Jiraiya, nearly crushed under the overwhelming aura pressing down on him, forced himself to speak with difficulty.
"What exactly are you trying to do?"
Kaito gave a faint smile.
"Simple. I just want there to be only one village left in the shinobi world."
"Nani? You want to start a war!?"
"So what if I do? Peace has never come from words. Only fists hold the truth. Don't you understand that yet?"
"Do you even know what you're saying?!"
"Of course. Back then, Uchiha Madara thought the same way. Unfortunately, he didn't stick with it. That's where I have to criticize the First Hokage. With unmatched strength, he still chose to sit at the table and negotiate with a bunch of weaklings. Heh, I'll never understand that!"
"You..."
Jiraiya never expected Kaito to say something like this. This was more "Uchiha" than an Uchiha!
He even began to doubt whether the man in front of him was really the Kaito he once knew.
And that inexplicable aura… what on earth was it? He could hardly believe someone could make him unable to move with pressure alone.
Seeing Jiraiya struggling more and more, Minato stepped forward.
"Jiraiya-sensei, I think what Kaito says makes sense. If the shinobi world truly wants peace, war is unavoidable!"
Those words hit Jiraiya even harder. He stared at Minato in disbelief.
"Minato, even you think that way?!"
Minato nodded seriously. Having experienced death once, he now chose to believe in Kaito unconditionally.
Jiraiya instantly felt all strength leave his body. He lowered his head, voice heavy.
"So you're going to declare war on the other villages directly?"
Kaito shrugged.
"No. Everything needs a cause, after all. Once Akatsuki stirs up enough chaos, they'll come knocking on their own."
"You know about Akatsuki? Then do you know they're collecting Tailed Beasts!? Naruto is in serious danger right now!"
"You don't need to worry about that. Capturing Naruto no longer holds any meaning for them. We just have to wait."
The more Jiraiya listened, the more confused he became. Naruto carried the strongest of the nine beasts, the Nine-Tails! How could Akatsuki possibly give up on him?
He turned sharply to look at Minato, wanting to see what reaction a father would have.
But Minato's expression remained calm. He even gave Jiraiya a reassuring look.
Tsunade, who had been silent all this time, suddenly spoke.
"Jiraiya, stay out of this. I believe Hokage-sama has his own plans."
With that, Tsunade took Jiraiya by the arm and dragged him out of the Hokage's office. Kaito made no move to stop them.
After they left, Minato leaned closer to Kaito, whispering,
"Kaito, how was my performance just now? I stood completely on your side this time!"
Kaito gave him a sidelong glance, replying flatly,
"Not bad. What? You want me to give you an award?"
"No, no! I just wanted to ask... could you give me two days off? You know, ever since I came back, I haven't really spent proper time with Naruto."
As he spoke, Minato pressed his palms together and rested them on his head in a pleading gesture, looking downright pitiful.
Kaito couldn't help but laugh. He waved a hand.
"Fine, fine. Look at you. I'll approve your leave right now. Go spend time with your son!"
"Yes! Kaito, you really are my best friend!"
Minato threw his arms wide, eager to hug him, but Kaito slipped aside with a flash, giving him a dangerous glare.
Catching the faint red gleam in Kaito's eyes, Minato swallowed nervously, drew back his arms awkwardly, and then scurried out of the office.
Checking the time, Kaito saw it was nearly noon. Technically it wasn't the end of office hours yet, but he didn't care for such rules. With a flicker, he vanished from the room.
...
At a restaurant in Konoha,
Itachi handed two skewers of dango across the table to Sasuke, his expression soft.
"Sasuke, try this. It's something I like to eat. I bought it especially from the sweets shop."
Sasuke accepted the dango, paused, and then passed one skewer back.
"If you like it, you should eat too. No need to give it all to me."
A faint smile appeared on Itachi's face. He took a bite, finding it sweeter than ever.
Sasuke turned his head aside and also bit into his dango. Back when he was little, he had eaten dango with Itachi many times. But ever since that night, he had never touched it again.
He hadn't even stepped foot in a sweets shop since. Just seeing dango brought back memories of Itachi, and of that night of fear and hatred.
But now, eating it with him, he felt strangely happy. Before long, the skewer in his hand was gone.
Sasuke licked his lips with a hint of longing. Watching closely, Itachi immediately spoke.
"You finished so fast? I thought you didn't like it, so I didn't buy much. I'll go get some more!"
He started to rise, but Sasuke stopped him, shaking his head softly.
"No need. Honestly, with you here, it doesn't matter what we eat."
Itachi's eyes widened. His lips trembled as he whispered,
"Sasuke, you..."
Although the truth about the Uchiha had already come to light, and Sasuke understood Itachi's sacrifice, Fugaku and Mikoto had still died by his hand. It was something even Itachi couldn't forgive himself for—let alone Sasuke.
Since returning to Konoha, Itachi had been trying to repair his relationship with his brother, but with little success.
Every time he came home from work, Sasuke would only give him a small nod of acknowledgement, as if they weren't brothers but mere acquaintances.
Itachi couldn't bear for things to remain that way. For a brother like him, it was worse than death.
Before, he had no choice. Now, he just wanted to be a good brother.
He hadn't expected to bridge the gap in one meal, but Sasuke's words were beyond anything he had hoped for.
After saying it, Sasuke's face flushed slightly, and he regretted it. Fortunately, the waiter arrived with their food at just the right moment, easing the awkwardness.
He lowered his head and began eating in silence, attacking his food like it was an enemy.
Itachi, however, was overjoyed. He kept placing food into Sasuke's bowl, murmuring,
"Here, eat more. If it's not enough, I'll order more for you!"
Sasuke didn't refuse. Whatever Itachi gave him, he ate. Only when he was truly too full did he finally look up with a helpless expression.
"Brother, stop. You should eat too."