"Father…"
Itachi steadied his breathing. When he finally looked up, his eyes were cold.
"The Uchiha… don't need to exist anymore."
Fugaku froze mid-step.
"…What did you just say?"
He turned back sharply, voice hard as iron.
"Uchiha Itachi—listen carefully. You're not only my son. You're a member of the Uchiha clan."
"I don't ever want to hear you say something that disgraceful again."
"No."
Itachi's guilt flickered—then vanished beneath conviction.
He drew a kunai, grip firm.
"Konoha and the Uchiha can't coexist. So tonight… whether you want to die or not, you will."
Fugaku's eyes narrowed.
He exhaled—slow, heavy.
"…Itachi. You're my son."
"I'm your son," Itachi snapped, voice cracking, "but I'm also a shinobi of Konoha. I'm carrying too much—do you understand that?"
Pain flashed across his face.
But the moment he thought of the Will of Fire—the irreconcilable clash between village and clan… and Sasuke—
his expression twisted into something fierce.
"The Uchiha deserve to die. You're my parents—you should understand. The clan's mindset can't coexist with the village!"
His eyes turned an eerie scarlet.
The Mangekyō Sharingan pattern bloomed.
Itachi had lost control.
He wasn't trying to persuade them anymore.
He just wanted them gone—Fugaku, Mikoto… the clan… all of it.
Fugaku stared at him.
Then, without haste, his own eyes changed.
Mangekyō Sharingan.
"Itachi…" Fugaku said quietly, voice colder than the moonlight. "As your father, I failed you."
His gaze sharpened.
"But I've figured something out."
"Sasuke is better off being raised by me and your mother."
He took a step forward.
"You're already ruined."
"And I won't let Sasuke end up the same."
Itachi's face went blank.
"…Father."
For a heartbeat, he looked like a child again—staring at a man he'd spent his whole life chasing.
He remembered that line, over and over:
Itachi… that's my son.
And now—
You're ruined.
His world tilted.
If his father was giving up on him… then that meant Fugaku was going to lead the clan against Konoha.
Then everything Itachi had sacrificed—
everything he'd believed—
was meaningless.
"Why… why is it like this…?"
The room turned hostile.
The air felt like it was pressing down on his throat.
His hands shook.
His eyes stayed red.
His voice dropped to a single, icy syllable.
"…Enough."
Fugaku lifted his kunai, unflinching.
"Then let me show you what your father can do."
Killing intent rose.
A fight was about to erupt—
Mikoto Enters
Right then—
Mikoto flashed in from the hallway, Sasuke in her arms.
She appeared directly in front of Itachi.
Her Sharingan spun into three tomoe.
SMACK.
A clean, brutal slap cracked across Itachi's face.
The force made him stagger back several steps.
He blinked like his brain had short-circuited.
Mikoto's expression didn't soften.
Not even a little.
She was serious.
She might not show it often, but she was still a Uchiha—still a veteran.
With the Sharingan sharpening her timing and control, that hit wasn't a mother's scolding.
It was a shinobi's strike.
Itachi… was stunned.
He couldn't even react.
Mikoto—who'd always indulged him—had just hit him like she meant it.
Fugaku's eyes lit up, almost impressed.
"Mikoto. Let me."
He stepped in—
SMACK. SMACK. SMACK.
A rapid series of slaps hammered across the other side of Itachi's face.
Hard. Precise. No mercy.
"You unfilial little bastard," Fugaku snarled. "You want to butcher your clan, kill your parents—what are you, an animal?"
SMACK.
Mikoto slapped him again, voice flat and furious.
"You think you can raise your hand to your own family?"
SMACK.
Fugaku followed.
"Still want to talk about 'justice'?"
SMACK.
Mikoto again.
"Still want to talk about the Will of Fire?"
SMACK.
Fugaku again.
In less than a minute, Itachi's cheeks were swollen and bright red—two huge handprints stamped across his face like seals.
He stood there… completely hollow.
Like he'd been forcibly rebooted.
He didn't even know how to be angry anymore.
He was just… stuck.
Sasuke's POV
In Mikoto's arms, Sasuke kept his eyes squeezed shut—peeking through the tiniest slit.
Big brother is getting beaten… so I should keep pretending I'm asleep.
He immediately shut his eyes tighter.
Nope. Not my problem.
He didn't understand the truth.
He thought Itachi had simply done something bad… and was being punished.
He had no idea—
his parents weren't "disciplining" him.
They were hitting him hard enough to snap him out of a massacre.
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 60 chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/StrawHatStudios