Were You Crying, Mr. Itachi?

The Light Screen in the sky reacted once more.

Now playing: "Even as a Failure, I Loved My Little Brother."

A sorrowful melody slowly began to play.

Tearful version: "Piecing Together Memories for You"

May you keep a heart like the moon.

The memories we shared.

I gathered every one with care.

I always cried in secret.

Like a weary bird that had lost its way home.

The Light Screen in the sky slowly came into focus.

The video gradually revealed two grown men in black Akatsuki Robes.

They stood inside a stone cave, sheltering from the rain.

Drip, drop.

One of the men wore a black Akatsuki Robe and had a sharklike face.

His name was Kisame Hoshigaki, a former member of Kirigakure's Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.

Beside Kisame Hoshigaki stood Itachi Uchiha, son of the former head of Konoha's Uchiha clan.

Konoha

Fugaku Uchiha recognized the man at first sight. It was his eldest son, Itachi Uchiha.

Fugaku Uchiha saw that his son would one day wear the same clothes as the Mystery Masked Man.

Itachi, so that's the path you chose for your future.

But as your father, I can see the sorrow in your eyes.

Let me see what kind of path you chose.

For all Fugaku Uchiha's sternness, seeing his son's future self filled him with an indescribable pain.

Kisame Hoshigaki watched the rain grow heavier and joked, "Looks like this rain isn't stopping. It's only getting worse."

Itachi Uchiha gazed calmly at the downpour, then slowly stepped out of the cave.

Kisame Hoshigaki paused when he saw Itachi Uchiha walk out. In the end, he called after him, "Getting soaked isn't good for you, Mr. Itachi."

Itachi Uchiha ignored Kisame Hoshigaki's warning.

Outside the cave, Itachi Uchiha slowly raised his head.

He paid no heed to the rain soaking his body. He simply stared at the sky, his expression full of pain.

Drip, drop...

Heavy raindrops struck Itachi Uchiha's face.

Kisame Hoshigaki was about to tease him again when he realized something.

For an instant, Kisame Hoshigaki thought he saw Itachi Uchiha crying.

Kisame Hoshigaki let his mocking expression fade and quietly asked, "Mr. Itachi, this downpour almost makes it look like you're crying..."

Without Kisame Hoshigaki noticing, a tear slowly slid from the corner of Itachi Uchiha's eye.

Only in the rain did Itachi Uchiha dare reveal his most vulnerable side.

To Itachi Uchiha, the rain gave him the courage to face the failure he believed himself to be.

Or perhaps he was mourning his parents and his clan...

Itachi Uchiha slowly closed his eyes.

The Light Screen in the sky showed Itachi Uchiha's memories.

A small, youthful hand gently pushed open a door.

As the door swung open, a young Itachi Uchiha came into view, gripping a bloodstained Samurai Sword.

The view slowly drew closer...

At that moment, the sorrowful music swelled to a crescendo.

The young Itachi Uchiha fixed a bloodthirsty stare on Little Sasuke, who had just come home from school.

When Little Sasuke looked down, he saw two freshly killed bodies lying in front of the young Itachi Uchiha.

Little Sasuke looked again at the bodies on the floor of their home. They were his father and mother...

The two bodies before Itachi Uchiha were Fugaku Uchiha and Mikoto Uchiha.

Little Sasuke stared in disbelief at the young Itachi Uchiha, who suddenly seemed both familiar and strange.

Before Little Sasuke could ask a question,

the young Itachi Uchiha locked his eyes on him with a murderous glare.

Without a moment's hesitation, the young Itachi Uchiha's crimson Three Tomoe Sharingan transformed into the Mangekyō Sharingan.

He immediately cast some kind of Genjutsu on Little Sasuke.

Clang!

"My foolish little brother."

No one knew what the young Itachi Uchiha had made Little Sasuke see.

The moment the young Itachi Uchiha used his Mangekyō Sharingan,

Little Sasuke collapsed to the floor and raised both hands in agony.

He clutched his head with all his strength, writhing on the floor as he cried, "No!"

"Stop it! Stop it!"

Little Sasuke's body convulsed from sheer terror.

Foam spilled from his mouth, and despair filled his eyes.

He lay on the living room floor, crying out again and again.

Aaaah...

"Stop it!"

The young Itachi Uchiha lowered his head slightly and looked toward Little Sasuke, murder in his eyes.

"Heh."

The young Itachi Uchiha berated him with open disappointment. "You're worthless. As you are now, you don't deserve to die by my hand."

"Weak..."

The young Itachi Uchiha raised his foot and kicked Little Sasuke hard in the stomach.

Thud...

Little Sasuke flew backward and slammed into the floor.

Looking at the unconscious Little Sasuke, the young Itachi Uchiha said coldly, "You're far too weak."

"As you are now, you aren't even worthy of dying by my hand."

The young Itachi Uchiha stared once more at the unconscious Little Sasuke, his eyes greedy and bloodthirsty. "Heh. Keep living your ugly life."

"My foolish little brother."

"Work hard and grow stronger."

"Heh, haha."

"Only... only then will you be worthy of becoming my light."

Whoosh...

A long-haired young man in a tiger-striped mask and black samurai clothes leaned lazily against a pillar, his arms crossed. "What's wrong? Couldn't bring yourself to kill your little brother?" he asked with a bloodthirsty grin.

The young man in black samurai clothes was Obito Uchiha.

The young Obito Uchiha continued to taunt him. "If you can't do it, why not let me help you?"

The young Itachi Uchiha heard Obito Uchiha offer to kill his little brother.

His Mangekyō Sharingan flared to life, and he warned Obito Uchiha with murderous intent, "Stay out of my business."

"If you dare go after my little brother, I'll make sure you never leave this place."

Obito Uchiha promptly raised both hands in surrender.

"Ahaha..."

"Don't be so cold. I was only joking."

The young Itachi Uchiha ignored Obito.

Instead, he feigned indifference. "It's not that I couldn't bring myself to kill him. He's simply my prey."

As the young Itachi Uchiha walked slowly away, he said coldly, "This tiresome clan has long since ceased to satisfy my need to test my abilities."

"I only spared him so he could prove the extent of my abilities someday."

Obito Uchiha gave him a knowing half-smile. "I understand. Don't worry, I won't touch your little brother."

Watching the expressionless young Itachi Uchiha ahead of him, Obito Uchiha added, "Don't be so cold. I'm the partner you asked to come along, aren't I?"

The young Itachi Uchiha replied coldly, "You've received the payment we agreed on. It's time for you to leave."

"Oh-ho... That's true."

"It really is time to go."

"But..."

Obito Uchiha deliberately teased him. "Don't you want to know"

"what that woman said to me before she died?"

The young Itachi Uchiha trembled at Obito's words.

He stopped abruptly and waited in silence.