Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.
She was giving him such a creepy, affectionate smile, he felt a sudden urge be sick.
Sasuke glowered back at the nurse, who didn't seem to notice.
"Ah, Sasuke-chan," she simpered, rearranging his blankets for the millionth time. "Your arm will be perfectly fine by tomorrow. I'm certain you'll make a full recovery!"
His eyebrow twitched. "I'm fine right now. Can I go home?"
The nurse looked stupefied. She fluttered her hands helplessly, reminding Sasuke of a demonic butterfly he and Itachi had once trapped. The memory brought a smile to his lips.
Finally, she seemed to be able to articulate her thoughts, but her voice was oddly shrill. "Absolutely not! I will not discharge you from the hospital until you recover completely and fully, do you understand?"
Sasuke glared at the ceiling, nonplussed by the sudden change in tone. He resolved to plan his escape after that hyperactive lady left him alone. Once her shift was over, he would finally have his chance to break out of the wretched hospital. Though…she would certainly be suspicious if he agreed with her plans all of a sudden. He decided to play along.
"But my parents," he whined. "They'll be worried if I don't get home before it gets dark."
The nurse trilled with high-pitched laughter. "Oh don't worry, Sasuke-chan. I'll explain everything to Mikoto-san. It's not the first time you've hurt yourself during practice."
Sasuke nodded, trying to keep an annoyed expression on his face. "But it is the first time I'm being kept in the hospital overnight."
"Call me when you need me," she said, ignoring his remark. She stepped outside the door, waving vigorously at him. "I'll be in the lobby."
Sasuke nodded again and waited for her footsteps to die away. When he was sure the coast was clear, he kicked off his blankets and prepared to crawl off the mattress. To his dismay, he found that he could not move. Something was restraining his body…
He was strapped to the hospital bed.
-:-
They found him there at dawn, standing over his parents' dead bodies, still waiting for Sasuke. Still clad in his ANBU uniform. He hadn't reacted when they filed into the room, but he knew they were there. And he knew why they were there.
"Uchiha Itachi," the first masked figure, presumably the leader, was unmistakeably male. He spoke with a calm authority, but Itachi could detect was a strange undertone of fear. This man had clearly been spooked by the bloody scene outside, Itachi decided in grim satisfaction. His eyes flickered to each of the assembled ANBU, then back to the corpses on the floor. This would be interesting. He hadn't expected they would send anyone after him, much less his former colleagues.
"An explanation, Itachi." The second voice was much softer and hesitant, and it was trembling slightly. He was unable to hide his emotions as well as the Buntaicho, it seemed. How interesting. It made it all the more appealing of a challenge.
"To test my abilities," Itachi lied smoothly, his face kept perfectly composed. He could feel four pairs of disbelieving eyes on him, waiting. Waiting. A muscle in his cheek twitched.
"You're lying," the squad leader said flatly, adjusting his stance so that he was blocking the doorway.
"Prove it." Itachi was almost smiling now. He was enjoying himself immensely.
A third ANBU, a woman in a striped cat mask, stepped towards him. Her comrades cried out in warning, but she ignored them. She held out one finger.
"One word," she said, her voice like steel.
Itachi's smile widened in anticipation. "That was two words, Yugao," he said lightly. The other three ANBU flinched. Itachi was intrigued but somewhat disappointed that she had neither reacted at the recognition nor at the contemptuous comment. Her eyes glinted dangerously from behind her porcelain mask, but otherwise she gave no sign that she had heard.
"Danzo."
Yugao watched as an expression of shock crossed Itachi's face. Then the smile returned almost instantly, but it was strained. He knew she could tell. There was no point in trying to hide it. "And if I deny it?" he asked, his voice deadly calm.
The Buntaicho strode forwards until he was standing beside Yugao. He pointed at him, his fingers trembling ever so slightly. "That was as good as a confession, Uchiha."
Itachi examined his fingernails, trying to appear disinterested. He didn't answer, and neither did they expect him to.
Yugao spoke again. "You're waiting for Sasuke."
Again, it was a statement. Itachi was impressed. "It looks like you've done your research well," he said, allowing amusement to leak into his voice.
She stiffened. "If you think we'd let you confront him, Itachi, you're sorely mistaken. The poor kid has had enough to deal with. There is no need to break him further. He doesn't need to know. And you will not be the one to tell him, I'll make sure of it personally."
Itachi's lips curved into a tense smile. So that was why…! He activated his Sharingan and everyone but Yugao recoiled. "So you kidnapped him? Is this why I've been waiting for nine hours and he still hasn't come home?"
"No. He was wounded during shuriken training." She narrowed her eyes. "Don't even think about telling him, Itachi. We've forcibly restrained him in the hospital and stationed half the ANBU forces to guard him until we've decided what to do. So think before you act rashly. And if you're still intent on telling Sasuke that you were the one who killed the entire Uchiha clan, I'll take you out myself."
"Is that so?" Itachi mused.
Yugao's gaze was icy. "We know the truth, Uchiha. We'll keep Sasuke safe from Danzo for you. On one condition."
"Tempting," said Itachi grimly. He closed his eyes. "And what…condition might that be?"
"You must never reveal the truth to you brother. He must never find out that you played a role in the massacre, especially not from you. It would shatter him beyond repair, and you wouldn't want that, would you?"
Itachi's face hardened. "Who are you to tell me what I want or don't want?"
"Hokage-sama recognizes the love you still hold for your brother, regardless of how hard you've tried to hide it over the past year," she said coldly, her gaze penetrating. She shifted slightly and drew her katana. "If you don't consent to our terms, we won't hesitate to take your life. Your death would fit the storyline quite well, anyhow."
"How remarkable," Itachi said, realization dawning on him. "You're going to tell Sasuke that I had been killed in the massacre as well?"
Yugao nodded stiffly. "Hokage-sama feels it is the only way to protect him. You do want him to seek you out in vengeance, am I correct?"
"Perceptive as always," he spat, his anger and despair at the situation finally getting to him. "So I have no choice."
She blinked owlishly at him and sheathed her sword. "Do we have a deal?"
"Hai," Itachi snapped.
"Excellent," said the Buntaicho, relief seeping into his voice. "Now we'll take you into custody and –"
"Do you really think I'll come peacefully?" Itachi interrupted, a hard glint entering his eye. "I won't go back on my word, but rest assured, I won't go down without a fight. Mangekyou Sharingan!"
A heartbeat later, the four ANBU crumpled to the floor, unconscious. Itachi sighed and hopped nimbly onto the windowsill. He tried to convince himself that it couldn't be helped. Then he turned around and took one last fleeting look at his dead parents before fleeing into the night.
This story was originally a random idea that I had to ease some writer's block. Though, I'm really enjoying writing this. Heh heh heh...