Chapter 49, Chapter Forty-Eight

"Auntie, are you even listening to me?"

Sasuke recounted the incident of his brother's argument with the clansmen, then snuggled into Yuki's arms. He looked up, his eyes filled with unease and fear, his childish voice brimming with worry: "Auntie, do you think brother...maybe—"

"No, Sasuke. Don't worry, your aunt is here."

Xue, having regained her senses, touched the slightly frizzy hair on the back of Sasuke's head.

Even she didn't know what Itachi was thinking.

She bit her lower lip, and the next second Sasuke reached out and covered her lips with his.

"Auntie, don't bite your lip, it will bleed."

Sasuke's worried expression brings a moment of comfort to your heart.

At least... Sasuke should grow up carefree.

Xue cupped Sasuke's chubby face and gently kissed his forehead.

Sasuke's face turned slightly red; his aunt hadn't done this to him in a long time.

It wasn't until he entered the Ninja Academy that he realized how absurd the idea of ​​a three-person marriage was.

Only his older brother and aunt spoiled him, especially his aunt who always tolerated him and his brother endlessly.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, his words were arrogant, but his heart was filled with joy.

"Auntie, I'm all grown up now. You can't just kiss me like that anymore."

Xue paused for a moment, then said, "I'm sorry, Sasuke."

Sasuke wrapped his arms around Yuki's neck, and the little boy blushed as he kissed the corner of the woman's lips.

The black-haired boy wore a black turtleneck long-sleeved shirt, and even at a young age, it was clear that he had inherited his mother's looks.

With his handsome and elegant appearance, whenever Xue passed by the ninja academy, she could often hear a group of girls staring at Sasuke and screaming infatuation.

The handsome man seemed a little embarrassed and scratched his face.

His black, almond-shaped eyes stared intently at the snow, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but turn up in a smile.

"If it's your aunt, then it's okay."

-

Yuki watched as the Konoha police force grew increasingly armed, with the number of personnel on duty at headquarters and clansmen patrolling the village more than doubling. Other Uchiha clansmen who had not previously participated in police work no longer went on village missions.

Everything is aimed at a bloodless revolution.

On such a day, Yuki, on her day off, gazed at the weasel standing on the roof.

Unusually, he wasn't wearing the ANBU uniform, but rather the ordinary Uchiha clan robes with high collars.

After Shisui disappeared, their communication became very limited, as if they had both made some kind of tacit decision.

"Want to go eat dumplings together, Xue?"

Xue shook her head and said, "Let's go to my house. Does Itachi have something to say to me?"

Itachi looked at the group photo of the four of them displayed in the entryway, his face expressionless.

The two sat on the veranda of the courtyard, and for a moment they were speechless.

Itachi asked casually, "Would you rather be the Snow Princess of Konoha, or the Snow Princess of the Uchiha clan?"

Xue frowned slightly, pausing for a moment before asking, "What do you mean?"

"Shisui... told me before he disappeared that Yuki's performance during the Third Shinobi World War was on par with 'Shisui's Body Flicker,' making her the 'Konoha Snow Princess.' So I'm very curious about what Yuki was thinking."

Xue remained silent and did not answer.

Itachi stared at her intently for a moment, then suddenly reached out and touched her cheek.

His gaze was so gentle it seemed to drown one in it, and Xue was stunned for a moment.

"What's wrong, Itachi?"

Xue's expression was somewhat unnatural, being looked at like that by a child who was almost twelve years younger than her.

Even someone as oblivious as Xue could vaguely sense that something was amiss.

He closed the distance between them. Forehead to forehead, nose to nose, lips only a few centimeters apart.

"Snow." The snow I love, the snow I adore.

The snow I love.

These four simple words were repeatedly pondered by Itachi Uchiha, but he ultimately did not utter them.

In the end, Itachi simply kissed the tip of his ear, just as Yuki used to kiss him when he was young.

His thin lips brushed against her earlobe, his sharp teeth gently biting down before releasing, leaving a faint tooth mark.

Xue opened her eyes wide. The handsome young man with black hair looked at her with his eyebrows curved, and the barely noticeable tear troughs had a unique charm.

On a sweltering afternoon, a gentle breeze suddenly blew by.

Xue felt her heart flutter.

"Is Xue still taking the medicine prescribed by the local doctor?"

"Um."

Xue lied instinctively.

-

At midnight, Xue felt a sense of unease.

She was jolted awake by a suffocating nightmare, but couldn't remember what happened in the dream.

But... I have a vague feeling that something bad is about to happen.

After the Nine-Tailed Fox's rampage, the clan's territory was forced to move to a remote part of the village.

It's usually very quiet, but today... it's unusually quiet.

Xue felt her heart beating faster and faster out of control. When she reached the courtyard, she was shocked to realize that it was a blood moon tonight.

The lilac bushes in the courtyard looked exceptionally scarlet and strange under the red moonlight, and the flowers swayed gently in the breeze.

