Chapter 271 Stay Here
Pretending not to see his inner sorrow, Fugaku Uchiha raised his right hand and pointed his index finger at the corner of his eye.
After his father's prompting, Itachi Uchiha's thinking also changed.
"Father, are you saying that Aunt has a pupil technique? Is this the ability of her pupil technique?"
"Yes," Fugaku Uchiha said in a low voice, "This matter must be kept secret."
"I see."
The room fell silent again.
Seeing that his son remained silent but did not get up to leave, Fugaku Uchiha knew that he still had questions to ask.
As expected, Itachi Uchiha hesitated for a long time before slowly speaking.
"And what about the previous coups...?"
His voice faltered, struggling to utter another version of the Uchiha's fate, but after meeting Fugaku Uchiha's calm gaze, he skipped that word and continued speaking.
"These are all real events, but Auntie changed them, right?"
"……Um."
Even if Fugaku Uchiha didn't want to admit it, the facts were undeniably right in front of him.
The tribe he swore to protect for his entire life ultimately faced a coup and even extermination.
The kaleidoscope images have disappeared, but the pain and melancholy mixed within them will not.
The once mighty Uchiha clan has been reduced to needing a child to save it.
Fugaku Uchiha couldn't blame anyone; everything was in the past, or rather, it never existed at all.
The reforms amplified the Uchiha's voice, the succession of the Fourth Hokage eased the relationship between Konoha and the Uchiha, and the clan members lived in peace and happiness, with no one proposing a coup.
It seems that the Uchiha clan will always thrive under his leadership.
His sons worshipped him, his clansmen respected him, and his superiors admired him.
Only he himself knew that he was not a competent clan leader, and he could not guide the Uchiha clan towards a better future. If he had truly been capable, the Uchiha clan would not have met those tragic ends.
What would have been the outcome of the Uchiha coup if Haruko hadn't been involved in the change?
They lost, and the Uchiha clan fell from grace.
They won, but the Uchiha clan was condemned by everyone.
He couldn't help but fall into self-doubt, questioning whether he, as the clan leader, was truly capable of shouldering the great responsibility of the Uchiha clan.
When Fugaku Uchiha heard about the tragic fate of the Uchiha clan from his younger sister whom he had raised, he refused to believe it, even after seeing the images projected into her eyes by her eye technique.
His mind was in turmoil.
Half of her stubbornly believed that the Uchiha clan could not possibly have fallen to such a state, while the other half rationally forced herself to accept it and make plans for the Uchiha clan.
It was both pathetic and laughable.
He was both the beloved clan leader of the Uchiha clan and an incompetent man who feared the future of the Uchiha clan.
He always thought that Haruko, who was still a child, was much stronger than him.
She opened classes on ideology for children, proposed improvements to the police department's work style, and worked to establish a positive image for the Uchiha clan. At the same time, she tried every means to eliminate any factors that might put the Uchiha clan in a disadvantageous position.
Despite not being a member of the Uchiha clan, her love for the Uchiha was no less than that of her clansmen.
It was as if it happened in an instant; she transformed into the composed and mature woman that Fugaku Uchiha had always hoped for.
But Fugaku Uchiha was not pleased at all.
During that short yet long period, she traveled everywhere, exhausting herself, which worsened her already frail body, and her eyes revealed her weariness.
Her cough became more and more frequent, and she couldn't even eat sweets.
To maintain her health, she, who was always afraid of bitterness, drank bowl after bowl of bitter medicine without batting an eye.
Often, when she overdoses on her medication, she will sneak away to the toilet to vomit, suppressing her voice so as not to worry them.
This all stems from her brother's incompetence.
It was his incompetence that made her, who was in the appearance of a child, pour her heart and soul into it.
So Fugaku Uchiha worked day and night, racing against time to get ahead of her and do what she wanted to do for the Uchiha clan.
To cooperate with her plan, they did not hesitate to use the clan leader's power to coerce her.
The Fourth Hokage was indeed, as she said, a fair, selfless, and impartial good Hokage.
With the reforms underway, Konoha's attitude towards the Uchiha clan improved, and the police department was no longer targeted for slander while on duty.
Haruko later discovered that reducing her chakra usage could slow down the rate at which her body was weakening.
Everything seems to be getting better.
But one day, she announced that she was going to leave the village for a trip.
Everyone knew that she had traveled away from the village with Tsunade, one of the Legendary Sannin, so when she went on this long trip, the clansmen simply reminded her to take good care of herself.
Each family brought many things to her door, especially asking her to take them along in case of emergency, and they all said in unison that they were looking forward to her return.
