Author Note: I wrote this forever ago and in one of my classes I was allowed to write a fanfiction so, I took this one added to it and well this is the end product. Hope you like it! :)
Redemption
Staring out into the ocean he was flooded with the memories of his childhood. His beloved nii-san, his brother, whom he followed everywhere, the brother he loved with every fiber of his being. The brother that he idolized was gone. He had killed an innocent man. He was not sure which hurt more the memories, or the smile that graced his brother's face as he stumbled towards him. Each step causing him more pain, the blood that stained his lips crimson, stumbling, coughing, struggling to die beside his beloved otōto . Struggling for every breath, every single step, dying a criminal so that he could return to the village that condemned his brother to a life of disgrace. Sasuke bit his lower lip struggling against the tide of emotions that flooded him. His chest constricted and he was suffocating, drowning in memories of his brother. How had things gone so far? Why did Itachi not share his burden? He could feel the tears falling from long black eyelashes. He would destroy everyone that caused his brother harm. He would watch them struggle just as Itachi had struggle his whole life. He would make them beg for death.
However, revenge is not always what he imagined it would be. Killing Itachi had caused him more suffering than anything else, killing Danzo did not bring Itachi back, nor did it free him from the nightmare he called a life. He wondered why he was unable to get anything right. He could not bring himself to destroy the village without learning the truth, the whole truth. Not just Itachi's story, but all of the village's history. Reviving Orochimaru he sought the truth within the underground temple of his clan he listened to each Hokage tell their tale. From the first Hokage speaking of the war that began everything, the foundation of the Leaf Village by Uchiha and Senju, and his wish for a better future for everyone. His desire to create a world where children did not have to become soldiers and wives did not die for their husbands mistakes. The Second Hokage only spoke of how the Uchiha's were cursed, doomed to die, that he was not surprised, but rather glad that they were massacred. After all, he was the one to create the wounds that festered and bubbled over into the massacre. He had kicked the Uchiha clan to the outskirts of the village to a village that had once been a prison and branded them as outcasts. Yet even he realized that among the Uchiha there were people like Itachi who would sacrifice everything they had for the greater good. The Third Hokage only spoke of regret. He praised Itachi for being wise and kind. Itachi, who had been given an unfathomable burden and embraced it without remorse in his heart and slaughtered his family with a single condition; that his little brother be shielded from harm, from the truth. Itachi who had the wisdom of a man ten times his age, whose heart was filled with love, and whose only desire was for peace. The Fourth Hokage had simply apologized to Sasuke wishing he had been able to change the course of fate. After all, his wife and Sasuke's mother had been friends. They had hoped their sons would grow up together, as friends, and comrades.
Sasuke closed his eyes, jaw clenched, as he thought of the memories Itachi had shared with him before dying a second time. He recalled his parents on their knees accepting Itachi's decision, praising him, telling him they understood. He remembered his distraught brother trembling, his sight blurred by the tears that streamed down his face. Sasuke recalled his father's final words to Itachi, "Do not fear... This is the path you chose. Is it not? Our pain will end in an instant. It's nothing compared to what you will face. Even though our way of thinking differs I am proud of you. You are truly a gentle child." He had felt his brothers anguish the way his heart seemed to shatter into a million pieces, promising to watch over Sasuke, and accepting his fate as a criminal. He felt his brother's remorse, he had felt his brother's throat clenched, and his hands trembling as he killed their family. Sasuke took in a shuddering breathe and opened his eyes, trying to blink away the tears, and continued to remember. He needed to think things through to understand what he wanted.
He recalled Itachi's final words to him after the Edo Tensei was finally released and his brother returned to the afterlife, "Now that I think about it… I'm glad I told you before this happened, Sasuke. Now I'll never have to say it again. For I've lost all my truth, never again. I always lied to you, telling you to forgive me. I used these hands to keep you far, far away from me. I did not want – you to get involved—but now I think maybe you could have changed father and mother – changed the Uchiha. If I would have faced you from the start, stood at the same viewpoint as you, and spoke to you the truth, but I failed. And speaking to you now like this isn't going to tell you anything. That's why I just wanted to show you the truth, even just a little. You never have to forgive me – no matter what happens to you from here on out. I will always love you." Itachi, who had suffered unspeakable injustices and suffering, only had words of love for his little brother. Itachi who should have hated the world would forgive his little brother any crime. He would forgive Sasuke for destroying the village he died to protect and he would forgive Sasuke denying him his wishes.
