Little Brother
By TwinEnigma
Disclaimer: I do not own the Naruto series or characters. I am doing this purely to amuse myself.
Warnings: Massively AU, includes the anime-only character Sora and some passive references to that arc.
Sasuke had always been dependent on his brother as a little boy. There were few other children close to his age in the Uchiha district and, even then, the gap in years far exceeded the five years between the brothers. It was not entirely unexpected then that he came to idolize and rely upon his brother as both friend and a goal to strive towards. But Itachi was a genius, excelling in the Academy, and didn't always have time for his little brother.
It was after a particularly spectacular tantrum on the five-year old's part at Itachi's chunnin promotion party that their father, Fugaku, decided he was going to put a stop to this unhealthy dependence once and for all. There were many other factors at play that prompted the decision, but some were far more clandestine and Fugaku did not feel it necessary to enlighten anyone outside of the Uchiha - the fact that he was troubled by Sasuke's behavior was more than adequate justification.
When told of the decision, Itachi was furious and refused to speak with his father. He would not speak to him again for several weeks out of spite. But it mattered little to Fugaku - after all, Itachi would come to realize the wisdom in the decision eventually and there were many other things to worry about.
Mikoto accepted the decision graciously and hid her concern for Sasuke. She knew it was for the best all around.
Sasuke was inconsolable. He promised he'd never throw a tantrum again, he promised he'd be good and, when that failed to move his father, he cried, demanding to know why they didn't want him any more.
"It's for your own good," Fugaku told him sternly.
And at the end of that week, Fugaku departed for the Fire Temple with his youngest son to enroll him as an initiate. It was harsh indeed, but this sort of behavior could not be indulged and neither he nor his wife could see another way to stop the problem from escalating further, not while both of their sons were still living under the same roof. Then there was the matter of the clan's plan and it was really much better that Sasuke be away, just in case.
With the promise of annual reports (and maybe a visit) from Chiriku, the head monk of the temple, Fugaku left for home. He felt somewhat guilty, but this was all for the best: Sasuke would grow stronger as a person there, instead of languishing in his brother's shadow. And so, Fugaku turned his mind to other matters, content that Sasuke was in good hands.
Very shortly after his father left, Sasuke got in a fistfight with his new roommate, Sora, a cocky boy with a damaged arm and a loud mouth.
The two ended up in the infirmary for a good week and half, nursing their bruised egos. With nothing else to do besides sulk and sleep, they got to talking simply to chase away the boredom – first baiting each other with insults and teasing, then commenting on how boring it was and, finally, talking to each other.
Sasuke told Sora all about how he wanted to be just as strong as his big brother, how his missed home, and how good Mama's soup was (and, oh, how he would do anything for a bowl of it right now instead of that nasty rice porridge).
Sora told Sasuke about how his father used to be one of the great Twelve Guardian shinobi, how much he wanted to honor his memory by mastering his abilities and becoming strong, and how good that soup sounded (because that porridge was horrid and he had no idea how anyone could stand it).
It was the start of the first real friendship either boy had ever had.
Three years later and just a few short days before Sasuke's eighth birthday, Itachi was ordered to exterminate his clan to the very last man. He had not seen his brother in three years and had put his baby brother far from the front of his mind between his rapid advancement through the ranks and the chaos of being a spy. For him, Sasuke currently existed as an abstract concept more than a person, an existence confirmed only by periodic letters from a monk he'd never met and the childish-but-improving scrawl of kanji on paper which reminded him of a little boy he could only partially recall. After all, it was very easy to forget someone you haven't seen in a little over three years. He had not forgotten about the decision that sent his brother away, but in many ways - moreso now than ever - he was actually grateful for it.
Itachi kicked his father's body away and stared at the letter clutched in his mother's hand. Carefully, he pried it out from her fingers and unfolded it.
Dear Mom and Big Brother...
He paused, looking back in the direction of the village proper. Maybe he wasn't the only one who'd forgotten about Sasuke.
Itachi examined the letter curiously; he noted the most important things about what his little brother was up to at Fire Temple, such as his burgeoning interest in sealing jutsu and his plans to visit in the next few days. Itachi then speared the paper to the wall with a kunai, raised a blood-smeared finger and wrote out a message for his baby brother.
Almost as an afterthought, he added the words, "Happy Birthday."
Author's Notes:
Sora is a filler character in Shippuden, with the downside that his crazy father sealed residual Kyuubi chakra in his body. It looses whenever Sora is angry or frustrated. He and Sasuke would get on like houses on fire. In this universe, their friendship is what prompts Sasuke to study sealing. I realize Fugaku sounds pretty harsh for sending a five-year old to a monastary for a tantrum, but... the biggest reason for sending Sasuke away revolves around the Coup - Fugaku wants Sasuke out of the line of fire and Sasuke's unruly behavior is the paper-thin justification he needs to get him somewhere neutral.
I originally wrote this a while back as part of the now-gone Variables fic. I've retooled some of it, though, and I may actually continue this if I feel like it. The concept of ninja monk-Sasuke would be... interesting, to say the least.