Naruto: I, who fooled the ninja world, was hailed as a savior.

Chapter 156 A Promise That Can Never Be Fulfilled

Moonlight, filtering through thin clouds, stingily spilled onto the Uchiha clan's territory.

Inside a slightly old mansion, the desk lamp in the study cast a dim and warm glow, dispelling the darkness that was pouring in from outside the window.

The Eighth Hokage of Uchiha sat upright at his desk, his gray hair appearing even more withered under the lamplight, his face etched with the marks of time and hardship.

He held a fountain pen in his hand, the nib moving slowly and carefully across the yellowed pages, making a soft, rustling sound.

【…】

Mother, time flies so fast. Today is the anniversary of your death again. The weeds beside your tombstone turn green and then yellow, then green again. In the blink of an eye, I am already forty-five years old. Thanks to your blessing, I have been able to live to this day.

Shinta is a very promising kid. He awakened the three-tomoe Sharingan last year and became a Jonin. I'm very proud of him. However, he kept saying he wanted to go to the battlefield, so I had him join the police force instead.

[This is also a little selfish of mine; if possible, I hope he can live peacefully before I die...]

Last month, I became a grandfather, and I love the little one so much...

Uchiha Yatsuhoku had a smile on his face, but his handwriting paused here.

[But thinking about it, it's been twenty years since I last spoke to you. Every time I stand before your grave, so many things I want to say get stuck in my throat, and I just can't say them. No wonder those kids, Daohuo and the others, always say I'm not good with words...]

[Father also joined you last year. Because of the Nine-Tailed Fox's rampage, we were forced to move away from our ancestral home. Even when Father passed away, he didn't forget this. You always complained that he was too nostalgic, and now it seems that he was right...]

But as a son, I also hope to fulfill my father's last wish and be able to move back to our original home, instead of being relegated to the most remote corner of the village like a piece of discarded trash...

By then, I should be retired. I'll take Shinta and the others to your and Father's graves, and talk to you and Father. I think you and Father will be able to hear me then, right?

Perhaps I will die on the battlefield and be buried beside you and Father. Then I can speak to you, and I think you and Father will be able to hear me.

The pen nib paused here for a long time, and a drop of ink fell onto the paper, spreading into a small black stain.

Uchiha Hachimoku raised his hand to rub his sore eyes, a hint of weariness flashing in his eyes under the dim light.

"I guess I'm getting old, I'm starting to look more and more like an old man..."

He sighed, closed the diary, and carefully locked it in his desk drawer.

Then, he stood up, stretched his stiff back, turned off the desk lamp in the study, and the whole room was plunged into darkness, with only the faint moonlight coming in from the window.

Click.

Uchiha Hachimoku pushed open the study door, preparing to cross the living room and return to his bedroom to rest.

His son was on duty in the police force, and his daughter-in-law and grandson had already gone to bed early. The lights in the living room were off, with only moonlight filtering through the window and casting a few blurry patches of light on the floor.

The air was quiet; it seemed that only his own footsteps and breathing could be heard.

However, just as he walked to the center of the living room, a strange chill suddenly ran up his spine.

He stopped abruptly, his muscles tensing instantly.

Almost instinctively, the crimson three-tomoe star suddenly appeared in his eyes, and his sharp gaze swept towards the deepest shadow at the entrance.

"Who?" Uchiha Yatsuho's voice carried a hint of wariness and tension.

In the dead of night, someone silently sneaked into his home. Was it an enemy or someone else?

However, when his Sharingan pierced through the darkness and he saw the figure standing quietly in the shadows, his tense body subconsciously relaxed like a deflated balloon.

"Lord Fugaku?"

The Eighth Hokage carefully scanned Uchiha Fugaku, confirming that it was indeed Lord Fugaku. The wary crimson light in his eyes quickly faded, and he breathed a sigh of relief, saying in a low voice, "What brings you here?"

From the shadows, Fugaku Uchiha slowly emerged, the moonlight illuminating his as always calm and hard face, his eyes serene and his posture upright.

"Yashiro, I'm sorry to bother you at night, but I have something important to discuss with you."

Fugaku's tone was low and steady as he said softly, "This is not the place to talk. Come with me."

At this very moment, in the mental world of Uchiha Fugaku.

"No! Yashiro! Don't go with him!"

"Run! Run!"

He's here to kill you!

"No, it was me! I was the one who wanted to kill you!"

Fugaku Uchiha's self-awareness, imprisoned deep within his consciousness, was now screaming and struggling wildly with a pained and distorted expression!

He looked at Yashiro's trusting and affectionate face, at Yashiro's unguarded state, and felt pain as if countless dull knives were repeatedly cutting into his soul!

Uchiha Shisui's actions were exactly the same as what the shadowy figure had said. The very next day, he couldn't wait to control his body to lure his clansmen!

