Itachi's P.O.V
Shisui and I had our eyes glued to the Hokage, our mouths were parted as we registered what he'd just said. The silence became uneasy, my heart desired more elaboration about what I'd just heard. Pushing my so-called manners aside I slapped a hand on the table, earning everyone's attention.
"Who were Hanabi's parents?", I demanded, knowing that it'll bring Hanabi some closure if I tell her who her parents were.
"Itachi", my father's stern voice and stare made me sink back in my seat a little. I looked over at Shisui and we started eye-talking.
"Why did he never tell her who her parents were?", I asked.
"You think I'd have any idea?", he replied.
"Hayate Namikaze and Ichiko Uchiha", my head twirled in the Hokage's direction as he began to divulge.
Hayate Namikaze and Ichiko Uchiha...
Shisui and I looked at each other in recall.
"That explains it!", he exclaimed.
"Yeah pretty much", I replied.
The Hokage gave a sigh and began, "Hayate Namikaze and Ichiko Uchiha were two formidable shinobi from our village. They fought bravely in the Third Great Ninja War. Their formidable strength and strategic thinking pushed the Tsuchikage into issuing a truce between our villages".
"Their death was really tragic..", Lord Hokage muttered to himself.
"How did they die?", I ask, to which my father gives me a stern glare.
"Itachi", he hissed, making me bite back my tongue.
Witnessing my predicament, Shisui stepped up and asked, "Lord Hokage, Lord Fugaku, we'd like to know about two of the Hidden Leaf's most talented shinobi. So if you wouldn't mind to elaborate, it might help us with our current predicament".
Everyone's eyes fell on Shisui, including my own.
"Thanks"
"Don't mention it"
Father sighed and almost hesitated wether he wanted to say anything. Lord Hokage on the other hand, looked ahead and informed, "Hayate was a skilled shinobi and one of the very few members of the Namikaze clan along Minato".
My mind took a moment to process this new information. I've vaguely heard of someone called Hayate Namikaze...
"Ichiko was the outstanding Kunoichi from the prestigious Uchiha clan. She was a direct relative to one of my long gone comrades, the noble Kagami Uchiha".
"Kagami Uchiha?", Shisui almost gasped, which was understandable since he's a descendant of Kagami Uchiha, so it was only natural that he'd be interested.
"Yes", Lord Hokage asserted, "Ichiko Uchiha possessed that very visual prowess that enabled Madara Uchiha to control the Nine-Tails".
I stared over at Shisui.
"Mangeykō?"
"Yeah"
So far, there are only four people I know of who unlocked the Mangeykō Sharingan. My father, Shisui, Madara and I.
If word gets out that my father possess the Mangekyō Sharingan then he might be held responsible for the Nine-Tail's attack despite Madara's confession.
"And how did they die exactly?", Shisui pressed further, but unlike me there's no one around who dared to shut him up and teach him manners. And so father lowered his head and answered instead of Lord Hokage.
"Ichiko Uchiha died in child birth and Hayate died while he was on an imperative top-secret mission".
Shisui and I stared wide-eyed at each other. The look on our faces screamed the same thing.
"Why didn't they tell her?!"
Shisui and I stared at each other intensely, we just hoped we knew what the other was thinking. What I was thinking right now was to divert the subject from the Mangekyō Sharingan so no one suspects that someone from the Uchiha clan was actually responsible for the incident seven years ago.
"I think we should capture Madara Uchiha", I finally said, earning everyone's attention.
"You're talking as if that's going to be an easy task", a council member retorted back at me.
"I'm sure that's not what my son meant", father stood up for me, and for once I actually smiled.
My eyes suddenly scrutinized the petite butterfly that stood still on the back of my hand, not budging. It's wings were moving accordingly to catch my attention.
"According to the report from that night it was mentioned that Madara eluded the place by simply disappearing from the scene completely", one of the old geezers insert.
"That's true", my father chirped in, taking everyone's attention, "he used some sort of Jutsu to make himself disappear, we witnessed it all".
"This man was masked right? He could be anyone", a member of the Anbu remarked.
A member of the Uchiha Police Force stated, "he also said something quite vague", at this, everyone fell silent as to listen to what he has to say.
"He said that he had a change of heart. That the Uchiha clan was supposed to be slaughtered by him. He also said something about being in pursuit of someone. It might seem ridiculous, but he said he'll be in pursuit of the rabbit".
Abruptly, Shisui and I flinched when a round of laughter erupted around the table.
"Did the almighty Ghost of The Uchiha have no one else in mind to pursue", a former member of the Anbu joked, his shoulders shaking from laughter.
Aside from the Police Force and The Hokage, the only person who didn't consider what was said absurd, and the one I didn't notice until now was Shikaku Nara.
