Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I am not making any money off this. This is simply my take on the large blanks Kishimoto-san left for us in the Uchiha's history.
Warnings: This story spans from war to massacre to abuse of various forms. Topics in this may be unpleasant for the reader so reader discretion is advised.
Spoilers: This contains spoilers for Kakashi Gaiden. All other information referenced in the story should only involve episodes that have been shown on Cartoon network and Chapters that have been published in volume format in English.
Thank you to Chibinecco for the Beta, and Beachlass and Mija for reading this as it was posted in rough draft to my LJ
Notes: This was completed for National Novel Writing Month and is complete, it will be posted chapter by chapter as they receive their final edit.
The Uchiha Massacre
- Chapter 1 -
Uchiha Itachi was one of the youngest children ever admitted to the Konoha Ninja academy. He was only four years old when he first stepped through those doors. His older cousin, Shisui, was almost five when they both started at the academy. It was wartime though, and many of the other children were only five or six. The two Uchiha, however, were near unstoppable. They were quick. They were smart. They were deadly. In a clan known for stand out academy students, they were even more skilled and noticeable.
Shuriken, Kunai, Ninjutsu, Genjutsu, Taijutsu … there was nothing the two seemed incapable of. The following spring, Itachi was four still and Shisui had turned five. The war was nearing its end and more and more of the Shinobi could be found around the village. With the war going well and victory seeming certain, spirits were up and the members of the Uchiha clan were looking forward to the coming peace. The clan was strong. Fugaku had taken control of the clan from his father. The work the police force had done to maintain the security within the village had directly related to the expected victory.
It was a Friday, and classes were out for the rest of the day. Itachi and Shisui snuck off on their own. They didn't have to train today. Tonight there was a party in the village, a celebration of a major battle being won in the war. The future Forth Hokage was being honored at a festival. Itachi had told his parents that he was going to be practicing after school, but in a rare moment of unsupervised time, he snuck off through the woods near Konoha. Last night, he had overheard his cousin Obito saying where his team was going to be practicing the next day.
Sneaking through the forest near Konoha, the two boys quickly reached the practice field where the future Forth was training his three young chuunin. The two Uchiha faded into the shadows of the trees. Their small sizes aiding them in avoiding notice. Dark, observant eyes watched Konoha's Yellow Flash lead his chuunin students through movements. The man flitting from student to student by using his body flicker technique. While Shisui was watching the older man, Itachi was watching the moody silver haired older child. Hatake Kakashi. The boy was good. He was supposed to be the genius of the Hatake clan. However, no one spoke of that clan anymore after what Kakashi's father had done. Well, no one spoke of it openly. Itachi's father often spoke of it in private. He spoke of the shame that had befallen a once noble clan. For some reason Fugaku seemed to blame the Hyuuga clan. Then again, even Itachi had noticed that his father often blamed the Hyuuga for things.
Shisui didn't notice Itachi watching the Hatake child, his own interest was fixated on their blond sensei. Itachi, on the other hand, watched how exact the movements of Kakashi were. They reminded the small boy of his father's movements. As if they anticipated the movements of an opponent. As if the boy had Uchiha eyes. Calculations like that were something he had not seen outside his own clan. The boy would be a worthy opponent someday. However for how, they had to return to the Uchiha compound to get ready for the festival. Itachi had a plan though. He would be five in just a few more months. He would try and prove to his father that he deserved to wear the Uchiha crest. He would perform a fire jutsu and prove to his father that he was worthy.
The two boys snuck back to the Uchiha compound, no one noticing the two small, dark shadows entering the walls of the Uchiha district. Itachi knew he could find his father near the pond at this hour of the day. Darting through the reeds, he didn't even startle a single crane. As he approached the edge of the large pond, he saw his father on the other side. Every day, his father walked that path before returning home.
Itachi's hands flew through the hand signs, channeling his chakra to his mouth as he held the tiger sign near his lips, "Goukakyuu no Jutsu!" As he exhaled, the chakra channeled into fire. The water of the pond danced orange and red as the flame reflected off it's cool surface. Red eyes flashed on the other side and within seconds of the Jutsu's release, Itachi's father was in front of him. For the first time in Itachi's life, he saw something unfamiliar in those eyes. For once, his father was looking at him with pride.
