Encountering the Tiger-Masked Man Again

The financing negotiations had gone exceptionally well, and Itachi was rather pleased with himself.

After all, people didn't get rich without windfalls, and horses didn't grow fat without night grazing. He had successfully invested his entire fortune of two hundred thousand ryo into Uncle Ichiraku's shop and signed the corresponding contract.

He would receive fifty percent of the profits. From now on, Itachi Uchiha was a major shareholder here. As for whether they would eventually enter Konoha Village's food industry, they could slowly eat away at those commercial systems later.

What he valued more about Uncle Ichiraku's shop was not merely its ability to pass along information, but its potential as a promising investment.

There was also Uncle Ichiraku's daughter, Ayame Teuchi—a female chef with remarkable culinary talent and a passion for innovation.

As Uncle Ichiraku's daughter, Ayame Teuchi hadn't obediently followed her father in making traditional ramen. Instead, she had transformed ramen into dipping noodles and used her superb cooking skills to make them exceptionally good. She would even go on to develop women's favorite beauty and slimming ramen!

She was practically a money-printing machine. Perhaps one day, she could open chain ramen shops across the entire country.

Unfortunately, none of that could yet be directly included in Itachi's system settlement.

"Yo, isn't this the famous Itachi Uchiha?"

A crisp, pleasant voice came from the distance, carrying a teasing lilt. A beautiful long-haired girl stood there with her head tilted, looking at him. Her clear eyes were as pristine as the waterfalls of the Naka River.

Her lovely black hair flowed as smoothly as a waterfall. A beauty mark like a teardrop rested beneath the corner of her right eye, lightly accenting a stunning beauty that shouldn't have appeared on the face of someone her age. She was only ten, yet she had already grown into a budding beauty. It was hard to imagine just how breathtaking she would be in her twenties.

Izumi Uchiha!

Most of the time, she wore purple outerwear. The delicate trim on her purple cheongsam in particular made her graceful figure stand out all the more.

"You only know how to make fun of me. So, what about you? Has your mission ended?"

"Mhm. It was just a small matter of helping Princess Hiraoka Hime find her cat, nothing troublesome."

Izumi lowered her eyes and nodded, a faint blush flashing across her jade-like face.

Honestly, this was the first time Itachi had shown such concern for her feelings, the first time he had asked how she felt.

That blockhead had always acted like a straight-laced guy no matter what he did. Ask him anything, and he'd know nothing. The thing he cared most about was the tri-color sweet dumplings made by her family.

Why had he suddenly become so perceptive today?

A girl's thoughts were always elusive and unpredictable, but how could Itachi know so much? He even wondered whether something had gone wrong with the script.

Could this girl possibly have feelings for another man?

Itachi felt a softness in his heart. Aside from Sasuke Uchiha, she was one of the few people who could give him warmth.

"So, Mr. Itachi, could I invite you to my home for dinner? My parents said they wanted to thank you for taking care of me during this time."

Izumi smiled sweetly. Beneath the sunlight, her delicate little nose seemed almost translucent. These weren't the surgically altered, makeup-caked monsters of the modern age—she was a genuine beauty.

Itachi was momentarily dumbfounded.

"Is this meeting the parents? I'm not ready yet—"

"What?"

"Oh, I mean, my missions might be rather busy. I don't know whether I'll have time to go over."

Itachi scratched his head as he declined. He naturally didn't want to casually refuse one of his few close friends. Besides, the prosperity and revival of the Uchiha Clan would still need her help.

Seeing the girl's slightly disappointed expression, Itachi smiled and hurriedly changed the subject.

"I heard you awakened your one-tomoe Sharingan. I haven't had the chance to thank you yet. This scroll contains some of my insights, and it should be able to help you."

Izumi was stunned by those words. Then she covered her rosy lips with excitement, unable to say anything.

Trust between ninja meant nothing less than passing on one's personal experience to another.

During wars between ninja from different nations, even corpses had to be destroyed to ensure secrets wouldn't be leaked.

Much less something so important as this.

He had finally begun to see her as one of the most important people to him, that blockhead.

Izumi was at a loss. The clarity in her eyes rippled like a spring, and for a moment, crystalline tears seemed on the verge of spilling out.

"If there's nothing else, you should leave first. The Anbu will be carrying out a mission here soon. There are some things you're better off not knowing."

As though he had sensed something, Itachi's expression shifted and darkened. He then patted the girl's shoulder.

Izumi naturally wasn't like those jumpy women. She nodded, then vanished from the area in a few swift leaps.

After all, she had already achieved her goal today.

She had returned with a full haul.

"Come out. Why hide and skulk around? Do you really think I can't do anything to you?"

After watching that graceful figure depart, Itachi no longer had any pleasant expression to offer. He directly shouted at the surroundings.

There was clearly no one around, yet he could feel an invisible, mysterious current enveloping him. Faint distortions in the air even blocked the sunlight shining down.

This was definitely an energy far more terrifying than Konoha's barriers!!!

Itachi drew his short blade, not daring to underestimate his opponent in the slightest. His other hand was hidden in his sleeve, forming hand seals one-handed at any moment. Anyone who could silently approach him was worthy of his attention.

"Heh heh, I didn't expect your senses to be so sharp. You really have surprised me. If we're counting it, this should be our second meeting, right?"

The space several meters away twisted, and a tall masked man suddenly appeared before him. Tiger-like patterns circled the hollow around his single eye, and his entire body was wrapped in black robes.

Sharingan!

Itachi was slightly startled. Even he had been drenched in cold sweat in that instant.

Their previous meeting had been when this bastard had slaughtered his squad and helped him awaken his Sharingan!!!

"You may call me... Madara Uchiha!"

The masked man's hoarse voice rang out. Looking at this fledgling bird facing a great enemy, he spoke to himself.

What a powerful name that was. Just hearing that legendary, terrifying title made his pupils contract.

But for a man who had already watched more than eight hundred episodes of Naruto, he naturally knew all about some of the hidden truths behind the scenes.

"So what do you want? You didn't rashly return to Konoha for something this simple, did you?"

Itachi narrowed his eyes, not daring to relax in the slightest. As two wielders of the Mangekyo Sharingan, their clash of genjutsu could be completed in an instant.

And their clan possessed absolute bloodline suppression through the power of their eyes!

"I want to invite you to join my Akatsuki. He needs you very much."

The masked man chuckled darkly, his voice like the hoarse groan of a broken accordion.