— Aah... It's all Naruto's fault…
— "Izumi! Izumi, what's happening to you?!"
Hearing the sound of her daughter collapsing, Uchiha Yozuki rushed in, violently sliding open the paper door.
In this traditional Japanese room, every sound was clear.
Seeing Izumi on the ground, her body burning with fever, panic took over.
— "What's going on…? Is it because she left the hospital too early?"
When she first heard that her daughter had been injured on a mission, she had nearly fainted.
Later, seeing her in the hospital had brought her some comfort.
But today wasn't the day Izumi was supposed to be released.
Yet when she came back with Itachi, Yozuki thought everything was fine.
After all, Itachi always gave off a sense of reliability.
But now...
— "Ugh…"
Izumi groaned again, her body trembling from an inner heat that seemed to burn her soul.
— "Sorry… Sorry…"
She began apologizing, her brows furrowed, eyes still shut.
Yozuki: "…?"
— "Sorry… Itachi…"
Even in this near-unconscious state, Izumi kept apologizing to Itachi.
An overwhelming sense of guilt… Shame… She was convinced she no longer deserved to be by his side.
In her clouded mind, images of Naruto making her drink milk played on repeat.
Alarmed, Yozuki jumped up to go get help.
But Izumi grabbed her by the arm.
Awake now, she shook her head, her face contorted in pain:
— "Mom… I'm fine…"
— "Sweetheart, you're burning up! How can you say you're fine? What happened?!"
Tears welled up in Yozuki's eyes.
— "I just…"
Izumi fainted again.
— "Izumi! IZUMI!!"
Her mother's voice faded… Then, silence.
...
At Konoha Hospital.
Itachi had gone back and brought Izumi in.
After a diagnosis, the medic-nin confirmed that her vital force was in full activation.
Though the cause was unknown, there was no danger.
Relieved, Yozuki let out a sigh of relief.
— "Sorry, Mom… Itachi… for worrying you…"
Lying in bed, Izumi looked at her mother and the one she loved.
Itachi, his face cold, still revealed a deep rage beneath.
He had made his decision: he would settle things with Uzumaki Naruto.
Whatever the reason, Naruto had hurt Izumi.
And that, Itachi would not forgive.
— "As long as you're okay, that's what matters… Haha…"
Yozuki, smiling, began to imagine the future.
— "Izumi, you need to get along well with Itachi, alright? One day, you'll need to pick a good date…"
She spoke of their relationship, their engagement, their wedding, their future life...
Her words even made Itachi blush.
But that idyllic vision only deepened Izumi's suffering.
She forced a smile, nodding to her mother's dreams.
But... could she really forget?
Even if, as her mother said, she ended up marrying Itachi… the stain of the past was real.
— "Get some rest, Izumi…"
Itachi gently held her hand before leaving.
It was time to finish things with Uzumaki Naruto.
The things done to his sister and Izumi… were unforgivable.
Once her mother had also left, Izumi was alone.
The tears came again.
She pulled the blanket over her face, buried in unbearable pain.
Her mother's blessings, her dream of marrying Itachi…
But she was no longer pure.
The Nine-Tailed Fox… Uzumaki Naruto…
Her father, killed by him…
To forgive… or not to forgive…
Hatred began to grow inside her.
— "Aah… It's all Naruto's fault. He killed Dad… defiled me… kept me from being with Itachi…"
Her gaze locked onto the ceiling, a sudden revelation illuminating her mind.
Like lightning in the night.
Her father, dead because of the Kyūbi.
Her hatred for the Nine-Tailed Demon.
She had tried to forgive Naruto… but fate had thrown her into the abyss.
The farmer girl and the snake.
She was that naive farmer girl.
A twisted smile appeared on her lips.
Her expression darkened.
— "It's all… Naruto's fault."
With that whisper, her three-tomoe pupils began to spin violently.
The three black marks intertwined, transforming…
Forming a unique, eerie pattern…
The Mangekyō Sharingan.
— "I must… kill Uzumaki Naruto."
...
At the same time.
In the mountains of Konoha.
Naruto was purifying himself under a waterfall.
To learn the priestess's sealing techniques, he first had to complete this ritual.
But he had no idea of the danger that loomed.
He didn't know Izumi had awakened the Mangekyō.
After fighting Danzō, he felt invincible.
He was the hero, the Child of Prophecy, the son of the Fourth Hokage...
No enemy could defeat him.
He would show them the true Will of Fire.
— "Naruto! Keep going!"
Little Shion shouted words of encouragement.
Her eyes sparkled, her face reminiscent of Hinata… but with a very different temperament.
Whether shy or outgoing… one thing was certain:
She was just as "easy to win over" as Hinata.