"If I had resisted back then, it still wouldn't have changed the Uchiha Clan's destruction!"
"And if I had resisted, besides having to cross blades with Itachi... even Sasuke, who was supposed to be spared, might have been put in danger."
"If Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo had been a little more ruthless... the moment I resisted, they might even have eliminated Itachi along with us."
Mikoto frowned. "Was the Third really that heartless too?"
Fugaku scoffed at that. "The Third let Danzo commit so many atrocities. How much better do you think he could be?"
"I even suspect that if Itachi hadn't awakened his Mangekyō Sharingan at the end, leaving them uncertain about his Dōjutsu's abilities, he might have died in this room that night too."
"I know myself. Between the clan and the individual, if I had a choice, I wouldn't sit around waiting to die."
At this point, Fugaku said wistfully, "Perhaps the me from that time really couldn't think of a way to save the clan. So all I could do was trade our lives for a chance for Itachi and Sasuke to survive."
After saying that,
Fugaku recalled the scenes from the illusion again and let out a long sigh, still shaken.
Sensing the guilt and dejection in her husband's voice, Mikoto gripped his large hand tightly and comforted him. "Don't dwell on it. Don't we have that little fellow Haruma now?"
"Yes! Thank goodness that little fellow Haruma appeared."
A look of relief appeared on Fugaku's face as well. "In the end, that will only ever be an illusion!"
That afternoon, at dusk.
The Uchiha Clan's training ground was bustling.
Dazzling Ninjutsu clashed, and Taijutsu exchanges landed blow after solid blow,
alongside coldly gleaming kunai and Shurikenjutsu.
Looking utterly relaxed, Haruma strolled back and forth through the training ground, wearing sunglasses that concealed his eyes.
Beneath the sunglasses, his hidden left eye had shifted into its Mangekyō form at some point. He glanced this way and that as he walked, looking as though he had nothing to do.
At that moment, he was like a dry sponge submerged in water.
Every Ninjutsu that appeared on the training ground became nourishment, absorbed into his mind.
Haruma's gaze drifted toward the target range from time to time.
Short black hair and black eyes, a cold expression, and highly distinctive tear troughs.
And a face whose features resembled Mikoto's.
Having accepted the surveillance orders, Itachi was practicing Shurikenjutsu with an excited five-year-old boy beside him.
At Sasuke's insistent request, Itachi also put on a dazzling Shurikenjutsu display.
It had Sasuke cheering loudly beside him, his face flushed. "Big bro, you're amazing!"
Especially when the shuriken Itachi casually threw collided in midair, changing direction several times before once again striking the targets precisely.
That made Sasuke jump up and down in excitement, shouting, "So cooool!!!"
Sasuke trotted over to Itachi on his short little legs.
Tugging at the hem of his clothes, he pleaded, "Big bro, hurry and teach me that move! It's so cooool!!"
Having successfully stolen the technique, Haruma shifted his gaze at just the right moment to avoid arousing Itachi's suspicions.
Almost simultaneously, Itachi discreetly swept his gaze across the training ground.
Finding nothing unusual, he frowned and thought to himself.
Strange, that odd feeling of being watched... was it just my imagination?
A month slipped quietly by.
Haruma's days were wonderfully comfortable.
Apart from sending a clone to the usual place to trade with Danzo every two days,
he spent each day basking in the sun at home and lying in a rocking chair, reading the clan's Ninjutsu compendium he had requested from Fugaku.
Every afternoon, he arrived at the clan's training ground on time, wearing enormous sunglasses as he wandered around and stared into space.
Previously, Haruma hadn't even fully grasped basic Ninjutsu.
In just one short month, thanks to flawless imitation and his Ninjutsu aptitude enhanced by the Ōtsutsuki bloodline,
not only had his strength surged, but the Ninjutsu he had gotten for free had also saved him a substantial sum.
The only pity was that the Uchiha Clan were practically all experts at playing with fire.
Haruma had copied every fire-attribute Ninjutsu there was.
As for Ninjutsu of other attributes...
This was also why Haruma had carefully weighed the costs and benefits before choosing this eye.
After all, getting things for free really was a joy!
At three in the morning, all was silent.
Haruma's cottage in the recuperation area.
Fugaku and Haruma sat facing each other in the inner room.
Dim candlelight, two cups of hot tea.
The strange, man-on-man atmosphere made Haruma silently scoot backward.
"What's with that look, brat!"
Fugaku frowned at Haruma's disgusted expression, utterly baffled.
Haruma waved a hand and brushed him off casually. "I ate too much at dinner. I'm so full I feel sick."
Fugaku was inwardly speechless, but sensibly refrained from saying more.
He simply pulled a scroll from inside his clothes and tossed it over.
"Forty-five million in cash. Hold on to it for now."
"How generous, Boss Fugaku!!!"
Haruma's expression changed at light speed.
He put the scroll away with a delighted expression, then asked Fugaku, "Where did you get so much money? If you've got a good way to make money, take your little brother along!!"
Fugaku rolled his eyes and said irritably, "Have you forgotten the plan you arranged yourself?"
"This is all the money I saved over the past month by selling positions within the Konoha Military Police Force to the various clans, both openly and in secret."
"If time hadn't been so tight, and I hadn't been too lazy to haggle with them, I might have sold them for even more."
"Tch."
After hearing the explanation, Haruma looked utterly uninterested again.
There was no helping it. This kind of quick money was just a one-shot deal.
Ultimately, it wasn't a lasting business.
Fugaku had grown accustomed to Haruma's money-grubbing ways.
Ignoring Haruma's sudden swings in excitement, Fugaku said directly, "There aren't many Uchiha Clan members left serving in the Konoha Military Police Force now."
"Because of that, the Third specifically summoned me a few days ago to ask about it."
"But when I pulled out that thick stack of complaint letters, that old fellow couldn't stop me, even though he knew something was fishy."
"Obviously."
"What else could he do? At least on paper, you're still the chief of the Konoha Military Police Force. Besides, all the people being dismissed are members of our own clan."
"What, is he going to force us to patrol the streets and enforce the law?"
Haruma said mockingly, "He's realized that you want to spread this job of offending people among the various clans."
"But unfortunately for him, this is an open scheme of mine."
"Even if he sees through it, he can't stop it."
Fugaku nodded in agreement. "Exactly."
"Plenty of clan shinobi in the village are eager to land an official position with real authority."
"Now that I've taken their money and handed over authority, even the Hokage can't stick his foot in."
Having said that,
Fugaku changed the subject and said gravely, "But with so many unemployed clan members all gathered in the compound, the Third and the higher-ups certainly won't feel at ease."
"Itachi said he was returning to the Anbu tonight to handle some mission handovers, but I suspect that old fox, the Third, summoned him to ask about the intelligence he's gathered lately."
"But don't worry. We haven't met at all during this period, and I've acted the same as always at home. Itachi hasn't been able to get hold of any secrets."
Haruma rubbed his chin and said calmly, "It's fine. Even if they find out you did it deliberately, it doesn't matter."
"They'll probably just take it as you sensing the danger and trying to salvage the Uchiha Clan's reputation."
"As for having too many clan members gathered in the compound, that will indeed make the higher-ups more wary."
"But that's only a minor problem. The next part of the plan will make arrangements for them."
Haruma pondered for a moment, then abruptly said, "It's also time to tell Itachi part of the truth."