Naruto: Starting with Tsunade

Chapter 72 Brainwashing

Seemingly amused by the surprised expression, Elder Itachi smiled teasingly: "With your intelligence, you should have sensed it to some extent, right? My attitude towards you is somewhat different from that of the other clansmen."

Aokiji feigned ignorance: "What do you mean? I don't quite understand."

"You really like to play dumb, huh? Well, that's exactly where your cleverness lies."

Elder Itachi slowly raised his right hand, forming a hand seal: "Look into my eyes."

The moment their eyes met, he channeled his chakra into the other person.

Aokiji felt a slight headache, but after a moment, he recalled the memories he had sealed away. He smiled bitterly, and his last bit of hope dissipated with a sigh: "As expected, you knew from the beginning..."

Elder Itachi let out a victorious laugh: "Little brat, don't underestimate everyone."

Aokiji shrugged and spread his hands. Now that things have come to this, it's time to lay his cards on the table.

His irises, which were originally as black as night, were stained with a bewitching pigeon blood red, and a black dot appeared near his pupil, spinning and trailing into a ripple.

Elder Itachi narrowed his inner canthus, his eyelids half-closed, and his deep pupils gleamed with a faint, eerie light: "You really are lazy, aren't you? You haven't trained the Uchiha's power at all, and you're still stuck at the one-tomoe stage."

Aokiji closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, his eyes were back to normal: "No, I call it being cautious."

"..."

Aokiji, not quite understanding, said, "Why are you suddenly explaining this to me directly now?"

"If I don't say it that way, how will you, little brat, work obediently for me?"

Elder Itachi grinned, a sly glint in his eyes: "Aokiji, you don't want everyone to know about your dual bloodline limits, do you?"

That sounds so natural… Aokiji said in a low voice, “You’ll lose me if you keep going like this…”

"It doesn't matter, as long as you're willing to do things for the family obediently."

Aokiji was very upset.

He's tried so hard to just give up, so why does the script always go out of his control? When he reads novels, the protagonist's plans are usually flawless, but why does it always go against the script when it comes to him?

"Alright, stop complaining. I'm telling you this now not only to make you behave a little, but also because there's something important I need to tell you in advance."

The blue pheasant tilted its head, looking confused.

Elder Itachi's voice was deep: "I hope you will not use the power of the Sharingan in the future."

"Without the Sharingan?"

Aokiji didn't understand what he meant.

"To be precise, you should not use the power of the Sharingan until you become Hokage."

Become Hokage?

Aokiji looked completely bewildered: "What's going on?"

Elder Itachi said in a very calm tone, "Nothing much, just the literal meaning."

Aokiji was even more confused: "I don't really understand why I want to be Hokage. I don't even want to be a ninja, let alone Hokage."

"This is all for the Uchiha clan."

Elder Itachi immediately accused Aokiji of prioritizing family righteousness, leaving him completely bewildered.

"But what does that have to do with me not using the Sharingan? Besides, even if you didn't say anything, I don't plan to use any Sharingan power."

Aokiji didn't understand, stubbornly like a child: "With great power comes great responsibility. The greatest ninja is one who serves the village and its people. I've heard this kind of nonsense so many times in my textbooks that I'm sick of it. Just thinking about it is too much trouble. I don't want to be Hokage."

"No, you must take it. It concerns the life and death of our Uchiha clan."

Elder Itachi's tone became sterner, leaving no room for negotiation.

Aokiji was startled. Was Elder Itachi really so insightful and far-sighted?

Elder Itachi's tone softened slightly as he advised, "Do you remember what I told you about the Tailed Beasts last time?"

Aokiji asked thoughtfully, "What's wrong?"

"Our Uchiha clan is born with immense eye power, which is one of only two powers that can control tailed beasts. The other is Wood Release, but Wood Release has now disappeared. The Sharingan is the only ability that can control tailed beasts."

"Hashirama's wife, Mito, looks young, but she is actually quite old. No one knows when he might meet with misfortune. And finding a perfect Jinchuriki to replace Mito is not easy. So, at this time, we, who possess the power to control the Tailed Beasts, will naturally be viewed with suspicion by the Konoha leadership."

"beware?"

