Prologue

A Different Future

a.k.a. "We're not supposed to play in the zen garden."

"Itachi, why do I have to go to this stupid thing clan thing?"

Itachi chuckled dryly as he glanced sideways at his brother. He could easily understand why Sasuke was feeling so petulant. At six years old, the last thing an energetic young boy would wish for would be an afternoon of being introduced to the Konoha clan leaders, all the while constrained in a formal hakama.

As they passed over the red bridge which spanned the small creek separating the Uchiha district from the rest of Konoha, Sasuke stamped his feet sullenly. The August mid-afternoon sun was already high in the sky and the only creatures out of the curved bridge that afternoon were two small green frogs that hopped away in terror from the small boy's heavy sandals. Their mother glanced back at them, quirking an eyebrow.

Sasuke whined and tugged at the obi tied tightly around his waist. "And why do I have to wear this thing! I look so... stupid."

Itachi tried to disguise his laugh with a cough. It came out as more of a snort.

When their father had informed Sasuke that he too would be attending the clan leaders' gathering at the Hyuga clan residence, his little brother had danced around the house with excitement for a whole week. He, Uchiha Sasuke, was finally being recognized by his father! He would get to go with Itachi and father to a meeting with the other clan heads about official Konoha business! It wasn't until he had seen the formal hakama that he was expected to wear that his excitement quickly turned into dread. Itachi didn't know for sure, but could have sworn that his mother had resorted to a genjutsu to keep Sasuke still for long enough to put the thing on.

Itachi was able to hear his little brother's horrified shouts from across the house. "I look like a girl!"

Taking advantage of his little brother's embarrassment like a good older brother, Itachi slipped into the room to assess the damage. With his delicate features, big dark eyes and all those yards of stiff striped silk, Sasuke looked rather like a doll. The only thing that ruined the impression was Sasuke's gaping mouth and horrified expression

"Sasuke, darling, you look absolutely precious," their mother cooed.

Itachi raised his eyebrows and tried to hide his smirk. Their mother was not helping.

Sasuke looked wounded. "Shinobi aren't supposed to look precious," he muttered. He pouted at his brother. "I bet Itachi doesn't have to wear some stupid hakama."

Mikoto smiled kindly down at her mutinous offspring. "Itachi and your father will also be wearing hakama."

Sasuke looked unconvinced.

"Hey, Sasuke, if you wear your hakama to the clan leaders' meeting, I'll show you a new shuriken jutsu."

Sasuke frowned, not ready to give up the battle against formal wear so easily. "And a new fire jutsu."

Apparently, the thought of one on one training with his awesome big brother was not sufficient recompense for an afternoon of drowning in black and white striped silk and dealing with musty old ladies pinching his cheeks.

The hot August sun made the whole experience even more uncomfortable for Sasuke. He glanced out over the bridge, perhaps wondering if flinging himself off of it would be a suitable escape from the afternoon. The peaceful bubbling brook seemed to be laughing at him too.

"Stop laughing at me, aniki!"

Hearing Sasuke's whining from up ahead, Fugaku turned around with a fearsome scowl on his face. "You had better not shame me or the clan, Sasuke."

Sasuke looked down at his feet, completely mortified.

"We will be introducing your brother to the other clan heads as the next head of the Uchiha clan. If you embarrass him or me, you will sorely regret it."

"Yes, otousan," Sasuke said. Itachi had trouble hearing his frightened voice.

Hinata clutched onto the fabric of her mother's dark blue kimono. There were so many strangers standing around in their tea garden!

She had recognized the blonde girl in the sky blue kimono from the ninja academy. Ino was her name. She was friends with pink haired girl Sakura. Hinata would see them playing together in the park sometimes when her guard Ko would take her there. She had always been too shy to approach her two female classmates. Ino had tried to invite her to play with them several months ago, but Hinata was reduced to such a stuttering mess that Ino gave up.

Ino took Hinata by the hand and brought her to the little curved bridge spanning the koi pond where several other classmates she recognized were skipping stones.

"I like your kimono, Hinata-chan. Lavender is a really pretty color on you."

"Th...thank you."

Ino giggled.

Hinata recognized the two boys skipping stones. Ino called them Shikamaru and Choji. She didn't know the name of the other boy with the dark hair sitting a little off to the side. He was holding out a finger as if to catch a bee. The boys were all dressed in yakatas. Hinata was glad that Ino was dressed in a fancy kimono too, that way she didn't feel so overdressed.

"That's Shino," Ino chirped happily. "He likes bugs."

"H-Hello, everyone."