Under the sunlight, Haruko waved goodbye to them with a bright smile.
It was just like a regular trip away from home.
Feeling inexplicably uneasy, Fugaku Uchiha broke his usual silence and stepped forward to gently embrace her.
He rarely hugged his sister on his own initiative, and he rarely tried to change her decisions.
But this time, he lowered his voice, making sure only the two of them could hear him.
"Stay here. Once you've recovered, you can go wherever you want."
Haruko hugged him back without answering for a long time, simply enjoying her brother's warm embrace.
Where Fugaku Uchiha couldn't see, a single, glistening tear silently slid down Haruko's face, only to be wiped away by her feigned attempt to conceal it.
Haruko stepped out of his embrace, still sporting a bright smile.
She spoke her final farewell in a light tone.
"Fugaku, I... will miss you."
Fugaku Uchiha was left standing there, watching her retreating figure, unable to utter a single word to stop her.
He was always a man of few words, but at this moment, he felt inexplicably disappointed in himself.
If he had been able to keep her back then, would his sister still be by his side?
Fugaku Uchiha knew this was impossible; she, from the future, would one day return to the future.
Actually, he already realized it the moment Haruko said goodbye, didn't he?
However, just like when he faced the fate of the Uchiha clan before, he was unwilling to believe that this was their last meeting.
A hoarse, piercing crow's call cut through the courtyard.
The twilight sky and the warm-colored room blended and separated, while only coldness howled and raged in my heart.
Fugaku Uchiha rubbed the bridge of his nose. Now was not the time for him to be dejected. He had many things to worry about, especially the cost of using his eye techniques.
No one understands better than the Uchiha clan the price that comes with possessing powerful eye techniques.
The Mangekyou Sharingan of the Uchiha clan can cause severe damage to the user's eyesight and body.
Blindness caused by overuse is considered a mild consequence.
Powerful eye techniques are not necessarily a good thing; the stronger they are, the more likely one is to pay a price for the power they gain.
"To rewind time and alter history—I wonder what price she'll have to pay for this terrifying ability..."
Upon hearing his father's murmurs, Itachi Uchiha panicked.
He propped himself up from the table and asked incoherently.
"The price? Will she disappear again? Or something even more serious?"
"Based on the comparison of memories, she is now in a healthy body and has no memory of going back to the past."
Itachi Uchiha's hands, gripping the table, were clenched so tightly they turned white. His long, thin hair covered his headband and fell in front of him, obscuring his expression.
He was momentarily at a loss as to whether to feel fortunate or sad.
This is just one of the problems they discovered; what about the costs of the problems they didn't discover?
******
The list of recipients of gratitude as of July 13, 2024:
grateful--
Braised Rabbit and a Love Letter from Osamu Dazai (10)
Two update reminder charms sent by Xiaozhou (who doesn't use sauce)
The update reminder charm sent by Muxue Shuyu
The update reminder charm sent by user 41631934
A love letter and flowers sent by Chen Jiangnan
Quanlu sent a thumbs up and flowers
dkdk. (A thumbs up for the gift from Yi Suyuan, Iris, and Yingyou.)
Allen, who likes Alicia, received flowers from the Fallen Dust.
The following are names and names of individuals: Yancheng Mountain Island's Emperor Alien, Muxue Shuyu, Jiu Youyu, dkdk, Uzumaki Rasengan, φμξ, Sanhao Squirrel, Ayu Zhendi C, Teacher Zhibi Lurenjia's Update Kick, Nancheng Qiuyu, Sakurai Xue, Yan Yiyue, Yi Suyuan, Ai Moyu de Xiaotuanque, Leng Leng Qingqing's Clay Figurine, Please Eat Strawberries~, and 3 gifts given out with love.
Utzon, Red Begonia, I even had to choose the name myself. (A gift from Yang Rubing, seemingly given with love x2)
Single Tower, you win if you read novels without using your brain, Lin Lingnuo, please enter your nickname... Expand, Piano Lacquer Maker, Babuzeer, Wu Ziyun, Early Summer.Starry Sky, Fusang Qin, Xiao Xingxing who loves to eat ginger-fried duck, Struggle Ajuan, Sliver_w, ★★●, One bite Xia Youjie, Li Qingjiu, User 96321, Quanlu, tsuki Jia, I don't believe this pen name can still exist, hey. San, damn it has been applied, a gift from someone who would die without novels, powered by love.
Thank you for the gifts! The author is so touched! (Fugaku's stern face and Erkang's hand gestures)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
