[Hokage] A rose in mourning for the summer moon

"You've worked hard these past few years, Itachi. Thanks to you, we were able to successfully stop 'Akatsuki''s plot."

The Fourth Hokage is full of emotion.Itachi didn't have to look up to imagine the leader's expression; it must be resolute and calm despite guilt.This is a quality Itachi admires, and one of the reasons why he chose to accept the secret mission back then.

"No, this is what I should do." He replied calmly, "As Anbe, it is my duty to protect Konoha."

Moreover, the facts have proved the foresight of the Fourth Hokage.That being the case, what was the pain and stress he had endured for the past five years?Ever since he swore to become the great ninja who supported Konoha in the dark, Itachi had the consciousness to dedicate everything.

Five years ago, Itachi was 13 years old and had just become the captain of Anbu.At this time, the investigation by the Fourth Hokage discovered the fact that Shimura Danzo of the Konoha Advisory Group had colluded with foreign enemies, and further discovered that Danzo had cooperated with the leader of the Rain Country, Sanshoyu Hanzo, and indirectly created the criminal group "Akatsuki". ", and there is even evidence that he is planning to remove the Fourth Hokage in order to win the position of leader.Seeing that the conspiracy was revealed, the consultant chose to fight back brazenly, intending to use the power of the "root" he possessed to kill the four generations.

After some fighting, Danzang died, and "root" was also liquidated.In order to protect the Fourth Hokage, Itachi's friend Shisui was seriously injured, almost lost an eye, and had to stay in bed to recuperate.In the process of investigating Danzo, Itachi discovered the close surveillance of the Uchiha clan by "root" and the plan document that recorded how to deal with the Uchiha rebellion.Recalling the family's self-righteousness and eagerness to move in the past few years, even Itachi's calm and resourceful nature broke out in a cold sweat.

If the Fourth Hokage hadn't been carefully balancing the forces of all parties in the village, and somewhat satisfied some of Uchiha's demands, what kind of situation would the family and himself have faced...Itachi thought over the situation in those few years, and finally came to a conclusion: The family and the village may go to the point of death, and themselves and Zhishui will also be forced to make a choice between the two.

Maybe... I will become the sharp knife that slaughters the family.

Itachi silently kept this frightening speculation in his heart.He understands very well that although the crisis has temporarily passed, he must work harder to keep the family away from such an ending.Therefore, when the Fourth Hokage mentioned the need to plant a nail in the "Akatsuki" organization, he stood up without hesitation and asked to complete this top-secret task by himself.

He clearly remembered that when he made this request, Fourth Hokage had a strange look on his face.The young Hokage known as "Golden Shining Konoha" sat behind the table with a pensive expression, hesitant and heavy, as if he was not happy to see Itachi take on this job.But in the end he agreed, because among the Anbu directly under Hokage, only Itachi possesses both sufficient strength and a delicate and calm mind.

Another consideration may be that Itachi's family members are all in Konoha, so he will not betray the village no matter what.

Danzo's death became a ready-made excuse.In the end, Itachi joined the "Akatsuki" organization as a traitor under the cover of "snatching the secret technique and assassinating the village's senior management".The full moon night when he left Konoha was particularly bleak, the leaves in the valley were rustling, and the night wind was blowing. He thought of his parents and younger brother who were left behind, and felt desolate in his heart, but more of it was infinite courage and sense of responsibility.

Itachi firmly believes that this is something only he can accomplish.

Now, the destruction of "Akatsuki", the death of Uchiha Obito behind the scenes, and the collapse of Uchiha Madara's resurrection plan all show that he is right.

"Thanks for your hard work." Fourth Hokage repeated it again, even walked over, and patted him on the shoulder encouragingly, "The arrest warrant for traitorous ninja has been cancelled, and the relevant files have also been solved and made public. The way of the headlines clarified your matter. The procedures for awarding honors have also been completed, and the specific time for the commendation conference is still being discussed."

"Yes. Thank you very much, Master Fourth." Itachi replied in a polite manner.He is happy—he should be happy, he will get rid of the stigma, and return to people's vision and home as Konoha ninja or even Konoha hero.

But in fact, he was so calm that he was a little surprised.There was no turmoil in my heart, and there was even a slight confusion: how would his family treat him after five years away?What has become of the young brother who was always chasing after him? Do you still know him?What about the water stop?besides……

"Master Fourth, there is a person..." He opened his mouth to inquire about the situation, but soon realized that he was too impulsive.That person is also Anbu, and his identity is kept secret, so he shouldn't ask too much.Itachi was a little annoyed.

Unexpectedly, Hokage laughed, and the laughter was quite hearty, "If it refers to the news about that child, I promise, You, Itachi, will know soon."

