“This…” Shisui’s question left her speechless for a moment, falling into silence.
What identity?
Her only identity now was his classmate or friend, both of which seemed pale and powerless, unable to support the weight of her words.
“If talking doesn’t work, wouldn’t it be better if I just brought him over directly…?”
Her voice was muffled, a petulant tone that made Shisui shake his head helplessly.
He gently raised his hand and delivered a precise chop to her head, his eyes full of doting affection and tenderness:
“Silly girl, if it were you, and a very good friend suddenly displayed incredible power, then told you: ‘I participated in saving your clan, but I’ve been hiding it from you all this time.’ How would you feel?”
Shisui’s words plunged Chizhao into thought. She gently rubbed the top of her head where he had chopped, and after serious consideration, replied:
“I’d be very angry…”
Sasuke’s stern face quietly appeared in her mind, and that cold voice echoed in her ears again.
“If I find the Akuma, I will kill him with my own hands.”
“I don’t want to see you disliked by others, especially since it’s Itachi’s younger brother.”
Snapping out of her thoughts, Chizhao looked expectantly at Shisui, who had picked up a dango skewer:
“Then Itachi-nii, it’s okay for you to tell Sasuke, right?!”
Shisui, hearing this, accidentally choked on the dango. He quickly took a sip of tea and chuckled awkwardly:
“I can’t either…”
“Why?”
“In Sasuke’s mind, I’m already dead. If I suddenly ‘resurrected’ and appeared before him, he might become even more wary, and besides…”
Shisui paused, then picked up the nearby teapot and refilled her cup with tea.
“No matter what, Itachi might be better able to soothe Sasuke’s emotions than I am.”
The tea leaves floated up and down in the tea. Chizhao lowered her eyes, noncommittal.
Realizing she didn’t have to bear the anxious decision, Chizhao quietly breathed a sigh of relief in her heart, and her heavy mood gradually calmed.
A crow gracefully hopped from the windowsill to the table in front of them. Shisui put down his dango and happily let the crow jump onto his arm.
“You’re back.”
“Hmm? What is it?”
A puzzled Chizhao watched as the crow spat out a bamboo tube. Shisui took it in his hand, and the crow hopped onto the tatami on the other side, leisurely preening its feathers.
“This is Itachi’s response regarding this matter.”
Only then did Chizhao’s eyes widen in sudden understanding:
“So Itachi-nii and Shisui-nii have already been discussing this matter?”
“That’s right. I just didn’t want to trouble you with it, so I didn’t tell you, but I didn’t expect you to come to me about it anyway.”
He then sighed, feigning disappointment:
“But it’s also because of this matter that Chizhao remembers me, isn’t it…?”
Eh?
Shisui, looking like an empty-nester, made Chizhao feel a sudden pang of guilt. She hastily waved her hands, explaining and comforting him:
“This… I’m sorry, Itachi-nii, because I joined Anbu, I’ve been tied up with missions…”
“Anbu?”
At the mention of the word, Shisui’s brows furrowed.
Ah! It seems Itachi-nii didn’t know she had joined Anbu yet…
Oh no… He won’t be angry, will he?
“You can explain the Anbu matter to me later. For now, let’s see Itachi’s reply.”
Feeling Shisui’s pressure for the first time, Chizhao timidly lowered her head and obediently replied,
“Okay.”
She then waited for him to finish reading the scroll.
Shisui activated his Mangekyo Sharingan to read the contents, then closed the scroll and placed it aside.
“Itachi’s message is for us not to interfere. He will find a suitable time to tell Sasuke himself. Akatsuki is currently recruiting members, and he’s also being monitored, so he can’t free himself for a while.”
“I see…”
Chizhao’s gaze fell on the dango skewer in front of her, and she softly mumbled:
“Itachi-nii probably hasn’t had dango in a long time either…”
A thought suddenly sparked in Shisui’s mind from her words. He smiled slightly:
“Then let’s treat him to a skewer. He should be very happy.”
“Huh? How do we do that?”
With that, Shisui pulled out a piece of paper with the character “seal up” (Seal) written on it from his bag. He spread it flat on the table, picked up a dango skewer, placed it on the paper, raised his sword fingers to his eyes, and lightly chanted:
“Seal.”
With a “bang,” the dango skewer vanished before her eyes.
“Huh? Sealing Jutsu can be used like that?”
Under Chizhao’s astonished gaze, Shisui picked up a scroll, wrote a few characters, and then placed the sealing paper and scroll together inside the bamboo tube.
