Shinichi eyed him. "It seems you have something important to tell me."
Itachi gave a slight nod. "There are things you need to know before you extract the information from Kisame's head. After all... I am a spy."
Shinichi shot him a sidelong glance. A spy? The word tasted bitterly ironic coming from him. Itachi had been deep undercover in Akatsuki for years, yet in all that time, Konoha hadn't received a single substantial brief regarding the mysterious organization's core purpose, roster, or plans.
Akatsuki's very existence had only been pieced together through Jiraiya's exhaustive travels. Their plot to collect the Tailed Beasts and the true abilities of their leader, Pain, had only been confirmed because the Sannin had risked his own life.
Aside from keeping Sasuke safe, this lurking 'spy' hadn't delivered a shred of actionable intelligence.
"Keep it brief," Shinichi warned, waving off the excuse. "I don't like beating around the bush."
Letting the silence stretch for a moment, Itachi finally shifted his gaze to the younger Uchiha standing nearby. "Sasuke."
Sasuke looked up.
"Leave us. What I have to say next isn't suitable for you to hear just yet."
Sasuke frowned, his lips parting for an instinctive retort.
"Rest assured." Itachi held his gaze, offering a rare, softening tone of comfort. "When your strength reaches a certain level, I believe Shinichi will tell you everything."
Sasuke shot a look at Shinichi, jaw tight, before giving a reluctant nod. "I understand. When I'm strong enough, I'll ask him myself."
Without another word, he turned and strode toward the courtyard gate. Silence settled over the Uchiha compound, leaving only the two others behind.
"Thank you." Itachi finally broke the quiet. "Thank you for pulling Sasuke off the path... the one I paved for him."
Shinichi arched an eyebrow. "Oh? So you admit the path you arranged for him was wrong?"
"I never believed it was correct." Itachi averted his gaze. "It's just that... the power of the Sharingan requires hatred."
A dark chuckle escaped Shinichi. It was the ugly truth of their clan… the awakening of every Mangekyo Sharingan was invariably triggered by the death or loss of a loved one.
The power of those eyes was practically watered by the blood of the people the user cherished most.
His voice flattened, sounding cold and analytical... "So, you wanted to use a fabricated truth, along with your own failing life, to awaken Sasuke's Mangekyo. And if he strayed too far down that path of hatred, you planned to use Uchiha Shisui's Kotoamatsukami to forcibly drag him back."
Itachi's breath hitched. For the first time, genuine astonishment cracked his stoic facade.
Ignoring the older Uchiha's shock, Shinichi smirked... "But it seems all your careful arrangements are void. His future will be guided by me now. He'll become my Shadow Guard. Itachi... your script can be torn up."
Slowly, the astonishment in Itachi's eyes faded, giving way to a profound, heavy relief.
"Yes." The lingering tension seemed to drain from his shoulders. "My arrangements can indeed be discarded. However, I believe I can still do one last thing for Sasuke."
Shinichi gave a slight nod. "As you wish. To me, that is your final value anyway."
He didn't elaborate, nor did he try to dissuade the man. His version of Konoha could never accept someone like Uchiha Itachi.
Recognizing the firmness in Shinichi's stance, Itachi smoothly pivoted. "Then let's get down to business. Regarding my intelligence on Akatsuki—beware of the man pulling the strings..."
"Beware of Uchiha Madara, right?" Shinichi interrupted, waving a hand dismissively.
Itachi froze. A rare flicker of uncertainty washed over him. 'Did Shinichi already know everything?'
"It seems you know far more than I imagined."
"I know everything about Akatsuki," Shinichi said.
"Its founding purpose, its roster, its plans, the mastermind behind it, and even its ultimate goal. Don't waste time giving me an overview. "
"…Instead, fill me in on their recent movements. The real purpose of your infiltration today, for instance, and the organization's immediate priorities."
Itachi absorbed this, deciding against questioning the source of such impossible knowledge. "I see. The village—or rather, you—already know that much. "
"The primary goal of this infiltration was to eliminate our rogue ninja, Orochimaru, to prevent him from leaking secrets. Capturing the Nine-Tails jinchuriki is a secondary task with low priority at this stage."
He held Shinichi's gaze, his tone darkening. "Furthermore, the leader of Akatsuki, Pain, has ordered the preliminary Tailed Beast recovery to begin early. Under the strict premise of not exposing the organization's existence, we are to find isolated or weakly protected jinchuriki and capture them."
Shinichi's eyes narrowed. "Oh? I didn't expect their timeline to be pushed forward." He fell silent for a moment, absorbing the shift in the board...
"It seems the windmill has already begun to turn."
Itachi didn't question the metaphor…. "Specifically, Kakuzu and Hidan have already been mobilized. Their target is the Seven-Tails jinchuriki in Takigakure."
'The Seven-Tails jinchuriki... Takigakure...' Shinichi's gaze grew distant as he processed the intelligence.
The timing was perfect.
Once the immediate fallout in Konoha was settled, he had already planned to leave the village to test out his Wood Release theories and brace for the conflicts ahead.
"Understood."
Itachi hesitated, a rare flicker of uncertainty crossing his features. "However... I believe a major variable has just been introduced."
Shinichi frowned, meeting the older Uchiha's eyes.
"My mission with Kisame had already failed," Itachi continued, his tone becoming gravely serious, "But there is a much larger problem at hand now... You killed him. You have his head."
A troubled shadow passed over his stoic expression. "Judging by his recent behavior, Kisame knew far more than I ever anticipated. He was privy to deeper, more secretive plans."
"His role within Akatsuki wasn't simple—he had a direct connection to Uchiha Madara."
Realization flashed in Shinichi's eyes.
Kisame had been personally recruited into Akatsuki by Uchiha Obito. He wasn't just a regular mercenary...he was a monitor, a direct executor of Obito's will.
His loyalty to the Eye of the Moon Plan far exceeded that of the other rogues, meaning he carried critical, highly classified intelligence.
Now that he was dead, with his brain sitting fully intact in Konoha's custody, he was a massive, uncontrollable leak for Akatsuki.
"That is why I am worried." Itachi's voice tightened into a taut whisper.
"The organization—especially the man pulling the strings—will likely take extreme measures to retrieve or destroy that information. The next time they come to Konoha, it won't be just two members..."
"...It won't be a quiet infiltration."
He gave Shinichi a dead, chilling stare…
"It will be an all-out attack."
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