He spoke cheerfully, removing the seriousness just now, and even—if Itachi heard correctly—a little bit of a joke.Itachi's face was slightly hot, and his mood brightened, but he didn't understand why he was like this.Is there any other meaning in the words of the Fourth Hokage?He couldn't help thinking to himself, but for the first time couldn't think of any possible answers.

That answer seemed beyond his experience and understanding.

But Itachi believed in the guarantee of the Fourth Hokage.The promise made by this Hokage has not yet been fulfilled.Although he never said it out loud, Itachi has already made up his mind that he will become such a reliable, far-sighted Hokage who can protect Konoha from now on.

"Go home, Itachi. Don't think about work these few days, just take a good rest and adapt to the future life, and then you can devote yourself to your new job with more energy." Hokage encouraged him, "Itachi, you You have the talent to become Hokage, but you must also pay attention to relaxation."

"Yes, Lord Fourth." Itachi said sincerely, "Then, I will take my leave first."

Konoha's sunlight was so bright that it was almost dazzling.This is the month of Konoha known to Itachi; the scorching heat is fading away, but the scorching sun is still there, and the surrounding green hills are surprisingly green, and every leaf reflects the oily light.He came out of the Hokage Building and saw his forehead in the reflection of the glass window of the store: the reflection had worn away the Konoha logo, making it look brand new and shiny, completely different from the dilapidated one when he was wandering outside.

He felt lighter.

Many of the ninjas wearing the same forehead protectors knew him, as could be seen from the way they looked at him, but most of the faces were unfamiliar to Itachi.They should have seen him from the arrest warrant and read the declassified official documents, so they showed complicated expressions.Some people are real old acquaintances, such as Sarutobi Asma and Kurenai Yuhi, and Itachi would stop politely and say hello to them.They were all kind people, although they were not familiar with them, they smiled at him and expressed concern about his life.

Itachi likes such leaves.

Ordinary residents came and went, only some young girls cast curious eyes, and even a few girls came forward to strike up a conversation.This scene reminded him of his time at ninja school.He didn't understand their feelings in the past, and he was a little tired of such boring behavior, but now he also feels nostalgic.

He politely declined them.Although he still couldn't understand their excitement and regret, he classified this kind of daily boredom as part of "peace", so he was finally able to treat them happily.

When passing the bookstore on the commercial street, Itachi ran into a familiar person again.Compared with Asma and Hong, he is a more familiar person.

""Intimate Paradise" is actually over, and my youth seems to have gone with it..."

"Please don't be so sad, cheer up, Kakashi-senpai, there are many great novels waiting for you. This "My Heart is on the Tip of Your Eyebrow" is worth a try, and I recommend it to you."

"No, none of them are "Kissing Heaven". No one can replace it, just like youth only once..."

"Senior Kakashi... Sure enough, if you read too many pure love novels, you will get into the drama."

"It's no longer that cute junior who respects seniors."

"My respect for Kakashi-senpai has faded into the wind with the number of times you get lost."

The masked white-haired ninja stood at the door of the bookstore, sighing "ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh"Sitting on a bench beside her was a girl, also wearing a ninja forehead, looking down at the novel in her hand, and chatting with Kakashi calmly.She lowered her head, a few strands of her shoulder-length hair fell down, and was illuminated by the sun again, giving it a fluffy and soft texture.

Itachi was inexplicably concerned.

Should have noticed his gaze, the girl raised her head, revealing a pair of sea-blue eyes.She was taken aback when she saw him, and then a smile appeared on her lips.Itachi couldn't help noticing that she was a pretty girl, especially when she smiled, even the sun seemed to be brighter.

"Ah, it's Mr. Uchiha Itachi." She closed the book, speaking clearly and steadily, like a stream flowing slowly, "Good morning, Mr. Itachi."

The white-haired ninja must have noticed him long ago, but he couldn't bear to look away from the poster. At this moment, he reluctantly turned his head and greeted him lazily: "Long time no see, Itachi. Just come back."

Just come back—these words carry warmth, warming his heart slightly.This is his former captain in Anbu, and the friendship is naturally more than ordinary ninjas.

"Long time no see, Mr. Kakashi is still in the same spirit." He politely replied to the senior, and then looked at the strange female ninja again, "Excuse me, do you know me?"

The curvature of the other party's lips widened, and the sunlight surrounding her became brighter.

"Many people know Mr. Itachi, and I'm one of them." She said with a smile, but she replied a little cunningly, and refused to speak bluntly, "It's my honor to meet the young and promising Hero Konoha."

"Where, it's too much. I don't know if you are..."

