Uchiha Itachi’s Astonishing Killing Intent!
16: Chapter 16: Who is Touching My Pieces?
Uchiha Itachi’s Astonishing Killing Intent!
Hokage Office Anbu Report Room.
At daybreak, two night observation records were stapled together and delivered to the duty officer’s desk.
The report was short and punchy: “For two consecutive nights, unidentified Ninja have been approaching Uchiha Yuya’s residence under the cover of darkness.” “They stayed for four minutes the first night, and twenty seconds the second night.” “The second night was clearly an attempt to clean up the traces left from the first.” “The entry and exit routes were extremely tricky, perfectly avoiding both Uchiha’s patrol routes and Anbu surveillance points.
Identity unknown.” The duty officer’s eyelids twitched.
Without a word, he slammed a large red ‘Urgent Report’ stamp onto the document with a ‘thud’.
He was just a high-level corporate drone; he wasn’t going to take the heat for this kind of bizarre intelligence involving the sensitive Uchiha area.
Whoever wanted to deal with it could have it.
Hokage Office.
An hour later, the report sat firmly on Hiruzen Sarutobi’s desk.
The old man tapped his pipe and stared at the report for two full readings.
Uchiha Yuya.
This name was like a haunting spirit; within three days, it had appeared on his desk, the leader of Konoha, for the fourth time!
The first time, it was that epic social suicide confession farce directed at Uchiha Itachi.
The second time, it was the mental health assessment submitted by the Konoha Military Police Force.
The third time, he had personally written’Suspend action, continue observation’.
Now, the fourth time had arrived.
The nature of the situation had escalated directly.
A target who had just been marked as’suspended’ by the top leadership—no sooner had the order been signed than he was ‘visited’ for two consecutive nights.
The people on the second night were even frantically destroying the scene.
What did this mean?
It meant the group from the first night definitely had malicious intent and had left behind incriminating evidence that couldn’t see the light of day.
Hiruzen Sarutobi pulled out the archived order; the words’Suspend action’ were written in black and white.
It was dated just two days ago.
He reviewed the Anbu daily activity logs every day; none of his subordinates had contacted the kid.
So where did these ‘unidentified Ninja’ come from?
Inside the Uchiha?
Forget it; the withdrawal routes had absolutely nothing to do with the clan’s patrol routes.
Foreign spies?
Which village’s spy would be so bored that they would risk infiltrating under the intense pressure on the eve of the Uchiha Clan’s annihilation, just to obsess over a pathetic Genin who couldn’t even perform a proper Great Fireball Technique?
Using the process of elimination, the remaining answer was practically screaming to be heard.
Hiruzen Sarutobi slowly lit his pipe, took two puffs, and waved over a trusted Anbu operative.
“Go to Root and ask Danzo.” “Just say that I, this old man, want to confirm whether anyone from Root ‘accidentally’ passed by the edge of the Uchiha Clan Compound in the last two days.” The wording was very precise; it wasn’t an accusation, but a ‘confirmation’.
But a ‘confirmation’ personally requested by the Third Hokage was, in itself, a gun pointed at one’s forehead.
Root underground headquarters.
When the Anbu arrived to deliver the message, Danzo was sitting in the darkness, holding that perfect internal ‘cleanup report’.
After hearing the Third Hokage’s ‘confirmation’, he didn’t even lift an eyelid.
“Go back and tell Hiruzen that Root has no official missions targeting Uchiha Yuya.” The answer was watertight.
The messenger Anbu nodded and turned to return to his post.
The heavy iron door closed again.
In the darkness, Danzo’s fingers tapped heavily on his cane three times.
Official missions.
These four words were his immunity card.
The dirty work Root did was divided into ‘official’ work with proper procedures and ‘black ops’ that left no records.
Both old foxes knew this unspoken rule well.
As long as the Third Hokage didn’t poke through this layer of paper, the matter could still be suppressed.
Hokage Office.
After hearing the report, Hiruzen Sarutobi took down his pipe and snorted coldly.
“Official missions.” The old man chewed on these words, understanding perfectly well.
He didn’t probe deeper.
The final phase of the annihilation plan was imminent, and Konoha’s top brass were currently dancing on a tightrope.
Falling out with Danzo now would likely cause a disaster.
But the old man wasn’t someone to be trifled with either.
He picked up his pen and added another heavy note to the comments section of the Anbu report.
“Effective immediately, Root is not allowed to contact or provoke any Uchiha clansmen without authorization!” “If there are any special operations, they must be reported to me in advance!” Stamp it, file it, and send a copy to Danzo.
What was this move called?