Moreover, the first target he chose was the Eighth Hokage of the Uchiha clan, who was the most prestigious and reliable person in the clan besides himself, the clan leader!

What a joke! The Eighth Hokage's attitude towards the village leadership wasn't as radical as that of the younger generation like Inagi; instead, he, like the others, consistently guided those overzealous and dissatisfied clan members. The Eighth Hokage's demands had always been simple: to restore the Uchiha clan to its rightful place and to prevent the Uchiha name from being stigmatized by the villagers!
But that's all, for now...

"Shisui! Itachi! Do you all think Yashiro is hopeless?!"

Fugaku wanted to roar, to give a warning.

But all the actions were useless, and the message couldn't get out at all, just like sinking into the deep sea, not even causing a ripple!

"Could it be about a coup?"

Upon hearing Fugaku Uchiha's words, the Eighth Generation's expression turned serious as he changed his clothes.

But just as he was following behind Fugaku, changing his shoes and preparing to leave the house...

"Woooaa! Wow!"

A loud and sudden cry shattered the silence of the night.

Then, the lights in the master bedroom came on, and a woman's slightly sleepy but gentle soothing voice came through: "Oh, oh, oh, sweetie, don't cry, don't cry, Grandma's here..."

Uchiha Hachiro instinctively stopped in his tracks. At that moment, the bedroom door opened, and a gentle and serene woman walked out, holding a child in her arms.

"Yashiro, what's wrong..."

Yashiro's wife looked at Yashiro in the entryway as if she wanted to say something, but suddenly saw the figure standing behind Yashiro, and a look of surprise appeared on her still sleepy face.

"F-Lord Fugaku?"

Her voice carried confusion and a hint of subconscious unease.

Before the Eighth Hokage could explain, Fugaku Uchiha took a step forward, a gentle and slightly apologetic smile appearing on his usually calm and serious face.

"I'm so sorry, Ryoko, for disturbing your rest so late. The children have been woken up."

Fugaku lowered his voice and apologized, his gaze falling on the child, and he smiled with a hint of elder's affection: "The little guy has grown quite a bit."

Then, he looked at Yashiro's wife, his smile unchanged: "Could you lend Yashiro to me for a while? There's an urgent matter in the clan that I need his help with. He'll be back soon."

"Lord Fugaku, you're too kind." A smile returned to Yatsushiro's wife's face. "It's an honor for our family that Yatsushiro can help the clan."

As she spoke, she lowered her head, gently coaxed the child in her arms, then looked up, her gaze softly falling on her husband, and whispered, "It's cold outside. Come home early after you've finished your work."

She and Yatsushiro had no doubts about Fugaku, only a deep respect for the clan chief's late-night visit.

After all, Lord Fugaku's composure was well-known within the clan, and even she, a woman who rarely showed her face in public, knew that he would never be so offensive unless it was something extremely important.

"No, no, stop him! Stop him!" In the mental space, the real Fugaku shook his head repeatedly and roared, "Shisui! Itachi! What are you doing?"

"Ok, I know."

Uchiha Hachimoku nodded seriously, then looked at his grandson in his wife's arms, whose little face was all scrunched up. His gaze softened, and he reached out and gently touched his grandson's warm little face.

Then he turned around and followed behind Fugaku, walking out into the warm yellow light of the entrance hall, his figure gradually disappearing into the darkness of the night.

His wife, holding the child, stood in the warm light, watching her husband's figure leave, and then gently closed the door.

She would never know that those gentle words of advice were the last words she spoke to her husband.

She would never have known that her words, "Come home soon," would become a promise that could never be kept.

She had no idea that the chieftain who had just smiled lovingly at her child was the man she and her people trusted implicitly, the man they believed could lead them to a better future.

She is leading her husband step by step toward a death she has already planned.

The cool night breeze brushed against my face.

Fugaku led the way without saying a word, his steps steady, heading towards a remote area on the outskirts of the clan's territory.

Uchiha Hachimoku followed quietly behind, pondering why the clan leader had sought him out so late at night.

Is it a disagreement that arose within the radical faction?
Or has the village's leadership made some new moves?
Or perhaps the act of secretly purchasing supplies was exposed?
At that moment, he was completely unaware that the gentle smile that Uchiha Fugaku, who was walking in front of him, had long since vanished when facing the child.

Instead, there was a tranquility deeper than the night.

Finally, Fugaku Uchiha stopped.

Uchiha Yatsushiro, who had been lost in thought, snapped out of it, looked up, and realized that the two of them had unknowingly wandered far from any human habitation.

Here, there are only the chirping of insects and the rustling of wind through the leaves.

"Lord Fugaku, you..."

Yashiro turned to look at Fugaku in front of him, opened his mouth as if to ask something.

But the next moment, a pair of scarlet eyes opened in the darkness behind Fugaku.

(End of this chapter)