Disclaimer: I didn't own Naruto. Everything belongs to Kishimoto Masashi. Also, please note that the names will be in Japanese Ver not English Ver. Thank you for your time and please enjoy.

Chapter 1: Where Are We?

It was another day in Konoha, just another hot summer day. The breeze from the Hokage Monument washes over the entire village making the hot summer day not so hot anymore. Villagers also with its shinobi and kunoichi were having a great day. Some of them can be seen taking a stroll around the bustling town while others casually chatting over some hot coffee. Each and every one of them were all enjoying their day off especially the ninjas.

But even so their leader probably busy handling all sorts of reports and meetings that at some point are out of hand.

Poor guy.

A moment after in a deserted land in the village, a void appears. The void taking its appearance like a portal was hanging around the compound before spitting its contents out. Its content which were alive people were barely conscious and trying to comprehend what just happened to them before the void vanishes into thin air, making the place looks normal for the villagers when they passed by.

On the naked ground can be seen four people who were still laying, clearly not wanting to get up. The first person who makes the move to is a young man, in his twenties, slowly getting up to brush the dirt off of his brown cloak. The young man who has a pair of onyx eyes scans his surroundings, his long jet black hair which he ties it into a low ponytail moves as he shakes his head, moving around the entire compound. Scanning through, he notices that there are also three more people currently laying around near him, unconsciousness. Slowly, he takes a step towards them, also trying to get used to his body after being tossed around inside that mysterious void-like-portal.

What happened? He thought. His mind reels back to what had happened before he had a blackout. He along with other Akatsuki members who had died before the war were resurrected by someone with a jutsu called [Edo Tensei]. Putting under the casters' command, he along with the leader of the Akatsuki, Pein or Nagato making their way out together with him supporting the other. Then, they met Naruto along with the Jinchuuriki of the Hachibi, Killer Bee. Exchanging words with the former friend of Sasuke's and getting out of the jutsu that had been casted on him, he remembered making his way towards Yakushi Kabuto with Sasuke hot on his tail. He also remembered defeating Kabuto and put him under [Izanami]. And saying his last few words towards Sasuke, his beloved little brother before meeting his parents again in the afterlife. And then...

What happened?

His mind is foggy with the event that had happened back then. A slight ringing inside his mind makes him instinctively touches his head with his right hand. Several moments after, after making sure that he is fine and ready to move, he looks up front to eye the people that are still laying around the ground. His instinct told him to make contact with them and trying to comprehend the situation that they are in. And that was what he gonna do.

His second step is frozen when he gets clear looks of those said still unconscious people near him. His mind went blank. Silence.

What is this?

Again his mind is blank. Blank against what he is seeing in front. Laying in front of him is a silhouette of a man probably a teenager slowly opening his eyes. He also has that Uchiha style shirt and an unruly black hair with Konoha's headband tying around his pale forehead. A moment after, the teen rubs his head and says "Oww. My head. I think I hit something hard."

The teen begins to look around him, trying to adjust towards the unclear compound with a calculated look. He still didn't notice the other presence that already up and looking at him. "Where is this? A broken compound? I didn't know the village have this." Slowly he gets up and starts to stretch.

Plop

The sound of a bone cracking hits him. "OWWW! IT HURTS!" With teary eyes, the teen yelps loudly making the others around him jerks awake. A raven-haired man, probably in his forties leaps up from his lying position. His onyx eyes change into the infamous Uchiha clan dojutsu, the Sharingan. Its three tomoe spins in a circle as he looks around for any possible threats before spotting the young teen bending down with his hand rubbing his back currently in agony. His tense posture drops a little and a confuse looks adorned his face.

"Shisui?"

The teen looks at him, pain clearly masks his young face. He didn't expect to see Uchiha Shisui there in his usual attire. He received news about Shisui committed suicide just before the coup the last meeting but the said guy just stood there in all his glory alive and... Well not well enough as the said guy still writhing in pain because of his accidental stretch that went too far.

"What is it? What's so loud?" A feminine voice called out to them as she slowly gets up into a sitting position.

"Mikoto!"

Uchiha Mikoto still sleepy rubs her eyes gently as she looks at her husband. "Fugaku? Where are we? Why are we outside? " Outside? She thought again. Then it hits her. Rubbing her sleepiness aside, both her hands grab Fugaku's clothes as she said "Where's Itachi? He should have ended our lives. Why did he stop?"

Fugaku puts his hand on her shoulder, trying to comfort her. "Mikoto, slow down. You are panicking right now."

"Yup, and Itachi isn't here so please take a deep breath, Mikoto-san," Shisui said, slowly approaching the couple. Now with the appearance of Shisui, Mikoto's condition becomes slightly worse.

