"It's a teammate! Only a teammate could make Shin-senpai—an experienced ninja who has survived countless battles—lower his guard. And only someone like that could cover up the cause of death afterward," Shen immediately revealed the answer.
Fugaku took a deep breath to calm himself. "Shen, this matter is extremely serious. Do you have any evidence?"
"Evidence? How could the killer possibly leave any behind unless he's an idiot? But what's certain is that he must have always held a grudge against the Uchiha Clan. This is the killer's arrogance—he believes he pulled it off flawlessly. This foolish arrogance exposes his devious, suspicious, and ruthless nature!" Shen explained solemnly.
Fugaku understood perfectly well what he meant. The 'deviousness' referred to the ambush against Kagami Uchiha; the 'suspicion' was the act of covering up the truth from Konoha even after cleaning up the traces; and the 'ruthlessness' pointed toward his motive.
Seeing that the other person had already begun suspecting Konoha's higher-ups, Shen decided to let it drop at that. As for who else could be the culprit besides Danzo Shimura—the ever-reliable scapegoat—there wasn't much need to say more.
Originally, in the plot, it was intended for the Third Hokage to be the ultimate antagonist. However, due to the manga unexpectedly becoming a long-running series, the narrative was revised as Itachi Uchiha's popularity soared, leading his character to be redefined with more depth. This inevitably created many contradictions in his character design. Consequently, all of the black marks previously associated with the Third Hokage and Itachi were ultimately shifted onto Danzo Shimura, the go-to scapegoat.
"Brother Fugaku, my speculation ends here. All we can do next is wait for the killer to expose himself. First, I'll go check whether lunch is ready yet."
After explaining everything important to Fugaku, Shen ignored the other's hesitant expression entirely, leaving with a graceful air that embodied the spirit of 'finishing a deed, dusting oneself off, and vanishing like a shadow—fame and recognition meant nothing.'
As for whether he could change the fate of the Uchiha massacre? Shen was fully aware of his own limitations. At worst, he would personally train his nephew in the future. He couldn't accept the idea that Itachi would ever truly succumb to Konoha's so-called Will of Fire—there was still time before things reached that point.
"Mother, is lunch done yet?"
Shen switched back to his usual innocent and cheerful demeanor as he asked Aiko. After pretending to be a child for five years straight, mastering such small acts had become second nature to him.
When Aiko turned around, she sensed something preoccupied about her youngest son today. Indeed, it was nearly impossible to hide anything from someone else who was also a master of deception.
She gave him a scrutinizing once-over, making him feel uneasy enough that he couldn't bring himself to meet her gaze directly.
Noticing his unnatural behavior, Aiko spoke up. "Did you do something bad again? Last time you looked like this was when you secretly took the clan's ninja technique scrolls!"
Shen's heart raced—he realized once again how sharp Mother was. Not a single one of the little 'escapades' he'd pulled since childhood had escaped her notice.
"What should I do? Could it be something from earlier, when I was talking with Brother Fugaku? No! I was scared there might be Anbu nearby, so I kept my voice low. Fugaku also spoke softly. So was it just me not acting naturally enough then?"
"Since I had to tell Fugaku everything anyway," Shen thought, "maybe I can just get through this somehow. Or maybe the rumors at school spread that fast."
As ideas flowed in his mind, Shen shifted into a sycophantic grin and began piling on the flattery toward Aiko: "Mother dearest, your insight is truly unparalleled! You've uncovered my little secret! My admiration for you knows no bounds - it flows endlessly like the mighty Yangtze River!"
"Darling Shen Uchiha, don't try to change the subject," Aiko interrupted with a gentle smile as she scooped up the five-year-old Shen Uchiha, exposing his small scheme.
But in Shen Uchiha's eyes, that smile looked anything but gentle. The message behind those sweet words screamed, "Start talking now, mister!"
Trembling slightly while being held by his mother, Shen Uchiha couldn't face the "kind" gaze from his Mother. Right now, he sincerely hoped someone would come save him immediately.
At the Uchiha compound, Kazushi Uchiha, who had just finished a clan meeting, was in a good mood because one of today's two academy students belonged to his troublesome younger son.
While walking home, Clan Head Kazushi was abruptly yanked into an alleyway. Lifting his gaze, he discovered it was the father of the other child starting academy today.
Mikoto's father glanced left and right to ensure nobody was eavesdropping before preparing to reveal a "big secret" about his youngest son to Kazushi.
Initially thinking Mikoto must have been bullied by Shen Uchiha, Kazushi became completely furious when Mikoto's father "truthfully" recounted what happened at the academy. After thanking Mikoto's father, he stormed home like the wind.
"Shen Uchiha!"
A loud shout rescued Shen Uchiha from Aiko's embrace. Looking past his mother, he saw his father huffing with rage, piercing him with murderous eyes.
Although unsure exactly what her son did to provoke such anger, maternal instinct kicked in instantly as Aiko positioned herself protectively in front of Shen Uchiha: "What's wrong, dear? What did Shen Uchiha do to make you so upset? He's still a child; don't scare him too much!"
"Scare him? Can't you see if he looks scared at all? Even the freaking Sage of Six Paths won't be able to save him today!"
Ignoring Aiko, Kazushi raised his hand to strike Shen Uchiha hiding behind his mother.
"Do it! Go ahead and hit him!"
Aiko lifted her head proudly, her demeanor completely different from her usual gentle self, actually overpowering Kazushi's temper.
From behind, Shen Uchiha could hardly believe his eyes - this was the very first time he'd ever seen his mother radiate such overwhelming power. Even Fugaku, who had entered the room upon hearing the commotion, was left completely speechless.
Now caught between a rock and a hard place, Kazushi faced a tough choice: hit Shen Uchiha and suffer later, or not hit him and lose authority as household head. After weighing the pros and cons, he finally decided to back down.
After calming himself, Kazushi began recounting everything he'd heard about Shen Uchiha.
As Kazushi relayed the exaggerated version of events, Shen Uchiha inwardly rolled his eyes. Did he really say he wanted to be principal? He only meant taking leadership of the Ninja Academy - which actually sounded reasonable enough.
Listening intently, Aiko grew increasingly delighted. Her expression gradually turned proud as she realized her youngest son, Shen Uchiha, hadn't done anything inappropriate at all.
Just listen to this — 'beating up' the eldest son of the Senju Clan and declaring his intent to become the top dog at school — what an incredible honor! She felt Kazushi was just making a big deal out of nothing. Turning her head to look at Shen, her younger son who inherited all her excellent genes, she felt increasingly proud.
Aiko smirked slightly: "Shen, you truly bring honor to the Uchiha name. Don't worry about anything related to school matters — your father will handle everything for you!"
Kazushi felt helpless inwardly. His own child was clearly challenging the school's authority, yet how did it become an act of honor for the Uchiha in his wife's mouth? Looking at this mother and son before him, he felt the unfairness of the world.
Fugaku felt even more helpless. At home, whenever he made even the slightest mistake, there would always be a lengthy critique from his family, causing him to live cautiously all along. But when it came to his brother, the same behavior was seen as commendable? Right now, he seriously suspected that he had been picked up off the streets — where was the promised equal treatment and no favoritism?
"Mother, no — Honorable Mother — the problem is I won't last much longer at school anyway; I want to quit—" Before he could finish saying "school," Shen caught himself and swallowed the last word after receiving a glare from his mother.
"My dear Shen," Aiko said with a warm smile, "what exactly do you wish to quit?"
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