For the first time, Itachi walked back to his house with his father. The elder Uchiha held his young son's hand as he entered the house. A smile graced the man's face. Four years old and his son had mastered the Katon. How could he not be proud? Suddenly Itachi was the center of attention. His mother smiling and kissing his forehead. His father smiling as he looked at his son proudly. An Aunt trying to figure out how to alter a Haori coat so that it would fit the small child's frame. He was the youngest to be able to wear the Uchiha fan in a very long time, and his family had every intention of him wearing it to the festival that night.
As the sun set, he walked with his father and mother to the festival. Soon they would have a new Hokage. The war was in its final days, and people were starting to anticipate a peace treaty. The night didn't seem as if it was for the Fourth; instead, it seemed to be for a small Uchiha. The Uchiha clan was strong, and nearly all the members were shinobi or retired shinobi, even more so than the Hyuuga. The fact that Fugaku's four-year-old son had the Uchiha fan on his back was not unnoticed.
Itachi ignored the fuss over him. He had his father's approval, and that was all that mattered to him. He was with his father when they met the future Forth again. The man's three person team was with him as well. Itachi did not even mind his cousin Obito ruffling his hair. However, when his idiot cousin told him he looked like a girl, the young boy bristled at the insult. The silver haired team member simply shrugged at Obito and muttered, "It looks fine."
Itachi ignored the remarks from Obito and the name-calling of 'Ita-chan'. It did not bother him. The Hatake child had said it was fine. He decided that he would not cut it and let it grow. What did Obito know anyways? The Hatake child always beat his cousin in combat anyways. Better to listen to the stronger teammate rather than the weaker one.
Itachi was still near ecstatic from the attention the silver haired boy had given him. As he walked home with his father, nothing could bring down his mood. He had preformed the Katon that proved he was a true member of the Uchiha clan. He had gained his father's attention. He had been praised by the clan. Most importantly, the silver haired teammate of his cousin had noticed him.
When he got back to his room in the house, everything came crashing down. His father walked him back to his room before helping him out of the ceremonial clothes. His pride at his father's attention quickly turned to shame as the older Uchiha explained he was a man now; and as man, he had responsibilities to his clan and his clan head.
It seemed like that night lasted forever. When his father finally left the room, Itachi was hiding under the covers of his futon. The world felt wrong. He felt dirty and used. He did not want to sleep that night. He did not want to go to the academy the next morning. He did not want the sun to rise. He just wanted the world to stop, so he could stay hidden there for the rest of time.
At some point that night, Itachi did fall into a fitful sleep. He woke to his mother entering the room, carrying a bowl of water and a washcloth. Without a word, she cleaned him up. Washing away all evidence of what had happened, she carefully tended to him. When he looked into her eyes, he expected to see something. He expected anger or disgust or some protective emotion like his mother should have. He saw other kids when they were picked up at the academy, children older than him, and they had parents concerned about kunai scratches, and parents who congratulated them on a good grade. He did not see any of that in his mother's eyes. Instead, she simply dressed him for the academy that day.
After his mother left his room without a word, a servant brought Itachi his breakfast, all without a word. He knew the servant knew, but the woman was a Uchiha and wouldn't say anything. Everywhere he looked that day there were only Uchiha. Before he hadn't noticed, any Uchiha that married outside of the clan, lived outside of the Uchiha compound. Only Uchiha lived there. Uchiha police patrolled the streets. Uchiha ran the stores. Uchiha built the houses. Everywhere he looked, dark hair and dark eyes stared back at him.
Maybe it was his imagination as he walked to the academy that day, but it seemed all those dark eyes were watching him. Watching to see what he would do. What would he say? He was a Uchiha though, and simply walked to the academy without a word. That day Itachi realized why his clan was so closed and so quiet. They all had a secret that could not be told. It all made sense. The Uchiha men who divorced their non-clan wives to move back to the compound with their children. The woman did the same thing. Uchiha eyes were too observant. Everyone knew. It all made sense. Before his fifth birthday, Itachi realized he would be head of a clan of monsters. His family was not what chased away the monsters in the night – they were the monsters.
