Chapter 938: The Irony
“The incident at Mount Myōboku had already made him realize how weak he is. On top of that, upon his return and learning about the events in the village, especially upon seeing Otou-sama without eyes… he swore retribution!”
Exactly as Itachi said, Sasuke was deeply affected this time.
Sasuke watched Naruto and Fū being taken away by Nagato at Mount Myōboku and found himself unable to move due to fear. This made him feel ashamed and filled with remorse. Sasuke had always been proud of his strength. This pride stemmed from the moment he awakened his Sharingan and was consistently praised as an extremely talented child. However, when confronted with someone possessing genuine strength, he was helpless and unable to act.
Because of this overwhelming sense of shame, Sasuke even awakened the three-tomoe Sharingan this time. In the canon, he had experienced the night of the Uchiha’s annihilation at the hands of Itachi and only managed to awaken the two-tomoe Sharingan after many life-and-death battles before achieving the third tomoe during the battle of the Valley of the End against Naruto.
Compared to the canon Sasuke at the time of awakening the three-tomoe Sharingan, the current Sasuke—who is two years younger—is already much stronger.
However, in comparison to real geniuses like Shisui and Itachi, who not only awakened their three-tomoe Sharingan at an early age but also achieved their Mangekyou Sharingan by the time they turned eleven or twelve, Sasuke still lags behind. Nevertheless, if Kuroto were to compare their upper limits, then Sasuke would be no worse.
Putting aside Sasuke’s genius, as he returned to the Uchiha Clan with Jiraiya, he received another piece of bad news. His ‘Otou-sama,’ whom he admired from the bottom of his heart, and the Uchiha Clan, which was his pride, had been attacked by Amatsukami and suffered greatly. To make matters worse, his father’s eyes were taken away by Amatsukami.
This news not only saddened and shamed Sasuke but also fueled a deep hatred for both Amatsukami and Akatsuki. The combination of old and new grievances intensified Sasuke’s determination for retribution against both organizations. He vowed to recover Fugaku’s eyes from Amatsukami, even if it meant dismantling the entire organization.
As Itachi finished explaining everything that happened, Kuroto chuckled and muttered, “Is that so?” He then questioned, “So, when are you going to tell him the truth?”
After a moment of silence, Itachi spoke lightly, “Kuroto-san, I was hoping to keep this a secret from Sasuke for as long as possible. It would be better if he doesn’t learn about the disgraceful history of the Clan.”On the night of the Coup, all the radicals within the Uchiha Clan were eliminated. These days, no one talks about the Coup d’état anymore. Therefore, Itachi wishes to conceal the dark history of the Clan from Sasuke and hopes that the Uchiha Clan and their Otou-sama would continue to maintain a positive image in Sasuke’s eyes.
“And what about Kiyomi?” questioned Kuroto. Unlike Sasuke, Kiyomi was still within the village. Although she was not in the Uchiha district at that time, this doesn’t mean things are going to be simple with her.
Itachi answered, “That girl is quite observant. Additionally, because Izumi’s state hasn’t been very good these days, Kiyomi might learn something. I might not even need to explain things to her; she might figure out everything on her own and draw her own conclusions.”
“I see,” nodded Kuroto. After contemplating Itachi’s words, he said, “Ultimately, it is your decision, but I suggest that you think about this matter carefully.” After a pause, he added, “It’s fine to hide it for the time being; however, you must also understand that you cannot hide such a thing forever from your siblings. Sooner or later, they would learn about that night. Therefore, I suggest that it would be better to tell them the truth yourself. This way, you would be able to preserve the dignity of the Uchiha Clan.”
Itachi pondered over Kuroto’s words and nodded, “Yes, I will think about it carefully.”
“Well, there is no need to be that worried. It’s your family’s matter, and as the next head, you are free to make your own decisions,” said Kuroto with a shrug.
In fact, even Kuroto believes that hiding the truth from Sasuke for the time being is not a bad idea. He won’t say much about Kiyomi, but regarding Sasuke, it would undoubtedly prove helpful as it would consistently stimulate him emotionally. For Uchiha’s growth, emotional stimulation is the most crucial factor.
Kuroto understands this well because he is an expert in stimulating the Uchiha Clansmen. Over the years, he has observed Shisui, Itachi, Shinichi, and Sasuke. Not to mention the research experiment he conducted on the Uchiha siblings Ryota and Hideki. Under the intense emotional stimulation that he provided, both Ryota and Hideki awakened their Mangekyou Sharingan simultaneously!
Due to his research on Uchiha’s emotions and how to stimulate them emotionally, Kuroto knows that, unlike most other Uchiha Clansmen, Sasuke is a little different.
