"Sasuke, after hearing everything Grandpa Hiruzen said, what do you think?" Naruto asked softly, taking a slow sip of tea.
The veins on the back of Sasuke's hands stood out, trembling slightly. His emotions were still raw, tangled, and impossible to contain.
"I don't know," he muttered, lowering his head. "Everything's just a mess right now. My whole life, I've believed that my purpose was to kill Itachi to avenge the Uchiha clan. But now you're telling me he was protecting me all along. I… I don't even know what to think anymore."
Naruto tapped the table lightly. "That's where I, your big brother Naruto, come in. Let me help you sort this out."
Sasuke lifted his gaze, meeting Naruto's steady blue eyes.
"First things first," Naruto began, leaning back a little. "We need to confirm something. The Uchiha clan did they really plan a coup against the village?"
Sasuke nodded. "I think it's true. Back then, the atmosphere in the clan was tense. Every adult wore the same grim expression. There were constant meetings small ones every couple of days, big ones every few. Looking back now, they must have been plotting the coup."
He had been young at the time, but not blind. He'd noticed the way conversations would stop when he entered a room, the worried glances, the whispered talks that never reached him. They'd all treated him like a child someone to be protected from the truth.
Even though he was one of them.
"Alright," Naruto said, nodding slowly. "So we can confirm the Uchiha were planning a rebellion and they were ready to act."
He leaned forward slightly. "Now think about it, Sasuke. If that rebellion had actually happened, what would you have done? Would you have joined them, or sided with Shisui and Itachi to try and stop it?"
Sasuke hesitated. "If the clan fought the village, they'd be destroyed. Konoha would be badly wounded, but the Uchiha wouldn't stand a chance."
He didn't need to think hard to see the outcome. The Uchiha were strong, but the Leaf had countless clans Hyuga, Nara, Aburame, Yamanaka and hundreds of shinobi. Numbers alone would crush them.
"They were powerful, sure," Sasuke said bitterly, "but not gods."
"Exactly," Naruto replied. "So, what would you have done back then?"
"I'd probably have sided with Shisui and Itachi," Sasuke said after a long pause. "I wouldn't want the village and the clan to destroy each other."
Naruto smiled faintly. "Then you agree that Itachi's thinking wasn't wrong. The problem wasn't his ideals it was how far he went to protect them."
Sasuke was silent for a while, then gave a small, reluctant nod.
"Alright," Naruto said. "Then let's figure out what drove him to take things that far."
"Didn't he do it to stop the coup?" Sasuke asked, frowning. "Wasn't that the whole reason? To prevent bloodshed between the Uchiha and the village?"
Naruto shook his head. "Partly. But not entirely. According to Grandpa Hiruzen, things were starting to calm down because of Shisui and Itachi's efforts. But then, something happened that shattered that fragile peace."
Sasuke's eyes widened. "Shisui's death."
"Exactly," Naruto said. "You once told me Shisui was one of the strongest in your clan and yet, he suddenly died for no clear reason. Neither the Uchiha nor the village ever found out the truth."
Naruto's voice grew low. "Imagine what that did to them. The Uchiha started believing that anyone strong enough to threaten the village could just… vanish. No explanation. No justice. Just silence."
"That fear turned into anger. Then that anger turned into desperation."
Sasuke's throat tightened. "Shisui and Itachi were close. They were like brothers."
"Right," Naruto said. "Now, think how did Itachi awaken his Mangekyo Sharingan?"
Sasuke froze. "Are you saying Itachi… killed Shisui?"
Naruto shook his head firmly. "No. I don't think so. I think Itachi saw Shisui die. Maybe in his final moments. And that grief, that loss that's what awakened his Mangekyo."
He sighed. "Everything I've heard about Itachi tells me he wasn't the kind of person to kill a friend for power. He must have watched it happen helplessly."
"After that, all the responsibility fell on his shoulders," Naruto went on quietly. "He was just about our age back then, yet he carried the burden of an entire clan's fate."
Sasuke clenched his fists. His mind drifted back to those distant days, when his brother would ruffle his hair and smile softly, when he'd teach him jutsu with patience and warmth.
Itachi had always been gentle too gentle. And now he realized why. His brother had been carrying an unbearable weight all along, and still smiled for him.
"He took everything on himself," Sasuke whispered, voice trembling. "All that pain, all that guilt he never let me see it."
He could still see that night the night the clan died. The tears in Itachi's eyes, the sorrow behind the mask of cruelty.
"I think that weight alone pushed him to the edge," Naruto said softly. "But it wasn't the only reason."
Sasuke looked up sharply. "Then what else?"
"The hidden hand," Naruto said gravely. "The one pulling the strings behind the Uchiha massacre."
Sasuke's eyes narrowed, and his Mangekyo flashed open. A dangerous aura filled the room, raw and fierce. "Who? Who was it?"
Naruto didn't flinch. "I can think of two suspects. The one who killed Shisui. And the masked Uchiha who helped Itachi that night."
Sasuke's breath caught.
"You remember what Itachi told you," Naruto said. "He said the man who helped him also possessed the Mangekyo Sharingan. He told you that if you wanted revenge, you'd need that same power or you'd die trying."
Naruto leaned back with a heavy sigh. "So you see, Sasuke. Even in that moment, your brother was still trying to protect you."
Sasuke's tears finally fell, hot and silent.
"The truth is, the conflict between the Uchiha and Konoha had no clean solution," Naruto said. "Even Hiruzen no matter how much he wanted peace couldn't stop it. The Uchiha were doomed. And Itachi chose the only path that could save what little remained of their honor."
He paused, his expression somber. "He became the villain so the clan wouldn't be remembered as traitors."
Sasuke's breath trembled.
"Loyalty and righteousness rarely coexist," Naruto murmured. "And Itachi was just a kid our age forced to make an impossible choice. He wanted to protect both the village and his family, but fate left him no room for mercy."
Naruto's voice lowered to a whisper. "He was a good man, Sasuke. But good men break too, when the world gives them no choice."
For a long time, neither of them spoke. The silence between them was heavy, thick with memories and grief.
Naruto finally stood, walking over to the window where the moonlight spilled across the floor. "The saddest part," he said, "is that peace was possible once. But someone made sure every path to it was cut off."
Sasuke sat motionless, staring down at his trembling hands.
In his heart, rage and sorrow burned side by side one for the clan that had perished, and one for the brother who'd borne it all alone.
And for the first time, he understood: Itachi hadn't just been a murderer. He'd been a martyr.
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