"It's been a long time since I came here," Yun said, gazing down at Konoha from atop the Hokage Rock. "Back then, Shisui was already a jōnin, and you and I were just academy freshmen."
Below, the village bustled with activity. That afternoon, a large contingent of Anbu had begun clearing the explosive tags buried in the Hokage Rock. If the massive cliff were to collapse, the damage would be catastrophic.
Even now, the Fourth Hokage's personal Anbu were still busy across the village. The Hyūga, Inuzuka, and Aburame clans, three pillars of the tracking division, had joined the effort.
Yun, the one who discovered the tags, had been spared from the cleanup thanks to his promise of a team dinner. Minato hadn't pushed the responsibility onto him, perhaps because Yun had delayed reporting the intel in the first place.
Standing beside him, Itachi exhaled. "I never expected you to become the team leader for Tokuma, Hana, and Izumi. And in just over a month, Sasuke will be entering the academy…"
Itachi's expression darkened. "I'm worried. That reincarnated chakra, Indra's, might be affecting Sasuke. His personality has changed a lot over the past year."
"A sudden change?" Yun asked.
Itachi thought for a moment. "I'm not sure exactly when, but it's been within the last year or two. And…"
He hesitated. "The other day, when Sasuke was playing with Naruto and Karin, I saw jealousy in his eyes."
Yun blinked. "Jealousy? Are you sure it wasn't admiration?"
Itachi shook his head. "I know the difference. When Aunt Kushina and Uncle Minato came to pick up Naruto and Karin, I saw something in Sasuke's gaze."
There was more Itachi didn't say.
In Sasuke's eyes, there hadn't just been jealousy, there had been hatred. If he were older, that hatred might have turned into killing intent. And killing intent… couldn't be hidden from the Hokage, even if his back was turned.
"What do you think is happening?" Yun asked.
Itachi's eyes narrowed. "Two years ago, I made a deal with Uzumaki Ku. He gave me intel suggesting that Sasuke carries the reincarnated chakra of Indra. I found supporting evidence in an ancient clan document."
He exhaled. "It was incomplete, but after analyzing it, I confirmed Indra's identity."
"Indra… the ancestor of the Uchiha clan. His chakra reincarnated into Sasuke. Could it be…"
Itachi didn't finish, but Yun understood.
In the original timeline, Indra's chakra had clearly influenced Sasuke. The generational conflict, Madara and Hashirama, Sasuke and Naruto, was too consistent to be coincidence.
Yun replied, "Indra's chakra might have some influence. But didn't Uzumaki Ku say it only brought benefits?"
"After that deal, Shisui told me about Ku," Itachi said. "His intel and trading skills are terrifying, but he's never lied. Still… Sasuke's changes are real. I've been wondering if I should try to remove that chakra."
Yun blinked. "Remove it? That's… not how reincarnation works. Indra's chakra isn't a parasite, it's Sasuke's chakra. You can't just cut it out."
He paused, thinking.
In the original timeline, Sasuke's personality shift was triggered by the Uchiha massacre. But here, the clan was thriving. Itachi was kind to him. They trained together after missions. The only variable was Shinko, who often joined them…
'Wait.'
"Jealousy comes from lacking something others have," Yun said. "When the Hokage and Kushina picked up Naruto and Karin… Sasuke was missing a father figure, wasn't he?"
Itachi froze.
Of course.
He had been five when their father died, old enough to remember. He had felt paternal love.
But Sasuke… had been less than a year old. He had no memory of their father. To him, Fugaku was a stranger.
Seeing Naruto picked up by both parents must have triggered that jealousy.
And maybe… even hatred.
Why would Sasuke resent Naruto? They were childhood friends. He should've liked him most.
Itachi's expression grew heavier.
If Sasuke's hatred was tied to the loss of his father… and Naruto's birth coincided with Fugaku's death…
"Yun… maybe Sasuke knows how our father died."
Yun turned to him. "He knows? Fugaku's death, Sasuke figured it out?"
Itachi nodded. "There's jealousy in his eyes… and a trace of hatred. Our father died the day before Naruto was born. That mission…"
Yun understood.
Fugaku had died protecting the village during Naruto's birth. Now, Minato stood as Hokage, visible, powerful, and respected.
To Sasuke, that was a painful contrast.
And perhaps his mother and brother's respect for Minato only deepened the wound.
Yun rubbed his forehead. "Sasuke's stubborn. He sees the world through his own lens. The fact that he still plays with Naruto shows he's trying. But today… he was pushed too far."
His only brother was about to be taken by a stranger. Of course he'd react.
Still, Yun thought, this might make Sasuke the perfect candidate for next month's trade.