"Natsuki." She said, "My name is Uchiha Natsuki."

Uchiha?Itachi was slightly taken aback.Judging from their appearance, they should be the same age, but Itachi's memory has never seen the figure of this female ninja... No, wait a minute, she looks familiar, and the name "Xia Yue" can't be said to be very strange .

Itachi remembered: They were classmates at the Ninja School.His school career was only a short one year, and he didn't often attend school, so he didn't have a good impression of most of his classmates.Still, the name "Summer Moon" evokes some memories.

"Student Xia Yue..."

"Hey, do you remember? I feel even more honored to be remembered by the popular Uchiha Itachi-kun...Itachi-kun."

His doubts seemed to be a source of pleasure to her.She laughed even more, and her words became more joking, and she even changed her address to "Itachi-kun".In memory, other female classmates would also call him that, but no one could say what she said jokingly.There are also those blue eyes, smiling without concealment, looking at him with a twinkle, as pure as clear glass in the sunlight.

Itachi ignored the subtle feeling in his heart, and only focused on rational thinking.

"I remember that Xia Yue is not a member of Uchiha's tribe." Now that he remembered the other party's origin, Itachi also remembered more details, so that he could calmly point out the inaccuracies in the other party's words, "When I was in ninja school , using the name 'Taki Natsuki'."

"Itachi-kun's memory is really good, he is indeed a super genius who graduated in just one year." Facing his question, Xia Yue only smiled as before, but didn't intend to answer.

He vaguely felt that strange emotion again.He wanted to say something more, but was interrupted by the white-haired ninja with a yawn.

"You two little fellows, are you tired of uttering honorific words? Forget it, probably the big family is like this." The former leader of the dark army yawned again, "I want to go back and remember "Intimate Heaven" in my sleep. "It's over, the next step is to continue to stand on the street chatting, or do something else, it's up to you."

What Mr. Kakashi said seemed to have some meaning.Itachi felt a little uncomfortable, but nodded calmly, only observing that person's reaction calmly.

Xia Yue was still laughing, saying why Senior Kakashi would go back to sleep late during the day.Although addressing her with honorifics, her tone was more like treating a familiar friend, and the white-haired ninja also behaved very habitually.

"Speaking of..."

The white-haired ninja seemed to remember something, and his right eye turned back and forth between them, revealing some thoughtfulness.

"Mr. Kakashi?"

"No, it's nothing." Ninja waved his hand, turned and walked to the other side of the street, "I just think that you two might get along very well. Work hard, Itachi."

What is Mr. Kakashi talking about?Itachi thought that his comprehension was not inferior to anyone else, but now he was a little confused by what the other party said.He thought about it for a while, but he couldn't figure out why the captain judged that they would "get along well", and naturally he couldn't understand why he wanted to cheer.

Could it be that this is also a manifestation of his inability to adapt to Konoha's life?Such a peaceful and comfortable day really made him a little bit overwhelmed, the strangeness was more than the familiarity.

"If you are serious with Kakashi-senpai, you will lose. Itachi-kun, please don't worry, Kakashi-senpai is only pretending to be a strange novel."

With a smile in his face, this clear and soothing voice easily soothed his confusion.Itachi was startled again, only to realize that Xia Yue had been watching him, and that relaxed expression seemed to indicate that she could tell what he was thinking at a glance.

The third time came - that subtle emotion.Itachi could no longer ignore the strangeness of his intuition, and secretly examined this somewhat inexplicable girl.

By the way, I heard that Mr. Kakashi just quit Anbu not long ago, and he and Xia Yue look very familiar...

His heart skipped a beat.Could it be...

"Today is really nice weather, suitable for reading outdoors. However, it's time to go back to have lunch." Xia Yue stood up and stretched herself very comfortably, "Mr. Are you going the same way?"

Her shadow overlapped with the shadow of the eaves of the bookstore, pushed by the sunlight and extended to his feet.This leisurely, warm and determined temperament is as nostalgic as the sunshine of Konoha.People with such qualities, even if they are not the only ones, should not be said to be seen everywhere, right?

"Of course, I don't mind." He could feel the corners of his lips rising a little, which came from a kind of secret joy flowing in his body, "Then let's go now, classmate Xia Yue."

The author has something to say: I agreed not to write extra episodes, but I still couldn’t hold back, my face hurts [cover your face]

Sure enough, I still can't bear Itachi, so write a little more.

The background can be regarded as AU, and the setting is the rebirth of the fourth generation of Hokage. After the end of the third war, the main storyline of Hokage was destroyed from the source (but Brother Tu is still a tragedy...), so everyone just needs to live well. OK, everything has golden glitter and bother to plan [Hey!