Chapter 179

He was deeply curious—what kind of bizarre mental logic could have led Itachi to make such a decision!

Itachi stood tense, his three-tomoe Sharingan activated, his face grim as he said:

"There's something I'd like to ask you."

Ishihara pointed to the seat across from him. "Sit down and speak."

After sitting, Itachi picked up the teacup on the table and poured tea for Ishihara; after a moment's hesitation, he asked:

"What do you think is the meaning of life?"

Ishihara froze, surprised by such a philosophical question right off the bat.

But after thinking it over, he answered: "For me, the meaning of life is simply to live!"

That's why he pursued immortality!

As for pleasure, he certainly enjoyed it too.

But for now, he valued the path to immortality more.

"To live?"

Itachi nodded thoughtfully.

He had been taken to the battlefield by Fugaku at age four, witnessing the brutality and bloodshed of war.

That was why he had always striven to avoid war—this, he believed, was the meaning of his own life.

Especially after unlocking the Mangekyō Sharingan, his immense power had led him to believe he alone should resolve the conflict between the Uchiha and Konoha, preventing a possible ninja world war!

But now, he seemed unable to do it.

Itachi asked, bewildered: "Then what should I do to prevent the war between the Uchiha and Konoha?"

Ishihara laughed outright. "Is this question really that hard?"

Not hard?

Itachi's face was filled with confusion.

"Let me ask you a question first."

Ishihara looked at him with a faint, knowing smile.

"In this war between the Uchiha and Konoha's high command, if you joined Konoha's high command, do you think you could win?"

"You may use any means, any strategy, at any cost!"

Itachi paused, his expression hesitant.

Ishihara smiled and spoke for him.

"You could betray the Uchiha clan—even sneak into your own home and assassinate Fugaku, then forge Fugaku's orders to lure in Inabi, who just unlocked his Mangekyō, and kill Inabi!"

"With both Mangekyō gone, you, the Third Hokage, and Danzō could join forces to completely annihilate the Uchiha clan!"

"Isn't that what you're thinking?"

Itachi hesitated, then nodded.

Ishihara's smile vanished; his voice turned cold: "But have you forgotten that the Uchiha is mine now?"

Itachi's pupils shrank sharply as he stared at Ishihara in horror: "Are you going to interfere in this?"

Ishihara raised one finger and shook it slowly, speaking with calm, domineering indifference:

"It's not that I intend to interfere—it's that the Uchiha is mine."

"It still has use to me. As long as I don't allow the Uchiha to be wiped out, they won't be wiped out—even if the enemy is all of Konoha!"

Itachi trembled, his heart sinking to the bottom as he met Ishihara's confident gaze.

He knew well: a man as calm and rational as Ishihara never spoke without reason.

If he said this, it meant he possessed power capable of standing against all of Konoha!

"Could it be he's reached the legendary power of Uchiha Madara and the First Hokage? Or has he mastered Wood Release?!"

The sudden thought in his mind made Itachi pale.

But Ishihara's faint, knowing smile seemed to say:

Yes, you guessed right!

Itachi's heart turned icy.

"Even if it's not Wood Release, he must have developed a technique of comparable level!"

He realized: Konoha's high command had no chance.

If the Third Hokage and Danzō and others were eliminated, Konoha would plunge into chaos, likely triggering a new ninja world war.

Thinking of this, Itachi's blood ran cold.

At that moment, Ishihara continued: "What if you stood with the Uchiha?"

Hearing this, Itachi's expression changed slightly, and he continued automatically:

"With three pairs of Mangekyō Sharingan, whether targeting Danzō or the Hokage, failure is impossible!"

He glanced at Ishihara.

Most importantly, the Uchiha had him standing behind them!

Ishihara said coolly: "If I'm not mistaken, tomorrow Fugaku will bring more people to unlock their Mangekyō—then the Uchiha won't have just three pairs, but four, five, even more…"

Gulp!

Itachi involuntarily swallowed hard, his face filled with horror.

Five pairs—or more—of Mangekyō Sharingan; he couldn't imagine the Uchiha losing.

As Itachi continued to imagine further, his face changed drastically.

"But if the Third Hokage dies, Konoha will fall into internal chaos, triggering a ninja world war—then countless lives will be lost!"

Ishihara sneered: "Does that have anything to do with you?"

"When the Third Hokage dies, a new Hokage will naturally arise!"

"The Shinobi World War may not break out now, but it will break out eventually!"

"You don't actually think that opening the Mangekyō Sharingan can change the balance of the shinobi world, do you?"

Sasuke fell silent.

In the past, he had truly believed that—at least he could prevent the war sparked by Konoha and the Uchiha.

But looking at Ishihara, he felt a wave of helplessness.

This man right before him had the power to stop everything, yet showed not the slightest intention to act.

Thinking of how the Uchiha clan and the Third Hokage and others were now busy and anxious,

he suddenly found it laughable.

The outcome had already been decided!

"Then, Sasuke, it's your turn to choose: side with the Uchiha, or side with the Third Hokage?"

Ishihara narrowed his eyes at him.

He wanted to see if Sasuke's thinking could be so bizarre it would shock him.

Sasuke smiled bitterly. "Do I even have a choice?"

Choosing the Third Hokage means choosing to die alongside him—the war still cannot be avoided!

But choosing the Uchiha at least lets me survive, and then I can consider how to prevent the war!

"I choose the Uchiha."