The original Itachi sat quietly in the shared mind and counted the seconds one by one until a full thirty minutes had passed in the outside world.
He did not waste even a single moment of that careful count.
The instant the final second ended, he decided to act.
First he placed five separate memory seals deep inside their shared mind.
Each seal was designed to hold back a portion of the enormous flood of new experiences so that the brain would not be crushed under fifteen years of information all at once.
Only after the seals were firmly in place did he cancel the Mangekyo ability and break the Tsukuyomi that still held the body.
In the real world the eyes of the body opened.
Julian or rather the new Itachi drew a slow breath and sat up against the tree.
Fifteen full years had passed for him inside the illusion yet his limbs felt only as stiff as if he had taken a short afternoon nap.
He stretched his arms and legs carefully and then spoke to the original Itachi.
“Chakra is really amazing.
There is so much still left to experiment with and so many rules left to understand.
Even after fifteen years of constant study and practice I felt that the time was not enough.
Every answer I found only opened three new questions.” He let out a long sigh and continued with honest disappointment.
“But I did not know enough basic knowledge to push the experiments as far as I wanted.
I will have to visit the Uchiha library soon and study the older scrolls.
I need more foundations if I want to make the best use of future training sessions.
By the time eight years had passed inside the genjutsu I had already learned everything that existed in your memories.
After that point I was forced to repeat and refine rather than discover.” Inside the mind the original Itachi reeled with shock.
‘He learned everything that I saw and experienced in twelve years of life in only eight years of training time?
How is such speed of learning even possible?’ The new Itachi kept speaking without noticing the inner astonishment.
“And I have not even touched fuinjutsu or medical ninjutsu yet.
Why could you not have learned at least the basic forms of those arts during your time in Anbu?
Those two fields would have given me so many more paths to explore.” The original Itachi asked, “So what did you actually do during the remaining seven years after the memories ran out?” Itachi answered with simple truth.
“I do not remember the details.
You placed memory seals.
The knowledge is locked away until we choose to open it.” Itachi added, “Go ahead and remove the first seal.
I should be able to take in three years of memories without frying my brain.
I already know that the first sealed portion is the most important one anyway.
It contains the foundation of everything that came after.” The original Itachi formed a short series of hand signs that served as the exact password for the first mind seal.
The moment the last sign was completed a heavy wave of memories slammed into both of them at once.
Three full years of intense training research and experimentation poured through their shared mind in a rushing flood.
The original Itachi’s eyes widened in the inner world as he watched the sheer volume of progress.
He could not stop the single word that escaped him.
“Monster.” Itachi answered with a mild and almost playful protest.
“Hey now that is not very nice.
Technically I am you and you are me.
We share the same body and the same future so any title you give me also belongs to you.” The three years of sudden knowledge still produced a sharp headache for both of them yet they managed to shake the pain away after a few deep breaths.
Itachi rose to his feet and wiped the thin trail of blood that had leaked from his eye after the use of Tsukuyomi.
He activated his Sharingan once more and checked the clarity of his vision.
The world remained sharp without any sign of damage.
Satisfied he walked across the training ground toward the small figure who still practiced under the afternoon sun.
Sasuke noticed his approach and called out in a cheerful voice.
“That was a quick nap nii san.
You only closed your eyes for a little while.” Itachi replied with a small smile.
“Was it quick?
To me it felt longer than it looked.” He then offered the help he knew the boy wanted.
“Well anyway let me help you a little more with your training.
Show me the throws you have been practicing while I rested.” Sasuke brightened at once yet a note of worry entered his voice.
“What about your own training nii san?
Please do not feel that you have to spend time on me if it means skipping the practice you need.
You go on dangerous missions for the village and I do not want you to get hurt because you gave your training time to me.” For a brief moment the face of Justin rose in the Itachi’s mind.
The same protective concern the same earnest wish that an older brother stay safe.
The resemblance touched something deep and quiet inside him.
“Do not worry Sasuke.
I have already finished the training I needed for today.” Sasuke tilted his head in confusion.
“When did you train?
Was it inside your dreams while you slept?” Itachi chuckled at the accidental truth.
“Actually yes.
Something like that.” Sasuke still looked puzzled by the answer but the chance to train with his older brother pushed the question aside.
He returned to his practice with fresh energy while the new Itachi stood nearby and offered quiet advice on foot placement timing and the proper snap of the wrist.
Hours passed in steady repetition of throws corrections and short rest periods.
When it was getting dark, Itachi spoke, “Let us go home Sasuke.” A tired but happy Sasuke nodded and answered in a soft voice.
“Okay nii san.” ———Author Notes——– Would appreciate power stones if you can spare any!