This is my first fanfic. Please review and give me advice!
Warning: This goes through Itachi's life from when he was five to his death. This not an UchihaCest fic. I took some liberties with the facts, as well (such as Itachi's Genin team). Later, it will have some character death and heavy swearing. There will be a little romance, but it is not a big part of the plot.
Anyways, enjoy!
When he was five years old, his brother had been born.
Uchiha Itachi was disgusted by the sight of him. He was shriveled up, ugly, and fat. The thing that bothered him the most was the babe's incessant crying.
"Silence," the child said. The newborn did not stop. Uchiha Mikoto chuckled under her breath. Itachi looked curiously at his mother. What was so humorous about the wailing of a child?
"He has nice lungs. He'll become a healthy, handsome boy," she expressed, beaming down at the child. Itachi felt remorse eating at him from the inside out. A small grimace appeared on his boyish face.
Ever since he was born, Itachi had been sick. The doctors didn't know what it was, but they were sure he'd be fine. Of course, they let the illness take its course. One day, Itachi started to cough. He had been coughing ever since. All of Mikoto's lady friends adored his pale complexion, saying how lucky he was, how pretty his face was. Itachi thought he looked dead. He was scared of what the disease would do and what pain he would have to face.
Itachi hated the sight of the baby. Surely, it would be Mikoto's new favorite child. Of course it would be. It was a healthy pink color, strong, and loud. It still had not stopped crying.
With a fond look in her eyes, Mikoto turned to her son. "Would you like to hold him?" she inquired. Itachi winced at the thought. Holding that thing? What a preposterous idea!
"No, thank you, Mother," the boy replied politely. The smile on Mikoto's face fell.
"W-well. Alright," she stated shakily. She rocked the newborn in her arms back and forth to lull it to sleep. Eventually, the noises out of its mouth ceased. A sigh of relief came from Itachi's mouth. The grating noise on his ears had finally stopped. Itachi stood up and respectfully bowed.
"Good night, Mother," he announced.
"Good night, Itachi-kun," she replied, starting to coo at the baby. Itachi felt jealousy tug at his heartstrings. He walked out of the room and headed to bed.
The next day, Itachi woke up roughly around six. He quickly put on day clothes and walked stealthily to the doorway, each step making no noise. He slipped on his sandals and hastily exited the house, knowing he was already running late. No one was waiting for him, but Itachi liked to be prompt.
He went into his very own little training session. It was in the middle of the forest, and it was fairly quiet, excluding the birds' singing. There was an empty space cleared out for him. Trees closed in on him.
Five trees, five targets. He leapt into the air with five kunai in his hands. He closed his eyes, feeling where each of the targets were, then released his knives. The throw was feeble and weak. None of the kunai hit their targets. He tried again. Still none of the targets were hit. He tried for six more hours, only twice more did one of the targets get hit. Itachi glared at the targets. He had an almost uncontrollable urge to just rip and stomp on the stupid things. However, he did not have time. He had to hurry home for lunch. Yet again he was running late; the insistent growling from his stomach reminded him of that. He finally reached his house and opened the sliding door. His mother was waiting for him at the step.
"Where have you been?" she scolded. "I've been worried sick!"
Itachi bowed respectfully. "Forgive me, Mother. I was out training and lost track of the time. I sincerely apologize."
Mikoto narrowed her eyes at him. "Don't give me that nonsense. I bet you were out playing. I couldn't find you anywhere! What do you have to say for yourself?" she shouted at him.
Itachi's eyes welled up with tears. Soon they were overflowing. He never remembered his mother being so callous. He should have known. His mother loved the baby more than him after all. "I'm very sorry," he sniffed. Mikoto gasped softly. She had not seen her son cry in years. His lower lip was trembling, and his cheeks were red. She crouched down next to him.
