— You, like me, carry the Will of Fire in your heart. You love this village," Itachi's desperate, broken voice sounded in the void, addressed to Yue. — I don't hold a grudge for my death, but to take a swing at Danzo-sama and the Third Hokage... This is a heinous crime. This is a betrayal of everything we believed in! A Shinobi cannot go against his Kage, he cannot attack his comrades! This is treason... betrayal of the very Will of Fire!
— Uchiha Yue... My brother... I know Hokage-sama has already forgiven you, but our sin is great. If you can hear me, I beg you, for the sake of the village, for the sake of the Will of the Fire... Commit suicide!
"Please.".. at least for Sasuke's sake... Follow White Fang's example. Accept death as an atonement. We who have sullied ourselves have no place in this world anymore!
Itachi, the eldest son of the head of the clan, had not even suspected the existence of Uchiha Yue until this day. Only the tragic events of recent days revealed to him that there was such a branch in the huge tree of their family. The Uchiha clan is one big family. By destroying him, Itachi did not kill strangers, but countless uncles, aunts, cousins and second cousins... All my own.
Now he was on his knees, banging his forehead on the ground in a frenzy. His resurrected body, riddled with cracks, began to crumble to dust. Finally, trembling all over, he gently lowered Sasuke from his back to the ground. And the next moment…
Itachi's face was a mask of horror. Petrified, he stretched out his hand to his brother's chest... and I didn't find a heartbeat.
Trembling fingers darted to Sasuke's face, to his lips... Emptiness. The air did not move.
His abrupt, desperate bows were the last straw. Sasuke, who was already teetering on the edge, supported only by the remnants of his chakra, which converted energy into heat, but not into life, fell into a coma and quietly faded away.
It die.
— Sasuke!.. No... No, it can't be! Sasuke, you can't die, you're not going to die! I promised my father... I promised I'd keep you safe! Don't die... Don't you dare die!
Itachi's face was distorted beyond recognition. My mind refused to accept this reality. He raised his arms over Sasuke's chest to start his heart, but then…
The crunch!
Itachi's hands, which had turned to dust, broke off and collapsed limply onto his brother's lifeless body.
"Danzo—sama.".. The third one is sama... Trouble! Sasuke is dead! I beg you, save him, quickly!
— Uchiha Yue, please save Sasuke! He is our clan's last hope! For the sake of the village, for the sake of the Will of the Fire, he must not die! He shouldn't!
Itachi's mind finally crumbled into pieces. He tried to stand up, but his body, devoid of energy, no longer obeyed. Even the sealing technique started to disintegrate. Even on the night of the massacre, he hadn't been so broken. Perhaps he had been mad for a long time. He was a dead man himself, whose mistakes had nearly destroyed his beloved village. He wanted to protect Sasuke, but he pushed him into the abyss. He hated Uchiha Yue to the core of his soul, but now he was ready to crawl on his knees in front of him, beg, whine like a beaten dog.
Such desperation would overwhelm anyone.
Yes, he lost his mind a long time ago.
In the dead silence and darkness, the three of them were so close, but they couldn't hear each other. It was as if the world around them had been destroyed, reduced to nothing, and only they remained in the universe. Pain, despair, and sorrow wrapped themselves around Itachi's heart like poison ivy, consuming him completely. And then, for the first time in his life, regret arose in his soul.
He shouldn't have done that. If he hadn't touched the clan back then... It could have been different. If only he had killed the Shinobi conspirators without touching the civilians.…
A wave of remorse washed over him. He regretted not the destruction of the clan, but that he had raised his hand against the likes of Uchiha Yue. If he had killed only the instigators, like his own father, instead of slaughtering everyone, including newborn babies... could things have gone differently?
— Uchiha Yue, come down! Harness your power and become the new Hokage! Hiruzen's voice rang out in the darkness. "Even though you killed me, I know you didn't mean it. The order to destroy the clan was given by Danzo and Itachi, not me. Now they're both dead, and they're begging for your forgiveness.
"I know you're a kind person at heart, Yue. Konoha needs you. Become the new Hokage and restore the village to its former glory!
...
Hiruzen Sarutobi, hidden in the darkness, called out loudly to Yue. But his thoughts were cold and calculating.
Their original plan—to convince Yue to commit suicide so that Konoha could get his indestructible eyes—now seemed naive. After seeing this monstrous, heretical Susanoo, Hiruzen realized that the previous plan was doomed. To make such a person die by persuasion alone? Even White Fang, the legendary Shinobi, was tormented by doubts to the last.
Difficult. Incredibly difficult.
Therefore, the old Kage changed his tactics. He will publicly support Yue's candidacy for the post of Hokage. And when he takes over, Hiruzen will instruct Jiraiya and the others to direct public opinion. "How can a traitor who almost destroyed a village become its leader?" Such rumors will create tremendous psychological pressure.
It was necessary to act more subtly. It's like a frog being boiled over low heat. Step by step... to increase his guilt, but not to let his hatred of the village flare up too much. To comfort, to push, to corner. And in the end... break his will completely.