"Do you think Mangekyō Sharingan grow on trees?"
"Huh? What's wrong, Naruto? Is the Mangekyō Sharingan really hard to awaken?"
"Heh, hard doesn't even begin to cover it. It's practically impossible. The Mangekyō Sharingan is the result of the Sharingan evolving. Do you know what the conditions for that evolution are? Besides, you haven't even awakened your Sharingan."
Sasuke shook his head. How could an Uchiha like him, who hadn't even awakened his Sharingan, possibly know? But he still insisted stubbornly:
"So what? Whether it's the Sharingan or the Mangekyō Sharingan, I'll awaken them sooner or later."
Seeing how utterly confident Sasuke was, Naruto simply shut his mouth and stopped pursuing the subject.
"All right, you wouldn't want to know. Time to get back to class."
With that, Naruto walked straight off without bothering with Sasuke, leaving him with nothing but a view of his back.
Sasuke didn't believe Naruto's excuse about going back to class for a second. Who didn't know that Naruto Uzumaki never paid attention in class? He was either sleeping or... sleeping.
Naruto: "Slander! That's slander! When did I ever sleep the whole time? I was playing Naruto! Playing Naruto, get it, you idiot? It was just too boring listening to the teacher lecture up there..." (His voice grew quieter and quieter.)
"Come on, Sasuke. I've got some things to tell you after school."
Back in the classroom, Sasuke couldn't take in a single word of the lesson. His head was full of the Sharingan and the Mangekyō Sharingan. Whenever he thought about having such powerful abilities himself someday, he couldn't stop the corners of his mouth from rising.
Little did he know that Itachi had run into a situation of his own just then.
He had sensed an unfamiliar presence at home that day.
But when Itachi came over, he found nothing.
"Hmm? Strange. What was that feeling just now?"
Itachi had clearly sensed someone appearing just now, only to disappear again almost immediately. That put him on his guard. Had that bastard Danzo already sent someone to infiltrate the Uchiha?
After Itachi left, that spatial vortex appeared again. Once its fluctuations subsided, there stood someone in a dark robe, his face covered by an orange mask with a swirling pattern. The mingling of black and orange made him look all the more eerie. The mask had just one hole on its right side, through which a crimson Sharingan could be seen.
"A true Uchiha genius. He could detect me from just that."
The newcomer was none other than the mastermind behind the Nine-Tails' Rampage a few years earlier-Obito Uchiha.
Just as Obito was wondering whether to go see what Kakashi was up to, he never would have expected Itachi to double back.
Now the two stared at each other.
"Who are you?"
Itachi made the first move, holding his short sword across his body as he watched the stranger warily. Something about this person seemed familiar, but he just couldn't remember who he was.
"Is that how you speak to me?"
Obito's words left Itachi baffled. You're a stranger barging into someone else's yard in broad daylight. The fact that I haven't attacked you already shows how good my temper is, and now you're getting picky?
At that thought, Itachi dispensed with courtesy and hurled several shuriken straight at him.
After all, Obito had one of the best survival abilities in the entire Shinobi World. Intangibility was only proving more valuable.
Sure enough, the shuriken passed straight through Obito's body. As for Obito himself, he was completely unharmed.
"How rude. Looks like you've forgotten me."
Seeing that his attack had accomplished absolutely nothing, Itachi's gaze grew grave. The palm gripping his sword was gradually becoming soaked with sweat. Clearly, this person exerted considerable pressure on him just by standing there, but he felt that if he gave it his all, he should be able to put up a fight.
"Who exactly are you?"
"Heh. As for who I am, I believe you should know this name. My name is Madara Uchiha."
"What? Impossible. Someone from that era couldn't possibly still be alive. Who are you really?"
Itachi plainly didn't believe Obito. It was too ridiculous. If Madara Uchiha were really still alive, he should have been an old man, not someone as young as the person before him.
"Heh, Itachi, I'm not here to cause you trouble. On the contrary, I'm here to help you."
"To help me?"
Itachi grew curious about this person. He possessed a Sharingan and could use it so proficiently that it ruled out an outsider who had obtained one by chance. Add to that his claim to be Madara Uchiha despite being so young, and he was most likely Madara Uchiha's successor or a fanatical follower.
Then who exactly is he? An Uchiha living away from the clan? Or some fanatic among the clan's young men?
Obito had no idea that, in such a short time, Itachi had already begun wildly speculating about his identity.
"Itachi, what do you think of the Uchiha as they are now?"
While Itachi was still wildly speculating about Obito's identity, he heard Obito ask that question.
"Hmm... I think the Uchiha are doing quite well, but there are some problems. At the very least, their revolution has absolutely no chance of succeeding, in my view."
"Heh, the Uchiha are doing well? Itachi, did you even open your eyes and take a good look at the Uchiha before saying that? Konoha has humiliated them this much, and what do they do? They can't even rebel without hesitating over every little thing. The clan has split into so many factions. Is there even a shred of unity left?"
"Itachi, do you think the Uchiha still have a future?"
"If the Uchiha insist on launching a rebellion, it won't just deal a devastating blow to the Uchiha Clan. The village will suffer considerable damage as well."
"Heh, Itachi, you really do love the village."
Obito sneered. For someone like Itachi to place so much importance on the village was truly laughable.
"Enough, Itachi. I won't waste words with you. The Uchiha Clan as it stands no longer deserves to live in the Shinobi World. It's time they disappeared into the river of its history."
"What do you mean?"
Itachi frowned at Obito. He hadn't expected this man, all alone, to dare make such an outrageous claim about wiping out the entire Uchiha Clan.
"Heh, exactly what I said, of course. Itachi, you know me, and you know how deeply I hate Konoha and the Uchiha Clan. I need your assistance."
Itachi was somewhat bewildered. This man wanted to recruit him to slaughter his own clansmen. What a vicious Uchiha he was.
"Itachi, you can refuse. Once I've wiped out the Uchiha Clan, my next plan is to destroy Konoha. I'm sure someone who loves the village as much as you do wouldn't want to see that, would you?"
"Don't be so quick to refuse. Think about the village. Think about Shisui's death. Think about your little brother, Sasuke."
The moment Itachi heard Sasuke's name, his entire demeanor changed.
"Don't you dare!"
Itachi's Mangekyō Sharingan instantly appeared in his eyes as he stared fixedly at Obito, as though he wanted to tear apart this man who presumed to hurt his little brother.
"Hahaha, Itachi, relax. There's still room for discussion, isn't there?"