It was just past two in the afternoon.
In the little yard at Yan's house in the Uchiha Clan Compound.
He and Itachi had finished lunch and were sitting in the yard, letting their food settle.
"Teacher."
"I've heard my dad mention the recent trouble with the Konoha Military Police Force at home."
"But I can't make sense of it."
"The village won't fund the police force, but that shouldn't mean ordinary people have to foot the bill, should it?"
"I don't understand. Why?"
"If even I can figure that out, there's no way you don't see it, Teacher."
"So why do it anyway?"
Itachi's brows drew together slightly.
Clearly, he had been turning this over in his mind for days.
To be honest.
It was only because he had spent so much time with Jin that he knew his teacher wasn't a bad person at heart.
Otherwise.
He would have put "Jin Uchiha" on his list of enemies long ago.
So lately, he had tried not to dwell on how much the civilians were suffering. Instead, he had focused entirely on figuring out why his teacher was doing this.
Unfortunately.
He hadn't figured it out.
He was still a child, after all. Now that he had someone he could talk to, he couldn't keep everything bottled up forever.
Today, he finally couldn't help asking.
After hearing him out, Yan's expression remained calm.
He had anticipated this.
This was Itachi, after all.
A kindhearted child was bound to find these methods unacceptable.
Honestly, he had been thinking about it himself these past few days.
If Itachi couldn't hold back and asked, how should he explain it to him?
After giving it considerable thought, he had made up his mind.
He would tell the truth.
Lies wouldn't hold up for long.