Mastermind of the Akatsuki

As time ticked away, Itachi gazed out the window, watching the sun set and rise again.

Itachi spent the entire night deep in thought, not leaving the study or giving Fugaku a decisive answer. Or perhaps, in his heart, he had already made his decision.

After breakfast, Itachi reported for duty at the surveillance room.

Skillfully observing the monitors throughout the day, Itachi glanced at the Root ninja assigned to the same surveillance mission. Without further delay, he exited the room.

The time to make his choice had finally arrived.

Leaving the Root base, Itachi moved swiftly and resolutely toward the Hokage building.

In the dimly lit meeting room, the Third Hokage had been waiting for him for some time.

Sitting at the head of the table, the Hizuren looked down at Itachi, who was kneeling on the floor.

"Itachi, I'm glad you've chosen to stand with the village but is there truly no way to stop your father?"

Itachi nodded, his voice low and solemn, "I cannot persuade my father and the clan head, who have descended into madness. They have already made up their minds to stage a coup, and it will happen tonight."

"Tonight?"

The Third Hokage's eyes widened slightly, his brow furrowing. "So tonight will be another night of bloodshed. If only your father and the others could reconsider... I truly don't want to raise my hand against my comrades in the village. However, it's fortunate you're here. If you hadn't reported the coup, the cost of suppressing it would have been unimaginably high. A single misstep, and the village might not even survive."

Raising his head, Itachi addressed the Hokage. "Lord Third, although I can't stop the clan from initiating the coup, I can stop the coup itself."

Hearing this, the Third Hokage's interest was piqued. He gestured for Itachi to continue.

For a village like Konoha, suppressing a bloodline clan like the Uchiha wasn't an insurmountable task. After all, Kirigakure had waged its infamous "Bloody Mist" purges against bloodline clans in recent years, wiping them out with ease.

However, Konoha was different. There was no animosity between its bloodline clans and ordinary ninjas.

Before the Uchiha acted on their rebellion, the Third Hokage lacked the justification to mobilize the entire village against them. At his disposal were only the Anbu and Danzo's Root division.

However, relying solely on these two forces to suppress the Uchiha Police Force would be extremely difficult.

Before Shisui's disappearance, even taking him down had been an uncertainty. If there were any other way to resolve this rebellion, it would undoubtedly be preferable.

Under the Third Hokage's scrutiny, Itachi calmly spoke, "Lord Third, tonight I will eliminate every clan member involved in the coup. I will snuff out this rebellion before it can begin."

The Third Hokage's eyes widened as he struggled to maintain his composure.

What had he just heard? Itachi's method of preventing the coup was to personally kill all those involved? Wasn't this too extreme?

Could it be that Tobirama-sensei and Danzo were right all along? Was the Uchiha clan truly an innately evil clan?

Otherwise, why would Itachi conceive such a terrifying plan? Or had Itachi completely embraced the Will of Fire, ready to sacrifice himself and his family for the village?

The most pressing question was: Did Itachi really have the power to eliminate the Police Force?

The Third Hokage's expression darkened with doubt. This wasn't underestimating Itachi—he was undoubtedly Konoha's greatest genius in the past decade—but this was an entire force of Uchiha.

Unless... Itachi, like Shisui, has awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan.

Or perhaps, as the rumors suggested, Itachi had killed Shisui for the sake of power, stealing his Mangekyou Sharingan.

Seeming to anticipate the Hokage's doubts, Itachi added, "I alone do not possess the strength to destroy the entire Uchiha clan. However, a masked man with space-time abilities has approached me recently, seeking to recruit me as his subordinate. I agreed—on the condition that he assist me in eliminating the Uchiha. He is an Uchiha with the Mangekyou Sharingan. Against the Police Force, his abilities are more than sufficient."

"A masked Uchiha with space-time powers and the Mangekyou Sharingan?"

The Third Hokage's expression shifted as he recalled something, his face darkening. "Could he be... the one responsible for the Nine-Tails incident?"

Itachi nodded. "I suspect he is. Once I become his subordinate, I will investigate his identity and motives."

The Third Hokage asked, "Is there any chance to use this opportunity to eliminate him?"

Itachi shook his head slightly. "I don't know. I currently lack sufficient information about him. Even with your strength, Lord Third, I'm afraid taking down the masked man would be difficult."

"Then there's no helping it..."

The Third Hokage sighed softly, his tone carrying deep regret, "I'll leave the task of stopping the Uchiha coup—and investigating the masked man—to you. The road ahead will be difficult, and it's all my fault for not negotiating with Fugaku sooner."

"Please do not blame yourself, Lord Third," Itachi replied calmly. "This is the fault of the Uchiha clan. I am only correcting their mistakes. After I eliminate the coup participants, I ask that you declare me a rogue ninja. It will help me earn the masked man's trust and uncover the truth behind the scenes. My younger brother, Sasuke, is in your care. He's just a child; he knows nothing."

The Third Hokage nodded earnestly. "I promise you, as long as I live, no one will lay a hand on Sasuke. Tonight, there will be no Uchiha coup. Instead, it will be claimed that you killed your entire clan for the sake of power. The Uchiha will remain recognized as shinobi of the village."

Having reached this agreement, Itachi departed from the Hokage building. He was now set to carry out the plan of annihilation.

Shortly after Itachi left, Shisui appeared, watching Itachi's retreating figure with a cold, murderous glint in his eyes.

Byakuya, standing nearby, also gazed at Itachi's departing form and spoke calmly, "Shisui, it seems Itachi has chosen a path completely opposite to yours."

Taking a deep breath, Shisui turned to Byakuya and replied, "Byakuya-sama, I'll leave tonight's matter in your hands. My task, along with the Root ninjas, will be to preemptively move the clan members outside the village. But the Police Force... I'll have to rely on you for that."

"Itachi plans to deal with the Police Force himself, but he surely has help," Shisui added.

Byakuya nodded, a look of anticipation spreading across his face. "I have a good idea who Itachi's 'help' might be. It's been a long time since we last met. I'm curious to see how much he's grown."