On the way back to the clan grounds, Itachi leaned tiredly against Shisui's back, his large eyes gazing at Shisui's profile. He asked, "Brother Shisui, what do you think of our Uchiha clan?"
Shisui stopped his steps, a slight surprise flashing across his face before he calmly replied, "Very good. The Uchiha is a powerful clan, and they treat talented ninjas like us well."
Itachi didn't dispute Shisui's words and said softly, "Actually, I can feel that the relationship between the clan and the village doesn't seem to be very good."
Shisui's heart sank. Even Itachi could sense the volatile atmosphere between the clan and the village? Was the clan's rebellion not far off?!
Fugaku, lying on the bed completely bandaged and motionless, cursed in his mind: You beat me into this state and still say rebellion is near. Are you deliberately trying to kill me?!
Itachi continued, "Brother Shisui, I want to hear your honest thoughts. Don't worry, I definitely won't tell anyone else!"
Shisui shook his head and said, "Brother Itachi, I trust you, but this is not something you can interfere with."
Shisui paused briefly, then stated gravely, "The clan might rebel!"
Itachi's eyes widened slightly, then he quietly said, "Mm."
Now it was Shisui's turn to be taken aback. His brother Itachi's reaction was just a simple "mm"? That was too calm!
"Brother Itachi, aren't you curious about the reason for the clan's rebellion?"
"I am curious, but if Brother Shisui wants to tell me, he will tell me."
Shisui was speechless and could only recount what Teacher Lin Yu had told him to Itachi.
After a while, Shisui's throat felt dry. He added, "Brother Itachi, do you think the clan can still be saved?"
Itachi, still resting on Shisui's back, pondered for a long time and hesitated, "Eliminating the radical faction and then applying pressure on the clan regarding their life and death could indeed indefinitely postpone the clan's rebellion. But all this pressure will accumulate and erupt one day in the future, and that will be the moment of the Uchiha's true demise!"
Shisui hadn't expected his brother Itachi to grasp the logic so quickly and exclaimed, "Then how can it be resolved completely?"
Itachi's gaze suddenly turned sharp. "Completely renew the corrupt Uchiha!"
Shisui stopped again, but this time he lingered for a long time. He looked back at his brother Itachi with complex emotions and chuckled wryly, "I didn't expect I would be less decisive than you, Brother Itachi. I've lived in vain!"
A smile touched Itachi's lips as he comforted him, "I'm just saying. If it really came to doing something like that, I probably wouldn't be able to go through with it!"
Itachi continued, "Actually, the most effective method would be for our Uchiha to produce a Hokage. That would pacify the resentment in the hearts of the clan members, and the rebellion would collapse on its own."
Why would they rebel if they became Hokage?! Would they rebel against themselves?!
Shisui sighed, "Yes, but the village will not let the Uchiha become Hokage."
"Who knows what the future holds! Perhaps the Fifth Hokage will be you, Brother Shisui!"
Shisui chuckled speechlessly, "How could that be! Your chances of becoming Hokage are greater than mine. My temperament is not suited to being Hokage."
The two chatted and laughed, completely unaware that in a nearby corner, two small figures were secretly watching them. One of the small figures couldn't help but sniff.
"How can this be! Why is Brother smiling so happily!"
Sasuke watched Shisui and Itachi walk away, chatting and laughing, feeling that his brother, who belonged only to him, had completely gone away at this moment!
"Huh? Is that your brother?"
Naruto blinked his sky-blue eyes, looked at Shisui and Itachi, then at Sasuke, and suddenly discovered something new, saying, "You're wearing the same clothes!"
"Idiot! We're from the same clan. This is the clan crest, of course, the clothes are the same!"
Sasuke's assessment of Naruto's intelligence reached a new height. This new "friend" he had made didn't seem to be on the same intellectual level as him.
"Oh! So that's how it is?"
Naruto scratched his head. He wasn't truly stupid; he just didn't know how to comfort Sasuke. After all, this was the first friend he had made, and he couldn't let him be sad.
Suddenly, another sound came from afar.
"Brother Itachi, are you hungry? Shall we go to the sweet shop to buy some dango on the way back?"
"Mm! Brother Shisui is the best!"
BOOM!
A bolt of lightning instantly struck Sasuke, sending him plunging into the abyss of hell. He skipped the stage of red eyes and burst into tears.
"Wuwuwu, how could this happen! Brother isn't mine anymore! Wuwuwu..."
Naruto watched his little friend crying uncontrollably and became at a loss. He had no experience in comforting people!
At home, he and his dad were always the ones being bullied. But this reminded Naruto of how his dad comforted him when he was crying after being beaten.
Naruto tried to recall how Minato comforted him. He gently walked over and hugged Sasuke, who was immersed in his grief.
No resistance! Good! First step successful!
Naruto hugged Sasuke and held him in his arms, softly saying, "Good boy~ Don't cry, Daddy is still here with you!"
...Silence!
A deathly silence!
As soon as Naruto spoke, Sasuke's crying stopped, but Naruto's crying began!
Sasuke felt Naruto hugging him. He had intended to push him away, but then he thought that his brother was also being carried on someone's back, so what if he was being hugged?!
Just as Sasuke was lost in his own fantasies, getting angry at Itachi, Naruto's words instantly restored Sasuke's focus and intelligence.
Sasuke looked up at the sky-blue eyes and softly said, "What did you just say?"
Naruto was still praising himself for stopping Sasuke's crying, completely oblivious to Sasuke's killing intent. He repeated, "Good boy~ Don't cry, Dad..."
WHACK! BANG! CRASH! THUD!
Three minutes later, Sasuke walked out of the alley, refreshed and with a contented expression on his small face. It seemed he had almost forgotten what he had seen.
Sasuke waved goodbye to Naruto in the alley and said, "You're pretty good! You qualify as my sparring partner, Sasuke Uchiha! See you at the Ninja Academy!"
Naruto, bruised and swollen, lay on the ground. The Uzumaki clan's physique was allowing him to recover quickly, but his eyes were filled with tears.
Naruto was very confused. He had comforted his friend just like his dad did, so why did his friend hit him so hard!
Naruto felt a great pain in his heart! At only two years old, why did he have to endure such pain that didn't belong to him!
Just as Naruto was tearfully thinking of going home to find his mommy, a passing white-haired uncle spotted him.
"Huh? This kid looks a bit familiar."
"Kid? Were you bullied? Do you need this great me to comfort you?"
Unexpectedly, upon hearing the word "comfort," Naruto blurted out instinctively, "I don't want your comfort, I'm not your dad!"
Jiraiya: ???