"You wanted to see me, Itachi?"
"Keiden." The soft ba-loom of the Uchiha's heart snaked mysteriously through the air. "This next mission of yours is by far the most important you'll ever undertake."
"I'm listening," I replied slowly.
"I'll brief you before Zetsu arrives," he said. "You're to infiltrate my native village, Konoha, and use that remarkable memory of yours to gather and store as much information as you possibly can."
That sounded easy enough. . . but I'd already considered a few missing details. "There's a very slim chance that I won't arouse suspicion— and the fact that this particular village has a lot of shinobi who know how to invade the mind kinda freaks me out."
There was a small chuckle. "I guess I neglected to mention that these shinobi need chakra— both within themselves and their victims— in order to intrude their thoughts."
"But what about Ibiki Morino? He has a more. . . unorthodox way of retrieving the memories he's after, and I'm pretty sure this way doesn't include chakra." My confidence was already waning.
"Which is precisely why I've called you here: I've found just the way to protect your mind. However, we must wait until—"
I instinctively turned toward the sound of something pushing itself out of the ground, a crusty crrrrk followed by a dry ha-dom.
"Just in time, Zetsu," Itachi remarked.
"Hope this doesn't take too long," a deep voice grumbled— Black Zetsu, I reminded myself. The tenor tone continued with, "I was just about to finish off my lunch. . ." I couldn't help but shiver at my plant-like friend's raw meat fetish.
"It shouldn't. Now, listen carefully— Keiden, I'm going to hypnotize you, to erase every memory you've ever had. At the same time, Zetsu will play specific recordings, simply for you to have a small base to work with the moment you wake up."
This piqued my interest. "Just how small is this base gonna be?"
"You'll only be able to recognize three people when the hypnosis is complete: Kabuto Yakushi—"
"Sasori's spy?" I interjected.
"We have to make sure he doesn't leak any more valuable Akatsuki information to people like Orochimaru. I'm certain you'll have to interact with him at some point, even though he doesn't reside in Konoha; and when you do, I want you to kill him."
"Okay. . . will I still remember that I have to kill him?"
"No," Itachi said. "But there isn't a doubt in my mind that you'll be the one to end his life."
I didn't question him— Itachi's reasoning was never wrong when it came to matters like this.
"Besides Kabuto, the two others you'll remember are Sakura Haruno and Neji Hyuga. You've heard of Haruno before— she's a well-known medic in the village, and the amount of information you can gather from her will be utterly indispensable."
"And the Hyuga?" I pressed. "You don't want the Byakugan, do you?"
"We have no desire for such a bloodline limit, since we have you. Your sensory capabilities are more powerful than the Byakugan, Sharingan, and Rinnegan combined."
I still wasn't quite getting it. "Then why recognize him?"
Black Zetsu gave a dark laugh. "Isn't it obvious? You're gonna—"
"Enough, Zetsu," Itachi said sharply. "Keiden, you're going to need to familiarize yourself with somebody during the course of this mission, and after thinking it over, I've decided that Neji Hyuga is just the person. Your influence is astounding— it won't take long for him to trust you."
"D'you want me to kill him, too? And Haruno?"
"No. You're to make friends with them, that's all. Earning their trust is key— it will make everything that much easier," Itachi answered calmly. "Any other questions?"
I quickly replayed my instructions in my head, searching for any gaps. "One. My apparent imperviousness to chakra. Won't that be a little too odd to the villagers, especially coming from a stranger?"
"It's odd, even to us— but we were all born with quirks. You have nothing to worry about," he countered smoothly. "Now, are you ready?"
I sighed. "Yeah."
"Good. Zetsu?"
"Recordings are set," White Zetsu replied.
Itachi's pulse was suddenly right next to me. "I want you to relax, Keiden. You won't feel a thing."
"All right," I said.
"And one more thing— the moment you remember everything, you're to return immediately to this hideout."
"Understood."
"Then let's begin." His cold palms were at my temples, and he pressed his forehead to mine. "Close your eyes— I can't risk making eye contact for this. I'll be talking, but you mustn't listen to my voice. You're to focus solely on Zetsu's recordings. Only then will this process be a success."
My eyelids obediently fluttered shut.
"Go, Zetsu," Itachi breathed.
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