"It's not so funny...", I muttered under my breath. As the laughter died down, I couldn't take my eyes off of Shikaku Nara. He had a stern and focused expression on his face. As the Hokage's advisor, I knew for a fact that he didn't take everything as a joke. He was smarter than that and more reserved.
"Maybe he was directing that statement towards someone who was present that night", Shikaku's remark rendered everyone dumbfounded and silent.
Oh damn...
"Maybe he felt someone's presence there, after all a skilled group of Danzo's Root Anbu was found dead around the woods neighboring the Naka Shrine", Shikaku asserted, his eyes roaming the people around the table.
Oh damn the Nara and their brains...
"That doesn't seem very far-fetched", someone remarked.
The only thing I could do right now is stare at Shisui in horror. In return, Shisui frowned upon me, gesturing for me to keep calm and not act suspicious. I swallowed the lump in my throat and maintained my composure.
"Pursuant to the report", the geezer from the councilmen chirped in, his wrinkles deepening as he spoke, "the act was done fast enough that the report from the morgue confirmed that they all died almost exactly at the same time, with a deep slash to the throat".
"The culprit is the rabbit, since a rabbit has speed", Shikaku concluded, making everyone gasp at his deduction.
Oh...sh-
Shikaku Nara has a way of making his points look valid enough for us to believe. But this time, everyone was convinced that that's what had happened. And it did happen, because right now Shikaku Nara has just spoke nothing but straight facts.
I guess there's no such thing as a perfect crime...
"May I ask", father interrupted, snapping me from my train of thought, "why were there Root Anbu surrounding the Naka Shrine".
Lord Hokage sighed and answered, "we received word of your meeting at the Naka Shrine. And so we decided to negotiate with the Uchiha clan, but Danzo claimed he wanted to 'take precautions' whatever that meant".
By 'taking precautions' I'm sure Danzo meant wiping out the entire Uchiha clan. From my peripheral vision I witness father's expression. He was going to ask about the way The Hokage received his intel.
"The surveillance", Lord Hokage suddenly said, making my heart stop, "we saw members of the Uchiha heading towards the Naka Shrine through the surveillance, which is now taken down.."
"Oh"
"I'm still convinced that Madara Uchiha died at The Valley of The End", the council geezer voiced, making me roll my eyes.
"The Valley of The End"
My heart abruptly skips a beat and my eyes widen in shock once it hits me. How did I possibly overlook this? My eyes suddenly gaze around the table, desperately trying to find the one face and voice I haven't seen or heard for sometime now.
He's not here...
Danzo is not here...
"The Valley of The End"
Considering how important this meeting is, it's suspicious that Danzo isn't present.
"The Valley of The End"
No, Danzo always attends every single imperative meeting. From the Hokage Selections to minor meet-ups, you'd think he'd be the first to jump into the Leaf's political meetings. His absence means he's yearning to achieve something else. Or he's found something better...
What's going on here?
A voice kept interrupting my train of thought and I was no longer able to keep up with this meeting's conversation. I tuned out every sound to try and make sense of this. This voice kept dancing from my left to my right ear, perplexing me.
"The Valley of The End"
It said. My eyes hastily looked around, inspecting the room to find the source of emanation of this voice, but none was found.
However, when I glance down at the back of my hand, that's when a jolt of fear seeped into me, which caused me to rapidly stand up from my seat. Therefore, cutting through everyone's conversation. Every pair of eyes in this room fell upon me, which made me all the more nervous.
The white butterfly...I understand now...
"Itachi?", my father inquired, a crease forming between his brows.
Everyone was looking at me now, wondering what caused this sudden jolt of adrenaline. My mind thought of something in a haste.
On spur of this awkward moment I abruptly blurted, "I-I need to use the lavatory".
Father face palmed.
Everyone took a moment to exchange glances before a round of laughter erupted from the Anbu.
"Seems like you're very urgent Itachi", one of them remarked, stressing on the 'very'.
"Uh-ha", I awkwardly scoffed, then said, "Now if you'll excuse me..."
I sprinted to the door to make it look like I'm very urgent so no one suspects anything. I made sure to cup a hand over the white butterfly in order to hide it as I managed to make my way to the lavatory. I was currently in the hallway, where it was dark and gloomy, almost like Danzo's creepy hideout.
I took my hand off of the butterfly and closed my eyes.
"The Valley of The End"
There was no doubt about it. This hallway is empty, which means that this white butterfly is trying to tell me something.
While I was busy scrutinizing the white butterfly, I'd suddenly felt a chill scatter throughout me. My entire body tensed and my muscles became rigid. I was left wide-eyed when I felt a presence behind me. I didn't even dare to look behind or over my shoulder.
"Wherever it is you're headed, I just hope it is The Valley of The End", the voice of a mysterious man advised, which was followed by a wicked chuckle before his chakra disappeared completely. When I turned around there was no one there.
