Team Itachi
Chapter 1


Naruto is running.

He weaves around trees with gargantuan trunks, trees with branches that reach farther in the sky than the Hokage Monument, trees with roots as thick around as he is. Sweat glistens on his face and soaks his hair so thoroughly that his blonde spikes are limp. His pulse pounds so loud he can hear it in his ears and every mouthful of thick, hot air leaves his lungs burning for more. Wide blue eyes search over his shoulder, the snake chasing him is gone.

Stumbling to a stop, he braces himself against the aged bark of a tree. He stands there for a moment until his pulse slows and his breathing evens out. He steps away from the tree and surveys his surroundings: impossibly large trees as far as the eye can see, a forest canopy so thick thin beams of sunlight fight to get through, eerie silence, a heat so thick and heavy it feels unnatural.

He unzips and discards his orange jacket; the black undershirt he wears is soaked with sweat. He tightens his forehead protector and draws a kunai before resuming his trudge through the forest undergrowth, slowly now that he doesn't have a giant snake chasing him. Finding Sasuke and Sakura is his first priority, but they flew in different directions after the snake attack, so there's no telling where they are.

A rustling sound startles him. He spins and hurls his kunai then watches as it comes within an inch of skewering a crow sitting on a low hanging branch. The crow, unperturbed, cocks its head and regards him with ink black eyes. Naruto shows the bird his middle finger before turning on his heel and marching away. The crow's caw mocks him as he marches on.

"Stupid bird," Naruto grumbles.

A cry echoes through the forest. Shuriken fill Naruto's hands, but the sound comes from far off. Another cry, this time Naruto recognizes it as a scream, high-pitched and full of terror. He's running again, trying to pinpoint the origin of the scream. All of a sudden, he finds himself bursting out of the tree line and into a clearing, temporarily blinded by the onslaught of unfiltered sunlight. He skids to a stop and throws a hand over his eyes, peering at the sky through the spaces between his fingers: a fat, golden sun and a cloudless blue sky; a beautiful sight marred only by a circling flock of black birds, more crows.

Eyes adjusting to the sunlight, he casts them downward and surveys the clearing: a small, verdant circle surrounded by an imposing wall of trees; in the center, a large gathering of crows hop about and caw. Naruto's heart skips a beat when he notices the trail of blood, streaking from where the crows are gathered and coming to a spotty end at his feet. Haltingly, he follows the glistening trail, kunai gripped in his hand. The flock of crows flies as he nears; the fluttering of their wings is the only sound in the clearing.

Naruto's heart stops beating.

Sakura's body lies in the center of the clearing. Her skin is ashen and her pink hair is matted with blood. Moss green eyes and thin lips have been pecked away by the birds, leaving a horrifying image that sends Naruto reeling. He stumbles backwards, falls on his behind and finds that he can't pull his eyes away from the body of his crush no matter how hard he tries. The crows return and resume their grisly feast.

"Naruto…"

Naruto turns and finds a man shambling toward him. He recognizes the scarred face and tanned skin of Iruka, though the skin is not so tanned as usual. Iruka staggers toward him, one hand reaching out while the other is clutched at his midsection, the only thing keeping his guts from spilling out. Swallowing the lump in his throat, Naruto pushes himself off the ground and scrambles through the dirt, reaching Iruka in time to catch him as he falls to the ground. Tears fill his eyes as the only friend he's ever had dies in his arms.

Then, like waking from a dream, he finds himself not in the forest but outside it, on his knees just outside the gates. He blinks once… twice… before looking to his right. Kneeling next to him is Sakura, her eyes brimming with tears. Next to her is Sasuke, dark eyes wide and mouth agape. Standing before the three is Itachi, arms crossed over his flak jacket, dark eyes impassive.

"What the hell…" Naruto looks down at his hands. They are free of blood. He squeezes them into fists and looks up at Itachi, blue eyes blazing. "What the hell did you do to us?"

"A genjutsu." Sasuke's voice sounds hollow. He is looking up at his brother, a mingled look of disbelief and mistrust on his face. "You trapped us in a genjutsu."

Itachi's response is a slight inclination of his head.

Genjustu, genjutsu, genjutsu. The word echoes in Naruto's brain. Nothing he'd experienced was real. Knowing that fact does nothing to help him forget what he saw. Sakura's mutilated corpse…Iruka-sensei dying in his arms…

He slams a fist into the ground; the pain gives him something else to focus on. "Why would you do that to us?" he growls.

"You were told you would be tested today," says Itachi. "You were misinformed about what the test would entail."

Sakura's voice comes out strained. "You were testing us to see if we could break the genjutsu?"

"No, I don't expect genin fresh out of the Academy to be able to break my genjutsu."

