"Excuse me."
As Uchiha Ren stepped into Uchiha Fugaku's house, he immediately sensed the heavy atmosphere in the living room.
Uchiha Mikoto was in the kitchen preparing dinner. Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Shisui sat facing each other, both wearing solemn expressions.
What surprised Ren was that the source of their tension seemed to be Uchiha Itachi, who stood nearby looking uneasy—rather than the situation Ren had originally imagined.
"What's going on?" Ren asked curiously.
Fugaku frowned and remained silent. In the end, Shisui picked up a document and gestured toward Ren , explaining with a trace of urgency,
"Itachi's medical examination report just came out. The situation isn't good."
"Oh? Let me see."
Ren took the report. Skipping over the long list of data at the beginning, he flipped directly to the conclusion.
"Excessive physical development with signs of potential overexertion. Immediate rest recommended. Overtraining must cease. Significant nutritional supplementation required…"
The first half of the report was largely what Ren had expected. It wasn't a major issue—resting for a while would be enough.
The real problem was the next line.
"Abnormal chakra activity showing signs of draining life force. Suspected Bloodline Disease (Kekkei Illness)."
Ren lowered the report and looked at Itachi, his expression complicated.
Thinking about it carefully, Shisui, Obito, and Itachi had all awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan around the age of thirteen.
The burden on Shisui and Obito was no lighter than Itachi's.
Yet among the three of them, only Itachi appeared chronically ill, almost like a terminal patient. Even Zetsu had once evaluated Itachi as someone "already at death's door."
There had to be a reason for that.
So the problem had existed within Itachi's body from the very beginning.
After a moment of thought, Ren asked,
"What did the doctor say?"
Fugaku let out a long breath before speaking in a deep voice.
"The doctor said… Itachi is no longer suitable to become a shinobi."
"If his physical condition isn't resolved and he continues extracting chakra, he may not live past twenty years old."
"And Bloodline Disease is extremely difficult to treat anywhere in the shinobi world. With the current medical standards, it's basically impossible to cure."
"So the best treatment plan is for Itachi to stop extracting chakra entirely and give up becoming a shinobi."
Fugaku's voice grew quieter the more he spoke.
Originally, he had always regarded Itachi as his pride, believing his son would one day surpass him as a shinobi.
But now…
This medical report was undoubtedly a devastating blow.
Ren placed the report down and asked,
"So what are you planning to do now?"
Fugaku fell silent again.
Bloodline Disease was considered an incurable condition. What plans could he possibly have?
Ren shook his head and turned to Itachi.
"What about you, Itachi? What do you think? Can you give up becoming a shinobi?"
Itachi lowered his head.
His emotions were heavy with frustration and unwillingness.
If he had never wanted to become a shinobi, why would he have pushed his body so far with relentless training?
Now, with this report in front of him, all his efforts suddenly felt like a joke.
However…
His gaze drifted toward the kitchen, where his mother moved about busily.
In the past, Itachi would have answered without hesitation—he would become a shinobi, even if his life as one only lasted twenty years.
But now, for some reason, he hesitated.
More than anything, he suddenly wanted to watch the new life growing in his mother's womb grow up safely.
For the first time, he seemed to understand something about the meaning of life.
"No matter what, I won't give up on treatment."
Fugaku suddenly lifted his head and spoke firmly.
"Itachi can stop extracting chakra immediately. But I will never abandon the possibility of him becoming a shinobi."
"One of the Legendary Sannin, Lady Tsunade, may have left the village, but if we can find her, there might still be a chance to cure him."
Fugaku's resolve was unwavering.
For the sake of his son, Uchiha Itachi, he would even bow his head to the Senju clan if necessary.
Ren couldn't help shaking his head.
"If you really don't want to give up, instead of searching for Tsunade, you'd be better off going to Orochimaru."
"Hm?"
Fugaku, Shisui, and Itachi all looked at him in surprise.
Ren explained,
"In terms of pure medical ninjutsu, Orochimaru definitely isn't as good as Tsunade. But for something like Bloodline Disease, even Tsunade might not have a good solution."
"Orochimaru, on the other hand… is different."
Fugaku asked, "What do you mean?"
After all, the reason he had urgently summoned Ren was precisely because he hoped Ren might know something they didn't.
Even though Ren 's suggestion was unexpected, Fugaku still wanted to hear the reasoning.
"Orochimaru…" Ren paused, organizing his words. "He has mastered a vast number of techniques and experimental methods."
"As far as I know, he has methods that could completely cure Itachi."
"But the price… might be rather high."
No matter how difficult Itachi's Bloodline Disease was, it ultimately stemmed from a problem with the body.
If the body itself was the issue—
Then replacing the body would solve it.
Orochimaru's forbidden technique, Living Corpse Reincarnation, could theoretically free Itachi from his illness.
Of course, that would only be a last resort.
Given Orochimaru's research capabilities, once he thoroughly studied Itachi's condition, curing the disease entirely might not even be impossible.
Fugaku frowned.
"What price?"
"Hard to say," Ren replied with a shrug. "But if you handed Itachi over to him, Orochimaru would probably conduct a full medical examination for free."
Ren knew that Living Corpse Reincarnation was Orochimaru's core secret technique, something he was still developing. Handing it over was basically impossible.
However…
Orochimaru would almost certainly be very interested in an Uchiha 'test subject.'
While studying Itachi, performing a thorough medical examination would only be a small additional effort.
Fugaku's face shifted between pale and dark.
In the end, he clenched his teeth and said,
"No matter what the price is, as long as I can afford it, I'll pay."
"Ren … I'm not very familiar with Orochimaru. Could I ask you to help arrange a meeting?"
Ren smiled slightly.
"It's not that serious. Orochimaru is probably busy lately."
"Give it a few days."
"In a few days, I'll take Itachi to see him myself."
Fugaku finally relaxed a little.
He bowed deeply to Ren .
"I'm counting on you."
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