I Was Overthinking

After the Hokage inauguration ceremony, Uchiha Itachi and the Ninja Crow bought a bag of mochi and stood beneath the Hokage Building, waiting for Fugaku to go home together.

Itachi didn't yet understand that he had awakened his Sharingan, and certainly didn't know how to deactivate it. Because he had been communicating with Beiyuan via chakra, the vast amount of chakra within the Ninja Crow was used to maintain a pair of Sharingan…

It was roughly equivalent to buying Jiraiya's books with Asuma's head… well, the bounty on Asuma's head… so the little boy didn't notice his chakra rapidly depleting.

He stood on the streets of Konoha with his Sharingan activated… with a cawing crow beside him… until the Police Force saw him.

It was a good thing for an Uchiha to awaken their Sharingan, but walking around the streets with them open wasn't ideal…

The Police Force had just cleared the onlookers when Fugaku emerged from the Hokage Building. The first thing he said, as expected… was probably: "To awaken them at this age… truly worthy of being my son!"

Beiyuan: "..."

This guy is addicted to praising his son!

It had to be said, Uchiha Itachi awakening his Two Tomoe Sharingan at the age of five was indeed a source of pride for his father… especially at the Hokage inauguration ceremony, due to the intense emotions…

Upon hearing the news, the two Hokages immediately became very interested in Uchiha Itachi. If it weren't for Itachi's young age, they would have wished Uchiha Fugaku would die immediately… and then support his son's ascension!

...What kind of person is this…

"Let's go home first, we can talk on the way…" Fugaku placed a hand on the back of Uchiha Itachi's neck and said to the excited clan members, "You all go back too! Don't spread word about Itachi in the clan…"

"Yes, Captain!"

The little boy keenly noticed his father's change in mood: "Dad, are you unhappy?"

"Well, I'm alright! It feels quite wonderful…" Uchiha Fugaku, for the first time, picked up his son and suddenly started laughing, "The last time I felt this way was when Itachi was born!"

"..."

Beiyuan, who had lived his life by the three illusions of good movies, fun games, and tasty snacks, and the young Uchiha Itachi, didn't quite understand his feelings.

Fortunately, Uchiha Mikoto's feelings were easy to understand…

"You're amazing, Itachi!" Mikoto praised him, placing her hands on his shoulders. She then looked up at her husband, her eyes filled with worry, "Itachi is still so young… his body…"

"It's fine, he'll adapt slowly."

The younger an Uchiha awakens their Sharingan, the longer the Sharingan accompanies them, and the easier it is to harmonize with their internal chakra… the only trouble was likely the psychological aspect.

The Sharingan wasn't so much controlled by negative emotions as it was a sudden burst of power when mental strength was dominated by emotions, causing the body's cells to produce energy that couldn't be quickly integrated into this burst of mental power to form chakra.

The Uchiha bloodline then transformed this mental power into a special type of chakra, which flowed to the eyes, thus awakening the Sharingan.

Fortunately, the people of Konoha had only a vague understanding of the Sharingan, with differing opinions. Some attributed it to negative emotions, others to extreme emotions, and some to the loss of something important.

Mentally lost, Uchiha Itachi had just found the Will of Fire he recognized, only to have his direction lost after being indoctrinated with the Ninja Crow's ideology of loyalty and filial piety…

This matter definitely couldn't be told to outsiders…

To be brainwashed by foreign ideology as a Konoha villager, what a talent! When it came to talk no jutsu, Konoha feared no one!

"Itachi, you now need to learn how to control the chakra within your body to close and open your Sharingan…"

"First, keep your Sharingan open and let it drain your body's chakra, so you can sense every meridian that supplies chakra to your Sharingan! Then, try to slow down the speed of chakra delivery!"

"However, you must not stop refining chakra within your body during this time! Because as your chakra becomes insufficient, the Sharingan will automatically seek out chakra within your body, increasing the number of channels that can supply chakra!"

"When the Sharingan no longer increases new chakra transmission channels, remember all the channels that can supply chakra to your Sharingan, then close the chakra supply route to your eyes, and you will be able to close your Sharingan."

What Uchiha Fugaku described was completely different from what the Police Force had said.

This was because most ordinary clan members who awakened their Sharingan would first sever some of the transmission meridians to their eyes. This would save chakra consumed by the Sharingan in the future, extending its active time…

But what Fugaku described was recorded in another ancient text… He firmly believed that his son would not stop at the Three Tomoe in the future, nor would he even stop at his own Mangekyo!

Fugaku had confirmed from the stone tablet at the Naka Shrine that the Mangekyo was not the end point of the Sharingan's evolution… Clearly, he felt that Itachi had the greatest potential to reach a new realm of the Sharingan!

Only those who had awakened the Mangekyo, like himself, would realize the preciousness of chakra transmission channels.

Beiyuan couldn't quite understand… he only saw Uchiha Itachi nod seriously and begin to sit down and refine his chakra…

…Wait… no… how do you understand?

At the same time, Uchiha Fugaku activated his Sharingan and observed the flow of chakra within his son's body… however, the amount of chakra and the refining speed were quite substantial.

Fugaku's Sharingan stared intently, and he whispered, "...As I said, first try to slow down the energy input of your chakra…"

Professional jargon, I don't understand, I don't understand…

Beiyuan boredly left the father and son… Mikoto reached out and beckoned for the crow to land on her arm, "So? Beiyuan, do you find it too boring inside?"

"Caw…"

Uchiha Mikoto couldn't understand Beiyuan's caw, but she could tell its meaning from its actions. It was a crow that was easily read by people.

"I have something I'd like to ask of little Beiyuan," Mikoto said with a smile as she smoothed a strand of her long hair, her voice gentle, "Can you?"

"...Caw."

Seeing the crow nod, Mikoto showed a worried expression, "...Regarding Itachi, I really don't know if this is a good thing or a bad thing…"

"...Itachi, as an Uchiha, awakened his Sharingan at the Hokage inauguration ceremony… many clan members must be saying things privately, right…"

"...I know Itachi very well. He doesn't have any playmates. Fugaku-kun has many responsibilities to bear and won't notice these things. But I'm worried…"

Beiyuan mused… it seemed Uchiha Mikoto's thoughts were more delicate than Fugaku's. She wasn't considering her son's future achievements, but rather Itachi's life within the clan compound… Truly a mother's concern…

Where could one even begin to reason? After all, Itachi, who awakened his Sharingan during the Hokage inauguration ceremony, would find it difficult to gain the trust of the Uchiha clan members. Besides Uchiha Shisui's faction, how many other Uchiha families truly supported the Hokage?

What's more, he was the son of the Uchiha clan head…

As a mother, Uchiha Mikoto's concerns were indeed comprehensive, but she still underestimated her son… Itachi was a strong child…

Beiyuan's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by Mikoto's voice.

"So I wanted to ask you, Beiyuan, if you could come with me to buy a gift?" Uchiha Mikoto raised her handbag. "If no one celebrates Itachi, will he feel disappointed…"

"…Huh???"

No, it was me who was overthinking and underestimated you as a mother…

This chapter has a lot of Sharingan theory, so I'll add another chapter tonig