Itachi's Doubts

"Orochimaru... is he in the Land of Lightning right now?"

Itachi stared at the black phantom opposite him, quietly confirming the information that had just come from its mouth.

Pain looked at Itachi through the projection of the Illusionary Body Technique and nodded slightly to him:

"This is intelligence from Sasori's informant in the Land of Lightning: there are traces of Orochimaru's activities near the Cloud Thunder Mountain Range."

He looked at the itachi in front of him and said in a solemn tone:

"Itachi, immediately stop all your current missions and head to the Land of Lightning to meet up with Sasori."

If you encounter Orochimaru -on, try to kill him on the spot.

Pain paused, his deep voice sounding particularly cold and hard in the small room:

"Akatsuki... We will never tolerate the existence of traitors!"

Itachi listened to Pain's commands with a blank expression.

Beneath his calm exterior, countless thoughts were churning wildly in his mind.

Orochimaru...

Itachi murmured Orochimaru's name in his mind, and the battle they had fought not long ago involuntarily came to mind.

At that time, Danzo and Orochimaru reached a cooperation agreement under unknown conditions.

They deliberately set a trap, attempting to ambush themselves.

But the outcome of that ambush ultimately surprised even himself.

He didn't even have to exert much effort; he simply used the power of his Mangekyō Sharingan to almost completely overwhelm Orochimaru and Danzo.

Danzo escaped severely injured due to his own deliberate holding back.

Orochimaru, after molting and escaping, defected from the Akatsuki shortly afterward...

Recalling the battle not long ago, Itachi felt a sense of gravity rise in his heart.

He originally thought that Danzo was worried about him as an "unstable factor," so he secretly colluded with Orochimaru, wanting to use Orochimaru to get rid of him.

It was precisely because of this suspicion that he deliberately let Danzo leave.

The aim was to give him a profound enough deterrent, so that he would always be mindful of his existence in the future and would not dare to easily extend his reach to Sasuke was still far away in Konoha.

But now, combined with the intelligence that Danzo had already defected to Konoha, he had to overturn this erroneous conclusion.

If Danzo had already defected from Konoha before that, then his cooperation with Orochimaru wouldn't be as simple as he thought...

Thinking of this, Itachi felt a rare pang of annoyance.

I have to admit that I miscalculated in the matter of Danzo.

If I had known earlier that Danzo had betrayed Konoha, I would never have let him leave so easily!

But Itachi quickly suppressed this untimely frustration, and his usual calm returned to his eyes.

Regret is pointless; it's the most useless emotion!

The most important thing now is to summarize the direction to take next from the existing information.

Itachi recalled the clues about Orochimaru that Pain had just mentioned, and a glint of light flashed in his eyes.

Danzo and Orochimaru had an extremely deep collaboration, and Orochimaru must know something about Danzo.

"Perhaps we can find out from Orochimaru what exactly happened to Danzo, and his current whereabouts..."

With that in mind, Itachi temporarily suppressed the thought in his mind of "secretly returning to Konoha to investigate in the near future".

He gathered his thoughts, looked at the black phantom still waiting for his response, and replied calmly:

"I understand. I will set off for the Land of Lightning as soon as possible."

Hearing the itachi's unwavering response, Pain nodded in satisfaction, then, as if suddenly remembering something, added in a calm tone:

"Furthermore, Uchiha Kuro is currently operating near the Land of Lightning, and he will also participate in this mission to defeat Orochimaru with you."

Upon hearing Kokoro's name, Itachi's usually calm expression faltered slightly for a moment.

"Knock?"

Itachi asked Pain with some surprise, his tone clearly showing disbelief.

Pain clearly noticed the change in Itachi's expression, but he neither pointed it out nor pressed for details.

He simply used his usual, emotionless tone to calmly "admonish" her:

"Although your relationship with Koko isn't very harmonious, he is, after all, an excellent ninja who wouldn't let personal feelings interfere with his missions."

You can rest assured about that.

Pain looked at the silent Itachi before him and continued in a calm tone:

"Moreover, Kou had previously fought Orochimaru head-on and had some knowledge of Orochimaru's fighting style and information."

With him there, the success rate of this operation will be much higher.

Itachi listened silently to Pain's words, his brows furrowing slightly as if he were deep in thought.

Seeing that Itachi did not respond immediately, Pain stopped talking and simply observed his reaction quietly.

"... There's something I'd like to confirm."

After a moment, Itachi looked at Pain with his eyes, which had regained their composure, and asked earnestly, with a hint of probing:

"Knock on him, does he know I'll be participating in this mission too?"

"He knows."

Pain's tone remained calm, without any hesitation.

