Although Izumi's arrival added another Uchiha to those present, there was none of the warmth of a reunion between clansmen. Instead, a murderous chill settled over them.
After hearing Gamakichi's words, Izumi nodded and turned to Obito.
"You were the masked man that night?"
"...Yes."
Obito struggled to force the answer out of his throat.
If he had previously thought he was prepared, it was only when he actually saw Izumi that he realized how much guilt came with the original convictions he had rediscovered.
Of course he knew who the woman before him was. Intelligence on the Reshape Organization was one of his highest priorities.
She was the girl Naruto Uzumaki had saved that night all those years ago, and Itachi's former lover.
"I will make you pay."
Yet Izumi's voice was calm. Then her gaze shifted to Itachi.
"...I can't die yet."
"That isn't for you to decide."
The disjointed exchange between Izumi and Itachi baffled everyone around them. Only the two of them understood that this was the "promise" from their last meeting.
Don't ever let me see you again, or I will kill you!
Those had been Izumi's parting words to Itachi beneath the moonlight in the desert.
Looking at a face that bore no trace of the gentle smile in his memories, Itachi fell silent for a moment.
Finally, Izumi's gaze settled on Sasuke, a hint of apology in her voice. "Unfortunately, we aren't on the same side now, Sasuke."
Sasuke looked at Izumi. She looked even more careworn than when they had met in the Land of Wind.
During the time the Reshape Organization had been active, Sasuke was one of the few people who had had almost no contact with it.
It was as though the Reshape Organization had deliberately avoided him.
He