Waiting by a Tree Stump for a Rabbit

When Uchiha Itachi took care of Sasuke, he seemed even more attentive than Mikoto.

Throughout Konoha's streets and alleys, the little boy carrying a swaddled infant in his arms, with a crow perched on his shoulder, was once again seen running all over the village...

"Sir, could you pack me a bag of Three-Color Dango and rice cakes?" Itachi stood at the entrance of the sweets shop, holding Sasuke in one arm while gently patting him with the other. He looked remarkably practiced at holding a child.

The shopkeeper was stunned by Itachi's posture. "O-okay..."

"Caw..." The crow on Uchiha Itachi's shoulder flew down and landed on the counter, holding a banknote in its beak from who knew where.

The customers in the sweets shop seemed to be seeing such a sight for the first time, staring at them in surprise... Of course, there were exceptions, such as the ninjas at one table having afternoon tea. They had more important matters to deal with.

Arguing... and breaking up the argument...

One of the young men was clearly hot-tempered. He slapped the table and said, "Old man... no matter what you say... it doesn't change the fact that you'll continue serving as Hokage, does it? Lord Third!"

His voice clearly drew everyone's attention... An old man really was seated at that table, holding a Hokage hat in his hand. It truly was the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi. He certainly was approachable...

Kitahara watched the people who could sit at the same table as the Third Hokage. They looked familiar, but he did not know any of them... No, there was still one he could recognize, even though he still looked young...

That green jumpsuit laden with all sorts of implications, those thick eyebrows, and that bowl-cut hairstyle were unique in all of Konoha—Might Guy...

Guy covered his head and forced a smile as he defended his superior. "Asuma, the Third was already Lord Hokage to begin with..."

The young woman at the table was clearly more capable. She spoke in a measured tone, "Besides, there isn't anyone more suitable in the village. Lord Hokage is obviously considering the village's interests..."

"...Puff, puff..." Hiruzen Sarutobi merely lowered his head and smoked his pipe as he watched his furious son. The way he worried was no different from any other father...

"...He's just clinging to power!"

Asuma brusquely shook off the young kunoichi's hand and stormed away... As his friend, she naturally could not simply leave him alone, so she was the first to chase after him.

Might Guy let out a long breath, suddenly rose to his feet, and rushed out of the sweets shop, leaving behind a resounding declaration. "Lord Third, please rest assured! I'll talk him around properly!"

"...Puff, puff..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi continued smoking, seemingly holding out little hope for them. At last, he exhaled a huge smoke ring and slowly walked out of the sweets shop.

Smoking in public was poor manners, but given Hiruzen Sarutobi's appearance and status, no one dared step forward to say anything...

"Customer, your Three-Color Dango and rice cakes!"

The shopkeeper's sudden call caught the Third Hokage's attention. The old man lowered his head and saw Uchiha Itachi holding a child, along with the crow stretching out its claws to hook the bag of food...

"So it's Itachi... What a well-behaved child!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice was heavy with the weariness of parenthood. If his wife, Sarutobi Biwako, were still alive, he would not have needed to worry so much about Asuma.

"Lord Hokage."

"Is this Fugaku's second child? A girl? What's her name?" Hiruzen Sarutobi tapped out his pipe and glanced at the sleeping child in the swaddling clothes.

"No, he's my younger brother. His name is Sasuke."

"Cough, cough... cough... cough..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi choked on his smoke. He had nearly forgotten about that. Uchiha Fugaku had mentioned back then that he intended to name his second child after his father, Sarutobi Sasuke...

It felt strange. The old man suddenly thought of his own father... Back then, in his father's eyes, he had probably been much like Asuma, hadn't he?

"What a fine name..." After catching his breath, Hiruzen Sarutobi stroked Sasuke's sparse hair. "Grow up quickly and become a dependable man!"

Uchiha Itachi looked at his little brother's face and affectionately rubbed his forehead against Sasuke's. "Did you hear that, Sasuke? You need to grow up quickly!"

"Hmph, hmph, hmph, hmph~" Sasuke hummed a few times with his eyes closed and gave a tiny yawn. The noise along the way had exhausted him, and he soon fell back into a deep sleep.

Caw!

The crow landed on Itachi's head with the bag in its beak. Its crimson eyes looked at Sasuke with disdain. Like a little piglet, all he knew was sleep, sleep, sleep... If he had the guts, he should keep crying...

The Third Hokage observed Kitahara's movements before suddenly asking, "Is this the crow Itachi raised? Everyone in the village has been talking about you two. It does look a little fierce..."

"He's my friend." Itachi freed one hand and stroked the crow atop his head. "Kitahara actually has a very gentle temperament!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi: "..."

Was something wrong with this child's eyes...? Just from its appearance, it did not look like a nice bird. And that glare just now had been fierce enough to seem as though it wanted to tear Sasuke apart. The feeling it gave people... was extremely unfriendly... not to mention its clearly indiscernible Chakra level...

Normally, whenever a leader was rendered speechless, some tactless subordinate ought to jump out, report some trivial matter, and conveniently give him an excuse to leave.

As the department directly under the Hokage's command, the ANBU had to help share his burdens... Sure enough, a masked ANBU suddenly appeared and dropped to one knee before Hiruzen Sarutobi.

But whether this ANBU ninja wore a mask or not... aside from Kakashi Hatake, how many people in all of Konoha had white hair?

"Lord Hokage, the ANBU... has received a top-secret piece of intelligence!" Kakashi abruptly raised his head, his voice carrying a resolute edge.

Hiruzen Sarutobi put his pipe back between his lips. Seemingly unconcerned that they were standing in the middle of the street, he held out his hand to Kakashi. "Oh? Just give me the scroll..."

"The person who delivered the intelligence is in your office! He wants to see you personally!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi was dragged away by Kakashi. He was usually busy beyond measure and particularly fond of handling matters personally. Today, he had merely come out for afternoon tea. Instead, his own son had viciously mocked him, leaving him in no pleasant mood...

He had finally managed to chat with a child for a few moments and offer him a little life advice, only for Kakashi to bring him even worse news.

Meeting the Third Hokage had only been a minor interlude, and Uchiha Itachi did not take it to heart. He bought a bag full of sweets, found a scenic spot, and planned to tease his younger brother for a while longer...

Kitahara rather approved of that idea... if "teasing his younger brother" could be changed to "beating the child." It was not as if one could only beat children on rainy days...

Today was clearly not going smoothly... Their usual spot had been taken. This place was very close to the cemetery by the Memorial Stone. Anyone who came here to admire the scenery had something wrong with their thought process, including but not limited to Uchiha Itachi and Shisui...

Now, they could only watch as the little girl sitting on the grass stood up... Uchiha Izumi waved her small hand and ran toward them. "Itachi..."

A fable suddenly came to Kitahara's mind... waiting by a tree stump for a rabbit... Uchiha Itachi was obviously the rabbit...