With thoughts of his brother, the history of the Leaf Village, and the Uchiha clan flooding his mind Sasuke Uchiha returned to the old Uchiha compound. He stumbled through the compound and wondered what it would be like to live there with his nii-san again. He stared at the pictures that still filled the empty halls. All the good memories flooding his mind, memories that were forever gone, he felt tears well up in his eyes. He reached out and gently picked up the first picture that he saw. It showed a seven year old Itachi holding a two year old Sasuke both staring at the camera with happy smiles on their faces. Sasuke swallowed a sob as he continued to walking further inside.
"I'm so sorry that it had to end like this, nii-san. " Sasuke whispered hoarsely into the empty halls. Every time he closed his eyes all he could was Itachi's smiling face. He would see Itachi reaching for him, carrying him home after he sprained his ankle, and holding him after a nightmare. Sasuke gasped and stared in front of himself seeing a baby sitting there. He blinked trying to clear the image before realization hit him. He was seeing some of Itachi's memories. The baby began to cry and he heard his brothers soft voice nothing more than a whisper. A voice he would ever hear again.
"What's wrong Sasuke? What do you need?" Sasuke felt his brother getting up as if he were right beside him. He saw Itachi's hand reach out with a toy shuriken and let out a bitter laugh when his little self knock it out of his hand and started wailing at the top of his lungs. Chubby hands reaching forward eager to be held.
"You're an annoying little kid aren't you, brother? You're always crying about something." Sasuke could hear the smile in his brother's voice as the Little Sasuke was picked up and all was peaceful once more. He felt himself smile at the innocence of that memory. He had forgotten what things had been like before everything fell to ruin. He had forgotten what it was like to feel save and warm. He no longer knew how to be happy. Sasuke kept walking until he made it to Itachi's old room and walked in. Sitting down on the bed and looking around he could remember sneaking into the room when Itachi was resting or reading. He had always been eager to spend time with his big brother. Everything in the room was neat and exactly as it had been all those years ago. He never went into this room; he had hated his brother for so long that he had forgotten that at one point there had been nothing, but love between them. He stared at the red notebook that he had never been allowed to look at and had refused to look at after the massacre. He reached for it, opened it, and began to read one of his brother's first entries.
Now that the baby has been here for a while I don't really mind him anymore.
He is actually really cute, and has calmed down a bit, not much. I made a promise today while mother and father were away. I will always protect him, because he is my precious baby brother.
Sasuke skimmed a couple more pages and smiled at all the silly memories that his brother had chosen to record. His brother had loved him. He was glad that his brother's desire to die a criminal had been ignored and that he had been allowed to learn the truth. He wished that all the joy from his past would come back, that his brother would return to life, and they could create a new reality filled with laughter. He left the manor with the journal and a couple pictures to remind him of how things had once been. He walked towards the forest where he had sprained his ankle trying to impress his big brother; forcing Itachi to carry him home. He could remember following Itachi day after day hoping that his brother would train him. He had forced Itachi to buy him some candy on the way home stopping to look at the cherry blossoms. He took a deep breath and decided his new course of action. He would fight for the Leaf Village, he would forgive them for killing his family, and he would forgive them for destroying his brother. He headed towards the battlefield with a new desire in his heart, to make his brother proud by defending the village he laid down his life for.
After all, Sasuke had always idolized his big brother. There was nothing that he loved more than spending time with him. All his favorite memories were always of time spent with Itachi. They would play hide-and-seek and Itachi would train him or have some words of wisdom. Even though Itachi was always busy with school work, or missions there was always time for Sasuke. Sasuke now realized that his brother's smiles were always tainted with a deep sorrow, almost as if he had always known that he would be the one to destroy Sasuke's world. Itachi did not feel sorrow for his own fate, but rather for the curse he was forcing on his baby brother. Yet, Itachi did not resent the Leaf or the people that had destroyed his world instead he protected the village from the shadows. He traded love for hatred, honor for disgrace, and died, twice, with a smile on his face. Sasuke steeled his resolve to protect his brother's wishes. After all he was raised in Itachi's loving embrace. It was Itachi who loved him above all others and now it was time for him to show his brother that he had grown up. He would dedicate his life to making his brother proud. He would prove that he was worthy of Itachi's sacrifices and that he was worthy of redemption for his own crimes. With a final look to his childhood home he moved forward towards a new tomorrow.