Last time it was Deidara and Tobi, and now it's Itachi. Akatsuki rules, huh? Anyway, I think that this story would also go in "even a villain is a human" category, along with Real Art.
Here we go: nightmares... Is there anybody who doesn't have them? I guess not, and Itachi is not an exception. But we all know that what is a nightmare for one person, not necessary must be a nightmare for another, right?
I do not own Naruto. Naruto (c) Kishimoto Masashi
Nightmare
Itachi is sleeping soundly when IT begins. It's not the first time he has had this dream, as it comes back every few weeks, so he knows what to expect. He also knows that now it's too late to try to break away from that unreal world he has already been dragged into. No matter what he would do or what method he would use, he'd never be able to wake up after the dream has started. Thus, he does nothing and expects what is to come inevitably. He's fully aware that it's only a dream after all and that awareness itself is something that surprises him the most.
The dream isn't scary. At least not in the way one could expect it to be. There are many things, much more dreadful and frightening, that still haunt his dreams, but Itachi has never called this one with a name different from 'a nightmare'.
It always begins in the same way. He is in a house, one of these traditional houses which are somewhat similar to the one he used to live in. It's not a place he has ever been to (not in his real life), yet it looks oddly familiar. And the fact that he has had the same dream many times isn't the reason that would explain this strange feeling, because he has always felt in this way.
He doesn't even have to look at himself to know that in this dream he's a child again, a twelve, maybe thirteen-year-old boy. Itachi knows he's wearing dark clothes and a black cloak with long, wide sleeves, very similar to the one he wears now, as an Akatsuki member, yet missing red clouds on it.
His feet move soundlessly on a wooden floor when he runs chasing after shadows. The inside of the house is dark, but he has no problem with finding the right way. And he knows that the one he's after is still somewhere before him, yet closer and closer with every second that passes. He follows that unknown person, possessed by strong emotions – all of them mixed so much that Itachi can't even say what he actually feels and, what is even worse to him, he can't control his own feelings.
Finally, he finds the one whom he's been following. It's dark and Itachi can barely see an indistinct shape curling up on the floor, in a corner of the room he has just entered. When he raises his left hand with a knife in it, part of his mind notices this fact with surprise, as he can never remember if he has been holding it in his hand before. He's ready to strike a blow when he suddenly catches a glimpse of his face reflected in the blade.
The blade is too small to reflect his face. The only thing he can see is one of his eyes. He looks at it, somewhat mesmerized, as his eye starts to change and within seconds Mangekyou Sharingan appears in it.
Itachi drops the knife, not being able to hold it any longer. Something inside him breaks and he doesn't care any more about the one he's been chasing for. He gives a piercing cry and is brought to his knees, crushed and defeated by what he's just seen, because in this dream that Sharingan is his curse. He knows it will only bring him misfortune along with sadness and sorrow, leading him a narrow path through shadows to the darkness waiting for him at the end of it.
He wakes up suddenly, his body cold and trembling, and for a while he isn't sure if the dream is over. He raises his left hand and lowers it almost immediately, noticing how much it's shaking. He feels tired, but he also knows he won't be able to fall asleep this night. And he's only glad that after all he doesn't scream in his sleep, as all his cries are only part of that dream.
Seconds pass one by one and Itachi calms down, regaining his composure after a longer while. He can't stop thinking about this dream, which in such a twisted way exposes something that one could call his weakness – emotions. He's afraid, but not because he feels them - he's never feared of feeling emotions, however, he buries them deep inside his heart and never shows them. No, he's afraid because of the other reason.
The line which separates sanity from insanity seems to be as thin and fragile as the one which separates dreams from reality. And once the line is crossed, it's impossible to come back and that's what makes him feel afraid. He doesn't want to cross that line, and deep in his heart Itachi feels that the only thing that still prevents him from going insane is his ability to control his emotion.
Time passes and Itachi keeps thinking. A single thought appears in his mind, something that he must have been told long time ago, although he can't remember who taught him that. He knows that everything in this world has its own price, price we often pay without thinking for things we get or we've done. And he can't help wondering if that recurring nightmare is his price to be paid.
THE END
Interpret this story in the way you want, in fact I have really mixed feeling about this one. Never before has I had so many problems with searching for right words to express what I wanted to write.