The snap of a branch breaking alerted Sasuke to the unexpected visitor. Almost immediately, Suigetsu and Jūgo were at his side, Karin just a bit behind the two boys. Something, or more likely, someone moved in the brush just beyond Team Hebi.

"Uchiha Sasuke," came a low male voice. "Correct?"

Suigetsu growled, gripping his sword, but Sasuke stopped him. Standing straight, in an oh-so-arrogant way he called out to the hidden shinobi. "Yes, Kisame." A low chuckle floated from the woods around Team Hebi. There was a moment's pause, then a silver scroll with black lettering flipped through the air, landing near Sasuke's feet.

"For you, from Itachi." A slight rustle of leaves marked the blue nin's departure. He was gone, leaving the scroll with the Uchiha and his companions. For a while, all that Sasuke could do was stare at the elegant scroll in shock. His name was printed in beautiful calligraphy on it, script that he could clearly see had been written in Itachi's hand. Eventually, Sasuke turned away from the scroll. He slid into his sleeping bag, for Uchihas cannot simply crawl into a sleeping bag like normal people, and closed his eyes. Drifting off into sleep, he seemed to forget Kisame and the scroll from his dead brother.

Early the next morning, Sasuke awoke to the sound of a bird chirping in a nearby tree. He killed the bird. Annoying happy sounds gone, his mood improved slightly. Until the events of the night before caught up to him. The moment that he remembered, his face darkened. The Uchiha made sure that his minions, ahem, companions were still sleeping. Seeing that they were all passed out, he strode over to where the object of his dislike lay on the ground. Though he was determined to leave it where it was, to never even touch it, his curiosity overcame his willpower. Sasuke rubbed his finger over the black letters that spelled outhis name. Then he slowly opened the scroll, revealing the first two lines.

Sasuke,

I'm sorry, for everything.

Intrigued, he pulled the scroll open a bit more.

All your life I was never there when you needed me. I was always too busy, or just gone. As you read, know that I don't expect you to forgive me, but please, try to understand.

Sasuke's eyes flared red with anger. Itachi had killed their, no, his family for absolutely no reason and he wanted Sasuke to understand?! He wanted Sasuke to listen as he explained his choises, the choices that had practically destroyed his life. But as he prepared to burn the scroll, he saw another line.

Please Sasuke, please read these words, my last letter. You deserve to know the truth.

That stopped him. 'The truth?' Sasuke thought. 'Yes," he decided.' I do deserve to know the truth. Itachi owes me at least that.' So he opened the scroll again and began to read.

Before you were born, I was subjected to the horrors of the shinobi battlefield. My father thought it important that I, the heir, knew what was in store for me. From that day on, I was determined to become one of the most powerful shinobi in order to save others who were not strong enough to save themselves. You could say that I became almost a pacifist at heart.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed, not believing what he was reading. His brother had indeed become powerful, but he didn't avoid fighting, or killing at all. Right?

However, those goals were put behind me when you were born. My new goal was to make sure that you had a life that was as close to perfect as it could be.

This time, Sasuke almost laughed. Itachi had screwed up his life more than anyone else! There was no way that he'd been trying to help! Then his thoughts froze. It was because of his desire to kill Itachi that he was this strong. What would've been his motivation to train harder if his family hadn't been murdered? His breath caught in his throat. Were these words true? Sasuke shook his head.'No, of course not, I will not be tricked by these lies.' Again, he prepared to burn the scroll. But like the time before, he stopped, and opened the scroll.

I regret that I was never able to help you train, but I did not want you to become a shinobi. That path brings only pain to those who chose it. But it was not my choice, it was yours.

A noise behind him alerted Sasuke to the fact that his team was waking up. Quickly, he stuffed the scroll into his shirt and turned around, intending to finish reading later, or not at all, depending on his mood.

/...=...\

After a day of uneventful travel, Team Hebi set up camp in a small clearing.

"Yo, Sasuke, what happened to that scroll Hoshigaki gave you?" Suigetsu decided that conversation was a good idea. Sasuke did not agree. He shot a fireball at the sharp-toothed ninja. Then it was Karin's turn to talk

"Aww Sasuke, just ignore him. I-"

"Leave me be, Karin." The girl pouted, but went away. Grabbing his sleeping roll, the moody Uchiha moved away from the two idiots, closer to Jūgo.

"Is this about that scroll?" Jūgo's open, friendly tone made Sasuke feel more willing to talk.

"Hn." Taking the 'response' as a yes, Jūgo continued to talk.

"Your brother, you were very close before he killed your parents? Did he love you?" A miniscule nod from the Uchiha answered both questions. "If he was faking his love for you, I believe that someone would've noticed. If one doesn't know how to, or cannot love, they cannot fake love, for they do not know what it is or what it looks like." With that, Jūgo got up and moved to stop Karin from killing Suigetsu, leaving Sasuke to think about what he had said.

The next morning, the Uchiha rose extremely early, intending to finish the reading the scroll. The only other human (the birds were very annoying) awake was Jūgo. He merely nodded to Sasuke, then closed his eyes as if meditating. Which he probably was. Unrolling the scroll to where he was the day before, the Uchiha lit his hand on fire and began to read, using the fire as his light source.

But to this day, I remain thankful that you were never dragged into the tangled mess of clan politics. Which brings me to another, more unpleasant topic: the Uchiha Massacre.

There are no words that can explain how sorry that I am for committing that horrible crime. There are also no words that can justify my actions, so I will not try. However, killing the Uchihas myself prevented your death. If I had not done it, someone much more bloodthirsty would've, and they would not have spared you. Keep these things in mind as you read the document below.

Underneath those words was a copy of the mission given to Itachi, signed by the elders of Konoha. The mission was to annihilate the Uchiha clan.

The orders and the scroll fell from Sasuke's hand as he sank to his knees. Itachi's last words, and what Jūgo had said earlier flew through his head. 'No,' he thought. 'No, this MUST be fake, there's no way...' But everything was starting to make sense. How Itachi had managed to murder the Uchihas without being discovered, how Itachi had been able to 'fake' his love for his family, why Itachi was happy when he'd died.

Sasuke rudely awoke Suigetsu and Karin, and then he set a brutal pace, headed for Konoha. After his brother, who he now knew to be innocent, was killed, he'd had no purpose. He had been leading his team in random directions, not knowing what to do with his life. Now though, now he knew that his goal wasn't completed. He had tried to avenge his clan, but he'd murdered the wrong person. Thanks to Itachi's scroll, and Jūgo's wise words, he knew who it was that had to die.

The scroll lay on the ground, forgotten, until Jūgo picked it up just before he followed Sasuke. Perhaps later Sasuke would read the rest of it, and discover that he had again accused the wrong people. Perhaps he would read the words that his brother had written, and he would know that instead of honoring Itachi's memory, he was going against everything that Itachi had lived for.