Chapter 405: Strangers
"Satsuki! Don't do it... she, no matter what... Itachi is still your sister..."
Mikoto's voice carried a sobbing tremor. As Naruto walked into the Susanoo and placed his hand on Satsuki's shoulder, the chakra pressure finally eased slightly. She rushed forward, spreading her arms to block between the purple Susanoo and Yuu.
Tears swirled in her eyes—that stubborn gentleness belonging to a mother. Knowing it was futile, yet still wanting to use the last thread of blood connection to pull back these two children locked in mortal conflict.
Loving to the point of naivety, naive to the point of cruelty.
And this was precisely what Satsuki could least forgive about Uchiha Itachi—she'd stolen away this love that should have been pure, so what right did she have to still be protected by it?
Fugaku silently stood beside his wife. He didn't speak, but his action had clearly conveyed his position.
He likewise didn't want Satsuki to strike that blow here.
Naruto's hand still rested gently on Satsuki's shoulder.
"Satsuki... I'm sorry."
"I know this is irresponsible—telling you the truth, yet stopping your revenge..."
His gaze swept over Shisui lying on the ground, tightly protected by Yuu, finally settling back on Mikoto's tear-filled face.
"But Itachi... is still Aunt Mikoto's child."
If he were a parent—if his eldest daughter went astray and his second daughter was determined to kill her sister... what would he do?
He didn't know.
But he knew Aunt Mikoto would weep day and night, would see the image of blood relatives killing each other every time she closed her eyes for the rest of her life. That gentleness would shatter into regret that could never be pieced back together.
If he hadn't saved Satsuki's parents back then—if the cause and effect of hatred had already been set in stone—he absolutely wouldn't stop Satsuki's revenge.
Just like Sasuke in that other world.
But this world was different.
The Uchiha clan still existed.
Fugaku and Mikoto were still alive.
The greatest cause of hatred had been severed by his own hand ten years ago.
"...But... she almost..." Satsuki's voice finally spoke up, carrying unstoppable sobbing, like a child trapped in a nightmare whimpering.
Uchiha Itachi had almost taken away Satsuki's light. That was a sin harder to forgive than "clan massacre"—because that was her own, irreplaceable sun.
"Let's... go home to talk, okay?" Naruto lowered his voice even more, almost at her ear. "I'll explain everything to you... bit by bit."
He couldn't say too much under "Menma's" identity.
But if Satsuki insisted on settling everything at this moment—he would unhesitatingly remove his mask.
"...Why... why..." Tears burst from her eyes, rolling down her pale cheeks. "Why don't you cherish yourself more..."
"I'm sorry..."
Naruto only continued apologizing in a low voice. "After we go back... except for leaving me, anything else—I'll agree to it."
The Susanoo's outline slowly dissipated with his words. The purple chakra receded like a tide, ultimately leaving only Satsuki standing alone in place, shoulders trembling slightly.
She looked toward Yuu's direction.
Looked at that figure with closed eyes, tightly embracing Shisui, seeming ready to shatter at a touch.
The hatred hadn't dissipated, but the hand that would swing the blade could no longer be raised.
"What the hell happened here—?!"
"...Menma-sama, you're truly responsible. Are these Uchiha descendants left behind in Konoha?"
A familiar voice cut through the air. Zabuza entered the plaza first carrying his weapon, Haku following half a step behind him like a shadow.
Next came Kisame Hoshigaki's signature shark face, the corners of his grinning mouth holding an ambiguous smile, Samehada already squirming restlessly on his shoulder. Deidara was even more excited as he rushed forward, his right hand already reaching into the clay pouch at his waist.
"Enemy! Where's the enemy?! My new technique can finally be put to use! Yeah!"
"Shut your mouth, Deidara!"
Kakuzu's gloomy voice pressed down. "Dare to use those explosive scraps of yours here—if you collapse the organization's base, I'll be the first to wring your neck!"
In the distant shadows, Orochimaru quietly leaned against a stone pillar but didn't say a word. The commotion of two Susanoo colliding had ultimately drawn these people over.
Menma slowly turned around. The fox mask reflected a detached curve under the training ground dome's cold light. "There's no enemy here."
"I only came to uncover some buried truths. Everyone go back. It's already very late."
"It'll be over soon."
Hearing the leader personally confirm it, Zabuza and Kakuzu almost simultaneously breathed sighs of relief—they weren't afraid of battle, but if a conflict of this scale truly erupted in the base's core, the cleanup work would be headache-inducing for who knows how long.
Kisame, hearing this, kept that terrifying smile unchanged on his face, but had already withdrawn his battle-ready posture. He bowed slightly toward Menma's direction, then turned and left without hesitation, demonstrating his order execution ability and loyalty.
"Tch... how boring." Deidara pouted, pulling his right hand from the clay pouch, yawning. "I finally made a new work, when will I get to throw it at real enemies... yeah."
"Deidara—don't say unnecessary things." Kakuzu coldly warned, also nodding toward Menma's direction in acknowledgment before disappearing into the passage shadows with the others.
The arena returned to silence.
After the outsiders dispersed, Satsuki's Susanoo finally completely dissipated.
Purple light scattered like fireflies, revealing the slightly trembling figure within. She lowered her head, biting hard on her lower lip—why couldn't the tears just stop?
She hated herself like this.
Crying would make people annoyed—she'd read that in those books about "how to get along with someone you like." She'd always remembered, always been so careful, wanting to show Naruto her most perfect, strongest side.
But now, she couldn't control it.
"...By the way."
Satsuki suddenly raised her head, forcefully wiping her eyes with her sleeve. Her voice still carried post-sobbing hoarseness. "The hawks in the Uchiha clan back then who wanted to launch the rebellion... are you certain they've all been completely eliminated?"
Naruto fell silent for a moment, lowering his gaze.
"Yes."
He answered softly without evasion.
"At that time... Shisui and I handled it together."
He'd personally killed her clan members—this was an unflinching fact.
"Really?"
Satsuki took a step forward, her moist black eyes staring intently at him. "No one slipped through the net? Certain... not a single one remains?"
This reaction was beyond Naruto's expectations.
Satsuki's thinking was actually very simple. Those clan members who had once wanted to use her to harm Naruto—if any were still alive, she absolutely wouldn't allow it.
If Naruto had overlooked any back then... she would make up for it personally now.
Not leaving a single one.
"...What about Danzo?" She spoke again. "I remember the news said... he died long ago."
"Yes. I killed him."
The two questions Satsuki cared about most had both received definite answers. She took a light breath.
She could spare Uchiha Itachi—for Mom's sake.
But certain words, certain boundaries—she had to draw them clearly at this moment.
She turned toward Yuu's direction, her voice suddenly dropping to freezing point.
"Uchiha Itachi..."
Yuu's body trembled almost imperceptibly.
"From now on—don't ever appear in my life again. I don't need your 'protection.'"
"I hate you."
Her eyes churned with ten years of accumulated darkness. "I hate that you arrogantly decided my life, hate that you trampled my trust in you, hate that you turned 'for my own good' into an excuse to hurt everyone."
"If—you dare appear before me one more time..."
"I will definitely kill you immediately."