Uchiha Itachi was a hero.
He, single-handedly, had saved the entire village of Konohagakure. In one night he had rescued Hidden Leaf, and spared its citizens a fourth bloody ninja war.
He'd done it alone. It was a job that only he could have done, and he did it well, with his customary taciturn stoicism and cold-hearted efficiency.
Only, Konoha didn't know he was a hero.
The Akatsuki didn't know he was a hero.
Only five people besides himself knew he was—one had taken it to the grave in battle, three were preparing to take it to their graves in old age, and the last was saving that piece of information for when Itachi took it to his.
Itachi, though he knew he was a hero, didn't like to be called it and never once considered himself one. If what he had done was heroic, then Itachi would be a villain for the rest of his life. He'd become a hero because he'd wanted to protect his village—it was what heroes did—but his love for his village was beginning to dwindle.
After all, how could he love a village that made a man a hero for killing his own family?
