Time flowed swiftly by like water...
On this day, the sky was dark and the moon dim. Even walking along the streets, one could feel a heavy atmosphere in the air, as though it were a reminder that tonight would be anything but ordinary.
A flock of crows flew over the Hokage Building.
Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at the person before him and asked, "Itachi, have you really thought this through? Have you decided to shoulder all of this alone?"
In the moonlight, Itachi could be seen kneeling on one knee, his expression hidden from view. After a long silence in the face of Hiruzen's question, he finally made up his mind and uttered a single word. "Yes."
His voice was soft, but the resolve it held was unprecedented.
Hiruzen regarded Itachi with a complicated gaze, his clouded eyes filled with unusual emotion. After a long exhale, he said, "After tonight, you will be a rogue ninja of Konoha. Go. I will take good care of your younger brother. He will attend the academy like the other children and become a Konoha ninja. No one in Konoha will be allowed to harm him. That is my promise to you, and it will always stand."
Itachi slowly rose, turned his head, and took a deep breath. "Then... I'll leave him in your care."
When Itachi reappeared after vanishing from the Hokage Building, he was already atop a utility pole. As he crouched there overlooking the entire clan, his eyes had unconsciously transformed into the Mangekyō Sharingan. Black flames seemed to burn within one of them.
"It seems you've made up your mind." An elusive voice sounded beside Itachi's ear.
Itachi showed no surprise at the voice. Expressionless, he replied, "Don't forget our agreement."
"Don't worry. The members of the Konoha Military Police