"Oh, Itachi. I didn't mean to yell." She pushed his bangs out of his face and looked him straight in the eye. "You know I love you, right? I was just worried that something happened to you. Mama would cry herself to death if something happened to you." Itachi continued to look to the floor, his face sullen. Mikoto sighed. This was proving to be harder than she thought. "Itachi." No answer. "Itachi," she said, sternly this time. He looked up, his eyes puffy and still watering. "I want you to know something. It's a secret, okay?" Itachi nodded eagerly, unsuccessfully trying to rub his tears away. Mikoto continued. "No matter what you do, who you associate with, or who you become, I will always love you," she whispered with a smile on her face. At this time, her son had became a sobbing wreck.
"Mommy," he whimpered, arms outstretched. Mikoto gave the boy a much needed hug and picked him up.
"Now! It's time to make lunch," she exclaimed. "Come help me out, Itachi." The little boy nodded. She put her mouth close to his ear and whispered, "We're having cabbage and seaweed onigiri today!" Itachi's eyes gleamed with anticipation.
From then on, cabbage and seaweed onigiri were his favorite foods.
The day after, Itachi woke up at exactly six, feeling refreshed and slightly happy. That is, until he got out of his room. He searched for his mother to tell her where he was going, a new rule they had established the day before, only to find a crib bearing a baby. An awake baby. Itachi treaded to the crib, finding the baby's innocent eyes open and looking at him. Itachi stared down at it for a moment. Suddenly, the baby did something unforgiveable.
It smiled at him. Its hands reached toward him, wanting to be picked up. Itachi hesitated but gave in, making sure to support its neck on his shoulder. Mikoto walked in on him, stopped, and grinned. It had taken nearly a month, but Itachi had warmed up to his brother. Itachi gaze flickered to her. "What's his name?" he asked.
"His name is Sasuke," Mikoto replied, beaming.
"Sasuke," Itachi echoed.
That morning, Itachi hit all of his targets.
Uchiha Fugaku was not a patient man. He disliked his son's tendency to be late which must have been inherited from his mother. The woman was always bustling about, keeping busy. Of course, as clan head, Fugaku had many responsibilities. He had to keep the clan elders happy, the clan happy, the village elders happy, and his wife happy. As the saying goes, "Happy wife, happy life." He did not dare chastise his wife for her lateness, but he was free to do so with his son. Gently, of course.
Their training was in an unrestricted area, free to the public eye. Usually elders or a couple of squealing women would come. Today, he saw a most unexpected and unpleasant person.
"Hyuuga," he stated coolly.
"Uchiha," came Hiashi's reply.
Ever since their academy days, Fugaku and Hiashi had been bitter rivals. The two clan heirs had been unfortunate enough to be put in the same squad together along with their female member of the team, Hyuuga Satomi, and instructor, Tanrou Shigeki. The two men had always been arguing over things, and Shigeki-sensei and Satomi often had to break up their arguments or fights. They had always promised to battle, but after Hiashi's father had fallen ill, he had to pick up many of the clan head responsibilities. Shortly after, the Hyuuga head had died, and it was time for Hiashi to take over. Shaking his head, Fugaku had regretted not challenging him earlier.
Silently, both the men contemplated having an all out fight at that very second but decided to be civil with each other for a few more moments.
"Ah, how is Mikoto?" Hiashi inquired.
"Ah, she is well. How is Satomi?" he answered without flinching.
"Ah, she's great. You can begin to see the pregnancy now."
"Ah, that will be your heir, will it not? Will it be a boy?" He questioned.
"Ah, it will be a girl," Hiashi replied. Fugaku nearly did a dance of joy until Hiashi interjected. "But! It will be sure to be strong for it is my offspring."
The two men were sure to explode at each other any moment now, and that was when Itachi came running. "Forgive me, Father. I had to watch over Sasuke."
"Not now, Itachi," said the elder Uchiha as he stared down the Hyuuga clan head.
"Uchiha," said Hiashi, "I've been thinking that the time for our battle has been long past due."
"I agree, Hyuuga. I would like to assess your abilities."
"Ah, yes. It is time to see who's kekkei genkai can conquer over the other."
"Is that a challenge, Hyuuga?"
"Yes, Uchiha. Right now!"
