Yu's Gentle Critical Hit

Itachi hurried to the training ground, but upon seeing the pockmarked, explosive craters on the ground, his expression turned instantly guarded.

"Mother, did an enemy come?"

Watching his youngest son standing guard with a kunai, a playful smile appeared on Mikoto's face. "Itachi, an enemy did indeed come!"

"Mother, don't worry, I will protect you!" With that, Itachi shielded Mikoto behind him and activated his two-tomoe Sharingan. This was the first time he had displayed his eyes to anyone other than his father.

Seeing this, Mikoto felt both touched and amused. "Pfft! My Itachi is so cute. The enemy Mother spoke of is just your mischievous older brother!" Mikoto gently stroked Itachi's head.

Itachi didn't react at first. It wasn't until the dust completely settled and he heard the conversation between his brother and his father that he instantly understood what was going on.

He turned his head to give his mother a helpless look, then glanced at his brother with envy. That was praise directly from Father's own mouth! I want that too!

This scene was captured by Yu. Seeing the two-tomoe in Itachi's eyes, Yu was slightly stunned, then stepped onto his Dharma Sword and flew over with a somber face.

"Itachi, you're awake," Yu asked softly.

At this moment, Fugaku also walked over. When he saw the two-tomoe in Itachi's eyes, he was also stunned, and then he became excited.

"Itachi, your eyes... Hahahaha! Not bad, Itachi! You truly are my son!" At this moment, Fugaku could no longer suppress the joy in his heart and let out a wild laugh; his two sons had given him far too many surprises.

Receiving praise from his father, the previously dejected Itachi revealed a faint smile on his small face.

However, when he looked at his silent brother, his little heart skipped a beat. "Brother! What's wrong?" Itachi asked uncertainly, wondering if his brother was unhappy because of the praise he had received from their father.

"Itachi, it seems I haven't cared for you enough lately," Yu said with a touch of melancholy, then looked at Itachi with gentle eyes. "Itachi, I'm sorry. This won't happen again!" Yu's tone grew increasingly tender.

Itachi, who had been wondering if he had upset his brother by receiving their father's praise, was stunned. After all, when he heard his father say that his brother was already a powerful ninja, he had felt a moment of deep disappointment. "Brother, why do you say that?" Itachi asked, his eyes darting away.

Yu reached out and patted Itachi's head, his voice becoming incredibly deep. "You are a six-year-old child who has never experienced the cruelty of war, nor lost any loved ones. What kind of stimulation could have caused someone so young to awaken the two-tomoe Sharingan?"

Yu sighed slightly, his hand pausing for a moment as he stroked Itachi's hair. "Brother has known since you were small that you are a very intelligent child. It is precisely that intelligence that made you understand responsibilities that do not belong to your age. Itachi! Do not shoulder every responsibility yourself; you have the village, the clan, and your father and brother!"

"Sigh! What kind of responsibility was weighing on you enough to force the awakening of your two-tomoe Sharingan, while I remained completely oblivious?" A bitter smile appeared on the corner of Yu's mouth. "Itachi! Tell me, am I not a very incompetent brother?"

"No! Brother!" Itachi shook his head hurriedly.

Yu did not give Itachi a chance to continue, instead speaking to himself. "Itachi! Please believe in your brother. This won't happen again. Since you are so worried about the clan and the village, then I, as your brother, must naturally stand firmly in front of you."

"Itachi! Brother will not let you stand alone in the darkness, lost. This time, forgive your brother!" After saying this, Yu reached out and tapped Itachi on the forehead.

By now, Itachi's eyes were already brimming with tears, and when Yu's finger touched his forehead, he could no longer hold them back.

[Gratitude Points +1000]

[Gratitude Points +500]

[Gratitude Points +1000]

[Gratitude Points +500]

[Gratitude Points +1000]

Itachi's emotions erupted like a flood, and the system sounds of massive gratitude points kept ringing in Yu's mind.

Behind Itachi, Mikoto's eyes were also shimmering with tears; she was truly moved by this tender scene from her eldest son.

