Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto nor any of the characters, plot, or sub stories in it. It belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and the animating companies who made/dubbed it. I lay no claim to it, this is fan made and non-profit. So don't sue, it will get you nothing.
A.N. Yes, this is another one-shot for "Kyuubi the Bitch" and yes there will be minor already guessed spoilers. Sorry if this is too vague or Itachi is OOC but he wouldn't shut up and let me finish chapter 12 until I'd written this. So if chapter 12 is late, blame Itachi! Also I have not gone back through this I am posting as is for the hell of it. I'll go back through and probably re-post later.
Foolishness
He had always wanted to be like him.
That fact alone was enough to make him feel wretched inside. After all, he had never wanted the life he'd been granted. The pressure, the expectation, the lack of understanding, it all weighed down upon his shoulders in a way that had nearly smothered him. Worse of all was that he wasn't even aware that he was suffocating.
It was expected that he would be the best that he would graduate early, that he would achieve the blood line limit. His perfection was to be maintained and guarded at all costs because he was the family's poster child.
He had to be the best.
There simply was no other option.
He had lived his life that way, had known no other way to be or feel, and he'd been fine with it. He was an Uchiha. He was the best. And no one would accept him if he wasn't.
Or so he'd thought.
The moment Sasuke was born he began to notice the difference. Sasuke was slower than he was. The little boy cried, and stumbled, and his stomach was the most sensitive thing Itachi had ever seen—then again feeding the baby a slug probably wasn't the smartest move and if his father ever figured out it was him he could kiss his life goodbye—but no one cared.
It was baffling. Itachi couldn't understand it, and for a long while he hated his little brother. That he had been born to carry the weight of the clan name, while Sasuke was born to be pampered and loved regardless.
He hid it well, oh yes, no one would have ever suspected that he was boiling just below the surface. He'd even considered taking the baby out and leaving him somewhere far away, of course he never did, and in the end he was glad he had not, because one day he realized that the little pampered baby, loved him the best.
When he entered the room Sasuke twisted around to try and see him, and burbled happily.
When Sasuke learned to crawl he followed Itachi.
When the baby learned to talk his first word was 'Ita'.
When Sasuke learned to toddle, that was it, Itachi had a perpetual shadow.
He thought it was cool at first, vindictively loving the fact that the child would choose him over everyone else. Then again, he was the best, it was natural for the baby to adore him and spend his whole life trying to match him. Itachi knew Sasuke would fail at that, and that made his horrid life somehow worth it.
And then Sasuke almost died.
He hadn't even noticed the little boy had followed him to the training grounds, hadn't the slightest clue that when the sudden attack erupted that the tiny child was there until it was almost too late.
Itachi had always used the Sharingan.
It was a fact that he was the youngest to have achieved it, but until that day, when Sasuke had been grabbed by an unknown enemy nin, Itachi felt that he had never known what that actually meant.
That battle was what won him his Chuunin status.
It also was when he started to love his foolish little brother.
Sasuke was unharmed but was kept at home from then on. The little boy would scream and cry and throw the grandest of tantrums at his departure, but Itachi would not allow him to follow. When he came home the boy was waiting for him and Itachi could see the joy light up those small features when he walked through the door, and for the first time he knew what it was like to be loved for simply existing.
Sasuke didn't understand what it meant to be Chuunin. He didn't know what it meant to be an Uchiha, or the best. All Sasuke knew was that his big brother was home. That his "Ita" was back, and to his foolish little brother, that was all he needed to do to be great.
For the next five years that had been the one thing that kept him afloat.
Then he made Anbu.
His family had been beyond pleased, it was what their goal had always been. After Kyuubi, the entire clan was placed under suspicion. It was proven when the newly reinstated Third Hokage refused to allow them to adopt the Kyuubi container. He knew they had asked partially out of concern for the boy and the village. Anyone with the sharingan could help keep the nine-tailed beast at bay, but the other reason they had offered had been a test.
A test to see if Madara had been right.
Years after the fact, Itachi was finally old enough to understand the precarious position he and his family were in. Without the trust of the Hokage the Uchiha clan felt threatened and thus needed one of their own in a strong position to oppose or even tear down those in power.
Itachi was that pawn.
From the moment he entered ROOT he was aware of what was expected of him, and it made him sick to his stomach. He was raised to be a weapon first, and then learned to be a brother second. That was all that he was.
As a weapon, he knew his sole duty was to the Hokage and his village, and from what he was hearing whispered amongst the streets and from his father and mother, he knew that soon he'd have to chose between being the weapon and being the brother.
No sooner had this occurred then Sasuke entered the academy. Suddenly those adoring looks were laced with jealous contempt, and they hurt Itachi far more deeply than was acceptable of an Anbu. Still, Sasuke turned to him, followed him, and he could tell even from the quiet pout and nervous fidgeting that Sasuke loved him.
Him.
Itachi.
Not the pawn.
Not the weapon.
The Brother.
That was when the mission came.
Danzo had hand-picked him for the assignment. Had brought him before the Third and the council and told them of his idea, and like clockwork they had agreed.
He supposed he should have felt something. Heartache, fear, dread, but he had not. It had made sense and was the outcome he had been expecting from the beginning. He had been raised to be the perfect Ninja, the perfect unfeeling weapon, and that was what he was.
But he was also a brother.
