Summary: It was his mission. It was his duty. To follow it would make him a traitor to his kin. To deny it would be a betrayal to the village he was loyal to. Everywhere he turned, he was betraying somebody. (Itachi!Tribute) -SPOILERS FROM CHAPTER 402- (And maybe before that chapter as well...)
A/N: Omg! It's Itachi-sama's birthday! June 9th, minna, June 9th! So I had to write a drabble for him, considering I didn't write one last year... Gomenasai, Itachi-sama! So after hours of staring at a blank screen (and matching words to their definitions to donate rice, whooo) I finally got inspired. Because for a while now, I've been wanting to delve deeper into the mind of Uchiha Itachi. Because I seem to do it enough for Sasuke and Naruto. -eyeroll- I know, it gets kind of old. So here is my tribute to Weasel-san's birthday. Big thanks to Valiant Poison who offered her opinion - Tsukiyomi is a technique of the Mangekyou, love. xD ...I think this has gone on long enough. Just past the disclaimer and then onto the Itachi lovin'. Oh, one more thing. The title, Kokuzoku no Sekinin, means 'The Traitor's Duty'.
Disclaimer: 1. If I owned Naruto, Sasuke and Naruto would have confessed their feelings long ago (There's something there. –starts humming that song-). 2. Itachi, Deidara, and Sasori would still be alive. 3. Orochimaru would have died a pathetic and shameful death BEFORE SHIPPUDEN. 4. And this is a reeeeeeally big stretch – Sasuke and Itachi would have talked it out, instead of a fight to the death. Now, onto the actual writing, the best part of this, duh.
Kokuzoku no Sekinin
Amarxlen
So let mercy come
And wash away
What I've done.
-What I've Done; Linkin Park
He was sitting, perched carefully out of sight, his chakra signature hidden as he surveyed the bustling Uchiha clan. His clan. It was the last minute of normalcy – soon his world would be turned upside down. As he continued to watch, more intently than before as his father came into view, he couldn't stop the wave of resentment.
The man before him was the one who had pushed him harder than any father should ever pressure their son. The man before him was the one who disregarded his younger son, instead opting to focus on his elder son, the son who would rather let his brother share the limelight. The man before him was a traitor, less of a father than the boy – mature beyond his years – who wanted to be his younger sibling's perfect brother.
He tore his eyes away from the traitor and his crimson orbs swiveled around the compound. All these people – laughing, smiling – were liars, deceivers. All but one... His eyes continued to rove across the unsuspecting clan until they landed on the young boy he was searching for.
The young boy before him was the one who was the only one of the clan that he actually cared about. The young boy before him was the one who struggled to surpass his older brother. The young boy before him was the one who wanted nothing more than the acknowledgement of their father. The young boy before him was determined and hopeful – heading into maturity the slightest bit slower than his brother, but would be rudely shoved through that thin line between innocence and corruption.
And it would be his fault. He looked away from his little brother shamefully, darting off through the trees before his resolve could falter. The traitorous clan would fall.
The smell of blood was making him sick, the bodies around him rooting themselves into his mind, seeds of doubt. But like a good ANBU, like a good shinobi, he had stifled the remorse, reiterating to himself: This was his assignment. They were his targets. They were traitors. And like a good shinobi, he would lie to protect his mission.
"Why?" His mother asked sadly, staring up at her son, confusion, despair, and betrayal splashed in her eyes.
"You'd betray the village." He answered, gaze stony, apathetic.
"You'd... betray your... clan?" His father questioned accusingly. The ANBU's obsidian gaze moved to his injured father.
"My duty is to the village. As was yours."
"Father! Mother!" The voice echoed through his head and he looked up from his parents – traitors – and towards the door.
"Sasuke... Don't come in..." Anger sparked through him at the voice and quicker than the regular eye could see his katana descended upon them. He looked down at them apathetically – emotions weren't part of a mission. The door sliding open caught his attention and he felt the urge to comfort his younger brother: There was a reason. There was a cause.
But that wasn't allowed. He wasn't allowed to comfort his younger brother as the smaller shouted questions, tried to find a sufficient reason, tried to discover who was heartless enough to shatter a whole clan. And now he was the traitor.
The shuriken were thrown purposefully, barely skimming his younger brother's skin. Even that was a betrayal.
"Foolish little brother." He was a traitor to his brother. He was a traitor to his own emotions. He thrust his own flesh and blood into the horror of the Mangekyou Sharingan.
Forgive me, Sasuke. Every plea for forgiveness, for exoneration had built up to this moment. And he hadn't asked nearly enough. He was unforgivable – sin embodied. Pain was his shadow.
"It was to measure my capacity." A lie. To his ears it sounded hollow – to the younger it sounded insane. There was never a good reason to sacrifice a whole clan, especially your own flesh and blood. So he questioned it.
"It was essential." Omitting the truth. But he couldn't allow his eyes to fill with remorse – would he rather let his own clan destroy the village he loved? This was his assignment.
And then his brother rushed at him, rage, betrayal, and hatred filling familiar onyx orbs. The script required that his brother remain convinced of his betrayal, convinced of his apparent insanity. So the younger - nearly a mirror copy of the older - lay on the floor, eyes filling with tears, unable to yank his gaze away from his parents' corpses.
He recited the script, read from it, made it believable. He longed for the carefree days when Uchiha were merely another pillar holding the village up, instead of a traitorous bunch of chameleons slowly tearing down the foundation of the pillar that stabilized the village.
After his brother was safely taken care of, the older Uchiha fled the village as a traitor. How ironic that he would be known as a traitor, for killing the real traitors and doing his duty to the village. How ironic indeed...