A Choice Made by Free Will

From this perspective,

what Uchiha Itachi had come here today

to find out was obvious.

Whether his younger brother had been deceived by Namikaze Naruto, or whether some special circumstance had pushed him into making the extreme choice to defect from the village. (You're the last person who should call anyone else extreme. In this vast Shinobi World, the most extreme people are all members of the Uchiha Clan.)

And now,

having learned from Naruto that Sasuke had indeed heard some unexpected information, but had made his choice freely and of his own accord, the heaviest knot buried deep in Uchiha Itachi's heart quietly loosened.

It seemed deeply ironic.

Uchiha Itachi, who had spent his life deceiving his younger brother and even wanted to dictate the course of his life,

now cared so much about his younger brother's "free will."

But

that was just how the world worked.

Who didn't have a "double standard" buried somewhere in their heart?

Naruto was no exception.

It was the most "twisted" "rule of survival" in this world.

There was no need to find it strange.

That was simply reality.

As for whether Naruto had deceived him,

not only would such an accusation be pointless, but Uchiha Itachi could judge for himself based on his own experience and instincts.

Besides,

there was no difficulty

in finding evidence to support it.

"Yes. Even staying with Orochimaru was Sasuke's choice. His purpose is simple: you, Uchiha Itachi. I don't think it'll take long—at most another two years—and Sasuke will come looking for you himself! When that happens, whether you settle your old grudge or let fate take you in a different direction will be up to the two of you. I just want to say this: a lie can't last forever, and the so-called Will of