Chapter 2 : The Uchiha

Water trickled down the stone fountain and into the small pond out in the yard.

A small boy, about five and a half years old, slowly slid open the paper doors as quietly as he could. He peeked through the crack he had made to see the white-haired girl sleeping peacefully. Someone shoved the peeking boy lightly.

"Tach, hurry up! What if Uncle Fugaku catches us?!"

The peeking boy turned around to the other, the tips of his growing black hair shifting in the night breeze. The boy who had shoved him had shorter, unkempt hair; the wild strands refused to be tamed so his mother had always left it that way.

"Shh," the peeking boy held a finger to his lips as he shushed the other. "If you say another word, Otou-sama really will hear you!"

After looking both ways, the boy opened the door wider and slipped inside; with a frown, the other boy followed him inside. Both of them cautiously made their way over to the large mat that served as the little girl's bed.

"Neh, Tach–"

"Shisui-nii," Itachi scolded the louder boy with a hiss. Shisui brought his hands up in defense and continued in a softer voice.

"Itachi, you told me she's been asleep for three days right?" the boy nodded. "Do you think she...she will...you know...wake up?"

Itachi glowered at his cousin, "this is Shizuka, nii-san. She's strong. Oka-sama said she's going to wake up soon."

Shisui sighed. Itachi may be his best friend, but sometimes he really didn't understand him. "So what are we doing here?"

Feeling it unnecessary to answer him, Itachi slipped under the covers with the little girl causing the older boy to raise an eyebrow.

"What are you doing, Tach?!" Shisui's eyes widened in alarm when his cousin had slipped underneath. The long-haired boy shushed him.

"I'm going to sleep here."

"Itachi, you're crazy! Come on, let's go back!" But the younger refused to budge, even when his cousin grabbed his arm. Shisui growled in frustration, he had never seen the younger so stubborn before. Itachi shook his head, firmly, but gently, placing his arm around the sleeping girl.

Running a hand through his already-messy hair, Shisui let go of his cousin's arm. He had promised to spend the night with his favorite cousin so they could stay up all night and play, not so they could stay up all night to watch a white-haired girl sleep!

"Fine. I'm heading back to your room," the older made a face before walking back towards the door. "If Uncle Fugaku yells at you, I'm not helping you!"

The upset seven-year old walked back to his cousin's bedroom, leaving the two others alone. Itachi smiled, glad that his noisy best friend was gone now. He propped himself up with one arm, using the other to brush a few stray, silvery strands away from the sleeping girl's face, just like he had seen his father do to his mother once.

"Neh, Shizu-chan, when you wake up I'll take you wherever you want with Shisui-nii," Itachi spoke softly to the girl. "Wake up soon...please..."

Closing his weary eyes, the five-year-old boy pulled himself closer to the girl. Soon, he too fell asleep.

The very next morning, a long, dark-haired woman had just finished dressing herself when her bedroom door was slid open. She pulled her hairbrush through her thick hair one last time before placing it down.

"Fugaku, I thought you left?" she turned around to find, not her husband, but a small boy with crazy, ebony hair.

"Aunt Mikoto, where's Tach?" the boy asked, rubbing his tired eyes. In a few quick strides, she knelt down beside the child.

"What do you mean, sweetheart? Weren't you two together?" Mikoto placed her hands on the tired boy's shoulders as he shook his head.

"I dunno..."

Frowning, Mikoto stood up and took his hand, walking down the length of the house. Itachi's bedroom door was left open from Shisui's departure; the owner of the room was nowhere to be seen.

A few minutes of just standing in the doorway, the dark-haired woman recalled her husband's words from the night before about taking their first son to work today.

Sighing in relief, Mikoto picked up the short-haired boy before making her way to one of the guest rooms. Along the way she calmly explained to her nephew that his best friend had gone with her husband to the KPF Headquarters today.

Her own best friend's husband had asked her to watch over their adopted first child while his other child and wife were being cared for in the hospital. Knowing full well of the young girl's dislike of the nurses in the hospital, Mikoto had happily accepted the favor without a single problem. Being the main heir of the Uchiha Clan's wife, she lived in the largest manor in the Uchiha Compound. Space had been no problem for their guest. Not only that, her family was already quite familiar with the new Namikaze family.

When she opened the door, Mikoto realized that their families may have been too familiar with each other. Curled up underneath the white blankets with Shizuka was her eldest son, Itachi. The two small children were snuggled quite comfortably under the blankets.

It wasn't until Shisui shifted in her arms that Mikoto remembered what she was coming to do. She placed her young nephew on the ground as she knelt down beside her son.

The young Uchiha slowly opened his eyes when his mother shook him once. However, what shocked her was that the little, white-haired girl shifted when Itachi sat up. Her hands grabbed at the spot Itachi had been sleeping earlier only to find air and cloth. She frowned, furrowing her light eyebrows as she opened her silvery eyes slowly.

The first thing little Shizuka's eyes landed on was the boy who had been by her side. Almost immediately, she threw her arms around him, shocking everyone else as well. A now very awake Itachi was knocked back slightly, slowly wrapping his arms around the little girl. Her grip tightened and her shoulders moved as if she were sobbing. The five-year-old Uchiha gave his mother a confused look and the kunoichi took this as her cue to take the little girl into her arms. She gently ran her fingers through Shizuka's silky, pale hair as she shushed her with calming words.

"Shh...did you have a bad dream, Shizu-chan?" the girl only nodded as she buried her face deeper into the woman's apron. Itachi frowned, feeling upset that his presence alone was not enough to comfort her.

After Shizuka had calmed down a bit, Itachi asked his mother, "Oka-sama, can we go to the park? I promised–"

"Tach," Shisui frowned, placing a hand on the younger's shoulder.

"Itachi," his mother spoke sternly, causing the two children to stop before they could speak to each other. "We're taking her to the hospital."

"But...why? She's completely health–"

"To see her little brother of course," Mikoto helped little Shizuka stand up, straightening the young girl's nightdress a bit. The former jonin kept her eyes on the small girl, fixing up her hair as she listened to her son.

"But–"

"Itachi, remember when you first got to see Sasuke?"

The addressed boy fell silent, realizing the seriousness of this situation only now. Mikoto couldn't help but laugh a little when she saw the guilty look on her son's face.

"Go get changed, Itachi–you too, Shisui–then meet me at the front doors," Mikoto gently smiled at the two boys who nodded before running off to the younger one's room. Shaking her head, the dark-haired kunoichi led the silent girl to the bathroom to get her washed up and changed. Mikoto could only smile as she helped Shizuka into a new dress.

She had always wanted a daughter, but she was already very content with her two sons. Sasuke would grow up to be a wonderful shinobi (like his namesake) and Itachi was already a brilliant one himself, even for an Uchiha.