This Uchiha Itachi is very lonely

At noon, under the warm winter sun,

Itachi did not eat at home for the first time in a long time, but chose to have dinner outside with Hui and the others.

After lunch, they regretfully said goodbye to Itachi and continued their sparring practice.

Itachi and Arturia set out on their way home together.

"Today you...seem to be a little different from usual."

Slowly following Itachi, Artoria said meaningfully, "In the past, out of etiquette, you might comfort them, but you would never invite them as guests."

Hearing this, Itachi was silent for a moment and replied in his heart, "It's a very complicated feeling."

"complex?"

Artoria was a little confused.

"Yes, complicated."

Itachi continued to reply, "I find that emotions are hard to let go of."

"Originally, I thought that the relationship between me and Zen was just that we were partners in each other's cultivation, nothing more."

"If our positions are different, I can break up this relationship at any time. After all, looking at time, Zen and I have only known each other for less than three months."

"And even Hui, who we have known each other for the longest time, has only been less than a year."

At this point, his expression showed some fluctuations, "But I found that I was wrong. I am actually a little reluctant to let go of this emotion."

"They...should be considered the people with whom I have deeper contact, apart from my parents and you."

"After getting along with each other for a short period of time, I saw a lot of tactics that ninjas love from them, and they continued to work hard to improve themselves because of me."

"Although I don't like talking to people, it's actually quite interesting to sit quietly and watch them noisy..."

Itachi talked about his inner feelings about this new emotion inserted into his life.

"Yes, I remember when you went to eat barbecue for the first time, they imitated you to eat with a knife and fork, but it ended up being so slow that it took almost an hour to finish the meal."

"Also, when Hui was sparring with you, he repeated his old tricks and tried to use the same tactics to set a trap for you, but you used him in the opposite direction."

"In fact, I later felt that compared to you sparring with them alone, you are fully capable of competing with several of them at the same time."

…

Arturia followed him, listening attentively, smiling and saying a word or two from time to time to help him recall the scene at that time.

In fact, not only Itachi, but also she was a little reluctant to let go of Hui and the others.

Because this time of practicing together is very beautiful, there is no war, no worries.

Everyone laughs and laughs every day, life is very relaxed, and Artoria seems to have returned to the time before she pulled out the sword in the stone and became the heir to the king.

She is undoubtedly a witness to this bond of friendship.

Arturia watched Itachi go from being a stranger to a few people, being indifferent, using them to help him practice, and then later getting used to and accepting them.

In a sense, she was also a member of this friendship, but...she could only watch from the side, and Zen and the others didn't know that such a person existed.

The two were chatting, but under the warm sun, there was only the shadow of one person...

…

"Itachi, try the fire escape technique once and show me."

It's been a long time coming, Itachi is still at home at this time in the morning.

"Fire Release: The Art of Fireball."

in the courtyard,

After hearing his father's instructions, Itachi formed a seal with his hands, and in conjunction with the flow of chakra in his body and the name of the technique, a tiny flame spit out from his mouth.

His precise chakra control allowed him to perfectly display the technique in this courtyard without letting the flames affect the plants in the courtyard.

"……very nice."

Fugaku opened his Sharingan and carefully observed Itachi's technique.

After a long while, he commented with pleasure but regret.

I am happy because Itachi really completed the practice of changing the nature of chakra by himself as Mikoto said, and adjusted the control of chakra so exquisitely.

This means that Itachi already possesses one of the factors to become a Jonin.

And unfortunately, the same is true.

When Itachi was growing up, as his father, he only spent a small amount of time guiding him.

Fugaku regretted that he did not have much involvement in his success.

But there is no other way. He is the leader of the Uchiha clan, not an ordinary jounin family. Except when he is on missions, he can spend most of his time at home with his family and teach his children.

When Itachi dispersed the technique, Fugaku said with satisfaction, "With your talent, I may not be able to teach you anything else soon."

"I believe you will soon have the ability to carry the banner of Uchiha."

"In the next period of time, I will tell you about the shape changes of chakra, illusions and some things about our Uchiha clan's Sharingan."

Itachi nodded, but soon, he hesitated and asked, "Father, since you know very well that my strength already meets the requirements of a ninja, why do you still let me go to the ninja school to study?"

"I think what I lack now is combat experience and mission execution experience."

"I may not be able to learn much in school."

After coming into contact with Zen and the others, Itachi knew that his own strength assessment could fully reach the Chuunin level.

In this case, going to a ninja school to study would be a waste of time.

For this reason, he raised questions.

"There are two main purposes."

Uchiha Fugaku did not hide Itachi's intention, "The first purpose is that the ninja school is the best opportunity for you to get in touch with your peers from other races. You can meet people from other ethnic groups in Konoha in the school."

"Making good friends with them will help you to take the position of clan leader in the future, and will help maintain the relationship between Konoha and the family."

That being the case, Itachi can understand.

In terms of family stability, he has always agreed with his father's arrangement since he heard about it.

After all, the stability of the family means that their whole family can be stable.

And what Itachi wants right now is just for his family to be safe.

"The second purpose."

There was some complexity in Uchiha Fugaku's eyes, "I hope to protect you as much as possible before you have the strength to truly protect yourself."

Protect me?

Itachi was a little confused.

"The situation in the entire ninja world is very delicate now."

Fugaku explained, "Although we have signed a peace agreement with the Country of Earth, the battle with the Country of Wind has also eased due to the battle on Mount Tachibana."

"But the two big countries, the Kingdom of Thunder and the Kingdom of Water, and even some small and medium-sized countries, including the Kingdom of Rain... are not truly stable yet."

"The war on the border of the Country of Fire has never been extinguished, but there has been no large-scale conflict or large-scale deployment of troops for the time being."

"If you become a genin, you will undoubtedly be sent to perform missions throughout the Land of Fire."

"Back then, I took you to the battlefield. You should understand that in that environment, even the Jonin was not absolutely sure to protect himself."

"You will only be six years old next year. Like everyone else, as long as you hide your strength well, you will not be forced to graduate early and set foot on the battlefield."

"In this way, you still have a lot of time to improve yourself and improve your survivability on the battlefield."

Although saying it this way, it feels a little like escaping.

But Itachi's talent is really good, and Fugaku doesn't want him to fly towards the fire like a moth before his strength reaches a certain stage.

Regarding his father's explanation, Itachi was a little silent, and then asked calmly: "Then...where is Hatake Kakashi?"