A shock of terror strewed through me when I put the two and two together.
Danzo is at The Valley of The End.
Without a second thought, my feet had carried me away. There was something unsettling about this. Like something bad is going to happen, and from the looks of it, Hanabi is in danger...
The thought of Hanabi being in danger made my feet hasten and my breath heave. I was automatically headed towards the main gate the moment I exited the meeting place. There was a pit in my stomach and I felt so dumb.
The butterflies were trying to tell me that from the very beginning, how didn't I pay close attention? I decided to take the shortcut to the main gate, which I always do. I knew Kotesu and Izumo would be on their duty by now, but I'd already prepared a plan to put them in a Genjutsu where they'll feel like no one exited the village tonight.
I lowered my torso further to increase my speed as I practically raced to the main gate. My heart beat fast and I clenched my jaw as a result. In a flash, I'd activated my Sharingan.
The main gate of the village was coming into view, which made me all the more eager to speed up. I prepared the Genjutsu beforehand and casted it immediately. This Genjutsu was to trick Kotetsu and Izumo into thinking that no one crossed the main gate.
My heart paced down a bit when I successfully casted the Genjutsu. I passed by the two of them in a flash, but by then, they were deep into the Genjutsu I casted.
Now I had officially exited the Hidden Leaf Village and skipped through the urgent meeting as well. The wind of the night was cold and breezy, which my attire didn't adhere to at all. Therefore, I was left to the cold wind.
The chill of the wind, which would constantly hit me as I leapt from a tree branch to the next rendered me feeling numb and indifferent to what happens to me. All I focused on was to reach The Valley of The End.
As I kept thinking about it, I recalled the story of Madara and Hashirama. How both of them wanted to end the war between their clans and create a settlement which is now the so-called Hidden Leaf Village.
I felt my breath heaving a little more as the breezes grew colder by the second. I began clenching my jaw involuntary, trying cope with whatever it is that's bugging me. My long hair strands flared in my face as I jumped to the next tree branch. To my surprise, the butterflies had accompanied me too.
I left a clear dent in the tree branches with my foot. I guess it's because I'm on my nerves, not to mention the fact that by now everyone at the meeting might've been informed of my absence. And while this all may look suspicious of me, I just crossed my fingers and prayed that Lord Third would understand that I wouldn't do something like this if it didn't have a strong purpose behind it.
I'd tightened my elastic band and wrapped it three times around my ponytail to secure it in place. I also tightened my headband around my forehead to prevent any damage done to it.
Subsequently, I began seeing the heads of the two statues that stood still, opposed to each other. I glared up at the sky and saw that the dark clouds, which signified rain and rumbling thunder had completely concealed the luminous moon.
Still breathing in harsh breaths, I became more eager to see who the standing figure was.
Instinctively, I'd came into an abrupt stop where I clenched my jaw at the sight of Danzo's silhouette.
"Danzo", I growled, every inch of my body boiling with rage. The dark shadows in which he always hid behind, prevented me from seeing the features of the underlings behind him.
"I've been waiting for you, Itachi Uchiha", he wickedly smiled, making every hair on the back of my neck stand erect.
There were so many things that clouded my judgement at the moment, but the only one I could think of right now was Hanabi.
"Where is Hanabi!", I demanded, feeling my insides burn as I shout at him. My eyes were sending daggers his way, yet his sole response was an evil scoff.
"You honestly think that you two would get away with ruining my plans?", he snickered, his voice growing with rage.
It's been four days since Hanabi's departure from home, I should've known something was wrong. Instead I was too busy enjoying myself. I muttered curses under my breath.
The first drops of rain tickled my face as they trickled down. It was going to be rainy, just as I expected.
"Yes!", I retort back, my anger taking over, "we honestly thought we'd get away with that!".
"Well now you have to bear the consequences of your actions!", Danzo shouted, his shout echoing back and forth at the Valley, making me flinch.
A few luminous rays of the moonlight pierced through the murk clouds, giving me a small glimpse of Danzo's face. My eyes then dart to his subordinates who stood further behind him, closer to the edge of the Valley.
"You see, Itachi", Danzo took a step closer towards me. Each of his steps echoing over and over again along the trickling rain. He scoffed one more time before some of the murk clouds cleared, making the moon's hue shine through upon his face, "anyone who has ever intervened in my plans had paid back a pricy cost".
My eyes broaden and I gasp. My chest clenched tight and words no longer eluded me. My limbs had trembled and my senses quivered.
"What have you done?", I gasp as my entire body goes numb, before a jostle of pain pierced my heart.
I'd recognize it anywhere, even in the darkest of places.
A scream eluded me from the top of my lungs, which echoed loudly throughout the Valley, scaring away the nearby creatures when I stared straight into Hanabi's eyes, which were embedded into Danzo's sockets.