Promised

Prologue (Part One): The Wheels Begin to Turn

…

I still remember the look in your eyes when they met with mine.

The sound of your voice... the promise we made.

…

It was Itachi's first day at the Academy, and he wasn't sure how he felt. He was excited, yes. Happy that he was finally old enough to start. His parents were proud of him, and he wanted them to be happy. However...

Itachi was scared, too. Afraid that he'd let them down somehow. He tried to hide the truth from his parents, especially his father, but... He'd been scarred deeply by the sights he'd seen as a toddler during the Third War. He hated the concepts of war and fighting, hated the idea that he was taking the first steps down a path that would only lead him to such things...

He kept his head down slightly as he took a seat towards the back of the classroom. He figured they expected an Uchiha to be more cocky than he felt, but he wasn't really an overachiever. Still, his father's face haunted his vision as he stared at the front of the classroom. Fugaku's eyes had been beaming with pride for his eldest son as he dropped him off at the Academy.

Itachi shifted in his seat, sighing a little at the thought of those eyes on his back. Always on his back. He could never escape them, could never reveal his true feelings for fear of those eyes. His father was so proud of him, and Itachi didn't want to let Fugaku down... He knew his father would be ashamed of him if he knew the truth. That, or his parents would blame themselves for his condition.

Itachi tilted his head a little, trying to put on a better face.

As he did so, he caught sight of another student just arriving in the room. In his curiosity, he couldn't stop himself from staring at her.

She kept her head down, allowing her long, black hair to hide her face. She kept her rucksack close to her body like a shield. She moved like a shadow—with a strange, quiet grace—as she made her way to the back of the room as well, taking a seat on the opposite side of the room from Itachi.

It was only after she sat down that she looked up suddenly, as though she'd felt his eyes on her. When their eyes met, they both froze and held still—at least, until the teacher called for attention as class began.

Through the rest of the day, it was no longer Fugaku's face that haunted Itachi's vision, but hers. Her face and her deep, dark eyes. So sad, so wise for one so young. Not unlike his own. He couldn't help but wonder...

At lunch, Itachi found her sitting alone, apart from the others. He smiled as he walked over to sit in front of her. She looked up as he sat down, silently watching him.

"You don't mind, do you?" He asked, quietly.

She smiled a little, shaking her head soundlessly.

Itachi smiled at her gently, taking out the lunch his mother had packed for him—onigiri, his favorite—and began eating. He noticed the girl only had a little bit of bread, nothing else. Itachi swallowed slowly, then broke off part of what was left of his onigiri and offered it to her.

She looked at it, her eyes glancing from the onigiri to Itachi's eyes and then back. He smiled.

"Take it. My mom made it for me. It's really good."

Finally, the girl nodded and took it from him.

"Thank you," She said, a small smile on her face.

When they went back to their seats in the classroom, they looked at each other once more.

This time, they shared a smile.

…

After class, Itachi was about to walk home when he saw that she was headed in the same direction. "Hey!" he said, running to catch her.

She stopped and turned around. When she saw it was him, she smiled. "Oh."

He grinned. "Mind if I walk with you? You don't live too far away, do you?"

"You don't even know who I am," she pointed out with a little smile as she started walking, nodding at him to follow.

"No," he agreed, laughing as he fell in step with her. "I'm Itachi Uchiha. And you?"

She paused before answering. "My name is Minori. Minori Uchiha."

Itachi's smile faded as he blinked in surprise. "You're from the clan, too? I've never seen you around..."

Minori looked at her feet. "No... You wouldn't have. I lived with my father's mother until she died recently. I only just moved in with my uncle's family."

Itachi frowned a little. "What about your parents?"

"They... died. In the war. I was too little to remember them," Minori said.

Itachi mentally kicked himself. "I'm sorry."

Minori tried to smile. "It's alright. It's not your fault."

Itachi didn't know what else to say, so they walked in silence. Finally, they came to the Uchiha district, and Minori lead the way to her place. Before they came to the door, though, she turned to Itachi with a nervous smile.

"You should go to your own home now, Itachi. I don't think my uncle would be happy to see you with me... Even if you are the police chief's son."

Itachi frowned, eyes glancing from her to the house. He didn't know much about the people who lived there, but the tone in her voice worried him.

Before he could ask, though, Minori merely smiled and ran to the door, slipping inside. The only sound she made was that of the door sliding shut with a whispered sigh.

Silently, Itachi turned around to go home... His chest feeling heavy with a strange feeling. What was it?

He felt happy, yes, but there was something darker lurking beneath it. Something... scary.

He opened the door to his own home, slipping inside. He wasn't surprised to find Fugaku waiting for him.

His father smiled at him with pride. "Welcome home, son. How was your day?"

Itachi put on the face he always wore around his father. "It was a good day, father."

It was the truth, after all. It had been an exceptionally good day... Even if he felt a little strange.

If Fugaku had been planning to ask Itachi more questions, he was interrupted by little Sasuke running into the room.

"Brother!" Sasuke laughed, hugging around Itachi's waist as Itachi embraced him in turn with a smile. "You're home! Does that mean you can play now?"

Fugaku watched as Itachi messed up his younger brother's hair. "Not now, Sasuke. Some other time, okay?"

Sasuke pouted. "Promise?"

Itachi smiled. "Yes. I promise."

…

The wheels of fate were already beginning to turn...

…

Author: And what was supposed to be a 2 chapter prologue has become a 3 chapter prologue. Heh.^^;

It is mainly about Itachi and Sasuke- though a lot of other less seen Uchiha will play into this. Shisui and Izuna, for example. :D This is also going to have a lead into Sasusaku eventually...

I also started outlining this story before the big reveal about er... "Madara." (Won't say anything else, since it's recent enough to possibly be a spoiler.^^;) I'm not changing the story now, even though I am aware of the fact that this definitely breaks canon toward the end, thanks to that. :/ Oh, well.

Reviews are always welcome! ;D