A faint smell of rust wafted through the air, and Xue frowned.

She picked up the Ice Feather Sword and slung it at her waist, without even having time to change out of her kimono.

She pushed open the door, and the streets were littered with the slaughtered corpses of her people. Xue's hand, which was resting on the Ice Feather Sword, trembled slightly, unable to control itself.

The strong, pungent smell of blood made Xue feel dizzy. She shook her head vigorously to keep herself from fainting.

At that moment, her first thought was of Itachi and Mikoto. She bit her lower lip, the stinging sensation keeping her conscious. She drew her sword and ran rapidly towards the Uchiha clan head's residence, seeing many clan members along the way. Regardless of age or gender... almost all of them had been slit in the throat with a single sword stroke, their blood splattering everywhere.

They didn't even spare Xiao Qiu and her newborn child... Xue squatted down and checked their breathing.

The body was still warm, indicating that the murderer had not gone far.

She felt immense pain in her heart, and her Sharingan began to operate uncontrollably. The intense burning sensation in her eyes reminded her of the night Minato and Kushina were killed by the Nine-Tails before her eyes, and... the absence of any news about Obito's body when she returned to Konoha, and the snowy night when her parents died.

From afar, Xue saw Sasuke running out of the clan head's residence, and Uchiha Itachi, who was closing in on him with a sword in hand.

The knife still bore traces of someone's blood, which dripped onto the ground, leaving a long trail of blood.

Sasuke stumbled and fell on the road in his panic, and when he looked up, he saw Xue's figure.

"No, don't kill me, brother!"

"Auntie, Auntie, save me!"

He got up crying and hid behind Xue.

"Why?"

Yuki shielded Sasuke behind her, her brows furrowed and her eyes filled with confusion.

Itachi looked coldly at the woman in front of him who had been involved in almost every important event in his life.

They were even closer than family, except for Sasuke.

The woman, dressed in a restrictive kimono, shielded Sasuke with one hand while drawing a sword from behind her with the other. It was the first time she had ever faced him with a weapon.

Despite being older, she looked exactly like a young girl. Her long, slightly wavy, ink-black hair cascaded over her shoulders, and her almond-shaped eyes looked at him with a puzzled expression.

Itachi narrowed his eyes slightly. He thought to himself, "As expected of Yuki."

The dosage of sleeping pills was increased in the sedative, so the person remained conscious under these circumstances.

I originally planned to save her for last... and kill her after all this was over.

Itachi did not respond to Yuki's question, a sharp, cold glint flashing in his eyes.

Xue blocked his short sword with her ice feathers; the habits of a ninja were ingrained in her body over the years.

"Sasuke, let's get out of here."

"I'll handle it."

Itachi glanced at Sasuke, who was still hesitating, then turned his blade and pointed it directly at Sasuke's forehead.

The next second, Yuki instantly appeared in front of Sasuke to block his attack, and the kunai she threw forced Itachi to take a step back.

The incredibly sharp blade grazed his headband, leaving a mark. Itachi lowered his eyes.

"Go!" Xue shouted, pushing Sasuke's back aside with one hand.

Sasuke closed his eyes, tears streaming down his face, and turned to run out of the clan compound.

Itachi shifted his gaze to Yuki in front of him and said softly, "You are no match for me."

Xue frowned and continued to inject chakra into the ice feathers.

The icy feathers, radiating a chill, froze the connected short swords. By the time Itachi realized what was happening, he had no choice but to let go and discard his weapons, otherwise even his hands would have been frozen solid.

"Is that so? Uchiha Itachi," the woman said coldly.

Itachi frowned; in his memory, Yuki wasn't strong.

Just as the two sides were locked in a stalemate, a sudden voice rang out.

"Oh my, Itachi, why haven't you finished yet?"

The mysterious long-haired man wearing an orange mask was immediately recognized by Xue as the one who appeared on the night of the Nine-Tails, claiming to be Uchiha Madara.

She gripped the ice feather tightly in her hand, and the crimson three-tomoe jade appeared in her eyes.

"Uchiha Madara."

The masked man pulled the unconscious Sasuke out from behind him and casually threw him on the ground: "You almost let your little brother get away."

“No wonder… Itachi Uchiha and the Uchiha who calls himself Madara… I should have thought of that. It would have been difficult for you to accomplish such an operation on your own.” Xue coldly stared at the two of them, the crimson three-tomoe in her eyes faintly twisting and displaying strange, intricate patterns.

"You can bring yourself to harm your parents, but you can't bring yourself to harm a clansman who's more like family than a relative but is only nominally your aunt?" the masked man said sarcastically, arms crossed.

Itachi, dressed in his ANBU uniform, pulled down his mask and said in a cold tone, "You do it."

The man behind the mask raised an eyebrow: "Is there anyone you can't beat?"