Children are easy to manipulate, or impossible, depending on how they think.
"Ultimately," Yun said, "Sasuke projected all his fantasies about their father onto you. Fugaku died too early. Sasuke doesn't understand that Shinko isn't stealing his brother, she's adding to his family."
"You need to help him see that."
Itachi nodded. "If this isn't caused by Indra's chakra, that's the best outcome."
"I'll talk to him tomorrow. He's really a handful… I wasn't like this at six."
Yun raised an eyebrow.
'You? At six?'
'You were obsessed with life and death, conflict and meaning. If not for me, you'd be another Uchiha lunatic.'
After a pause, Yun added, "If you get the chance, look into Indra and Kaguya Ōtsutsuki. I think there's a deeper secret there."
As the former clan heir, Itachi's family likely had access to rare documents.
If Fugaku had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, then the anime version of his scene with Itachi at the Naka Shrine might be canon here too.
And with techniques like Izanami and clan governance records, Itachi's home might hold surprises.
"I will," Itachi said. "The idea of reincarnated chakra has unsettled me since I first heard it."
He glanced at Yun. "How's the shadow clone doing with Sasuke?"
Yun smiled. "I gave your brother a little guidance. Might've overstepped."
Itachi shook his head. "You've always been better at persuasion than I am."
At the park, Sasuke sat alone on a swing. It was dark, and the other kids had gone home.
"You ran off from the barbecue and didn't go home?" Yun's clone asked.
Sasuke said nothing.
"You only have Itachi and your mom now, right?"
Sasuke snapped, "I remember you! You bullied me outside my house when I was little. Adults picking on kids, pervert!"
'What?!'
'He remembered that?'
Yun scratched his head, embarrassed. He'd flicked Sasuke's forehead once or twice for fun, but how did the kid remember?
"Cough…"
Clearing his throat, Yun smiled. "That was just a joke. Anyway, Shinko seems nice to you, doesn't she?"
Sasuke paused. He remembered her buying snacks his mom wouldn't allow, giving him wooden kunai and shuriken, teaching him how to use them.
But no!
She was trying to steal his brother! She had a motive!
Kids can't hide emotions well, unless they're reincarnated geniuses like Yun.
Yun saw it clearly and continued, "If Itachi marries Shinko, do you know what you'd call her?"
"Big sister. But not just any sister, an honorary one. You'd have three family members. Naruto only has two. Even Karin just has a her mother."
Sasuke looked up.
Kids are easy to sway.
But then he scoffed, "You think I'm dumb? If they have a baby, Itachi won't train me anymore! You think I'm stupid?"
Yun winced. This kid was way too sharp.
'Itachi… I tried.'
Whoosh.
Two figures landed. Yun's clone saw the original and vanished, mission complete.
Itachi walked over and ruffled Sasuke's hair.
"No matter what, I'm still your brother."
Yun couldn't take the brotherly drama. He vanished instantly.
It was more cringe than Guy's speeches.
The next day, and for the next two months, Yun assigned nonstop D- and C-rank missions to humble his students.
Mostly D-rank: weeding, catching pets, babysitting, garbage collection, sewer cleaning…
They did all the dirty work in the village. Yun, meanwhile, trained relentlessly.
He was close to unlocking the Seventh Gate of the Eight Gates technique. Daily "Evening Elephant" drills were his bug-farming method.
"Sensei, it's been two months. When can we stop picking up trash?"
"Rimaru's nose is getting ruined by the sewer stench. If this keeps up, he'll lose his tracking advantage."
"Brother…"
Yun had just finished thirty weighted frog jumps around the village when he passed by the mission station. He looked up at the three and smiled.
"Tokuma, that Eight Trigrams Air Palm theory I mentioned the other day, have you figured it out yet? If not, use these simple missions to think it through."
"And Hana, keep refining Fang Over Fang. I'm not familiar with your clan's secret techniques, but this is the perfect time to practice."
"As for Izumi…"
Still ankle-deep in water, picking trash from the stream, Izumi raised her hand. "I know, keep training Fire Style and Lightning Style. And because of my chakra control, I need to start learning medical ninjutsu."
Yun nodded from the shore. "Good. Once you've learned medical ninjutsu, we'll start taking tougher missions."
With a goal in sight, they finally stopped complaining.
Only Yun knew: until October 10th, Team Ten wouldn't be leaving the village.
There had been no progress from Amegakure. It seemed the plan to use Indra's chakra to stimulate ocular evolution would have to begin.
Rinnegan, tailed beasts, and the fusion of all seven chakra nature transformations…
Things were about to get serious.