This is my second fanfic, a small oneshot that I wrote for the Uchiha brothers. Pre-massacre, pure Family fic. No pairings. Itachi is 13, and Sasuke is 8
That's the authors note, dudes. Enjoy the story, and hang loose.
It was a peaceful morning in the Uchiha compound. The sun was just rising over the mountain peaks to the east, and the sky was beginning to turn into its daytime blue. Strangely, most of the ninja were at home with their children and loved ones instead of out on missions for their village; Konoha had had an unexpected peace streak, and they weren't looking to disturb it.
Of course, that didn't mean that all shinobi took the off time and accepted it for what it was; no, the more stubborn ones were different. They looked for work everywhere and anywhere they could, each for their own reasons; some out of wisdom, some out of reason.
And some simply out of plain boredom.
Itachi Uchiha was one of those shinobi.
The child prodigy was currently twitching on his family's dock, feet dangling, tempting the water to surge up and grab. He sighed, and moved over into a different position; boredom had never struck him so hard before in his life. It didn't help that it was nearly 80 degrees at one of the coldest points of the day.
Many visits to the Hokage's office told him that there were absolutely no matters that required his presence, despite his begs, despite his pleads, despite even volunteering to help with the Academy work, it was always the same answer: "No, Itachi, there are no matters that require your assistance." Itachi somewhat even hoped that Konoha's peace streak would be disrupted by something; a terrorist attack, an attack from another nation, Hell, even a civil war would be accepted!
Realizing what he had just considered, Itachi mentally berated himself for such thoughts, effectively tossing all maniacal cures for his boredom out of his head. He would rather suffer from an extreme case of boredom than see his country locked in war.
A glance back at the upper floor of the family house told him that Sasuke had his face pressed to the window glass, breath fogging up his view. Sasuke caught his eye, and waved madly, a wide smile on his face. Itachi nodded slightly, acknowledging his presence, slightly surprised. The younger boy never chose to wake up so early in the morning. Sasuke disappeared from the window seconds later.
Itachi sighed once more, knowing that his peace would soon be disturbed. There was no doubting that his little brother couldn't resist rushing to join his brother to watch the sun rise. A shadow of a smile crossed his face when he realized that that was somewhat sweet, that he had a brother who cared enough to attempt to shake off his boredom.
Hearing the back door open, Itachi wasn't surprised by the pit-pat of Sasuke's sandals against the hard wood of the dock, or when the smaller boy sat down beside him. Sasuke smiled in greeting, and let his feet dangle off of the bay just like Itachi. They sat in silence for a while.
"Big brother?" Sasuke began a query, first checking to see if Itachi was listening. "Hn?" Came Itachi's grunt, signifying his acknowledgement.
"I just wanted to know," Sasuke continued, "What are you doing out here so early? I thought you didn't have any missions today."
Itachi's face remained neutral. "I am a ninja, Sasuke. It would be illogical for me to sleep later then I did, even on a day that doesn't require any missions to be completed. I would be starting a bad habit."
"Oh." Sasuke nodded slightly, understanding. His face grew a red tinge when he realized he had asked a silly question. Itachi smiled for the first time that morning. "I could ask you the same question, Sasuke. What drew you to come out here so early?" Sasuke's face frowned at this question, and he crumpled his nose. "'Cause I'm a ninja too, 'Tachi! I can't start any bad habits!" He pretended to toss a shuriken at the sky, and watched it trail off.
Itachi's face remained in a smile. "Of course, Sasuke. Of course." The brothers sat in silence once more, just staring at the rising sun.
"You know, Itachi, I never knew that the sun could be so pretty." Sasuke once again initiated conversation, this time his voice no louder than a mumble. "It always hurts my eyes when I try to look at it later in the day. Mommy said that you can go blind if you look at it for too long, so I try not to stare."
Itachi nodded, choosing to remain silent. The sun really did look nice, he observed; a perfectly formed yellow orb making its presence known, preparing to light the sky with its magnificence. Itachi turned his gaze to his brother who had his eyes half closed, his mouth forming a tiny O as he gazed drowsily at the sun. Itachi could tell that Sasuke was still tired, and he had simply waked because of his brother's presence.
"Sasuke, you're like the sun," Itachi commented suddenly. This woke Sasuke up slightly, and he stared at Itachi in horror with wide eyes. "People will go blind if they look at me for too long?" The question was asked fearfully, and Itachi chuckled.
"I didn't mean it like that Sasuke: I mean you're like the sun because of your light and power. You wake up every morning, and you have the power of a million suns. You can light all of Konoha with your smile, and you're the brightest person I know. You never stop going, no matter how many times you fail. The world is like the sky; it will grow darker, but you'll always be there to brighten it."
Sasuke's eyes drooped again, but he smiled as he listened to his brother's praise, finally happy that he earned some recognition.
Itachi's voice took on a grave turn, however. "Sasuke, they're going to try to burn you out." Sasuke once again woke, alarmed, and shivered. "But you said I'm like the sun! The sun can never burn out!" Itachi smirked. "Exactly."
Sasuke blinked in confusion, not understanding his older brother's play on words. He opened his mouth to complain, but Itachi gently pressed a finger to his lips, and continued. "It's a futile attempt. No matter how many times they try to bring you down, you must rise back up, as the sun does every morning. Promise me, Sasuke, that you will always rise back up."
Sasuke nodded, finally understanding. Determination appeared on his small, round face. "I promise, big brother! I'm never going to stay down!"
Smiling once more, Itachi nodded. "Yes, Sasuke, you have to-"
The boy surprised him when he put his hand on Itachi's shoulder. "But 'Tachi, there can't be a Sun without a Moon!" Itachi recoiled, surprised by the boy's outburst. He kept listening, however. Sasuke continued, "The Sun is nothing without the Moon! When I go down every night, there has to be someone to take my place!"
Itachi slowly smiled, bobbing his head slightly. "Then I'll be your temporary Moon, Sasuke." Sasuke frowned. "Why only temporary?"
Itachi's smile faded, and he glanced wistfully back at the mountain peaks. The sun was still barely visible. He sighed, before beginning sadly, "I'm not going to always be around for you, Sasuke."
Sasuke took it much better then Itachi thought he would, and nodded understandably. "I know, big brother. You have ninja duties to attend to, and soon, I will as well."
Itachi forced himself to nod his head. It was even harder to smile.
He knew the real reason he couldn't be Sasuke's moon.
He returned his sad, sad gaze to the sun, that was slowly creeping over the mountain top. With slight surprise, He realized that Sasuke was sleeping peacefully on his shoulder. Smiling, he moved the boy to a more comfortable position. A small grin appeared on Sasuke's sleeping face.
While Itachi knew he wouldn't always be around for his brother, he planned to be the best brother he could be.
Itachi watched the sun rise over the mountain peak.