The Changes Started with Itachi!

At the Uchiha Compound, inside Uchiha Fugaku's reception room.

"Does the Daimyo have any plans for the next few days?"

Uchiha Fugaku asked with a smile.

"I'll just wander around the village. After presiding over the New Year ceremony, I'll head back."

"Would you Uchiha be interested in serving as my bodyguards?"

The Daimyo looked at Uchiha Fugaku with a playful smile.

After all, becoming the Daimyo's bodyguard would bring honor to one's family.

Sarutobi Shinnosuke had once gone to the Land of Fire and served as one of the Daimyo's bodyguards.

After returning to Konoha, he was entrusted with important responsibilities.

Sarutobi Hiruzen had done that for no other reason than to pave the way for his son.

So he could take over the Hokage Position in the future.

"Thank you for trusting us, Daimyo. When you return, I'll personally select suitable candidates for you."

Uchiha Fugaku was overjoyed.

He hadn't expected those people to botch things so badly that they'd given the Uchiha such a good opportunity.

Meanwhile, Uchiha Shisui, Uchiha Itachi, and Roy were in the courtyard of the Fugaku residence.

"Roy, this operation went pretty much as you expected, didn't it?"

Shisui no longer looked down on him as he had before.

In his eyes, Roy's strategic skill had become more important than his strength.

Most of the Uchiha were proud and straightforward.

Someone with such strong composure was truly rare.

Uchiha Itachi already had considerable talent in that regard, but he still fell far short of the person before them.

"Not entirely."

"I didn't expect them to make their move at the village gates."

"But that isn't necessarily a bad thing."

"The Konoha High Command is close to losing the Daimyo's trust."

Roy waved a hand, not taking credit for it.

"How did you know they were going to make a move?"

"Didn't they consider that they might not be a match for us?"

Uchiha Itachi had changed his opinion of Roy, too.

He had once thought Roy would bring disaster upon the clan.

He hadn't expected things to change so quickly.

"Because they had no choice but to act."

"It wasn't because the Uchiha posed a threat to them. It was because the Uchiha were too powerful for them to control."

"They're... afraid of the Uchiha's strength."

"Of course, there are also people like Danzo, who covet our power."

Roy looked at Uchiha Itachi, who seemed stubbornly set in his ways, and spoke earnestly.

Uchiha Itachi's talent was undeniable.

But he'd been praised and coddled from a young age, and then taught far too many ideals that put the village first.

That was what had made him so conflicted in the end.

By the time Itachi finally realized the truth, he no longer had the power to change much.

All he could do was entrust everything to his younger brother, who had awakened the power of plot armor.

So changing Uchiha Itachi's mind couldn't wait.

"Afraid?!"

"If the village is truly afraid of the Uchiha's strength, why would it entrust the Uchiha with important responsibilities?"

"Whether it's patrol duty or the Military Police Force."

Itachi still looked confident.

As far as he was concerned, the Hardline Faction in the clan had always been the ones damaging the Uchiha's reputation.

"Because they had no choice but to give the Uchiha a role."

"Think about it. There's a clan this powerful in the village, but it has no status and no purpose at all."

"What would everyone else think?"

Roy suddenly felt like laughing.

Itachi really had been coddled as a child.

He couldn't believe something so simple had stumped him.

"The patrols were meant to target me."

"To put it simply, someone wants my eyes—and my life."

"It happened while you were away on the mission to guard the Daimyo."

"Patrol duty had another name: cannon fodder duty!"

Roy explained the truth to Itachi in the simplest terms.

"Roy's right."

"And if Roy hadn't been among the first clan members assigned to patrol duty, we would have lost even more people."

When Itachi looked at him, Uchiha Shisui confirmed it without hesitation.

That was enough to shatter Itachi's faith—and his laughable Will of Fire.

All this time, he'd believed he could see farther than others.

He'd even been confident that he could lead the Uchiha back onto the right path.

But now... someone had suddenly told him that everything he'd been trying to do was wrong.

"Itachi, can you give your heart back to the clan?"

"I need your help now."

Lu Yu abruptly changed the subject and asked him.

"Me?"

"But..."

"Tell me, what's the strongest genjutsu you can use?"

Lu Yu gave Uchiha Itachi no chance to respond and asked outright.

"Genjutsu?"

"Forest of Thorns, Ferryman's Purgatory, Abyss of Hell."

Itachi was good at several genjutsu, and those were among the ones he used most often.

"I see."

"Itachi, do you trust me?"

Roy suddenly grew serious.

"I..."

Itachi instinctively glanced at Uchiha Shisui beside him.

Itachi was still a boy who idolized Uchiha Shisui like a starstruck fan.

"I trust you!"

"Roy, big brother!"

After Uchiha Shisui nodded, Uchiha Itachi pushed aside all his doubts.

Then he looked at Roy with trust.

"Then close your Sharingan and completely clear your mind."

"Next, I'm taking you to see the clan leader. I'll tell you the whole plan."

"I hope you can handle it."

The smile vanished from Roy's face, and his expression turned slightly grave.

"I understand."

Itachi said it, then relaxed his mind completely.

His Sharingan closed as well.

He'd kept it activated just now because he wanted to find some flaw in Roy.

But now, that didn't seem necessary anymore.

"Let's go."

Roy nodded, then led Uchiha Itachi away.

Soon, the two of them left the village.

"Roy, big brother, why are we leaving the village?"

Before long, they had left the village.

They arrived beside a small river.

Looking at the rushing water, Itachi glanced at Roy curiously.

He'd been here before. The first time he'd gone on a mission, he'd come here with Uchiha Shisui to talk.

"The Anbu are already monitoring the village, so we need to find somewhere else to talk."

"Come on, we're almost there."

Roy didn't stop. He continued upstream.

Soon, the two of them arrived at a cliff.

The river flowed below them.

But even now, Itachi still couldn't sense his father's presence.

Father isn't here?

But why would Roy lie to me?

Uchiha Itachi was completely confused.