aftermath.

"Huh," Itachi's eyes regained their clarity as a hand shook his shoulder.

"Itachi, what are you looking at?" Kisame asked his partner.

"Don't you see the pair of samurai?" Itachi replied, looking into Kisame's eyes and searching the surroundings.

"Huh, samurai? What are you talking about?" Kisame glanced at him as if he'd lost his mind.

"I see," Itachi muttered, his eyes darting around, visible confusion etched on his face.

'This can't be happening,' he thought. He placed a hand on Kisame's shoulder and whispered, "Release."

"Argh!" Kisame let out a painful cry as mist, tinged with the smell of blood, began seeping from his pores.

The foreign, viscous chakra invading his chakra coils started to burn and tear through his body, inflicting damage as it flowed.

Every cell screamed in agony. From head to toe, he felt the weight of true pain.

Drip! Drip! Blood mixed with sweat pooled on the ground as Kisame tightened his grip on Samehada, which refused to devour the foreign chakra.

Fourth-degree burns began eating away at his flesh, and if this continued, he knew he wouldn't survive.

His body, wretched and suffering, emitted a foul, repugnant stench.

.

Itachi leaped several meters away, covering his nose with his hand.

The rotten smell disturbed his focus. Kisame was in unimaginable pain, and even Samehada had abandoned him. He was at death's door.

With his Sharingan, Itachi could see that the chakra was Yin-based—corrosive in nature and dangerously potent.

It was the first time he'd encountered something like this.

But alas, that minuscule chakra finally came to an end, showing mercy to its victim.

Kisame, now on his knees, gripped the handle of Samehada. His body began to take on shark-like features as he drained the chakra from his sword, desperately trying to heal himself.

The sword whimpered but obeyed his command, gradually healing his wounds.

Though some burn marks still marred his skin, Kisame glared at Itachi. They had both been caught in the same genjutsu—so why had only he suffered? "It's bizarre, isn't it?"

"It seems the enemy did this deliberately," Itachi replied. "For some reason, he didn't want to harm me."

.

Kisame's anger simmered. He felt humiliated, and his heart wouldn't rest until he had taken his revenge. "We're going to kill him," he growled, turning around, already planning to wreak havoc in the nearest town to find his foe.

"Is he stupid?" This was the expression on Itachi's face.

"Forget about it. We have a mission to complete, or do you want to disobey the leader?" Itachi said, walking toward Kiri.

He wasn't foolish enough to confront an enemy he couldn't defeat, so a shadow clone had already been dispatched to the town, hoping to gather information.

Kisame, though reluctant, let go of his resentment—for now. The mission came first, then personal vendettas.

"Are you sure you're not still in a genjutsu?" Kisame asked, his chakra spiking from time to time. 

"Hmph," Itachi scoffed. He had already used his Sharingan to confirm he wasn't under any illusions.

.

'Will I be able to find him before Sasuke kills me?' Itachi's gaze drifted to the vast blue sky, waiting for his inevitable demise.

His mind was restless. If someone could trap him in a genjutsu, that person was dangerous—too dangerous to be left unchecked.

What if they killed Sasuke? Or worse, threatened the village?

'I have to report this to the Hokage,' he thought, mentally nodding to himself like the traitor he was—to both his clan and the Akatsuki.

...

Far from their turmoil, the atmosphere was peaceful.

Hinata and Yuki sat in a corner of a restaurant, their table laden with delicious food.

The aroma was enticing, but neither had much of an appetite. Yet, they found themselves gulping down the food anyway.

"I'm proud of you for resisting the temptation," Hinata said, looking at Yuki with pride, even though she had been the one holding him back.

Even if he was angry, even if his blood was boiling, there was nothing that couldn't be calmed down by her soothing voice and some increasing words with the promise of better closure and better revenge.

"The longer you wait, the more tempered your will becomes, and the sweeter the revenge will be," she reassured him.

"It was supposed to be a fun trip, but now it's ruined. That man… he even haunts me in my dreams, and now he won't let me live in peace," Yuki grumbled, his disdain for Itachi at its peak.

