A/N: Okay so here is chapter two. I hope you enjoy it. ^_^ (I do not own Naruto, no sue sue!)

This Story Is Dedicated to ThatGirl96. Thank you for your support. You rock! :)

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Chapter Two: Release

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He was given a cloak and a partner. Such minuscule things really, and yet they would mark him forever. Mark him as a traitor. An outcast. Evil itself.

It fit him well.

The man called Pein, introduced him to a big, blue shark looking man.

"Kisame Hosigake. Your partner is now Itachi Uchiha." The Leader spoke.

A scoff came from the man in his middle twenties. "This kid? What makes him so special?"

The Leader shot him a glare. "A massacre. Of the entire Uchiha clan."

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"Why have you done this, Itachi?!" The angel screamed.

His pain was Itachi's pain. It was killing the older Uchiha to watch his brother's face contort with emotions as he gazed down at their dead parents.

They had been so easy to kill.

But he would never forget the look on his mother's face when he ran her through. She had simply smiled, her body trembling from the sudden loss of blood.

"I love you, honey..." She whispered. Her body went limp in his arms.

He showed no emotion; did not reply to her last act of love.

And then there was his father.

"ITACHI! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!" His drunken father hollered, blindly charging him.

Taking the tainted katanna, he did the same act to his father as he had done to his beloved mother.

"My duty." He murmured. "My duty."

Dance puppet.

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An eyebrow raised from the blue skinned man. "The whole clan, huh? Well-" A toothy grin spread over his features and he stuck out his hand. "I'm sure you'll fit right in."

Itachi stared the older ninja down. He was disgusted, no, absolutely repulsed that this man could be happy of such a horrible thing as the killing of ones whole family.

But if he was to fit in, he would have to play his part like the good actor he was.

"I cannot say I feel glad." He spoke lightly. "For I feel no emotion whatsoever. But I guess the proper answer to your statement would be: Thank you."

He smirked. "So, thank you."

Kisame stared at him for a moment, retracting his hand that Itachi had refused to touch. His tiny eyes sized him up, seemingly taking in every detail. Itachi did the same. Though he was shorter and smaller due to his age, he knew that if he had to fight his so called "partner" he would surely win.

"Kisame, show your comrade to his room."

Sharky nodded, his eyes narrowing a little at Itachi. "Fine, but first-" He pointed to the red and black cloak in Itachi's hands. "Put that on. You're one of us now."

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"To test the limits of my abilities." He spoke with malice. But it wasn't real malice. Not really. His cold tone was not directed to his little brother, but more to himself. He hated himself right then, and from now on, he knew he would always be hated.

And not just by the world.

By him too. He hated his own flesh and blood.

And then the angel charged, his eyes flooded with anger and sadness. Confusion as well. Sasuke's little heart had been torn and two.

And it had been by Itachi's own hands.

"DON'T FUCK WITH ME!" Sasuke screamed closing in.

He stepped forward, punching him in his stomach. He choked from the force of it and fell at Itachi's feet. Crying. The tears trickled down his face an onto the bloody floor.

Itachi wanted nothing more to wipe away the angel's tears, but he could not. Sasuke had to do this on his own. Sasuke had to be strong. Sasuke had to be stronger than Itachi could ever be.

And the beginning of his strength building started now.

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"This is your room." Kisame opened a door in one of the many hallways.

Itachi stepped inside and examined it. It was not that big, but it was not small either. A double bed was positioned in the center of the room, a tiny table with a lamp next to it. At the right side of the room there was another door leading into a bathroom. On the left, yet another door.

"What does that one lead to?" Itachi questioned, referring to the door on the left.

"That one leads to my room. Leader-sama had the bright idea that we all need to connect rooms to our partners; in case of emergencies." Kisame answered shaking his head. Obviously, he did not thinkly very highly of the idea. Good. They finally had something in common.

"I want to be alone." Itachi spoke sternly to the man behind him.

Kisame glared at him. "I don't quite get you yet, Itachi Uchiha. But you need to get one thing straight now that you're part of this organization."