Both of them made hand signs and transported to a more suitable location for the fight, leaving Itachi alone. He blinked a few times, confused as to what happened. He then realized that he could see every hand sign that the pair had made. "Boar, dog, tiger," he had said out loud to himself. "Boar, dog, tiger. Boar, dog, tiger. Boar, dog, tiger," he kept repeating like a mantra. A couple of girls had passed him, a couple of village commoners, and they had giggled.
"Hello, Itachi-kun," the blonde one greeted.
"Hi, Itachi-chan!" the redhead squealed.
"Good morning, ladies," he replied with his best manners.
"Oh, look at him. He's so polite. Isn't that sooooo cute?" they shrilled. "Where are you off to?" one asked.
"I need to find my mother, Mikoto. Have you seen her?" he coolly replied.
"Your mother? Ah, Mikoto-san! Oh, um, she was at the maternity store with Satomi-san."
"Thank you. Have a nice day, ladies," he said with a bow. He then walked off to find his mother while the girls were still chattering about him.
He broke into a sprint until he reached the maternity store. He bowed to the store keeper. He bumped into a woman. He looked up and saw it was Satomi.
"Good morning, Aunt Satomi. Is my mother around?" he asked respectfully.
"Oh, she's right over there," she said, pointing. "Shouldn't you be with your father?" she asked.
"Yes, and I need to speak with her," Itachi said. He brought his voice down to a whisper. "It's urgent."
Lady Hyuuga softly laughed, and Itachi blushed, noting that her laughter sounded like bells. "Okay, Itachi. I'll leave you to it." Itachi went to his business. He shot to his mother as fast as he could.
When he got there, she was muttering under her breath. "To think I had to wear these three months ago... Oh, hello, Itachi! Aren't you supposed to be with Dad?" she queried.
"Mother, he took off with Uncle Hiashi. They seem to be having a battle, "Itachi reported dutifully. Something flashed in Mikoto's eyes, and she let out a sigh of frustration.
"Come on, Itachi. Let's go before they kill each other. Satomi!" she called out.
"What's wrong, Mikoto?" she asked.
"Those two are at it again!" Mikoto replied.
Satomi shook her head. "Those two... always something to argue about isn't there. Ah, very well. Let's go." The two women hurried off with Itachi in tow. Itachi wondered what the big rush was. When Satomi took Itachi's hand, he smiled a little to himself. She was a very nice lady, worthy of respect. Though he wouldn't admit it to anyone, Itachi liked her.
When they arrived at the scene, the men were not using any jutsu. It was terrifying. There were scorch marks and mauled trees even, but the men had gotten tired of jutsu. The kekkei genkai didn't even matter anymore. It all came down to brute force. They were truly just trying to beat each other up.
"Hiashi!" Satomi cried. Itachi glanced at the man. His face was covered in bruises. They were starting to swell. "Hiashi!" she cried out again. "You promised me you wouldn't do this!"
"Not now, Satomi!" shouted Hiashi as he swung a fist at Fugaku's left cheek. It hit its mark, but at the same time, Fugaku kicked at Hiashi's knees and made Hiashi fall to the ground. The two were on the ground panting, struggling to get up.
Satomi decided to take charge. She stomped over to her husband and bended over to whisper in his ear. Immediately, Hiashi's face lit up. He jumped to his feet. "Good day, Uchiha," he stated. "That was a nice fight we had. I feel refreshed."
Fugaku smirked. "Going home with the wife, I see. Ah. Well, I feel refreshed as well. Have a nice morning." The couple skidded off, holding hands.
Itachi was confused. "Mother, what just happened?" he asked. Mikoto tenderly looked down at him. She narrowed her eyes in delight.
"You'll understand someday."
There was a feeling of great disruption in the air. Itachi could feel it wafting around. There were great thundering noises. The whole ground shook, and Itachi could hear people yelling. "What is that?" he pondered aloud to himself. It was very ominous, and even Itachi felt a little bit frightened. Suddenly, Sasuke started to cry. Itachi decided to toughen up for his brother's sake. He was the older brother after all. "Don't cry, Sasuke. Your brother is here to protect you, no matter what happens." he declared. Sasuke started to calm down, and Itachi's lips turned up in a shy smile. Yes, he would always protect Sasuke. No matter who got in his way.