The boy Shino nodded at her in greeting. The chubby boy named Choji smiled shyly at her. The dark haired boy with his hair in a ponytail just grunted at her. These other children weren't so scary!

"Daddy says that I can't play in the sand garden over there, so I've been watching the fish," Ino explained.

"My f-father gets upset when I p-play in the zen garden too."

Ino nodded as she sat down by the water, dipping in a finger to pet an orange fish as it swam by. Looking up at Hinata, she beamed. "I like flowers. I was trying to tell Shikamaru about the pretty ones that you and your family have in your garden, but he wasn't listening to me."

"Troublesome," the other boy muttered. Ino stuck her tongue out at him.

"Do you like flowers, Hinata?"

"I'm sure that she doesn't want to hear about your flowers, Ino," grumbled the boy called Shikamaru.

"Shika! I didn't ask you! I was talking to Hinata!"

"I..I like flowers too," Hinata mumbled.

Ino's grinned sunnily. "Come sit down with me, Hinata."

The Hyuga heiress smoothed down her kimono and sat down next to her. The little koi fish had lost interest in the blonde girl's wriggling fingers. Taking her hand out of the water, Ino leaned back and pointed out several white flowers growing near them. "See those white flowers? They're spider lilies. Daddy says that they represent sweetness. And those pink ones with the dark pink inside by the tea house are called hibiscus. They mean gentleness. Isn't that neat?"

"What are th-those little blue ones near the zen garden called?"

"The blue ones? I think those are forget-me-nots." Ino giggled. "Daddy says that they mean true love!"

Hinata blushed.

Turning back to Hinata, Ino smiled. "I like you! You should play with me and Sakura at the academy!"

Hinata blinked in surprise. Never in her life had any of her classmates expressed such enthusiasm to play with her. Yes, Ino had invited her several times to play with them when they were in the park, but she always assumed that it was Ino's dad rather than Ino herself extending the invitation. Hinata was usually such a stuttering mess that other girls in class quickly gave up, not having the patience to deal with her. She knew that her mother was concerned that her older daughter was becoming painfully shy.

Yet here was Ino extending the invitation again, an invitation that she had extended so many times. Ino was just like that other blonde child at the academy, Uzumaki Naruto. Like Naruto, she was loud and exciting and wouldn't give up.

She was about to stutter out a reply when a shadow fell over her. She glanced up shyly at her mother. Mother was holding baby sister Hanabi in her arms. "Hinata, sweetheart, are you making friends with Inoichi's daughter Ino?"

"Yeah! Hinata and I are going to play together at the academy!" Ino answered for the both of them. "Is that baby your sister, Hinata? I've always wanted a little sister."

"Her name is Hanabi," said Hinata's mother, leaning down to show Ino the dark haired bundle sleeping in her arms.

"She's so tiny," Ino whispered.

"It was lovely to meet you, Ino-chan. I'm going to have to steal Hinata away from you for a while. We've just had a couple more guests arrive and Hinata should meet them.

"Okay." Ino shrugged. "I'll see you soon, Hinata!"

Hinata stood up and brushed off her kimono. Her mother tried to hide her frown. "Hinata, dear, that is your best kimono. Be careful not to get it dirty."

"I'm sorry, okaasan," Hinata said lowering her eyes.

"No need to apologize. I'm glad that you made a friend. Ino seems like a very nice girl. Ko said that she often asks you to play with her at the park. You should play with her next time."

"Y-yes, okaasan. I'll try."

As they walked away from the pond, Hinata could hear Ino yelling at Shikamaru. "Why won't you let me skip stones with you and Choji? I'm going to tell Aunt Yoshino if you don't!"

"Troublesome…"

Hinata's mother led her towards the zen garden that Ino had been talking about earlier. Her father was looking out at it, speaking with a dark haired man, a woman and their two sons. The older son was shaking father's hand while the younger son, another boy that she recognized from the Ninja Academy, was looking around the garden in awe. He caught her eye and smiled, the bright blue of the forget-me-nots reflecting in his dark eyes as he beamed at her.

Hinata noticed that the four members of the Uchiha clan were dressed very formally. The older man and his two sons were wearing black and grey striped hakamas similar to the Hyuga formal clothing her father wore. Their hakamas were proudly emblazoned with the red and white Uchiha fan, a stark contrast to the Hyuuga flame that her clan bore. Their mother's crimson kimono was very beautiful. It stood out among the sea of black and grey surrounding her.

As they walked towards the group, her mother explained. "Uchiha Fugaku is the head of the Uchiha clan. They are a very important clan in Konoha. His wife's name is Mikoto and their sons are Itachi and Sasuke. Sasuke goes to the ninja academy with you."