"Then why?" Sakura sounds and looks as if she is on the verge of crying. Naruto swears to himself that if she sheds a single tear he will never forgive Itachi-sensei.

"As a shinobi, you will lose those closest to you. Friends, family, teammates; anyone who is important to you is at risk because of the life you've chosen. You cannot be shinobi without accepting this fact. That is the purpose of the test."

Itachi's words hang in the air a moment. Sasuke asks the question he knows is on the minds of his teammates. "Did we pass?"

"Only you can decide if you've passed. If you can accept the harsh reality of life as a shinobi, return here tomorrow at eight o'clock and we will move forward as a team. If not, return your forehead protector to the Academy and choose a different life for yourself."

While his team is left speechless, Itachi forms a quick hand seal – Ram – and disappears in a cloud of smoke.


Of all the jounin sensei I could have been placed with, I get the one who's a giant asshole.

Naruto's thoughts are not pleasant as he makes his way through the bustling streets of Konoha. Hands stuffed in his pockets, eyes on the ground, mind replaying his first day as a part of a ninja team; he allows his feet to carry him to a familiar location, where he hopes to find something to take his mind off his asshole of a sensei. So lost in his thoughts is he that he almost walks past Ramen Ichiraku. The delicious odors wafting from the ramen stand draw him out of his reverie and pull him into a seat. The stand is otherwise empty, so he places his order with Teuchi and the old man sets to preparing it right away. He is on his second bowl when Iruka enters the small restaurant.

"Naruto! I thought I'd find you here."

Naruto chokes on his noodles as Iruka settles himself on the stool next to his former student. For a split second, as Naruto turns toward Iruka, he sees not the healthy, smiling face of his former sensei, but the paling, dying face of the illusion he had been subjected to. He manages to swallow the noodles lodged in his throat and give a broad smile to a concerned Iruka. Iruka's concern gives way to a small smile.

"What did I tell you about trying to eat so much at once?"

Naruto's response is garbled as he shovels another glob of noodles into his mouth. Iruka shakes his head and chuckles before ordering his own bowl from Teuchi.

"How was your first day as a genin?" Iruka asks as he waits on his order.

Naruto has already decided he's not going to tell Iruka – or anyone – about what happened today. He's afraid people will think he's weak, being so affected by an illusion.

"Okay, I guess."

"Just okay? I thought you would be more excited."

Naruto acts casual. "It's not like we did anything cool, just took some stupid test."

"You passed, at least?"

No question about that. Naruto knows where he'll be at eight o'clock tomorrow morning. "Of course! I worked hard to get this." He thumbs his forehead protector. "There's no way I'm going to lose it by failing some stupid test."

Teuchi sets a steaming bowl before Iruka. "Of course, of course." Iruka picks up his chopsticks and begins to eat. "What did you think of Itachi-sensei?"

Naruo's face darkens as he snatches up the last of his noodles. "He's an asshole."

"Naruto!" Iruka admonishes. "It's disrespectful to speak about your sensei like that."

"I can't help it if he's an asshole." Naruto orders another bowl of ramen, the well prepared cook already has a bowl ready.

"I thought you would be more excited to be placed with Itachi-sensei. You still want to be Hokage someday, don't you?"

"Of course!"

"Well, Itachi-sensei is the man many in the village believe will be the next Hokage. You could learn a lot from him."

Naruto frowns around his mouthful of ramen. "That asshole's going to be Hokage? No way."

"Stop using that word!"

After Naruto's fourth bowl of ramen – which Iruka graciously agreed to pay for – former sensei and former student walk the streets together in amicable silence. Without the distraction of ramen, Naruto finds his mind returning to the events of the morning. Against his better judgment – which he almost always finds himself ignoring – he blurts a question to Iruka.

"How many people have you lost, Iruka-sensei?"

Iruka casts a confused look down at his former student. "What do you mean, Naruto?"

Naruto scratches the back of his head. "I know being a shinobi is a hard job and sometimes people die on missions, I was just wondering if you've ever lost anyone important to you."

Iruka, still confused by the suddenness of Naruto's question, answers. "Well, there were my parents during the Kyuubi's attack, which you already know." Naruto cringes. "Both of my original genin squad mates died…" Iruka pauses and stares off into the distance. "There are others. Some whose names and faces I can barely remember. I don't really feel like going into detail…"

Iruka trails off and Naruto regrets asking the question. He regrets even more opening his mouth and asking his next question. "Do you ever regret it?"

"Becoming a shinobi?"

"Having friends."

Iruka stops dead in his tracks. Naruto stops after a few steps and turns to his former sensei. Iruka is watching him with an unreadable expression. Naruto tries to explain himself. "I just mean, if losing those friends is so painful, wouldn't it have been better to never have had friends in the first place? Wouldn't you be happier if you'd never had to deal with losing them?"