The nine-tailed fox had wreaked havoc on the village. Many shinobi had died in the battle, including the Yondaime. Somehow the fox had broken its seal all on its own. It did not make sense to Itachi. The seal for bijuu were known to be very strong, stronger than almost any other seal. It did not make sense that it could have broken the seal from the inside to out. Surely there had to be another force that had cast off the seal from the outside...
The new unfortunate host was Uzumaki Naruto, a boy with no more hope. He was destined to live his life in solitude.
Yashiro had landed himself in the hospital, and Fugaku had insisted on visiting him. Itachi did not want to see him. Ever. Yashiro did not like Itachi one bit. Itachi believed it was because he jealous of Itachi's ability at such a young age. Itachi wasn't even in the academy yet, but he could already execute the Great Fireball Jutsu. Snake, tiger, monkey, boar, horse, tiger, he reminded himself. Yashiro had watched him perform it once and had sneered at him. Itachi was not scared, but he did not like Yashiro.
When they arrived at the hospital, Mikoto whispered, "Be polite." Itachi nodded. He would not anger Yashiro any further so he might aggravate his wounds. They slid his hospital door open and saw that Yashiro had no other visitors and was alone except for the nurse. The nurse bowed deeply to Fugaku with a forced smile on her face and exited the room.
"Yashiro, how is your leg?" Fugaku asked. Yashiro's leg was set in a cast and elevated. He looks fairly miserable, Itachi thought with a smile.
Yashiro smirked. "Oh, it's great. I should be able to get out of here by tomorrow. I'll be able to go on a mission by next week." He stared down condescendingly at Itachi, but Itachi kept his words nothing but polite.
"Yashiro-san, I hope you recover without any difficulties." Yashiro looked taken back and nodded, plastering a nervous smile on his face. With a small smirk, Itachi knew he had won.
Mikoto was nervous. She was very rarely nervous, and that's what caught Itachi's attention. She was pacing around the house, checking in on Sasuke every two minutes, and mumbling under her breath.
"Mother, I am going to train," declared Itachi. Mikoto merely nodded absentmindedly, her hands folded and her head bowed. Itachi took one good look at his mother and decided to take action. "Mother, are you alright?" he asked, a hint of concern in his voice. Mikoto turned to him and gave him a weary smile.
"Ah... Itachi, don't worry. I've just been up all night waiting for some news about a friend, and I'm a bit tired. You go out and have fun now." Mikoto had dark circles under her eyes. Itachi couldn't help but worry. She looked exhausted and almost depressed.
"Very well, " Itachi replied. "I will be leaving now." He hopped down the step, put on his sandals, and slowly strutted out the door. He wanted to give his mother some privacy, but he was concerned that something had happened. He had never seen her so fidgety before, and he wished to investigate the cause. However, that would be dishonorable.
Itachi went to the lake. He saw that Shisui and his older brother Inabi were there. He attempted to hide, but it was too late. Shisui had spotted him.
"HEY!" he shouted obnoxiously. "Hey, Itachi, what are you doing?" Itachi kept his back to him, forced on a polite smile, and turned around.
"Hello, Shisui-san, Inabi-san," he pleasantly stated. Inabi nodded at him in acknowledgement but went back to his fire training.
"Hey, hey, hey, Itachi! Are you going to start academy soon?" Shisui asked excitedly. He was quite literally bouncing up and down.
"Yes, when I turn six," informed Itachi. Though he wouldn't admit it, he was dreading going to the academy. He would rather stay at home and watch Sasuke with his mother. "I am looking forward to it," he lied smoothly.
A common misconception about Itachi was that he didn't lie. That was a big mistake. In fact, Itachi lied quite often. Usually, it was to please his father or the clan elders. This time, he lied to get Shisui off his back. He has always been quite irritating, pondered Itachi with a frown on his face. The problem was, Shisui was starting to know how to tell when Itachi was lying.
Shisui grinned. "You're lying," he jabbered. Itachi smiled a bit.
