Worthy of Being My Son

[Dragon Cave]

Shisui was slightly taken aback when he heard the name. It was a legend that appeared only in ancient texts. They were going to a place like that?

He really didn't know whether Itachi had gone completely mad.

Read on Google Search.

"I can start looking into it, but Danzō has assigned me some related missions lately."

!!!

"What missions?"

Itachi asked with a hint of nervousness. This wasn't him being overly sensitive. Logically speaking, Danzō should have made his move by now.

"They're just trivial matters."

Apparently, because of the mission, Shisui remained tight-lipped. He hadn't expected Itachi to ask about the details so specifically.

Suddenly, he felt his wrist being grabbed, and those eyes stared straight at him.

This guy.

"What are you trying to do?"

Feeling uncomfortable beneath that burning gaze, Shisui turned his head slightly away, though he still let Itachi hold onto him.

An ambiguous tension seemed to burn in the air.

All this time, he had treated Itachi Uchiha as his own younger brother. Their relationship had even surpassed that of ordinary friends.

"Danzō wants nothing more than to get rid of us. Don't trust him. I also heard that he's already activated—"

Shisui looked utterly confused. A genius when it came to training, he naturally knew little about the twists and turns of human relationships, especially after hearing the information Itachi had revealed.

"Why are you telling me this?"

For some reason, he felt touched. Seeing how guarded the other boy was, he figured Itachi must have heard something.

Ninja intelligence never came from nowhere. There had to be a source for everything.

"Because I see you as my own son!"

Itachi shrugged, then burst into laughter at Shisui's stunned expression.

He couldn't be this relaxed around those people in the Anbu.

"You bastard, you actually dared to make fun of me? See if I don't tickle you to death."

Shisui was a little annoyed and wanted to flick the guy on the forehead. But when he saw that Itachi was wrapped up like a mummy, he decided against it. Still, some other punishment was unavoidable.

One of the Uchiha Clan's few near-Kage-level powerhouses couldn't be allowed to get hurt like this.

"Hehe, you think you can do whatever you want? Not anymore."

Their laughter carried straight through the wall, making the gloomy faces of several nearby wounded patients twitch slightly.

Where had these little brats come from?

Still, they did lighten the deathly atmosphere in the ward quite a bit.

"Ahem."

Izumi Uchiha entered from outside with a bundle of clothes in her arms. Seeing the two of them nearly tangled together, she blushed and coughed lightly. Having been caught like this, both of them instantly felt incredibly awkward.

She smoothed her long dark hair. With a third person now intruding on what had been their private time together, the lively, talkative girl suddenly blushed so hard that she couldn't speak.

"Then I won't disturb you two."

Though Shisui's emotional intelligence wasn't exactly high, he at least knew how to read the room. Remembering the rumors outside, he hurriedly made room for them.

"Hey, don't leave!"

Itachi and Izumi spoke in unison. Their perfectly synchronized timing immediately made Izumi's face turn even redder.

"What, you don't want him to leave?"

Seeing Shisui scramble out through the window, Izumi could no longer hold herself back. She grabbed Itachi by the ear and scolded him in feigned anger.

"Ma'am, it hurts, it hurts!"

Itachi jumped in fright. Had she learned ninjutsu and monstrous strength from Tsunade?

Though compared to Tsunade and Shizune, she still lacked a bit of that particular flair.

"What are you looking at, you pervert?"

Seeing him sizing her up, Izumi immediately felt a tingling sensation all over her body. Damn Itachi—when had this brat become such an old-fashioned lecher?

Could it be because of Oda Misuzu, that busty Anbu beauty who had gone on missions with him?

A woman's intuition could be frighteningly accurate. In that instant, she felt an unprecedented sense of danger.

"What did I do? I clearly didn't do anything. Are you just looking for an excuse to hit me?"

Itachi said aggrievedly. After all, he simply couldn't bring himself to spank this girl, so he could only indulge her willfulness.

"I don't care. You've gone bad. You're becoming more and more shameless."

After Izumi gave him a few punches with her pink little fists, she realized she might have exposed her true nature. That only made her more embarrassed and angry. Her pretty face turned tenderly crimson, as though droplets of dew might seep from that rosy flush.

"I-I'm innocent!"

Itachi was nearly beaten into a pig's head and could only retreat deeper into the hospital bed.

Speaking of which, that bastard Shisui had abandoned him at the crucial moment. Wasn't that practically asking for his life? It was just one teasing remark—was it really necessary?

The sorrow in his heart nearly made him want to look up at the sky and sigh.

"Father, why are you here?"

Itachi tried to sit up, hoping he might be able to slip away.

"Fine, you're still trying to be clever."

Izumi was furious. Her childish nature and urge to play had been stirred up, so naturally she wanted to make a proper fuss. Still, many of her later reactions were merely meant to cover up the earlier issue.

Sometimes, once a person told one lie, they had to keep lying to cover up the previous one.

"Ahem."

A burly man appeared at the ward door with his wife. His short black hair was as thick and lustrous as a woman's. He wore a dark blue robe, with the Uchiha Clan's fan crest embroidered on his back and the emblem of the Konoha Military Police Force on both shoulders.

Fugaku Uchiha, the unquestioned leader of the clan.

He was mild-mannered and steady, highly respected and beloved within the Uchiha Clan—and he was also the father of the Itachi currently getting beaten in front of her.

"Why are you acting childish too?"

Mikoto Uchiha chided lightly, as if blaming Fugaku for interrupting the children's horseplay.

Still, the scene really was rather improper. Were these two children playing horseback archery or something? That posture...

Even through the blanket, Izumi was practically sitting on top of Itachi.

"Worthy of being my son."

Fugaku also felt awkward. After holding it in for a long time, he finally managed to squeeze out those words. He had originally thought that his son was so introverted and dull, knowing only how to become a ninja and carry out missions, that he might not know how to arrange his life properly.

Yet he hadn't expected him to have chosen a future wife so early. And she was such a lovely girl—her oval face already showed the beginnings of great beauty, and her delicate features, elegant brows, and refined countenance were no less impressive than those of a daimyo's beautiful consorts.

The boy certainly had good taste.

It wouldn't be surprising if he brought home a big, chubby grandson for him someday.

It seemed he had worried too much. Since when had there been such an outstanding young beauty in the Uchiha Clan without him noticing?

He had probably spent too much time focusing on the Military Police Force. He needed to put more energy into the family. Sasuke Uchiha would be grown up in a few years as well. At the very least, he had no demands when it came to looks—he just couldn't marry a woman who was too fiery.

If both women were that fiery, wouldn't they tear the roof off their house?

He still wanted his retirement years to be a little easier.