Iruka's heart breaks for his former student because he knows where these thoughts are coming from. He steps forward and places his hands on Naruto's shoulders, crouches down until he's eye level with the boy.

"I don't regret having those friends at all. It may have been painful losing them, but my life was better for having known them. I wouldn't be the man I am today if it weren't for the bonds of friendship I've formed throughout my life. Do you understand?"

Naruto nods slowly. "I think so. I don't have a lot of friends, but sometimes I think about how different I would be if I had never met you…and I realize that I probably wouldn't have liked myself very much. Lately, I've been thinking about what would happen to me if you died, and I don't know what I would do."

Iruka grins. It's a bit sad. "I'm not going anywhere anytime soon, Naruto, but if I did, I know you'd be okay. You're strong. That's the key to dealing with the deaths of the people precious to you: being strong, not for your own sake, but for the sake of those you've lost."

"And by being strong, I can fight to protect those important to me, so I won't lose them." It's more of a question than a statement, but at Iruka's encouraging nod, a smile blossoms on Naruto's face.

Protecting one's precious people is easier said than done, Iruka knows, But if anyone can do it, you can, Naruto.

With the situation settled, sensei and student continue to walk together in amicable silence. The lingering doubts echoing in Naruto's mind from Itachi's genjutsu are silenced. He knows that he will never see the pale, dying Iruka in place of the healthy, living Iruka again. Even if Iruka actually dies, Naruto knows he will remember the sensei who taught him so much – in and out of the classroom – and not the corpse he leaves behind. Thinking back on Itachi-sensei's 'test,' Naruto almost laughs out loud.

The harsh reality of shinobi life?

If that's what Itachi-sensei thinks life as a shinobi is like, Naruto thinks, I'll just have to change his mind.


Sasuke's home is the house that silence built. His family sits down to dinner and the only sound is the clacking of utensils on plates. A battle is being fought, though, and typical of a shinobi home it is a silent battle. The battle is waged by his parents, their weapons are their faces. They shoot subtle facial expressions at each other, each having a meaning Sasuke has yet to figure out. The best Sasuke can understand is that there is something important his mother wants to speak about while his father doesn't. That usually means Itachi is the subject.

His parents never yell when he is in the house, preferring their silent fights because they believe he doesn't know they are fighting. He was fooled early in his childhood, but six years of ninja training and he has learned to see through their façade.

His mother notices him watching her and gives him a warm smile. "Sasuke-kun, please make sure Uzume eats her vegetables."

Sasuke turns to his three year old sister who is playing with what remains on her plate. "Uzume, eat your vegetables," he orders.

"Don't wanna."

"You have to. You can't awaken your Sharingan if you don't eat your vegetables."

His little sister scoffs, "Big brother eats his vegetables all the time."

Sasuke winces and cuts a look to his father who seems interested only in the food on his plate. Sasuke's failure to awaken his Sharingan has been a disappointment to his father. Itachi mastered his Sharingan at age eight. By the time he was Sasuke's age, Itachi was a member of ANBU. Sasuke finds himself being compared to Itachi a lot – not just by his father. Sometimes he comes out favorable in the comparison, but often times not.

"Don't be so childish, Uzume," Sasuke's mother says. "It takes time to awaken the Sharingan." She winks at Sasuke. "Time and nutritious vegetables, so eat up or I won't let you practice your shurikenjutsu with your brother after dinner."

Uzume begins to eat her vegetables. By the look on her face, it's an excruciating ordeal.

"So, Sasuke," his mother begins, "how was your day?"

His father makes a low sound in the back of his throat. Sasuke assumes that means he's lost the silent fight. Of course he wouldn't want to hear about Sasuke's first day as a genin. He doesn't want to hear about anything that involves Itachi.

"It was…" Sasuke drums his fingers on the table as he searches for the proper word. "…enlightening. Itachi trapped the entire team in a genjutsu to test our resolve."

"Oh my," says his mother.

"You were able to break out of it, I hope," says his father.

Sasuke hesitates before answering. He already knows his father's reaction. "Breaking the genjutsu wasn't the purpose of the test."

"That's a no, then." His father sounds disappointed. He always sounds disappointed. Sasuke was the top shinobi in his class and his father was disappointed he didn't graduate sooner.

Sasuke's mother shoots a look at her husband, the subtle facial expressions from before are gone. Without taking her eyes off her husband, she says, "Sasuke, why don't you and Uzume get an early start on shuriken practice."

It's not a suggestion and Uzume doesn't need to be told twice. She's up and away in an instant, ebony pigtails flailing in the air behind her. Sasuke spares a look at her plate as he rises from the table; more than half her vegetables remain. He follows after his little sister at a leisurely pace; the second he's out of the dining room his parents start up a fierce round of whispering. It's been a long time since his parents have gone more than a few days without having an argument. Sasuke remembers exactly how long: two years. It's the same amount of time that has passed since Itachi informed his parents he was moving out of the Uchiha compound.

