"Lord Shiki!"
"Welcome, Lord Shiki!"
"Shiki-sama, Uchiha Mikoto lives in the side courtyard. May we guide you?"
With almost exaggerated courtesy, the Uchiha clansmen shepherded Shiki through the compound.
Not long ago, these same Uchiha had been famed for their pride.
But after witnessing Shiki's battles with their own eyes, everything changed.
To them now, Shiki stood alongside legends—Madara Uchiha, Senju Hashirama—someone to fear, respect, and admire in equal measure.
The Nine-Tails...
that monstrous fox that had nearly leveled the village... had fallen to him as easily as a child swats a firefly.
That single, overwhelming display crushed even Uchiha pride.
Not one voice rose against him, not a single pair of Sharingan so much as flashed in defiance.
Even after hearing that Shiki's destination was Uchiha Mikoto's quarters
Even though none of them understood why he would pay her a personal visit…
Not a single clan member had the guts to question him.
Some even scrambled ahead to clear a path.
"It's our honor that you would visit Lady Uchiha Mikoto, Lord Shiki!"
"She's in the side courtyard—this way, please. W-we'll excuse ourselves!"
Their flattery words no proud Uchiha should utter echoed behind him as Shiki continued alone toward the secluded courtyard where Uchiha Mikoto was kept under watch.
In the courtyard stood a small figure.
Bandages still wrapped around his head, five-year-old Uchiha Itachi faced Shiki with a composure far beyond his years.
"Shiki-sama… are you the one Mother asked for help?" he asked softly.
"That's right."
Shiki answered just as calmly, golden eyes fixed on the boy showing not the slightest hint of remorse for having slain the child's father.
Uchiha Itachi was only five years old and yet, he seemed to understand everything.
He did not rage at the man who had killed his father.
He only stood there quietly, obediently...
Far too mature for a child his age.
"…Looks like you've had your share of pain too."
As Shiki spoke, he couldn't help but remember how Kushina had pleaded with him to come here.
She had not explained everything in detail. She had only said that Mikoto would tell him herself.
But after standing here and seeing this much, Shiki could already guess the rough outline.
Still…
They really did not need to worry so much.
Shiki was not that petty of a man.
Uchiha Itachi truly was talented.
For a child only five years old, he was already far beyond others his age.
Unfortunately…
His way of thinking was still trapped within a painfully narrow cage.
Otherwise, in the future, he would never have chosen to slaughter his own father, mother, and entire clan beneath the banner of so-called "duty."
That kind of resolve was admirable in a way but also unbearably small-minded.
Shiki said nothing more after that.
He simply walked past the young boy and continued deeper into the courtyard.
Itachi also remained silent.
Earlier, his mother had told him to wait outside for some reason, so he obediently stayed behind instead of following.
Even if he did not know what Mikoto intended to do…
He understood one thing very clearly.
Shiki-sama was not some kind-hearted saint.
Everything in this world came with a price.
As Shiki pushed open the door to his mother's room, Itachi slowly withdrew his gaze.
Then he quietly sat down outside and began refining his chakra.
At the same time
Three tomoe rotated silently within his Sharingan.
If any other Uchiha had witnessed this scene, they would have been completely stunned.
Most members of the clan only awakened the Sharingan after becoming genin.
Even among geniuses, awakening two tomoe at such a young age was already considered extremely rare and yet…
At only five years old, Uchiha Itachi had already awakened the fully matured three-tomoe Sharingan.
A monster born once in a generation.
But Itachi himself understood very clearly... this was still nowhere near enough.
The moment he remembered how effortlessly Shiki had killed his father…
His small hands unconsciously clenched into fists.
What he needed… was power beyond this.
At the very least
The Mangekyō Sharingan.
Only eyes like those once possessed by his father, Uchiha Fugaku, could possibly grant him the strength he sought.
"Squeak—"
The door slid open.
Shiki stepped inside. Uchiha Mikoto stood quietly, hands folded, dressed in luminous bridal robes.
It was the first time he had truly seen her up close.
She embodied the Uchiha ideal: midnight hair cascading down her back, an elegant oval face, features so refined they seemed painted in ink.
Her figure—graceful yet voluptuous—could stand beside Tsunade's, slender where it should be, full where it mattered, as though the gods had shown her special favor.
"Thank you, Shiki-sama… for granting Itachi your precious time."
Her head lowered, cheeks aflame to the very tips of her ears. The words escaped in a trembling whisper.
She had witnessed every moment outside the door.
Though not counted among Konoha's elites, she was hardly ordinary... a chūnin of the Uchiha clan, eyes awakened to the full three-tomoe Sharingan.
Seeing Shiki show unexpected kindness toward Itachi, she allowed herself a small, shaky breath of relief.
And yet… timid, easily flustered, almost shrinking into her robes—if Shiki hadn't already known she was Itachi's mother, he might have mistaken Uchiha Mikoto for a gentle Hyūga woman.
The resemblance in temperament was uncanny.
"Ho? Playing the shy bride, are we?" Shiki's voice was soft, yet his golden gaze traced every line of her figure. "Even so, you greet me in full wedding robes?"