Yu noticed the constant system notifications in his mind. From the numbers, he knew his self-reproach had not only caused Itachi's emotions to explode but had affected his mother just as deeply.

Fugaku stood blankly by Yu's side. His joyful laughter stopped abruptly. He opened his mouth to say something, but saw his wife casting a resentful look in his direction.

Suddenly, he felt that compared to Yu, he was a terrible father. He knew the process of awakening the Sharingan; it required intense emotional stimulation. He had been too busy rejoicing over Itachi's increased strength to consider how painful the process must have been.

Yu gently wiped away Itachi's tears. "Why are you crying? You should smile more in the future!"

"Let's go! We have to go back and face a whole crowd of people who need an explanation. Once that's done, when school starts, Brother will go buy you some Three-Color Dango!"

Hearing this, Itachi couldn't help but want to cry again, but remembering that he had already lost face in front of his brother, and that his brother had told him to smile more, he tried his best to suppress his emotions, resulting in a comical expression that was half-crying and half-laughing.

The future "Itachi-sama" of the Uchiha clan, the stoic man, had no resistance in the face of his brother's tenderness and could only let himself be led.

"Father, have you thought about how to explain tonight's events?" Yu turned to look at the stunned and bewildered Fugaku and asked calmly.

"Ah!"

Fugaku, who had instantly snapped back to reality, fell into deep thought. He absolutely could not say this was caused by a spar between him and his son. With the Uchiha currently being suppressed by the village high-ups, they were like a powder keg. If they knew another powerful combatant had emerged in the clan, there was no telling what kind of trouble would ensue.

Especially with the impending relocation of the clan grounds—this matter hadn't even been announced to the clansmen yet. Once announced, given the unfair terms, the clansmen would surely revolt, and with the addition of a genius as powerful as Yu...

Thinking of this, Fugaku's mind raced. "Just say that a mysterious ninja broke into the Uchiha clan grounds!"

Yu didn't say anything more about it. After all, it wasn't the first time Konoha had been attacked by mysterious ninjas. As long as they stuck to this excuse, the clansmen wouldn't have much suspicion, and even if they did, they wouldn't find any other cause.

Before long, several elderly men in their sixties and seventies, followed by a large group of clansmen, appeared at the front door.

A series of urgent knocks rang out. Mikoto stood up and opened the door. The lead elder, Uchiha Yashiro, led a large group of clansmen inside, completely ignoring the three people sitting opposite Fugaku.

"Clan Head, what exactly happened?" Uchiha Kudai asked in a deep voice.

"I have worried the elders. It was nothing more than a rat from the gutter that snuck in," Fugaku said calmly, kneeling on a cushion in the living room.

Uchiha Yashiro and the clansmen's expressions changed drastically. "How arrogant! Who could it be, daring to treat my Uchiha clan as nothing and attacking the Clan Head Residence in the middle of the night?"

All the Uchiha clansmen wore angry expressions, their eyes turning red as they looked at the Clan Head, who clearly bore the marks of a battle.

"I don't know. The enemy was very mysterious. I discovered them, but they fled after only a few exchanges. The clansmen must maintain high vigilance from now on."

"Even the Clan Head couldn't leave the enemy behind!" The expressions of all the Uchiha shifted.

"Clan Head, could it be that Uchiha who has been wandering outside since the Night of the Nine-Tails?" The hearts of all the clansmen leaped into their throats once more.

They were one step away from naming that person directly.

If it could be proven that it was the Uchiha who had caused the Nine-Tails Rebellion, they could prove to the village that the Nine-Tails Rebellion had nothing to do with their Konoha Uchiha. Everyone looked at Fugaku with expectant eyes.

"I am not certain. The enemy did not reveal any bloodline limits or ninjutsu that would serve as proof of being an Uchiha."

"Enough! Stop letting your imaginations run wild. Focus on the security of the clan grounds for the time being; such an incident must never happen again." Fugaku cut off the clan elders who were about to speak further.

"Yes, Clan Head!" The few clan elders turned and left, clearly unwilling to let the matter drop.