When Sasuke arrives in the backyard, he finds his little sister has already set up the targets and retrieved the blunted practice shuriken – they're just sharp enough to stick in the targets. He watches her practice, gives her pointers when she needs them, and remembers the most horrifying image from the genjutsu Itachi had placed him under: Uzume hanging from a tree, a rope wrapped around her delicate little neck, her body swaying back and forth. An image he'll never forget, despite the fact that it was just an illusion.

"Hah! Can't beat that, big brother!"

Sasuke focuses on his little sister and the accomplishment that has her crowing. He sees that she has placed a shuriken within an inch of the bullseye, a lucky throw. Most of her practice shuriken litter the ground. She stands with her hands on her hips and a smile that splits her round face in two. Nonchalant, Sasuke draws a shuriken and flicks his wrist; the throwing star embeds dead center on the target.

"No way!"

Sasuke chuckles and watches as Uzume resumes practice with fervor. He wonders if Itachi knows what he saw while under the genjutsu, wonders if Itachi designed the genjutsu specifically so he would see it. The idea is unfathomable. How could an older brother concoct an image like that and force it on his younger brother? Itachi moved out of the Uchiha compound a year after Uzume was born for reasons that still haven't been explained to Sasuke, but he still displays affection towards their younger sister, so crafting such an image would be just as painful for him as it was for Sasuke.

Perhaps his affection for his little sister is waning. Perhaps a gulf is widening between the two, just as a gulf widened between Sasuke and Itachi, just as a gulf widened between Itachi and his girlfriend, his mother, his father, and the entire clan. Itachi pushes away everyone close to him, and as Sasuke sits and watches his sister try to best his accuracy just as he tried to best Itachi's when they were younger, he understands why. Itachi is afraid of losing those close to him, so he pushes everyone away. His genjutsu test was an attempt to inspire the same actions in his team.

If that is the true purpose of his test, Sasuke thinks, then I have already failed.


He will never push his little sister away, nor will he push away his mother or father, or Naruto and Sakura – even if they do annoy the hell out of him.

He's always being compared to his older brother. The phrase, 'You're just like your brother,' has been said to him many times, having both positive and negative connotations. In this aspect though, he knows that he will never be like his brother.

Sakura passes Yamanaka Flowers on her way home. Her thoughts turn to Ino's bloated corpse floating in a pond. She hurries by with her eyes on the ground. When her mother asks her about her day, she avoids looking at her and tells her everything went fine. Not looking at her does nothing to stop the image of her nailed to a tree by kunai. Her father arrives just before dinner; he receives the same answer as her mother when he asks about her day. Her efforts to not picture his decapitated body are in vain. They eat dinner as a family. Afterwards, her father asks her if she wants to play a game. She declines and chooses to go to bed early.

She lies in bed awake. Every time she closes her eyes her parents die. Over breakfast, her mother asks her if she slept well, concern written across her face. Sakura tells her that she was too excited to sleep. Her father has already left; he has an important mission today. For the first time ever, Sakura worries about whether he'll make it back. The clock approaches seven as she leaves her house. She pauses in the streets before turning in the direction of the Academy.

At seven-thirty, she stands outside the Academy.

"Sakura?" Iruka notices her as he makes his way to his workplace. "Is something wrong?"

She never lied to Iruka when he was her sensei. She doesn't start now. "No. Nothing is wrong."

She turns and makes her way to the training grounds. She's going to be late.

It's eight-fifteen when she arrives at training ground forty-four. Naruto and Sasuke are already there, standing with Itachi-sensei.

"You waited for me," she observes as she joins her team.

Naruto gives her his biggest smile. "We knew you'd show up."

Sakura smiles in return. It's weak.

"Very well," Itachi begins, "Let's-"

"Hold on," Naruto interrupts. "I've got something to say to you!" He adjusts his forehead protector – it glints in the sunlight – and crosses his arms. "I don't give a damn what you say about the harsh reality of shinobi life, I'm the man who's going to be the next Hokage, and I'll do anything to protect the people precious to me."

Itachi raises an eyebrow.

There is a curve to Sasuke's lips. "For once, I agree with Naruto. I'm not naïve, I know people in my life are going to die, but I'll die before I let anything happen to my family."

Itachi turns his impassive eyes on Sakura. She returns his stoic gaze with one of her own, green eyes ringed in dark circles. After a moment, she speaks.

"I hate you."

Naruto's jaw drops, Sasuke's eyes widen.

Itachi nods. "Very well, let's begin."