66 Unexpected Meeting

Zeus ran like a meteor, leaving a trail of lightning behind him. His speed reached new heights as the civilians he met didn't register that Zeus had passed by them. Activating Overlock at 80%, Zeus felt like a brand new person. In a mere few hours, Zeus had crossed half the distance toward the Hidden Mist Village.

However, even Zeus, with his huge tanks of chakra, had to take breaks sometimes. So, Zeus stopped to recover some of his strength near a cliff that overlooked an entire region. Trees covered most of the region, which teemed with an abundance of animals and wildlife.

Zeus took a seat with his legs hanging off the edge of the cliff as he took a deep breath and leaned back, staring at the sun. He frowned, remembering Apollo. His relationship with his own child wasn't great.

No, in fact, it was the worst.

And Zeus had to say, most of those arguments between them arose because of his own arrogance and desire to have control over everyone's decisions. Nothing could escape his rule, and Zeus now understood that such tyranny was bound to have some bad consequences.

In the end, Zeus was actually the one to breach the authority of his own rule, which probably made him look like quite a hypocrite. Sighing, Zeus continued to stare at the sun. "Why have you come here?"

However, he received no response from his surroundings.

For the next few hours, Zeus continued to recover his chakra while enjoying the wildlife around him. Yet, his peace was disturbed. A shuffle was heard coming from behind him. For most people, it would have seemed like something insignificant. However, Zeus knew his surroundings better than anyone else.

A smile painted Zeus's expression as he didn't even look back.

A figure, whose expression was hidden beneath the hood of his cloak, walked out from the forest. Even upon seeing Zeus there, the figure wasn't startled and kept moving closer to Zeus, until eventually taking a seat a few feet away from him.

Silence descended upon them as they both stared at the sun going over the horizon. Neither of them acknowledged the other, but Zeus's grin didn't disappear from his face until he broke the silence. "It has been a long time, Itachi."

"It has, Zeus." The hood slipped away from the man's face, revealing a pale complexion, sharp red Sharingan eyes with three tomoe, and straight, shoulder-length black hair. "You have grown much stronger. I was wondering when you would come back to the village."

"You knew I wasn't dead?"

Itachi nodded. "You aren't a person who would die easily, especially at the hands of Orochimaru. Besides, when I heard about the Fourth Kazekage's death, I immediately understood that it was you."

"So, you have grown even sharper over these years." Zeus smiled, continuing to stare into the distance. "How did you find me?"

"Just a pure coincidence. I was passing by and saw you hanging off the cliff." Itachi admitted. "Are you perhaps headed back to the village? Quite a lot of people have been missing you."

"No... I was going to visit an acquaintance of mine." Zeus said, his eye growing a bit sharper. "Speaking of Konoha, what is going on there currently? Did Danzo come back to cause any issues?"

Itachi's expression was unreadable. "It seems that you already know the general details of what happened, but no, Danzo hasn't returned. All the shinobi were mobilized to find him, especially the Uchiha due to their hatred towards the man. Yet, he hasn't appeared."

"A pity, but it doesn't matter. Soon, I will be able to find anyone I want." Zeus mumbled, saying the last part so quietly that Itachi didn't register it. "What about you? Where are you headed?"

Itachi stopped talking, instead glancing over the horizon as he gestured with his hands. Immediately, the surroundings changed, and the scene was taken over by a dark and red theme. Dark pigeons appeared out of nowhere, and Zeus found himself overlooking Konoha.

"Your genjutsu has improved. Is that why your eyes have changed so much?" Zeus asked, not surprised by the change in surroundings. He had felt someone intruding his mind long ago, even before Itachi decided to reveal himself. Yet, Zeus didn't fight against it, as he recognized the familiar genjutsu.

"I will show you." Itachi's voice reverberated in Zeus's ears as the scene changed once again. Now, he was inside a room, witnessing a certain scene. He immediately recognized Itachi's father, who stood before a younger version of Itachi. However, something was different about Fugaku, and Zeus immediately recognized it. There was a purple gleam in Fugaku's eyes, barely visible to others but shining brightly to Zeus. A frown appeared on Zeus's face.

"Where are you going, Fugaku?" Itachi asked, but received no response from his father, only an emotionless stare. Confused, Itachi didn't do anything to stop Fugaku from opening the door and leaving, and that was the biggest mistake he made because Fugaku never came back.

The scene changed again, and after Zeus briefly closed his eyes, he was back at the cliff, as if nothing had happened. He made eye contact with Itachi's Sharingan. "So you are searching for your father?"

Itachi nodded.

Zeus sighed, thinking back to that purple gleam in Fugaku's eyes and then remembering the encounter near Orochimaru's cave. A power to control people. No way. Had she also descended here?

"That's quite a strong genjutsu," Zeus admitted. "You have grown much stronger."

"Why do you talk like you couldn't have just escaped it at any moment?" Itachi asked, putting his hand into his coat as he slowly took something out. "I don't know where you are headed, but I have a feeling that you will visit Konoha sooner than I will be back. Could you deliver this to my little brother, Sasuke Uchiha?"

"You have a little brother?" Zeus asked, staring at the small note in Itachi's hand as he reached out to grab it. However, he received no response, for the moment he touched the paper, Itachi's body melted into black birds and disappeared.

"What an edgy guy," Zeus mumbled, tucking the paper into his attire. Then, Zeus stood up and stretched, his chakra having been fully replenished. He was ready to depart and uncover the roots of what was going on.

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