2: Destruction of the clan
"Sasuke! Sasuke! Where are you?"
I marched around the Academy training grounds, looking for any sign of my younger brother. The sun was steadily sinking and still he had not returned home.
"Little brat. He's going to make us miss dinner."
I rounded a corner and saw a small figure standing near a large wooden stump used for kunai and shuriken throwing practice.
"Sasuke! There you are."
The spiky-haired figure turned and gave me a tired but boyish grin that made me instantly forget I was angry with him.
"Sasuke, what are you still doing out here? Okasan is worried about you."
"I'm sorry Nee-chan, I was busy training."
I walked closer and wrapped my arm around his shoulder.
"You push too hard, little one."
"I'm not little! I'm 8 already!" he argued.
I laughed and pulled him along with me.
"Alright I'm sorry. Can we please just go? I'm hungry."
As if to agree with me, his stomach let out a low growl which made us both start laughing.
"How did it go with your missions today?" he asked me while we walked side by side down the dusty path to our village. I shrugged.
"Just the same old, boring D-rank missions. Nothing worth mentioning. I wish people would take me more seriously, like they do with Itachi."
"Will Itachi be home for dinner tonight?" he asked eagerly.
He asked me every night, and every night I gave him the same answer.
"I doubt it Sasuke. Maybe some other time."
Despite how much he hated being called a genius, a genius is exactly what Itachi was. His rapid promotion to captain of the ANBU had been remarkable for someone his age. But because of that, we saw very little of him. On the rare occasions that he trained away from the ANBU squad, I was either on a mission of my own or unable to slip away to watch him.
The one person I admired and loved with all my heart had become like a distant memory to me.
"Nee-chan?"
"Yes Sasuke?"
"After dinner. . .could you train with me?"
I looked over at him and saw he was watching the ground intently, afraid that I would reject him as Itachi had so many times before. I knew what it felt like, as I too had been turned down by him before. How ironic that both of us should love our elder brother so much despite his apparent coldness towards us and the family
I reached down with my hand and grabbed hold of his.
"Sure Sasuke."
He lifted his head, shaking his black bangs from his eyes and smiling at me. I returned his smile and turned back to the road before us.
I suddenly froze in my tracks, tightening my hold on Sasuke's hand to urge him to stop.
"What is it, Nee-chan?"
"Something isn't right Sasuke," I whispered.
We stood at the village gates, but the entire place was as silent as a graveyard. Nothing stirred.
"Maybe everyone went to bed early?" Sasuke suggested. I could hear his voice waver with uncertainty.
"The sun has just set. It's too early for everyone to be in bed."
I kept my grip on my brother's hand and slowly began to walk in. He stayed close to my side, his body pressing up against me. I wished I had some sort of weapon on me, but I had left the house with nothing.
A foolish decision.
We rounded a corner and I gasped at the sight that met my eyes. The street before us was littered with bodies. The sharp, metallic smell of blood hit my nose. My eyes widened, absorbing the sight despite my desire to shut my eyes and block everything out. I could hear my own heartbeat pounding in my ears.
Sasuke had jumped behind me and I could feel his small hands gripping at my shirt.
"Kaede, what happened?" he asked, his voice choked over with fear. I began to shake slightly.
"It looks like a massacre!"
"What about otosan and okasan?"
The thought of my parents snapped me out of my trance and I rushed forward. Sasuke followed closely behind me. The smell and sight of the bodies made me sick to my stomach, but I swallowed the urge to hurl and hurried past.
Every street we turned down looked the same – bodies and blood everywhere.
A battle had ensued, but it seems whoever attacked the village had more man-power than us.
Besides, they had the element of surprise.
I spotted several relatives of ours lying in a pool of their own blood. Tears burned my eyes, but still I ran on, not daring to stop. I could hear Sasuke sobbing behind me, but he didn't stop either, too afraid to leave my side.
We reached our house and I walked through the door. It too was as silent as everything else.
"Otosan? Okasan?"
Nothing.
"Otosan?! Okasan?!"
Still no reply.
Sasuke seemed to get over his fear quicker than me, because he rushed through the house, calling for our parents.
I followed him reluctantly.
Something inside of me told me what to expect, but I couldn't believe it.
Itachi! Where are you? Why aren't you here?
Another thought occurred to me. What if Itachi had come home early? What if he was dead like everyone else?
I wouldn't survive it!
"Kaede!"
Sasuke's voice was like an urgent hiss. I hurried over to where he was. He stood before our parents' room.
The door was closed, and from inside we could hear the sound of something or someone moving around.
Sasuke's eyes shot up to mine.
I could see the fear in his ebony eyes. We stood side by side for what seemed like hours, not daring to make a move. Finally Sasuke got up the courage and reached out for the handles. I stayed next to him, ready to protect him if the need should arise.
