Chapter 52: Can You Think Straight? Uchiha Itachi

Uchiha Itachi had never expected to receive such a reply from Uchiha Iizumi.

He lifted his gaze and locked eyes with her—those sharp, piercing black irises that seemed to peer straight through him, as if they could already see the evil he would one day commit.

Future… would he truly wipe out the entire Uchiha clan?

He couldn’t describe the storm of emotions swirling within him—shock, disbelief, dread, horror—perhaps all of them at once.

So when Uchiha Iizumi suddenly reached out and clamped her hand around his throat, Itachi didn’t flinch. He stood frozen, letting her fingers tighten, feeling the slow, suffocating pressure build with each passing second.

His lips trembled. “Is… the future you see… something that’s absolutely going to happen?”

For some reason, he couldn’t help but feel a strange, quiet relief when he realized that among all the names she had spoken, his younger brother Sasuke’s was missing.

That alone told him everything.

He already believed—deep down—that Uchiha Iizumi truly could see the future’s darkness.

But it wasn’t Iizumi who answered.

It was Izumi—her voice choked, trembling with emotion, coming from behind him.

“Izumi-sama has never been wrong before! Not even the Hokage’s own son—she saw through his darkness! That power… even the Hokage themselves couldn’t deny it!”

Izumi, who had placed her complete faith in Uchiha Iizumi without hesitation, believed every word she said.

Which meant…

One day, he—and his mother—would die at his own hands.

She couldn’t accept it.

Tears blurred her vision. She wiped them away hastily, biting down on her silver teeth, and asked the question that haunted them all:

“Why, Itachi-kun? I’m your friend! My mother has no grudge against you! And the rest of the Uchiha clan… we’ve done nothing to you!”

“So many of us are kind! Even Iizumi-sama never captured any of us—doesn’t that prove we’re truly good? Then why… why do you have to kill even the innocent ones?”

“You told me you loved the Leaf Village! You said you’d protect it!”

She didn’t understand.

To her, Uchiha Itachi had always been quiet—reserved, yes—but fundamentally kind. A loyal ninja who cherished the village above all.

So why would he raise a blade against his own people?

Itachi remained silent.

He was still thinking.

After a long, heavy silence, Uchiha Fugaku finally spoke, his voice layered with unease.

“If the village and the Uchiha clan ever reach a point of no return… you’d stand with the Hokage, wouldn’t you?”

Itachi froze.

And then it hit him.

That was why his “future evil” showed the Uchiha clan’s annihilation.

Because if things truly came to that—irreversible, unavoidable—then he knew exactly what he would choose.

He wouldn’t side with his clan.

He would choose the majority of the Leaf Village.

To prevent a bloodbath that would consume thousands. To protect the Uchiha name from being stained by rebellion.

He would become the one who stopped it all.

He would accept the blame. The hatred. The title of traitor.

Even if it meant losing everything—his family, his honor, his name—he would do it without hesitation.

Because he would be protecting the village he loved.

“…I understand now.”

Itachi finally made sense of it all.

That was why Iizumi held such hatred toward him—despite him having done nothing to her.

Because in her vision, he was the one who would bring about the clan’s destruction.

Was this truly inevitable?

Was the conflict between the village and the Uchiha unresolvable?

And was this future… already set to unfold in just one year?

When the pressure around his neck suddenly vanished, Itachi stepped back half a pace. He coughed softly, trying to ease the tightness in his throat.

“Now I see why you wanted to kill me,” he said, drawing in a deep breath. His mind was swirling with emotions he couldn’t even name. He met Iizumi’s gaze once more.

“You believe everything in my future is wrong. That if you kill me now—before I even begin—then the Uchiha massacre won’t happen.”

“But Uchiha Iizumi… you’ve already placed yourself on the side of the Uchiha clan.”

“You never stopped to consider what would happen if I didn’t do this.”

“If the Uchiha ever clash violently with the village, the entire Leaf Village would descend into chaos. Thousands—maybe tens of thousands—would die. The village would collapse from the inside out.”

“You may call it justice, but I understand what I must do. This… is something I must do. And I have to.”

As he spoke, a faint smile curled at the corner of his lips.

For the first time, he could almost feel the future—sense the weight of the decisions he would make, the sorrow, the loneliness, the quiet resolve.

Tears—clear and hot—slid down his face, untouched by any wind.

He could already hear the endless accusations, the betrayal, the scorn raining down on him.

And still, he would carry the village’s future in his heart, his secret buried deep, his loyalty unshaken.

Perhaps… he wouldn’t kill Sasuke after all.

Maybe he would leave behind a plan—something to guide his brother, to prepare him.

To raise Sasuke as the new guardian of the Leaf.

To ensure that Sasuke would protect the village’s future.

“Where the Leaf flies, fire shall burn on. Past, present, and future—I will gladly become a withered leaf, turned to ash by flame, to light the way ahead.”

“Father… I’m sorry. If you truly want to do this… I will oppose you. No matter what.”

“This is my unshakable belief. My Capacity.”

Uchiha Itachi spoke with absolute certainty.

Fugaku was speechless.

The way he looked at his eldest son—once a source of pride—now filled with cold dread, alienation, horror.

He wanted to argue.

To slap Itachi across the face.

To scream at him—How could you be so cold? How could you betray your own blood?

But then he imagined the firestorm that would follow a war between the Uchiha and the village.

And in that moment, a quiet despair took root.

If Itachi had chosen to protect the village… then perhaps there was nothing left to say.

—SLAP!

A sharp, thunderous crack split the air.

Fugaku watched in shock as Itachi’s head snapped sideways. The pale side of his face instantly bloomed with a bright red palm print.

But Fugaku hadn’t struck him.

Neither had Izumi.

“Uchiha Itachi!!” Izumi screamed, her voice raw with tears, her chest heaving.

Her eyes burned with fury, her voice cracking as she spat out her words:

“Is this your belief? Your Capacity? Is this the ‘Absolute Justice’ you’re so proud of? You’re not even twelve yet—can you think straight? How dare you decide who lives and dies?!”

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end