That was where he stumbled.
Killing Shusui had been easy, and it had gained him the much sought for Mangekyo that Madara was rumored to have had. Not because he was his best friend, but because in killing him he had already betrayed his brother, and chosen to kill that little child as well.
Plotting and planning the rest of the clan's death was also far too simple, and he could have done it without batting an eyelash but then they had to come and accuse him in front of Sasuke.
That he would not stand for.
He'd lost composure then, and ultimately gave himself away to his father. They were direct decedents from Madara's family. They kept the darkest of the clan's secrets, they kept the history of the clan alive and thriving within the clan. When the children became Gennin they were told everything.
The Ninja wars.
The alliance that led to the building of Konoha.
Of Madara.
Of Kyuubi.
It was all laid out for them, and taught by his family.
So when he let his anger control him in that moment, that moment that had made him seem anything but perfect in his foolish little brother's eyes, his father knew he'd done it.
It made his mission that much harder.
It was then that he'd gone to the third and amended his mission.
In private.
No witnesses.
No exceptions.
In the end he was a brother first and for most.
… yet he was still a weapon.
So, he did what was best for his precious little brother.
He became the enemy.
It was fool proof, his plan, and in the end Sasuke would be able to live on oblivious to the darker sins of their family, and without the horrid trailing past drenched in blood and war. Sasuke could remain innocent to this and could believe in the power of his last name without being smothered by its weight. All it would cost him, was his joy, his happiness, and his life.
There was just one problem.
Too many still knew about the shadows around the Uchiha name. They may not know the details but many were wary, and that meant that his most dear foolish little brother would have no one to care for him. No one to turn to.
That was unacceptable.
So, he had waited long after Sasuke had collapsed in tears before him, stained in blood and tortured with the gore-filled nightmares he had inflicted, and debated on what he should do. He was cold, so very cold and empty.
He was lost, and once again the weapon without meaning. He had lost the one thing that had made him human, that had kept him alive, and he had done it by choice.
It was in this gloom that it happened.
The Kyuubi container walked into the Uchiha district.
Unsure of what that bad omen might mean Itachi had followed the bright child, watching his disturbingly animalistic movements until he'd made his way straight to Sasuke's side.
His katana was in his hands in moments.
Killing the child, demon within or not, would be child's play, and if that thing dared to harm his brother he would end him.
But then the boy lit up with such hope, such painfully recognizable hope, and joy as he wrapped Sasuke up in his arms attempting to help him, to save him, and Itachi was unable to move.
He couldn't even breathe.
The boy, the Kyuubi-container, was just as he had been before Sasuke had been born. He knew that look, and knew the feelings that caused it. So… he's the one. He thought and felt himself relax for the first time since he'd accepted the mission.
Here was someone who understood the enormity of what Sasuke was. Who understood how dear, how precious, how fragile his foolish brother was, and if he was there for his brother, then everything would be fine. His decision was further made when his attempt to separate them was met with violent denial, and a protective intent that nearly floored him.
"No! He's mine! You can't have him! I'll kill you!" The blonde boy screamed and trembled but refused to let go. Even when lifted from the ground he refused to let Sasuke go.
Yes, this boy was perfect for the roll Itachi needed him to play, and he would play it flawlessly and without any aid from him. With a satisfied nod Itachi lowered them both to the ground. His action startled the blonde and he glanced back slightly dazed, and then fear took over those blue eyes which darted about him and then back up.
"This isn't… you have to help, someone… something…" The child stumbled and it was apparent he expected to get blamed for the slaughter. Perhaps this boy was far more damaged than anyone thought. "Please, help me save him."
Those eyes begged but expected no help at all, and Itachi realized that this would work out far better than planned. This boy needed Sasuke as much as Sasuke would need him, and where he would save his brother, his brother would eventually save the blonde from the demon he carried inside.
They were both each other's keepers.
Without a word he lifted his foolish little brother into his arms, holding him for the last time, much the same way as he had that fateful battle that had pulled them together and gave him away to the blonde child. The rush of gratefulness and joy was unmistakable as the child leapt up and grabbed his hand with a small warm one. "Thank you!" He crowed as he proceeded to drag him through the town.
The child's residence was not what he would have liked for Sasuke but it would do, and as he lay his fitfully unconscious brother upon a messy bed, he bid goodbye to his life and glanced one last time at the blonde.
Blue eyes watched Sasuke as though he were God.
The same way Sasuke had watched him.
The same way he had looked at Sasuke.
Goodbye, foolish little brother.
He left without a sound.
Simply faded like the night, and with it he woke from the dream of being human and focused solely on his goal, plotting and waiting.
…and then he met the Speckled Serpent.
His brother was always foolish, and had always wanted to be like him. Yet, he was what Itachi had always wanted to be. He was what Itachi had wanted to protect, and now he was left to wonder just who was the foolish one between them.
He had always wanted to be like him.
A.N. Okay this came out of NO WHERE! And yes it is vague and yes it ties in some things but leaves others a huge WTF?! Sorry for the random spoiler for "Kyuubi the Bitch" but this wouldn't leave my head until I had written it so, here it is! Hope this answers some questions, and opens up more! ^-^
Also, Madara means "Speckled" in Japanese, at least according to my Japanese to English dictionary it does, and the "Speckled Serpent" part is important for later reasons I will explain at another time! Till then!