After summoning a crow to swallow it, it flapped its wings and flew out the window.
“This way, Itachi can have dango.”
Shisui then closed his eyes briefly, and when he reopened them, his expression had turned serious.
He looked at the bewildered girl in front of him and slowly began:
“Now, you can explain why you joined Anbu.”
Half a pot of tea was consumed, and most of the food on the table was gone.
After Chizhao’s thorough explanation, Shisui finally understood the full story of her joining Anbu.
Of course, she didn’t mention the purpose of ‘grinding tempered glass.’ If she were to explain that, it wouldn’t be something that could be clarified in just a few words, so not saying anything was the best option.
“I see, it was Hokage-sama’s request…”
Having sat in one position for too long, Chizhao changed to a more relaxed posture to stretch her limbs:
“That’s right… Hokage-sama’s request… I wouldn’t dare refuse.”
She secretly glanced at Shisui, then picked up her teacup and slowly took a sip to hide her guilt.
“Anbu is a department with extremely high danger. Although I know you are very capable, it still makes one worry.”
Meeting Shisui’s worried eyes, a warm current surged in her heart. She tried to force a reassuring smile:
“It’s alright, Itachi-nii. You said I’m strong, so there definitely won’t be any problems!”
Just as she finished speaking, a crow with wings as deep as night suddenly flew in through the window. It abruptly landed on Chizhao’s shoulder, and the bird and person stared at each other.
The scene fell into a brief silence until Shisui’s gentle voice broke the calm.
“This crow will follow you from now on. You can use him to contact me if anything comes up. Of course, I’d be even happier if you could come see me in person.”
“Itachi-nii…”
After giving Shisui a grateful look, Chizhao secretly made a decision in her heart.
She would definitely visit this “empty-nester” more often in the future and cook him delicious meals to thank him properly.
Time flew by quickly during her chat with Shisui. It was already evening when she returned to her small wooden house from the Uchiha village.
The crow emerged from the light gate with her on her shoulder. It tilted its head, looking around.
Flapping its wings, it gradually flew out of her sight.
“Hey! We haven’t even introduced ourselves yet? You’re leaving already?”
“Caw — — — — !”
Its caw echoed from afar, making Chizhao’s mouth twitch slightly as she secretly grumbled:
Are Uchiha crows this aloof too?
Never mind, it’s better to go back early.
Just as she stepped out of the small wooden house in the barrier, a ninja hawk flew over her head, and a secret letter gently floated down.
An Anbu message?
Opening the paper, handwritten black characters appeared before her eyes.
“Special Intelligence Division, Squad Six, assemble tomorrow!”
.......
In a vast, desolate wilderness, giant rocks stood tall, and the red evening glow cast a layer of brilliant shadow across their surfaces.
Uchiha Itachi, dressed in a red cloud robe, gazed at the distant sunset. His face was outlined vaguely by the light, his eyes as deep as a pool.
The wind brushed by, lifting his robe, and his hair gently swayed in the breeze.
He stood there, merging with the rocks, as if becoming a unique presence in this vast world, solitary yet full of power.
A gentle breeze accompanied by the sound of flapping wings approached him. A crow landed steadily on his shoulder, its red eyes blinked, and it tilted its head to meet his gaze.
“Mr. Itachi, is there anything unusual?”
Kisame Hoshigaki stood below, observing Itachi’s tall figure, his Samehada propped on his shoulder.
“Nothing, I’d like to be alone for a little longer.”
Upon receiving this reply, Kisame Hoshigaki turned and walked in the other direction:
“Suit yourself, just a reminder, we still have a long way to go to our next mission point.”
After Kisame Hoshigaki left, Itachi then took the scroll from the crow’s mouth, unfolded it before his eyes, and used his Sharingan to read its contents.
“I understand. Be careful. Oh, Chizhao came to see us today and bought a lot of your favorite dango. You haven’t had it in a long time, have you? It’s delicious!”
He picked up the sealing paper tucked inside with a puzzled expression. After releasing the seal with a “bang,” Itachi’s eyes widened slightly at that moment.
This is…
A familiar dango skewer was in his hand, looking fresh and delicious.
The lingering sunset glow reflected in his dark eyes, adding a touch of tenderness.
Looking at the dango in his hand, Itachi smiled faintly, a hint of helplessness in his expression.
Really, even at a time like this, they didn’t forget to treat him to dango?
He slowly brought one of the dango into his mouth. The familiar sweet taste spread, and the sunset before him became as beautiful as a painting.
If there were tea, it would probably be even better.