Rather than negative emotions such as ‘hate,’ ‘anger,’ and ‘despair,’ which have a significant effect on other Uchiha Clansmen, don’t seem to impact him as much. Instead, Sasuke is emotionally stimulated when he learns of others’ ‘pain,’ ‘suffering,’ as well as ‘sorrow,’ and he desires to ‘protect’ them.
Just consider it: in the canon, on the night the Uchiha Clan was annihilated by Itachi, Sasuke only managed to awaken a two-tomoe Sharingan. Even after that, Itachi repeatedly used Tsukuyomi on him, making him witness the night of genocide again and again, but nothing happened.
On the contrary, the battle against Momochi Zabuza and Yuki Haku in the Land of Waves proved more helpful, as Sasuke managed to activate his two-tomoe Sharingan to protect Naruto. Later, at the battle of the Valley of the End, Sasuke admitted that Naruto was his only friend and refused to follow in Itachi’s footsteps. He chose not to kill Naruto to awaken the Mangekyou Sharingan, and at that time, he awakened the three-tomoe Sharingan.
A similar situation occurred at the time when he awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan. In the canon, Itachi had probably calculated that killing his ‘Nii-san’ should help Sasuke awaken his Mangekyou Sharingan. However, Itachi’s death only left Sasuke in a daze, and it wasn’t enough for him to awaken his eyes. Instead, upon learning the truth of the Uchiha’s genocide and the suffering his ‘Nii-san’ had to endure for all those years, this emotional revelation stimulated him enough to awaken the Mangekyou Sharingan.
These instances validate Kuroto’s theory about Sasuke’s emotional simulation. The object of protection can be anything, such as a friend, a relative, or perhaps something like the pride and reputation of the Clan.
Recalling the several instances of how Sasuke awakened his Sharingan, how his Sharingan evolved from single-tomoe to two-tomoe, and how it finally turned into the three-tomoe, Kuroto felt more confident in his analysis.
At the time he awakened his Sharingan in this world, what stimulated him into awakening the Sharingan wasn’t the anger he felt after his tragic defeat at the hands of Kimimaro. Instead, it was the disappointment on Fugaku’s face and the doubts of the surrounding villagers about the strength of the Uchiha Clan. To obtain his father’s approval and protect the reputation of the Uchiha Clan, Sasuke awakened his Sharingan.
When his single-tomoe evolved into two-tomoe, it was in the Forest of Death against fake Akatsuki. Sasuke awakened the two-tomoe Sharingan to protect Naruto and Yakumo.
Similarly, this time around, in order to protect Naruto and Fū from being taken away by Nagato, Sasuke’s two-tomoe Sharingan evolved into the three-tomoe Sharingan.
Reflecting on these scenarios, Kuroto couldn’t help but mumble to himself, “Perhaps… using this knowledge, I can devise an approach for Sasuke’s stimulation. I guess I will give it some thought.”
With such a thought in mind, Kuroto and Itachi finally arrived at the backyard of the Patriarch’s mansion and entered the retreat area of Fugaku. Leaving Itachi behind, Kuroto stepped inside the house alone and saw Uchiha Fugaku—who had lost his eyes—sitting together with his wife, Uchiha Mikoto.
As Kuroto entered, Fugaku sensed his arrival and beckoned him to take a seat, which Kuroto complied with. Mikoto poured a cup of tea for Fugaku and Kuroto, then left the room.
Now that the only people in the room were Fugaku and Kuroto, after a moment of silence, Fugaku asked, “Among Shisui and Shinichi… which one of them helped you? Or is it that both of them helped you?”
Fugaku’s question surprised Kuroto, who questioned with an expression of interest, “What makes you think that either of them helped me?”
“Humph… do you think I will believe that both Shisui and Shinichi were silently defeated by Homusubi?” asked Fugaku with a snort. He then spoke, “At least, one of them must not have fought… there is also a possibility that both of them did not put up a fight.”
Hearing Fugaku’s reasoning, a smile appeared on Kuroto’s face as he nodded, “You are right… both Shisui and Shinichi… they have helped me. I guess it’s more accurate to say that they have always been working for me. Oh, and it’s not just the two of them; even your son Itachi, he too is loyal to me!”
As he finished his answer, Kuroto felt that the situation was kind of ironic. Back when Fugaku still had his eyes, he couldn’t see the exact situation, nor could he see the thoughts of the people around him. Yet now that he has lost his eyes, he is able to see the exact situation around him, and at the same time, he also learned to see through the thoughts of others.