The mission brief came sealed in red wax—direct from the Hokage’s office.

  Squad 9 assembled in silence outside the Mission Tower at dawn. The moment Daen unrolled the scroll, they knew this wasn’t a standard assignment.

  Ken read the first few lines over Daen’s shoulder. His eyes narrowed.

  Reina spoke first. “We're escorting Itachi Uchiha’s team?”

  Daisuke blinked. “Wait, that Itachi? The one who’s taking the chūnin exam next week?”

  Daen nodded once. “His squad’s being sent to complete a final D-to-C transition mission to qualify. Hokage wants a secondary genin team along—support, backup, and… observation.”

  “Observation?” Ken asked quietly.

  Daen didn’t answer right away. He simply looked at Ken.

  And that said enough.

  The mission was simple on paper: scout and confirm bandit activity near the Eastern Ridge Trail. Same area where several merchant caravans had vanished without a trace. The risk was low, but the symbolism was high.

  Two Uchiha. Same age. Same cn.

  One taking the exam.

  One still on the edge of recognition.

  They met Itachi’s team at the trailhead checkpoint just past noon.

  Ken recognized Itachi instantly—he stood at the front of his three-man cell, posture composed, face unreadable. His bck hair framed sharp eyes that seemed to cut through everything.

  He turned when Squad 9 arrived.

  Their gazes met.

  No emotion. No shock.

  Just quiet acknowledgment.

  Daen extended a hand to the jonin accompanying Itachi—Uchiha Tenshiro, a formal, polished man who looked like he’d been molded from every cn expectation ever written.

  Tenshiro barely nodded. “You are to follow our lead. This is Itachi’s command trial.”

  Daen gave a zy shrug. “Works for me.”

  The two teams set off together.

  For the first hour, no one spoke.

  Ken remained silent, walking behind Reina but ahead of Daisuke, constantly reading the terrain. Itachi walked parallel to him, just off the main trail. His two teammates whispered occasionally, but Itachi said nothing.

  It was like walking beside still water.

  Eventually, Daen called a break near a shallow stream. Reina and Daisuke sat together, sharing water. Itachi’s team formed their own quiet circle. Daen leaned against a tree, watching both groups.

  Ken knelt at the stream’s edge, checking a small directional trap he’d hidden earlier to test for animal or bandit traffic.

  He didn’t hear Itachi approach.

  But he felt him.

  “You y traps even when you're not told to,” Itachi said, voice ft.

  Ken didn’t look up. “I don’t like surprises.”

  “Neither do I.”

  Silence stretched between them, but it wasn’t empty.

  Ken stood slowly and turned to face him.

  “You’re taking the exam next week.”

  Itachi nodded. “It’s time.”

  “You’re ready.”

  Another nod. “Are you?”

  Ken met his eyes. “Not for the exam. But for what comes after? Yes.”

  Itachi tilted his head slightly, curious. “You don’t chase ranks.”

  “Ranks don’t protect teammates,” Ken replied. “Understanding the field does.”

  A faint glint appeared in Itachi’s eyes—like recognition.

  “You’re different,” he said after a pause.

  “I’m not like the others.”

  “No,” Itachi said. “You’re like me.”

  Ken didn’t agree.

  But he didn’t disagree either.

  Daen watched the conversation unfold from the tree. His eyes were half-lidded, but his attention was sharp. The two boys didn’t speak long, didn’t raise voices, didn’t csh.

  But something passed between them. Mutual understanding. Quiet weight.

  When Itachi returned to his team, Daen spoke without looking up.

  “Getting friendly with the heir now?”

  Ken sat beside him. “No one said anything about friendly.”

  Daen smirked. “You two are too alike. It’s eerie.”

  “We’re not.”

  “Sure you are. Both quiet. Both analytical. Both built different.”

  Ken shook his head. “He follows the cn.”

  “And you?”

  Ken stared out across the trail. “I walk around it.”

  Daen didn’t push further.

  That night, the teams camped together near the ridge fork. No fires. One perimeter team from each squad. Ken took first watch with Itachi.

  Again, they didn’t talk.

  But they moved in sync—circling opposite sides of the camp, marking weak points, identifying high ground. At one point, they crossed paths mid-patrol.

  “You see the ridge shadow?” Itachi asked.

  “West tree line. Just beyond the drop.”

  “Too obvious.”

  Ken nodded. “Means it’s bait.”

  They didn’t smile.

  They just moved on.

  The next day, they engaged the bandit group at dawn.

  It was swift, efficient, and brutal.

  Itachi led his team with mechanical precision. He gave orders quietly, executed strikes fwlessly, and eliminated two targets before anyone else had drawn a kunai.

  Ken covered the rear and disarmed two traps. Reina kept Daisuke stable with quick burst heals. Daen stayed out of it—watching, evaluating.

  By the time the fight ended, eight bandits were unconscious, one dead from a misstep off the ridge, and the camp was secured.

  Tenshiro filed the report with mechanical pride.

  Itachi didn’t say a word.

  As the mission wrapped, Itachi approached Ken one st time.

  “You’re not aiming to rise through the cn.”

  “No.”

  “But you still carry the name.”

  Ken looked at him.

  “So do you.”

  Itachi paused.

  Then gave the smallest nod.

  “You'll make enemies,” he said. “Sooner than you think.”

  Ken’s eyes narrowed slightly. “I already have.”

  They parted without another word.

  Back in the vilge, Daen filed a personal note with the mission report. It wasn’t part of protocol, but he included it anyway.

  Supplemental – Squad 9 Observation Genin Ken Uchiha continues to demonstrate high-level perception, unorthodox tactics, and adaptive reasoning. Witnessed meaningful exchange with Uchiha Itachi. Two divergent paths from same bloodline—equal in capability, but divided by principle. Recommend continued observation and political shielding from cn interference. Potential: high. Risk: rising.

  He folded the report, signed it, and handed it in.

  As he left the mission office, he saw a pair of cloaked figures pass by—Uchiha Elders, headed the other way.

  They didn’t speak.

  But Daen felt the temperature drop.