Behind Closed Doors
Conversation 1: The Lost Ones
Characters: Kakashi Hatake, Itachi Uchiha
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto; the anime and all the characters and worlds within belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I'm just toying with the elements.
Summary: Interactions between characters that weren't caught on camera in the anime written as one-shots. Some of these will be more plausibly canon than others (I'll leave that distinction to you), so to be safe I'll say we're dealing with some alternate universes. But I'd like to think none of these moments are totally outside the realm of canon reality. Ages may be a little off, and backstories may be tweaked too. Rated M for safety, as future chapter ideas are unknown.
Dark and stormy nights didn't really happen in Konoha.
Given its position in the heart of Fire Country, some thought them impossible. It has been said that the lightning element is deprived of power around the village and, thus, there were no thunderstorms. Others believe the Shodai Hokage's forests have properties that stabilize the air around them with chakra and prevent lightning. Either way, no one really knows. And one Kakashi Hatake couldn't be bothered to find out.
It did make the lightning flashing through the sky all the more ominous though.
With a clap of thunder, the heavens poured down rain in quantities the young ANBU had only seen in Rain Country. The streets were quickly becoming less crowded as people rushed to their homes to avoid getting soaked. Soon, the streets were empty of life, the lights from within homes the only signs of life in the village. Even the ninja gave up on training for the day and sought shelter and comfort. For Kakashi, it was too late. He could feel the gear cling to his skin more than it should as walked down the street. His porcelain mask was slipping from the wetness of his hair and had to be held in place by hand. His shoulders slumped with the effort of carrying his tired body home.
Of course the biggest storm to hit the country in ever would start when he's just returned from his third S-class mission in a row. The month had been hell, and it didn't show any signs of easing up. "More penance for my sins, I suppose."
The tired shinobi trudged on, numb from the inside out.
His apartment was Spartan by design. The only decorations he had were a couple of team photos in his bedroom and the few stacks of books and scrolls littered around the living room. Having other things usually meant having memories invested in those things. And Kakashi wanted no part in the memories of others. He had enough trouble with his own. Still, it was home and he was never more grateful for it than he was in that moment. What he wouldn't give for a warm shower, a scalding hot cup of tea and a good book to fall asleep to…
Unfortunately, that didn't look like it was going to happen. He took his ANBU mask off and his lone uncovered eye landed on the form of Itachi Uchiha. His former squad-mate was perched on his kitchen counter, posture immaculate as always, in some sort of meditative state. He noticed the boy was wearing his ANBU uniform as well. Must've just gotten home from a mission. The older man proceeded to ignore him and wasted no time in stripping off his waterlogged armor.
"I'm guessing my shower will have to wait, ne Itachi-kun?" Kakashi was in the midst of fighting his soaked shirt off when the raven haired youth responded.
"I don't have much time, Kakashi-neesan. I apologize for the inconvenience, but this is of the utmost importance."
Kakashi stalled for a moment at the words before shuffling to find a couple of towels. After drying himself and wrapping the towels around his body, he collapsed onto his couch and patted the cushion beside him. The sound of the elements clashing outside vanished with a few handsigns from the Uchiha. Kakashi marveled, as he toyed with a strand of his now droopy hair, at how talented the boy truly was. The dip he felt in the couch let him know the young teenager was seated next to him.
The two genius ninja had an interesting relationship, borne out of their lives' hardships and the pressure of the ANBU mask. When Itachi was promoted to ANBU, Kakashi was asked to take him under his wing. He did so reluctantly at the time, but in each other they found kindred spirits and soon called each other brother. Itachi was the one and only person alive that Kakashi allowed anywhere near close to him. Even so, they usually didn't do house calls or sleepovers. That he would impose upon the elder shinobi was highly out of character.
"What seems to be the trouble, otouto?"
The boy, only fourteen, sighed as one who'd seen too much in too little time. Kakashi knew the feeling.
"Tonight is the last night I'll ever be whole again, aniki."
"I thought we agreed that I'd keep the depression if you kept the stoicism. Remember?"
"I have to kill them. All of them. Tonight."
The silver-haired prodigy was silent at that. Kakashi…was not as surprised at the news as he would have been, but the finality of it all shook him. Itachi had broken his pact to the elders earlier by telling him of all their plans on the massacre. How it would save more lives than it would end. How it was for the good of the country. How it was his duty as a shinobi of Konohagakure. Bullshit. All Kakashi could see was how two little boys' lives were going to be ruined. This was too much to ask of anyone, ninja or no. Part of his mind, the more paranoid and cynical part, thought his mission schedule picked up right as the elders were planning to enact the massacre. It was only his unusually early return that brought him to this moment. He filed that thought away for later review.