"... Yeah."

Itachi murmured in a heavy voice.

He suppressed the turmoil in his heart and calmly said to Pain:

"I understand. I will set off as soon as possible to join Kou and Xie."

Pain gave Itachi a meaningful look, then nodded in satisfaction.

"That's good. I've already transferred the specific meeting point provided by Scorpion to your ring using the Illusionary Body Technique. You can check it yourself."

Itachi glanced down at the vermilion-lettered ring on his finger, which was still faintly glowing with a dark red light, and nodded to indicate that he had received it.

That's all I wanted to say.

Pain glanced at Itachi one last time, and said in a solemn voice:

"I hope you will cooperate well in the upcoming mission and eliminate this traitor as soon as possible."

"... clear."

After receiving Itachi's brief and decisive response, Pain nodded, and the black phantom slowly dissipated.

The subtle sense of oppression that had been hanging over the room dissipated.

Only Itachi remained in the room.

Itachi stood silently for a moment, then walked to the window and looked out into the distance once more.

This time, however, he wasn't looking in the direction of Konoha.

Itachi gazed in the direction of the Land of Lightning. A figure he once knew very well, but now could not fathom at all, slowly emerged in his mind.

"Knock, what... exactly do you want to do?"

Itachi murmured solemnly, his eyes filled with deep doubt.

"Knock on him... how could he possibly agree to go on a mission with me?"

Itachi pondered Pain's words, his eyes filled with deep confusion.

He was not unaware of his own extreme self-loathing.

If we were to discuss the person in this world who most wants to die,

Even Sasuke Uchiha who was forced to watch a 24-hour ultra-high-definition replay of the massacre of his clan using Tsukuyomi and then angrily activated his One-Tomoe, might have to rank behind Kou.

If I were to die one day, and my assholes were dug up from the ground, chopped into pieces, and fed to the stray dogs by the roadside, I wouldn't be surprised at all.

How could someone who loathes me to this extent agree to go on a mission with me?

There's definitely something wrong here!

Thinking of this, Itachi fell into a brief moment of contemplation.

The reason Kou made this decision must be because there were benefits he couldn't refuse.

The Akatsuki clearly wouldn't offer him a reward that would move him in this matter.

In other words... the key issue may very well lie in this mission!

"Is it related to some secret technique possessed by Orochimaru, or perhaps...?"

Itachi murmured to himself, rapidly considering several possibilities in his mind.

But after failing to come up with a definite answer, he finally shook his head slowly.

"It seems we can only ascertain his purpose when we carry out the mission together."

Itachi gathered his scattered thoughts, but the seriousness in his eyes did not dissipate; instead, it became even heavier.

However, this mission with Kou might also be an opportunity.

An opportunity to unravel the mystery that has plagued my heart for years!

I knocked on his door... why did he leave Konoha?

And is Shisui's other Sharingan currently in his possession?

Thinking of his dear friend who had passed away many years ago, Itachi felt as if something had gently bumped into his heart. A wave of bitterness and heaviness washed over him, and he closed his eyes heavily.

Ultimately, I failed to fulfill Shisui's request, and I failed to peacefully resolve the conflict between the Uchiha and Konoha...

After a long while, Itachi slowly and coldly opened his eyes.

Those dark eyes no longer held any pain or reminiscence, only a resolute determination shrouded in calm.

"... Knock, I hope you don't have any intention of threatening Konoha."

Itachi gazed towards the Land of Lightning, his cold voice slowly descending in the moonlight:

"If I confirm that you will pose a threat to Konoha Sasuke, even if it goes against Shisui's last wish, I will take that Mangekyō Sharingan."

Then..."

He paused here, and three Tomo silently appeared in his black eyes, then quickly connected together, transforming into Mangekyo in the shape of a Shuriken:

"I'll kill you."

The moment Itachi's murderous words fell, the image of that forest from many years ago involuntarily surfaced in his mind.

That was an ordinary mixed forest on the edge of Konoha, near the upper reaches of the Naka River.

Sunlight streamed through the gaps in the tree canopy, forming beams of light that shone on Shisui, his elder brother Kou, and himself...

Those were among the few moments in Uchiha Itachi's life when he genuinely felt joy and peace...

Itachi took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the memories in his mind back to the depths of his heart, and then resolutely turned away.

He then lowered his head and murmured in a low voice:

Even if I... don't want to do it.

The moment Itachi finished speaking, his figure vanished silently from the dimly lit room.

The lone lamp that had been burning in the room went completely dark after Itachi left...

(The next chapter shifts perspective, focusing on White Fang and Asuma of the Land of Iron, currently being written...)