When the Anbu aptitude observation list was delivered to Fugaku, no one in the room spoke.
Uchiha Itachi.
Extremely high aptitude.
The age was wrong.
The affiliation was wrong.
But the name was right.
That was more unsettling than an outright fabrication.
An outright fabrication could be torn up.
But a record that was half right and half wrong was like a hand reaching out ahead of time, trying to push Itachi down a certain path.
Fugaku stared at that line, his expression frighteningly cold.
"Who wrote this?"
Uchiha Makoto said quietly, "The copy came from an ordinary document folder in the Hokage Building, not an official Anbu file. We haven't been able to trace the original Recorder yet."
Fugaku pressed his fingers against the tabletop.
"Why would an Anbu aptitude list be in an ordinary document folder?"
No one answered.
Because that was precisely the problem.
Uchiha Gen glanced at Itachi.
Itachi stood straight, with no sign of panic on his face.
But his gaze was deeper than usual.
He knew he had been noticed.
He also knew someone wanted to map out his direction for him before he could choose.
Uchiha Gen spoke.
"We can't hide Itachi away."
Fugaku looked up.
"Are you sure?"
"Hiding him will only make it easier for others to arrange a dark path for him."
Gen placed the list on the table.
"Today, he appears in an ordinary document folder. Tomorrow, he could appear in an internal Anbu assessment. The day after that, someone could claim he's already agreed to secret observation."
Fugaku's gaze grew heavier.
"Then what do you propose?"
"Make it public."
Uchiha Gen said, "Put Itachi's course of study in the sunlight."
Itachi raised his head slightly.
Gen continued, "He can study paperwork, sit in on clan meetings, and help