He knew Itachi could do it. Could kill those he loved so much in spite of their hatred of him. The boy was the perfect shinobi, practically S-class and heartless when necessary.
The Uchiha Clan wouldn't stand a chance.
Apparently, none of Itachi's pleas for the lives of Uchiha women or children reached the elders, with their hearts hardened by decades of war and bloodshed. Even the Hokage, as kind as he was known to be these days, couldn't stop the atrocities that would happen tonight. He wished, in that moment, that he was better at this consoling shit. But patting Itachi on the shoulder and telling him things will be alright didn't feel like it would suffice. And it wouldn't have meant anything anyway.
"Ah. And Sasuke-kun?" Kakashi knew how much Itachi loved the little brat. There was no way…
"He will live," Itachi intoned, "but he will hate me. And one day, he must kill me." He turned to me and his eyes glistened with tears that would never be shed. "I will warn the elders…afterward. When I am gone, you must watch over him as you have me."
The elder ninja sighed. "Maa, have I ever told you I'm really bad with kids? Like horribly bad." Somehow, his petulance brought a small smirk to Itachi's face. "Ok, otouto. I'll do my best." From a man who was not a whole man, that was the best the Uchiha would get.
Itachi looked up at him through lashes too pretty to be on a man. "Thank you, sempai." Kakashi tousled his hair.
"Is there anything else I should know, Itachi?"
To his dismay, the boy nodded. He told him about an Uchiha claiming to be Madara, the deal he made with him and the life he'd be living as a member of the Akatsuki. Kakashi sucked in a breath and held it for a while. It helped him think.
He released it in a huff. "I don't feel good about any of this. Things don't add up well for us. " Kakashi clenched his fists in frustration. "We don't deserve this."
The younger boy shook his head. "I know, but I can fight it more out there than I can here." Kakashi smiled a bitter smile. Who knew Itachi-kun was so idealistic? How could the boy believe they could overcome the plots of old men? It was all too much, even for him to want to face. Then an insane thought flitted across his mind.
"We could run away," the copy-nin blurted out, "Together I mean. They'd never find us." He scratched the back of his head at the notion as Itachi raised a single eyebrow. "Who's idealistic now, huh?" Kakashi thought to himself. He just couldn't control himself sometimes. Control was Itachi's department.
"Not one of your best ideas, sempai."
"No, I suppose not. Then I guess the plan stays the plan?"
"Yes, sempai. We can have our summons relay any changes to one other."
"You're sure you don't wanna run away and luxuriate in the Spring Country? I hear there are plenty of hot chicks there…"
A sigh. "Yes, sempai. I am sure."
A chuckle. "Can't blame me for trying."
The pair sat in silence for a while after that. Two unparalleled geniuses laid low by the harshness of life. Their lives a living sacrifice for the village to which they swore their allegiance. It had taken everything; it had given everything. It had the makings of a bad drama all over it. Yet, here they were: one about to become the most infamous murderer in the modern shinobi world, the other about to lose his only living friend forever. What more was there to say?
The silence was comfortable but poignant, filled with words unspoken and by the sounds of muted rain Itachi allowed through the barrier. They soaked in each other's presence, harmonized their spirits. There was little chance of this time coming back to them again. Too soon, Itachi rose to leave.
"Before I go, Kakashi, there is something I must give you." From his sleeve he produced a bracelet made of interlocking rings of obsidian.
"To thank you. For everything." Kakashi stared at the jewelry placed in his hand. It matched the necklace the boy never took off. His hand clenched the bracelet in his fist. He looked up to the boy and saw, not a boy, but a man of such inner strength, such purity, that his words of gratitude were stolen from his mouth. "Too young," he moaned to himself, "Too young!" He opted for a nod.
Kakashi rose to embrace the brother he never had, one last time.
He managed to whisper something to the younger boy, who then whispered a reply before bowing deeply before the copy-ninja. Kakashi memorized every line of his friend's form, burning these few moments into his memory. These were the only memories he desperately desired to hold. He returned the young man's bow.
When he rose, the Uchiha was gone.
All that remained of his visit was the bracelet now on Kakashi's wrist and a salty tear streaming down Kakashi's face.
The rain continued to fall.