"Shisui!? I thought you've died two days ago?!"

"Me!? Dead!?" Shisui scrunches his eyebrows. "What are you talking about, Mikoto-san? As you can see here, I am pretty much alive and healthy," which he brags a little. Then he turns serious. "Anyway, I thought I heard it wrong but is it true that Itachi was taking your lives before coming here?" No response from the two of them. His head hung low, his eyes looking at his shinobi sandals as a sad smile creeps onto his lips. "I see. So the massacre's already in place." Silence engulfed the compound once more.

"We should also concern of another person near us right now," Fugaku's voice clear and still as he looks towards the young man in the cloak. Observing him closely, he can already see his low ponytail which reminds him of a certain person that he is familiar with. Who is this man? A question sparks inside of his mind. His mind rapidly runs through all the memory of people that he have met in his life or even strangers inside the village. Brown cloak, ponytail, charcoal eyes and lines on his face. And the only answer he gets is his thirteen year old son. He shakes his head. No way this is him.

Instinctively, Fugaku stands in front of Mikoto protectively while Shisui eyes the person in front. This man has the same features as his best friend just he is a little bit taller and older than him. He knows those hair, those lines and the aura that the stranger gives them. And he just knows that the person in front of him is his best friend. Or maybe was? The first thing that Shisui wants to do is to approach him, asks him if he really is that thirteen-year-old prodigy that he knows but he decided not to. No. He just couldn't walk towards him. His feet can't move. Although he probably figures out who the man is and can teleport towards him in an instance, somehow he gets the feeling that if he does something drastic, he will break this guy in a moment. Just like glass, so delicate and fragile.

Fugaku, on the other hand just shakes the familiar feeling of him towards the stranger as he makes an approach. "Who are you?" He asks. If they want to trust him, they better know who he is as quickly as possible.

No response coming from the man. Looking at him straight in the eyes, Fugaku can clearly see that the man vision seems off. It's just like his body is here in front of him but his minds wander off.

Mikoto decided to make a move. She walks towards the young man instead of calling out to him like Fugaku just did.

"Mikoto!"

Ignoring her husband loud voice calling out for her, she slowly approaches the man.

The man, on the other hand, is trying to sort things out in his mind. Still, he can't believe what he is actually seeing. All of his emotions swirl so fast that he didn't know what to express. Should he be happy because he finally gets to see his own parents alive again? Mad towards his best friend who committed suicide in front of his very own eyes? He didn't know.

He spends so much time fighting against the wild emotions that he didn't even pay attention towards Mikoto who's already in front of him. Mikoto studies his face. Those lines on his face. His eyes. His nose even his mouth. She takes it all in, buried those features into her mind. Her soft voice called out his name.

"Itachi..."

She can see it, the man slight flinch over her own voice. She musters the courage to ask him. "You are Itachi, right?" The man didn't move. Not a single blink. Only silence answered her question. Her eyes soften a gentle smile on her lips as her left-hand touches his face. Slowly her thumb rubs his cheek. "Your so handsome, Itachi. Just like your father." Their eyes met. "Where you hurt? Did you take care of Sasuke?" Tears swell on her eyes. She wants to keep strong for her son. For all that happened to him. Her poor son has to do all of that stuff because of them. She remembered before her son takes away her life that night, Itachi actually cried in front of them. She knows Itachi well enough that he isn't the sort of person who shows his emotions freely. Itachi likes to keep to himself. Anything that happened he keeps it all, alone, only relies on himself. That makes him a perfect tool for the village if they want to use him. No one knows how he actually feels like. She herself didn't know much about Itachi's situation. The only time Itachi shows his emotions freely is when he's with Sasuke. Sasuke is like an angel to him. An angel where he can relieve his stress when he had a hard time. Especially when seeing Sasuke's smile. Sasuke meant a lot to him than any other person.

That breaks her heart when seeing Itachi right now. Broken and lost. Guilt clouds her mind as her arm wraps around his back. Her tears pour from her eyes like a waterfall. "Okaa-san..." His calm voice when calling her 'Mother' swells her heart even more. Oh, Itachi. My poor Itachi shoulder everything by himself.

"I'm sorry that you have to do all of that. I'm sorry that you have to shoulder everything by yourself. I'm sorry that Sasuke hates you. I'm sorry that... That you didn't get the life that you deserve. You were young and yet understand everything like a grown up, I'm sorry that you mature so quickly. I should have let you have the innocent life of a child like any others but I took it all away from you. I'm sorry."

A lone tear drips on her clothes. She can feel it. Itachi cried for the second time in front of her. She let it be. Her hands tighten around him like a protective mother. She won't let this moment gone to waste.