Itachi didn't say much, picked up Sasuke's body, and left.

All that remained were corpses scattered on the ground and two people standing on opposite sides.

Xue watched the resolute figure walk away. It seemed... Sasuke wouldn't die, if Itachi harbored murderous intent towards Sasuke.

Just now, while Sasuke was unconscious, Itachi should have killed him with a single sword strike, but he didn't. Yuki vaguely sensed that this matter wasn't so simple.

"Long time no see, Uchiha Yuki. On the day of the Nine-Tails' attack, your Sharingan didn't evolve. It seems that Minato and Kushina weren't that important to you."

"Who are you? You're not Madara Uchiha."

Without further ado, the masked man unleashed a Kamui attack on Xue. Xue threw out a kunai, formed hand seals, and instantly appeared behind the masked man. The Ice Feather Sword pierced through the masked man's body, and at the same time, a violent scream came from Sasuke's direction. Xue frowned, and her body moved forward towards Sasuke's direction, but her free hand was grabbed, and she was thrown to the ground with great force.

Xue let out a muffled groan as the man stepped on her lower abdomen with one foot, the tip of his knife pointing at her throat.

"I really underestimated you."

"I thought Minato Namikaze's death would crush you."

"So you were just hiding your true strength?"

The man's voice sounded vaguely familiar to Yuki, but she couldn't connect it to anyone she knew. She looked at another kunai marked with the Flying Thunder God technique and the little chakra remaining in her body.

His eyes burned uncontrollably, and the figure of Obito in his field of vision seemed to overlap with the man stepping on him.

She couldn't help but call out, "Obito..."

The masked man paused for a moment, and the Sharingan eyes of the woman being trampled under his feet distorted.

Gradually they intertwined, forming intricate patterns, and slowly began to rotate.

"Oops."

The masked man looked away, and Xue seized the moment when he was distracted.

After unleashing multiple shadow clones, the real body prepared to head to where Sasuke was.

Xue was surprised that her opponent had actually summoned Susanoo.

The azure chakra covering her upper exoskeleton was something Xue had only seen in books. Her opponent had obliterated her shadow clone with a single blow. She pursed her lips, materializing her chakra and ocular power into her own Susanoo. Perhaps due to a lack of chakra, the rudimentary Susanoo she summoned was a full size smaller than the masked man's, and only had one arm and half a skeleton.

"You can use Susanoo on your first awakening... Uchiha Yuki." The masked man stood between the Susanoo, manipulating the exoskeleton arms to fight against Yuki's Susanoo.

Xue felt extremely strained; even using Susanoo caused her eyes considerable pain. She looked up at him, who dealt with her with effortless ease, like a masked man walking a dog. She felt a metallic taste in her throat and coughed violently. Instinctively, she covered her mouth with her hand, her palm smeared with blood. She felt a dampness on her face; wiping it away with the back of her hand, she realized it was bloody tears flowing from her eyes.

"You are not Obito. Obito would never do something like killing his teacher and harming his own kind." Yuki covered the blood that was spilling from her mouth, still resentful that she had just mistaken the other person for Obito.

The masked man stood inside Susanoo, looking down at his former clan sister.

Yuki, Uchiha Yuki. From childhood, he had always followed behind her. How to describe his feelings for her? Perhaps it was like family, but the feelings in his heart went far beyond that of family. He just didn't want her to look at him strangely. After Rin's death, he returned to the village and secretly visited her. He saw that she had let go of his death and was now in a relationship with Kakashi.

It was a strong sense of shame from being betrayed.

The woman's kimono was tattered, revealing her shoulders. Her slender body was covered in splattered blood, even her delicate face was streaked with blood. Due to overuse of her Sharingan, it was almost impossible for her to focus, yet the woman still persevered, radiating a strange beauty under the blood moon. The man's eyes, hidden beneath his mask, narrowed slightly as he manipulated his Susanoo to seize the woman within.

"What if I said, 'I am...'"

Xue, almost suffocating, still shook her head.

"You are not."

-

When the weasel returned to its original spot, there was a slender corpse on the ground that still retained body warmth.

His voice was a little stiff and trembled slightly, but it sounded no different from his usual tone.

“Sasuke’s situation has been taken care of.” He paused for a moment, then continued, “I still have some matters to discuss with the higher-ups in Konoha.”

Through the messy strands of hair covering her face, Xue's last glance before losing consciousness was...

Before Itachi left, he had a headband with scratches and a crooked shape, and there was a slight redness at the corner of his eyes.

Why are you crying, Uchiha Itachi?

It was you, it was you who ruined all of this.

Fugaku, Mikoto, Ritsu, Aki, and her child.

The old, weak, sick, and disabled members of the clan were all targeted.

Xue didn't understand why she lost consciousness.

It felt as if I had been plunged into an endless, dark sea.

I don't want to think about it, and I don't want to think about it anymore.

Everything that comes into this world.