I was a kunoichi.
I needed to be strong.
Sasuke turned the handles and pushed open the doors.
He screamed, and I pushed him out of the way to see what he saw.
I couldn't believe my eyes.
Fugaku and Mikoto Uchiha lay on the ground in a large bright red pool of blood. My mind was spinning so fast I thought I would go mad at any second. I couldn't breathe.
My sharp eyes caught sight of movement behind the bodies of our parents and I instantly straightened. Sasuke moved in behind me.
Slowly a figure emerged from the shadows. There was no doubt in my mind as to who the figure was.
"Itachi! Oh Itachi."
I relaxed my body and took a step forward, eager to go to him, to cling to him and hide away forever. Now that he was here, we would be safe.
"What happened here Itachi? Who attacked our village? Who. . .murdered our parents?"
"I did," came his reply.
A nervous laugh escaped my lips.
"What? You couldn't possibly – " I stopped short as something whizzed past my ear.
Sasuke grunted and dropped to the ground. I spun around to see what had happened. A shuriken was embedded in the wall behind us and Sasuke was clutching at a scrape on his shoulder left behind from the blade slicing across his skin. The gravity of our situation slowly sunk in.
Itachi, our Itachi.
He was the murderer!
I turned back to him, my body shaking violently now. I opened my mouth to speak, but no words came out. How could he have done this?
"You killed them?"
Sasuke's voice sounded forced and dead from behind me. Out of the corner of my eye I could see him getting unsteadily to his feet. He too was shaking, but I realized it was out of rage and not fear.
He still didn't see our brother as a threat.
I held my arm out to prevent him from doing anything just yet.
"What did you do?" I asked softly.
Itachi's eyes closed for a brief moment, but as they slowly opened again, I could see his Sharingan was activated.
Only it was a different Sharingan.
With a jolt I felt something infiltrate my mind. My eyes blurred and the world around me changed. I could see the villagers, fighting desperately to stay alive, but one by one they dropped to the ground, dead.
"No, no, no, no!"
It was torture. The sheer agony of watching them die rattled my mind. I could sense their fear, feel their pain and suffering. And when I saw my parents kneeling on the ground with Itachi standing over them, the feeling multiplied.
"Itachi no! Stop!"
But it was too late. He brought his blade down and cut through our parents as though they were of no importance. They dropped to the ground, their blood splashing onto me. I couldn't move.
I let out a blood-curling scream.
My breath came in short bursts. Slowly my senses were coming back to me. My head was pounding, and I had no strength left in my body. The wooden floor was cold against my skin, and it lulled me into a false sense of security. Maybe it had all been a nightmare. Maybe I was in my room.
I shifted my eyes a little and saw Sasuke nearby. He too was lying on the ground, which meant he had probably fallen under Itachi's illusion as well.
His eyes were dull and almost lifeless.
"Kaede. . ." he whispered softly. His voice stirred me on, and I gingerly pushed myself up a little.
In
front of me I saw my parents, their blood surrounding them, and
Itachi standing nearby, towering over us all.
Fear gripped at my
heart and I collapsed again.
"Why did you do it? Why did you kill them?" Sasuke asked.
"To see what I could do."
His words were like a knife in my heart. Was that all we were worth? To measure his capability?
"That's it?" Sasuke asked. I could hear the anger in his voice as he pushed himself up.
"Sasuke don't."
"Don't mess with me!!"
Sasuke lunged at Itachi, anxious to attack him, to hurt him for what he had done. I tried to stop him, but it was too late and I watched in horror as Itachi swung his arm forward and punched Sasuke in the gut. My little brother dropped to the ground, inches away from where I still lay.
He was crying again, and I could see fear had finally sunk in and driven him over the edge.
"Don't kill me. . .DON'T KILL ME!"
Sasuke ran out of the room, howling in fear and terror. I was too weak to move, but I sensed Itachi approach.
"Those eyes. . .you have the Mangekyou Sharingan."
He didn't answer me.
"How did you – " but I needn't continue. I already knew the answer. My cousin Shisui's sudden suicide suddenly made sense. It had been Itachi all along. I should have been able to see it, but my admiration had clouded my vision, pushing aside all doubts I ever had.
And there had been many doubts.
"Little sister, you have known all along what I am capable of. You knew, yet you were content with living in my shadow, not daring to step out and be your own person. Until you learn what it means to be a superior shinobi, you will never be able to achieve the power you so desire. You are still too weak."
He stepped over me and went out, going after Sasuke although I didn't know it at the time. Going after him to deliver his last message to the boy who would become our family's avenger.
The boy who would grow into a strong shinobi.
One day. . .