The man Fugaku turned to look at them as they approached. Hinata was startled by his stern expression and the deep frown lines scaring his face. His scowl was frightening to her. She clutched onto the silk of her mother's dark blue kimono.

"Akemi," said the woman whom mother called Mikoto. "It's good to see you again. Is this your new baby Hanabi? How old is she now?"

"Four months."

"I'm glad to see that you are both looking well."

"Thank you, Mikoto. Have you met my elder daughter Hinata?"

The Uchiha woman turned to smile gently at Hinata. "It's nice to meet you, Hinata-chan. My name's Mikoto. I'd like to introduce you to my two sons. This is Itachi and Sasuke."

The older brother crouched down until he was eye to her with her. He resembled his father a great deal; however, his face wasn't as mean as Fugaku's. His eyes were soft and his smile warm. He held out a hand to shake hers. She loosened her grasp on her mother's kimono long enough to shake it. "It's nice to meet you, Hinata."

The younger brother chimed in, "Hi, Hinata. It's nice to meet you."

"I-it's a pleasure to meet both of you."

The older brother stood back up and smiled at Hinata's mother. "It's nice to see you again, Hyuga-san. Mother speaks very highly of you."

Mikoto chuckled and with mischievously twinkling eyes said, "Those clan leader meetings can get to be so tedious, it's nice to have a partner in crime - I mean friend - there."

Akemi gave a small smile. She turned to the older brother. "I wanted to congratulate you, Itachi. I'm sorry that I was unable to attend the formal ceremony where you were announced as the heir to the Uchiha clan and the twentieth clan head."

"Thank you very much."

Sasuke was getting bored with all the clan talk. He took Hinata's hand to get her attention. She in turn looked at him in surprise. "Your big sandbox is really cool. Wanna go play in it?"

Fugaku frowned mightily.

"We're not s-supposed to play in the z-zen garden," Hinata whispered. She glanced up at Fugaku's thunderous expression in barely concealed terror.

Hinata's mother chuckled. "We don't usually play in the zen garden. However, I noticed that several of your other classmates are playing by the koi pond. Hinata darling, why don't you take Sasuke over to play with the other children? I'm sure that Ino-chan will be glad to play with you some more."

Sasuke's mother glanced over by the koi pond. "Ah yes, I see that Inoichi's daughter and Shikaku's son are playing over there with Choza's son and Shibi's son." Mikoto, intimately familiar with her husband's moods went in for the damage control. "Sasuke, you should go with Hinata-chan to play with them."

Hinata noticed that Sasuke was still holding her hand. She squeaked in surprise when he turned to her and said, "Let's go play, Hinata."

Hinata could hear their parents talking as they walked away. Her father was complementing Itachi on his recent appointment to the Konoha ANBU.

"Thank you, sir. Though it is amazing how quickly secret assignments become public."

"We are very proud of Itachi; though, I was hoping that he would follow my footsteps and join the Konoha Military Police Force."

Hinata looked up at the boy holding her hand. As if aware of her gaze, he glanced over at her. "Mother said that you attend the ninja academy too. I don't think that I've noticed you there before."

"Y-yes. I go to the academy too."

"I like to practice my jutsu with my brother after classes. You should practice with us next time. Itachi said that he is going to teach me a new shuriken jutsu."

"Th-thank you, though I w-would probably g-get in your way. Y-you're a much better ninja than m-me." Changing the subject, Hinata went on to apologize from the scene before. "S-sasuke, I'm sorry that I made your f-father upset. I s-shouldn't have said anything about the z-zen garden."

Sasuke looked uneasy. "He wasn't upset with you. He was mad at me for embarrassing him."

"E-embarrassing? That's silly. You are at the t-top of the class at the academy. I don't see how your father c-could be embarrassed of you."

Sasuke peered at her curiously. "You're nice, Hinata. Let's be friends."

"It's time, Itachi," said his friend Shisui. "Are you ready?"

Itachi closed his eyes and sighed heavily. "I'll never be ready. But now's as good a time as any."

He hated to admit it, but he had seen it coming. His father had become more and more demanding of his time and more and more suspicious of his ANBU assignments. He had been a captain in the ANBU for about two months now, but his father still resented the fact that he would have nothing to do with the Konoha Military Police Force. Fugaku was so obsessed with controlling his older son. It didn't help matters that Fugaku felt betrayed by Itachi.

Of course Itachi had told the Hokage about what was going on in those meetings in the Konoha Military Police Department late at night. Was it chance that his father's co-conspirators were also high ranking ninjas in the Police Department? Itachi would never know. The Konoha Military Police Force had been founded with the Uchiha clan in mind and once in a position of authority, it was almost impossible to oust the Uchiha from it.