Suddenly he was lifted off his feet and slammed into the wall; Kisame holding him up by his shirt collar. He growled as his eyes were flooded with a sea of red, the Sharingan boreing right into the others soul.

"Unhand-" He tried to say, but Kisame's grip tightened. "Listen here, boy. You do not run this show. And if you tryto run this show, you're going to get killed. Us Akatsuki members didn't just buy our way in; we're here for a reason. And we are much more powerful than you are."

Itachi's lips curled up into a snarl. He had to stand his ground. He had to be the most powerful, because he still had something he needed to protect.

He still had something to live for.

"Get off of me!" He screamed. "Do you even know what I'm capable of?!"

Reaching his hands up he grabbed Kisame by the shoulders and pulled him closer. "Do you see these eyes? If you ever, so much as touch me again, this is the last thing you will see right before you are thrown into the depths of hell."

And right then, he gave Kisame a small taste of what he was made of.

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"WHY ARE YOU SHOWING ME THIS ITACHI?!"

Because you need to hate me.

Sasuke screamed in agony, twisting and turning, trying so desperately to rid his mind of the images Itachi was giving him. He put his hands to his face and screamed so loud, Itachi was sure that the rest of Konoha must have heard.

At that moment the genjutsu ended and Sasuke collasped to the floor, his eyes lifeless. His mind, and his heart destroyed beyond repair.

And then there was the fear. And that is what hurt Itachi the most; knowing that his brother was now terrified of him. Knowing that their relationship was forever tainted with hate and fear.

And death.

The death was overwhelming.

Trembling, the angel now with broken wings turned and fled.

"I DON'T WANT TO DIE!"

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The jutsu was released. And he glared down at the man that had fallen to his knees.

"Do you...want to die?" Itachi asked calmly.

Kisame shook and looked up to him with those horrified eyes he knew too well.

"What...are you?" He choked out.

His eyes lost their threatening color and he turned away.

"I'm a protector." He closed his eyes.

That's right, you did good. Sasuke will be better off now.

"Now get out." Itachi hissed.

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Sleep, of course, was not an option that night for Itachi.

Instead, he occupided himself by staring at the beige colored ceiling, thinking of what his brother was doing right at that very instant.

He wondered if the words stuck. Would that cold, heartless filth that had come out of Itachi's mouth always be with his little brother?

Was Sasuke crying right now? And if he was, was there someone by his side, reasurring him? Consoleing him?

He was angry at himself for not thinking out things like this sooner. He should have made sure Sasuke had a friend to help him. He should have tracked down the nicest kid in the whole Village and dragged him to Sasuke's feet.

But truth was, he had left his brother all alone.

He wanted to smile, thinking that now they had something they could share even though they were far apart.

They were both alone.

Inwardly, he cursed himself for such a thought because he did not want his brother to be alone. He wanted him to be the strongest, smartest, most popular kid in the whole Ninja Acadamy.

He wished only happiness for him.

And yet, it was his fault that Sasuke could not be happy.

A sudden feeling over took him. He could see his family, each and every one. The whole clan. He could remember their deaths as a perfect image in his mind. He could still smell all of the blood as if he was back in Konoha, doing it all over again.

And he knew this feeling now...as sadness...

It was strange, seeing the tears fall after such a long time without them. After not being allowed to cry for years, and then having so much heartache that if he had not shed those few tears, it felt as if he would burst.

The reality of what he had done was only beginning to set in. It was not like a band-aid; it would not just hurt for a moment and then feel better. It would get worse over the years, like a drug. Killing him slowly as the knife of cruelty cut deep into what little heart he had left. There was nothing he could do to take it back. He could not fix it. He could only stand by and watch his own destruction.

But with his destruction, he hoped a renewal of peace. Everlasting peace would come with his death, he knew. And that was what he would hold onto from now on.

And as he laid there, in his new bed, alone. He realized for the first time that he had freedom.

He let the screams and sobs release from years of pent up sadness and mistakes.

And it was like a song.

His own dark, twisted melody.

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A/N: Well there is chapter two. Tell me what you think, please read and review. ^_~