My Foolish Little Brother

A world-ending disaster had come to an anticlimactic end. It seemed God hadn't truly intended to destroy the world; He had only wanted it to feel the might of a god.

Qi didn't know how the various factions would react. He only knew that today's events had given him a serious headache.

Today's spectacle hadn't been a spur-of-the-moment decision by Qi. He'd planned it well in advance. He just hadn't expected things to get so out of hand.

The original plan for this display of Susanoo's power had been to intimidate the Third Hokage with a show of force. In short, it was a military parade.

He'd wanted the Uchiha to show off their best techniques and scare the Third Hokage, so the man would understand what he was about to face.

After all, war was politics by other means, and politics was the art of compromise. Qi had hoped a military exercise—a grand parade—would make the Third Hokage hesitate and lead him to misjudge the situation.

Since you, Third Hokage, have prepared six Kage Level fighters to face three pairs of Mangekyō Sharingan and fight a glorious battle of annihilation, I'll cut off one of your arms, then throw in the spectacle of four pairs of Sharingan. Let's see if you can still produce eight Kage Level fighters.

Why not win over Orochimaru, bring Fugaku onto his side, and then show all of Konoha the Uchiha Clan's strength? It would keep Konoha in line and strengthen the clan's unity. What was there to lose?

Qi wasn't planning to fight the Third Hokage anytime soon. If they did fight, he wanted to wait until he'd grown stronger—not necessarily by much, but at least enough to protect himself.

For all Qi's bluster, his real goal was to buy time.

So don't judge people by what they say. Judge them by what they do. No matter how loudly Qi shouted his slogans, all he wanted was a chance for him and Sarutobi to keep each other in check, leaving him enough time to improve his own strength.

A fight to the death left no room for carelessness.

If it came to blows, Sarutobi wouldn't hold back just because Qi was an Uchiha elder. If anything, he'd target Qi first, since he was the troublemaker.

But life was unpredictable. You never knew whether tomorrow or disaster would come first.

A military parade had turned into a nuclear test.

Qi had completely botched things. Only the future would reveal what kind of chain reaction would follow.

Qi and Fugaku, realizing that events had spiraled out of control, sat facing each other in the main hall of Naka Shrine.

Anyone could guess that the fallout from today's spectacle wouldn't be easy to handle.

The whole Shinobi World had seen the strange sight in the sky. Until they figured out what had happened to the Uchiha Clan, the Five Great Shinobi Villages wouldn't take their eyes off Naka Shrine.

The Uchiha Clan had lost its title as the foremost clan, yet once again it stood at the center of the Shinobi World's attention.

Fugaku, already torn up inside, sat across from Qi, more conflicted than ever.

Why was it so hard to be clan head? Just when he'd finally seen the clan grow strong, an even greater danger had come knocking.

They'd finally gained the strength to stand up to Konoha, only to find themselves under the scrutiny of the entire Shinobi World.

How were they supposed to deal with this? He had no experience with anything like it!

Fugaku tried several times to speak, hoping to discuss things with Qi. But when he saw the pained look on Qi's face, he didn't know what to ask.

Still, they had to face what was coming. Fugaku felt he ought to hear Qi's opinion. Only if they reached an agreement and stood united would they have the confidence to face the probes that were sure to come.

"Qi, what are you thinking about?"

Qi kept his eyes tightly shut, looking as though he was agonizing over the Uchiha Clan's future.

When Qi didn't answer, Fugaku pressed him.

"Qi, tell me what you think. Your opinion matters a great deal to me."

Unable to avoid Fugaku any longer, Qi finally spoke.

"Haha, Lord Fugaku, I was wondering: since your ocular technique gets any woman you stare at pregnant, would the child belong to you or to the clan?"

Uchiha Fugaku nearly spat blood. How could Uchiha Qi be so unreliable? He'd been a fool to bring this up with him. Even now, the man was thinking about nonsense.

Next time something came up, he'd better talk to Tenshen and Danjō. Children couldn't be trusted to handle things properly. If Qi hadn't egged him on today, they wouldn't have caused such a commotion that shocked the entire Shinobi World.

Fugaku was so furious he could hardly speak, while Uchiha Itachi was seething.

"Uchiha Qi, do you know what you've done today? Do you know what our clan will face after this? Do you think the Uchiha can withstand the scrutiny of the four great nations? This is a matter of life and death for our clan, Qi. I hope you understand that! Can you take this seriously? Think carefully about what terms we can offer the Hokage to get him to support us and help us through this crisis!"

"Please live up to your position as an Uchiha elder, Qi!"

When a man is innocent but holds a treasure, he is guilty in the eyes of the world. The Uchiha Clan was down to barely a thousand people, yet they'd caused all Nine Tailed Beasts to go berserk. Without an explanation, no village would feel at ease.

At such a critical moment, Itachi naturally resented Qi for acting so carelessly.

Hearing Itachi's complaints, Qi didn't even open his eyes. He gave a mocking snort.

"Hmph. Is there anything that would put Konoha more at ease than my head? Itachi, should I trade my life for Konoha's support?"

Itachi froze. Deep down, that was what he meant. He hoped Qi would understand and be willing to sacrifice himself for the Uchiha. If he were Qi, he'd do the same.

But he hadn't expected Qi to say it outright. He couldn't bring himself to admit that was what he meant.

"That's not what I meant. I just hoped—"

Before Itachi could finish, Qi waved a hand to stop him. He sighed, lowered his head, and began stroking his Imperial God Blade.

My foolish little brother, from the day you were born, all of Naka Shrine whispered your name: Uchiha Itachi.

Pride! When Qi said Uchiha Itachi's name, his voice brimmed with pride. His expression grew so intense that Fugaku couldn't help wondering whether Mikoto had done something behind his back—if Qi weren't too young to be her lover.

After calming the restless Amenotokotachi, Qi's tone gradually shifted from pride to admonition.

"My brother, I've watched you grow up day by day with pride, becoming the embodiment of justice. Remember, the Uchiha Clan has always relied on strength and pride to make its way through the Shinobi World."

Qi's tone grew more severe.

"Itachi, I hope you'll be cautious in how you wield your great power. But I also hope you'll remember that true victory lies in giving your clan hope and inspiration."

"One day, your father's life will reach its end. And you will be crowned king!"

When Qi finished speaking, Itachi froze. Ever since he'd known Qi, he'd felt that his father's attention was always drawn away from him and toward Qi. Though he was his father's pride, he'd always lived in Qi's shadow.

Unlike the empty praise of the Hokage's way of thinking, Qi's achievements had always been tangible.

But now Itachi didn't know what to do. He'd never realized that his annoying older brother had placed such high hopes in him.

Fugaku was shocked, too, but felt relieved. The rivalry between Qi and Itachi had always been a shadow hanging over him.

After all, the two were only five or six years apart. When Fugaku grew old and could no longer keep things under control, he didn't dare imagine what might happen between his talented son and his formidable elder.

Who would have thought that today Qi would make his position clear? He, too, had such high hopes for Itachi.

Perhaps things weren't as bad as Fugaku had feared. A united Uchiha Clan would surely weather this crisis.