Life as Uchiha Itachi

The two returned to the inn feeling somewhat dejected. 

"Where's your hat?" 

They sat down and, almost in unison, asked each other the same question. 

"…" 

Itachi picked up the teapot, instinctively wanting to pour himself a cup of tea, but after a moment's thought, he put it back down. 

"Forget it, let's go." 

Noticing several shady figures lurking around the inn, Itachi spoke softly. 

"Alright." 

Juzo nodded lightly in response. 

Their understanding of each other was seamless. 

--- 

The two left the inn and departed from the small town. 

They weren't particularly bothered by the failure of their mission. 

In fact, they had already come up with hundreds of excuses for their failure. 

As long as the fight was enjoyable, that was all that mattered. 

"Do you know what Orochimaru has been up to lately?" 

Earlier at the inn, under the dim city lights, Itachi hadn't paid much attention to his deteriorating eyesight. 

But now, as they hurried through the pitch-black night, his poor night vision was a glaring issue—reminding him of Orochimaru. 

If he couldn't meet Orochimaru by chance, he'd create the opportunity himself. 

And hearing what Kakashi had said earlier left him with an ominous feeling. He was even considering sneaking into Konoha to check things out, a decision that had disrupted his original plans and forced him to pick up the pace. 

--- 

"Why are you asking about Orochimaru? Are you planning to team up with him? Let me tell you, Orochimaru isn't a good person. You're from Konoha; you should've heard about him. He experiments on kids, you know. Most of his test subjects are only around twelve years old…" 

Juzo felt uneasy when Itachi suddenly brought up Orochimaru. 

Could it be that his own lackluster performance had made this kid doubt his abilities and consider ditching him? 

Juzo's imagination began running wild. Itachi's unexpected inquiry, coupled with the mission's failure, had him picturing a dramatic scenario in his mind. 

So, he resorted to badmouthing Orochimaru behind his back, hoping to dissuade Itachi. 

After all, since the two of them came from the same village, the idea of them working together wasn't entirely out of the question… 

--- 

"Uh, I just want to meet him and ask him a few things. Nothing more." 

Hearing Juzo's nervous tone, Itachi gave him a slightly odd look. 

He couldn't help but sigh inwardly. 

"This damn charm of mine…" 

"Oh, that's good. When we return, I'll help you ask around." 

Relieved by Itachi's response, Juzo gave him a serious look. Convinced Itachi wasn't lying, he replied softly. 

It wasn't that Juzo couldn't bear to part with Itachi; he simply didn't want to go through the hassle of getting to know someone new. 

Building even a bit of mutual understanding had been hard enough. The thought of starting over with someone else was exhausting. 

Moreover, Itachi's strength and temperament were near-perfect—an ideal teammate by any measure. 

And those drunken antics of his added a bit of life to Juzo's otherwise dull world. 

--- 

"Alright, I'll leave it to you." 

Hearing Juzo's offer, Itachi nodded. 

"You should rest here. Those pesky rats following us are getting annoying—I'll take care of them." 

Hearing Itachi's words, Juzo didn't argue. Instead, sensing the persistent pursuit of their stalkers, he responded irritably. 

"Alright." 

Itachi didn't object to Juzo volunteering. He, too, found their pursuers bothersome. 

If Juzo hadn't offered, Itachi would've waited until he'd recovered some strength and dealt with the pests himself. 

As for whether Juzo could handle them, Itachi was confident. 

If Juzo couldn't, he might as well hand over his executioner's blade and retire to farming. 

--- 

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, six months had passed. 

Finally, Itachi's wish was fulfilled—he met Orochimaru. 

The Akatsuki's ambitions were vast, and while their numbers were small, their influence spanned the entire ninja world. Thus, it wasn't uncommon for Itachi to return to the Akatsuki while Orochimaru was out on his own, making meetings between the two exceedingly rare. 

In a small tavern, they sat across from each other. 

"Itachi-kun, what brings you to me?" 

Orochimaru took a sip of his drink and cut straight to the point. 

However, his snake-like vertical pupils fixed on Itachi like a predator eyeing its prey, which irked Itachi slightly. 

Irritated, Itachi took a sip of his own drink and fell into a momentary silence. 

He wasn't sure how to approach Orochimaru—whether to be direct or to test the waters first. 

"Are you interested in my eyes?" 

After some thought, Itachi decided to start with a bombshell. 

--- 

Itachi's question wiped the smile off Orochimaru's face, his pupils contracting slightly. 

He could no longer understand the thirteen-year-old boy in front of him.

Originally, after gathering information about Itachi, Orochimaru thought he had seen through him. But with just one sentence from Itachi, he was completely dumbfounded.

Faced with Itachi's straightforward words, Orochimaru's mind briefly went blank, leaving him at a loss for what to say.

The atmosphere grew silent.

"The secrets of the Sharingan... who wouldn't be interested?" 

Orochimaru took a sip of his drink to steady himself and then spoke with the warmth of an old friend. 

Gone was the playful, indifferent attitude that masked his inner disdain. 

With his brilliant mind, Orochimaru could easily read the thoughts of others, leaving them as if stripped of secrets, riddled with weaknesses in his eyes. It made everything seem dull to him. 

But now, the genius boy in front of him felt different, piquing his interest. 

For the first time, Orochimaru deemed him worthy of serious attention. 

He began to view Itachi as an equal, no longer as a child or mere prey. 

---

"It seems your knowledge isn't enough to answer my questions." 

Hearing Orochimaru's words, Itachi spoke with a hint of disappointment. He picked up his glass, took a sip, and showed no intention of putting it down, as if signaling the conversation was nearing its end. 

"???" 

Orochimaru's mind buzzed in confusion. What was going on now? 

How did this suddenly turn into questioning my expertise? 

Seeing the usual sharp, snake-like eyes now clouded with doubt, Itachi felt satisfied. 

This conversation was going well. 

He didn't say another word, simply taking small sips of his drink, waiting for Orochimaru to speak. 

---

Just as Itachi was finishing his drink, Orochimaru finally calmed himself. 

"Itachi-kun, it seems you have quite a bit on your mind," Orochimaru said, observing him with a meaningful look. 

"Can you make two unrelated people as close as blood brothers?" 

Seeing that Orochimaru had regained his composure, Itachi spoke softly. 

"What?" 

Itachi's words left Orochimaru stunned again. 

A moment ago, they had been discussing eyes. Then Itachi questioned his expertise, and now, out of nowhere, the topic had shifted to bloodlines. 

"My eyes have already evolved from the Sharingan to the Mangekyō. They hold greater research value than you realize. If you can't make unrelated people become as close as brothers by blood, then this conversation between us ends here." 

Itachi placed his glass down, his gaze calm but piercing as he stared at Orochimaru. 

---

Orochimaru was completely thrown off. He stared blankly into Itachi's deep, unreadable eyes, his mind reeling. 

Without realizing it, he felt like he was in a job interview, with Itachi as the hiring manager... 

---