to be an honorable thing.

Orochimaru licked his lips and muttered to himself that it was interesting.

Clever, arrogant, headstrong... this was the first impression Shinsuke Uchiha gave him.

And he didn't know if it was a case of like attracting like, but every member of the Konoha Military Police Force squad before him had expressions and behaviors that were seventy or eighty percent similar to Shinsuke Uchiha's.

The mindset of youth, indeed!

Fugaku's expression was very ugly. What Orochimaru saw, he, as the clan head, saw even more clearly. Seeing Shinsuke Uchiha lingering, he scolded, "Do as Lord Orochimaru says. Go at once."

"Yes!"

Shinsuke Uchiha took his leave and vanished with the Konoha Military Police Force.

"Clan Head Fugaku, your clansmen truly open my eyes."

Orochimaru smiled, trying his best not to let his tone carry sarcasm, "With clansmen of such temperament, you don't have many choices you can make."

Hearing this, Fugaku's expression darkened even further.

"They can act on emotion, but you are the head of a clan. Do you intend to wait until the situation is beyond saving before you regret it?"

Orochimaru changed from his usual habit of cold, sinister smirking, his tone almost bordering on persuasive, "The Uchiha must go through this. You must understand, the mastermind behind the scenes has not yet been caught. Do you want to see the blame for every future attack on the village fall upon the Uchiha?"

"The village has its limits of patience. Once that threshold is crossed, it will erupt. You should know what the consequences of that would be."

Fugaku kept his head down, saying nothing, his expression shifting rapidly.

"Or is it that you want to lead the Uchiha in a rebellion and seize the power of discourse yourself?"

"Enough, you don't need to say any more. This matter... I agree."

Fugaku raised his head, speaking through gritted teeth; every word seemed to be squeezed out from his throat.

Fugaku felt such hatred now. He hated that Madara had led the Nine-Tails to attack the village back then, sowing discord between the Uchiha and the village, and he hated the mastermind behind this current incident for acting so brazenly, showing no regard for the clansmen within the village.

"Very good. Let us continue to discuss the details."

Within the Uchiha compound.

Under the shade of a tree, Itachi, having just finished his lunch, was holding little Sasuke, who had been born not long ago, and was feeding him milk.

Watching little Sasuke huffing and puffing as he sucked on the bottle, Itachi couldn't help but smile.

He truly enjoyed his younger brother's reliance on and affection for him.

"Itachi-kun..."

A girl with a ponytail ran over from a distance, waving her hand toward him as she ran.

"Izumi."

Itachi nodded at the girl and then returned his focus to watching his brother drink milk.

Izumi Uchiha was a girl he had met on the night of the Nine-Tails incident. He had happened to save her life, and since then, Izumi had constantly come to talk to him.

"Ah, little Sasuke is drinking milk. How cute."

Izumi leaned down and brought her face closer, "Can I hold him?"

Itachi refused without hesitation, "No, you'll make him cry. You did last time."

Thinking of the experience of being rejected last time, Izumi's face wrinkled, "What? That was an accident. This time I'll be very, very careful, while he's focused on drinking his milk."

As she spoke, she reached out her hands and slowly took him from Itachi.

As expected, little Sasuke, relying on his instincts, easily sensed the girl's ulterior motives and began to struggle and cry.

Itachi quickly took little Sasuke back and easily coaxed him into silence.

Meanwhile, Izumi, having been rejected twice, fell into a state of self-doubt; even her ponytail stopped swaying.

"..."

"That is Father."

Catching a glimpse of a figure out of the corner of his eye, Itachi felt a stir in his heart and trotted straight toward that direction.

Soon, he arrived near Fugaku Uchiha and clearly saw the figure standing beside his father. Instinctively, he felt that this man was somewhat dangerous and could not help but stop in his tracks.

However, as if noticing him, the two men walked in this direction.

The two children diluted the heavy atmosphere. Orochimaru looked Itachi up and down, his heart stirring, "Is this your son? Won't you introduce us?"

Mentioning his son, Fugaku's perpetually tense face relaxed slightly, his tone carrying a hint of pride, "This is my eldest son, Itachi, and the little one is Sasuke. Itachi, this is Lord Orochimaru."

"Yes, Father." Itachi held Sasuke and bowed slightly, "Lord Orochimaru."

"Itachi?"

Orochimaru murmured the name softly.

For some reason, he sensed a hint of malice in this name.

Perhaps it was because in the natural world, weasels were the natural predators of snakes.

'Natural predator.'

As this word flashed through his mind, Orochimaru could not help but chuckle.

"Lord Orochimaru?" Fugaku looked confused, wondering why he was laughing.

"No, it's nothing."

Orochimaru shook his head, his gaze involuntarily drawn to the composed temperament on Itachi, especially those tranquil eyes; the more he looked, the more he liked them.

So, Orochimaru turned his head and asked, "Itachi, have you not started at the Ninja Academy yet?"

Fugaku nodded. Itachi was six years old this year and would only officially begin when the new term started.

"I can tell, he is a genius."

Orochimaru said directly, "I would like to take him as my disciple. What do you think?"

"This..."

Fugaku's expression changed slightly, not knowing how to respond.

In all fairness, the Sannin were the pinnacle of power in the ninja world. Having them as teachers would guarantee the highest quality of education.

However, Orochimaru's reputation was, after all, not very good.

"Clan Leader Fugaku, in Konoha, does the Uchiha clan also have the qualifications to look down on me?"

Orochimaru saw through Fugaku's thoughts at a glance and could not help but snort, feeling dissatisfied.

But not wanting to reprimand the father in front of the child, Orochimaru said indifferently, "I want to take Itachi as a disciple partly because I value his talent, and partly because..."

Orochimaru paused, "Jiraiya's disciple can become the Hokage. If I cannot do the same, wouldn't that mean he has bested me?"

"Hokage?!"

This word made Fugaku's heart skip a beat, and his emotions stirred uncontrollably.

That was right; although Orochimaru had a poor reputation, he was still a disciple of the Third, part of the Hokage lineage.

Suppressing his emotions, Fugaku smiled, "Lord Orochimaru, what are you saying? I was just hesitating whether a child like Itachi was qualified enough."

As he spoke, Fugaku gave Itachi a look.

Seeing this, Itachi could only bow and say, "Greetings, Teacher Orochimaru."

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