Student Yamanaka Chujiu Bows to You!

Ever since Uchiha Itachi learned about the Execution Line yesterday, he had sincerely come to admire Yamanaka Chujiu.

His admiration for Yamanaka Chujiu's wisdom—borrowed knowledge—had given rise to a faint faith, which the Heart Severing Realm sensed and used to establish a connection.

In the dream brought on by that connection, Uchiha Itachi once again received Yamanaka Chujiu's teachings. They resolved the question that had troubled him for an entire year: how to achieve peace.

The answer was that peace could not be achieved out of thin air. The brave had to step forward and hold the war back, keeping it outside the paradise of peace.

But the brave were not gods. They could not withstand attacks from both front and rear, so there could be no threats behind those who stood against war.

Unfortunately, there was a huge threat within Konoha: Shimura Danzō, who coveted the Uchiha Clan, and Root, which he led.

Worse still, Shimura Danzō posed such a great threat because the Third Hokage protected him.

Uchiha Itachi immediately reached a conclusion: to safeguard peace, they needed the brave; to protect the brave, they had to deal with Shimura Danzō; to eliminate Shimura Danzō...

They had to get rid of Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi!

Although he could not recall the details of the dream, changes in his understanding would not automatically roll back just because some details were missing.

And so, Uchiha Itachi underwent a tremendous change overnight.

First, his allegiance had changed.

Yesterday, Uchiha Itachi had been a supporter of the Third Hokage. Today, he opposed him.

His relationship with Yamanaka Chujiu had changed, too. Before falling asleep, he had only begun to accept Chujiu. When he awoke from the dream, he felt a powerful, natural sense of closeness toward him.

So when Yamanaka Chujiu held out his hand, Itachi instinctively reached out and took it, obediently leaving Yamanaka Inoichi's home with him.

Yamanaka Inoichi, Yamanaka Rino, and Shikaku Nara, who had been watching from the shadows, were unfamiliar with Uchiha Itachi. Naturally, they had no idea how strange this was.

Uchiha Mikoto, however, was another matter. She was utterly stunned, her mouth hanging open.

Uchiha Itachi had been like a little adult since childhood and rarely showed the affection typical of an ordinary child. After he learned to walk, he had never even held his father Fugaku's hand.

Now, as he held Yamanaka Chujiu's hand, he did so as naturally as if they had done it countless times before and it had long since become a habit.

Mikoto did her best to hide her shock and left with them.

The treatment went very smoothly.

Yamanaka Chujiu took Uchiha Itachi to Konoha Hospital, gained entry to the Advanced Treatment Zone by showing his face, used the Brass Key to unlock a key node in the Sealing Array, and activated the Mental Sealing Array.

With the array amplifying his power, he easily poured his mental energy into Uchiha Itachi's mind and performed a series of operations on his memories: sealing them off, blurring them, and connecting them through logic.

Since Uchiha Itachi's thinking had been updated the previous night and formed a complete logical pathway, a single treatment cleared the obstacles in his new line of reasoning and blocked out his old psychological trauma. The treatment was a complete success.

Uchiha Itachi still longed for peace, but no longer dreamed of bringing complete peace to the Shinobi World. Instead, he set his sights on protecting Konoha, the Uchiha Clan, and his own family.

His goals had become clear, and Yamanaka Chujiu had provided him with a path to achieve them, along with specific directions and steps. The weight on his heart lifted entirely.

When Yamanaka Chujiu led Uchiha Itachi out of the Sealing Array, the face that had not smiled since he was four blossomed into a smile. "Mom, I'm better."

Uchiha Mikoto was overjoyed. She hugged her eldest son and kissed him. "You're better! My son is better!"

Countless people in the hospital witnessed the scene. No one cared that he was an Uchiha; they smiled kindly, and some even applauded. Uchiha Itachi blushed furiously.

But he did not shove his mother away in embarrassment. Instead, he mustered his courage and kissed her back.

Uchiha Mikoto was so happy she could have flown. Tears slipped down her cheeks before she even realized it, but her smile grew brighter still.

A moment later, Mikoto composed herself and took Yamanaka Chujiu's hand. "You've been busy treating Itachi since this morning. You must be exhausted."

"Please, let me treat you to a meal at the barbecue restaurant as a small token of my gratitude."

This kind-hearted woman had not considered that this kind of interaction, which went beyond the doctor-patient relationship, would be a bother to Yamanaka Chujiu.

But Yamanaka Chujiu smiled and nodded. "I'm actually starving, so I won't stand on ceremony, Senior Mikoto."

Uchiha Itachi realized there was a problem, too. But when he tried to warn his mother, Yamanaka Chujiu's smile stopped him.

Itachi understood Chujiu's meaning with perfect clarity: It's fine. This is exactly what I want.

He was a little puzzled by how he could understand what Yamanaka Chujiu meant just by seeing him smile, but he never doubted that he might have misunderstood.

This was the first believer of Yamanaka Chujiu. Once the connection to him had been established through the Heart Severing Realm, Itachi understood and trusted Chujiu without question or need for reason.

Before long, Uchiha Itachi had pushed aside even his last doubts and happily enjoyed a lavish meal with his mother and Yamanaka Chujiu.

After the meal, Yamanaka Chujiu left the Akimichi BBQ Restaurant and, unsurprisingly, sensed a familiar, utterly indifferent emotion.

Shimura Danzō had assigned Root shinobi to watch him.

From that emotionless state, Yamanaka Chujiu could tell that the Root shinobi watching him had almost no sense of self. Their brainwashing was utterly deranged.

The moment his strands of thought latched on, the two Root shinobi were controlled without the slightest resistance. In the blink of an eye, they had become living puppets under Yamanaka Chujiu's command.

Yesterday, to keep the Uchiha shinobi from rushing into the Shanty Town, Yamanaka Chujiu had sacrificed eight living puppets with the strength of Chunin.

Today, he had only gained two, but they were stronger—undoubtedly elite among Chunin. And since they could freely carry out missions in the village, they more than made up for his losses.

So this wasn't surveillance at all. They had come bearing gifts!

Thanks for the generous gift, Danzo!

Well, good things came in pairs!

Yamanaka Chujiu turned around and took the two Root shinobi to the Shanty Town. He picked out the twenty finest corpses from among those Root had processed and sealed them in the storage scroll he carried with him.

Ten minutes later, those corpses became Orochimaru's experimental materials, and Yamanaka Chujiu came away with a pleasing amount of wealth.

Orochimaru asked again, "Have you made up your mind?"

Yamanaka Chujiu put away the money, smiled brightly at Orochimaru, and dropped to his knees with a thud. He knocked his head against the ground three times with loud bangs.

"Teacher Orochimaru, your student Yamanaka Chujiu bows to you!"

Orochimaru: "..."