He advanced with measured steps, expression as calm as still water.
"So–Uchiha Mikoto–what do you intend to gain by appearing before me like this?"
"…I wished to offer a true apology—for the sins my husband committed."
Her head bowed even deeper, heat flooding to the tips of her ears. All her life, Uchiha Mikoto had followed the clan's strict etiquette, never had she done anything so reckless—wearing bridal robes, a garment of promise, before another man…
…and that man was her husband's killer.
Surely there was a place in hell reserved for her after this.
…Wasn't there?
But when her thoughts turned to herself—and, more importantly, to her child—something ignited behind those usually timid eyes: a spark of unshakable resolve.
With steady hands, she gathered her long hair and tied it back.
Paying no mind to the dust staining her knees or to the pristine bridal robes brushing against the floor—Uchiha Mikoto moved forward and knelt before him. Shiki did not retreat... his golden eyes rested on her, unreadable.
"Please allow me to serve you, Shiki-sama."
...
Meanwhile, a red-haired intruder had sneakily entered the Uchiha clan compound.
After looking left and right, she followed the path she knew and muttered to herself, "Damn… why do I feel like a thief? I'm just meeting up with my friend."
Kushina had followed Shiki in secret.
Of course, she knew it was wrong.
She had been the one who asked him for help. She had been the one who pleaded with him to come here.
And yet… she still couldn't stop herself from following.
Because Mikoto had refused to tell her how she intended to ask for Shiki's help.
No matter how much Kushina asked, Mikoto would only lower her head and say she would explain it to Shiki herself.
That made Kushina uneasy.
After all, the person Mikoto was asking for help from was Shiki.
Shiki was not an ordinary man.
He could be gentle when he wanted to be.
He could also be terrifyingly unreasonable when something crossed his bottom line.
And this time…
Mikoto had been connected to the Uchiha clan's actions, even if only indirectly.
Because of that incident, Kushina had almost lost everything.
Even Shiki's loved ones had nearly been dragged into danger because of the chaos the Uchiha had created.
You couldn't simply expect Shiki to help out of kindness.
Not after something like that and worse than anything else... Kushina herself felt guilty.
The first time, she had asked Shiki to help Mikoto find Itachi.
Now, once again, she had pleaded with him for Mikoto's sake.
The more she thought about it, the worse she felt.
"…This makes me feel even worse."
Her voice was low.
Almost as if she were scolding herself.
Keeping her presence hidden, Kushina quietly slipped into the side courtyard.
But just as she approached Mikoto's house
She stopped in her tracks.
Outside the door, a small figure sat leaning against the wall.
Itachi.
The five-year-old boy sat there silently, his head lowered.
At first, Kushina thought he was simply resting.
But then she saw it clearly...
Silent tears had gathered in his eyes, sliding down his cheeks without a sound.
"Itachi-kun…"
Kushina stepped forward carefully.
"What happened?"
Itachi raised his head.
For a brief moment, his eyes looked far too empty for a child.
Then he quickly wiped his tears away with his sleeve.
"…It's nothing, Kushina-san."
"I just remembered something."
Kushina froze slightly.
Remembered something?
Her gaze softened almost immediately.
She thought he must have remembered Fugaku.
No matter what Fugaku had done, no matter what kind of person he had become, to Itachi, he was still his father.
Kushina slowly raised her hand, wanting to stroke his head.
But before her hand could reach him...
Itachi stood up.
He patted the dust from his clothes with small, practiced movements, as though forcing himself to look composed.
Then he lowered his head politely.
"I want to walk around for a little while."
His voice remained gentle, but there was something in it that made Kushina unable to stop him.
"If you want to meet Mother…"
He paused for half a breath.
Then continued quietly.
"You can come back tomorrow."
"She is not feeling well."
After saying that, Itachi lowered his head once more.
Then he turned and walked away.
Kushina stood there alone in the courtyard, her eyes following his small, lonely figure.
"Arghh… I don't know…" she muttered, ruffling her hair before forcing herself to stop thinking about it.
Then she turned toward the door, slowly pushed it open, and stepped inside.
"…Mikoto?"
She lowered her voice instinctively as she entered the hallway.
But before she could announce herself...
Clap! Clap! Clap!
The rough sound of skin colliding against skin suddenly echoed through the corridor... and along with it came faint, suppressed grunts—
"…!"
Kushina froze in place, her mind going completely blank.
The sounds coming from deeper inside the room were impossible to misunderstand.
The trembling gasps sounded like someone trying with all their strength not to let their voice escape.
Her body stiffened where she stood, her eyes widening in disbelief.
"…No way…"
Mikoto…?
Shiki…?
A strange heat rushed to her face so quickly that even her ears turned red.
Yet somehow…
Her body instinctively followed the sound.
Kushina swallowed nervously again and again as she moved deeper into the hallway, one step at a time.
CLAP! CLAP! CLAP!
The closer she got...
The louder the rough sounds became.
Along with increasingly muffled grunts that sounded like someone desperately trying to suppress their voice while absolutely getting her back blown out.
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