Chapter 67 - Uchiha Clan Massacre - Prelude 02

Itachi remembered his graduation day as if it was just yesterday. He remembered walking out of the schoolyard and seeing his family waiting for him at the gates.

'It should have been easy. Become a ninja. Work with the team and impress the village. Complete enough missions and quickly become a chunin and become strong enough to change the villagers opinion about my clan… But it didn't happen… Everything changed that day… It was on that graduation day that I met him.'

Itachi remembered his first meeting with the man he would later work for and come to despise.

After the graduation Itachi was about to walk over to his family and greet them but someone got in his way. A man clad in black robes with the right side of his face covered in bandages. His single eye bore into Itachi as if he was peering down on his very soul.

"Itachi Uchiha, I presume." The man said. Itachi met his gaze without flinching and simply nodded his head.

"Those lines… The ones running down from your eyes to the cheeks… Do you know what they represent?" The man asked cryptically.

"No." Itachi shook his head.

"They are called chaos lines. They represent bad luck. Those who have it… It is said that death and destruction follow them till the end… Absolute chaos."

Itachi couldn't understand what this man's intentions were. 'Who is he?'

"Everyone here has said that you are the most talented genius to ever enter the academy. So I have a question for you? Will you indulge me?"

Itachi stayed silent and waited for the man to speak.

"Ten people were forced to abandon their sinking ship. They soon made it to an island. Nine were healthy but one caught a deadly infectious disease. If allowed to live he will infect the other nine and they will all die. If you were the captain of the crew what would you do? What choice would you make?"

Itachi didn't understand why the man would ask such a question but he had an answer and he responded with simple words.

"In this scenario the man who got sick is destined to die. If I were the captain my priority would be saving as many lives as possible. I would choose to save the lives of the nine healthy crew." Itachi answered.

"What would you do?" The man pushed for a concrete answer.

"I would kill the one and save the lives of nine." Itachi answered him without hesitation.

Hearing the answer of the child a smile crossed the man's face. "Bold. And a clear, obvious solution… I look forward to meeting you again… Itachi Uchiha." He almost whispered the last part as he passed the boy.

Itachi didn't understand then but he knew there was malice in his voice. Hidden, buried deep. But still prevalent for him to hear.

As the man walked away his family came rushing over. His father had an unusually serious expression on his face. "What did he say?"

"Nothing important."

At the vague answer Fugaku turned to Itachi. "Is that so…?"

"Who is he?" Itachi was curious about the man who would have such a dark aura.

"That was Danzo Shimura. He is the right hand man of the third Hokage." An ominous tone lurked in Fugaku's voice as he answered his son's question.

"They are called chaos lines. They represent bad luck. Those who have it… It is said that death and destruction follow them till the end… Absolute chaos."

The words Danzo Shimura said to him were like sharp blades and pierced his young heart. He stared at the man's retreating back until it disappeared.

Itachi's memories took him to his Genin days. A talentless and spiteful Jonin instructor Minazuki Yuki, a jealous teammate Izumo Tenma and an ordinary talentless girl Inari Shinko.

Despite having to put up with a problematic team, Itachi completed his missions perfectly. As he completed more and more missions the attention of the higher ups were drawn to him.

Even though he was only seven years old his abilities were on par with the average chunin. So in order to test him, his team was assigned a mission normal genin teams wouldn't have been allowed. The mission to eliminate a spy.

It was shortly after the attempted kidnapping of Hinata Hyuga. Due to the hostile situation between the Leaf and the Cloud villages and the urgency of the situation, the Anbu and key ninjas were deployed to critical areas and were on standby in the event that a fight broke out. It was during this time the Leaf discovered the existence of the Stone spy. A spy disguised as a vegetable seller.

The mission was accomplished smoothly despite some small troubles from his teammate Tenma. The higher ups were impressed with Itachi's method and execution of the mission.

Shortly after that his father made him attend the secret clan gatherings. Itachi could feel the air of unrest and malice. He looked around and saw his friend Shisui. Shisui looked at the younger Uchiha and smiled. That smile held an inconceivable amount of sadness. Itachi smiled back as if to convey that he felt the same as the older boy. The meeting proceeded with topics regarding raising concerns with the clan compound's placement and the military police duties. Many were divided on how to proceed.

Itachi wasn't accustomed to the intense atmosphere and the clan's evil intent that hung in the air.

"Caw…" Itachi took a deep breath and opened his eyes as he heard the sound of his crow. He raised his arm and it landed on him.

'I saw it that day. Their dissatisfaction with the village and its policies. But it was still only in the beginning stages. Some wanted to show force to the village while some wanted to proceed peacefully. And then there were those that weren't sure what side to choose.'

He looked into the crow's Sharingan eye and then remembered one of the most important events that happened in his life. The day he awakened his Sharingan.

A year passed with Itachi completing normal genin missions. Even with his team's hostility towards each other they somehow managed to complete missions without much problems. Despite being leagues ahead of his team in skill and judgment they still were not allowed to participate in the Chunin exams.

It was during that time they were given the mission to guard the Daimyo of the Land of Fire. The Daimyo of the land of fire visited the leaf village annually. Even during the great war. A regular important event for both sides.

