Konoha's Tatsuya

Konoha Village, in a secluded dense woods not far from the Uchiha Clan compound.

"Sasuke, watch closely!"

In the woods, Itachi stood silently, holding four kunai in each hand. He turned his head slightly towards Sasuke beside him, spoke softly, and then leaped into the air. While airborne, Itachi threw the kunai from his hands in succession.

Clink! Thud, thud, thud...

A series of kunai collision sounds rang out. By the time Itachi landed, all eight kunai, having struck each other mid-air, had simultaneously hit eight different targets. One of the targets was even placed behind a large boulder, in a blind spot.

"Whoa! Big brother, you're amazing!" Sasuke, watching from the side, was completely dumbfounded, staring at Itachi with stars in his eyes, his face alight with excitement.

Seeing this, Itachi took a few steps forward, gently ruffled Sasuke's hair, and was about to explain the kunai throwing techniques to him.

Flicker!

Just then, a figure flashed into view on a large tree nearby. It was an ANBU operative.

"Itachi, Lord Hokage orders you to report to the Hokage's Office immediately!" the ANBU called out loudly as soon as he appeared. With that said, the figure vanished in a flash.

"Sasuke, that's all for today. You should head back first," Itachi said gently, turning to Sasuke.

"Seriously? Big brother finally squeezed in a little time to teach me kunai techniques today, and now you already have another mission?" Sasuke pouted, grumbling unhappily.

"Sasuke, next time." Itachi reached out with his forefinger and gently poked Sasuke's forehead.

An hour later, in a forest several ri outside Konoha Village, Tatsuya, Kakashi, and Guy, clad in ANBU gear, stood silently in the shadows.

"Tengu!" Guy, wearing his ANBU mask, asked Tatsuya. "Who exactly is our last teammate? We're about to leave, how come they haven't arrived yet? I can't wait to get into battle!"

Tatsuya shrugged, indicating he didn't know either.

"Captain, do you know?" Guy then turned to Kakashi. Beside them, Tatsuya also stared intently at Kakashi. He too was very curious about who would be replacing Shisui.

Hearing the question, Kakashi shook his head silently. He hadn't received any information about the new member either!

Seeing this, Tatsuya's eyes flashed slightly. Guy muttered under his breath, "Even you don't know? How mysterious!"

Just then, the sound of rushing air came from the distance. The three instinctively turned their gazes towards the village. In the distance, a figure was flashing towards them rapidly.

"Huh! They look pretty young!" Guy exclaimed in surprise upon seeing the approaching figure's build. Astonishment also flickered in Kakashi's eyes. The danger level of their mission to the Land of Water this time was not low. For the village to send such a young ninja, they wondered about the intention.

Tatsuya, however, recognized the newcomer's identity at a glance: Itachi Uchiha.

The Third actually assigned the eleven-year-old Itachi to their ANBU Squad 11.

"Captain, Seniors," Arriving before them, Itachi bowed respectfully to the three.

"Alright! Everyone's here. Let's move out," Kakashi said with a nod after looking Itachi up and down briefly. As soon as he finished speaking, the four quickly leaped up one after another and began their journey. Their current location was far from Kirigakure; they needed to arrive ahead of the mission deadline.

In just half a day, ANBU Squad 11 covered a considerable distance. Night fell. Having traveled for half a day, ANBU Squad 11 chose to make camp for the night in a forest clearing.

Beside the campfire, Tatsuya and Itachi, both wearing their masks, sat side-by-side. Kakashi and Guy had each gone off in different directions to patrol.

Crackle... Pop...

Only the sound of the burning firewood broke the silence of the forest.

"Big Brother Tatsuya, what exactly is our mission this time?" After a short silence, Itachi turned to Tatsuya and asked. Facing Tatsuya, Itachi made no attempt to hide his true identity. From their very first meeting, Itachi had seen from Tatsuya's eyes that he had already guessed who he was.

"Hm? You still don't know the specific details of the mission?" Tatsuya turned to Itachi in surprise.

Itachi nodded. "I only received the notice this morning, on short notice. Lord Hokage just told me to rendezvous with you all; he didn't tell me the specific mission details."

"Short notice? Heh heh, Lord Hokage really is cautious!" Hearing this, Tatsuya somewhat understood the Third's intentions and couldn't help but sneer mockingly. Clearly, that old fox Hiruzen Sarutobi was being overly suspicious again. Based on Tatsuya's understanding of Itachi, even if Itachi knew the mission details, he wouldn't easily leak them. Especially not within the Uchiha clan. The Third often praised Itachi as someone who possessed a Hokage's mindset from a young age, yet when it came to actually utilizing him, he still harbored deep suspicion without the slightest reservation.

Hearing Tatsuya's sarcastic remark, Itachi remained silent. Although young, he easily understood the hidden meaning in Tatsuya's words. In fact, upon first meeting, Itachi had already guessed some things from the reactions of Tatsuya and the others.

Looking at the perfectly composed Itachi, a flicker of curiosity crossed Tatsuya's eyes. He asked, "Itachi, don't you feel any dissatisfaction with the village's arrangements?"

Itachi shook his head slightly. "Big Brother Tatsuya, resentment is useless. If we truly want to change the village's view of the clan, we must first change ourselves."

"And what if you can't change it?" Tatsuya's gaze deepened.

"That won't happen," Itachi shook his head, his eyes firm.

"Why?" Tatsuya found this odd. This young boy seemed a bit different from the one in his memories.

"Because I trust you, Big Brother Tatsuya, and Big Brother Shisui," Itachi said, turning to Tatsuya, his tone full of conviction.

Tatsuya gave a wry smile. "That guy Shisui really tells you everything, doesn't he!" Tatsuya assumed Shisui had already revealed their plan to Itachi beforehand.

"No! Big Brother Shisui didn't tell me your plan. I just guessed some things from the changes in him over the past two years," Itachi said, shaking his head.

Tatsuya: ...

Should I say Itachi is too smart, or that Shisui is too careless! Plotting really isn't suited for the Uchiha.

Not far away, Kakashi and Guy, returning from their patrol routes, met up.

"Kakashi, who do you think our new young teammate really is? Could he be unreliable?" Guy asked idly as they walked back together.

"He should be reliable," Kakashi replied after a moment's thought.

"Why are you so sure?" Guy turned to Kakashi in surprise.

"Didn't you notice Tatsuya's reaction when he saw him? They must have known each other before! And for someone to join ANBU at such a young age, he must undoubtedly be a genius," Kakashi stated calmly. Guy had spent much of the last two years recovering from his injuries and was somewhat out of the loop, so he couldn't guess Itachi's true identity. But Kakashi had figured it out quickly. After all, how many shinobi in all of Konoha could join ANBU at such an age?

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