Naruto: As the Heavens Cried

A/N: Right, hello. So…I'm not too sure about this story. It came to mind after reading the nth story about Sakura finding Itachi after the big Uchiha Family Reunion fight and saving him. I decided I felt it was, hm, unrealistic, so I decided to give this story a shot. I dislike Sakura x Sasuke and actually prefer Sakura x Itachi so this was interesting to write, especially since it's a non-romance piece for me. And as I have yet to fully grasp the characters of Naruto, they may seem a little off, so I apologize in advance.

Please feel free to leave helpful comments or reviews after reading. And apologies for any spelling errors and poor grammar.

As the Heavens Cried

By: Strata's Stargazer

It had started to rain again, Sakura noted dimly as the first drops of water fell from the sky to land on her.

Despite the fact she disliked the feeling of wet clothing against her skin she remained where she was, eyes staring straight ahead of her. Her gaze was unfocused, unwilling to take in the surroundings around her just yet. It would come soon, she knew, when she found the effort to stand from where she sat and rejoin the rest of her team in the search for Sasuke after they had followed the signs pointing to him having fought here recently.

From the labored breaths of the man next to her, she knew she would only remain in the spot of scorched and blood covered rocks for a few more minutes.

After all, that was how much time Uchiha Itachi had left to live.

From next to her she heard him shift slightly and she cast a quick glance at him from the corner of her eye. Blood continued to trickle from the corners of his mouth, caused by the broken ribs that had punctured his lungs. She had also noticed the failing body, illness, and the potent smell of strong medication and had briefly wondered how long Itachi had tried to stay alive to torment his brother.

The eyes that gazed up at the sky were black, nearly identical to Sasuke's, but with Kakashi-sensei's information she figured he couldn't see the grey sky above them.

"You…I know you…" Itachi gasped and Sakura tensed but otherwise didn't move. With almost no chakra and his liver and kidneys no longer functioning, not even the Uchiha prodigy could make his body move. "Haruno…Sakura…"

"Yes," she whispered, not surprised he knew who she was, nor did she care enough to find out how.

"You…haven't killed me yet…I'm surprised…"

"I see no need to kill a dying man."

But how she wanted to. The man in front of her had destroyed Sasuke's life and was ultimately the reason why Sasuke had left Konoha, had left her, three years ago. She wanted to dig her kunai in his heart and listen to it come to a stop then bring him back enough just to do it again and again. She wanted to find a way to make him experience all the pain she knew Sasuke had to have gone through and make it ten, no, a thousand times worse.

"You hate me."

"Yes."

They lapsed into another silence and Sakura could hear him drowning with every breath. From the corner of her eye she watched as his body was racked with convulsions of pain, but she offered no relief nor did he ask for any.

"Are you…here to make sure…I die?"

"No. I know you will die. There is no way to save you."

"There never was…to begin with…All I wanted…was to save…Sasuke."

"S-save Sasuke?" Sakura stuttered in surprise before turning in furious anger to glare down at the Uchiha, even knowing he wouldn't be able to see her. "You did nothing to save him! You broke him, twisting his mind until all he could think about was finding the strength of kill you! You drove him to Orochimaru!"

"That was not my intention!" Itachi hissed at her with a short burst of his own anger and Sakura flinched back as those blank black eyes turned to her. "I wanted him…stronger…to beat me…save Konoha…"

"Yeah, well your plan sucked," Sakura snarled and Itachi's lips twitched for a second.

"So it…seems…" he agreed before he coughed, blood splattering over his face.

Grabbing on to her arms until it hurt, Sakura listened as he tried to control his breathing but knew from the gasping his lungs were finally giving out. The medic in her wanted to save him, but as a shinobi and Sasuke's friend, she could not let him live. She knew his death would let her and Naruto come one step closer to bringing Sasuke back home, a step they needed desperately in a race they seemed unable to win.

"Why…stay… if you weren't…"

"Because, Uchiha," Sakura bit off softly, her hearing picking up his now erratic heartbeat as it, too, finally gave out. "No one should die alone."

"Hn."

With another twitch of the lips, Itachi let out one last breath before becoming still next to her. Blinking, Sakura tilted her head back to stare up at the grey skies that continued to cry upon them, ignoring the constriction in her chest. Uchiha Itachi was a murder and a traitor and he did not deserve her tears, and even if she wanted to cry for him and Sasuke, for the twisted fate of the Uchiha, she would not let herself do it.

Pushing herself to her feet, Sakura glanced one last time at the body of Uchiha Itachi before turning and walking away without looking back.

A/N: So, I hope some of you liked it? I promise one day I will post a more happy Sakura x Itachi fic (while I mercilessly leave Sasuke in Orochimaru's care :D ).

Again, please review!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor do I want to own Naruto.

(Now Kiba, Neji, Kankuro, and Itachi... I want to own them. Just my own little personal harem...)