Although the village resided in the land of fire it had an independent government with the Hokage on top. Officially even though the Daimyo was positioned higher than the Hokage, the military strength of the village rested in the kage's hands. Thus the relationship between the Leaf village and the land of fire was one of equal alliance. And so both the Daimyo and the Hokage would meet every year to maintain this symbiotic relationship.

Itachi remembered the mission debrief.

"So we're the ones guarding him?" His teammate Tenma asked the Jonin instructor.

"Yes. Officially it's us. But there are also the Daimyo's own personal guards. The Twelve Guardian Ninjas. Not to mention another four man Anbu Team keeping an eye on everything from the shadows."

"So we're basically just for normal protocol.!"

"Yeah… Now that the war is over, this kind of mission is safe even for you three… We'll meet here tomorrow morning at 4. Don't be late." Yuki parted saying those words.

The next day the mission began as normal. They were on the main road that led from the capital to the leaf village. Half a day passed and everything was going smoothly. It was until the team saw a mysterious man with a strange mask walking towards them. He looked non threatening to everyone on the team except for Itachi.

His team decided to engage the person but they were immediately caught in Genjutsu. Itachi escaped before the illusion could take effect and his teammate Tenma was capable in the Genjutsu arts so he was able to break free as well. Misjudging his and his opponent's strength, Tenma attacked and got himself killed.

"A ninja who cannot assess a situation… will get themselves killed." The man pierced Tenma's torso and ended his life. He looked at Itachi and spoke.

"It seems you're not a fool who recklessly charges ahead. Good. That's very good, Itachi Uchiha."

"How do you know my name?"

"I know everything about the Uchihas."

The boy felt like prey in the jaws of a predator at that moment. Before the masked man could kill him, Anbu appeared and saved his life.

Itachi remembered the death of his teammate and the encounter with the masked man. 'The reason I awakened my sharingan and the day I met Madara Uchiha.'

Due to the threat of the unknown ninja, the visit was postponed. Faced with the cruel reality of the ninja world Itachi's teammate Shinko quit being a ninja and opened a tea stall. Days passed with Itachi completing the missions with just his Jonin instructor Yuki. He trained and sharpened his skills with Shisui and waited for the day he could take the chunin exams.

He recalled the day his father gave him the news.

"Lord Hokage called me to talk about you." Fugaku said

"What's it about?"

"The village officials have decided that you are capable and he has decided to let you participate in the coming chunin exams. The other examinees will be in teams so you taking the exam on your own will put you in a tough spot… I told him you would be ready." Fugaku looked into his eyes as those words came out of his mouth.

"Thank you father." Itachi was pleased he was given the chance to move up the ranks.

The chunin exam came and he scored the highest marks in the exam. Second highest marks in the history of the written test only behind Minato Namikaze. It was the same for the second test as well. A new record of 5 hours and 37 minutes to complete the mission through the forest of death. His performance throughout the exams impressed everyone and he successfully became a chunin.

"How long are you going to sit there and reminisce?"

The familiar voice of his soon to be accomplice in massacring the clan, came from the shadows and brought the young Uchiha out of his thoughts. Itachi didn't answer him or even acknowledge his presence and simply looked on ahead. They stayed in silence as the sound of rushing water flowed from beneath the cliff. Itachi felt the chakra disappear and looked up at the sky.

'In just 5 months after becoming chunin, the door to the Anbu organization was opened for me. Danzo was the one who made it possible. I didn't know his end game until it was too late.'

Itachi remembered the second meeting he had with the man.

"There is resistance from several above at having an Uchiha member join the Anbu. So in order to show that you are capable and to quell the resistance you will need some sort of an achievement."

Itachi looked up at the man half covered in the shadows. "Do you mean completing a mission?"

"Yes… I'll give you a mission. Complete it and your position in Anbu is secure. I'll allow you to choose one team member of your choice for this task" Danzo revealed no emotion as he laid out the details of the mission.

'The assassination mission of Mukai Kohinata. An Anbu turned spy who sold secrets to the Mist ninjas. A talented, powerful opponent… If it wasn't for Shisui and his hidden Mangekyō Sharingan, he'd have killed us. The mission was a success and I was put on Team Ro. Kakashi's team… Friend killer… That's what those who were jealous of him called him behind his back.'

'When Shisui and I were trying to complete the Mukai mission we had one goal in mind. I was supposed to climb up the rank and become Hokage while he would become a strong Jonin. We would become the bridge between the village and the clan. And it would be just the start. Once the village was united, I would strengthen the relationships with all the villages… No more wars and pointless deaths… I could spend time with my brother. Teach him like I've always wanted… I had so many dreams…'

A single drop of tear fell down his cheeks. Itachi closed his eyes and exhaled.

Itachi thought about the secret meeting he attended after becoming Anbu. All the Uchiha gathered, focusing on his father.

"We have tolerated the attitude of the village all this time. No more. We will take advantage of Itachi's entry into Anbu and we will launch a coup d'etat."

"Itachi!" Fugaku turned to his son. "Your objective is to investigate the village and its forces and report back to us."

Itachi knew right then what his father was asking him to do. 'A spy… Just like… Mukai?'