I, Uchiha: Split Konoha

Chapter 19: Giving Young Itachi the Right Values

A small town on the border of Konoha.

Under the cover of night, in a simple house, three ordinary warriors were seen sleeping soundly in the smoke.

With a hiss, the wooden door was pushed open, revealing two large and one small figures. The two leading figures, in particular, had bloodshot eyes. The shorter one clearly had three tomoe, while the taller one, who seemed to be the leader, had one tomoe.

It's a strange phenomenon. Usually, the strong are the leaders, but this time it's different.

The ever-cautious Uchiha Shisui casually flicked out three senbon needles, which immediately pierced the pressure points on the necks of the three unconscious samurai, putting them into a deep sleep. This method could also detect if someone was pretending to be asleep.

After doing all this, Uchiha Shisui carefully looked around, especially his three-tomoe Sharingan staring intently at the eight children whose hands were tied together with straw rope.

"Brother Ye, these three are Yaza. According to intelligence, these eight children were collected by them and were intended to be sold in the Land of Iron."

Upon hearing Uchiha Shisui's report, Uchiha Yoru nodded slightly, while Uchiha Itachi, who had followed him, looked bewildered and at a loss.

At this time, Itachi Uchiha was only six years old and had not yet gone to the Ninja Academy. Although he had witnessed the cruelty of war when he was four years old, he was now even more confused.

At this moment, Itachi Uchiha hesitated when he saw the scene before him, especially the children who were tied up with straw ropes like livestock. Shisui, who was standing next to him, sighed and lowered his head and said in a deep voice, "They are all orphans who were trafficked or found from the countryside. They all have one thing in common: they have the physique to refine chakra, which is why they are favored by various countries' forces."

"Besides the five great nations and some other powerful nations, smaller nations need to purchase children from the civilian population to ensure the number of ninjas."

Those who can refine chakra are always a minority, especially in small countries in war-torn regions, where fresh blood is needed to join, and children are the best candidates.

Upon hearing Shisui's explanation, Uchiha Yoru gave a mocking smile. "Shisui, Itachi isn't an ordinary child. You'd better tell the truth. What do you mean by 'excluding the Five Great Nations'? You should say that the Five Great Nations are the ones with the greatest need."

After the danger was over, Uchiha Yoru squatted down in front of the fire, set up a hot pot, and took out the dry rations prepared by the three samurai to roast. Shisui, who was standing nearby, shook his head helplessly, stepped forward, stroked Itachi's young head, and sighed, "Itachi, this world is cruel."

However, when Uchiha Yoru, who had done everything, saw the group of children, his eyes lit up, and then, in front of Uchiha Itachi, he began to form hand seals: Boar-Dog-Rooster-Monkey-Sheep.

"Spiritual communication!"

A puff of white smoke flashed by, and a brown python appeared. After looking at the summoning beast snake, Uchiha Yoru lowered his head and pointed to the children in the distance, saying hoarsely, "The children are all over there. Remember to bring these eight children to Orochimaru-sensei."

Seemingly sensing the greed in the snake's eyes, Uchiha Yoru coldly snorted, his entire body radiating murderous intent as he said in a chilling voice, "If you dare to steal one, I'll roast you and eat you. You know the consequences!"

With a menacing threatening shout, the thick python flinched in fear, then reluctantly slithered slowly toward the group of children. Uchiha Itachi, witnessing this, stared in disbelief, finally voicing the biggest question in his mind.

"Brother Shisui, why is this mission to find a child with chakra?"

At this time, Itachi was still full of confusion and uncertainty about the future. It was precisely because of this uncertainty that he went to the Ninja Academy at this age and was directly instilled with the so-called Will of Fire, which filled the void in his heart.

Uchiha Yoru naturally noticed Itachi's confusion, and he understood perfectly well that as the eldest son of the Uchiha clan leader, when had he been brainwashed into being a member of the Konoha faction? Only the Ninja Academy. After all, before going to the Ninja Academy, given Itachi's status, it would have been impossible for outsiders to contact him casually, let alone deceive him.

It must be said that the Uchiha clan was too careless in this regard, or perhaps the Hokage lineage was too cunning, completely blinding them to their own shortcomings. The Uchiha clan was so focused on keeping an eye on the other Uchiha children that clan leader Fugaku was complacent, resulting in the neglect of Uchiha Itachi. As a result, no one would have expected that the eldest son of the clan leader would betray them.

After analyzing the situation repeatedly in his mind, Uchiha Yoru immediately decided that he had to seize this great opportunity to leave a deep impression on this kid and absolutely could not let Itachi become the traitor he was in the original story.

Uchiha Yoru stared at the fire, and inside the house, only the grotesque sound of the giant snake slowly swallowing several children with its greedy mouth agape was heard.

"Shisui, Itachi is no ordinary child. He was taken to the battlefield by the clan leader when he was four years old and experienced the cruelty of the battlefield. He is also a genius of the Uchiha clan."

First came a round of praise, also to relax the young Uchiha Itachi, since even though he was precocious at that age, he was still essentially a six-year-old child.

As expected, when Uchiha Itachi walked over with a frown and a mature demeanor, Uchiha Yoru's lips slowly curled up, but his face revealed a mocking smile.

"The future of these children is already set. They will either become tools of other forces or fall on this path. Don't think that the so-called neutral Land of Iron can be any better, and don't think that the five great ninja villages are all sunshine and rainbows. Reality is just that cruel and indifferent."

"Brother Night!" Shisui called out with a worried expression, as if to say that Itachi Uchiha was still young and that it was a bit too early to say such things.

Seeing this, Uchiha Yoru glared at Shisui with exasperation. "It's because of people like you! If you're worried about the child being too young, why send him to experience the battlefield at the age of four? After experiencing the cruelty of the battlefield firsthand, you don't teach him the right values. You only teach him half the story. No wonder he'll become a traitor."

In the original story, the young Itachi Uchiha even had suicidal thoughts. It's clear that experiencing war too early without having his own worldview and values ​​led to a gap in Itachi's mind, which allowed the Hokage faction to take advantage of him. In short, he deserved it.

"The future of these children is inherently cruel, but if we are not cruel to other countries, then that cruelty will fall on the shoulders of Konoha, the Land of Fire."

Seeing Itachi's questioning gaze, Yoru Uchiha revealed a mocking smile, "Your calm expression is truly worthy of a young adult who has been on the battlefield, and even more worthy of the eldest son of the clan leader."

After another round of praise, Uchiha Yoru changed the subject and looked at Uchiha Shisui, shaking his head and saying, "When you get back this time, you should tell Itachi about the customs and culture of each country. If he wants to enjoy something, then he should naturally have to pay the price."

As the eldest son of the Uchiha clan leader, you enjoy all the glory, but you also bear some important burdens.

Please support me.

(End of this chapter)