"Take care of yourself and look after the little one for me…"
Ichikishima-hime led the way, with Itachi quietly following behind, a raven perched on his shoulder.
As they approached the exit of Ryūchidō, Ichikishima-hime suddenly turned around, her expression serious.
Her calm and composed tone barely concealed the surging emotions beneath the surface.
Itachi was momentarily unsettled by her gaze.
After a brief silence, he responded.
"I will. Don't worry. You make sure to take care of yourself here in Ryūchidō too," Itachi said, offering her a gentle smile.
Though Itachi could be enigmatic at times, he wasn't someone who smiled often—his smiles were rare, almost elusive.
That rare smile left Ichikishima-hime slightly stunned, its warmth and gentleness washing over her like a soothing balm.
She felt a bit at a loss.
That smile… it was so beautiful.
…
"If you can, try smiling more often," she murmured, snapping out of her daze. She resisted the urge to caress his cheek and instead adjusted his collar, gazing earnestly into his eyes as she spoke softly.
"Little one, you take care too. When the time comes for you to use those eyes, don't forget about me…"
Ichikishima-hime gently stroked the raven's feathers as she spoke, though her tone carried a strange undertone. To Itachi, it felt as if she were addressing him instead.
"Don't worry. It won't forget," Itachi said, lightly tapping the raven's beak with his finger.
"The little one doesn't have a name yet, does it? Should we give it one?"
Noticing Itachi was about to move forward, Ichikishima-hime quickly spoke up, her eyes lingering wistfully on him and the raven.
…
"Let's call it Shiro," Itachi said softly, looking at Ichikishima-hime.
Ichikishima-hime gave him a puzzled look.
"Even though it's all black, to me, it's white," Itachi said, offering a half-hearted explanation in response to her curious expression.
"Caw, caw, caw?"
"You see, it seems to like the name," Itachi said, smiling faintly as the raven cawed.
"It's a good name. I like white, too," Ichikishima-hime said softly, her expression shifting slightly as she spoke.
The raven: "Caw, caw, caw?"
…
"Hey…"
"Yes?"
"Take care of yourself. If you ever run into someone you can't defeat, call me, and I'll help you take them down," Ichikishima-hime said as Itachi was about to leave.
Itachi looked back, slightly puzzled.
"Well, thank you for that," he said with a small wave of his hand before continuing on his way.
"He didn't seem the least bit reluctant to leave…" Ichikishima-hime muttered under her breath.
…
"Thinking about romance, are we, Hime? He's someone even the Great White Snake Sage approves of. If you're serious, maybe the Sage will help you out," came a teasing voice from above.
Floating in the air were two white figures: Takamiya-hime and Tatsumi-hime.
"Exactly. If he's ever in trouble, you can hit his enemies with your tiny fists," Tatsumi-hime quipped playfully.
An exasperated Ichikishima-hime rose into the air, and soon, the three women were playfully bickering and teasing each other.
…
"People are so skittish these days," Itachi sighed softly as he watched a man flee in panic.
He had only wanted to ask for directions, but the man had bolted upon seeing Itachi's unsettling appearance and the strange raven perched on his shoulder. Clearly, he lacked a sense of depth.
"At least Ichikishima-hime didn't mind our appearance. Right, Shiro?"
Under the sunlight, the one-eyed young man gently stroked the eyeless raven on his shoulder, speaking softly.
"Caw…"
Looking at the unusually intelligent Shiro, Itachi felt a sense of satisfaction.
He resolved to find something to enhance the raven's intelligence when he had the chance.
…
Itachi's journey lasted two days.
Unfamiliar with the route, he summoned a small snake to track Orochimaru by sensing his presence.
As they both had contracts with Ryūchidō, and Orochimaru wasn't actively concealing himself, it was easy for the snake to locate him.
It was incredibly convenient.
"So that's why I've been hearing magpies chirping so much today," he murmured to himself.
Orochimaru, who was tinkering with something in the laboratory, paused slightly before putting down the instrument in his hand.
He murmured softly to himself.
...
He had already sensed the unique chakra aura within Itachi, as well as the small snake leading the way ahead of him.
In an environment where nothing seems out of place, the details are clear in every aspect.
Orochimaru changed into a slightly different set of clothes, tidying up his somewhat disheveled appearance.
Only after feeling satisfied did he head toward the reception hall.
The surroundings were empty and spacious. Despite being underground, the lighting was bright and vivid.
One could instantly tell that this was the lair of someone incredibly wealthy, exuding extravagance.
Itachi, following the small snake that led him back to Ryūchi Cave, paused momentarily.
Before long, he found himself standing in front of a massive double-door entrance. Just as he was about to push it open, the door seemed to sense his presence and slowly opened on its own.
...
"Itachi-kun, long time no see."
While Itachi was still a little puzzled, Orochimaru's slightly effeminate voice echoed, reverberating around the hall.
Only then did Itachi begin to observe his surroundings more carefully.
It was a majestic hall. Though it was underground, there wasn't the slightest sense of dampness. Coupled with the numerous lights on the ceiling, the place was exceptionally bright.
In the distance, Orochimaru was standing in front of a long table.
"Orochimaru, long time no see..."
Itachi regained his composure, retracted his observant gaze, and softly greeted Orochimaru.
At that moment, Orochimaru froze briefly, noticing Itachi's lone eye.
Itachi's once beautiful pair of eyes now only had one remaining.
Itachi didn't bother to hide his disfigurement, leaving his grotesque, exposed eye socket visible to the open air.
...
"Who did this?" Orochimaru's voice turned unusually serious.
He was furious.
He had never dared to covet Itachi's eyes, so who had the audacity to do so?
"You've really caused me a lot of trouble~"
Itachi didn't respond to Orochimaru's question, instead forcing a faint smile.
Observing Itachi, who seemed more mature than before, Orochimaru paused momentarily.
Itachi casually found a seat and sat down.
"So, you're saying that they took your eye while you were weakened?"
After hearing Itachi's explanation, Orochimaru pondered briefly and asked in a soft tone.
"What else? You never told me the side effects of that thing were so severe, or that the process would take so long..."
Itachi leaned on the table with a bit of frustration, placing a small white snake on its surface.
...
"Well..."
"Actually, I had my reasons for not telling you about the side effects. That organization isn't exactly trustworthy. I thought you enjoyed being there, so I wanted to give you a chance to see them for what they truly are."
"I never expected it would turn out like this..."
"My original intention was merely to weaken your body temporarily, so you could observe their true colors—how they'd treat you once you lost your value and combat strength."
"I didn't expect them to be worse than I had imagined..."
After hearing Itachi's words, Orochimaru spoke with an uncharacteristic tone of regret.
He respected Itachi, who was just as intelligent as he was.
Moreover, Orochimaru had a strong intuition that Itachi knew things he didn't, things that could potentially help him.
This was the main reason for his keen interest in Itachi.
After all, birds of a feather flock together, and Orochimaru was no exception.
...
"It's fine. Don't worry about it. This was my own carelessness."
Seeing Orochimaru's expression of regret, Itachi felt slightly better. At the very least, Orochimaru hadn't attacked him as he had initially feared, and that alone was comforting.
If Orochimaru truly intended to attack, he'd have no choice but to shed tears while fighting back.
Itachi turned his remaining left eye, his thoughts unspoken.
"Don't worry. It won't take long for me to create a new Mangekyō Sharingan for you."
Seeing the faint bitterness on Itachi's face, Orochimaru softly reassured him.
...
---