After taking over the snake uncle's foundation, Sasuke came to surrender on his own initiative.

Although the Anbu had no idea, they were not without clues. They analyzed Uchiha Itachi's past habits and the direction he might flee to, and locked on several key areas. One of them was an abandoned ancient temple on the border of the Land of Fire. This ancient temple used to be a transit station for ninjas to transmit confidential information. Although it has been abandoned for many years, it is very likely to be Uchiha Itachi's temporary hiding place because of its excellent concealment.

The Anbu sent an elite team to investigate quietly. When they approached the ancient temple, they found that there was a faint chakra fluctuation around them. This fluctuation was intermittent, as if it was deliberately used to confuse the enemy. The team members carefully sneaked into the ancient temple, but found that it was empty, leaving only some ashes of a bonfire that had just been extinguished. It seems that Uchiha Itachi had indeed been here, but had left again. At this time, a ninja in the team found strange symbols engraved on the wall. After careful identification, they realized that this might be a signal left by Uchiha Itachi for a mysterious person. The identity of this mysterious person and the secrets hidden behind him may reveal more shocking truths behind the destruction of the Uchiha clan.

Kakashi led his team out of the ancient temple and quickly returned to Konoha Village to report the situation. After hearing this, the Hokage frowned, knowing that the matter was far from being as simple as it seemed.

At the same time, Sasuke learned that his family had been destroyed and his brother had become a wanted criminal, and his heart was filled with hatred and doubt. He began to track down clues alone and accidentally discovered the same symbols on the wall of the ancient temple. Following this clue, Sasuke came to a remote valley.

Deep in the valley, he saw Uchiha Itachi. Sasuke angrily asked Itachi why he slaughtered his clan, but Itachi just looked at him coldly without saying a word. Suddenly, a group of mysterious people wearing masks appeared. It turned out that the demise of the Uchiha clan was a conspiracy. These mysterious people wanted to use Itachi to destroy the Uchiha clan to gain some kind of power. In order to protect Sasuke, Itachi chose to bear the infamy. At this time, Kakashi led the Anbu to arrive and fought with the mysterious people. Sasuke was stunned by this shocking truth.

"Hmph, I hope so. But if that brat knew the truth, he wouldn't let Danzo go so easily." Madara sneered.

"It will take time for Sasuke to grow. Before that, I will try my best to direct his hatred towards me alone." Itachi clenched his fists.

"Aren't you afraid that you will really die in his hands in the end?" Madara said jokingly.

"That's the ending I deserve. If I can make him strong and protect Konoha, it will be my atonement." Itachi's eyes were firm.

"You are righteous and awe-inspiring. But there are forces behind those mysterious people, and they will not give up." Madara crossed his arms.

"Then let me deal with it. I will find out their real purpose." Itachi looked grim.

At this moment, there was a slight sound of footsteps in the distance. The two of them were instantly alerted, and saw a little fox running out. It turned out to be an ordinary wild animal, and Ban breathed a sigh of relief.

"Be more careful next time. Now various forces are watching secretly." Itachi reminded.

"I understand. You just have to not reveal any flaws, otherwise our plan will fail." After saying this, Madara disappeared into the shadows. Itachi looked into the distance, silently reciting Sasuke's name in his heart, and then turned and left the dead forest.

Madara shook his head. "She's not strong, but she's very cunning. Every time I thought I could catch her, she always escaped in advance, and she seems to have some strange helpers around her."

Itachi pondered for a moment, "Strange helper? Could it be a master from another ninja village?"

"No, not a ninja. More like some creature with special powers. Once when I was chasing her, I encountered a mysterious force blocking me. That force carried the breath of nature and was definitely not a ninjutsu." A trace of fear flashed in Madara's eyes.

"It seems that this Uchiha is hiding a lot of secrets. We need more information about her." Itachi said seriously.

"That's right, but for now we should still follow the original plan. First, we should deal with the threats posed by those mysterious organizations, and then deal with Uchiha Ruri." Madara suggested.

"Well, but we must always keep an eye on her movements. If she colludes with those mysterious organizations, it will cause us even greater trouble." Itachi nodded in agreement.

"That brat must be obsessed with revenge right now. I hope he doesn't reveal his strength too soon." Madara muttered to himself as he looked in the direction of Konoha.

"Sasuke knows how to be patient, he will seize the opportunity." Itachi said confidently.

Three fingers were missing. He looked down at Madara and Itachi, his eyes cold and alert.

"Hoshigaki Kisame, this is our new companion, Uchiha Itachi." Madara introduced.

Kisame grinned, revealing his sharp teeth, "Hey, Uchiha, I heard your family has very powerful eyes."

Itachi didn't respond, just nodded indifferently.

"Hmph, it seems like you're not easy to get along with." Kisame snorted coldly.

Madara quickly tried to smooth things over, "We are all teammates from now on, so we need to take care of each other. Kisame, are there any new tasks from above?"

"Not yet, but it is said that Uchiha has made some new moves recently, and seems to be looking for an ancient sealing technique."

"Ancient sealing technique? Why is she looking for this?" Madara frowned.

"Who knows, maybe it can be used to increase my own strength, or to unlock a powerful seal." Kisame shrugged.

Itachi said: "No matter what, we must prevent her from obtaining this sealing technique. If she succeeds, the situation will be even more unfavorable to us."

"Then shall we set out to find her now?" Kisame clenched the big sword behind him.

Madara looked at the sky and said, "No, let's rest tonight and act early tomorrow morning. After all, we don't know her exact location and the traps around her yet."

Kisame led Itachi towards the leader's location. The two of them were silent along the way, with only the slight sound of their footsteps on the ground.

Soon, they arrived in front of a dilapidated temple, with a faint light coming from inside. Kisame walked in first, followed by Itachi. There was a dark figure sitting inside, but his face could not be seen clearly.

"Chief, Uchiha Itachi is here." Kisame said respectfully. The shadow slowly raised his head and glanced at Itachi, "Welcome to join our organization, Uchiha Itachi. Here, you can fully display your talents and achieve your goals."

At this time, laughter came from the corner, "Haha, there's a newcomer. And he's a rebel ninja from Konoha." Itachi looked and saw two ninjas with the same unique aura.

The leader stood up and said, "Our top priority now is to stop Uchiha from finding the sealing technique. According to intelligence, she will appear in the eastern forest tomorrow. We will set up an ambush there." Everyone responded in unison.

As night fell, Itachi sat alone outside the temple, gazing at the bright moon in the sky, wondering to himself where his path would lead. In order to protect the village and his brother, he had stepped into this unknown darkness, and now he could only keep moving forward, even in the face of many dangers and challenges.