Locking you down directly using bureaucratic procedures!
Ninjutsu could kill, but this flimsy piece of official paperwork was sometimes more deadly than any Ninjutsu.
Root headquarters.
Danzo, upon receiving the copy, glared at the note with his single eye, almost crushing the cane in his hand.
The Third was knocking him down, and for a pure-blooded piece of trash!
Uchiha Yuya.
This kid was simply demonic!
A loser who couldn’t even refine Chakra properly had managed, by his own hand, to keep the Third’s gaze firmly fixed on Root.
Did he go to complain?
No.
Did he make a scene?
No.
He was just lying at home, not even stepping out the door, comfortably waiting for others to touch him!
Every time they touched him, another piece of dirt was added to the administrative system.
Once enough dirt accumulated, a ‘warning letter’ from the Third would smash into his face.
Danzo slammed the document onto the table, his breathing becoming heavy.
To be choked by a loser who wasn’t even a Genin, using Konoha’s bureaucratic system to frame him—this maneuver was absolutely absurd, absurd to the point of being ridiculous!
But he was now pinned down by this order; if he dared to take action again, it would be open defiance.
Uchiha Clan Compound, in Youye’s dilapidated courtyard.
Youye, who hadn’t moved an inch all day, was squatting on the wooden veranda, leisurely slurping a bowl of white porridge.
His main vibe was ‘peaceful and shaken’.
Watching ants move house, counting cracks on the wall.
Whenever a patrol team walked past the alley entrance, he would act like a frightened quail, nimbly retracting his neck, his face clearly saying ‘don’t come over’.
His persona was as steady as an old dog.
Around noon, the uncle next door finally couldn’t take it anymore and stormed off to the Konoha Military Police Force.
“Are you going to do your jobs or not?!
That lunatic next door has been making noise for two nights straight; my dark circles are practically hitting the floor!” “Last night, there was even a dark shadow darting out from his wall; do you think I’m blind?!” The duty officer at the Konoha Military Police Force winced, his teeth aching as he listened, and opened the register.
Good grief, under Uchiha Yuya’s name, there were already two records: death warning and nighttime disturbances.
The officer sighed and resignedly picked up his pen to add the update.
“Neighbor reports abnormalities at this residence for two consecutive nights and witnessed an unidentified person jumping over the wall to escape.” Closing the folder, the officer rubbed his temples.
Forget it, if the sky falls, the tall guys will hold it up.
I’m only making a few thousand ryo a month, why should I risk my life?
Evening.
Youye was squatting under the eaves, holding a hammer, tapping away at a broken water bucket.
In reality, his peripheral vision was locked on that shaved-off wooden board.
The cut was even, the surface smooth—it was ironclad evidence left by a weapon.
The system interface popped up in his mind with a ‘ding’.
[System Prompt: Administrative evidence chain has formed a three-line intersection.] [Konoha Military Police Force: Death warning filing + continuous abnormality complaints.] [Anbu: Unidentified contact dual-point closed-loop record + Third Hokage’s instruction.] [High-level: Third Hokage has issued a binding directive to Root.] [Current Progress: 88%.] [Unsettled Reason: Evidence chain points to a third party, but the identity has not been pointed out by a key character.
At least one key character needs to complete the ‘attribution’.] 88%.
Just that final kick left.
But this couldn’t be rushed; as a ‘power level of five’ loser, he had no qualification to jump out and point fingers.
The stage was set; it just depended on whether that top-tier VIP spectator would grace him with their presence.
Youye brushed the wood shavings off his hands, turned, went into the house, closed the door, and continued lying flat comfortably.
Nightfall.
Uchiha Clan Compound, in the shadows of a high roof ridge.
Uchiha Itachi stood silently like a lifeless statue.
He had received two pieces of intelligence today.
One came from within the clan: abnormalities had occurred at Uchiha Yuya’s residence for two consecutive nights, and the Konoha Military Police Force already had supplemental records.
The other came from his extremely keen intuition.
Three days ago, he had personally drawn a red line: no crossing the line, no touching Sasuke, no going to the Konoha Military Police Force, and certainly no mentioning his name.
Youye had indeed honestly played the coward, hardly even stepping out the door.
But alas, something without eyes had crossed this red line.
Someone, after he issued his warning, had still contacted this variable.
It wasn’t Youye proactively provoking it.
It was others coming to his door.
Itachi tilted his head slightly, his scarlet Sharingan slowly rotating in the night, his cold gaze piercing through the many buildings, landing precisely on the direction of that dilapidated little courtyard.
Who?
Who, after he had drawn the boundary, still dared to touch the piece he had marked?!