Chapter 28: Itachi's Belief

Uchiha Aozora was thirteen years old this year, but thanks to his good development, he already stood at five feet four inches (1.63 meters), not considered short at all.

Dressed in a well-fitted long robe, his handsome face caught the eyes of single girls and married women alike as he walked through the Uchiha compound.

After a while, weaving left and right, Aozora finally arrived before a large mansion.

The gate to Fugaku Uchiha's residence remained open. Through it, Aozora could see Mikoto Uchiha and Itachi Uchiha playing with Sasuke in the courtyard.

To cheer up his younger brother, Itachi wore a cat-shaped headpiece. Already naturally cute, he was now completely over-the-top adorable.

Aozora knocked on the door to announce his arrival before standing at the gate, watching the joyful scene of the mother and her three sons.

Hearing the knock, Itachi stopped playing with his little brother and made his way to greet the guest with a forced smile.

When he saw it was Aozora, the strained smile immediately turned into a frown. Clearly, he still remembered what happened during last week's family meeting.

"Uchiha Aozora, may I ask what you need?"

Despite this, Itachi still maintained proper etiquette, although his address had changed.

Aozora simply chuckled and shook his head. "Yo, weren't you calling me 'Brother Aozora' just last week? How come you've gone cold on me in just seven days?"

Upon hearing this, Itachi didn't know how to respond and merely gave a soft grunt, turning his face aside.

"Haha!" Seeing Itachi's tsundere reaction, Aozora couldn't help laughing. "Where is the clan leader? I need to speak with him."

Itachi replied, "Father went to the Nanaha River to check the construction progress of our new compound."

"I see—"

Aozora pondered briefly before saying, "Then I'll go find him at the Nanaha River."

Saying so, he waved goodbye and turned to leave.

Watching Aozora walk away, Itachi hesitated momentarily before running to his mother. "Mom, I'm going to check on Dad at the Nanaha River."

Mikoto Uchiha smiled gently. "Alright, remember to tell your father to come home early. We're having lunch together today."

"Okay."

With that word, Itachi gave one last longing glance at his younger brother before rushing out the door.

Itachi hadn't run far when he spotted Aozora heading toward the Nanaha River at a leisurely pace.

Itachi hurried to catch up with Aozora and silently fell into step right behind him.

The Nanaha River lay quite far from the current Uchiha compound. Not wanting a silent journey, Aozora teased Itachi, "Hey, Itachi, do you hate me?"

"No," Itachi answered indifferently.

"Then why are you giving me the cold shoulder? You weren't like this before."

At this, Aozora deliberately made a dramatic expression of inner sorrow before continuing, "Never thought someone so young could change their attitude so fast. If you keep acting like this, you'll never get a girlfriend!"

Upon hearing this, Itachi could no longer maintain his indifferent mask. His face turned red. "Brother Aozora, stop talking nonsense."

Looking at Itachi's blushing face, Aozora couldn't resist pinching his cheeks a couple times.

Unfortunately for Aozora, he barely got to enjoy it before Itachi broke free from his grasp.

After escaping those annoying hands, Itachi let out an angry huff and put some distance between them.

Seeing Itachi's expression—looking like a wronged little prince—Aozora found himself in high spirits, laughing heartily once more.

After a while, Aozora composed his expression and said, "Itachi, you can speak your mind directly. Shisui sees you as his younger brother, and I don't treat you like an outsider either."

Hearing these words, Itachi lifted his head to look at Aozora.

Aozora smiled gently and met his gaze steadily.

Itachi had sharp instincts and could clearly see the sincerity in Aozora's eyes.

He couldn't help but remember the days when Shisui Uchiha taught him and Aozora Uchiha how to throw shuriken.

Back then, Brother Shisui Uchiha always had endless throwing techniques, while Brother Aozora Uchiha could always pull different snacks from sealing scrolls.

Thinking about how kind Aozora used to be toward him, Itachi felt slightly embarrassed and said, "Brother Aozora, I'm sorry."

"Huh?" Aozora looked confused and asked, "What for? What have you done wrong?"

Itachi replied sincerely, "You've always been so good to me, and I shouldn't have treated you that way."

"Oh, is that it?"

Aozora nodded understandingly and dismissed it lightly, saying, "Kids get moody from time to time—it passes quickly. You understand, right? Just like when Sasuke gets mad at you, do you hold it against him?"

"Of course not!" Itachi replied, "But Sasuke still doesn't know any better."

Upon hearing that, Aozora chuckled and shook his head.

Though Aozora didn't say anything more, Itachi immediately understood—he was also seen as a childish kid in Aozora's eyes.

Itachi offered no defense; what could he say? That he was already six years old and mature now?

The two walked in silence for a while.

Then Itachi slowly began, "During the Third Great Ninja War, Father brought me to the front lines."

Hearing this, Aozora instinctively slowed his pace and listened attentively.

"In the end," continued Itachi, "the soil had turned a reddish-brown, blood pooled in the trenches without clotting, dark clouds choked the sky, and broken branches hung with unrecognizable limbs like ghostly limbs themselves."

"Father said, 'Remember this scene, Itachi. Never forget it.'"

"I haven't forgotten—I've kept it firmly in my memory."

Looking at Itachi, who had fallen into deep sadness, Aozora felt a pang of pain.

This was just a six-year-old child.

In his previous life, children his age were still playing house with other kids in kindergarten, yet Uchiha Itachi was already pondering war and peace.

"Aozora-niisan!"

Uchiha Itachi suddenly looked up and stared seriously at Aozora.

Meeting Itachi's sincere gaze, Aozora's voice softened instinctively as he asked, "What is it?"

"I know how cruel war is. I hope, Aozora-niisan, you won't break this hard-earned peace."

Hearing this, Aozora didn't answer right away.

Instead, he ruffled the boy's hair and said, "Itachi, this isn't something you or I alone can decide."

Seeing the disappointed look on Itachi's face, Aozora sighed and added, "I won't bring up those topics again in clan meetings. Today, when I went to see the clan leader, I told him I agreed with the relocation plan."

Only then did Itachi's face brighten with joy.

Seeing that, Aozora added, "Itachi, I'm really glad you're able to view things from beyond our clan's perspective at only six years old."

Upon hearing that, Itachi happily clasped his hands behind his back.

But Aozora went on gently, "However, you're far too biased toward the village."

"The relationship between individuals and the group isn't something simple, and war and peace are more complex than you realize now."

"Individuals and collectives are interdependent. On one hand, individuals cannot live apart from their collective; on the other hand, the collective is made up of individuals. Everything an individual says or does can affect the whole group's well-being and future."

"Without individuals, where would the collective come from? Without clans, how could there be a Ninja Village?"

"When a village buys peace at the cost of a single clan's loyalty, it's already past the point of no return. If nothing changes, the whole place will fall apart sooner or later."

After Aozora finished speaking, he turned and walked off toward the Nanaha River, ignoring anyone else.

Itachi stood frozen, watching Aozora's retreating figure.

After a while, Itachi caught up again, but this time he no longer tried to persuade Aozora. He just followed quietly behind him, saying nothing.

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