Chapter 50: That Person Will Only Be Me
In reality, Kitahara had overestimated its own cub's stubbornness. He hadn't fully mastered Sage Mode at all. After great effort spreading a pair of wings, pitch-black feathers gradually began to cover his entire body.
Uchiha Itachi's expression changed slightly for an instant... He was just a little bit off... Even so, the cub's progress was indeed significant. At the very least, Jiraiya couldn't absorb enough natural energy in one second.
Although Kitahara didn't know what temper tantrum he was throwing again, it could only transfer a powerful stream of sage art chakra into Itachi's body, "Caw..."
Sage Mode!
The wings behind Uchiha Itachi slowly flapped. The surging sage art chakra made him seem incredibly imposing. Sasuke, beside him, somewhat panicked and ran into Mikoto's embrace...
"Is this the result of your training with Senior Jiraiya?" Uchiha Fugaku stepped back into the room, calmly closing the door, and looked at his proud eldest son, "Itachi, you're still young..."
"Dad!" Uchiha Itachi interrupted his father and said in a low voice, "Because I'm still young, I wouldn't notice anything unusual when a friend dies in front of me, right?"
"It's just some nonsense people are spouting..." Uchiha Fugaku waved his hand dismissively and sat back down at the table, "This matter cannot be told to anyone."
The moment Itachi lowered his head, his black wings also drooped, "Does that include Shisui? Killing his companion in front of Shisui, forcing Shisui to increase the ocular power of his Sharingan..."
"Itachi, if you want to accuse me, you don't need to do it at home." Uchiha Fugaku didn't directly respond to the little boy's words, turning to his wife, "You and Sasuke go out first..."
This reunion dinner was destined not to continue. Kitahara had just figured out why Uchiha Itachi would have a direct confrontation with Fugaku... Was it because of Shisui?
Before Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi awakened the Mangekyo, it was inevitable for Uchiha clan members to propose such cruel suggestions.
The younger one is, the simpler their emotions, and the greater the possibility of acting on impulse... So when they encounter facts they cannot accept, they won't suppress the catharsis of their emotions. This is the fastest and simplest way to awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan.
Uchiha Fugaku clearly knew the circumstances surrounding his own awakening of the Mangekyo Sharingan. His friend had died during the Shinobi World War, and he too couldn't accept it at that time...
But as time went on, he accepted it as the price of power.
At today's Naka Shrine clan meeting, because Shisui was away on a mission in the Land of Grass and couldn't attend, someone suddenly proposed using the murder of Shisui's companion to help Uchiha Shisui awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan...
The Mangekyo Sharingan was the Uchiha clan's highest secret...
As for how exactly to awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan, it wasn't that no one had guessed, but the issue was things like love and hate... sounded too illusory.
Some clan members awakened the Sharingan after witnessing a friend's death. Gradually, they became accustomed to death, having long since seen life and death without being perturbed... They couldn't even add a single tomoe to their own eyes.
To put it bluntly, their talent was too poor. And as Uchiha, after abandoning something like emotion... how could they possibly enhance the Sharingan's ocular power!
"Itachi, you're only six years old. There are many things you can't accept..."
"No matter how old I grow, I could never accept such a thing!" Uchiha Itachi suddenly looked at his father, his tone abruptly changing, "Weren't there still people in the clan who suggested I also use this method to awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan?"
"Itachi..."
"It seems no one voiced any objection. Who do they want to die in front of me?" Under the enhancement of Sage Mode, Uchiha Itachi's eyes glowed red, looking quite terrifying...
Fugaku's mood gradually sank, "Nothing like that will happen, Itachi..."
"If I hadn't heard you discussing Shisui's matter..." Uchiha Itachi's head gradually drooped, "Dad, how long would you have hidden it from me?"
Kitahara, who had been listening, thought it understood the whole story. It was just about to communicate a few words with Itachi when Fugaku, from the side, unexpectedly pressed its head onto the table...
It seemed the actual situation was much more complicated than it understood.
Even though Uchiha Itachi had become Jiraiya's disciple, the rift between the Uchiha and the village was widening daily through trivial matters. Someone wanted to obtain a higher status... or rather, the status they deserved.
Konoha had successively produced two S-rank rogue ninjas, and the village's high-level combat power had suffered greatly... They had other thoughts, and at this time, they needed to rely on stronger power.
Uchiha Shisui, widely acknowledged within the Uchiha clan as certain to awaken the Mangekyo, had maintained his three-tomoe Sharingan state for two years... They were attempting a final gamble.
Based on historical judgment, the older one is and the richer their experience, the lower the chance of awakening the Mangekyo Sharingan... Shisui was ten years old this year, just entering puberty. Although not as stable as after true adulthood, it was still a good time.
Logically, the fewer people who knew about such a dirty matter, the better... But someone openly proposed it at the clan meeting, and many people agreed. Uchiha Fugaku himself had the experience of awakening the Mangekyo Sharingan.
After pondering, he believed this plan had a high feasibility...
Moreover, if the clan had two pairs of Mangekyo Sharingan now, the Uchiha would also hold an advantage when negotiating with the village.
Lord Clan Head neither agreed nor disagreed. Uchiha Shisui had a good relationship with their family. Unless absolutely necessary, he didn't intend to implement this plan.
At this moment, someone suddenly mentioned that the clan head's foolish son now also had the three-tomoe Sharingan... Fugaku didn't even know how this news had leaked out.
Those clan members laughingly proposed that if Shisui truly awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan, they could use the same method to help Itachi become the youngest Mangekyo user.
Fugaku, as clan head, could only helplessly nod along with them.
His clan members were truly... ruined... To actually pin all their hopes on Shisui awakening the Mangekyo Sharingan.
After the meeting ended, Uchiha Fugaku saw the returning Itachi, expressionlessly holding his younger brother, his eyes red-rimmed... It seemed he had heard everything that happened inside.
After returning home, Fugaku wanted to discuss this matter as before, but Uchiha Itachi remained very calm... as if he knew nothing...
Unfortunately, apart from deceiving his younger brother, he couldn't actually deceive anyone in his life.
No one understood their son better than Fugaku and Mikoto, though perhaps a non-human crow might have understood from other channels...
If he continued to suppress his emotions like this, shouldering all his worries himself, a child's mind would sooner or later have problems. Fugaku could only try to persuade him... or rather, force Uchiha Itachi to vent...
The only unexpected thing was, when did his son develop the habit of activating Sage Mode at the drop of a hat? Uchiha Itachi in this state, Fugaku really wanted to say, as before...
Truly my son...
The little boy looked at his still silent father, tears finally, slowly falling from his eyes. He stepped forward, took Kitahara from Fugaku's side, and strode outwards.
After watching his son leave completely, Fugaku smiled and suddenly said in a low voice, "Itachi, if I acknowledged that this method could allow you to awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan, the person who would die in front of you... would only be me."
The old father, unaware of how strong the perceptive abilities were in Sage Mode, also wouldn't know that his son outside was already crying tears of blood...
(End of this chapter)