On the outskirts of Konoha, beside a crystal-clear stream.
Sunlight filtered through gaps in the leaves, spilling onto the babbling water.
Wearing his signature beach shorts, Kenya sat with his legs spread wide on a round rock.
In front of him stood a simple grill made from a few branches.
Two plump grass carp sizzled over the fire, giving off an enticing, charred aroma.
"Getting the main group into the village will take ages of negotiations. The air out here is better anyway."
Kenya muttered to himself as he turned the fish.
The reason he had not simply led his group swaggering straight into Konoha was that his troublesome aunt Tsunade insisted on "courtesy before force."
She said they had to follow proper diplomatic procedures and enter Konoha as sponsors from the Iron Fist Chamber of Commerce.
Kenya found it a hassle, so he simply dumped all the negotiating on Tsunade and Yosuke.
He had come to the stream himself to catch fish and grill some meat.
Suddenly.
Kenya's hand paused slightly as he turned the fish.
His Observation Haki instantly picked up an anomaly in his surroundings.
The insects had fallen silent, and even the wind seemed to have stopped.
A faint, barely perceptible ripple of chakra spread through the air.
"I'm not particularly fond of hide-and-seek."
Without turning his head, Kenya grabbed a handful of coarse salt beside him and casually sprinkled it over the fish.
On a large tree a dozen or so meters behind him.
Uchiha Itachi crouched soundlessly in the shadow of a branch, like a black crow.
He watched the figure sitting beside the stream.
Although it had only been two years since they last met.
The young man's back seemed countless times broader than Itachi remembered.
Like an insurmountable black mountain, he exuded a heart-stopping pressure merely by sitting there.
Senju Kenya.
Itachi silently repeated the name.
Rather than reveal himself and speak directly, he slowly closed his eyes.
When he opened them again.
His formerly black eyes had turned blood-red.
Three tomoe spun rapidly within his pupils before joining into an eerie pinwheel pattern.
Mangekyō Sharingan!
To test whether this man possessed the strength to break the deadlock.
Itachi opened with one of his strongest trump cards-Genjutsu: Tsukuyomi!
In an instant.
The surrounding world lost its color, becoming an eerie space of black and white.
A blood-red full moon hung high in the night sky.
Within this genjutsu space, Itachi was the absolute ruler.
He could drag an enemy's mind into it and subject them to seventy-two hours of torment.
"Here, your strength will be utterly useless..."
Itachi's voice echoed through the void.
However.
Before he could finish speaking.
Within the genjutsu space illuminated by the blood moon.
Kenya, who had been dragged inside, showed none of the fear or pain others did.
He remained in the same posture, sitting on a rock and grilling fish.
Only.
Kenya slowly turned his head.
His formerly languid eyes suddenly blazed with two terrifying lights even more scarlet than the blood moon.
"Playing with genjutsu?"
A mocking curve tugged at Kenya's lips.
The next second.
An indescribable storm of will, domineering to the extreme.
Erupted from Kenya's body!
Conqueror's Haki!
Although physical strength could not be used within the genjutsu space.
Conqueror's Haki was itself the ultimate manifestation of spiritual will!
"Bzzzz-!!!"
Accompanied by a piercing roar.
Tangible dark-red lightning exploded wildly throughout the genjutsu space.
Under the impact of that raging will, the blood moon hanging overhead actually began to shake violently and distort!
"What?!"
Itachi, hidden in the shadows, let out a muffled groan.
He felt as though a heavy hammer had slammed into his brain.
A tearing pain shot through both eyes, and blood ran from their corners.
Crack-!
A crisp shattering sound rang out.
The Mangekyō genjutsu space he took such pride in was actually like a fragile glass mirror.
That unreasonable Conqueror's Haki forcibly shattered it into countless fragments from within!
The genjutsu had been forcibly broken!
In the real world.
Itachi fell from the branch and landed on one knee.
Clutching his bleeding right eye, he panted heavily, his face filled with disbelief.
His opponent had not even moved.
Yet he had shattered the Tsukuyomi Space through mental strength alone?!
What kind of monster was this?!
"This fish is grilled just right."
Kenya picked up a skewered fish and took a large bite.
He turned around and looked at Uchiha Itachi kneeling on the ground, without a trace of hostility in his eyes.
Instead, they held the composure of someone who saw through everything.
"Itachi, stop testing me with those little eye tricks of yours."
"They might work on weak-willed trash, but in front of me, that stuff isn't worth a damn."
Kenya spoke unhurriedly as he chewed the fish.
Itachi stood up and watched Kenya warily.
Although his genjutsu had been broken, he had not given up.
"What exactly is your purpose in returning to Konoha this time?"
Itachi's voice was somewhat hoarse, but remained cold.
"My purpose?"
Kenya laughed.
He extended the hand holding the grilled fish and pointed toward Konoha.
"To take back what belongs to the Senju and clean out those disgusting bugs while I'm at it."
"It's that simple."
Itachi fell silent for a moment.
"Konoha High Command won't allow you to do that. They control the Anbu and Root, and can even mobilize the entire village's forces at any time."
"Overthrowing the leadership with that handful of people you have is nothing but a pipe dream."
Although Itachi knew Kenya was strong, he still found it far too unrealistic.
"A pipe dream?"
Kenya casually tossed the leftover fish bones into the stream.
He rose from the rock and dusted off his hands.
"Oh, Itachi. Those two scheming old bastards, Danzo and the Third, have really played you for a fool."
"Just how much power do you think they hold?"
Kenya walked toward Itachi step by step, that domineering aura spreading from him once again.
"So-called politics. So-called military strength."
"Before absolute physical might, they're nothing but bubbles that burst at a touch."
He stopped in front of Itachi, looking down at this Uchiha prodigy who bore far too much.
"Stop letting Danzo use you as his weapon."
"He tells you to slaughter your clan to keep Sasuke safe, and you actually believe that bullshit logic?"
At the words "slaughter your clan," Itachi's body gave a violent shudder.
He stared at Kenya in disbelief. This man even knew about something so utterly confidential?!
Kenya could not be bothered with Itachi's shock.
He simply reached out and gave Itachi's shoulder a heavy pat.
"I'm interested in getting involved in the Uchiha's affairs, too."
"After all, reorganizing Konoha will require you red-eyed lot as muscle."
Kenya's voice was not loud, but it carried an unquestionable arrogance and dominance.
"Your Uchiha Clan is under my protection."
"From today on, if anyone dares touch a single hair on your heads."
"I'll smash their skull with one punch first."
This simple, blunt, yet supremely domineering promise.
Struck Itachi's long-numbed, frozen heart like a thunderbolt.
There were no hypocritical political compromises, no disgusting coercion in the name of the greater good.
Only the purest, most absolute guarantee of strength!