Wolf (AKA: little.red's alter ego with a penchant for the cruel and sarcastic…also enjoys midnight walks and eating little children, usually likes to pick his own prey but will work for hire)

Little.red (AKA: your stunning authoress who enjoys writing enough to take all English and creative writing courses in university, has a fear of the telephone and tends to start things but not finish them)

Reader (AKA: you, the wonderful person reading this with that look on your face that wonders if the person who wrote this is even halfway sane and, who will, at the end of this chapter, no doubt –because you're so very nice and wonderful- review)

Disclaimer (AKA: the 'I don't own Naruto so don't eat me' speech)

Sacred Innocence

Beginning

"Itachi, what's wrong?" Itachi glanced up angrily at his father, wondering if the man was truly human.

"What do you mean what's wrong, she's just a little girl!" His father shrugged carelessly, his mouth forming into a disapproving frown.

"So? She was created in order to breed with the strongest Uchiha to create a child that would hold the ultimate power of the sharingan within its grasp. Just think of the power our clan would hold with such a tool at out disposal." Itachi stared at his father, feeling slightly sick. He had seen many things in his short lifetime, hell, he'd killed many men in more ways than he should have had to know at his age, and he had always known that his father was power hungry.

But this? This was something else entirely, this was worse, it was true insanity, the kind that continued to grow, corrupting all it came into contact with. For once in his life Itachi was frightened, but it wasn't for himself that he felt fear, it was for the little girl in the picture and what his father planned to do with her and eventually her future offspring.

"No." It was the first time he had ever denied his father, but in this Itachi knew he had to, he couldn't do it, he couldn't take such a young girl, not even old enough to know a thing about real life, and bring her into his father's corruption, into his plans, he couldn't, especially with the innocence he saw shinning through her eyes even though it was only a picture.

"What did you just say?" His father's face was slowly turning an angry purple, his eyes feverish and hard, yet also fearful, because his father knew he couldn't overpower him, so his father was left with the one choice he had always used before, intimidation.

"Listen here you little brat, you'll do what I tell you if you know what's good for you, don't forget who owns this house and who leads this clan." Itachi took a calming breath, looking once more at the picture his father had given him, seeing the innocent smile already coated with a sadness of the pure, no, he couldn't aid in the corruption of such a creature.

"I said no father." His father seemed to realize that intimidation and threats wouldn't work this time because his eyes grew even colder and he spun on his heel, throwing his parting words over his shoulder before disappearing entirely.

"Fine then, you may be the strongest Itachi, but Shisui is almost as powerful as you, and he at least knows how to follow the orders of his betters. I had thought to make you into someone the Uchiha clan could be proud of Itachi, but I see it is Shisui that will get that honor." Itachi sat back and glared at where his father had been, digesting his words and cursing inwardly, knowing that his father was right and that Shisui wouldn't have a problem going along with the plan.

Shisui was ambitious and coveted power, it was one of the reasons Itachi had become friends with him, because it was a personality he knew how to deal with and admired in some way, but Shisui wouldn't say no, he didn't have a conscience, he wouldn't see the innocence shinning up from emerald green eyes. He would have to be stopped, no matter the cost, just so long that that innocence remained intact.

Itachi stared out at the devastation, at the blood and death, even as his brother lay unconscious on the cold earthen floor. His father's words from after he had discovered that Itachi had killed Shisui still rung in his head.

"It matters not who it is, understand me boy, so long as there is just one Uchiha left standing that girl will be used for her purpose and the most powerful Uchiha ever created will be born, there is nothing you can do to stop it."

But he had, he had stopped it, he had killed his entire clan, but he couldn't kill his little brother. He couldn't destroy innocence for innocence; he couldn't kill his own brother, not even for her. So instead he let his brother live, but he had turned Sasuke's mind onto one thing, revenge.

He knew how Sasuke worked, his little brother would focus only on getting revenge, on killing him, and thus, he would never seek out the girl and even if she came to him, unknowing of her part in the plot, he would ignore her, he would be blind and she would remain safe from taint.

Yes, she was safe now, that little girl could live out her life in peace. And yet, he didn't know why he had gone to such extremes, he couldn't understand, all he knew was that there was something in her eyes, something that needed to be protected above all else, something he wanted to keep intact, something he would go to the ends of the earth to sustain.

Looking out once more at the destruction he had wrought for one little girl he quietly left his village, his home, his life, whispering a few last words into the night.

"Stay innocent Sakura, stay pure little blossom."

Well, that's the prologue for you, hope you enjoyed it. Review, it makes me like you...well...that and type more because people actual read what I write, but let's not get into that shall we?