"Tsunade-sama, in this operation, Chiyo and Baki of the Hidden Sand Village were killed."
Rorin spoke in a low voice, then fell silent.
Hearing this, Tsunade froze for a moment. The others lowered their heads in tacit understanding, mourning the fallen.
After the four finished their report to Tsunade, they left the Hokage's office. As they walked, Naruto suddenly stopped.
"Kakashi-sensei, I want to become stronger. After this mission, I realized my current strength is far too weak. Kakashi-sensei, can you teach me?"
Naruto looked at Kakashi with sincere eyes and then bowed deeply.
"Please, Kakashi-sensei!"
Kakashi calmly closed the book in his hand and said softly,
"Hmm, there is a way that can make you stronger."
Hearing this, Naruto lifted his head in excitement.
"Really? Kakashi-sensei, then tell me quickly!"
Seeing this, Rorin quietly left alone, giving the stage to Kakashi.
Rorin returned home by himself and took a shower. Afterward, feeling completely refreshed, he changed into his sleepwear and fell into a deep sleep.
In the following days, life returned to peace. On this day, as usual, Rorin went to a forest in the western area of the Hidden Leaf Village to train.
As soon as he entered the forest, he frowned, sensing someone nearby watching him. Could it be Shimura Danzō causing trouble again?
Rorin quietly activated his Byakugan and scanned the area. Soon, he saw an unexpected figure.
Rorin gave a bitter smile and spread his hands helplessly, thinking,
"Is this one of those 'beat the younger one and the elder comes for you' situations?"
Deep within the forest, Uchiha Itachi seemed to realize that Rorin had discovered him. He let out a faint chuckle and said calmly,
"I didn't expect this guy's perception to be this sharp."
He decided to stop hiding. This time, Pain had arranged for him to come to the Hidden Leaf Village to gather intelligence on Rorin. It suited him perfectly, as he had wanted to meet Rorin anyway, so he readily accepted the mission.
Moments later, Uchiha Itachi appeared before Rorin, his expression cold as he spoke, "Are you the one who abducted a member of our organization?"
"A member of the Akatsuki? Who are you?" Rorin looked at Uchiha Itachi calmly, ignoring the question and countering instead.
Then Rorin glanced at Itachi's forehead protector and looked at him with feigned confusion.
"You're a rogue ninja from the Hidden Leaf Village?"
"My name is Uchiha Itachi. So, can you answer my question now?" Itachi said flatly.
"Are you talking about that guy with the scythe from last time?" Rorin replied lightly.
"So you admit it. Then where is he now?" Itachi asked.
"Uchiha? A few days ago, I met a young boy who also had the surname Uchiha. Are you from the same clan?" Rorin deflected again.
Hearing this, Itachi's gaze sharpened slightly. A young Uchiha… could it be Sasuke?
Seeing that Itachi didn't respond, Rorin decided to provoke him further.
"I think his name was Uchiha Sasuke. So? Do you know him?"
At the mention of Sasuke, Itachi's heart trembled for an instant before he regained his composure and said coldly,
"Oh? You mean my foolish little brother? What, he's still alive?"
"What a coincidence—so he's your younger brother!" Rorin said with a surprised expression.
"Oh right, I beat him up last time. You're not here today to avenge him, are you?" Rorin looked at Itachi with a teasing smile.
At this, Itachi frowned and fixed his gaze on Rorin again, no longer calm.
"Enough nonsense. Tell me—why did you attack a member of our organization?"
Rorin shrugged and said lightly, "No particular reason. Just felt like it."
Itachi stared at Rorin and stopped wasting words. Instead, he cast a genjutsu on him.
Caught off guard, Rorin fell into the illusion. As the surrounding environment twisted, he suddenly drove a bone spike from his elbow into his own thigh.
A sharp pain shot through him, and Rorin broke free from the genjutsu, breathing heavily.
"Oh? You dispelled it using pain?" Itachi said softly.
Rorin looked at Itachi warily as bone spikes protruded from his body. In an instant, his figure vanished, charging toward Itachi.
Moving like a ghost, Rorin appeared beside Itachi and swept a leg toward him.
Itachi tried to block with his arm, but the force behind Rorin's kick struck him hard, sending him flying backward and kicking up a cloud of dust.
Seeing his attack work, Rorin used Body Flicker again to appear beside Itachi.
Shikotsumyaku · Dance of the Larch!
Itachi was struck and fell to the ground. Rorin stood still and asked calmly,
"Are you really planning to fight me with your current frail body? I don't like beating a sick person. Even if I win, it wouldn't feel right. Let's end it here."
As his words fell, a flicker passed through Itachi's eyes. He slowly stood up.
"You noticed?"
"Yeah. I've suffered a serious illness before myself, so I can somewhat relate to your condition," Rorin said with a sigh.
"But no matter what, today I must understand your true purpose," Itachi said seriously.
Rorin scratched the back of his head and replied lightly,
"He just happened to meet my needs. That's all."
"My needs?" Itachi repeated thoughtfully. He was about to turn and leave. From their brief clash, he could already tell that if both sides fought with full strength, he would likely be at a slight disadvantage. He still had things he had to do, so he couldn't fall here. Just then, Rorin's voice came from behind him again.
"By the way, you should be Uchiha Sasuke's target for revenge, right? I heard Naruto mention that the one he wants revenge on is his older brother."
Itachi paused and turned around.
"I look forward to seeing him again. When that time comes, I will personally kill him and take his eyes!"
Rorin shook his head and said softly,
"With your current body, even if you take them, what can you do? Can you avoid dying?"
Then he continued, "And yet you're so calm about it. Unless you've already accepted death and never intended to live on, right?"
Itachi stared at Rorin, inwardly amazed at how quick-witted he was.
Rorin continued his long analysis without pause. "Since you've accepted death, your battle with your brother must serve some purpose—probably to fulfill him. Just now, when I mentioned beating your brother, your emotions fluctuated greatly. That's why you suddenly attacked me."
"So, putting it all together—you were lying just now. You actually care deeply about your younger brother, don't you?" Rorin said with a smile.
Itachi was stunned. He hadn't expected Rorin to deduce so much just from their brief conversation and the fact that he was gravely ill.