Chapter 162: Advanced Mission, Crowned as King!
“Open your mouth.”
At the Konoha training grounds, Hakken walked up to Itachi and spoke.
Open my mouth?
Confused, Itachi nodded and slightly parted his lips.
Gulp.
A small blue pill slid down his throat, entering his body.
One second, two seconds, three seconds!
As the uncontrollable primal power surged within him, two streams of foam shot from Itachi's nostrils, his face flushing bright red from the strain.
What is this?
“Start your training.”
The Tsunade Pill's effects had significant side effects on others, but Itachi was different.
Expanding his chakra pathways only made him feel more comfortable.
In fact, it was during Itachi's treatment that Tsunade conceived the idea of developing this new type of Tsunade Pill.
Training while medicated?
Itachi gasped for air as a shuriken landed in his hand.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The sharp sound of the shuriken slicing through the air echoed.
But the expected clang of metal striking metal never came.
Confused, Itachi’s mind went blank.
The shuriken had been thrown.
But the spot it had hit...
“I hadn’t... counted... 1, 2, 3 yet...”
He collapsed to the ground in agony, his body twitching as he lowered his head to look at the shuriken embedded in his chest.
I killed Ken-san?!
Despair overwhelmed Itachi as he rushed to Hakken’s side, his eyes bloodshot, seemingly struck by immense shock.
But just as the blood vessels in his eyes seemed ready to burst into tears, and his pupils started to evolve, he suddenly sensed something was off.
Itachi chuckled coldly, crouching in front of Hakken and sighing.
“Ken-san, as much as I’d like to keep playing along, I honestly can’t imagine your body being injured by a shuriken. I just...”
He paused.
“Can’t get into character. Your acting’s too weak.”
Oh.
Hakken nodded calmly, then pulled the shuriken out of his chest.
In that case...
Time to pull out the trump card!
His hands moved rapidly to form hand seals.
Ram - Ram → Monkey → Bird → Dog → Boar
Summoning Jutsu!
Boom!
When the figure of Sasuke appeared in front of them, Itachi immediately regretted it.
Pfft!
But the real shock came next. He watched as Ken-san grabbed his hand, using his own shuriken to stab it deep into his younger brother’s chest. Itachi was completely stunned.
I killed my own brother?
A Shadow Clone?
No, it didn’t disappear.
And that sensation of real contact...
I really killed Sasuke!
Finally, the emotions that had been building up reached their peak.
Itachi’s three-tomoe Sharingan shattered instantly, and crimson tears flowed from his new Mangekyō Sharingan.
The nerves that had been stretched tight from the agony of killing Hakken finally snapped.
Mission complete.
Satisfied with his work, Hakken released his grip on Itachi.
The “Second Pillar” slowly transformed the next second, turning into a wooden stake.
Wood Release Clone.
This was a backup item borrowed from Yamato, meant to be used in case Itachi saw through the ruse and realized the shuriken wouldn’t kill him.
The Wood Release clone was far more convincing than a Shadow Clone; without his Mangekyō, Itachi couldn’t possibly detect the flaw.
Thankfully, everything went smoothly.
First, Hakken used the Tsunade Pill to block the fragile meridian inside Itachi’s body, then personally stepped in to stimulate it.
For a genius, awakening the Mangekyō wasn’t an overly complicated process.
Witnessing the death of a loved one was enough.
In the original story, before Shisui had even fully plunged into the Naka River, Itachi’s Mangekyō had already awakened.
From that moment on, the boy who loved sweets began a lifetime of hardship.
The lines that once resembled nasolabial folds officially transformed into tear troughs.
Tear troughs exist, yet tears cannot fall. Only on rainy days does he stand outside, relishing the rain. As Hoshigaki would say, standing like this in the rain, no one can tell if he's crying.
Splash.
After the Mangekyō activated, the effects of the medicine faded. Itachi collapsed forward, weak. Naturally catching his body, Hakken patted his shoulder.
“Rest well. With the Mangekyō, you should see things more clearly now.”
Sword Healing...
Itachi nodded and closed his eyes. Today's events had been quite taxing; he truly needed proper rest. Hakken said little more.
The Uchiha Clan possessing the Mangekyō was fundamentally different from those without it. The dōjutsu and Susanoo granted by the Mangekyō were the Uchiha Clan's formidable capital. Stimulating Itachi to open his eyes now meant that, with his combat intelligence, he wouldn't need to worry about anything even if he acted alone later.
As for the risk of losing his dōjutsu power from overusing the Mangekyō, Hakken had his own methods. Not to mention, the Second Pillar is right there. His system store carries those eye-drop solutions for restoring eye power—not too pricey, good enough for temporary use. Once points are sufficient later, he could consider directly exchanging for small portions of Indra and Ashura chakra. But now isn't the time, so there's no need to dwell on that.
Setting today as the day to trigger Itachi's awakening was also because, starting tomorrow, the entire Night Owl Team except him would be dispatched across the ninja world to assist ANBU elites in taking control of the villages. Hakken wasn't concerned about the other villages. Only Otogakure, where Orochimaru resided, posed a genuine problem.
One of the legendary Sannin, the forbidden-tech Kinjutsu scientist Orochimaru had always sought a perfect human vessel. In the original story, Itachi—who had joined Akatsuki earlier—was Orochimaru's target. But after their confrontation, Orochimaru regretted it. He couldn't defeat Itachi.
Thus, he turned his sights to Sasuke, another member of the Uchiha Clan. It's certain that the current Orochimaru undoubtedly covets Itachi Uchiha's body.
...
But for now, there's no need to worry about that issue. The moment the Mangekyō blossomed, Orochimaru lost his chance to seize Itachi Uchiha's body. Mr. Snake, who frequently used the Living Corpse Reincarnation technique, had already begun to weaken spiritually. While he could handle other attacks, Genjutsu was his natural nemesis.
Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu. The divine weapons of Susanoo. This was a man whose combat power exploded after opening his eyes!
With his final worry set aside, Hakken could now focus on preparing for what he truly desired. Within five years, Konoha would secretly control all the small and medium-sized nations across the Ninja World.
Glancing at the emergency quest that appeared on his system panel after receiving Konan's service that morning, a gleam of sharpness flashed in Hakken's eyes.
Emergency Advancement Mission: [Crown Yourself King]
Mission Content: The Ōtsutsuki Clan regards Earth as their nursery. But with a new king about to be crowned, the moment to assert sovereignty has arrived. Eliminate all threats to Earth using any means necessary.
This mission is the ultimate mission in the Naruto World. No time limit. No restrictions on methods.
Reward: 100,000 flat-rate points. Unlocks the first stage of the Bankai advancement quest for Zanpakutō, formally crowning you as the dominant force in the Naruto World.
Additional Reward: Unknown.
Emergency Advanced Mission. This type of mission appears twice in total. The first instance directly unlocked the Shikai for Hakken. Though it's a mission with no time limit, advance preparation is still necessary.
Carrying Itachi on his back, Hakken gazed up at the sky. It was time to have a talk with her.