"Another mission so soon, Itachi? Are you going to tattle to Hiruzen about our clan some more?" sneered his father.

"The clan, the clan, the clan. You must know by now, father, that I don't give a damn about the Uchiha clan."

His father grabbed him by the silver breastplate of his ANBU uniform. His eyes flashed red with the Sharingan as he growled, "How dare you speak to me that way, Itachi! You, my son, are the next heir to the Uchiha clan. I'm of half a mind to remove that honor."

"Sometimes I wonder if you do only have half a mind." Itachi smirked.

Fugaku slapped him hard across the face. "I will not be mocked. Sasuke might not be as strong a ninja as you are, but at least he's loyal to me. If you do or say anything again that makes me doubt your loyalty, I will make Sasuke the heir to the Uchiha clan. At least he will be easier to control."

Itachi could taste his own blood in his mouth. "You stay the hell away from Sasuke!"

Two months ago, Itachi had been almost certain that matters were about to come to a head. He had just been appointed as an ANBU captain. He had a sick feeling in his stomach that his first mission as a captain would have something to do with the Uchiha problem, as Shimura Danzo called it.

The bloodshed was able to be averted for some time, but the peace wouldn't last. The Hokage had tried to reconcile the Uchiha clan with the rest of Konoha. Itachi wasn't sure what decision they came to, but after the third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, locked himself in his office for three days with Uchiha Fugaku and Hyuga Hiashi, things seemed to calm down. One immediate change that Itachi saw was that one of their clansmen, Uchiha Kagami, was appointed to the Hokage's council.

Itachi's friend Uchiha Shisui was a great source of strength for him through it all. He confided in Itachi that the Uchiha conspirators had appointed him to spy on Itachi's movements. However, like Itachi, Shisui's allegiance was to Konoha first and the clan second. So when Itachi received the mission from the Hokage, Shisui was the first person he spoke to about it.

"You've got to be joking. The Hokage couldn't ask that of you. Your own father?"

Rubbing his tired eyes, Itachi nodded. "He wants me to dispose of all the conspirators."

"Do you need my help?"

He didn't fight his mother when she put him into the black yakama. He didn't have any fight left in him. At least, not since he heard the news that his father was dead.

During his seven years on this earth, the one thing that he wanted more than anything was to be acknowledged by his father. He wanted Fugaku to finally look at him with pride like he did with Itachi. Now that dream was dead, just like Sasuke's father.

They said that it was a terrible accident. His father and several of his other colleagues in the Konoha Military Police Department were at the office late into the night working on a police case. And there had been some kind of terrible accident. None of them had survived. One of the Konoha councilmen had been over to talk to them about the case and he had died too. Mother said that he was someone named Shimura Danzo. Sasuke didn't know him.

Sasuke knew that he was young. But he couldn't shake the feeling in his bones that something was wrong about the whole thing. He didn't think it was accident. But no one would listen to him. They all patted him on the head and said that they were sorry about his father. Sasuke had tried to talk to Itachi about it, but whenever he brought it up, Itachi would get a faraway look in his eyes and be completely unhelpful.

No doubt Itachi was busy with all the clan stuff. With their father dead, Itachi became the new head of the clan. He was only thirteen years old, so their mother was really involved with everything. In truth, she was the one really running things until Itachi turned eighteen and became old enough to legally make decisions for the clan by himself.

The day of the funeral finally rolled around. Sasuke had been dreading it. It was hot July day, two days before his birthday. He was sure that for the rest of his life he would always associate his birthday with his father's funeral.

His mother sat back of her heels and looked at him in the black yakama. Her face was very pale and sad. He put a hand to her face and said, "Mom, it's going to be okay."

The pained smile she gave him didn't reach her eyes.

The sound of soft footfalls in the room caused them both to turn. Itachi was leaning in the doorway. His eyes were so cold and sad. "It's time."

Sasuke couldn't remember much of the day. The only memory that stood out from among the rest was the feeling of his friend Hinata's hand in his at the gravesite, as he clutched it like a lifeline.

A/N: Vocabulary:

Hakama – (From Wikipedia) the most formal type of men's hakama are made of stiff, striped silk, usually black and white, or black and navy blue. While hakama used to be a required part of men's wear, nowadays typical Japanese men usually wear hakama only on extremely formal occasions and at tea ceremonies, weddings, and funerals.

Aniki – older brother

Otousan – father

Yakata – (From Wikipedia) a light cotton summer kimono generally worn for relaxing, for sleeping, or at festivals or summer outings.

Okaasan - mother

A/N: Please review!