"Yes, I am," he spilled. At that time, Shisui smiled so large that Itachi wondered if a mouth was supposed to stretch so much. He started laughing.
"I knew it! Haha! Dad was telling me that you had good manners and were respectful to all adults! I knew you weren't that perfect!" he shouted. Itachi just looked at him with a smirk.
"Shisui, come over here. You still have not perfected the Great Fireball," Inabi called out sternly.
"Aw!" whined Shisui. He slouched and shouted, "Do I have to?"
"Yes, now come over here." Shisui pouted and snorted. He stared at Itachi before patting him on the back.
"I have to go," he said loudly. He then dropped his voice to a whisper. "I'm going to set Inabi's butt on fire," he reported with a sneaky look in his eyes. He then raised his voice and bellowed, "I'm coming!" He trotted over to Inabi while Itachi grinned openly.
Itachi then executed the Jutsu perfectly, making his biggest fireball yet.
A messenger had arrived during dinner. Mikoto sprang to the door and snatched the letter from his hands. She hurriedly ripped the envelope open. She read the contents slowly, despair painting itself on her countenance.
She slowly came back the table, her head hung. Her cheeks were red, and her eyes glistened with tears that would not fall. Fugaku grabbed her hand and asked, "What is it?"
She shook her head and let out a quivering sigh. " Fugaku," she choked out. "Mikazuki is dead." Fugaku sharply took in some air. He stared tenderly into Mikoto's eyes. A sight very rare to be seen, Itachi noted. Mikoto gripped Fugaku's hands tightly, nails digging into his skin. He ignored it.
"What now?" Fugaku inquired softly. Mikoto sighed again.
"They're sending Haruna over. She'll be here tomorrow," she responded.
Itachi was confused. Who was Mikazuki? Who was Haruna? There were so many unanswered questions.
Fugaku had Mikoto in a tight embrace. "I'll take care of it," he muttered. "She can stay here until I get her a place of her own." Mikoto breathed in Fugaku's scent. It calmed her a little bit, though she still felt jittery.
"Thank you," she mumbled. They slowly parted, and Fugaku kissed Mikoto's forehead gently.
"We'll be right back," Fugaku stated. He glanced down at Itachi. "Come, son. We need to have a talk." Itachi dutifully hopped down from his chair and followed his father. They walked leisurely until they reached the dock at the lake. Fugaku positioned himself at the edge with his feet in the water. "Sit," he ordered. Itachi sat, legs crossed. Fugaku cleared his throat in preparation of speaking. "Itachi," he began, "you can tell that your mother is very upset." Itachi nodded. Fugaku continued. "A dear friend of hers has died recently. Today, actually. She has requested that we take care of her child." Fugaku frowned. "It is a girl."
"Haruna-san?" Itachi asked. Fugaku shook his head up and down in agreement.
"Yes, Itachi. So... we have to set some ground rules with Haruna." Fugaku looked around awkwardly, as if to see if anyone was listening in on their conversation. He cleared his throat again, and a slight redness came up to his cheeks. That's odd, Itachi realized. "Well, Itachi. You are aware that girls are different than boys, right?"
"Yes, Father," replied Itachi. "But how so?" he inquired.
"A-ah... well, girls... they like their privacy," Fugaku started out. Itachi looked at Fugaku quizzically. Fugaku shook his head. "Ah, never mind. They're just... different. Anyway, you are to treat her with more respect than a boy, understood?" Itachi nodded.
"Father, how long will she be with us?" Itachi queried.
In reply, his father groaned something like, "Forever."
Mikoto was beaming, mumbling things about "always wanting a little girl." Itachi was befuddled. How could a woman go from happy to sad in such a short time? He would never understand girls.
Itachi was unlucky enough to have girls following him wherever he went. They would scream horrid things at him like "Itachi-sama," "I love you," "Marry me," "He's so cute," and "What a cute ass!" Many were middle-aged housewives who never got the Uchiha of their dreams. They were all so loud, so obnoxious, so terrifying. Girls were scary things, indeed.
