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"Hmph. Not talking? Fine. No problem at all. This is the Tsukuyomi world I created.
Here, I am the ruler of everything.
Everything in this world is under my control."
"I'll make you taste countless kinds of pain, again and again, until you tell me the truth!"
A cold, cutting light flashed in Itachi's eyes, his voice freezing to the bone.
As his words fell, the world itself began to change.
The scene of slaughtering his parents vanished. The buildings around them dissolved into nothingness, and countless crosses erupted from the ground.
The sky turned blood-red. No, not just the sky. The entire world was dyed crimson, so oppressive it made your chest tighten just from looking at it.
"Here, whether it's time or space, everything bends to my will. Over the next seventy-two hours, I'll make you—"
Mid-sentence, Itachi abruptly stopped.
It was as if something had lodged in his throat, cutting off the rest of his grandstanding.
His eyes widened in disbelief.
"That's impossible! I already changed the world. So why is the chair under you still there? And the sunflower seeds in your hand too?!"
Shock slammed into him. In his own Tsukuyomi, he couldn't control this fake Akira at all.
"Oh? And when exactly did you get the illusion that I was caught in your Tsukuyomi?"
Akira casually tossed a sunflower seed into his mouth, looked up at Itachi, and smiled faintly.
"What?!"
Itachi stiffened, and in the next instant he saw Akira's right eye change.
The black pupil turned crimson, etched with a complex six-pointed star pattern.
"This is… Mangekyō!"
Itachi's pupils shrank. The other man also had the Mangekyō Sharingan.
And worse, he could clearly feel it. That ocular power was stronger than his own.
A crushing pressure bore down on him.
"Could this be… the legendary Eternal Mangekyō?!"
His pupils contracted to pinpoints, startled by his own realization.
Alarms blared in his mind.
"No. I can't look into his eyes!"
He twisted his head away to avoid the genjutsu, but it was already too late.
The next moment, the world before his eyes changed completely.
The crimson hell vanished, replaced by a bright sky and a vibrant, living world.
And he found himself standing before a house that felt both familiar and strangely unfamiliar.
Itachi: "..."
Why does this feel… weirdly familiar?
Don't tell me…
Creak.
The door opened, and a gentle, warm voice floated out.
"Welcome home, dear. You must be exhausted."
A beautiful woman with long hair reaching her waist stepped out.
When Itachi saw her face clearly, he froze.
"Izumi?"
He spoke hesitantly.
She looked just like Izumi. No, exactly like Izumi grown up.
"Huh? Of course it's me. Izumi, your wife. What's wrong, Itachi? Has being Hokage been especially tiring lately?"
"…Hokage?!"
Itachi's eyes flew wide open.
Only then did he notice that something was very wrong with his body.
He was much taller than before, and his clothes felt unfamiliar.
He was wearing the Hokage's ceremonial robe.
This…
He hurriedly took it off and looked at the back.
Written clearly on it were the words: Fifth Hokage.
Itachi stared at those characters, completely dazed.
He became Hokage? The Fifth Hokage?
No. Impossible. Fake. This is all that impostor's genjutsu!
He snapped his head up, Mangekyō Sharingan flaring to life as his hands flew through seals.
Genjutsu: Release!
A soft breeze passed by, lifting the edge of the Hokage robe draped over his shoulders.
Nothing changed.
The sunlight was still warm.
Butterflies still fluttered among the flowers.
An orange cat on the windowsill lazily yawned.
Everything around him insisted on one thing.
This world was real.
"Fake. It's all fake. You won't fool me!"
Itachi shook his head wildly, his expression twisted, ocular power pouring from his eyes.
With the Mangekyō, there was no way he couldn't break someone else's genjutsu.
"Dear, what's wrong with you?"
Izumi gripped his hands tightly, worry written all over her face.
The warmth in her palms was unmistakably real.
Itachi froze, snapping out of his frenzy.
Staring into her concerned eyes, he murmured, almost to himself,
"So… is this an illusion? Or is it real?"
…
Inside the house, Itachi sat on the sofa, watching his busy wife in the kitchen.
Uchiha Izumi.
Confusion filled his eyes.
What is this?
Reality… or deception?
Just then—
The front door was shoved open violently.
A voice burst in.
"Damn it! Boruto is such a dirty fighter! Sneak-attacking me like that. Next time we spar, I'm totally gonna make him regret it!"
"Hah! That's only because you're weak. If you were strong enough, how could anyone sneak up on you?"
Another voice chimed in.
"Hmph! Taking an outsider's side. You're just as annoying as Sarada!"
The first voice was clearly annoyed.
"Tch. I'm just telling the truth."
Itachi stared blankly at the two kids who barged in.
The children noticed him too and immediately stopped arguing.
The short-haired boy lit up and ran over.
"Dad! You're home so early today!
Perfect timing. Come on, Dad, teach me some awesome jutsu. Next time I'll beat Boruto so bad he won't even know what hit him!"
He grabbed Itachi's hand, trying to drag him toward the courtyard.
The girl walked over as well, calmer and more reserved. She gave Itachi a slight nod.
"Welcome back, Father."
Itachi stared at the two of them, completely stunned.
"Taki! Stop bothering your father. He's tired today. Let him rest first."
Izumi came out of the kitchen when she heard the noise.
"Aww, again? You finally come home early for once!"
The boy let go of Itachi's hand, clearly disappointed.
"Father doesn't need to mind him. Even if you taught Taki jutsu, he wouldn't train properly anyway."
The girl said flatly.
"Hmph! Don't look down on me! I'll definitely train hard!
And how many times do I have to say it? Don't call me by my name. You're supposed to call me Big Brother, got it?!"
The boy puffed up angrily.
"How childish. Someone weaker than me doesn't deserve to be called my brother.
Besides, you were only born one second earlier than me. What gives you the right to act like my big brother?"
The girl lifted her chin slightly, her eyes full of disdain.
"Hah! Even if it was 0.01 seconds earlier, I'm still older! I'm your brother, and you're my little sister!"
The boy shot back loudly.
"Tch."
The girl turned her gaze away, clearly done arguing.
"Heh heh heh! See? You've got nothing to say now! Remember, next time you call me Big Brother!"
The boy laughed smugly, hands on his hips.
"Get lost. I'm not calling you that. Don't even dream about it."
"No! You have to call me that!"
"..."
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