Chapter 63: The Uchiha Brothers

He had always been blinded by anger,

but as his strength grew and his horizons broadened, doubts began to rise in his heart.

Even after Itachi Uchiha Awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan and possessed overwhelming power, it would still be extremely difficult to wipe out the entire clan without a sound.

The Uchiha, known as the premier clan of Konoha, had nearly a hundred Jonin alone.

Even if they were all no match for Itachi Uchiha, it would not be difficult to create a commotion and draw the village's attention.

Could there be some unknown secret hidden within?

Yakushi Kabuto played coy and did not state it clearly, instead smiling: "If you want to know the truth, you can go ask the Hokage."

This was the intention of Orochimaru.

If he stated the truth directly, the other party would only be suspicious; only by guiding him step by step to discover the truth himself would he believe it without a doubt.

Sasuke said with a cold expression: "Do you want to die?"

Judging by Yakushi Kabuto's implication, did the destruction of the Uchiha Clan have something to do with the Hokage?

If it were false, it would be a tactic used by a missing-nin to sow discord, but if it were true, going to ask the Hokage would be tantamount to seeking death.

Yakushi Kabuto did not mind his attitude and smiled: "Go look for the notes left behind by the Uchiha Clan; you will always find something."

The Uchiha Clan had plotted rebellion for many years; even if Konoha had cleaned things up thoroughly, there would likely be things left behind.

Sasuke was not a brainless Uzumaki Naruto; once he discovered them and connected them to the situation in the village, he could instantly react and grasp the whole truth.

At that time, he would definitely be willing to cooperate with Orochimaru to destroy this village stained with Uchiha blood.

"Let me tell you another secret."

Yakushi Kabuto placed a finger to his lips and whispered: "The people who attacked you that day were Konoha's secret unit, called Root, under the jurisdiction of the Hokage's close friend, Shimura Danzo."

Sasuke's brow furrowed even deeper.

He had also felt it was absurd that enemy ninja could sneak into Konoha, and now that it was mentioned again, he felt it was strange.

In the end, Sasuke and Yakushi Kabuto reached a deal, buying the Purple Jewelry Set for 20,000 Reward Points.

"The truth?"

Sasuke's heart palpitated; the more he thought, the more his head throbbed with pain, and recalling the scene from the night of the massacre made him feel suffocated.

At this moment, he picked at his wounds over and over, carefully recalling the details.

Just as Sasuke was doubting his life,

on the streets of Konoha, two people draped in black cloaks with red clouds were walking slowly through the commercial district.

The tall man with a shark-like face wore a conical hat, making him even more conspicuous; he sighed: "What a prosperous village. Itachi-san, is this where you grew up?"

"Do not talk too much."

Although Itachi Uchiha said this, he did not stop Kisame.

From a ninja's perspective, this was a very failed infiltration; there was no disguise, only a conical hat that could not even cover his gill-like cheeks.

The chakra aura was not intentionally suppressed either, like two bright light bulbs.

Just like that, they broke into Konoha,

having long since been detected by Anbu ninja, who simply had not acted yet because their objective was unclear.

"Itachi-san, are we really going to capture the Nine-Tails?"

Hoshigaki Kisame could not believe that the usually calm and wise Itachi Uchiha would actually commit such an irrational act as breaking into Konoha.

Itachi Uchiha said calmly: "No, it is just a probe."

In truth, it was for Sasuke.

While executing a mission for the Organization, he suddenly heard that Sasuke, who was in Konoha, had been attacked; he suspected that some kind of change had occurred in the village, and it was very likely that Danzou had made a move against Sasuke.

This was something he absolutely could not tolerate.

Therefore, he decided to risk returning to Konoha to let Danzou know that he was always keeping an eye on Sasuke, preventing the other party from acting rashly.

"It really is a grand gesture, Itachi-san."

Hoshigaki Kisame looked up at the center of the village, at a giant Colosseum that had been built, and sighed: "I heard the Five Nations Joint Chunin Exams are being held in Konoha; looking at the scale of this Colosseum, even I could fight at full strength here."

Before he defected, although Kirigakure was not poor, it did not have the qualifications to build such a luxurious structure.

On the other side,

inside the Hokage Building, Sarutobi Hiruzen received a report from the Anbu, took a puff from his pipe, and muttered: "Has Itachi Uchiha returned to the village?"

An S-Rank Missing-nin had snuck into the village,

which should have been treated with high importance, yet Sarutobi Hiruzen waved his hand to signal the Anbu not to alert the enemy, and that was the end of it.

He skillfully activated the Telescope Technique and happened to hear what Itachi Uchiha said about capturing the Nine-Tails.

"Is he passing information to the village that an organization intends to capture the Nine-Tails?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen felt guilty inside;

Itachi Uchiha choosing to return to the village at this time likely had everything to do with Danzou's attack on Sasuke.

He had clearly promised the other party he would take good care of Sasuke, but he had failed to do so.

At this moment,

a crow suddenly landed on the utility pole outside the window, holding a note in its beak.

On it was written secret intelligence regarding the Akatsuki, as well as the recent turbulent situation, suggesting it was very likely someone was about to make a move against Konoha.

Finally, it mentioned that Itachi Uchiha wanted to test Sasuke's growth and strength, hoping the Hokage would agree.

"Sasuke's strength might surprise you, Itachi."

Sarutobi Hiruzen's mouth curled up, revealing a gratified smile.

The growth of the new generation was something even he could not ignore; with Itachi Uchiha's guidance, Sasuke would surely grow into a towering tree that could protect Konoha.

"Go tell Danzou to stay quietly in his Genbu Jidi; he is not to come out without my orders."

"Yes."

Itachi Uchiha sacrificed too much for the village, so as Hokage, he would certainly do his best to satisfy this request.

Naka Shrine,

Sasuke rummaged through boxes and cabinets, finally discovering clues within a discarded secret compartment.

"This is, a secret letter of the Uchiha Clan?"

The recorded content was sparse; it was a secret letter regarding the mass purchase of Kunai.

There were also Explosive Tags and Military Ration Pills.

The quantity alone already exceeded the normal consumption of a single clan, enough to incite a rebellion.

Sasuke's brows were tightly furrowed; he sensed something wrong and could even imagine the scene at that time.

No wonder,

Father was serious and never came home all day, almost gathering every day to discuss some secret matters.

"Did the Uchiha once want to rebel?"

Searching up to this point, the truth was already about to emerge.

Sasuke felt his throat go dry; even when he recalled it himself, he could find the problem—the village likely already knew the news that the Uchiha Clan was going to rebel at that time.

The destruction of the Uchiha Clan was related to Konoha!

"Itachi, what kind of role did you play in all of this?"

A massive sense of chaos caused Sasuke's chakra to riot, and a special type of chakra gathered at the optic nerves of his eyes.

The scarlet Sharingan opened, and the black Tomoe spun wildly.

Three-Tomoe Sharingan.

Just at this moment, a cold voice suddenly sounded from behind.

"Three-Tomoe, huh? You've certainly made progress during the time I've been away."

It was none other than Itachi Uchiha, who had come to the clan grounds to see how Sasuke was doing.

(End of chapter)