Mikoto squealed excitedly. "Here she comes!" she exclaimed loudly. She bent down to dust Itachi's shirt and pants off. "Now, Itachi?" she started. "I need you to be on your best manners. Haruna-chan is probably very fragile right now; her mommy just died, you understand?"
"Yes. Should I not talk to her about her mother?" Itachi replied. Mikoto smiled warmly at him.
"Probably not," she answered, with a gleam of sadness in her eyes. Mikoto stood to her full height, grabbed Itachi's hand and walked him to the door. There was a knock, and Mikoto called out, "Come in!" The door slid open, and Itachi saw her.
A little girl about his age was crying silently. She had jet-black hair that was cut to just beneath her hair line, puffy blue eyes, a small backpack with very little belongings, and tattered clothes. She was pitiful. The man escorting her handed a letter to Mikoto. She eagerly took it and stuffed it in a pocket. She then dismissed him, and he exited with a bow. She leaned over to Haruna. "Hello, Haruna-chan. I'm Mikoto. I'm going to be taking care of you from now on, okay?" Haruna nodded with a sniff. "Itachi," his mother said sternly, inside a command was hidden.
"Um. I am Itachi. Nice to meet you," he greeted, short and simple.
"I am Shinora Haruna," the little girl said. Itachi noted with distaste that she was taller than he. "Nice to meet you," she added.
Fugaku was at his limit. For the past week, the girl had not said a thing to any one of them. Not a single thing! She simply walked around with hollow eyes, clinging to Mikoto. Mikoto was elated, of course. She compared Haruna and herself to a chick and mother hen. However, the girl was still gloomier than a ghost. Paler, too.
Finally, he had some alone time with his son. Hopefully, his son was more kind to her than he was. He just couldn't help himself. Knowing what her mother was, it was hard not to believe that she hadn't tainted the girl in some way. Back in the day, Mikazuki was an excellent shinobi. A beautiful woman as well. Fugaku just wondered how Mikazuki got herself into such a mess. As he entered the kitchen, he saw the girl sitting across the table from his son. She noticed him at once. Strange, thought Fugaku. She isn't even facing my direction. He tapped Itachi on the shoulder. "Son," he said. "It is time to train." Itachi nodded and slid down from the chair. Mikoto looked up from nursing Sasuke.
"Be safe," she said with a mischievous glint in her eyes. Itachi noticed that it was directed towards Haruna. Haruna stood up.
"Excuse me," she called out softly. Fugaku whipped his head around. It was the first time he had heard the girl talk, and he didn't want to miss it. "Can I come?" she asked in a whisper.
Fugaku was appalled. He couldn't believe this girl had the nerve to ask to come along. After all the bad manners and glares, it was outrageous. He started to say "Absolutely not" but was interrupted by Itachi.
"Absolutely," he allowed. Fugaku clenched his jaw as his wife giggled at him. "Very well," he grunted. "Come along." The girl left nervously as Mikoto edged her on. Itachi took Haruna's hand to lead her.
When they arrived at the lake, Itachi released her hand and informed her that this was the Uchiha training spot. Color appeared in her cheeks for the first time in days. "It's pretty," she exclaimed. Itachi smiled and nodded.
"Yes, it is," he replied.
Fugaku felt a surge of annoyance run through him. His son was warming up to the girl awfully fast.
"Haruna-san, at this lake, we practice our fire Jutsu," Itachi told Haruna.
"Wow, that's really cool!" she muttered loudly. She flung her sandals off and placed her feet in the water with an enormous splash. "Itachi-san, could you teach me?" she asked excitedly.
"Certainly," Itachi responded. "If you teach me a Jutsu as well, Haruna-san." Fugaku looked at his little boy with pride. He was already learning how to bargain. However, the girl probably didn't know any Jutsu at all, so it was a weak bargain on Itachi's part. The girl beamed.
"Okay, Itachi-san. What Jutsu would you like to learn?" she asked with a mischievous smile.
"Doesn't matter," was his answer. Her mouth expanded at an alarming rate.
Itachi taught Haruna to do the Great Fireball Jutsu in one hour.
That's chapter one! Please review and tell me what you think!