Chapter 1 - Balance
"You know, I use to always think it was romantic to be able to die on the same day, month, and year as the one you loved. Knowing that you'd be able to pass on together with the one you love at the same time-knowing one of us wouldn't be left alone to live in this cruel world alone," she blinked, trying control the mix of sadness, anger, and hatred she was feeling, "-that even in death, we'd still have each other- when I thought this... never in a million years, did I expect this."
Rain was pouring hard. The night was cold and dark. Her back was flat against the chilling pavement. Though it was dark, the colour of blood seemed to illuminate the night. Red. So red. So much of it is flowing, flowing out of her, signalling that her death is near. She couldn't tell what was more cold, the night air itself, or the kunai that was positioned on her neck, ready to slice it open in mere seconds.
The night seemed to sing a rhapsody for this scene. The climax was near and all that was needed for the conclusion was the finishing move from him.
"Come on, do it. Kill me already. Is this not your duty? To kill those who would destroy what you hold dear? Why are you hesitating Itachi? Do it already. You know if you don't make the move, I will destroy Konoha and Sasuke myself. Wouldn't that be making all of your preparations be in vain? You are a shinobi, you kill the enemy. It shouldn't be hard since I never meant anything to you. Do it. Kill. Me."
His Sharingan eyes seemed to twist in pain like her heart did. Though she said all of this, there was no denying that the droplets rolling down her cheeks was not raindrops.
"Kill... Me..." she whispered again. And finally she felt the skin of her throat being torn away by the kunai.
So Konoha meant that much more. She knew that of course.
Amongst the living, there are those who live like they are living, but there are also those who live as if they were dead. Why live when there's no reason to live? Why not just end life there? Those are some thoughts which flow through the minds of those who have lost so much.
One never knows true pain until they have lost the only thing that made them smile, and it is sad because most things, once lost, cannot be regained. In the cruel world that we live in, there are precious moments in which everything is so right, where everything is perfect- so perfect that you begin to believe no one can take those things away from you. But that is simply naive thinking, because the world runs on a scale. Everything must be balanced, and balance requires good and bad. Hence, everything good, must come to an end. Nothing is forever.
In the Shinobi world, life is precious. One's life is always on the line, and many die at a young age. The fight for peace is- hard to achieve.
The slap to her cheek sent her flying across the room. Her hand instantly went to her cheek to cover up the redness that was sure to form. She said nothing, and did nothing.
"Get up!" her Sensei ordered. And so she did. The rest of the class merely watched as he continued to slap her. She could hear them snicker and laugh at her because she was slightly different. Was it so wrong to have one azure eye and one pitch black eye? Was it so wrong to be what they called "a freak?" This was the way she was born, yet, they could still ostracize her for something she could not control. The world was a sickening place.
This wasn't the first time her Sensei had done this, however, it was the first time someone had stopped him.
"Sensei," a bored, calm voice called from the doors.
Sensei stopped striking her for a moment and addressed the voice,"What?"
She turned and met eye to eye with the one who had intervened. She knew him. Everyone knew him. He was the Prodigy and his clan was her Saviour.
"May I ask why you are slapping my clansmen like she was a piece of trash?" Itachi asked coolly.
It seemed as if even the Academy teachers had a fear for him. Perhaps being such a young genius scared everyone.
"C-clansmen?" her Sensei stuttered.
That made the whole class gasp and it brought a chilling smirk to Itachi's face, "That girl," he pointed to her, "is under the protection of the Uchiha clan and anyone who harms my own is my target."
Her Sensei and the class had fear in their eyes because they knew what the young, 8-year old boy was capable of.
"Are you threatening me, boy?"
"No, that would be very impolite of me, I am simply stating the facts. Do not, I repeat, do not, hurt the people in my clan," he warned with a dangerous tone. Her Sensei backed down.
The young girl sat there in silence, she hadn't moved an inch, but she was conscious of the exchange that just happened. She could feel it as Itachi's chakra approached her.
"Akane, it is time to go home," he grabbed her arm and helped her stand. her face was bruised severely and very red. Seeing it made Itachi very irritated. He turned towards the girl's Sensei and shot him daggers.
He grabbed onto her hand and lead her out of the academy. Once they were outside of the academy, Itachi sighed and suddenly the air around them felt lighter.
"Akane, you need to learn to stand up for yourself, had I not found out about your predicament, I wouldn't have been able to help," Itachi told her while shaking his head.
Despite what he said, she just nodded her head. To stand up for her self meant that she actually cared for herself, which she found hard to do since she had been abandoned when she was born. He sat her down half way home and started to send chakra into her face to heal it a bit.
About one year ago, she was found by shinobi in the village, she doesn't remember much from that night, but everything before that was clear as day. She grew up on the streets of Konoha, picking out of trash to survive. She never really understood why she bothered trying to survive, when the people in the village clearly did not want her. She was not fond of those memories but there was one that she was fond of. She clearly remembers a young yellow-haired boy who smiled at her. Genuinely smiled at her, and for once in her six years of life, she had never been happier to be alive. No one had ever smiled at her, and till this day, she remembers that face.
Later on, she was brought to the Uchiha's to be more precised, Itachi's home. The man who brought her discussed with the head of the clan about her. About her eyes. When the head of the clan took one look at her eyes, he declared he'd take her under his care, and told her nothing else. From that day on, she lived in this mansion, but she felt empty. It had been one year since Akane began to live here but no one outside of the clan knew except for the man who brought her. Over the year, she became accustom to the Uchiha routines, because she was an outsider, she was not included in much clan business, but the family was nice enough to her.
Akane being the person she was, didn't talk to anyone much. She did what she was told and just kept quiet. Once in awhile, she would talk to Mikoto-san, whom she did not call anything else. She was very nice to Akane and made her feel welcomed. She talked to Sasuke sometimes and Itachi always acted like a brother to her. But deep inside, they were not her real family.
"Okay, Akane, I'm all done, are you ready to go?" he offered his hand to her. For the whole year she has known him, Itachi has been nothing but nice to her, part of that made her sick. How could someone be so nice- so generous... it made her feel very monstrous.
She nodded her head and took his offered hand. His hand was rough but very warm, a feeling she was not accustomed to, but welcomed very much. Akane didn't understand why, but she liked having him be there for her. He was the one person who made her feel like she- wasn't a monster.
"Hey, Akane, about your eyes..." Itachi began and scratched his head as if he didn't know what to say. Akane looked up at him, he was slightly taller than she was, not too much considering it was only a one year age difference.
"Uhm..." he continued, looking up to the sky as if a script was written there for him to read. She simply continued to stare at him with a tiny bit of curiosity because he had never talked to her about her strange eyes. This would be the first, and truthfully she was a bit frightened.
"Don't let anyone call you a monster because of your eyes, they are special, they are unique, they make you- you. So don't hate them," he said calmly, "And truthfully, I like them very much," he smiled down at her.
A childish, and innocent smile. A smile so pure that it can only signal the time for peace to end.