Little Itachi

Inside the Hokage Building, Sarutobi puffed on his long pipe. Sitting opposite him were Danzo and Utatane Koharu, and the group listened in silence to the reports from two Chunin instructors.

"Hmph! Such an unruly Uchiha, daring to question the Will of Fire. How on earth has Fugaku been raising his son?" Danzo, his arm and eye wrapped in bandages, let out a cold snort as he gripped his cane.

The Third Hokage remained silent, but Utatane Koharu stood up from her seat. "Monkey, what is your take on this?"

The Third Hokage flicked the ash from his pipe. "The border of the Land of Lightning is tense lately; it is not the time to spark further conflict with the Uchiha. How are the preparations for the Konoha relocation project coming along?" Sarutobi looked toward Danzo.

A sinister glint flashed in Danzo's eyes. "Heh, we will arrange a very suitable position for them."

"Do not go too far. Also, have Shisui come over. This intense opposition from the Uchiha is unacceptable. That boy Itachi, however, is quite promising; he has a deep understanding of the Will of Fire." At this, a faint smile appeared on Sarutobi's calm face.

"The Uchiha clan cannot be trusted. Sarutobi, do not let them deceive you!" Danzo cast an indignant look at him.

"I know my limits," Sarutobi replied coolly, ignoring Danzo to wait quietly for the Anbu to bring Shisui in.

"Lord Third!" Shisui, who had followed the Anbu inside, bowed respectfully to Sarutobi.

"Shisui, you're here!" Sarutobi's face broke into a warm, cheerful smile. "How have your missions been lately?"

"Thank you for your concern, Lord Hokage. Everything is going well!" Shisui bowed again, clearly moved by the Third Hokage's attention.

"Shisui, there is no need for such formality. I was a fellow student of your grandfather's; just call me Grandfather Sarutobi."

"But, Lord Hokage, you are the shadow of the village!" Shisui said, his face flushing slightly.

"What does being the shadow matter? We are all people of the same village. I've noticed your mission completion rate is excellent lately, and I am considering transferring you to the Anbu. How does that sound?" Sarutobi looked at the flustered Shisui with fatherly affection.

"Lor—"

Sarutobi gave him a slight glare, and Shisui immediately corrected himself. "Thank you for your trust, Grandfather Sarutobi!" Shisui said excitedly. No Uchiha had ever joined the Anbu before.

"The tension between the village and the Uchiha is quite severe lately. Shisui, the heavy responsibility of being the bridge between the Uchiha and the village falls to you. I hope you can inherit your grandfather's will and help the Uchiha integrate into the village."

"Yes! Please rest assured, Lord Hokage, I will do my best to ensure peace between the village and the Uchiha!" Shisui replied with fervor.

"You child, didn't I tell you to call me Grandfather? Why have you gone back to calling me Lord Hokage?" Sarutobi shook his head with a helpless smile.

Shisui scratched his cheek, looking embarrassed. "This... I'm just not used to it yet, Grandfather Sarutobi."

"Haha, you child. By the way, the Ninja Academy starts today. When you have time, guide your juniors. The spread of the Will of Fire within the Uchiha depends on your efforts."

"Yes, Grandfather Sarutobi!"

"Good! Go on and get back to your duties."

Shisui left the Hokage Building, his heart racing with excitement that refused to settle.

Right! Today is the day Yu and Itachi start school. I should go celebrate with them. With that thought, Shisui headed toward the ninja tool shop.

After some careful selection, Shisui bought two long swords forged from refined iron. These two Tachi, containing a small amount of Chakra Metal, cost him almost all the savings he had earned from his recent missions.

Yet, thinking of them as entrance gifts for Yu and Itachi, Shisui swallowed his heartache and began walking toward the Uchiha compound.

"Yu..." Izumi hesitated on the way home from school.

Itachi, walking behind them, remained silent.

"What is it, Izumi?" Yu gave her a wide smile.

"Yu, was it really okay to talk back to the teacher like that today?" Izumi asked, looking deeply worried.

"What's wrong with it? Izumi, that guy clearly has a prejudice against us Uchiha. If he doesn't find trouble with you today, he will tomorrow. Rather than being timid, it's better to strike back hard," Yu said dismissively.

He wasn't a civilian ninja who needed to learn ninjutsu from academy instructors. Even if he wanted to learn, the instructor would have to be capable of teaching him. His skills relied entirely on his Golden Finger; he couldn't even refine chakra yet, so he was clearly on a different path than the other ninjas.

He still couldn't replicate basic academy techniques like the Clone Technique or the Substitution Technique. He didn't know if it was because these techniques didn't align with the principles of Taoist Arts or if his cultivation level was simply too low to reach the great divine power of an External Incarnation. Regardless, no matter how he meditated, he couldn't grasp any Taoist arts related to cloning.

Yu felt helpless about this. If not for the fact that graduating from the academy would allow him to enter the ranks of ninjas and better collect negative emotions and Gratitude Points, he wouldn't have been willing to come to the Ninja Academy at all. Therefore, he didn't care in the slightest about offending the teachers.

"Brother, won't doing that damage the relationship between the clan and the village?" Itachi, who had been silent until now, finally spoke up.

Yu paused for a moment, then turned to look at Itachi, who was watching him with anxiety, and smiled. "Itachi, no relationship is one-sided. Whether it's friends, family, or the village and the clan, maintaining a harmonious relationship requires effort from both sides. Do you understand?"

Yu gently tapped Itachi on the forehead. Even though they were about the same height now, Itachi never resisted these intimate gestures from his older brother.

"But Brother, I hope to be the bridge between the Uchiha and the village. As long as we are outstanding enough to become the geniuses the village admires, we can gain the attention of the higher-ups. Using our status as the Clan Head's sons as a link, perhaps we can find a gentler way to reconcile the relationship between the clan and the village."

Looking at Itachi's determined eyes, Yu sighed softly. His younger brother was far too precocious; a small child already burdened with the ideology of a Hokage, always wanting to shoulder responsibilities far beyond his years in the name of genius.

Yu had mixed feelings about Itachi—he loved his maturity and obedience, but he hated that in the future, he would choose the village over his own parents without hesitation.

Itachi watched his brother in deep thought, feeling uneasy. He relied on his brother deeply—not just because they were siblings, but because of the maturity and reason Yu occasionally displayed, as if there were a hidden logic behind everything he did.

"Itachi, you and I are still just children. How can we bear such pressure and responsibility? At six years old, our understanding of the world is still very limited."

"Don't make decisions so early. Go see more, feel more. The relationship between the village and the clan is complex, yet simple—it is nothing more than a matter of unfair interests and a game of power."

"For now, let's just be children and grow up healthy and happy, okay?"

Yu patted Itachi's head. "Brother wants to see you smile more, Itachi!"

"For now, we should act like a couple of greedy kids. We can't let Izumi's kindness go to waste, can we?"

Itachi stared blankly at his brother, his eyes slightly unfocused. He still remembered when he was five, and their father wanted to take him to the battlefield to gain experience; his brother had vehemently opposed it. That was the first time he had ever seen his brother lose his temper.

His brother was strong. Although Yu rarely trained hard, Itachi knew he was powerful. Even at five, Yu was already on par with their father in Fire Style.

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