Elder Itachi spoke earnestly, his eyes filled with worry: "Yes, the Uchiha and Senju are the two founders of Konoha. When Hashirama Senju was elected Hokage in the first term, we Uchiha had nothing to say. But when it came to the second term, it was still the Senju clan, so naturally the Uchiha started to have objections. Not to mention that the third term didn't even come from the Uchiha, but from that greenhorn Hiruzen Sarutobi. If the trend continues like this, I can't imagine what kind of extreme behavior the entire Uchiha clan will take. As a member of the Uchiha clan, you should at least know how outsiders evaluate our clan."

"It's not impossible for us Uchiha to do something like this. Although our Uchiha clan also has the ability, this kind of thing is very risky. If we fail, our Uchiha clan will face annihilation."

"You've probably heard the saying 'cut the weeds and eliminate the roots,' right? Do you think you, being from the Uchiha clan, can escape unscathed?"

Aokiji gasped, weakly saying, "No way... The Third Hokage seemed like a really nice person."

"Foolish! Let me tell you, nothing anyone promises you counts except what you can decide for yourself. Understand?"

Aokiji feigned being pressured and nodded in agreement.

Elder Itachi saw through it at a glance and sternly rebuked, "No, you don't understand."

"You are still young and have no idea about the evil in the world."

"I once trusted the village and worked hard to gain their trust, but I later realized I was wrong. The higher-ups in Konoha were wary of our power and constantly ostracized and distrusted us."

"Take recent examples, for instance. The child of a daimyo's relative was persecuted into an idiot by genjutsu, and the Konoha high-ranking officials reflexively attributed it to our Uchiha clan."

"This is absurd; it's a blatant frame-up."

"Does that mean only the Uchiha clan possesses the Sharingan and is naturally highly skilled in genjutsu, so you think that way? That's utterly ridiculous. The Uchiha clan isn't the only one in Konoha who's proficient in genjutsu. Why is it that the Uchiha clan is the first to be mentioned?"

At this point, Elder Itachi paused, giving Aokiji a meaningful look: "The Uchiha clan is innocent, but possessing a treasure is a crime. If you want to find fault, you can always find a pretext."

"Sigh~~"

Aokiji's sigh was filled with a sense of helplessness.

Given the Uchiha clan's inherent political nature, the Konoha leadership naturally wouldn't miss this opportunity to suppress them and keep them away from the political center.

"In ninja battles, intelligence often determines victory or defeat. The fact that you don't have the Sharingan in the eyes of outsiders is a huge advantage. Others will misjudge your strength and underestimate you. At that time, the power of the Uchiha will become the key to turning the tide of battle for you."

Elder Itachi changed the subject, his expression turning serious: "Tell me honestly, besides me, who else knows about your dual bloodline limits?"

Aokiji sighed: "Besides you, there are three others, including Tsunade."

"What? You're talking about the three disciples of the Third Hokage?"

Upon hearing these words, Elder Itachi's expression changed; his eyebrows rose and his eyes widened.

"What's wrong?"

Elder Itachi exclaimed in anguish, "You fool! Aren't you usually very careful? How could you be so careless about this? Wait, you'd rather tell them than tell me directly? Are you even Uchiha Daoren?"

Aokiji smiled wryly, "Uh... if I had told you back then, wouldn't you have dragged me away and forced me to train like this? Wouldn't my plan to not become a ninja have fallen through?"

Elder Itachi snorted irritably, "Why did you tell them? Weren't you afraid of your abilities being exposed, which is why you wanted to become a ninja?"

Aokiji was taken aback: "I think friends shouldn't have too many secrets from each other, and don't you think it's hard to keep secrets to yourself? Naturally, you need a few people to help you share the burden."

The future situation is ever-changing, and he may encounter some formidable opponents. In that case, he may have no choice but to reveal the abilities of his Sharingan to defeat them.

At this time, it is important to vaccinate the three ninjas in advance to avoid creating discord among them.

As long as he can win over Hiruzen Sarutobi's three kids and get their support, he doesn't believe he can't defeat Minato Namikaze.

Oh, right, he could also bring Minato Namikaze into his camp beforehand, and then see if Hiruzen Sarutobi would give him the position of Hokage.

Aokiji reassured him, "Elder Itachi, don't worry. I told him beforehand that they won't tell anyone else."

Elder Itachi sneered: "That's not necessarily true. You should know that those who betray you are often the people closest to you. This kind of thing is common in the ninja world."

Aokiji lowered his head and pondered for a while, then raised his head and, by sheer coincidence, made eye contact with someone.

After all, he was the only one by his side.

Elder Itachi frowned: "Why are you looking at me like that?"

(End of this chapter)