Hinata listened calmly to his rant. She was in no rush. If she rid him of all his anger now, it wouldn't be a good sign. 'The sparks should keep burning,' 

There weren't any emotions that couldn't be altered by genjutsu, but she wouldn't dare use it on him—it would destroy his entire purpose for living. And more importantly…

"What are you thinking about?" Yuki's voice interrupted her thoughts as he tugged on her sleeve.

"Hmm? I was just thinking about where we should go next," she replied, finishing the last bite of her food.

She stood up, walked over to the owner, handed him the money, and exited the restaurant with Yuki following close behind.

.

There were times when she would buy ice cream from a shopkeeper using his own money.

Those were fun times, and the memory brought a slight smile to her lips.

And What gives you the impression that she didn't do the same here hehe?

Mortals change with time, their priorities shifting according to their circumstances. But she wasn't one of them.

'If Ren were here, he would have noticed,' she thought, glancing at Yuki. 'He still has a lot to learn.'

Completely unaware of her mischief, Yuki grabbed her hand and walked toward their next destination.

....

"Kukukuku…" A creepy man cackled in the shadows of his cave.

*Hissss*

A white, coiling snake flicked out its tongue and hissed, its gem-like green eyes gleaming as though conveying a message to its master.

The man was none other than Orochimaru, the Snake Sannin, the pursuer of immortality.

The snake coiled around his fingers, staring into the snake-like eyes of the man who seemed more serpent than the creature itself.

"You feel the coldness around the Hyuga boy, hmm? Interesting..." Orochimaru murmured, and the snake nodded in response.

He had infiltrated the Leaf Village long ago—or rather, it was more accurate to say he had never truly left.

His snakes slithered in the village's hidden corners, his spies fed him constant information.

He even had records on Genin, Chunin, and Jonin—their mission histories, their favorite foods.

All of this highly classified information rested in the palm of his hand. Either the village's security was grossly incompetent, or Orochimaru was a phenomenal spy.

And the rumors of having two hyuga boys having two kekkei genkai were circulating amongst the higher-ups.

But no one took action, dismissing it as mere rumor, though still rumors, worth noting. And then there was the authority of the Hyuga clan itself.

No one in their right mind would stir trouble with the village's most powerful clan over baseless speculation.

And these two person are supposed to be gauding the one person, interesting it's it, "Is there anything special about Hiashi's brat?" Orochimaru asked aloud.

The snake hissed in response.

"She was afraid of a snake? Kukuku..." He laughed, refusing to believe such crap.

He picked up a document from the drawer.

"Timid, hides behind her father, uses her clan's influence, arrogant, above-average talent," he read aloud. These were the traits of Hinata Hyuga as recorded by the Hokage.

"On paper, it's the behavior of a typical person. But..." Orochimaru's eyes shifted to the next document.

"Kimimaro—two Kekkei Genkai: Byakugan and Shikotsumyaku (rumored). What a heavenly combination," his eyes gleamed with excitement.

His interest was piqued. A person like that would be nearly unbeatable: immune to genjutsu, with unmatched taijutsu prowess.

"But the real question is, how did they end up in the Hyuga clan? If these two have Kekkei Genkai, then the chances of a third one possessing it are high," he mused, tapping his fingers on the table.

"It could be the result of a mutation," he concluded, his mind racing. There was no one more knowledgeable than him when it came to matters concerning Kekkei Genkai.

"Or perhaps they abducted women from other clans and experimented on them. How amusing..." Orochimaru chuckled darkly.

Such evils didn't bother him—he was guilty of the same.

He glanced at his subordinates: a redheaded girl, an orange-haired girl, a boy made of water, and a berserker who could use nature energy and Many had died in his experiments.

"It's either mutation or experiments," he concluded with a sinister smile.

He picked up another paper. "Sasuke Uchiha... Sharingan," he muttered, his eyes gleaming with malevolent intent. He wanted that body.

"I will get him," Orochimaru whispered, his mind set.

for now, he proceeded to study the nature energy guy that would help him to complete his curse mark.

The Sound Village, the Sand Village, the Konoha invasion... He had six or seven months left.

There was still much to do, all for the sake of his revenge—and wanting Sasuke's body.

...

.

.

.

End of the chapter. 

I will upload the remaining part of this chapter in some hours or next day. 

some powerstones (give your brother)