The path ahead wouldn't be easy, but Itachi Uchiha wasn't about to give up. He was determined to spread his older brother's Will of Fire across the entire ninja world.
For the next few days, Jie Uchiha kept a close eye on him. He wanted to see exactly how Itachi planned to convince their parents, Fugaku and Mikoto.
But after days of watching, the kid hadn't made a single move.
'Did he just give up?' Jie wondered. 'No, he's probably still cooking up an excuse. After all, convincing Father and Mother won't be easy.'
Finally, a full week after Itachi first brought it up, the boy made his move.
That evening, Jie returned home from his shift at the Hokage's office. As soon as he stepped into the living room, he paused.
Fugaku and Mikoto were sitting side-by-side on the tatami mats, clearly waiting for someone. And in this house? The only person they'd be waiting for was him.
"Jie," Mikoto started, her expression dead serious. "I heard from Itachi that you plan to send him on a secret mission. Is this true?"
Jie blinked. 'What secret mission?' Then, he remembered Itachi's suspicious silence over the past week. He cursed inwardly.
'Good kid. Definitely my blood brother', Jie thought bitterly. 'He didn't hold back at all. He spent a whole week plotting, and this is what he comes up with? Throwing his older brother completely under the bus!'
'Well, if you're going to play dirty, don't blame me for returning the favor.'
Smoothing out his expression, Jie put on a mask of righteous indignation. "Of course not. How could I ever push Itachi into a fire pit? It all started a week ago, when Itachi came to my room..."
With vivid emotion, Jie spilled everything. He laid out all of Itachi's crazy ideas, making absolutely sure to wipe his own hands clean of the matter.
In Jie's version of the story, Itachi had relentlessly begged him. Jie, playing the reluctant and doting older brother, simply couldn't bear to refuse him.
Then, Jie smoothly kicked the ball over to Fugaku. He fully expected his father to use his parental authority and crush Itachi's absurd idea.
It seemed to work perfectly. Fugaku's brows knitted together in a deep frown.
"Outrageous," Fugaku rumbled. "To think Itachi has learned to push his own responsibilities onto his older brother."
Jie nodded eagerly, fanning the flames. "Exactly. When he gets back, Father, you really need to teach him a lesson."
He waited for his father to agree. But unexpectedly, Fugaku's tone completely flipped.
"It's truly outrageous that he views me and his mother this way!" Fugaku huffed. "Itachi wants to get stronger. He wants to follow in his older brother's footsteps..."
"Why would we, as his parents, ever oppose that? Come on out, Itachi. Your brother and I both agree. You can leave the village tomorrow."
"Exactly, exact—wait, what?"
Jie had instinctively nodded along, only for the words to finally register. He had just been thoroughly played.
The sliding door to the back room opened. Itachi stepped out, his face a mix of embarrassment and utter joy.
Jie stared at them, completely incredulous. "So you already agreed... and all that talk just now was just to trap me?"
"Yes. It's rare for Itachi to have his own ideas. Why wouldn't Mikoto and I support him?" Fugaku smiled, giving a firm nod.
"Even if things go south, he has the Uchiha clan backing him. And he has you, his older brother. With us behind him, there is nowhere in this vast ninja world he cannot go."
Jie stared at his parents. They had happily helped Itachi scheme against him! For a brief moment, he felt like a stray dog in his own home.
'Am I really their biological son?' he wondered. 'Does becoming Hokage mutate your bloodline?'
But Jie didn't dwell on it for long. Since it was officially decided that Itachi would leave the village, he needed to brief the kid on a few crucial rules.
"Itachi, you can leave," Jie warned, his expression dropping all traces of humor. "But unless absolutely necessary, do not let anyone know you possess the Mangekyo Sharingan."
He locked eyes with his younger brother.
"And unless it's a matter of life and death, do not use its ocular jutsu. I've warned you about the dangers before. If you overuse it, you will go blind. As of right now, even I don't have a solution for that."
Itachi nodded immediately. He clearly understood the gravity of the situation.
Jie thought for a moment, then waved Itachi closer. Reaching into his ninja pouch, he pulled out a specialized three-pronged weapon—a Flying Thunder God kunai—and handed it over.
"If you ever encounter danger, inject your chakra into this kunai. The moment the Flying Thunder God formula triggers, I'll know. I will rush over at top speed."
Itachi accepted the weapon giving a heavy, silent nod.
"Since I won't be by your side to watch your back," Jie said, a rare trace of melancholy crossing his face, "take care of yourself out there."
He reached out and affectionately patted Itachi's shoulder. As he did, he silently imprinted another Flying Thunder God formula directly onto his brother's clothes.
A kunai could easily be lost or stolen in battle. Leaving a marker directly on Itachi was a much safer bet.
"Alright, that's enough, Jie," Fugaku chuckled. He looked highly amused watching his sons act like they were parting ways forever. "It's not like Itachi is leaving the village today."
Hearing his father's teasing tone, Jie awkwardly scratched the back of his head.
Right. He had completely forgotten about that.
But that didn't matter. Now that Itachi's departure was set in stone, Jie had a mountain of preparations to handle.
He headed straight to the Anbu base. There, he pulled up his former Anbu file under the codename "Heavenly Fiend." He wiped its past mission records completely clean, officially transferred the status over to Itachi, and changed the codename to "Karasu."
Next, he issued a long-term mission under the alias... 'Investigate the movements of the major ninja villages across the world.'
A long-term mission like this was essentially just unpaid leave. It was the exact same loophole Jiraiya and Tsunade used to leave the village and travel the ninja world so freely.
From there, Jie hurried over to the Konoha Military Police Force headquarters and completely erased Itachi's status as a police member. This way, Itachi was just a free shinobi. If he disappeared from Konoha now, hardly anyone would bat an eye.
This step was crucial because Itachi's status was highly sensitive. He was the second young master of the Uchiha clan and the younger brother of the current Hokage.
Most importantly, Itachi was only ten years old.
Jie knew perfectly well that his brother's strength was no joke. But in the eyes of enemy ninjas, a ten-year-old boy was a prime target. Capturing him would deal a devastating blow to Konoha.
'Plus, two fists can't block four hands forever,' Jie worried. 'Combined with his lack of experience outside the village walls, a single mistake could be fatal.'
By the time Jie finished sorting out all the paperwork and covering their tracks, it was already the next day—the day Itachi was scheduled to leave.
Mikoto held little Sasuke in her arms as the family gathered to say their goodbyes.
Jie and Itachi stood facing each other. Perhaps it was because they had already said everything that needed to be said the day before, but now, they just stared at each other in total silence.
The atmosphere was incredibly awkward.
Cough! cough!
Jie cleared his throat twice, finally breaking the silence. He looked at his younger brother.
"Go on...Stay safe" he said softly.
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