A slaughtered village. A bloodthirsty and cruel Naruto. The Rinnegan, evolved from the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, and the First Hokage's signature Wood Style Ninjutsu...
While using Genjutsu through his Sharingan to peer into Naruto's inner world, Itachi not only failed to find the reason behind Naruto's unusual gloom, but instead witnessed a grotesque and bloody scene straight out of hell—so unexpected it made his heart pound wildly upon returning to his senses, unable to calm for a long time.
That face… There's no mistaking it. That was Naruto as an adult! But… why would I see that inside Naruto's heart?
Muttering to himself, Itachi narrowed his eyes slightly. The tomoe in his Sharingan spun slowly as if trying to see through Naruto completely, once again scrutinizing the boy who stood not far away, seemingly troubled by something.
Aside from Itachi and Naruto themselves, no one in the world knew that, when he helped Sasuke bring Naruto home, Itachi had already discovered—thanks to Naruto letting down his guard—that this Naruto wasn't the real Naruto, but someone who had transmigrated into him.
Though even now, that truth still often struck Itachi as surreal and unbelievable...
Whether it was through the completely unguarded mental projection Naruto had shown him—via manga, anime, and other media—of the fate this world was supposed to follow...
Or whether it was Naruto's seemingly prophetic actions after arriving in this world and taking over the identity of Uzumaki Naruto, all in an attempt to save his companions from future tragedy...
Even the way Naruto showed him Itachi's own full life story in his memories—Izumi's feelings for him, the nameless and unresolved ending they had faced after the Uchiha Clan Massacre...
Memory after memory, already confirmed or soon to be, forced Itachi to believe, and slowly digest, these incredible yet very real facts gleaned from Naruto's mind—no matter how fantastical they seemed.
[Of course, Naruto had already guessed over the past few days that Itachi might know he was a transmigrator. After all, this was the world of Naruto, modeled loosely on Japan, where society was relatively open-minded about teenage relationships. It was only because Itachi had absorbed memories shaped by China's stricter educational values—where young love often ended with strong parental opposition—that he ended up overcorrecting. That's why he awkwardly tried to hide his relationship with Izumi, doing something so elaborate and unnecessary that it didn't even need to be done in the first place.]
Whether it was the fate that Naruto had fully shown Itachi from his past world, or the choices Naruto made now to protect Sasuke's childhood—like taking down Danzo ahead of time to prevent the Uchiha Clan Massacre...
There shouldn't be—couldn't be—any room for such a terrifying scene to exist!
More importantly… Itachi already knew what was required to evolve the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan into the Rinnegan.
Even if Naruto really had tried to take Sasuke's Eternal Mangekyō to use as a sacrifice and gain the Rinnegan's power, he would still need the other vital condition for that evolution—the First Hokage Hashirama Senju's cells, or more precisely, his unique Wood Style Chakra!
Yet whether it was the original Naruto or the current one, neither should be capable of casually using the Wood Style Ninjutsu seen in that vision. So there was no way Naruto had the conditions to evolve the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan into the Rinnegan so suddenly!
Not to mention, both versions of Naruto had personalities that would never turn into that bloodthirsty, cold-blooded monster in the vision.
In Itachi's understanding, no Naruto would ever harm Sasuke. That shocking scene… could only be the product of some maliciously distorted Genjutsu crafted by someone else to deceive.
But ever since awakening his Sharingan, Itachi could break through most illusions like paper. And the suffocating pressure and brutal aura in that scene had felt so real that he simply couldn't convince himself it was just a hallucination.
"Don't worry. I'll find you all soon."
...Find us? What… does that even mean?
Just as Itachi was puzzling over those words, Naruto had looked straight at him before the vision ended—his lips clearly mouthing those ominous words. It made the crease between Itachi's brows deepen. He rested his chin on his fist, murmuring softly to himself.
'No… this isn't what I should be worrying about right now. The jutsu I used just now was only meant to observe someone's mental world—the same one I used the last time I looked into Naruto. That means what I should've seen are events that already happened, buried within his mind.'
In other words, that horrifying scene… could only be a true memory Naruto personally experienced—deeply hidden within him!
Realizing this, Itachi paused. His gaze toward Naruto grew increasingly strange, even tinged with wariness and suspicion. As time passed, he felt the boy before him becoming more and more unfamiliar.
Uzumaki Naruto… who are you really?
Though he said nothing aloud for safety's sake, Itachi decided not to confront Naruto directly. Instead, he chose to observe in secret—to watch for any terrifying secrets Naruto might still be hiding. Without realizing it, Itachi silently took on the heavy burden of uncovering the truth… and joined Naruto as part of the "deep-in-thought duo."
Yet as the person in question, Itachi failed to notice something crucial—his decision had led him to repeat another mistake from the original Naruto timeline: acting alone based solely on his own understanding, without discussing it with anyone.
And because of this, by the time Naruto found out that Itachi had seen that vision, it was already far too late...
What Itachi could never have imagined was that the Naruto he saw—the one with the Rinnegan and Wood Style Ninjutsu—was, in a sense, indeed the same transmigrated Naruto before him.
But in another sense… that cruel, ruthless Naruto was no longer the Naruto he knew.
The Rinnegan-Wood-Style-Prince who slaughtered the Hidden Leaf and gouged out Sasuke's Sharingan has temporarily exited the stage. He won't return until later in the story when the truth will slowly unfold.
As for why Itachi was able to see such an impossible scene inside Naruto's mental world—the answer had already been clearly hinted at in the previous chapter.